cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A RRAM-based FPGA for energy-efficient edge computing

The shift from centralized cloud to edge computing demands hardware systems with data processing capability at ultra-low power. Reconfigurable solutions such as Field-Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs) offer a high flexibility in terms of hardware implementation and are thus popular for use in many edge computing systems. However, breaking through the energy wall of FPGAs is a challenge, as low-power operation often requires compromising performances. In this paper, we study a low-power high-performance FPGA architecture exploiting Resistive Random Access Memory (RRAM) technology. To perform a comprehensive analysis, we introduce a novel design flow which can rapidly prototype FPGA fabrics from which accurate area, delay, and power results can be obtained. Based on full-chip layouts and SPICE simulations, we show that RRAM-based FPGAs can improve up to 8%/22%/16% in area/delay/power compared to SRAM-based counterparts at nominal voltage. Even when operated at a near-V t supply, the proposed RRAM-based FPGA can improve the Energy-Delay Product by about 2× without any delay overhead, when compared to an SRAM-based FPGA. In addition, Monte Carlo simulations showed that the proposed RRAM-based FPGA architecture stays robust under different CMOS process corners as well as under a 30% RRAM resistance standard deviation.
The Factors affecting the Relative Contribution of the Agricultural Sector to Egyptian GDP

This paper aimed to identify the factors affecting the relative contribution of the agricultural sector to Egypt GDP, which can be divided into factors related to the economic growth indicators and the competitiveness of agriculture sector. The research conducted the vector error correction model, and it was found a significant impact of total external debt stocks, the exports of all goods and services and, national inflation rate on agricultural sector's contribution to GDP.
Control as a Core Component of User Involvement in Reablement: A Qualitative Study.

Background Reablement, also known as restorative care, supports older adults in regaining or maintaining their independence in daily life through the optimization of functional ability. Users' goals and healthcare professionals' use of a "hands-off" approach are key, thus user involvement is central to reablement logic. The aim of this study was to explore user involvement in reablement from users' perspectives from the beginning of an intervention. Methods The study has an explorative qualitative design and includes thematic content analysis of data from repeat, individual semi-structured interviews with ten users accepting reablement intervention services in an urban Norwegian municipality. Findings Control emerged as a core component. Users handed control over their time and body to professionals, balanced by drawing on an inner strength to control own limits, retain the right to make own judgements and decisions, and dream. Five themes were seen: Positive, but with a "wait and see" attitude; Professionals have goals, users have dreams; Desire to control schedule and activity; Regaining faith in one's own capacity and strengthening one's dreams; and Keep going, hold on to your dreams. Conclusion User involvement interpreted as user-set goals may be over-emphasized. Users possess the information that professionals need to set goals, consider these the goals important for professionals, and seek to facilitate professionals in their work. Based on a belief in own competence and a trust in professional's expertise, users invite professionals into a co-creation process. User involvement has previously been defined as a willingness and positive attitude toward reablement activities, but we find it can be expressed in different ways. Reablement logic does not always match users' understanding or desires, and it may be time to rethink user involvement in reablement. The reablement concept should be developed further, so that it better suits the individuals it should serve.
Acoustic Analysis and Voice Quality in Parkinson Disease

Investigators and clinicians have long sought to apply acoustic analysis to track changes in voice quality in Parkinson disease (PD), in order to evaluate or document treatment effects, track disease progression, or to attempt remote automatic diagnosis. These studies have often had disappointing results, so that the best way to apply acoustics to Parkinsonian voice remains an open question. In this paper we argue that past approaches have not lived up to expectations due to a lack of theory relating voice quality to either acoustics or to the physiological changes associated with disease progression. We review the history of acoustic analysis in PD and describe the motivations that have been presented for each measure. We then describe a psychoacoustic model of voice quality, and explore how this model could be applied to develop a comprehensive model of voice in PD. Such a model would explain how acoustics, quality, and voice production interrelate. Without such an understanding, we contend, the goal of meaningful evaluation of voice in PD will remain unachieved.
Determination of Emission Factors of Pollutants From Biomass Burning of African Fuels in Laboratory Measurements

Biomass burning (BB) is a major source of pollutants that impact local, regional, and global climate, air quality, and public health. However, the influence of burning conditions and fuel type on e...
Robotic-Assisted Laparoscopic Approach to Removal of Müllerian Remnants.

ABSTRACT Background Robotic-assisted laparoscopy (RAL) is an alternative to traditional laparoscopic surgery that might increase a surgeon's ability to offer minimally invasive removal of Mullerian remnants (MR) to patients with complex anatomy. We report on 2 cases of RAL resection of MR. Cases RAL allowed for adequate resection of MR without complications in 2 cases. Case 1 was a 13 year-old female adolescent with VACTERL and uterine remnant close to the ureter of her ipsilateral single kidney. Case 2 was a 16 year-old female adolescent with cloacal exstrophy and omphalocele with remnant hindgut and cervical remnant deep in the pelvis close to the ileal conduit. Summary and Conclusion In 2 adolescents with complex anatomy and surgical history, RAL allowed for successful removal of MR.
ADP-glucose pyrophosphorylase in shrunken-2 and brittle-2 mutants of maize.

