cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Spectrum analysis of cortical activity during verbal planning: Physical evidence for the formation of social interaction routines

A substantial body of scholarship focused on the processes involved in message planning has accumulated in the communication literature. One of the central tenets of memory models upon which most of the message planning models are based is that dynamic memory systems organize and reorganize knowledge structures to maximize information processing efficiency. Accordingly, efficiency can be achieved by merely retrieving and enacting plans that have achieved goals previously under similar conditions. Plan failure, however, requires alteration or even production of an original plan. Although researchers have relied exclusively on output (e.g., response latency, memory tests) to draw inferences about planning processes, it is possible to observe cognitive processes more directly by measuring cortical responses. In the present study, electrical activity was monitored in the region of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex during verbal planning. Results indicated that (a) electrical activity while planning under conditions that permitted enactment of verbal plans that required no modification was significantly lower than during planning in the initial trial but, (b) electrical activity while planning under conditions in which previous efforts failed was significantly higher than during planning in the initial trial. These results provide physical evidence for the hypothetical cognitive processes proposed in the cognitivist models of routine formation.
Functional analysis of a two-year-old created in-stream wetland: Hydrology, phosphorus retention, and vegetation survival and growth

Planted vegetation survival and growth, hydrology, and phosphorus dynamics were monitored for the first two years of wetland development at a 6-ha created riparian wetland, in Franklin County, Ohio, USA. Herbaceous vegetation developed clear zonation and appeared to reduce the invasion ofTypha spp. Of the 17 species introduced, 8 were among the 18 most commonly encountered species approximately 2 years after the wetland was constructed. Planted saplings generally survived except where they were found in standing water;Liquidambar styraciflua andBetula nigra were less successful because the site is close to their northern range. Simulation models were developed to predict hydrology, phosphorus retention, and tree growth. The site has a rapidly pulsing hydroperiod driven by runoff from storm events. Annual simulated phosphorus loading was 17.8 gP m−2 yr−1 and retention was 2.9 gP m−2 yr−1 (16% of inflow). Fifty years of tree growth simulated for each planted tree species indicated that the site will develop into a forested wetland dominated byQuercus palustris andFraxinus pennsylvanica with basal area comparable to riparian forests but with lower stem density unless seedlings germinate from the planted trees. Lower water levels in the wetland would favor the development of the woody vegetation over herbaceous vegetation and would also favor higher retention of phosphorus.
A Service Brokering and Recommendation Mechanism for Better Selecting Cloud Services

Cloud computing is becoming the new generation computing infrastructure, and many cloud vendors provide different types of cloud services. How to choose the best cloud services for specific applications is very challenging. Addressing this challenge requires balancing multiple factors, such as business demands, technologies, policies and preferences in addition to the computing requirements. This paper recommends a mechanism for selecting the best public cloud service at the levels of Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) and Platform as a Service (PaaS). A systematic framework and associated workflow include cloud service filtration, solution generation, evaluation, and selection of public cloud services. Specifically, we propose the following: a hierarchical information model for integrating heterogeneous cloud information from different providers and a corresponding cloud information collecting mechanism; a cloud service classification model for categorizing and filtering cloud services and an application requirement schema for providing rules for creating application-specific configuration solutions; and a preference-aware solution evaluation mode for evaluating and recommending solutions according to the preferences of application providers. To test the proposed framework and methodologies, a cloud service advisory tool prototype was developed after which relevant experiments were conducted. The results show that the proposed system collects/updates/records the cloud information from multiple mainstream public cloud services in real-time, generates feasible cloud configuration solutions according to user specifications and acceptable cost predication, assesses solutions from multiple aspects (e.g., computing capability, potential cost and Service Level Agreement, SLA) and offers rational recommendations based on user preferences and practical cloud provisioning; and visually presents and compares solutions through an interactive web Graphical User Interface (GUI).
The specific heats of adsorbed helium submonolayers I. On copper

Abstract Specific heats of submonolayer 4He films adsorbed on copper have been measured between 0.75 K and 4.0 K. Near monolayer coverages the film shows a two-dimensional (2-D) solid-like Debye behavior with the addition, at the higher temperatures, of a term due to desorption from the film into the three-dimensional (3-D) vapor above it. At lower coverages down to 0.18 monolayers, the specific heat per atom is anomalous and can be explained by a theory proposed by Roy and Halsey.
Low-temperature nitride transformation reactions

This study illustrates a novel method of transforming between two refractory nitrides at temperatures well below their respective melting points. Silicon nitride (Si 3 N 4 ) is an excellent thermal and electronic insulator, with applications in the microelectronic, automotive and technical ceramic industries. Thermodynamically, there is a significant decrease in the Gibb's Free Energy inherent in the transformation between Si 3 N 4 and a number of refractory metal nitrides; however, these transformation reactions are limited in the pure state by a kinetic barrier at any temperature appreciably lower than the melting point of Si 3 N 4 (∼2173 K). Results of this study illustrate the successful conversion of powdered amorphous Si 3 N 4 to TiN. The transformation is made possible by a liquid phase present in a number of Ti-based alloys at temperatures in the vicinity of 800°C. Since both nitrides (SiN x and TiN) are refractory, the presence of the liquid phase provides a high-diffusivity pathway, thus overcoming the kinetic barrier associated with the otherwise thermodynamically favorable reaction.
Management of stages I to III Hodgkin disease in children.

