cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Influence of Provenance and Burial History on Diagenesis of Lower Cretaceous Frontier Formation Sandstones, Green River Basin, Wyoming

ABSTRACT The Upper Cretaceous Frontier Formation on the Moxa Arch in the western Green River Basin, Wyoming, has had a varied diagenetic history that was controlled in part by differences in composition of detrital framework grains and in burial history. Petrographic examination of 247 thin sections from 13 cores from the south-plunging arch and adjacent deep basin is the basis for diagenetic investigation of sandstones ranging in depth from 2 km to almost 5 km. Major diagenetic events were (1) mechanical compaction by grain rearrangement and deformation of ductile grains, (2) formation of illite and mixed-layer illite-smectite rims, (3) precipitation of quartz overgrowths, (4) precipitation of calcite cement, (5) generation of secondary porosity by dissolution of feldspar, chert, biotite, and mudstone grains and calcite cement, (6) precipitation of kaolinite in primary and secondary pores, and (7) chemical compaction by intergranular pressure solution and stylolitization and additional precipitation of quartz cement. The northern and southern ends of the Moxa Arch differ in the magnitude of each of these diagenetic events. Provenance differences caused more abundant ductile rock fragments and feldspar to be deposited at the northern end of the Moxa Arch. As a result, Frontier sandstones from the northern Moxa Arch underwent more extensive mechanical compaction. In addition, feldspar dissolution and albitization buffered acid-rich basinal fluids at the northern end, resulting in greater development of secondary porosity and precipitation of calcite cement than at the southern end. Deeply buried sandstones at the southern end of the arch and in the basin contain the most abundant quartz cement because intergranular pressure solution and stylolitization liberated silica for overgrowths.
Safety first: a two-stage algorithm for the synthesis of reactive systems

In the game-theoretic approach to the synthesis of reactive systems, specifications are often expressed as ω-regular languages. Computing a winning strategy to an infinite game whose winning condition is an ω-regular language is then the main step in obtaining an implementation. Conjoining all the properties of a specification to obtain a monolithic game suffers from the doubly exponential determinization that is required. Despite the success of symbolic algorithms, the monolithic approach is not practical. Existing techniques achieve efficiency by imposing restrictions on the ω-regular languages they deal with. In contrast, we present an approach that achieves improvement in performance through the decomposition of the problem while still accepting the full set of ω-regular languages. Each property is translated into a deterministic ω-regular automaton explicitly while the two-player game defined by the collection of automata is played symbolically. Safety and persistence properties usually make up the majority of a specification. We take advantage of this by solving the game incrementally. Each safety and persistence property is used to gradually construct the parity game. Optimizations are applied after each refinement of the graph. This process produces a compact symbolic encoding of the parity game. We then compose the remaining properties and solve one final game after possibly solving smaller games to further optimize the graph. An implementation is finally derived from the winning strategies computed. We compare the results of our tool to those of the synthesis tool Anzu.
Dimethyl ether chemical ionization mass spectrometry of α-amino acids

Dimethyl ether (DME) is a useful reagent gas for the characterization of a variety of diverse biologically important or environmentally significant classes of compounds. In this work the gas-phase ion–molecule reactions of DME with 23 α-amino acids were investigated and the collision-induced dissociation (CID) fragmentations of the protonated molecules and their most prominent adduct ions were studied. The identities and relative abundances of the adduct ions varied widely and, not unexpectedly, were dependent on the nature of the R substituent in H2NCH(R)CO2H. With a few exceptions, notably serine and threonine, protonated molecules and [M+13]+ adduct ions were highly abundant, and in most cases methoxymethylene cations [M+45]+ were also prominent. The solvated methoxymethylene cation [M+91]+ was seen in very modest abundance or not at all, except for serine and threonine, when it was the most abundant. CID fragmentations of the protonated molecules generated in the DME plasma showed similar characteristics to those generated by fast atom bombardment in that sequential elimination of H2O and CO to the iminium ion was the predominant process in the majority of cases, and was also accompanied by the loss of NH3 in the cases of cysteine, glutamine, ornithine and lysine. Loss of NH3 alone was the predominant process for tryptophan, and for arginine and methionine the fragmentations were dominated by the guanidino and methylthio substituents, respectively. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The erotic significance of contraceptive methods