The Shrunken-2 (Sh2) and Brittle-2 (Bt2) genes of maize encode subunits of the tetrameric maize endosperm ADPglucose pyrophosphorylase. However in all sh2 and bt2 mutants so far examined, measurable ADPglucose pyrophosphorylase activity remains. We have investigated the origin of the residual activity found in various sh2 and bt2 mutants as well as tissue specific expression and post-translational modification of the Sh2 and Bt2 proteins. Sh2 and Bt2 cDNAs were expressed in Escherichia coli and antibodies were prepared against the resulting proteins. SH2 and BT2 specific antibodies were used to demonstrate that SH2 and BT2 are endosperm specific, are altered or missing in various sh2 or bt2 mutants, and have a mol. wt. of 54 and 51 kDa respectively in the wild type. The Sh2 and Bt2 transcripts are also endosperm specific. Ten sh2 and eight bt2 mutants show varying severity of phenotypes expressed at transcript, protein subunit and kernel level. Synthesis of multiple transcripts and proteins commonly occurs as a result of sh2 or bt2 mutation. While all mutants produce detectable enzymic activity, not all produce detectable transcripts and proteins. To examine the origin of the apparent non-SH2/BT2 endosperm enzymic activity, homologs of Sh2 and Bt2, designated Agp1 and Agp2 respectively, were isolated from an embryo cDNA library and found to hybridize to endosperm transcripts distinct from those of Sh2 and Bt2. Thus Agp1 and Agp2 or closely related genes may be responsible for the residual activity in some sh2 and bt2 mutants. Surprisingly, no evidence of post-translational modification of the SH2 and BT2 protein subunits was detected.
Lichens of Aisen, Southern Chile

The lichen mycobiota of Aisen (southern Chile) comprises 319 taxa in 87 genera. All of the species of Menegazzia and Protousnea, previously recorded in Chile, are present in this region. The diversity of biomes, from temperate rainforests −particularly in oceanic zones− to steppe areas, offers an enormous number of macro and microhabitats favorable for lichens. The highest lichen diversity, 56 %, was recorded in an undisturbed locality in Laguna San Rafael National Park. Lichen species diversity is higher in oceanic temperate rainforests than in steppe areas, where the majority of Antarctic lichens (23 %) are registered. Levels of endemism are rather high (26 %) and are due mainly to species of the genera Protousnea, Pseudocyphellaria, Menegazzia, Cladonia, Sticta, Nephroma. Other biogeographical elements in the region’s lichen mycobiota are: cosmopolitan (16 %), austral (16 %) and bipolar (13 %). Lichen diversity in Aisen represents about 20 % of the known lichen mycobiota of Chile.
Developmental changes in marital satisfaction: A 6-year prospective longitudinal study of newlywed couples.

Although the early years of marriage are critical for marital stability (National Center for Health Statistics, 1991), little is known about the processes that maintain marital happiness in stable couples (Dindia & Canary, 1993). The lack of information in this area is unfortunate in light of evidence that even spouses in stable relationships can be dissatisfied with their marriages (Heaton & Albrecht, 1991) and that marital dissatisfaction is linked to physical and psychological problems (Bloom, Asher, & White, 1978). The relative neglect of what maintains marital happiness may be due to the scarcity of longitudinal studies in the early years of marriage. There are longitudinal data (e.g., Belsky & Rovine, 1990; Cowan et al., 1985; Hackel & Ruble, 1992; MacDermid, Huston, & McHale, 1990; Markman & Hahlweg, 1993) consistent with the view that marital quality declines over the first few years of marriage as spouses negotiate issues regarding conflict, control, and power (Kovacs, 1983). However, most of this information comes from studies of spouses during the transition to first-time parenthood. Without a comparison group of spouses not experiencing this transition, normative changes in marital interactions are confounded with those resulting from parenthood (see Chapter 7 in this volume). Consequently, longitudinal studies involving newlywed couples who do and do not become parents are needed to chart the developmental course of marital well-being.
The Cantwell-Ransley technique for repair of epispadias.

AbstractA total of 26 boys with bladder exstrophy (20) and epispadias (6) underwent initial urethral reconstruction between 1988 and 1991 using the Cantwell-Ransley technique. Penile reconstruction included wide mobilization of the urethral plate from the underlying corpora based on a mesentery from the ventral penoscrotal skin, corporeal lengthening by dividing the suspensory ligaments and attachments to the undersurface of the pubis, urethral and glandular tubularization, chordee correction by medial incision of the corpora with anastomosis dorsal to the urethra and penile skin coverage. All exstrophy patients had adequate phallic length, with 13 having an intact urethral plate and 13 having had prior paraexstrophy skin flap interposition. Postoperatively, repairs were intubated with silicone stents for 10 days. Two urethrocutaneous fistulas developed, 1 of which closed spontaneously. One patient had a small degree of penile skin loss that did not affect the neourethra. All patients currently have a cos...
One Graph Is Worth a Thousand Logs: Uncovering Hidden Structures in Massive System Event Logs

