cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Imaging through occlusions with single photon counters (Conference Presentation)

Imaging through scattering media in the visible part of the electromagnetic spectrum holds many applications in various industries. For example, seeing through fog would enable autonomous vehicles to navigate in degraded weather conditions, augment human drivers and allow airplanes to operate in dense fog conditions. Another domain is medical imaging, where the ability to see into the body in the visible spectrum would reduce ionizing radiation exposure and provide more clinical meaningful data. Recent advances in single photon avalanche diode (SPAD) counters, and specifically time-resolved single photon counters enabled various challenging imaging applications. The main advantages provided by SPAD devices for imaging are improved noise models and sensitivity, both are essential in low signal-to-noise (SNR) imaging modalities. Another interesting property of SPAD detectors is the ability to measure single photon events which exposes the statistical nature of light. Moreover, the ability to manufacture SPAD arrays naturally lead to a faster and simpler acquisition process as they alleviate the need for scanning. Here, we leverage a time-resolved SPAD camera and demonstrate its advantages for imaging through scattering media. Specifically we experimentally demonstrate seeing through fog and imaging through scattering layers. These examples directly leverage the single photon sensitivity in modeling and rejecting scattered light.
The Dirksen Grammar: A Generative Description of Mies van der Rohe’s Courthouse Design Language

A generative description of Mies van der Rohe’s courthouse design language is presented in the form of a three-dimensional parametric shape grammar and its significance in the discourse of courthouse building type is discussed.
LSD1-mediated enhancer silencing enables endocrine cell development through attenuation of retinoic acid signalling

Abstract Developmental progression depends on temporally defined changes in gene expression mediated by transient exposure of lineage intermediates to signals in the progenitor niche. To identify a possible contribution of cell-intrinsic epigenetic mechanisms to signal-induced transcriptional responses, we manipulated the signalling environment and activity of the histone demethylase LSD1 during stepwise differentiation of gut tube intermediates into pancreatic endocrine cells. Analysis of enhancer and transcriptome landscapes revealed that lineage progression and endocrine cell differentiation requires LSD1-mediated silencing of transiently active retinoic acid (RA)-induced enhancers. In the absence of LSD1, early RA-responsive enhancers remain partially active despite RA removal, resulting in perduring expression of RA-induced genes, and failure to progress in development. Our findings identify LSD1-mediated enhancer silencing as a cell-intrinsic epigenetic feedback mechanism by which the duration of the transcriptional response to a developmental signal is limited. Given LSD1’s requirement in numerous developmental contexts, the here-described mechanism would be broadly relevant.
Preliminary Evidence of Transport-Limited Chemical Weathering and Element Immobility in the Ganges Tidal Delta Plain of Bangladesh

Previous studies have documented a weathering-limited regime in the upper reaches of the Ganges River Basin. Chemical weathering and element mobility at six sites in the lower reaches of the Ganges...
Distortion-Based Lightweight Security for Cyber-Physical Systems

In cyber-physical systems (CPS), inference based on communicated data is of critical significance as it can be used to manipulate or damage the control operations by adversaries. This calls for efficient mechanisms for secure transmission of data since control systems are becoming increasingly distributed over larger geographical areas. Distortion-based security, recently proposed as one candidate for secure transmissions in CPS, is not only more appropriate for these applications but also quite frugal in terms of prior requirements on shared keys. In this article, we propose distortion-based metrics to protect CPS communication and show that it is possible to confuse adversaries with just a few bits of preshared keys. In particular, we will show that a linear dynamical system can communicate its state in a manner that prevents an eavesdropper from accurately learning the state.
Altered Metabolism of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons by UDP-Glycosyltransferase 3A2 Missense Variants.

The UDP-glycosyltransferase (UGT) family of enzymes are important in the metabolism of a variety of exogenous substances including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), a potent class of environmental carcinogens. As compared to the majority of UGT enzymes, which utilize UDP-glucuronic acid as a cosubstrate, UGT3A2 utilizes alternative cosubstrates (UDP-glucose and UDP-xylose). UGT3A2 is expressed in aerodigestive tract tissues and was highly active against multiple PAHs with both cosubstrates. The goal of the present study was to assess the functional effects of UGT3A2 missense variants (MAF ≥ 0.005) on PAH metabolism and the utilization of cosubstrates. The glycosylation activity (Vmax/Km) of all variants against simple PAHs using both cosubstrates was significantly (P 4000 μM). Additionally, both wild-type and variant UGT3A2 exhibited a significant (P < 0.05) difference in their utilization of UDP-glucose vs UDP-xylose as cosubstrates using 1-OH-pyrene as substrate. These data suggest that UGT3A2 missense variants decrease the detoxification of PAHs, potentially resulting in altered individual risk for PAH-related cancers.
Off-Balance Sheet Items of Depository Institutions in the Enhanced Financial Accounts

The Enhanced Financial Accounts initiative is an ambitious, long-term effort to augment the Financial Accounts of the United States with a more detailed picture of financial intermediation in the United States. This Note describes one initial project to provide more detailed information on the holdings and activities of depository institutions.
Heuristics for unrooted, unranked, and ranked anomaly zones under birth-death models