Erotic liberty is defined as the absence of obstacles to sexual intercourse in a contraceptive method (the extent to which a method requires continuous attention close ties with the sex act or major bodily manipulation for its use). This study of 170 young recently married West Coast couples in 1964 explores the ranking of contraceptive barriers (no barrier free coitus barrier corcoitus barrier semicoitus barrier and acoitus barrier) and timing practices (permanent safe period longterm timing formal rhythm method informal rhythm method shortterm timing and no safe period) from the most to least erotic in a ranks. Rank I allows the greatest erotic liberty and includes no barrier and a permanent safe period (sterile hoping to conceive or happy go lucky) and longterm timing (a longterm safe period that would end eventually( or a free coitus barrier (OCs or IUDs) and longterm timing. Rank IV as the least erotic allows for acoitus barrier (abstinence or relative abstinence) and the formal and informal rhythm method shortterm timing or no safe period. Respondents were asked questions about satisfaction with the method currently used. The hypothesis was that greater erotic liberty related to greater user satisfaction. There were no Rank I subjects. The results of the means calculated for dissatisfactions were 1.35 for Rank II (most erotic with OCs) 1.84 for Rank III and 1.82 for Rank IV (least erotic with condom or diaphragm) with f=3.23 at 2 degrees of freedom and significance at the .05 level. There was moderate support for the hypothesis. The analysis of coital frequency (during fertile phase in menstrual period and in the rest of the cycle) weighted each phase by duration. The hypothesis was that greater erotic liberty was related to increased frequency of intercourse. The mean percentages of days with coitus were 33.1% for Rank I 31.5% for Rank II 36.2% for Rank III and 19.7 for Rank IV with f=8.44 and 3 degrees of freedom at the .001 level of significance. The hypothesis was confirmed with a number using a corcoitus barrier (diaphragm or condom) with an informal rhythm method (no sex during the period)(Rank III) and pills (Rank II). Consensus between spouses on rankings of preferred methods showed that there was a direct correlation between erotic liberty of method chosen and consensus on a wide range of methods. Rank I however were slightly below the average perhaps because a permanent method had not been settled on. Determinants of interest in erotic liberty were not found to be significant except for nonwhites using methods of highest erotic liberty and whites using OCs. There were no differences in Ranks III and IV by race. Number of children was inversely related to erotic liberty. Further exploration of multiple factors such as degree of effectiveness female versus male methods artificial versus natural methods chemical versus mechanical methods and professionally supervised versus fold methods will in considered in another paper.
Microphase separation transition of random copolymers in a random media

We study the microphase separation transition of symmetric $\mathrm{AB}$ random copolymers in a gel with preferential adsorption of $A$ monomers on the gel strands. It is shown that random copolymers in a gel are an example of the random field model. In the framework of the second Legendre transformation we have calculated the free energy and the phase diagram of the system. There are three different regimes on the phase diagram: the disordered-liquidlike phase, the replica symmetry breaking regime with broken replica symmetry for the two-replica correlation function where monomer composition fluctuations are pinned to the region with higher concentration of the cross links, and the ordered phase with short-range translational order.
Tumors of the pediatric chest

Summary A wide spectrum of malignant and benign diseases can present as tumors involving the chest in children. The imaging evaluation of these children is initially directed by clinical presentation and usually begins with a chest radiograph. Further imaging with CT, MRI, or rarely ultrasonography may be performed to better detect, localize, or characterize the lesion(s). The differential diagnosis of these tumors is guided not only by tumor location and characterization, but also by patient age and clinical presentation. Familiarity with the clinical and radiographic aspects of these diseases will help the radiologist to continue to play a crucial role in the diagnosis and management of these children.
Additional Light Sterile Neutrinos and Cosmology

Tantalizing cosmological and terrestrial evidence suggests the number of light neutrinos may be greater than 3, motivating a careful reexamination of cosmological bounds on extra light species. Big bang nucleosynthesis constrains the number of relativistic neutrino species present during nucleosynthesis, ${N}_{\mathrm{eff}}^{\mathrm{BBN}}$, while measurements of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) angular power spectrum constrain the effective energy density in relativistic neutrinos at the time of matter-radiation equality, ${N}_{\mathrm{eff}}^{\mathrm{CMB}}$. There are a number of scenarios where new sterile neutrino species may have different contributions to $\ensuremath{\Delta}{N}_{\mathrm{eff}}^{\mathrm{BBN}}$ and $\ensuremath{\Delta}{N}_{\mathrm{eff}}^{\mathrm{CMB}}$, for masses that may be relevant to reconciling cosmological constraints with various terrestrial claims of neutrino oscillations. We consider a scenario with two sterile neutrinos and explore whether partial thermalization of the sterile states can ease the tension between cosmological constraints on ${N}_{\mathrm{eff}}^{\mathrm{BBN}}$ and terrestrial data. We then investigate the effect of a nonzero neutrino mass on their contribution to the radiation abundance, finding reductions in $\ensuremath{\Delta}{N}_{\mathrm{eff}}^{\mathrm{CMB}}$ of more than 5% for neutrinos with masses above 0.5 eV. While the effects we investigate here could play a role, we nevertheless find that two additional light sterile neutrinos species cannot fit all the data at the 95% confidence level.
Successor origin, initiating force, and managerial tenure in banking

