cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
An experimental investigation of spin power losses of a planetary gear set

Abstract This experimental study investigates the contributions of the key components of load-independent (spin) power losses of planetary (epicyclic) gear sets. A dedicated test set-up is developed to operate a planetary gear set under unloaded conditions in various hardware configurations within a wide range of speed. Torque provided to the gear set is measured as the spin torque loss. A test matrix is executed specifically to measure total spin loss of the gear set as well as the contributions of its main components, namely drag loss of the sun gear, drag loss of the carrier assembly, pocketing losses at the sun–planet and ring–planet meshes, viscous planet bearing losses, and planet bearing losses due to centrifugal forces caused by the rotation of the carrier. Variations of the same gear set are tested and results from these tests are compared to estimate and rank order the contributions of these components of power loss. Impact of the rotational speed and oil temperature levels on each component is also quantified.
A capacitively coupled microwave plasma atomic emission spectrometer for the determination of trace metals in microsamples

Abstract A capacitively coupled microwave plasma operating at 450 to 850 W is used for atomic emission spectroscopy. The laboratory-constructed system contains a tungsten cup electrode capable of holding a volume of up to 30 μl. Microwaves are used to dry the sample, while at higher powers the plasma is ignited for sample vaporization and excitation. The entire analysis can be carried out in less than 5 min. A mixture of helium and hydrogen is used as the plasma gas. A spherical or cylindrical shaped plasma can be formed depending upon the gas flow rate and the microwave power selected. The effects of experimental parameters, such as gas flow rate, atomization power, electrode position and plasma shape are examined. Detection limits for Cd, Mg and Zn are in the low picogram range for a 10 μl sample; the relative standard deviation is less than 10%.
The Essential yhcSR Two-Component Signal Transduction System Directly Regulates the lac and opuCABCD Operons of Staphylococcus aureus

Our previous studies suggested that the essential two-component signal transduction system, YhcSR, regulates the opuCABCD operon at the transcriptional level, and the Pspac-driven opuCABCD partially complements the lethal effects of yhcS antisense RNA expression in Staphylococcus aureus. However, the reason why yhcSR regulon is required for growth is still unclear. In this report, we present that the lac and opuC operons are directly transcriptionally regulated by YhcSR. Using real-time RT-PCR we showed that the down-regulation of yhcSR expression affected the transcription of lacA encoding galactose-6-phosphotase isomerase subunit LacA, and opuCA encoding a subunit of a glycine betaine/carnitine/choline ABC transporter. Promoter-lux reporter fusion studies further confirmed the transcriptional regulation of lac by YhcSR. Gel shift assays revealed that YhcR binds to the promoter regions of the lac and opuC operons. Moreover, the Pspac-driven lacABC expression in trans was able to partially complement the lethal effect of induced yhcS antisense RNA. Likewise, the Pspac-driven opuCABCD expression in trans complemented the growth defect of S. aureus in a high osmotic strength medium during the depletion of YhcSR. Taken together, the above data indicate that the yhcSR system directly regulates the expression of lac and opuC operons, which, in turn, may be partially associated with the essentiality of yhcSR in S. aureus. These results provide a new insight into the biological functions of the yhcSR, a global regulator.
Polarization and polar climate

International Polar Year 2012 Conference: From Knowledge to Action;Montreal, Quebec, Canada, 22–27 April 2012 As a follow- up to the 2007–2008 International Polar Year (IPY), more than 3000 international participants came together in April 2012 at a conference entitled “From Knowledge to Action.” The conference addressed a broad scope of topics beyond academic science to include challenges of globalization, climate change, and social and economic issues. Participants included researchers and others with expertise in multiple fields: policy and decision making, law, industry, nongovernmental organizations, circumpolar communities, and indigenous peoples. The challenge of translating academic and other forms of knowledge into societal benefits dominated the event.
Activity-Based Costing in Small Manufacturing Companies—The Theory/Practice Gap

ABSTRACTActivity-based costing (ABC) has become popular and has been successfully implemented by several large manufacturing companies. However, no studies have been reported on the use of these costing systems in small companies. We report the results of a survey conducted to study the applicability of ABC in small manufacturing companies in Missouri. Information received on existing costing systems, production processes, level of automation, and interest in adopting ABC revealed a large theory/practice gap among Missouri's small manufacturing companies.
Applications of gamma-ray spectrometry in the quantitative nondestructive assay of special nuclear materials