In this paper we describe our work on pattern discovery in system event logs. For discovering the patterns we developed two novel algorithms. The first is a sequential and efficient text clustering algorithm which automatically discovers the templates generating the messages. The second, the PARIS algorithm (Principle Atom Recognition In Sets), is a novel algorithm which discovers patterns of messages that represent processes occurring in the system. We demonstrate the usefulness of our analysis, on real world logs from various systems, for debugging of complex systems, efficient search and visualization of logs and characterization of system behavior.
Improving Safety through Human Factors Engineering

Human factors engineering (HFE) focuses on the design and analysis of interactive systems that involve people, technical equipment, and work environment. HFE is informed by knowledge of human characteristics. It complements existing patient safety efforts by specifically taking into consideration that, as humans, frontline staff will inevitably make mistakes. Therefore, the systems with which they interact should be designed for the anticipation and mitigation of human errors. The goal of HFE is to optimize the interaction of humans with their work environment and technical equipment to maximize safety and efficiency. Special safeguards include usability testing, standardization of processes, and use of checklists and forcing functions. However, the effectiveness of the safety program and resiliency of the organization depend on timely reporting of all safety events independent of patient harm, including perceived potential risks, bad outcomes that occur even when proper protocols have been followed, and episodes of "improvisation" when formal guidelines are found not to exist. Therefore, an institution must adopt a robust culture of safety, where the focus is shifted from blaming individuals for errors to preventing future errors, and where barriers to speaking up-including barriers introduced by steep authority gradients-are minimized. This requires creation of formal guidelines to address safety concerns, establishment of unified teams with open communication and shared responsibility for patient safety, and education of managers and senior physicians to perceive the reporting of safety concerns as a benefit rather than a threat.
B7-1 and B7-2: Similar costimulatory ligands with different biochemical, oligomeric and signaling properties

B7-1 and B7-2 are homologous costimulatory ligands expressed on the surface of antigen presenting cells (APCs). Binding of these molecules to the T cell costimulatory receptors, CD28 and CTLA-4, is essential for the activation and regulation of T cell immunity. Despite strong structural similarities, B7-1 and B7-2 exhibit different biochemical features, and their binding to the costimulatory receptors results in distinct T cell functional outcomes. Using photobleaching based fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET), our previous studies have demonstrated that B7-1 and B7-2 have different cell surface oligomeric states. While B7-1 is present as a dimer, B7-2 exists as a monomer on the cell surface suggesting that the unique cell surface oligomeric states of the costimulatory ligands may play a key role in the regulation of T cell responses. Moreover, signaling via B7-1 and B7-2 in dendritic cells has been reported to be dependent on their simultaneous expression, raising the possibility that their direct interaction or their involvement in synergistic signaling pathways may play a role in the function of antigen presenting cells. We discuss physiological relevance of distinct oligomeric states of B7-1 and B7-2 and address whether these molecules can associate with one another on the cell surface to form hetero-oligomers. Our findings suggest that B7-1 and B7-2 do not form hetero-oligomers, underscoring the biological relevance of dimeric and monomeric state of B7-1 and B7-2, respectively.
A ruggedized ZnS(Ag)/epoxy alpha scintillation detector

Abstract An alpha scintillation survey instrument has been developed which is more rugged and efficient than conventional alpha scintillation detectors that use aluminized Mylar ∗∗ radiation entrance windows. This new detector consists of a mixture of ZnS(Ag) phosphor and optically transparent epoxy. The scintillator mixture is poured into a preformed mold to provide a thin layer of phosphor after the particles settle to the clear epoxy surface. After partial curing, an optically transparent light pipe is coupled to the ZnS(Ag)/epoxy film by using an additional thin epoxy layer, forming a monolithic scintillator assembly. Experimental results indicate that the new probe is 44% efficient (2π) for a large-area 239Pu alpha source; resistant to scratches, tears, and corrosives; watertight; and temperature independent between −20°C and 54°C.
Principles and Practice of Nonpharmacological Interventions to Reduce Cardiometabolic Risk

The components of the metabolic syndrome, including prediabetes, prehypertension and dyslipidemia, represent prodromal stages of major cardiometabolic disorders. Lifestyle interventions have been shown to ameliorate or prevent the progression of individual components of the metabolic syndrome. The specific interventions utilized in randomized controlled studies often include dietary modification and physical activity. The effects of smoking cessation and the reduction of psychosocial stress on cardiometabolic risk factors need to be studied more. Because of the close concordance between the metabolic syndrome and multiple cardiometabolic diseases, the adoption of an effective lifestyle change upon initial recognition of the metabolic syndrome can be expected to delay or prevent the future development of sequelae such as diabetes, hypertension, and atherosclerotic cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Such a nonpharmacological approach to primary prevention and disease interruption carries enormous public health significance. Meeting the challenge of an implementation of effective lifestyle change at the community level requires (a) a system for the identification of at-risk populations, (b) an optimization of the knowledge base and practices of health care providers, and (c) a piloting of targeted biobehavioral intervention programs. Once identified, persons and communities at risk for cardiometabolic disorders can be empowered through increased health and nutritional literacy, the promotion of lifestyle interventions, provision of community resources, and pertinent legislative action that rewards preventive behavior. This paper reviews landmark studies that demonstrate the principles of nonpharmacological approaches to the reduction of cardiometabolic risk. We also discuss the physiological and emerging molecular genetic mechanisms that underlie the efficacy of lifestyle interventions.
Energy limits imposed by two-photon absorption for pulse amplification in high-power semiconductor optical amplifiers