Thirty-seven children, ages 4 through 16 years, presented with clinical stages I, II, or III Hodgkin disease. In nine (24%) patients, laparotomy and splenectomy resulted in a pathologic stage that varied from the clinical stage. Of 36 patients with pathologic stages I, II, and III; 26 have been followed for more than two years from diagnosis. Pathologic stages I and IIA disease were found in 21 patients, and 19 received radiation therapy alone (usually mantle-field), with 90% disease-free survival and 95% overall survival (median follow-up 46 months). Five patients had stage IIB disease: two had progression of disease while receiving mantle irradiation and three were alive and disease-free after 11 to 26 months, two having received combined modality therapy. Of ten patients with stage III disease, five have had relapses and five have remained in complete remission. All relapses occurred in patients receiving either irradiation or chemotherapy but not both. This experience supports extended-field irradiation alone as adequate treatment for stages I and IIA Hodgkin disease in children, but suggests that for stages IIB and III, single modality treatment is not adequate.
Target selection in Lanchester combat: Linear‐law attrition process

We develop the solution to a simple problem of target selection in Lanchester combat against two enemy force types each of which undergoes a “linear-law” attrition process. In addition to the Pontryagin maximum principle, the theory of singular extremals is required to solve this problem. Our major contribution is to show how to synthesize the optimal target selection policies from the basic optimality conditions. This solution synthesis methodology is applicable to more general dynamic (tactical) allocation problems. For constant attrition-rate coefficients we show that whether or not changes can occur in target priorities depends solely on how survivors are valued and is independent of the type of attrition process.
Multisensory convergence in the orbital and ventrolateral prefrontal cortex

The prefrontal cortex can be divided into at least five distinct networks or systems, which have preferential intrinsic connections with other areas in the same system and distinct connections with other parts of the brain. Of these, the orbital network and the ventrolateral prefrontal cortex both receive multimodal sensory inputs and appear to function as regions for integration of this information, with an important role in the assessment of sensory objects or stimuli. The orbital network receives prominent olfactory, taste, and visceral inputs, as well as visual and somatosensory inputs; it is probably especially important for assessment of food. The ventrolateral prefrontal region does not receive olfactory or taste visceral inputs but does receive the same visual and somatosensory inputs, as well as auditory inputs. It may serve a role in the assessment of nonfood objects.
Mood selection in Romance and Balkan

This paper assembles, synthesizes, and considers a range of data concerning mood selection in Romance and Balkan. An account of the appearance of subjunctive morphology under factive emotives in Romance is proposed. It is argued that factive emotives occur with subjunctive because indicative, with its assumption of speaker commitment to the truth of the embedded proposition, is ruled out due to pragmatic constraints on the redundant repetition of the factive presupposition that would occur. Subjunctive mood morphology is argued to fill in as a kind of default. This analysis is extended to a range of mood distribution facts in Romance and Balkan languages, and implications of the proposal are discussed. It is proposed that Romance and Balkan differ in the semantic contribution of indicative, and that in Balkan indicative is associated with certainty on the part of the subject (not necessarily the speaker). This analysis is applied to various data concerning mood distribution in Balkan, including the existence and properties of Polarity Subjunctive in Balkan. The ways in which Romance and Balkan mark various mood-related distinctions are also discussed. A particular analysis of the notion of subjunctive-as-default mood is briefly sketched.
Spatial and temporal occurrence of hypoxia influences fish habitat quality in dense Hydrilla verticillata

The abundance and architecture of some macrophyte species can alter water chemistry and impact fish habitat quality and quantity. Hydrilla (Hydrilla verticillata) is an invasive aquatic plant that exhibits rapid growth and may contribute to low dissolved oxygen (DO) concentrations (hypoxia, DO < 2.0 mg/L) during warm summer months. DO dynamics were evaluated at a range of spatial and temporal scales in three habitat types: open water, edge of hydrilla beds, and the dense interior of a hydrilla bed at two Florida lakes. Results showed that habitat type, month, and depth all significantly influenced DO, and 100% of the water column was hypoxic in late summer in the small lake. However, hydrilla biomass (kg/m2) was much less and no hypoxia was detected in the larger lake, suggesting that lake morphology and size may influence the abundance and impacts of hydrilla on DO. Additionally, hypoxia in edge habitat indicates that increasing ecotone may not greatly influence DO concentrations unless substantial open ...
New method for expressing F-wave data as conduction velocity.