Abstract Species trees that can generate a nonmatching gene tree topology that is more probable than the topology matching the species tree are said to be in an anomaly zone. We introduce some heuristic approaches to infer whether species trees are in anomaly zones when it is difficult or impossible to compute the entire distribution of gene tree topologies. Here, probabilities of unrooted, unranked, and ranked gene tree topologies under the multispecies coalescent are used. A ranked tree can be viewed as an unranked tree with a temporal ordering of its internal nodes. Overall, considering probabilities of unrooted or unranked gene tree topologies within one nearest neighbor interchange from the species tree topology is a reasonable heuristic to infer the existence of anomalous unrooted or unranked gene trees, respectively. We investigated a test proposed by Linkem et al. (2016) which classifies a species tree as being in an unranked anomaly zone if there is a subset of four taxa in an unranked anomaly zone. We find this test to have high true positive rates, but it can also have high false positive rates. For ranked trees, because at least one of the most probable ranked gene tree topologies must have the same unranked topology as the species tree, we propose to use only those ranked gene trees that have topologies that match the unranked species tree topology. We find that the probability that the species tree is in unrooted and unranked anomaly zones tends to increase with the speciation rate, and the probability of all three types of anomaly zones increases rapidly with the number of taxa. We find that probabilities that species trees are in an anomaly zone can be quite high for moderately high speciation rates.
FDA Approval Summary: Nivolumab Plus Ipilimumab for the Treatment of Patients with Hepatocellular Carcinoma Previously Treated with Sorafenib

On March 10, 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted accelerated approval to nivolumab in combination with ipilimumab for the treatment of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) previously treated with sorafenib. The recommended approved dosage was nivolumab 1 mg/kg i.v. plus ipilimumab 3 mg/kg i.v. every 3 weeks for four cycles, followed by nivolumab 240 mg i.v. every 2 weeks. The approval was based on data from cohort 4 of CheckMate 040, which randomized patients with advanced unresectable or metastatic HCC previously treated with or who were intolerant to sorafenib to receive one of three different dosing regimens of nivolumab in combination with ipilimumab. Investigator-assessed overall response rate (ORR) was the primary endpoint, and ORR assessed by blinded independent central review (BICR) was an exploratory endpoint. BICR-assessed ORR and duration of response (DoR) form the primary basis of the FDA's regulatory decision, and BICR-assessed ORR was comparable in all three arms at 31%-32% with 95% confidence interval [CI] 18%-47%. The DoR ranged from 17.5 to 22.2 months across the three arms, with overlapping 95% CIs. Adverse events (AEs) were generally consistent with the known AE profiles of nivolumab and ipilimumab, and no new safety events were identified. This article summarizes the FDA review of the data supporting the approval of nivolumab and ipilimumab for the treatment of HCC. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: Nivolumab and ipilimumab combination therapy is another option for patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma who experience radiographic progression during or after sorafenib or sorafenib intolerance. No new toxicities were identified, but, as expected, increased toxicity was observed with the addition of ipilimumab to nivolumab as compared with nivolumab alone, which is also approved for the same indication. Whether to administer nivolumab as a single agent or in combination with ipilimumab is expected to be a joint decision between the oncologist and patient, taking into consideration the potential for a higher likelihood of response and the potentially higher rate of toxicity with the combination.
Bayesian Deep Graph Matching for Correspondence Identification in Collaborative Perception

Correspondence identification is essential for multi-robot collaborative perception, which aims to identify the same objects in order to ensure consistent references of the objects by a group of robots/agents in their own fields of view. Although recent deep learning methods have shown encouraging performance on correspondence identification, they suffer from two shortcomings, including the inability to address non-covisibility in collaborative perception that is caused by occlusion and limited fields of view of the agents, and the inability to quantify and reduce uncertainty to improve correspondence identification. To address both issues, we propose a novel uncertainty-aware deep graph matching method for correspondence identification in collaborative perception. Our method formulates correspondence identification as a deep graph matching problem, which identifies correspondences based upon graph representations that are constructed from robot observations. We propose new deep graph matching networks in the Bayesian framework to explicitly quantify uncertainty in identified correspondences. In addition, we design novel loss functions in order to explicitly reduce correspondence uncertainty and perceptual non-covisibility during learning. We evaluate our method in the robotics applications of collaborative assembly and multi-robot coordination using high-fidelity simulations and physical robots. Experiments have validated that, by addressing uncertainty and non-covisibility, our proposed approach achieves the state-of-the-art performance of correspondence identification.
SU-E-T-75: A Simple Technique for Proton Beam Range Verification