We study the combined effects of dynamic gain saturation and two-photon absorption on the amplification of short pulses in semiconductor optical amplifiers and show that two-photon absorption can saturate the amplifier gain and limit the output pulse energies even for amplifiers with large gain saturation energies. We discuss the upper limits for the pulse energies obtainable from semiconductor optical amplifiers in the presence of two-photon absorption and show that for single transverse mode waveguide amplifiers these upper limits can range from values as small as a few picojoules to several hundred picojoules for pulse widths in the 0.5 ps to 20 ps range, respectively.
GENETICS OF PHYTOPATHOGENIC FUNGI. XI. A GENETIC STUDY OF AVIRULENCE DUE TO AUXOTROPHY IN PENICILLIUM EXPANSUM BY MEANS OF THE PARASEXUAL CYCLE

Nine color and 35 auxotrophic mutants were tested for their virulence, using the '*Jonathanl' variety of apple; only mutants requiring methionine were avirulent. One tested arginine-requiring and the methionine-requiring mutants were avirulent for the 'Red Delicious' variety. In vitro and in vivo, supplementation studies indicated that the avirulence was probably related to the relatively low concentratioil of the required amino acids at the site of inoculatioin. Onle heterocaryon and the corresponding diploid, involving 2 avirulent methionine-requiring mutants, were virulent. Six mutant loci in 3 diploid strains could be assigned to 2 linkage groups by means of the parasexual cycle.
Bacterial Expression of Neutralizing Mouse Monoclonal Antibody Fab Fragments to Hantaan Virus

Abstract We amplified by polymerase chain reaction the heavy and light chain antibody genes of two mouse hybridomas secreting neutralizing monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) to the G1 or G2 envelope proteins of Hantaan virus, cloned them into the phagemid vector pComb3, and expressed them in bacteria to yield Fab fragments. Expressed Fab fragments had the same antigenic specificities for Hantaan and Seoul viruses as the complete parent MAbs and were able to neutralize Hantaan virus in plaque-reduction neutralization assays. The authentic MAb to G2 (HCO2) could passively protect hamsters from challenge with Hantaan virus when neutralizing antibody titers of at least 1:10 were detected in the animals’ sera just prior to challenge. In contrast, although 1:10 neutralization titers were also detected in hamsters receiving passively transferred, Escherichia coli -expressed HCO2 Fab, these animals were not protected from infection with Hantaan virus. Similarly, passive transfer of the HCO2 MAb on Days 1 through 4 after infection prevented antigen deposition in hamster lungs and kidneys but passive transfer of the recombinant HCO2 Fab did not. The results suggest that although neutralization by IgG antibodies correlates with protection in hamsters, the same may not be true for neutralizing Fab fragments.
Examining the link between social responsibility and decision styles

The paper examines the factors that influence socially responsible decision making by individuals. The study found four social responsibility styles: “Playing it Safe,” “Weather The Storm,” “Problem to Solve,” and “Hope it Goes Away.” These styles describe individuals on the basis of decision style, propensity for risk, and coping style. The styles explain why people with different values might come to the same decision in the same circumstances.
Improving Performance of Virtual Reality Applications Through Parallel Processing

DLoVe (Distributed Links over Variables evaluation) is a new model for specifying and implementing virtual reality and other next-generation or "non-WIMP" user interfaces. Our approach matches the parallel and continuous structure of these interfaces by combining a data-flow or constraint-like component with an event-based component for discrete interactions. Moreover, because the underlying constraint graph naturally lends itself to parallel computation, DLoVe provides for the constraint graph to be partitioned and executed in parallel across several machines, for improved performance. With our system, one can write a program designed for a single machine but can execute it in a distributed environment with minor code modifications. The system also supports mechanics for implementing or transforming single user programs into multi-user programs. We present experiments demonstrating how DLoVe improves performance by dramatically increasing the validity of the rendered frames. We also present performance measures to measure statistical skew in the frames, which we believe is more suitable for interactive systems than traditional measures of parallel systems, such as throughput or frame rate, because they fail to capture the freshness of each rendered frame.
Photosensitized inactivation of infectious blood-borne human parasites