Abstract Nearly all applications of gamma-ray spectrometry in the quantitative assay of special nuclear materials can be grouped into five general categories. They are as follows: 1) quantitative passive assay, of which transmission-corrected passive assay methods for measuring isotopic masses/concentrations are an important subset; 2) enrichment measurements on “infinitely thick” samples for the absolute determination of isotopic fractions/concentrations; 3) measurements of isotopic ratios using relative detection efficiency principles resulting in absolute isotopic distributions without recourse to standards; 4) absorption-edge densitometry measurements of elemental concentrations; and 5) X-ray fluorescence measurements of elemental concentrations. Careful and correct practice of these techniques can yield measurement accuracies in the range of 0.1–1.0% in favorable situations with measurement times generally in the range of 15 min to 1 h. We present examples of these general categories with emphasis on those measurements and techniques exhibiting the best accuracy, as well as those which are not routinely practiced in many other applications of gamma-ray spectrometry.
Classical communication in the presence of quantum Gaussian noise

The classical information capacity of channels that are subject to quantum Gaussian noise is studied. Recent work has established the capacity of the pure-loss channel, as well as bounds on and a conjecture for the capacity of the lossy channel with isotropic-Gaussian excess noise. This work is applied to the pure-loss free-space channel that uses multiple Hermite-Gaussian (HG) or Laguerre-Gaussian (LG) spatial modes to communicate between soft-aperture transmit and receive pupils, and to the lossy channel with anisotropic (colored) Gaussian noise.
Collision-induced dissociation of water into ions

A modification of the central force model (CFM) that describes the dissociation of water molecules into OH- and H+ ions is proposed for molecular dynamics simulations of energetic particle bombardment of water ice. The model keeps all the properties of the CFM but permits charge exchange between oxygen and hydrogen atoms when the water molecule starts to dissociate after collision with an energetic projectile. The reaction products, therefore, have the correct integer charges, −1 and +1 for hydroxyl and a proton. The threshold for the ionic dissociation is corrected to be at the right value, 17.2 eV, in a vacuum. Using the proposed model, total cross-sections for ionic dissociation as functions of the projectile energy are estimated for Ar and C projectiles colliding with water molecules in a vacuum and water ice. Carbon projectiles are demonstrated to produce more dissociated ions at energies lower than 300 eV. Argon projectiles are more effective in breaking the molecules at higher energies.
THE SURVIVAL OF MARINE VIBRIOS IN MERCENARIA MERCENARIA, THE HARDSHELL CLAM

A depuration chamber was used to study the persistence of marine vibrios in the hardshell clam, Mercenaria mercenaria. Specimens of M. mercenaria were incubated for two h in artificial seawater containing 103 cells/ml each of the following bacterial species; Vibrio parahaemolyticus, Vibrio harveyi and Escherichia coli, and then transferred to the depuration chamber (a tank through which U. V.-sterilized artificial seawater was continually flowing). Numbers of the three bacterial species in tissues of M. mercenaira removed from the chamber at various times were determined by differential plating techniques. The number of each species ranged from 102 to 103 colony-forming units/gram tissues immediately after transfer to the depuration chamber. After 24 h at 25°C the number of E coli cells detected had decreased over 100-fold. Generally, V. parahaemolyticus and V. harveyi were found in increased abundance after 24 h. The abundance of V. parahaemolyticus and V. harveyi in clams that had been incubated in the depuration chamber for 72 h at 25°C was approximately 10% of the abundance of these species immediately after transfer to the chamber. Similar results were obtained when the incubation temperature was 8 or 15°C and when initial cell concentrations were altered. Thus, V. harveyi and the potential human pathogen, V. parahaemolyticus which are both of marine origin were not removed from M. mercenaria at a rate comparable to the rate at which M. mercenaria depurated cells of E. coli.
Complications after cystectomy and urinary diversion in patients previously treated for localized prostate cancer.

Abstract Objectives To assess the morbidity associated with radical cystectomy in patients who had previously undergone definitive treatment of prostate cancer. Methods A retrospective review was undertaken, identifying 35 patients undergoing radical cystectomy with a previous history of radical prostatectomy and/or radiotherapy for prostate cancer. The clinical and surgical information was analyzed to assess patient outcomes. Specific attention was given to the rate, severity, and time course of the postoperative complications. In addition, outcomes after orthotopic and continent cutaneous diversion in this patient cohort were examined. Results An overall complication rate of 76% was seen in this patient cohort, with 47% of patients experiencing a complication that presented later than postoperative day 30. Radiotherapy was associated with a slightly greater complication rate compared with radical prostatectomy monotherapy (77% versus 71%). Continent urinary diversion (n = 14) was associated with increased morbidity compared with ileal conduit diversion (n = 21). However, a greater percentage of the complications occurring in patients undergoing ileal conduit diversion were major (80% versus 67%). Conclusions Our experience has suggested that radical cystectomy in patients previously treated for prostate cancer with radiotherapy and/or radical prostatectomy may be associated with a greater level of morbidity than previously reported. This finding may be, in part, because a significant portion of complications present in a delayed fashion and, as such, have not been seen in previous reports with limited follow-up. For this reason, careful consideration of these risks is necessary when counseling this patient cohort regarding the decision to undergo radical cystectomy.
To know with the nose: keys to odor identification