Purpose: To develop a measurement-based technique to verify the range of proton beams for quality assurance (QA). Methods: We developed a simple technique to verify the proton beam range with in-house fabricated devices. Two separate devices were fabricated; a clear acrylic rectangular cuboid and a solid polyvinyl chloride (PVC) step wedge. For efficiency in our clinic, we used the rectangular cuboid for double scattering (DS) beams and the step wedge for pencil beam scanning (PBS) beams. These devices were added to our QA phantom to measure dose points along the distal fall-off region (between 80% and 20%) in addition to dose at mid-SOBP (spread out Bragg peak) using a two-dimensional parallel plate chamber array (MatriXX™, IBA Dosimetry, Schwarzenbruck, Germany). This method relies on the fact that the slope of the distal fall-off is linear and does not vary with small changes in energy. Using a multi-layer ionization chamber (Zebra™, IBA Dosimetry), percent depth dose (PDD) curves were measured for our standard daily QA beams. The range (energy) for each beam was then varied (i.e. ±2mm and ±5mm) and additional PDD curves were measured. The distal fall-off of all PDD curves was fit to a linear equation. The distal fall-off measured dose for a particular beam was used in our linear equation to determine the beam range. Results: The linear fit of the fall-off region for the PDD curves, when varying the range by a few millimeters for a specific QA beam, yielded identical slopes. The calculated range based on measured point dose(s) in the fall-off region using the slope resulted in agreement of ±1mm of the expected beam range. Conclusion: We developed a simple technique for accurately verifying the beam range for proton therapy QA programs.
Using Your Personal Computer for OCLC Dial Access

An increasing number of OCLC dial‐access users are abandoning their old “dumb” terminals and turning to personal computers (PCs for short) for connection with the OCLC Online System. There are software packages available for all PCs that allow them to “emulate” (imitate) those old dumb terminals, but that's just the beginning. With a PC, users can not only issue commands to the system and observe (or print) the results, they can store those results on a disk for later viewing or use. What's more, special communications software is available from OCLC and other sources that allows the PC to automatically perform various types of processing that now consume precious staff time. The PC can even be set up to start processing at 6:00 a.m. and be all finished when the staff arrives at 8:00 (or some other set of hours that's convenient for you). Try that one with the old dumb terminal!
Expression of Bcl-2 in gastrointestinal stromal tumors : Correlation with progression-free survival in 81 patients treated with imatinib mesylate

BACKGROUND The natural history of gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) has been revolutionized by imatinib mesylate (imatinib) therapy. Before imatinib, Bcl-2 expression in GIST was associated with a worse prognosis or added no additional prognostic value. To the authors' knowledge, the current study is the first to evaluate Bcl-2 expression in pre-imatinib GIST tissue samples as a prognostic marker of progression-free survival (PFS) time in patients treated with imatinib. METHODS The cases of 81 patients with GIST who were evaluated between December 15, 2000 and September 1, 2001 were retrospectively reviewed. Clinicopathologic variables were reviewed. GIST cell morphology and patterns of Bcl-2 expression were described. The methods of Kaplan–Meier and the Cox proportional hazards regression model were used for statistical analysis. RESULTS Sixty-one (75%) patients had tumors that expressed Bcl-2, and 20 (25%) patients had tumors that were negative for Bcl-2. All epithelioid tumors (n = 12) expressed Bcl-2 and tumors with mixed morphology exhibited Bcl-2 expression in the epithelioid component. A trend toward longer PFS for patients whose tumors expressed Bcl-2 at a greater immunohistochemical intensity was observed (20.6 mos for no Bcl-2 expression; 28.3 mos for 1++Bcl-2 expression; 31.9 mos for 1.5++Bcl-2 expression; 40.8 mos for 2++Bcl-2 expresssion; and 35.9 mos for 3++Bcl-2 expression). CONCLUSIONS In contrast to studies performed in the preimatinib era, in which Bcl-2 was found to be a negative prognostic indicator, the current study suggests a trend toward better PFS with increasing Bcl-2 expression level in GISTs from patients subsequently treated with imatinib. Larger studies may help elucidate the influence of Bcl-2 expression on PFS after therapy with imatinib. Cancer 2006. © 2006 American Cancer Society.
Bacteriochlorophyll and Heme Synthesis in Rhodopseudomonas spheroides: Possible Role of Heme in Regulation of the Branched Biosynthetic Pathway

Synthesis of heme, measured by incorporation of iron-59, and of bacteriochlorophyll was studied with wild-type and mutant strains of Rhodopseudomonas spheroides. The wild type formed heme from glycine and succinate at one-fortieth the rate of bacteriochlorophyll under anaerobic-light conditions. Added δ-aminolevulinate stimulated heme synthesis 10-fold without increasing bacteriochlorophyll production. Heme synthesis from glycine and succinate was increased when the magnesium branch of the biosynthetic path was curtailed by mutation or by p-fluorophenylalanine or 8-azaguanine. Synthesis of bacteriochlorophyll by the wild type from glycine and succinate stopped immediately after addition of puromycin, but heme production continued for a period. Porphyrins and other precursors did not appear upon addition of puromycin alone, but simultaneous addition of o-phenanthroline resulted in the accumulation of coproporphyrin. Production of this porphyrin by a mutant strain with impaired ability to form heme was unaffected by puromycin. Heme synthesis from glycine and succinate or from δ-aminolevulinate was decreased by limitation of methionine; it is suggested that coproporphyrin accumulation from glycine and succinate under conditions of methionine deficiency results from relief of feedback inhibition of δ-aminolevulinate synthase by heme. The development of δ-aminolevulinate synthase activity in response to low aeration is prevented by addition of δ-aminolevulinate. This repressive action of the latter is abolished when its conversion to heme is impeded by mutation or by methionine deficiency. It is suggested that heme, the quantitatively minor end product of the branched biosynthetic pathway, may regulate the flow of common intermediates when utilization of protoporphyrin by the magnesium branch is diminished. This regulation may be exerted by feedback inhibition of δ-aminolevulinate synthase and also by repression of enzyme formation.
The relation between microfinacing and corruption by country: An analysis of an open source dataset