Abstract Empirical tests on 150 commercial banks that experienced managerial succession in the 1980s offer evidence that successor origin (whether the incoming manager was promoted from within the firm or hired from outside the firm) and initiating force (whether or not the predecessor's departure was initiated by the board of directors) interact to influence the length of managerial tenure. Specifically, managers who are appointed from outside the organization following board-initiated succession have shorter tenures than other managers. This finding supports the contention of Fredrickson, Hambrick, and Baumrin (1988) that outside successors, relative to inside successors, have less board allegiance and higher expectations. It also supports their contention that successors who follow board-initiated departures of predecessors are more apt to fall victim to board infighting and associated political turmoil.
Allovalency: A Case of Molecular Entanglement

Abstract A large fraction of the total set of proteins in a eukaryotic cell consists of intrinsically disordered proteins. A new model has been proposed to explain how such proteins may interact with their targets in a ‘cooperative' manner.
Ultrastructure of intercellular junctions in adult and developing cardiac muscle.

Abstract The ultrastructure of the intercalated disc indicates that it is composed of three types of junctional specializations: the macula adherens (or desmosome), fascia adherens and nexus. Maculae and fasciae adherentes form the area of strong adhesion between adjacent cells. Their substructure is quite similar in some species. However, the thin actin filaments invariably insert into the fascia adherens, a feature particularly evident early in cardiogenesis when few myofibrils are present. The nexus is a region where the membranes of adjacent cells are physiologically and anatomically in contact, probably providing for electrical coupling of adjacent cells. The membranes at the nexus have a characteristic substructure consisting of hexagonally packed subunits that connect the two cell membranes. Nexuses are easily demonstrated in the 9 week human fetal heart. Frequently nexuses are adjacent to fasciae adherentes during cardiogenesis. Since examination of frozen, unfixed sarcolemma reveals that both the membranes of nexuses and fasciae adherentes are specialized membranes, it is postulated that the organization of the membranes themselves may produce the localization of these intercellular junctions within the intercalated disc.
In situ synthesis during organic analysis of lunar samples.

In the development and application of extremely sensitive analytical techniques the need for extreme cleanliness and avoidance of contamination has been generally recognized and complied with in the organic analysis of lunar samples. Much less attention has been paid to the possibility of inadvertent synthesis of certain organic molecules from indigenous smaller organic or even inorganic constituents of the lunar material. At the part-per-billion level of detectability reactions proceeding even at very low yield can lead to detectable products. A particular area of concern should be the amino acid analysis since those substances are known to be formed by condensation of ammonia, cyanide and carbonyl compounds, all potential products of lunar material upon treatment with aqueous media.
Three-body distorted-wave Born approximation for electron-atom ionization.

We report a theoretical calculation for electron-impact ionization of atoms that includes short-range electron-atom effects for wave functions that satisfy the exact asymptotic boundary conditions. Results of this theory, which we label as the three-body distorted-wave Born approximation, are compared with experiment and other theories for ionization of hydrogen and helium for incident-electron energies from 4 to 18 times the ionization energy.
Quantitation of underivatized free amino acids in mammalian cell culture media using matrix assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry.