Blood-borne viruses and protozoan parasites that are infectious to humans pose risk world-wide of infection transmission through blood and blood product transfusion. Blood-borne infectious viruses include human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-I), which causes AIDS; hepatitis C virus, which can cause chronic hepatitis; and cytomegalovirus, which can be dangerous to immunocompromised patients, e.g., the newborn, transplant recipients, and AIDS patients. Infectious blood-borne protozoan parasites include Trypanosoma cruzi, which causes Chagas' disease, endemic throughout Central and South America; the Trypanosoma species causing African sleeping sickness endemic in Central Africa; and Plasmodium falciparum, which causes malignant and increasingly drug- resistant human malaria prevalent throughout the tropics. Some researchers have focused on using photosensitizers to inactivate HIV-I and other viruses in whole blood, packed red cells, and platelet concentrates without compromising blood product function. Our group previously has reported photosensitized in vitro inactivation of P. falciparum and the mouse malaria organism Plasmodium berghei in whole blood using hematoporphyrin derivative (HPD) and of T. cruzi using benzoporphyrin derivatives BPDMA and BPDDA, dihematoporphyrin ether (DHE), and hydroxyethylvinyldeuteroporphyrin (HEVD). These results suggest that continued investigation is warranted to evaluate the potential for photosensitized inactivation of blood-borne parasites in blood banking.
Formulation of the model for optimal proportion of filler in polymer for abrasive wear resistance

Abstract To date the optimal proportions of fillers in polymer composites for strength and abrasive wear resistance have been obtained by the method of trial and error. In this paper, a theoretical model for the optimal filler proportion based on the random packing model of particles in polymers is presented. A computer program based on this model was written. Using this program and the data on filler particle size distribution, the density of filler and polymer, and the distance between particles of filler in the critical packing state, the proportion of filler in the polymer composite was calculated. It was found that a small variation in particle size distribution did not significantly affect the calculated results. The model was tested for strength and abrasive wear resistance. For this purpose, nylon 11 composites with two inorganic fillers, namely copper and iron, were prepared by compression molding. Together with tensile strength and hardness measurements, the composites were tested for abrasive wear resistance in a pin-on-disk set-up. There was an excellent agreement between the optimal proportions obtained by calculation and those determined by actual experiments.
Creating Classrooms of and for Activism at the Intersections of Class, Race, Ethnicity, Gender, and Disability.

In this article the authors describe pedagogy which rests on commitments to solidarity, activism, and intersectional understandings of personhood and social (in)justices. The authors seek to create accessible classrooms where our many selves and critical consciousness can be in (dis)comforting conversation with one another. Then, they hope to bring activism to the streets.
Basement balancing of Rocky Mountain foreland uplifts

Restorable cross sections of foreland basement uplifts must contain faults whose curvatures are consistent with the relative slip and tilt between adjacent basement blocks. Cylindrical fault surfaces can explain the uniform dip of strata on the back side of foreland uplifts; local zones of shortening and extension occur in hinge zones above transitions in fault curvature. High-curvature fault splays form fault wedges of basement which ease the transition from thrust and reverse faulting of basement blocks to folding in the sedimentary cover. 20 references, 4 figures.
In situ probing of insulin aggregation in chromatography effluents with spectroturbidimetry

Probing protein aggregation in situ is quite important for analyzing and developing chromatographic protein purification processes. A spectroturbidimetry method with a photodiode array detector is developed and tested for probing insulin aggregation in solution and determining the aggregation number, nmnm. All aggregates examined are in the Rayleigh light scattering regime, where the turbidity between 400 and 350 nm is proportional to λ−4λ−4. Insulin at 25 °C in 3.5 N acetic acid is mainly monomeric (non-aggregated). At 25 °C and lower acetic acid concentrations, from 0.1 to 1 N, the average insulin aggregation number nmnm ranges from 2.9 to 1.6. Aggregates, with nm=2–3nm=2–3, are found in 2.6 N acetic acid with 20 vol% acetonitrile. In 0.8 N acetic acid with 20 vol% denatured ethanol, nm=1.2nm=1.2. At 4 °C, as acetic acid concentration decreases from 3.5 to 0.1 N, nmnm decreases from 2.4 to 1.8. In 2.8 N acetic acid with 20 vol% denatured ethanol at 4 °C, insulin exists mainly in monomer form. In situ probing of size exclusion chromatography, SEC, effluents in 3.5 N acetic acid at 4 °C shows nm=1.6nm=1.6 at the fronting portion (a mixture of monomers and dimers or other oligomers) and nm=1.1nm=1.1 (mostly monomers) at the tailing portion of the main peak. In another example, for LysPro-insulin in reversed phase chromatography at 4 °C, complex elution patterns and broad peaks are due to substantial aggregation. For a linear gradient of acetonitrile from 10 to 60 vol% at 4 °C, nmnm ranges from 2.2 to 12, in order of elution. For a linear gradient of ethanol from 30 to 50 vol% at 4 °C, nmnm ranges from 14 to 27, in order of elution. Analytical HPLC results at 25 °C imply that the aggregates are reversible.
Optimal monetary-fiscal stabilizers under an indexed versus nonindexed tax structure—reply