Abstract A method for expressing F-wave data as a conduction velocity (normalized F-wave conduction velocity, NFCV) is described for the median, ulnar, peroneal, and posterior tibial nerves. Surface measurements routinely performed for calculation of motor conduction velocity (MCV) are used together with F-wave latency and a compensation factor (CF) to calculate a “velocity” easily comparable (normalized) to the MCV. Significant correlations between segmental “limb lengths” and whole ‘extremity lengths” are shown. High correlations between NFCV and MCV are shown in a normal population, implying that NFCV is a valid descriptor of nerve conduction although it is not the true F-wave conduction velocity. The NFCV is shown to be more sensitive to age than F-wave latency or MCV, implying that NFCV potentially may be used as a sensitive indicator of motor nerve pathology.
The impact of professional standards on accounting judgments: The role of availability and comparative information

Abstract Given scant research on the influence of the AICPA’s Code of Conduct, this study examines the effects of professional standards for advocacy and integrity on a financial reporting decision. Based on the availability and priming literature, we test whether the current wording of two AICPA professional standards influence financial reporting decisions. Prior accounting research has documented cases where professionals were inclined toward a conservative or skeptical bias (Francis & Krishnan, 1999; Jenkins & Lowe, 1999) while other studies have documented an inclination toward a client-confirming bias (Hackenbrack & Nelson, 1996; Roberts, 2010). Our study examines whether using AICPA ethical standards as primes results in a neutral, unbiased financial reporting decision in a context in which there is substantial, yet inconclusive, evidence. Roberts (2010) documents the tendency for professionals to view integrity and advocacy as segregated objectives: one for promoting unbiased reporting, associated frequently with accounting-related decisions, and the other condoning client advocacy, typically associated with tax-related judgments. Hence, we test for availability effects based on separately-stated standards. However, the literature on comparative analysis explains that a combined concept containing counterbalancing features allows the participant to form causal relationships between the distinguishing components. This type of mental process brings the causal knowledge into working memory. Hence, a joint presentation of countervailing standards should result in a more balanced judgment, reflecting neither a conservative nor pro-client tendency. The psychology literature suggests that heuristics, such as availability priming and comparative analysis, are more likely to affect novice decision makers (e.g., jurors, clients, new hires, students) than experts whose work experiences could drive the results. This study examines the responses of upper-level accounting majors, and the results show that the participants are inclined toward conservative decision making. Participants exposed to a separately-stated standard for integrity respond conservatively, just as they do in a control group without explicit access to the professional standard. Similarly, even when exposed to AICPA Rule 102-6 allowing client advocacy, they report conservatively. In contrast, when the prime is a joint presentation of the standards, participants respond with an unbiased decision, which differs significantly from the consistently conservative response by the control group as well as by the participants primed with an isolated standard. We conclude that two AICPA standards (as currently worded) are best understood when they are aggregated. Whether this finding holds for professionals is an empirical question for future research. The implication is that accountants’ decision making could be enhanced by a revised professional standard reminding them to jointly consider the goals of unbiased decision making and justifiable client advocacy.
Operational Strategy, R&D and Intra-metropolitan Clustering in a Polycentric Structure: The Advanced Electronics Industries of the Los Angeles Basin

The multiple clustering of economic activities is one of the most distinctive characteristics of a polycentric metropolitan area. The relationship between intra-metropolitan location, research and ...
The Porcine Bioprosthetic Heart Valve: Experience at 15 Years

The porcine bioprosthetic valve has been in use at Henry Ford Hospital since 1971. In this review, 980 patients with 1,081 porcine bioprosthetic valves were examined from 1 month to 16.4 years after implantation with a 99% complete follow-up. Patient survival was 59% ± 2.2% (± standard error of the mean) at 10 years and 38% ± 4.0% at 15 years. Factors associated with decreased survival after hospital discharge were age greater than 35 years and New York Heart Association functional class IV. Freedom from thromboembolism was 92% ± 1.2% at 10 years and 89% ± 3.2% at 15 years. Freedom from endocarditis was 93% ± 1.2% at 10 years and 92% ± 1.3% at 15 years. Freedom from structural valve degeneration for all valves was 71% ± 2.6% at 10 years and 31% ± 5.6% at 15 years. Factors associated with increased risk of structural valve degeneration were age younger than 35 years, female sex, and preoperative cardiac index greater than 2 L/min/m 2 . Among a total of 172 patients undergoing removal of a degenerated valve, mortality was 12.5%, and significant risk factors for death at reoperation were emergency operation and functional class IV. Experience with the porcine bioprosthetic valve after 15 years suggests that its use be confined to older patients or patients with a contraindication of anticoagulation.
A cross-reactive polyol-responsive monoclonal antibody useful for isolation of core RNA polymerase from many bacterial species