In this investigation, a quantitative matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOFMS) method was developed for the analysis of underivatized free amino acids in mammalian cell culture media. Calibration curves were developed for 12 amino acids over the linear range of 1−100 μM with coefficients of determination ranging from r2 = 0.9220 to r2 = 0.9973. An aerospray method was utilized for the sample deposition method, and the matrix, α-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamic acid, served as the internal standard. This assay was used to analyze bioreactor samples from five time points in the process. Concentrations determined through interpolation of the calibration curves were comparable to those obtained via reversed-phase HPLC based analysis with an average percent difference of 19.71%. Repeatability and intermediate precision studies were also performed, and the relative standard deviations ranged from 0.5943 to 21.41 and 3.157 to 18.97, respectively.
Hierarchical causes in the cosmological argument

In the world of sensible things we find there is an order of efficient causes. There is no case known (neither is it, indeed possible) in which a thing is found to be the efficient cause of itself; for so it would be prior to itself, which is impossible. Now in efficient causes it is not possible to go on to infinity, because in all efficient causes following in order, the first is the cause of the intermediate cause, and the intermediate cause is the cause of the ultimate cause, whether the intermediate cause be several, or only one. Now to take away the cause is to take away the effect. Therefore, if there be no first cause among efficient causes, there will be no ultimate, nor any intermediate cause. But if in efficient causes it is possible to go on to infinity, there will be no first efficient cause, neither will there be an ultimate effect, nor any intermediate efficient causes; all of which is plainly false. Therefore, it is necessary to admit a first efficient cause, to which everyone gives the name of God.1
Electron transfer in the photosynthetic reaction center: mechanistic implications of mutagenesis studies.

Abstract A phenomenological analysis of the driving force effects in photosynthetic reaction centers modified by mutagenesis and also by chemical means is presented. Different parameter sets associated with different mechanisms of electron transfer are consistent with the mutagenesis experiments. However, only one parameter set-connected with a sequential mechanism of electron transfer-is consistent with all known experimental data. Arguments explaining why the sequential mechanism of electron transfer is selected by nature in the wild type reaction center are provided. Why the driving force of the wild type reaction center is about 0.25 eV is explained and new driving force effects are predicted.
Diffusive shock acceleration in unmodified relativistic, oblique shocks

Abstract We present results from a fully relativistic Monte Carlo simulation of diffusive shock acceleration (DSA) in unmodified shocks. The computer code uses a single algorithmic sequence to smoothly span the range from non-relativistic speeds to fully relativistic shocks of arbitrary obliquity, providing a powerful consistency check. While known results are obtained for non-relativistic and ultra-relativistic parallel shocks, new results are presented for the less explored trans-relativistic regime and for oblique, fully relativistic shocks. We find, for a wide trans-relativistic range extending to shock Lorentz factors >30, that the particle spectrum produced by DSA varies strongly from the canonical f(p) ∝ p−4.23 spectrum known to result in ultra-relativistic shocks. Trans-relativistic shocks may play an important role in γ-ray bursts and other sources and most relativistic shocks will be highly oblique.
Seeing oral health patients in groups.

The effectiveness of an oral health education program in which groups are used to motivate and train patients is evaluated, and specific advantages of seeing oral health patients in groups are discussed. The functioning of a group oral health program is described. Systematic evaluation of the program over a five-month follow-up period indicated that patients significantly improved their dental health. Positive changes in health were reflected by decreased gingival bleeding and reduction of pocket depth measurements. Others might consider the values of similar group-oriented programs to train and motivate patients in oral health care.
Impact of JVM superoperators on energy consumption in resource-constrained embedded systems

Energy consumption is one of the most important issues in resource-constrained embedded systems. Many such systems run Java-based applications due to Java's architecture-independent format (bytecode). Standard techniques for executing bytecode programs, e.g. interpretation or just-in-time compilation, have performance or memory issues that make them unsuitable for resource-constrained embedded systems.A superoperator-extended, lightweight Java Virtual Machine (JVM) can be used in resource-constrained embedded systems to improve performance and reduce memory consumption. This paper shows that such a JVM also significantly reduces energy consumption. This is due primarily to a considerable reduction in the number of memory accesses and thus in energy consumption in the instruction and data TLBs and caches and, in most cases, in DRAM energy consumption. Since the fraction of processor energy dissipated in these units is approximately 60%, the energy savings achieved are significant.The paper evaluates the number of load, store, and computational instructions eliminated by the use of proposed superoperators as compared to a simple interpreter on a set of embedded benchmarks. Using cache and DRAM per access energy we estimate the total processor/DRAM energy saved by using our JVM. Our results show that with 32KB caches the reduction in energy consumption ranges from 40% to 60% of the overall processor, plus DRAM energy. Even higher savings may be achieved with smaller caches and increased access to DRAM as DRAM access energy is fairly high.
Responses of hippocampal pyramidal cells to putative serotonin 5-HT1A and 5-HT1B agonists: A comparative study with dorsal raphe neurons