Successful odor identification depends on (i) commonly encountered substances, (ii) a long-standing connection between an odor and its name, and (iii) aid in recalling the name. The absence of any one ingredient impairs performance dramatically, but the presence of all three permits ready identification of scores of substances, with performance seemingly limited only by the inherent confusability of the stimuli.
Warren, McCain, and Obama needed fuzzy sets at presidential forum

During a presidential forum in the 2008 US presidential campaign, the moderator, Pastor Rick Warren, wanted Senator John McCain and then-Senator Barack Obama to define rich with a specific number. Warren wanted to know at what specific income level a person goes from being not rich to rich. The problem with this question is that there is no specific income at which a person makes the leap from being not rich to being rich. This is because rich is a fuzzy set, not a crisp set, with different incomes having different degrees of membership in the rich fuzzy set. Fuzzy logic is needed to properly ask and answer Warren's question about quantitatively defining rich. An imprecise natural language word like rich should be considered to have qualitative definitions, crisp quantitative definitions, and fuzzy quantitative definitions.
Comparison of cDNAs from bovine brain coding for two isoforms of calreticulin.

Abstract Calreticulin is a major calcium-binding protein of the endoplasmic reticulum of non-muscle cells. In addition to a 1.9-kb calreticulin mRNA, some evidence has suggested the existence of another transcript of 3.75 kb, which is very similar to calreticulin. We report here the isolation and sequencing of cDNA clones from a bovine brain lambda gt11 cDNA library, two of which appear to code for calreticulin and a third for a novel isoform of calreticulin. The deduced amino-acid sequence of the novel clones shares high similarity with mouse calreticulin in the C-terminal 318 amino acids. However, its N-terminal sequence is completely divergent. Northern blot analysis of bovine cerebral cortex RNA indicates that the conserved region of the clone by hybridizes to two messages of 1.9 kb and 3.75 kb. The divergent region of this clone hybridizes to the 3.75-kb message, but not to the 1.9-kb message. We believe that this novel clone corresponds to an alternate form of calreticulin which is identical to calreticulin toward the C-terminus, but completely different at the N-terminal region, and that this isoform is encoded by a much larger message.
Clinical and laboratory evaluation of thrombophilia

Thrombophilia is the predisposition to venous thromboembolism and is caused by inherited and acquired factors, alone or in combination. With the discovery of APC resistance and the prothrombin gene mutation, more than half of all patients with clinical characteristics of thrombophilia are now diagnosed with an inherited disorder. The hypercoagulable work-up of patients with venous thromboembolism is important, because the causes can influence the duration and management of anticoagulation therapy, as well as affect other decisions regarding life and health issues.
Reduction of Imines by Hydroxycyclopentadienyl Ruthenium Hydride: Intramolecular Trapping Evidence for Hydride and Proton Transfer Outside the Coordination Sphere of the Metal

Reduction of imines by [2,5-Ph2-3,4-Tol2(η5-C4COH)]Ru(CO)2H (2) produces kinetically stable ruthenium amine complexes. Reduction of an imine by 2 in the presence of an external amine trap gives only the complex of the newly generated amine. Reaction of 2 with H2N-p-C6H4NCHPh (11), which contains an intramolecular amine trap, gave a 1:1 mixture of [2,5-Ph2-3,4-Tol2(η4-C4CO)](CO)2RuNH(CH2Ph)(C6H4-p-NH2) (8), formed by coordination of the newly generated amine to the ruthenium center, and [2,5-Ph2-3,4-Tol2(η4-C4CO)](CO)2RuNH2C6H4-p-NHCH2Ph (9), formed by coordination of the amine already present in the substrate. These results require transfer of hydrogen to the imine outside the coordination sphere of the metal to give a coordinatively unsaturated intermediate that can be trapped inside the initial solvent cage. Amine diffusion from the solvent cage must be much slower than coordination to the metal center. Mechanisms requiring prior coordination of the substrate to ruthenium would have led only to 8 and ca...
Inalienable possession in copulative contexts and the DP-structure☆

Following the view in Kayne (1993) according to which possessive sentences involve a copulative head with a D/PP complement, this paper investigates possessive contexts in Spanish which involve, apart from a possessor and a possessum argument, adjectival modification. These contexts will be shown to give raise to a case of have/be alternation. The choice of the copulative head is associated to different word order in the post-copular material, as well as to different agreement on the adjectival head. I argue that this cluster of properties follows from two different syntactic derivations leading to the raising of the possessor argument to the nominative checking position of the copulative possessive sentence. Moreover, based on the observation that only scalar adjectives are allowed in inalienable possessive sentences with be copulas, whereas both scalar and intersective adjectives are possible in their have counterparts, I will develop an account of the syntactic conditions under which scalar and intersective readings arise. Finally, it will be argued that possessive sentences involving transitory possession structurally differ from those involving permanent possession. In particular, I will propose that the adjective and the possessum argument form a small clause in the former case, whereas in the latter, the projection containing the possessum is generated as a complement of the adjective. The set of proposals in this paper have interesting consequences not only for the syntax of possessive contexts, but also for the syntax of DP's. For instance, from the approach developed here it follows that adjectival modification can be licensed through overt movement of a projection containing the modified noun to the specifier of the projection headed by the adjective. Therefore, we should allow for DP-internal raising of the noun as part of a raising XP.
Small zebrafish in a big chemical pond