The use of antibodies for protein purification is a powerful technique but the release of the target protein in its active form is often difficult. So called "polyol-responsive" monoclonal antibodies (PR-MAbs) have a feature that allows elution of the antigen under very gentle conditions, so that even multi-subunit proteins can be released in their active form. In this work a PR-MAb, 8RB13, was isolated that can purify RNA polymerase (RNAP) from many different bacterial species. High specificity towards RNAP with a broad species cross-reactivity was achieved by immunization with RNAP from Escherichia coli and screening with Bacillus subtilis RNA polymerase. The isolated MAb could detect the beta-subunit of RNA polymerase from 10 out of 12 species tested on a Western blot indicating its potential for purification of core RNAP from these organisms. Representatively, four of these species E. coli, B. subtilis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Streptomyces coelicolor were subjected to immunoaffinity purification yielding RNA polymerases that were active in in vitro transcription and seemed to be primarily core polymerase, lacking sigma-subunits.
Reduction of shrinkage in epoxy resins

Volume changes during curing of an unfilled epoxy resin using a series of anhydrides were measured. It was shown that a significant reduction in shrinkage could be achieved by proper choice of structure.
Quantitative analyses of epidermal growth factor receptors, HER-2/neu oncoprotein and cathepsin D in nonmalignant and malignant uteri.

BACKGROUND Hormone receptors and oncoproteins are receiving increased attention as possible prognostic factors in different carcinomas. Few data are available regarding quantification of their levels of expression in gynecologic malignancies. METHODS Epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor specific binding capacities and affinities were measured by ligand binding assay using [125I]EGF in a competition mode with Accufit;rM software (Lundon Software, Inc., Middlefield, OH). HER-2/neu oncoprotein was extracted from membranes and measured using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Cathepsin D was measured by an immunoradiometric assay using cytosols for steroid receptor analyses. RESULTS EGF receptors in 23 nonmalignant uteri ranged from undetectable to 50 fmol/mg membrane protein (median, 0), with dissociation constant values of 1.2 × 10−9 M to 8.5 × 10−10 M, compared with EGF receptors in 76 endometrial cancers that ranged from undetectable to 7674 fmol/mg (median, 52). HER-2/neu oncoprotein ranged from undetectable to 2.9 HER-2/neu units (HNU)/μg protein (median, 0.6) in 41 nonmalignant uteri and from undetectable to 5.8 HNU/μg protein (median, 2.5) in endometrial cancers (n = 53). Cathepsin D ranged from 5 to 32 pmol/mg cytosol protein (median, 11) in 42 nonmalignant uteri and 18 to 144 pmol/mg protein (median, 42) in 29 endometrial cancers. CONCLUSIONS Determination of the frequency and levels of EGF receptors, HER-2/neu protein, and cathepsin D in uteri with and without cancer and the availability of reference materials developed in our laboratory will allow evaluation of their prognostic value in cancers of the uterus. Cancer 1996;77:710-6.
Estimates of beat to beat handling of activator calcium using measurements of [Ca2+]i in aequorin loaded ferret cardiac muscle.

Objective: The aims were (1) to measure simultaneously and on a beat to beat basis intracellular calcium concentration ([Ca2+]i) transients and force transients in isolated ferret cardiac trabeculae; (2) to obtain and compare independent estimates of the recirculating fraction of Ca2+ using the [Ca2+]i data and the force data (recirculating fraction is the fraction of activator Ca2+ taken up by the sarcoplasmic reticulum in each beat and, in the steady state twitch, the fraction of activator Ca2+ released by the sarcoplasmic reticulum); and (3) to estimate the amount of Ca2+ that returns to the sarcoplasmic reticulum and the amount that, during steady state contractions, enters the cytosol, presumably from the extracellular compartment, with each beat. Methods: Eight trabeculae were mounted in the myograph. The servo-controlled muscle length was 98% of the length at which developed force was maximal. A modified technique was used for chemical loading of aequorin, and a new method for computer controlled low level photon counting, storage, calibration, and analysis. [Ca2+]i transients and force transients were simultaneously recorded during potentiated beats, together with their respective decays toward control steady state [Ca2+]j transients and force transients. A modified test of postextrasystolic potentiation achieved with a brief train of rapid pacing followed by a pause was used to evoke the potentiated beats. Results: At 2.0 mM extracellular Ca2+ ([Ca2+]o), resting [Ca2+]i was 283(SD 77) nM. The resting tension was 1.6(0.3) g·mm−2. The steady state [Ca2+]i transient and the peak potentiated [Ca2+]i transient averaged 992(165) and 1290(154) nM respectively. The corresponding tensions were 4.0(1.9) and 8.7(3.1) g·mm−2 respectively. The recirculating fraction of Ca2+ calculated from the dissipation of the potentiated [Ca2+]i transient averaged 45(4)%. This recirculating fraction was indistinguishable from the one calculated with another method from the decay of the force potentiation. Conclusions: This is the first study to estimate the recirculating fraction of activator Ca2+using measurements of [Ca2+]i. The results indicate that over a wide range of [Ca2+]i and tensions the Ca2+-force relationship is well approximated by a straight line. At 2.0 mM [Ca2+]o it appears that some 450 nM of Ca2+ recirculates and that a similar amount per steady state beat enters the cytosol, probably from the extracellular compartment. Cardiovascular Research 1994; 28 :40-46
Effects of an international income transfer on the global environmental quality