Abstract This article analyzes the optimal coordination of automatic monetary and fiscal stabilization parameters in a rational expectations context. Optimal joint settings for the average level of tax rates, the progressivity of the tax structure, and the response of the money stock to the current level of the interest rate are derived to minimize the variance of output and price.
Spin structure of spin-1/2 baryon and spinless meson production amplitudes in photonic and hadronic reactions

The most general spin structures of the spin-1/2 baryon and spinless meson production operator for both photon and nucleon induced reactions are derived from the partial-wave expansions of these reaction amplitudes. The present method provides the coefficients multiplying each spin operator in terms of the partial-wave matrix elements. The result should be useful in studies of these reactions based on partial-wave analyses, especially, when spin observables are considered.
Ralph Adams Cram and the Americanization of the Middle Ages

“The true democracy of St. Louis, Edward I and Washington is forgotten,” lamented the American architect Ralph Adams Cram in 1917, “and a false democracy has taken its place.…” The assertion was no aberration of wartime hysteria, and was less eccentric in the early twentieth century than it would have been before or since. It gave pointed expression to a set of attitudes which had strong appeal to a significant number of Cram's countrymen, and which casts light on the perennial efforts of Americans to define their place in history and to balance the competing claims of tradition and innovation.
The biomass of an Indian monsoonal wetland before and after being overgrown with Paspalum distichum L.

Paspalum distichum L. has been the dominant species in the monsoonal wetlands of the Keoladeo National Park in northcentral India since 1982 when grazing by water buffalo and domestic cattle was halted. Maximum water levels in these wetlands occur immediately after the end of the summer monsoon in late September of early October and then decline until the next summer monsoon the following June. After the normal 1985 monsoon, maximum water depths were around 140 cm. After the poor 1986 monsoon, maximum water depths were only around 60 cm. Paspalum distichum maximum aboveground biomass at four sites ranged from 850 g m-2 at the shallowest site to 3400 g m−2 at a deep water site. The maximum biomass of other vegetation types, which had dominated this wetland prior to 1982, ranged from 1400 g m-2 at a deep water site (Ipomoea aquatica Forsk.) to only 240 g m-2 to 400 g m-2 at a deep-water submersed site (Hydrilla verticillata (L. f.) Royle/Cyperus alopecuroides Rottb.) and at a shallow emergent site (Scirpus tuberosus Desf./Sporobolus helvolus (Trin.) Dur. et Schinz). For all vegetation types, biomass changed seasonally in response to changing water levels and temperatures. After the 1986 monsoon, above-ground biomass for all vegetation types was much lower than it had been after the 1985 monsoon. Mean below-ground biomass was very low in all vegetation types (1 to 47 g m-2). Paspalum distichum had a higher aboveground biomass at nearly all water depths in all seasons than that of the pre-1982 vegetation types. Paspalum distichum belowground biomass, however, is comparable to, or less than, that of the pre-1982 vegetation types. During years with an average monsoon, the overall primary production of these wetlands is estimated to have increased 2.5 to 3.5-fold since they were overgrown with Paspalum distichum.
The Syntax and Rhetoric of Ruth 1:9a

AbstractScholars have made a number of proposals to explain the difficult syntax of Ruth 1:9a. After a brief review of scholarship, this note develops a recent proposal by Robert D. Holmstedt to explain both the syntax and rhetoric of this half verse.
Prognostic significance of tumor grade and stage in the patient with carcinoma of the prostate

Available English language articles relating the grade, stage, and grade-stage of carcinoma of the prostate to evidence of tumor progression and survival in untreated and treated patients have been reviewed. Observations of the extremes of the spectrum of biological behavior of carcinoma of the prostate have been emphasized; for example, tumor progression, never or always; survival, never or always. The reported experiences indicated the following; namely, 1) reproducible biologically meaningful grading is achievable; however, grade cannot be utilized as a reliable indicator of stage; 2) accurate staging provides information that correlates with tumor progression and survival in groups of patients. However, unexpectedly prolonged or abbreviated progression-free survivals occur frequently enough in every stage, except perhaps patients with clinically unsuspected focal carcinoma, to indicate that the natural history and treatment response of individuals grouped by stage is far from homogeneous; 3) appropriate use of carefully obtained grade and stage information together maximizes the accuracy of prognostic attempts and is necessary to evaluate treatment results. At the present time, assessment and consideration of the grade and stage of carcinoma of the prostate is essential to formulate prognosis and advise and evaluate treatment in patients with this disease.
Nutritional role of chromium

Chromium is an essential trace element required for normal carbohydrate metabolism. The biological function of chromium is closely associated with that of insulin and most chromium-stimulated reactions are also insulin dependent. Proper chromium nutrition leads to a decreased requirement for insulin and also an improved blood lipid profile. Most fresh foods and minimally processed foods are good sources of dietary chromium. Inorganic chromium does not potentiate insulin action and must be converted to an organic biologically active form. An organic form of chromium capable of potentiating insulin has been isolated from brewer's yeast and was shown to contain: Cr, nicotinic acid and a combination of amino acids. Synthetic insulin potentiating organic chromium complexes containing chromium, nicotinic acid, glycine, cysteine, and glutamic acid or chromium, nicotinic acid and glutathione have been prepared. These complexes have not been purified to homogeneity since they dissociate during purification. Suitable analytical bioassays are available to measure total chromium and the organic biologically-active forms of chromium, respectively.
Aspirin chemoprevention: one size does not fit all.