The number of possible small organic molecules of different structure is virtually limitless. One of the main goals of chemical biologists is to identify, from this “chemical space”, entities that affect biological processes or systems in a specific manner. This can lead to a better understanding of the regulation and components of various biological machineries, as well as provide insights into efficacious therapeutic targets and drug candidates. However, the challenges confronting chemical biologists are multiple. How do we efficiently identify compounds that possess desirable activities without unwanted off-target effects? Once a candidate compound has been found, how do we determine its mode of action? In this Prospects piece, we call attention to recent studies using embryonic and larval zebrafish to illustrate the breadth and depth of questions in chemical biology that may be addressed using this model, and hope that they can serve as catalysts for future investigational ideas.
Context-directed segmentation algorithm for handwritten numeral strings

Abstract A context-directed algorithm is proposed for segmenting connected numeral strings into their components. The algorithm is hierarchical (tree-like structure) in the sense that it tests various hypotheses ranging from the case where the numerals are completely isolated to that where the numerals may be connected, touching and/or existing in overlapping fields. Test results indicate that the algorithm is very effective in providing an accurate segmentation in a form suitable for further processing by a recognition algorithm.
The Healthy Newborn Hydration Model A New Model for Understanding Newborn Hydration Immediately After Birth

The normal small volume of breast milk produced in the first 2 days following birth may raise concerns about adequate hydration in breast-fed newborns. These concerns are further magnified when breast-fed infants lose ≥7% of their birth weight within 2 days postnatally. Weight loss following birth is presumably mostly water loss that could result in hypohydration and subsequent hypernatremic dehydration. However, excess fluid loss immediately following birth is a normal and necessary process. Furthermore, newborns exposed to excess fluid intake during labor may need to lose ≥7% of birth weight in the first 2 days following birth in order to achieve euhydration. Normal newborn fluid loss following birth confounds the use of weight loss as the sole measure of newborn hydration. We thus propose the healthy newborn hydration model that highlights the normalcy of newborn weight loss immediately following birth and the healthy newborn's compensatory mechanisms for preserving adequate hydration. We also recommend the use of serum sodium to measure intravascular osmolarity in addition to monitoring weight loss to obtain a more comprehensive newborn hydration assessment. Research is necessary in healthy newborns to identify relationships among fluids received in utero, newborn weight loss, and hydration, as evaluated with laboratory measures, in the first 2 days following birth. This information will guide clinicians in correctly identifying newborns with inadequate hydration who are in need of supplementary fluids versus newborns with adequate hydration for whom exclusive breast-feeding can be supported and encouraged.
On the lattice points on strictly convex surfaces

Abstract The aim of this paper is to show that on strictly convex closed surface in the three-dimensional space there cannot be more than (2.2 + o(1))P 3 4 points with integral coordinates, where P is the surface area.
Organizational Culture and Successful Information Technology Implementation

AbstractInformation technology has been the catalyst for the new source of economic wealth during the current economic period called the Information Age. Some industries and specific organizations have successfully implemented numerous information technologies and, as a result, enjoy great competitive advantages. Others have not. This article explores whether the internal environment enjoyed by an organization contributes to this success or failure. It also investigates whether the organization's cultural climate and its balance of concern for production issues vs. people issues play a role in implementation success. Data from this 3-year study of 18 companies involved in government and commercial ventures suggest a correlation between specific cultural attributes and the successful implementation of information technology systems. We found that people-oriented rather than production-oriented aspects exerted the most significant influence.
Modulated differential scanning calorimetry in the glass transition region. Part III. Evaluation of polystyrene and poly(ethylene tetrephthalate)

Modulated differential scanning calorimetry (MDSC)) presents a new method to evaluate the kinetics underlying the glass transition. Equations that were derived earlier to describe the various time effects in the glass transition, based on irreversible thermodynamics and the theory of liquids, are applied to quasi-isothermal MDSC experiments on amorphous polystyrene and poly(ethylene terephthalate). The analysis involves the computation of a phase angle for the change in the apparent heat capacity at the glass transition that becomes 60° at the point of half-vitrification, followed by a determination of the activation energy as a function of modulation amplitude. Activation energies of 346 and 328 kJ mol−1 were found for the respective polymers.
The Impact of Schools on Learning: Inner-City Children in Suburban Schools.