Abstract Effects of an international income transfer (from the North to the South) on the global environmental quality are examined. It is shown that a transfer of resources to a country, whose environmental quality is currently poor, may improve the global level of the environmental quality and benefit not only the recepient but also the donor country, even if the technology of cleanup of pollution is less efficient in the recipient country.
Vertebral column and spinal cord malformation in children with exstrophy of the cloaca, with emphasis on their functional correlates

Exstrophy of the cloaca is a dramatic malformation whose embryology is poorly understood. While the management of this disorder has received significant attention in the urology and general surgery literature, the neurologic status of these children has been poorly addressed. In order to better characterize the spinal cord and vertebral column malformations found in children with exstrophy of the cloaca, we undertook a clinical review of 26 consecutive children with exstrophy of the cloaca who had been seen at a single institution over 28 years. The prevalence of vertebral malformations in the 25 children who could be evaluated was 25/25 (100%). Twenty (80%) of the children had at least one vertebral fusion, most frequently at T-7. Twenty-two (88%) of the children had at least one vertebra with deficient posterior elements, and the spinal levels most frequently involved were S-2, S-3, S-4, and S-5. Nine (36%) of the children had at least one vertebra with a narrowed interpedicular distance, most frequently at T-7. Nine (36%) of the children had at least one vertebra with atrophic facet anatomy, most frequently at L-3. The prevalence of myelodysplasia in the 19 children for whom spinal magnetic resonance imaging or intraoperative findings were available was 100%. Of these 19 children, 15 (79%) had myelocystocele, 2 (11%) had a lipomeningocele, 2 (11%) had a meningocele, 2 (11%) had hydromyelia, and 4 (21%) had a tethered cord. These data suggest that spinal cord and vertebral column malformations are very common in children with exstrophy of the cloaca. Teratology 55:241-248, 1997. © 1997 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
African American Traditions of Civic Responsibility

This article reviews issues and problems in conventional studies of African American traditions of civic responsibility. This area of philanthropic studies is deeply flawed by inadequate conceptions of the American nation state and by racialized political ideologies and stereotypes. The author critiques conventional interpretations of African American civic responsibilities and African American civic cultures and suggests alternative conceptual frameworks and new research areas. The purpose is to raise more questions than answers in a research area that remains seriously underdeveloped because of ideological intrusions, racial stereotyping, and the continued dominance of structural functionalism in attempts by American social scientists to interpret the nature of ethnicity and culture in American society.
The ear of the chameleon: Chamaeleo höhnelii and Chamaeleo jacksoni†

The study of the chameleon ear that began with Chamaeleo senegalensis and Chamaeleo quilensis has now been extended to two further species, Chamaeleo hohnelii and Chameleo jacksoni, with results that are different in important respects. As measured in terms of cochlear potentials, the two species of the present study show definitely poorer sensitivity to aerial sounds. Also their responsiveness to these sounds is not made much worse by severing the columella, an observation that stands in contrast with the serious impairment that this operation produces in C. senegalensis and C. quilensis. The explanation lies in a difference between the sound receptive mechanisms in the two groups. In the species examined earlier a substitute tympanic membrane was found: beneath the surface at the side of the head is a diaphragm formed by a thin plate of the pterygoid bone and a membrane extending its surface to the border of the quadrate bone. In addition there is a branch process (anterior process) of the extracolumella that attaches to the middle of this pterygoid plate, and transmits the movements made by the plate in response to sounds to the stapedial footplate in the oval window. In C. hohnelii and C. jacksoni this anterior process is lacking, and the pterygoid plate cannot function as a sound receptive surface.
Sodium Hyaluronate Eye Drop. A Scanning and Transmission Electron Microscopy Study of the Corneal Surface

The association with time (0–60 min) of an eye drop preparation containing sodium hyaluronate with the corneal epithelial cell surface was examined using both cryo-fixation and osmium tetroxide vapor
Evidence for a Matriptase-Prostasin Proteolytic Cascade Regulating Terminal Epidermal Differentiation

Recent gene ablation studies in mice have shown that matriptase, a type II transmembrane serine protease, and prostasin, a glycosylphosphatidylinositol-anchored membrane serine protease, are both required for processing of the epidermis-specific polyprotein, profilaggrin, stratum corneum formation, and acquisition of epidermal barrier function. Here we present evidence that matriptase acts upstream of prostasin in a zymogen activation cascade that regulates terminal epidermal differentiation and is required for prostasin zymogen activation. Enzymatic gene trapping of matriptase combined with prostasin immunohistochemistry revealed that matriptase was co-localized with prostasin in transitional layer cells of the epidermis and that the developmental onset of expression of the two membrane proteases was coordinated and correlated with acquisition of epidermal barrier function. Purified soluble matriptase efficiently converted soluble prostasin zymogen to an active two-chain form that formed SDS-stable complexes with the serpin protease nexin-1. Whereas two forms of prostasin with molecular weights corresponding to the prostasin zymogen and active prostasin were present in wild type epidermis, prostasin was exclusively found in the zymogen form in matriptase-deficient epidermis. These data suggest that matriptase, an autoactivating protease, acts upstream from prostasin to initiate a zymogen cascade that is essential for epidermal differentiation.
Developing a model of the global and strategic impact of information technology