In 400 BC, Hippocrates prescribed the bark and leaves of the willow tree, which contain salicin, a natural compound similar to aspirin, to relieve pain and fever.1 In 1948, Dr Lawrence Craven noted that 400 men he prescribed aspirin to had not suffered any heart attacks.1 Forty years later, the Physician’s Health Study was terminated early because of a significant reduction in the incidence of myocardial infarction (MI) among men randomized to 325 mg aspirin every other day compared with placebo.2 Today, aspirin recommendations for chemoprevention of cardiovascular disease (CVD) are incorporated into numerous American Heart Association guidelines (the Table).3–12 The effectiveness of aspirin prophylaxis for patients with CVD has been well established13; however, the clinical utility of aspirin in the primary prevention of CVD has been debated, especially among women.14,15 View this table: Table. AHA Guidelines for the Use of Aspirin in CVD Prevention Article p 2875 In this issue of Circulation , Greving and colleagues,16 using Markov statistical models with simulated Danish cohorts, show that the cost-effectiveness of aspirin in the primary prevention of CVD varies according to gender, age, and baseline level of CVD risk. A threshold of baseline CVD risk >10% in men and >15% in women was shown to be cost-effective. The gender differential has important clinical implications because most women will not attain this level of CVD risk until their later years, and for many women, the risks of aspirin outweighs the benefits in the setting of primary prevention. The authors showed that costs associated with aspirin treatment were greater …
Fortifying Citizenship: Policy Strategies for Civic Integration in Western Europe

Why have European states introduced mandatory integration requirements for citizenship and permanent residence? There are many studies comparing integration policy and examining the significance of what has been interpreted as a convergent and restrictive "civic turn," a "retreat from multiculturalism," and an "inevitable lightening of citizenship." None of these studies, however, has puzzled over the empirical diversity of integration policy design or presented systematic, comparative explanations for policy variation. This article is the first to develop an argument for what, in fact, amounts to a wealth of variation in civic integration policy (including scope, sequencing, and difficulty). Using a historical institutionalist approach, the author argues that states use mandatory integration to address different membership problems, which are shaped by both existing citizenship policy (whether it is inclusive or exclusive) and political pressure to change it (in other words, the politics of citizenship). She illustrates this argument by focusing on three case studies, applying the argument to a case of unchallenged restrictive retrenchment and continuity (Denmark), to a case of negotiated and thus moderated restriction (Germany), and to a case that recently exhibited both liberal continuity (the United Kingdom, 2001–6) and failed attempts at new restriction (the United Kingdom, 2006–10). These cases show that although states may converge around similar mandatory integration instruments, they may apply them for distinctly different reasons. As a result, new requirements augment rather than alter the major contours of national citizenship policy and the membership association it maintains.
Hormone and antihormone withdrawal: implications for the management of androgen-independent prostate cancer.

Objectives. To analyze reported clinical outcomes for patients in whom an agent that acts via a steroid hormone receptor was “withdrawn.” Methods. Published reports where agent(s) known to act via steroid hormone receptors were discontinued in patients with relapsing prostatic cancer were retrieved from medline listings. The trials included patients who progressed on steroidal and nonsteroidal antiandrogens, progestational agents, and estrogens. Included were the specifics of all treatments administered prior to discontinuation of the drugs, concomitant therapies, and factors that might predict a favorable response to “withdrawal.” Results. Withdrawal responses were observed following the discontinuation of the antiandrogens flutamide and bicalutamide, flutamide plus aminoglutethimide, estrogens, and progestational agents. In most responding cases, responses were seen in patients with long exposure to the drug. No specific factors were predictive for response. Conclusions. Withdrawal responses to agents that act via steroid hormone receptors represent a generalized phenomenon that can result in palliation for patients with hormonally relapsed prostate cancer. A trial of “withdrawal therapy” is warranted in patients with relapsing disease prior to the initiation of more toxic therapies. Failure to control for this phenomenon in clinical trials may lead to false attribution of response to a study agent. The data provide support for the concept that androgen independence does not necessarily mean that a tumor is resistant to further hormonal manipulations.
Proanthocyanidin profile of cowpea (Vigna unguiculata) reveals catechin-O-glucoside as the dominant compound