Abstract This study deals with the problem of how to enhance the educational performance of inner-city minority group children. Two hypotheses derived from the “Coleman Report” (U.S. Office of Education, 1966) were used: (a) placing an inner-city youngster in a classroom with high mean achievement will result in greater measured academic growth than placing him in low or average achieving classrooms, and (b) placing an inner-city youngster in a classroom situation where he is shown a high degree of acceptance by his peers will result in greater measured academic growth than placing him in a situation where the degree of acceptance is average or low. These hypotheses were applied independently in two settings: urban schools and suburban schools. The results, using randomly selected inner-city children, suggest support for both hypotheses, but underline the much greater potency of the suburban school.
Wave particle duality considerations in optical computing

The wave particle duality inherent in the propagation of light or particles can be exploited for energy efficient computing leading to energy requirement per calculation below kT. Although several reversible computers with similar characteristics were proposed in the past, only optical implementations can be made with the present technology.
Using social norms to reduce bullying: A research intervention among adolescents in five middle schools

Bullying attitudes and behaviors and perceptions of peers were assessed in a case study experiment employing a social norms intervention in five diverse public middle schools in the State of New Jersey (Grades 6 to 8). Data were collected using an anonymous online survey (baseline n = 2,589; postintervention n = 3,024). In the baseline survey, students substantially misperceived peer norms regarding bullying perpetration and support for probullying attitudes. As predicted by social norms theory, they thought bullying perpetration, victimization, and probullying attitudes were far more frequent than was the case. Also as predicted, variation in perceptions of the peer norm for bullying was significantly associated with personal bullying perpetration and attitudes. Using print media posters as the primary communication strategy, an intervention displaying accurate norms from survey results was conducted at each of the five school sites. A pre-/postintervention comparison of results revealed significant reductions overall in perceptions of peer bullying and probullying attitudes while personal bullying of others and victimization were also reduced and support for reporting bullying to adults at school and in one's family increased. The extent of reductions across school sites was associated with the prevalence and extent of recall of seeing poster messages reporting actual peer norms drawn from the initial survey data. Rates of change in bullying measures were highest (from around 17% to 35%) for the school with the highest message recall by students after a one-and-a-half-year intervention. Results suggest that a social norms intervention may be a promising strategy to help reduce bullying in secondary school populations.
An Optimal Drum Scheduling Algorithm

Suppose a set of N records must be read or written from a drum, fixed-head disk, or similar storage unit of a computer system. The records vary in length and are arbitrarily located on the surface of the drum. The problem considered here is to find an algorithm that schedules the processing of these records with the minimal total amount of rotational latency (access time), taking into account the current position of the drum. This problem is a special case of the traveling salesman problem. The algorithm that is developed has the attractive property of exhibiting a computational complexity on the order of N log N.
Observations and Modeling of a Filament on the Sun

Hα observations of a filament were obtained at the Swedish Vacuum Solar Telescope in 1998 June. The U-shaped filament has a prominent barb that exhibits interesting fine structure and internal motions. A three-dimensional magnetic model of the filament is presented. The model is based on a National Solar Observatory (Kitt Peak) magnetogram and is constructed by inserting a twisted flux rope into a potential field representing the overlying coronal arcade; the flux rope has an axial flux of 3.4 × 1019 Mx and poloidal flux of 3.7 × 109 Mx cm-1. Magnetofrictional relaxation is used to drive the configuration to a nonlinear force-free field. The shape of the resulting flux rope is distorted by neighboring network elements. The dips in the helical field lines reproduce the observed filament barb, which is caused by a local distortion of the flux rope resulting from a weak-field extension (~4 G) of a neighboring network element. The pitch of the helical field lines is larger than expected on the basis of a model of flux rope formation. I suggest that this is due to magnetic diffusion within the flux rope. A simple model of magnetic diffusion in a cylindrical flux rope is presented.
Cultivated Helianthus annuus (Asteraceae) volunteers as a genetic “bridge” to weedy sunflower populations in North America

In many crops, unharvested seeds can create populations of volunteer plants that increase opportunities for crop-to-wild gene flow. Pollen-mediated gene flow between cultivated and wild sunflower (both Helianthus annuus, Asteraceae) is well documented, but the role of seed dispersal and volunteers has not been investigated. We compared flowering times and other phenotypic traits of volunteers from both "normal" and "off-type" (multi-headed) crop plants with those of wild sunflowers. Normal and off-type volunteers typically had a maternally inherited, crop-specific DNA marker. Seedlings of wild plants, normal volunteers, and off-type volunteers from Colorado were cultivated in a greenhouse and at a field site in Ohio. We used a classification tree approach to differentiate the three plant types and identify phenotypic traits that can be used to recognize volunteers in the field in future surveys. In greenhouse and field experiments, we observed sufficient overlap in flowering times to allow gene flow among the three plant types. Volunteers from off-type crop plants were more likely to cross-pollinate with wild plants than volunteers from normal crop plants. Our results suggest that both types of crop volunteers have the potential to act as conduits for gene exchange between cultivated and wild sunflowers.
CERVICAL STENOSIS IN THE ATHLETE