In today's intensely competitive world, many firms have developed applications of information technology (IT) that provide a significant global competitive advantage. Most evidence of such IT use is anecdotal; the global competitive impact of IT has not been studied from a rigorous theory building or empirical perspective. This article reports progress toward the development of a model (called GLITS) to measure the strategic global impact of IT on an international firm. The underpinnings of the model are based on domestic and international literature; and it has undergone extensive refinement through statistical evaluation and validation. The model and its accompanying instrument can be used to identify specific strategic IT factors for a company and a contingency analysis can be conducted to determine the importance of various factors based on organizational characteristics. This foundational model should have significant utility for both practitioners and researchers.
Interpretation of coagulation test results using a web-based reporting system.

Background: Web-based synoptic reporting has been successfully integrated into diverse fields of pathology, improving efficiency and reducing typographic errors. Coagulation is a challenging field for practicing pathologists and pathologists-in-training alike. Objective: To develop a Web-based program that can expedite the generation of a individualized interpretive report for a variety of coagulation tests. Methods: We developed a Web-based synoptic reporting system composed of 119 coagulation report templates and 38 thromboelastography (TEG) report templates covering a wide range of findings. Results: Our institution implemented this reporting system in July 2011; it is currently used by pathology residents and attending pathologists. Feedback from the users of these reports have been overwhelmingly positive. Surveys note the time saved and reduced errors. Conclusion: Our easily accessible, user-friendly, Web-based synoptic reporting system for coagulation is a valuable asset to our laboratory services. * TEG : thromboelastography PT : prothrombin time PTT : partial thromboplastin time MA : Maximum Amplitude Ly30 : Lysis after 30 minutes HTML : Hypertext Markup Language LIS : laboratory information system
Long-Term Profitability of Volume-Based Price Momentum in Taiwan

In the Taiwanese stock market, this paper discovers a significant outperformance of volume-based price momentum strategies relative to pure price momentum strategies over the holding period of 3–5 years. Specifically, hedge portfolios that are longing low-volume winners and shorting high-volume losers generate superior returns than pure price hedge portfolios of buying winners and selling losers. Moreover, the opposed strategies of buying high-volume winners and selling low-volume losers systematically underperform the pure price momentum strategies. Both results are consistent with those from US. More importantly, both outperformance and underperformance are robust to adjustment of industry effects, book-to-market ratio, and firm size. Furthermore, firm size seems to subsume a larger portion of superior and inferior performances than the other two control factors because the economic magnitude of outperformance and underperformance deteriorates more intensively when it is conditional on firm size than on the other two factors.
Stochastic search, optimization, and the simultaneous perturbation algorithm - a tutorial

We present a summary of a tutorial presentation related to stochastic methods for search and optimization. Such methods have wide applicability in the implementation and design of multiagent systems. The first part of the tutorial covers some general principles in stochastic search and optimization and the second part focuses on the "simultaneous perturbation stochastic approximation (SPSA)" algorithm, which is one popular method for search and optimization.
Characterization for vision science applications of a bimorph deformable mirror using phase-shifting interferometry

The wave front corrector is one of the three key elements in adaptive optics, along with the wave front sensor and the control computer. Low cost, compact deformable mirrors are increasingly available. We have tested the AOptix bimorph deformable mirror, originally developed for ultra-high bandwidth laser communication systems, to determine its suitability for vision science applications, where cornea and lens introduce optical aberrations. Measurements of the dynamic response of the mirror to a step input were obtained using a commercial Laser Doppler Vibrometer (LDV). A computer-controlled Twyman-Green interferometer was constructed to allow the surface height of the deformable mirror to be measured using Phase-Shifting Interferometry as a function of various control voltages. A simple open-loop control method was used to compute the control voltages required to generate aberration mode shapes described by the Zernike polynomials. Using this method, the ability of the deformable mirror to generate each mode shape was characterized by measuring the maximum amplitude and RMS error of each Zernike mode shape up to the fifth radial order. The maximum deformation amplitude was found to diminish with the square of the radial order of the Zernike mode, with a measured deformation of 8 microns and 1.5 microns achieved at the second-order and fifth-order Zernike modes, respectively. This deformation amplitude appears to be sufficient to allow the mirror to correct for aberrations up to the fifth order in the human eye.
Metalorganic chemical vapor deposition for optoelectronic devices

The metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) process for electronic and photonic compound semiconductor materials and devices is reviewed. We begin with an introduction to the basic MOCVD chemical reaction process, gas delivery equipment, reaction chambers, and safety. Growth mechanisms, including hydrodynamics, boundary-layer issues, thermal effects, and pyrolysis reactions, are defined, and criteria for growth regimes, growth rate, and alloy composition are described. Material, structural, and dopant considerations, which are particularly important to optoelectronic devices, are presented. Last, a brief description of the selective area epitaxial growth process is presented.
Fabrication and characterization of carbon nanotubes immobilized in porous polymeric membranes

We demonstrate that the incorporation of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) in the pores of a membrane can offer several advantages. A dispersion of CNTs in polyvinylidene fluoride was injected through a porous membrane, which immobilized the nanotubes in the pore structure. The CNTs served as a sorbent facilitating solute exchange between the two phases leading to enhancement of the enrichment factor by as much as 93%. The presence of CNTs also developed a diffusion barrier by sorbing solvent on its surface, which led to higher retention of the extractant within the membrane.
Ultradiffusion, scale space transformation, and the morphology of neural networks

The author proposes the scale-space transformation (SST) as a paradigm for information processing in biological neural networks. The SST concept includes scale-space, scale-time, and scale-space-time mappings. Hierarchical nonlinear (HNL) systems theory, together with the SST paradigm, causality requirements in the time domain, and uncertainty constraints in time and space domains, can be used to develop morphogenic models of biological neural networks. Since morphogenic models need only capture the functional modality of their physical counterparts, there may or may not be an observable resemblance to physical structure. To illustrate these concepts, the author discusses a morphogenic model of the mammalian visual system (MVS) in terms of SST mappings. As an example he uses an exponential retinotopic mapping, which is called the log Z SST (LZ SST). Using HNL and SST concepts, the author suggests a layered model of the MVS neural network. >
Mechanisms underlying increased right ventricular conduction sensitivity to flecainide challenge

Aims The cardiac sodium current ( I Na) is a major determinant of conduction. Mechanisms underlying regionally heterogeneous conduction slowing secondary to reduced I Na in diseases such as the Brugada syndrome and heart failure remain incompletely understood. Right precordial electrophysiological manifestations during flecainide challenge suggest a decreased right ventricular depolarization reserve. We hypothesized that heterogeneous cardiac sodium channel (Nav1.5) distribution between ventricles causes interventricular depolarization heterogeneities. Methods and results Western blotting analysis revealed Nav1.5, and Kir2.1 protein expressions were 18.2 and 12.0% lower, respectively, in the guinea pig right ventricle (RV) compared with the left ventricle (LV). Conduction velocity ( θ ) heterogeneities were quantified by optical mapping during LV or RV pacing. Although RV transverse θ ( θ T) was significantly greater than LV θ T by 33.09 ± 1.38% under control conditions, there were no differences in longitudinal θ . During partial sodium channel blockade (flecainide, 0.5 µM), RV θ decreased by 35.3 ± 1.3%, whereas LV θ decreased by 29.2 ± 1.0%. These data demonstrate that the RV has an increased conduction dependence on sodium channel availability. Partial blockade of the inward rectifier potassium current ( I K1) by BaCl2 (10 μm) significantly increased θ in both ventricles under control conditions. However, BaCl2 only increased conduction dependence on sodium channel availability in the LV. This suggests that the LV may have an increased depolarization reserve compared with the RV, but the larger I K1 depresses control LV θ . Conclusion Interventricular I K1 heterogeneities may underlie conduction heterogeneities observed under control conditions. However, under conditions where I Na is functionally reduced in disease or during pharmacological sodium channel blockade, the heterogeneity in Nav1.5 expression may become a significant determinant of conduction heterogeneities.
Author retrospective for analytical cache models with applications to cache partitioning

This paper presents the author retrospective on the analytical cache modeling work published in the 2001 International Conference on Supercomputing (ICS). We summarize the history of the work, revisit primary observations and lessons that we learned from the modeling effort, and also briefly describe follow-up work to show how the research direction evolved over time.Original Paper: http://dx.doi.org/10.1145/377792.377797
Character and Caricature, Virtual and Real