Examining the relation between global microlending and corruption may inform how trust and influence propogate through crowds. Building this understanding may help U.S. Army intelligence officers leverage crowds for humanitarian efforts as well as, to detect signs of adversarial influence. A dataset was created combining open source data from Kiva, a non-profit microfinancing institution, and Transparency International, a global coalition against corruption that publishes an annual Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI). The CPI was merged with Kiva microfinancing variables related to Kiva field partners. A preliminary analysis was conducted on a subset of the data in an effort to determine a near real-time microfinancing proxy for the CPI using the Kiva microfinancing data. Results suggest that when controlling for time on Kiva, the average loan size in dollars, delinquency rate, average loan size per GDP, and average time to fund loan all significantly predict CPI.
The effect of prostaglandin F2α and E2 on blood glucose and plasma insulin levels during pregnancy

Abstract Blood glucose and plasma insulin were serially measured in 42 women who were receiving intravenous infusions of either prostaglandin E 2 , prostaglandin F 2 α or oxytocin. There were no significant changes in either the glucose or insulin levels as a result of the infusions. These results suggest that at the doses used the prostaglandins do not play a role in maternal carbohydrate metabolism and that they may be administered to pregnant women without producing significant carbohydrate metabolic alterations.
Property management education: rationale and resources for the 1990s.

(1994). Property Management Education: Rationale and Resources for the 1990s. Hospitality & Tourism Educator: Vol. 6, No. 1, pp. 25-27.
Extending network lifetime using an automatically tuned energy-aware MAC protocol

Sensor network devices have limited battery resources primarily consumed by radio communication. Network nodes play different communication roles and consequently consume different amounts of energy. Nodes with heavier communication burdens prematurely deplete their batteries and potentially partition the network such that other nodes are unable to communicate despite having energy remaining. We have developed Seesaw, an asynchronous and asymmetric MAC protocol that balances the energy consumption among nodes with differing loads, and thus prolongs network lifetime. Balancing is possible through Seesaw mechanisms that allow heavily burdened nodes to shift some of the effort of maintaining communication to more lightly loaded neighboring nodes. We show how to exploit the flexibility of asynchrony and asymmetry to balance energy consumption across the network, and develop methods for automatically tuning each node to achieve this.
Serum retinyl esters are not associated with biochemical markers of liver dysfunction in adult participants in the third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III), 1988–1994

Background Serum retinyl ester concentrations are elevated in hypervitaminosis A. It was suggested that retinyl esters >10% of total serum vitamin A indicate potential hypervitaminosis, but this cutoff was derived from small clinical samples that may not be representative of the general population. Objective We sought to examine the distribution of serum retinyl ester concentrations and associations between retinyl ester concentrations and biochemical markers of liver dysfunction in a nationally representative sample. Design We assessed the associations between serum retinyl ester concentrations and 5 biochemical indexes of liver dysfunction by using multivariate linear and multiple logistic regression techniques and controlling for age, sex, use of supplements containing vitamin A, alcohol consumption, smoking status, and use of exogenous estrogens in 6547 adults aged > or =18 y in the third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III), 1988--1994. Results Thirty-seven percent of the sample had serum retinyl ester concentrations >10% of total serum vitamin A and 10% of the sample had serum retinyl esters >15% of total vitamin A. We found no associations between serum retinyl ester concentrations and 1) concentrations of any biochemical variable (multiple linear regression) or 2) risk of having biochemical variables above the reference range (multiple logistic regression). We did not find a serum retinyl ester value with statistically significant sensitivity and specificity for predicting increases in biochemical indexes of liver dysfunction. Conclusions The prevalence of serum retinyl ester concentrations >10% of the total vitamin A concentration in the NHANES III sample was substantially higher than expected but elevated retinyl ester concentrations were not associated with abnormal liver function.
Infection of adult migratory river shrimps, Macrobrachium ohione, by the branchial bopyrid isopod Probopyrus pandalicola