Abstract Athletes with cervical spinal stenosis pose a treatment dilemma for orthopaedic surgeons. Although most athletes with this condition actively participate in full-contact sports without any sympatomatology, a small number of athletes come to the team physician's attention because of a recent history of “stingers” and/or transient neuropraxia of the spinal cord. These patients may exhibit cervical spinal stenosis by radiographic criteria, and the dilemma usually arises of whether these individuals should be allowed to return to full contact sports. Although the most conservative decision is to not allow the athlete to return to the sport, there is no documented scientific literature to support that these individuals are at high risk of permanent quadriplegia. Because hard data are lacking, we recommend that these athletes be informed of the possible potential neurological sequelae and become intimately involved with the decision-making process. The athlete must be totally asymptomatic with normal physical examination before resuming his/her sport.
Electronic structure and bonding at the Al-terminated Al(111)/α-Al2O3(0001) interface: A first principles study

We have performed ab initio calculations to determine the bonding character of the Al–terminated Al(111)/ –Al2O3(0001) interface. By using an optimized model in which all atomic coordinates were relaxed to their minimum energy positions, we have determined that Al–O bonds constitute the primary interfacial bonding interaction. Our electron localization, Mayer bond order, and Mulliken population analyses reveal that these bonds are very similar to the cation–anion bonds found in the bulk oxide, and are therefore mainly ionic, with a smaller amount of covalent character. However, there is also evidence of metal–cation bonding across the interface, a result which could be significant to understanding bonding at interfaces with other corundum-like oxides.
Electrocatalytic Carbon Dioxide Activation: The Rate‐Determining Step of Pyridinium‐Catalyzed CO2 Reduction

The reactivity of reduced pyridinium with CO2 was investigated as a function of catalyst concentration, temperature, and pressure at platinum electrodes. Concentration experiments show that the catalytic current measured by cyclic voltammetry increases linearly with pyridinium and CO2 concentrations; this indicates that the rate-determining step is first order in both. The formation of a carbamate intermediate is supported by the data presented. Increased electron density at the pyridyl nitrogen upon reduction, as calculated by DFT, favors a Lewis acid/base interaction between the nitrogen and the CO2. The rate of the known side reaction, pyridinium coupling to form hydrogen, does not vary over the temperature range investigated and had a rate constant of 2.5 M−1 s−1. CO2 reduction followed Arrhenius behavior and the activation energy determined by electrochemical simulation was (69±10) kJ mol−1.
Algunas puntualizaciones sobre el concepto de la historia

En 1947 trataba yo de presentar el problema del conocimiento cientifico frente a aquellos objetos constituidos directamente con los materiales de la vida humana (y ahi entran tanto los de la Sociologia como los de la Historia.
Spontaneous epidermal tumor in an adult newt, Cynops pyrrhogaster.

The occurrence of spontaneous papillomas in the skin of a newt, Cynops pyrrhogaster ,[2][1] is reported for the first time, and a histological description of the tumor is given. The tumor was composed of both epidermal and dermal elements, but only the epidermal elements showed abnormalities. [1]: #fn-2
AVDL: a highly adaptable architecture view description language

Architectural views are rapidly gaining a momentum as a vehicle to document and analyze software architectures. Despite their popularity, there is no dedicated language flexible enough to support the specifications of an unbound variety of views including those preexisting and needing to be newly created on demand. In this paper, we propose a novel view description language intended for specifying any arbitrary views, using a uniform set of conventions for constructing views and how to use them. The highly adaptable nature of the new language results from its built-in mechanisms to define different types of views in a systematic and repeatable manner.
Effects of the catastrophic behavior of TCM schemes with partially overlapped signal constellations

The paper shows that the catastrophic behavior of TCM codes based on partially overlapped signal constellations significantly increases both the effective error coefficient and the decoding delay of such codes, resulting in a non negligible performance degradation with respect to the asymptotic coding gain. >
Integrating an aftercare plan for the chronic patient

The authors describe a „cook book” approach to integrating knowledge gained from previous chapters into an organized, problem-oriented approach to treatment.
A comparison of methods for estimating fractional green vegetation cover within a desert-to-upland transition zone in central New Mexico, USA