Abstract Proanthocyanidin (PA) profile and content can have important nutritional and health implications on plant foods. Six diverse cowpea phenotypes (black, red, green, white, light-brown and golden-brown) were investigated for PA composition using normal-phase HPLC and reversed-phase UPLC-TQD-MS. Catechin and (epi)afzelechin were the major flavan-3-ol units. Unusual composition was observed in all cowpea phenotypes with significant degrees of glycosylation in the monomers and dimers. The PA content of cowpea (dry basis) ranged between 2.2 and 6.3 mg/g. Monomeric flavan-3-ols were the largest group of PA (36–69%) in cowpea, with catechin-7-O-glucoside accounting for most (about 88%) of the monomers. The oligomers with degree of polymerization (DP) 2–4 ranged from 0.41 to 1.3 mg/g (15–20%), whereas DP > 10 polymers accounted for only 13.5% of PA. Future studies that highlight the impact of the unusual cowpea PA profile on nutritional and bioactive properties of this important legume are warranted.
Earthquake Forecasting in Diverse Tectonic Zones of the Globe

We present a simple method for long- and short-term earthquake forecasting (estimating earthquake rate per unit area, time, and magnitude). For illustration we apply the method to the Pacific plate boundary region and the Mediterranean area surrounding Italy and Greece. Our ultimate goal is to develop forecasting and testing methods to validate or falsify common assumptions regarding earthquake potential. Our immediate purpose is to extend the forecasts we made starting in 1999 for the northwest and southwest Pacific to include somewhat smaller earthquakes and then adapt the methods to apply in other areas. The previous forecasts used the CMT earthquake catalog to forecast magnitude 5.8 and larger earthquakes. Like our previous forecasts, the new ones here are based on smoothed maps of past seismicity and assume spatial clustering. Our short-term forecasts also assume temporal clustering. An important adaptation in the new forecasts is to abandon the use of tensor focal mechanisms. This permits use of earthquake catalogs that reliably report many smaller quakes with no such mechanism estimates. The result is that we can forecast earthquakes at higher spatial resolution and down to a magnitude threshold of 4.7. The new forecasts can be tested far more quickly because smaller events are considerably more frequent. Also, our previous method used the focal mechanisms of past earthquakes to estimate the preferred directions of earthquake clustering, however the method made assumptions that generally hold in subduction zones only. The new approach escapes those assumptions. In the northwest Pacific the new method gives estimated earthquake rate density very similar to that of the previous forecast.
Sequential mate choice in decorated crickets : females use a fixed internal threshold in pre-and postcopulatory choice

In nature, female crickets often encounter males sequentially, choosing whether to mate with each male they find rather than selecting the most attractive male from a pool of available mates. Upon encountering a male, a female may base her decision to mate on a particular internal threshold or on a relative standard that takes into account the attractiveness of her previous mates. Here, we test whether the attractiveness of a female's previous mating partner influences her behaviour with respect to a second mate in the decorated cricket Gryllodes sigillatus. We measured both pre- and postcopulatory female mate choice as well as the effect that postcopulatory mating guarding by males had on females' postcopulatory behaviour. We showed that in both their first and second matings, pre- and postcopulatory mate choice are congruent, as females prefer to mate with, and accept more sperm from, attractive males. However, the outcome of pre- and postcopulatory choice does not depend on the attractiveness of a female's previous mate, suggesting that females employ a single standard upon which their mating decisions are based.
Query by humming: musical information retrieval in an audio database

The emergence of audio and video data types in databases will require new information retrieval methods adapted to the specific characteristics and needs of these data types. An effective and natural way of querying a musical audio database is by humming the tune of a song. In this paper, a system for querying an audio database by humming is described along with a scheme for representing the melodic information in a song as relative pitch changes. Relevant difficulties involved with tracking pitch are enumerated, along with the approach we followed, and the performance results of system indicating its effectiveness are presented.
The metabolism of progesterone by plant microsomes

Abstract Microsomes isolated either from Cheiranthus cheiri or Dioscorea deltoidea converted 4-13C-progesterone into a single metabolite, 5α-pregnane-3,20-dione, in the presence of a NADPH generating system. The maximum conversion occurs after approximately three hr incubation. The reaction does depend directly upon the amount of enzyme added, and the reaction has an optimum pH of approximately 7.
Universalism and the Electoral Connection: A Test and Some Doubts

A recurring theme in the academic literature on distributive policy is the tendency for legislators to form oversized coalitions to bestow benefits on virtually every district represented in the le...
Object-oriented, structural software configuration management

Capturing the evolution of logical objects and structures in a software project is crucial to the development of a high-quality software. This research demonstration presents an object-oriented approach to managing the evolution of system objects at the logical level. Keys to our approach are its extensible, logical, and object-oriented system model and structure versioning framework in which types of logical objects and structures in a software system are extended from a small set of the system model's basic entities, allowing them to be versioned in a fine-grained manner and independent of the physical file structure. Changes to all logical objects and structures are captured and related to each other in a tightly connected and cohesive manner via the Molhado product versioning software configuration management (SCM) infrastructure. We also demonstrate our object-oriented SCM approach by applying it in different development paradigms such as UML-based object-oriented software development, architecture-based software development, and Web application development.