. Macrobrachium ohione is a migratory (amphidromous) river shrimp (Decapoda, Caridea) that may be parasitized by the branchial parasite Probopyrus pandalicola (Isopoda, Bopyridae). The parasite disrupts gonadal maturation and spawning in female shrimps, resulting in the total loss of reproduction. Shrimps are usually infected by bopyrid parasites during the late zoeal or early postlarval stages; in this study, we investigated the apparent parasite infection of adult shrimps. We analyzed the relationships between parasite body size (total length) and host shrimp body size (carapace length) to test the hypothesis that parasite infection of adult shrimps occurs during the shrimps' reproductive migrations. The results presented here indicate that infection of adult shrimps is common in M. ohione in the Atchafalaya and Mississippi Rivers, Louisiana, USA. In the two upriver sites sampled, Butte La Rose (BLR) and River Bend (RB), parasite size was not associated with host body size. In these locations, many parasitized adult M. ohione were infected with immature P. pandalicola (40.3% in BLR and 51.2% in RB), indicating that the shrimps were adults at the time of infection. A possible explanation is that when female shrimps enter the estuary to hatch larvae, they molt and spawn another brood. The smaller male shrimps that accompany the females downstream are also assumed to molt and continue growth. The intermediate host of the parasite is an estuarine copepod, and thus the parasite cryptoniscus larva that infects the host shrimp is primarily estuarine as well. Newly molted shrimps have soft cuticles, which may facilitate their infection by parasite cryptonisci. Our conclusion is that most infections of adult shrimps occur during their migration into estuarine waters, the primary habitat of infective parasite larvae, and that host vulnerability is probably increased following host ecdysis.
Structural Identification of Cubic Iron-oxide Nanocrystal Mixtures: X-ray Powder Diffraction versus Quasi-kinematic Transmission Electron Microscopy

Two novel (and proprietary) strategies for the structural identification of a nanocrystal from either a single high-resolution (HR) transmission electron microscopy (TEM) image or a single precession electron diffraction pattern are proposed and their advantages discussed in comparison to structural fingerprinting from powder X-ray diffraction patterns. Simulations for cubic magnetite and maghemite nanocrystals are used as examples. This is an expanded and updated version of a conference paper that has been published in Suppl. Proc. of TMS 2008, 137th Annual Meeting & Exhibition, Volume 1, Materials Processing and Properties, pp. 25-32.
The Long and Arduous Journey to Truth-in-Sentencing in Wisconsin

Part of the Law Commons Publication Information Published as Thomas J. Hammer, The Long and Arduous Journey to Truth-in-Sentencing in Wisconsin, 15 Fed. Sent’g Rep. 15 (2002). © 2002 by the Regents of the University of California on behalf of the Vera Institute of Justice. Copying and permissions notice: Authorization to copy this content beyond fair use (as specified in Sections 107 and 108 of the U. S. Copyright Law) for internal or personal use, or the internal or personal use of specific clients, is granted by the Regents of the University of California on behalf of the Vera Institute of Justice for libraries and other users, provided that they are registered with and pay the specified fee via Rightslink® on Caliber (http://caliber.ucpress.net/) or directly with the Copyright Clearance Center, http://www.copyright.com.
Ion acceleration in the MadHex helicon source

Summary form only given. The MadHex experimental system consists of a 150 cm long, 10 cm inner diameter Pyrex tube connected to a stainless steel expansion chamber 60 cm long and 45 cm in diameter (expansion ratio RE = 4.5) with an axial magnetic field, variable up to 1 kG at the source region that is operated in a nozzle configuration. A half-turn double helix antenna, 18 cm long and 12 cm diameter, is used to excite helicon waves in the source. Ion beams of energy up to E = 160 eV at 500 W RF power have been observed in a flowing argon helicon plasma formed in the expanding region of the helicon source using a magnetic nozzle (RM = 1.44). The effect of flow rate/pressure, RF power and magnetic field strength on the ion beam acceleration, plasma potential, electron density and temperature are explored. The ion energy distribution function (IEDF) is obtained by a two-grid Retarding Potential Analyzer (RPA). The plasma potential is determined by a floating emissive probe and the electron density and temperature are measured by both single and double probes. Additionally, the axial ion velocities and temperatures are observed via argon 668 nm Laser Induced Fluorescence (LIF). The measured density decrease of ~20 across the double layer in the magnetic expansion region does not fit a Boltzmann expansion but does agree with a conservation-of-flux calculation using the measured beam energy. The results of fast and slow argon ion beams at lower flow rates (~1.3 sccm) with different RF powers are reported in the transition between Pyrex and expanding exhaust regions.
Multisite generalization of a daily stochastic precipitation generation model

Abstract The familiar chain-dependent-process stochastic model of daily precipitation, consisting of a two-state, first-order Markov chain for occurrences and a mixed exponential distribution for nonzero amounts, is extended to simultaneous simulation at multiple locations by driving a collection of individual models with serially independent but spatially correlated random numbers. The procedure is illustrated for a network of 25 locations in New York state, with interstation separations ranging approximately from 10 to 500 km. The resulting process reasonably reproduces various aspects of the joint distribution of daily precipitation observations at the modeled locations. The mixed exponential distributions, in addition to providing substantially better fits than the more conventional gamma distributions, are convenient for representing the tendency for smaller amounts at locations near the edges of wet areas. Means, variances, and interstation correlations of monthly precipitation totals are also well reproduced. In addition, the use of mixed exponential rather than gamma distributions yields interannual variability in the synthetic series that is much closer to the observed.
Statistics of cosmological gamma-ray bursts