We compared a set of methods for estimating fractional green vegetation cover (fc) over a ¨4000 km 2 region of central New Mexico, USA. The models used were trained and tested independently using high-resolution, true-color orthoimagery with 0.3 m spatial resolution. Simple NDVI-based methods performed well for estimating fc regionally but overestimated fc in sparsely vegetated areas with bright soils, and areas with abundant non-photosynthetic vegetation (e.g. dry shrubs). Three-, four-, and five-endmember spectral mixture models (SMA3, SMA4, and SMA5) were also compared. Constrained versions of these models all produced similar accuracy regionally, but constrained and unconstrained versions of the SMA5 model best captured fc for the rarer landscapes (bright soils, riparian vegetation) found throughout the region. This indicates that heterogeneous landscapes can be stratified into relatively homogeneous strata, and three or four endmembers may be adequate to characterize the spectral variability within each stratum. Including NDVI along with the six reflective bands of ETM+ data, provided enough data dimensionality to support the five-endmember SMA model. This permitted a more complete representation of the range of spectral landscape types that are germane for separating out green vegetation in this semi-arid region. We also note that green woody vegetation and green grass cover should be spectrally represented by two different endmembers in SMA because these two vegetation types are spectrally different, particularly in the near-infrared (NIR) wavelength.
Using inductive method to teach nuclear energy

The author has been teaching a survey course on nuclear energy in the past several years with internet resources without textbooks. The resources are organized in a way to facility inductive learning but with available documents for deductive learners as well. The course has received good reviews from students as the topics are relevant and the teaching encourages deep learning.
A Versatile High-Permittivity Phantom for EIT

Phantoms are frequently used in medical imaging systems to test hardware, reconstruction algorithms, and the interpretation of data. This report describes and characterizes the use of powdered graphite as a means of adding a significant reactive component or permittivity to useful phantom media for electrical impedance imaging. The phantom materials produced have usable complex admittivity at the electrical impedance tomography (EIT) frequencies from a few kilohertz to 1 MHz, as measured by our EIT system (ACT4) and by a commercial bioimpedance analyzer (BIS 4000, Xitron). We have also studied a commercial ultrasound coupling gel, which is highly electrically conductive and semisolid but that permits objects to move within it. The mixture of agar-graphite and gel-graphite, increases in permittivity and conductivity are proportional to the graphite concentration. We also report the use of a porous polymer membrane to simulate skin. A thin layer of this membrane increased resistance and the characteristic frequency of the phantoms, providing a promising candidate to simulate the effect of skin and the layered structure of a breast or other anatomical structure. The graphite also provides a realistic level of ldquospecklerdquo in ultrasound images of the phantom, which may be useful in developing dual-mode imaging systems with ultrasound and the EIT.
Fusion with a cell wall binding domain renders autolysin LytM a potent anti-Staphylococcus aureus agent

Despite intense efforts by the medical and pharmaceutical communities, Staphylococcus aureus continues to be a pervasive pathogen that causes a myriad of diseases and a high level of morbidity and mortality among infected patients. Thus, discovering or designing novel therapeutics able to kill both drug-resistant and drug-sensitive S. aureus remains a top priority. Bacteriolytic enzymes, mostly from phage, have shown great promise in preclinical studies, but little consideration has been given to cis-acting autolytic enzymes derived from the pathogen itself. Here, we use the S. aureus autolysin LytM as a proof of principal to demonstrate the antibacterial potential of endogenous peptidoglycan-degrading enzymes. While native LytM is only marginally bactericidal, fusion of LytM to the lysostaphin cell wall binding domain enhances its anti-staphylococcal activity approximately 540-fold, placing it on par with many phage lysins currently in preclinical development. The potential to therapeutically co-opt a pathogen's endogenous peptidoglycan recycling machinery opens the door to a previously untapped reservoir of antibacterial drug candidates.
Passivity based control of transport reaction systems

Inventory control is based on the idea manipulating process flows so that the inventories follow their set points. The operator mapping flows to inventories in a coarse grained (macroscopic) system is passive and any input strictly passive (ISP) feedback controller can, therefore, be used to achieve input-output stability. Examples of ISP controllers include the PID controller, parameter adaptive feedforward control, optimal controllers and many nonlinear and gain scheduling controllers. Input-output stability and convergence of inventories, such as total mass and energy can be used to show that other internal state variables are bounded and belong to an invariant set. However, this does not necessarily imply convergence of all state variables to stationary valves because a stabilizability condition, known as strict state passivity, must be satisfied. The 2nd law of thermodynamics is used to develop sufficient conditions for strict state passivity in the space of intensive variables. The theory relies on following two assumptions concerning nonequilibrium systems: (1) The hypothesis of local equilibrium, and (2) That a local entropy is defined using semiclassical statistical mechanics. These assumptions allow us to define a local entropy function for the coarse grained system which is homogeneous degree one, concave, and has positive temperature. Subject to these conditions stability theory is developed for conjugate variables, such as temperature, pressure and chemical potential in infinite dimensional reaction-diffusion-convection systems. In classical irreversible thermodynamics this type of analysis assumes linearity and symmetry of transport relations. The use of Gibbs tangent plane condition allows us to define a Lyapunov like storage function for passivity design, which gives stability criteria for nonlinear problems. The resulting sufficient condition for stability can be expressed in terms of dimensionless groups, similar to the (second) Damkohler number. Simple simulation examples illustrate the application of the theory. © 2005 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2005
DNA-Launched Alphavirus Replicons Encoding a Fusion of Mycobacterial Antigens Acr and Ag85B Are Immunogenic and Protective in a Murine Model of TB Infection