El caracter, como la personalidad, se forma a traves de la biologia y la cultura. No obstante, aun no se conoce con detalle la influencia de estas instancias y los procesos a que dan lugar. Como parte de la cultura en permanente transformacion, la tecnologia nos ofrece una ventana a traves de la cual observar la construccion del caracter en un entorno extrano: el ciberespacio. El mundo virtual nos permite jugar con nuestra identidad de formas desconocidas en la vida "real". Este juego pone en evidencia lo que es biologicamente inmutable y lo que no, por ejemplo, el genero y la raza. La construccion de personajes/caricatura en MUDS, MOOS y otros ciber-lugares arroja luz sobre dispositivos de formacion del caracter tales como el rol de las tecnologias del recuerdo, la potencialidad de las fantasias hechas realidad etc. Por otra parte, la participacion politica en internet revela los limites en los que el caracter puede manifestarse en entornos simulados. Parece, en suma, que la personalidad-cyborg es mas plastica de lo que se creia. Pero el caracter como integridad aun sigue determinando hasta donde puede llegar la suplantacion de este por el personaje. Character, as personality, is formed through biology and culture. But the influence these forces have and the actual processes involved are not really known. Technology, as an important and always changing part of culture, offers us a window on the construction of character especially in that strange new place: cyberspace. The virtual world allows people to play with their character in ways that are very difficult “in real life.” This play reveals a great deal about what is biologically immutable and what isn’t after all. In particular gender, race, and embodiment in general are treated quite differently on-line then in the flesh. And character/caricature formation in the MUDS and MOOS and other cyber-places throws light on the processes of character, such as the roles of evocative technologies, the feedback loops of will and non-will (addiction), and the potentiality of fantasies actualized. In particular political participation on the internet reveals the limits of what real character can be manifested in a simulated environment. It seems cyborgian character is more plastic in some ways than most observers would have predicted; but character, as integrity, will still determine how far the role of caricature will go in supplanting character.
A simple model for distributed base impedance with AC verification using S-parameter measurements

A simple model for distributed quasi-three-dimensional base impedance that is generally applicable for any bipolar circuit model and accounts for DC and AC base crowding is presented. It is shown to be self-consistent with parameter extraction using S-parameter measurements corrected by equivalent-circuit deembedding. >
A wideband blind identification approach to speech acquisition using a microphone array

The problem of speech separation from an array of microphones is considered. The problem is modeled as a wideband process with unknown model parameters, namely, sensor gains and time delays. The technique of blind identification is extended to the wideband case. It is shown that the wideband blind identification approach is capable of handling multipath situations. Simulations are presented which show that the wideband signals can indeed be separated by the proposed approach. >
Enteric disease in postweaned beef calves associated with Bovine coronavirus clade 2

Bovine coronavirus (BoCV; Betacoronavirus 1) infections are associated with varied clinical presentations including neonatal diarrhea, winter dysentery in dairy cattle, and respiratory disease in various ages of cattle. The current report presents information on BoCV infections associated with enteric disease of postweaned beef cattle in Oklahoma. In 3 separate accessions from a single herd, 1 in 2012 and 2 in 2013, calves were observed with bloody diarrhea. One calf in 2012 died and was necropsied, and 2 calves from this herd died in 2013 and were necropsied. A third calf from another herd died and was necropsied. The gross and histologic diagnosis was acute, hemorrhagic colitis in all 4 cattle. Colonic tissues from all 4 animals were positive by fluorescent antibody testing and/or immunohistochemical staining for BoCV antigen. Bovine coronavirus was isolated in human rectal tumor cells from swabs of colon surfaces of all animals. The genomic information from a region of the S envelope region revealed BoCV clade 2. Detection of BoCV clade 2 in beef cattle in Oklahoma is consistent with recovery of BoCV clade 2 from the respiratory tract of postweaned beef calves that had respiratory disease signs or were healthy. Further investigations on the ecology of BoCV in cattle are important, as BoCV may be an emerging disease beyond the initial descriptions. Challenge studies are needed to determine pathogenicity of these strains, and to determine if current BoCV vaccines are efficacious against the BoCV clade 2 strains.
Electrospray ionization mass spectrometry coupled with size-exclusion chromatography

The coupling of electrospray ionization mass spectrometry with gel permeation chromatography (GPC) has been used for the separation of a commercial polydisperse mixture of octylphenoxypoly(ethoxy)ethanol. Stable electrospray conditions are obtained upon using, as GPC solvent, tetrahydrofuran containing 10−5−10−4M sodium salt which also provides for the formation of intact molecular ions through cationization. Selected-ion chromatograms of sodiated species allow for the monitoring of the elution profiles of individual oligomers, and can be used for the calibration of the GPC.
PRECISION OF NEUTRON SCATTERING AND CAPACITANCE TYPE SOIL WATER CONTENT GAUGES FROM FIELD CALIBRATION

Soil water content gauges based on neutron scattering (NS) have been a valuable tool for soil water investigations for some 40 yr. However, licensing, training, and safet y regulations pertaining to the radioactive source in th ese devices makes their use expensive and prevents use in some situations such as unattended monitoring. A capacitance probe (CP ) gauge has characteristics that would make it seem to be an ideal replacement for NS gauges. We determined the relative precision of two brands of NS gauges (three gauges of each) and a brand of CP gauge (four gauges) in a field calibration exercise. Both brands of NS gauges were calibrated vs. volumetric soil water content with coefficients o f determination (r ) ranging 2 from 0.97 to 0.99 and root mean squared errors (RMSE) <0.012 m m water content. 3 -3 Calibrations for the CP gauges resulted in r ranging from 0.68 to 0.71 and RMSE of 0.036 m 2 3 m water content. Average 95% confidence intervals on predictions were three to five times -3