A phenomenological model of gamma-ray burst spectra is used to calculate the statistics of gamma-ray bursts originating at cosmological distances. A model of bursters with no source evolution in a q sub 0 = 1/2 Friedmann cosmology is in accord with recent observations of the differential V/Vmax distribution. The data are best fit with an average peak-burst luminosity of (4 +/- 2) x 10 exp 51 ergs/s and a present-day source emissivity of 940 +/- 440 bursts/(10 exp 10 yr) cu Mpc. A spectral test of the cosmological hypothesis is proposed.
Public Engagement and the Art of Nanotechnology

ABSTRACT Nanotechnology art exhibitions provide more than a portal through which to enter the future world of nanotechnology. They also represent the state of nanotechnology in society today. This paper compares three exhibition forums that serve as representations of three of the most common genres of nanotechnology art (nanoart). These exhibition forums and their creators demonstrate distinct perspectives about what counts as engagement and how best to achieve it; they all attempt to persuade their publics that art can serve as a conduit for the creation of alternative nanofutures.
Efficient power-aware multi-channel selection for dynamic cognitive radio networks

In dynamic cognitive radio networks (CRNs), unlicensed secondary users (SUs) opportunistically transmit in the spectrum holes left available by licensed primary users (PUs), without knowing in advance their presence on the channels. For SUs with multi-channel transmission capability, the process of selecting the channels to use by sequentially sensing the presence of PUs and evaluating the channel gains, incurs performance tradeoffs, power constraints, and expensive computations. In this paper, the channel selection problem for SU throughput maximization, limited by the power available at SUs, is formulated in a CRN with both heterogeneous PU-traffic and channel conditions. Our proposed optimal algorithm only requires linear-time and quadratic-space online complexities and cubic offline complexities, with the latter needed when CRN characteristics significantly change. This represents a significant improvement over existing algorithms. Our solution achieves throughput and delays close to maximum, not compromising accuracy for efficiency as approximate channel selection algorithms need to do.
The ISOSCALAR Giant Dipole Resonance: A review

Abstract The current status of research on the Isoscalar Giant Diplole Resonances (ISGDR) is reviewed. Recent small-angle inelastic alpha scattering measurements have provided the best evidence so far for this resonance. The most recent data indicate that the ISGDR strength, rather than being concentrated in a “peak”, is spread over a large excitation-energy range. The implications of the ISGDR results for nuclear incompressibility are discussed.
Premature rupture of the membranes in term patients

Premature rupture of the membranes (PROM) occurs in 5-10% of pregnancies. Approximately 60% of cases are in term patients. Infection of the lower genital tract and/or amniotic cavity is one of the most important etiologies of PROM. The diagnosis is usually established by direct observation of pooling of amniotic fluid in the vaginal vault. In problematic cases, the nitrazine and fern tests can be used to confirm the diagnosis. Term patients with PROM and favorable cervices should undergo induction of labor with oxytocin. Patients with unfavorable cervices probably are best managed by induction of labor with prostaglandin compounds, although, in highly selected cases, expectant management may be considered. During induction of labor, long latent phases should be anticipated, and vaginal examinations should be minimized. Patients should receive prophylactic antibiotics, if indicated, for prevention of group B streptococcal infection and should be observed carefully for early signs of chorioamnionitis.
Simultaneous quantitative measurement of luciferase reporter activity and cell number in two- and three-dimensional cultures of hepatitis C virus replicons

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a global health problem and an important human pathogen. The development of cell culture models for HCV infection has been difficult to accomplish, primarily because HCV is very sensitive to the host cell state. Future models will require the use of three-dimensional (3D) cultures that model the host cell state and environment more accurately. Higher information content screens for anti-HCV therapeutics will also involve 3D cell cultures. Here we report a method for screening cell models for HCV replication that involves normalizing luciferase reporter activity based on cell number in two-dimensional (2D) and 3D HCV replicon cultures. Human hepatoma cells stably replicating luciferase-containing HCV replicons were cultured in 2D monolayer culture and 3D spheroid culture. Optimization of cell lysis was performed so that cell lysates could be used to quantify both luciferase activity and cellular DNA content. Cellular DNA content was quantified using Hoechst 33258 dye and was converted to cell number. The method is straightforward, reproducible, and sensitive down to 5000 cells. This method enables low-throughput but high-information content screening of HCV replicons, with the potential for high-throughput screening in a variety of 3D cultures and cocultures.
Postexposure bake as a process-control parameter for chemically amplified photoresist

A new method is described for the real-time in-line control of critical dimensions for positive- tone chemically amplified resist systems. The technique relies on the generation of a diffraction grating in the resist film when a latent image appears during the post-exposure bake. A simple optical illumination/collection arrangement allows the diffracted signal to be measured during the post-exposure bake. This signal can be correlated to linewidths when measured by a non-destructive SEM. The result is a post-exposure bake time that can be used to correct for exposure-and-bake temperature variations to conveniently provide overall process control. Results generated by a prototype system are presented for a variety of 0.5- micrometers mask levels and process conditions.
US as a primary tool in the work-up of malrotation: reply to Anuradha et al