There is an urgent need for effective prophylactic measures against Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) infection, particularly given the highly variable efficacy of Bacille Calmette-Guerin (BCG), the only licensed vaccine against tuberculosis (TB). Most studies indicate that cell-mediated immune responses involving both CD4+ and CD8+ T cells are necessary for effective immunity against Mtb. Genetic vaccination induces humoral and cellular immune responses, including CD4+ and CD8+ T-cell responses, against a variety of bacterial, viral, parasitic and tumor antigens, and this strategy may therefore hold promise for the development of more effective TB vaccines. Novel formulations and delivery strategies to improve the immunogenicity of DNA-based vaccines have recently been evaluated, and have shown varying degrees of success. In the present study, we evaluated DNA-launched Venezuelan equine encephalitis replicons (Vrep) encoding a novel fusion of the mycobacterial antigens α-crystallin (Acr) and antigen 85B (Ag85B), termed Vrep-Acr/Ag85B, for their immunogenicity and protective efficacy in a murine model of pulmonary TB. Vrep-Acr/Ag85B generated antigen-specific CD4+ and CD8+ T cell responses that persisted for at least 10 wk post-immunization. Interestingly, parenterally administered Vrep-Acr/Ag85B also induced T cell responses in the lung tissues, the primary site of infection, and inhibited bacterial growth in both the lungs and spleens following aerosol challenge with Mtb. DNA-launched Vrep may, therefore, represent an effective approach to the development of gene-based vaccines against TB, particularly as components of heterologous prime-boost strategies or as BCG boosters.
Bi-directional illusory position shifts toward the end point of apparent motion.

In this study, we examined the relation between motion induced position shifts and the position shifts caused by saccades. When a stimulus is Xashed brieXy around the time of a saccade, its perceived position is mislocalized toward the saccade target: if the Xash is in front of the saccade the test Xash appears shifted in the direction of eye movement; but a test Xashed beyond the saccade target is displaced back toward the saccade target (bi-directional saccadic compression: Ross, J., Morrone, M. C., & Burr, D. C. (1997). Compression of visual space before saccades. Nature, 386, 598–601. Motion induced position shifts (in the absence of eye movements) have been demonstrated for a variety of stimuli but the illusory position shift is always found to be in the same direction as the motion. However, all previous studies presented the tests either along or beside the motion path, never beyond its end point. We now test this region beyond the motion path and Wnd that the apparent location of a test in this region is shifted in the direction opposite to the motion, back toward the motion end point. In contrast, when the Xash was presented between the beginning and end of the motion path, it is shifted in the direction of motion, again, toward the motion end point. These shifts together indicate a compression of perceived locations toward the end point of the apparent motion. Control experiments conWrmed that this eVect was neither due to the Frohlich eVect induced by apparent motion from the test Xash to the second disc nor to foveal compression. The correspondence between compression toward the end point of apparent motion and saccadic compression toward the saccade target suggests that attentional shifts or planned eye movement signals may play a role in both.
The global social insurance movement since the 1880s.

This article analyses the patterns and dynamics of the global social insurance movement since the 1880s through the framework of ‘interactive diffusion’. It argues that two principal models of social insurance – the German capitalist and Soviet socialist – diffused around the world throughout the twentieth century. It contends that global forces conveyed basic ideas while national forces determined the timing and specifics of the adoption of global models. From the 1980s, however, a new global model of privatization emerged with the rise of neo-liberalism and support from the World Bank. Privatization partially replaced public pension systems in Latin America, then in the former socialist countries in Europe and in a few other countries. Nevertheless, national compulsory social insurance has remained the predominant form for social protection in the world.
Experimental determination of the redox potential of the superoxide radical •O2−

Abstract The redox potential of •O2− was determined based on the dependence of the electron transfer reaction from •O2− upon the known redox potential of various acceptors A (including a range of quinones, dyes and ferricyanide). The efficiencies and the rates of these electron transfer processes were determined, using the technique of pulse radiolysis, by monitoring the formation kinetics of the semiquinone radical anions at the appropriate wavelength. From the percentage efficiency versus Eo′ plot, an Eo′ value of + 0.15 ± 0.01 V at pH 7.0 and 22°C, or Eo = + 0.57 ± 0.01 V, for the • O 2 − O 2 couple was obtained. The rate k(•O2− + A → O2 + •A−) = 9.8 × 108 M−1 sec−1 where A = p-benzoquinone. The Eo value for the •HO2 radical is > 1.0 V. It was also found that hydroquinone can quantitatively reduce •O2− to H2O2, k(•O2− + QH2 → QH• + HO2−) = 1.6 ± 0.1 × 107 M−1 sec−1 at pH 7.0 and 22°C.