Sir, Thank you for your inquiry regarding my paper about the gold standard value of US in the work-up of the malrotation [1]. Your points are well taken and not surprising in the background of a situation that calls for reassessment of the routine with which we are comfortable and replacement of that routine with another technique. This is always the case. Therefore allow me to respond to your points one by one. I blame myself for not expressing my argument well enough.
Transverse Continental Margin Fracture Zone off Sierra Leone

WE report here the results of a seaborne magnetic survey, using a Varian proton precession magnetometer, conducted on the continental shelf and upper slope off southern Sierra Leone (Fig. 1). During the survey period no magnetic storms were recorded but the data were corrected for daily variations of the Earth's field at M'bour, Senegal, which showed a peculiar periodicity with peaks around the noon hour averaging 50 gamma. The night hours were characterized by roughly constant values. The corrected total intensity data were plotted on the adjusted ship's track lines at 3 min spacings and an anomaly map was prepared, utilizing the AWC-70 reference field.
Multi-physics modeling and simulations of surface microstructure alteration in hard turning

Abstract Surface microstructure alteration is a major concern in industry to implement hard turning for bearing steels. The formation of white layer in hard turning can be attributed to two main factors: thermally driven phase transformation and mechanical grain refinement due to severe plastic deformation. The purpose of this study is to quantitatively disseminate the underlying mechanisms through prediction of the microstructure change using a multi-physics model, which considers both phase transformation and grain refinement. 3D hard turning simulations are undertaken via AdvantEdge FEM software incorporating these two mechanisms as user-defined subroutines to investigate the surface microstructure alteration for AISI 52100 steel. Comparisons with the experimental data at various cutting conditions prove that the proposed model can accurately predict the critical surface microstructural attributes such as phase compositions, grain size, microhardness, and residual stress during hard turning of AISI 52100 steel.
Prediction from an integrated regression equation: a forestry application.

Summary. Models to depict the tapering of a tree bole abound in the literature of forest science, and such models are widely used in forestry practice. One important use is the integration of a taper equation to predict the volume of the tree bole. The statistical properties of volume prediction from an integrated taper equation have been obscure. Based on the statistical characteristics of a taper model for the bole's cross-sectional area, we derive the first two moments of the volume predictor and the prediction error. Bias from the integration is nil. The importance of a reasonable model of the error structure is demonstrated.
INVERTIBLE SPECTRA IN THE E ( n )-LOCAL STABLE HOMOTOPY CATEGORY

Suppose C is a category with a symmetric monoidal structure, which we will refer to as the smash product. Then the Picard category is the full subcategory of objects which have an inverse under the smash product in C, and the Picard group Pic(C) is the collection of isomorphism classes of such invertible objects. The Picard group need not be a set in general, but if it is then it is an abelian group canonically associated with C. There are many examples of symmetric monoidal categories in stable homotopy theory. In particular, one could take the whole stable homotopy category S. In this case, it was proved by Hopkins that the Picard group is just Z, where a representative for n can be taken to be simply the n-sphere S [HMS94, Str92]. It is more interesting to consider Picard groups of the E-local category, for various spectra E (all of which will be p-local for some fixed prime p in this paper). Here the smash product of two E-local spectra need not be E-local, so one must relocalize the result by applying the Bousfield localization functor LE . The most well-known case is E = K(n), the nth Morava K-theory, considered in [HMS94]. In this paper we study the case E = E(n), where E(n) is the Johnson-Wilson spectrum. In this case the E-localization functor is universally denoted Ln, and we denote the category of E-local spectra by L. Our main theorem is the following result.
Effects of Fluoride on Mitochondrial Activity in Higher Plants

The effects of fluoride on respiration of plant tissue and mitochondria were investigated. Fumigation of young soybean plants (Glycine max Merr. cv. Hawkeye) with 9–12 μg × m−3 HF caused a stimulation of respiration at about 2 days of treatment followed by inhibition 2 days later. Mitochondria isolated from the stimulated tissue had higher respiration rates, greater ATPase activity, and lower P/O ratios, while in mitochondria from inhibited tissue, all three were reduced. Treatment of etiolated soybean hypocotyl sections in Hoagland's solution containing KF for 3 to 10 h only resulted in inhibition of respiration. Mitochondria isolated from this tissue elicited increased respiration rates with malate as substrate and inhibited respiration with succinate. With both substrates respiratory control and ADP/O ratios were decreased. Direct treatment of mitochondria from the etiolated soybean hypocotyl tissue with fluoride resulted in inhibition of state 3 respiration and lower ADP/O ratios with the substrates succinate, malate, and NADH. Fluoride was also found to increase the amount of osmotically induced swelling and cause a more rapid leakage of protein with mitochondria isolated from etiolated corn shoots (Zea mays L. cv. Golden Cross Bantam). The results are discussed with respect to possible effects of fluoride on mitochondrial membranes.
Update on Vaccination Clinical Trials for HPV-Related Disease

Abstract Background Cervical cancer remains a major cause of cancer death in women worldwide. Moreover, human papillomavirus (HPV)-related disease of the urogenital tract (including preinvasive and invasive cervical, vaginal, vulvar, penile, and anal disease) remains a major cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States and internationally. Objective The goal of this article was to review the vaccines available as well as the major Phase III trials of the quadrivalent and bivalent vaccines for the prevention of HPV-related genital tract disease. Methods A literature search was performed through PubMed using the terms “HPV vaccination” and limited to clinical trials over the last 6 years. The most relevant and largest scale trials were included in this report. Results Prophylactic vaccination has emerged as an important tool that holds promise in decreasing the burden of HPV disease. However, HPV vaccination is known to be largely type-specific. Vaccination is most effective when administered at a younger age and before sexual activity and exposure to HPV. Large trials have been conducted and show efficacy of both the bivalent (HPV types 16 and 18) and quadrivalent (HPV types 6, 11, 16, and 18) vaccine in the prevention of preinvasive lesions and infection with these HPV types. Conclusions Future directions include development of more affordable vaccines with extended HPV-type coverage as well as implementation of feasible worldwide vaccination programs.
Sexual Abuse of Vulnerable Young and Old Men

During a 4-year period, aggregated data from Adult Protective Services case files in Virginia revealed 17 cases of sexually abused young, middle-age, and old men. The most common types of sexual abuse across age groups involved instances of sexualized kissing and fondling and unwelcome sexual interest in the individual men's bodies. The majority of alleged perpetrators were male; they typically were similar in age to the men and resided in the same residential facility. In none of the cases was the alleged perpetrator prosecuted. Only two of the men continued to be at risk of further sexual abuse by the alleged perpetrator. Implications of these data for future research and practice include a need for studies that focus on differences between male and female victims, especially concerning investigations and interventions, and for training on reporting and intervention for facilities and agencies and organizations working with victims and alleged perpetrators.
Degenerate and nondegenerate rearrangements of the 7-borabicyclo[..1]heptadiene system: Twofold [1,3] supra-facial sigmatropic migrations and anionic [1,] carbon-boron shifts

Abstract Two notable skeletal rearrangements of the 7-borabicyclo[..1]heptadiene system (III) have been uncovered: (1) a facile, degenerate, net twofold [1,] suprafacial sigmatropic migration of the 7-substituted boro group, observable by NMR spectroscopy when the carbon centers of the borole (I) and alkyne (II) bear suitable groups; and () a nondegenerate, anionic [1,] aryl shift from carbon to boron, converting the 7,7-dimethylborate salt of III into an aryl(dimethyl)pentaarylborate salt. Thus, the degenerate rearrangement was revealed when pentaphenylborole (Ia) was allowed to react with di- p -tolylacetylene (IIb) at 5°C; the resulting 7-borabicyclo[..1] heptadiene (III) formed displayed NMR methyl signals characteristic of p -tolyl groups located at both C 5 and C 6 , as well as C 4 and C 5 . Similarly, the nondegenerate, disruptive anionic isomerization of the 7,7-dimethylborate salt of IIIe or IVe was found to involve migration of either phenyl or p -tolyl groups from carbon to boron, showing that both phenyl (IIIe) and p -tolyl groups (IVe) were located at the bridgeheads in the precursors to VI.
Search for Uranium in the Western States: ABSTRACT

The search for uranium in the United States is one of the most intensive ever made for any metal during our history. The number of prospectors and miners involved is difficult to estimate, but some measure of the size of the effort is indicated by the fact that about 500 geologists are employed by government and industry in the work--more than the total number of geologists engaged in the study of all other minerals together except oil. The largest part of the effort has been concentrated in the western states. No single deposit of major importance by world standards has been discovered, but the search has led to the discovery of important minable deposits of carnotite and related minerals on the Colorado Plateau; of large, low-grade deposits of uranium in phosphates in the northwestern states and in lignites in the Dakotas, Wyoming, Idaho, and New Mexico; and of many new and some promising occurrences of uranium in carnotite-like deposits and in vein deposits. Despite the fact that a large number of the districts considered favorable for the occurrence of uranium have already been examined, the outlook for future discoveries is bright, particularly for uranium in vien and in carnotite-like deposits in the Rocky Moun ain states. End_of_Article - Last_Page 2614------------
Post-irradiation recovery of Escherichia coli.

RADIATION sensitivity of Escherichia coli strains is influenced by conditions for growth prior to and after radiation exposure. Stapleton and Engel1 have shown that E. coli B/r (CSH) grown in a buffered-peptone medium developed higher X-ray resistance. The cells grown in rich medium, however, might have become more exacting in their nutritional requirements and their recovery was limited on basal media2. At the same time, the recovery of ultra-violet or X-irradiated cells was higher when they were subjected to sub-optimal growth conditions3–5.