In low cerveau isole transected rats, the effects of microiontophoretic application of putative serotonin 5-HT1A and 5-HT1B agonists on the spontaneous firing rate of CA1 pyramidal cells were compared to those of 5-HT. In contrast to the large current-dependent suppression of unit activity observed with 5-HT, the 5-HT1A compounds, ipsapirone, 8-OH-DPAT (8-hydroxy-2-(di-n-propylamino)-tetralin) and LY 165163 (p-aminophenylethyl-m-trifluoromethylphenylpiperazine) and the 5-HT1B compounds, mCPP (m-chlorophenylpiperazine) and TFMPP (trifluoromethylphenylpiperazine), produced only weak inhibition of spontaneous firing. Conversely, using identical ejection parameters, ipsapirone and LY 165163 (previously reported) and 8-OH-DPAT were as effective as 5-HT in inhibiting markedly the baseline activity of serotonergic dorsal raphe neurons; mCPP and TFMPP (previously reported) were only weakly active. In view of the minor suppressant effects of the 5-HT1A agonists on the firing of pyramidal cells, a modulatory role for these compounds was sought. Excitation of pyrimadal cells, induced by microiontophoretic application of glutamate, was attenuated by ipsapirone and 8-OH-DPAT; however, when directly compared in the same cells, ipsapirone was no more effective than the 5-HT1B agonist, mCPP. In summary, the inability of CA1 pyramidal cells to distinguish the actions of 5-HT1A and 5-HT1B ligands is in sharp contrast to the striking differences observed for these compounds with dorsal raphe neurons. Consistent with these findings is the idea that 5-HT1A compounds are full agonists on dorsal raphe neurons but only partial agonists on pyramidal cells.
a Confirmation of Mount's Autopsy Technique for Zinc-Caused Fish Mortality

. A total of 203 bluegill sunfish (Lepornis macrochirus, Rafinesque) which had been used in several acute zinc experiments carried out under varied environmental conditions were autopsied according to Mount's procedure for determining fish mortality due to zinc poisoning. Three classes of fish were used: those exposed to but not killed by zinc; those killed by zinc; and those not exposed to zinc. Two statistical tests were used to analyze these data and both tests gave results indicating significant differences (a = .05) between all three classes of fish. This indicates that the Mount autopsy technique is very probably a valid generalization. The possibilities of using Mount's technique as a predictive tool are discussed.
Classroom-Level Positive Behavior Supports in Schools Implementing SW-PBIS: Identifying Areas for Enhancement

This study evaluated the use of classroom-level behavior management strategies that align with School-Wide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (SW-PBIS). Direct observations of universal classroom management strategies were conducted across 33 elementary classrooms in elementary schools implementing SW-PBIS with high fidelity. Findings indicate that classrooms had posted positively stated classroom rules at high rates, whereas teacher use of specific praise and the ratio of positive to negative interactions were less than optimal. Furthermore, classroom teachers with higher rates of general praise were found to report being more efficacious with regard to classroom management. In turn, teachers in classrooms with higher rates of disruptive behavior reported feeling less efficacious. In addition, teachers with lower rates of positive to negative interaction, who used higher rates of harsh reprimands and had higher rates of disruptions, reported higher levels of emotional exhaustion. Implications for developing supports to assist teachers struggling with universal classroom management strategies are described.
Finding the Cause of Kawasaki Disease: A Pediatric Infectious Diseases Research Priority

though intravenous gammaglobulin (IVIG) with aspirin is effective therapy for most children with acute KD, its mechanism of action is unknown, and some children do not respond. In the present era of sophisticated medicine, this conversation, with all its unknowns, is very unsettling both to me and to the family. In addition, when I diagnose acute KD in a child during the first week of fever and promptly administer IVIG and aspirin therapy but the child fails to respond and coronary aneurysms develop and worsen despite additional therapies, I ponder the sobering reality that even those of us who have devoted a great deal of our careers to the study of KD cannot always stop this process. All of this leads directly to the question: what is the cause of this disease? Finding the cause of KD is a pediatric infectious diseases research priority. Identification of the causative agent(s) would be the most promising step toward developing a diagnostic test and specific therapy and, ultimately, preventing the disease. Therefore, a study by Esper et al. [1] from Yale, published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases in February 2005, that implicated an association between the new human coronavirus (HCoV) NL-63 and KD, was met with great interest. Those investigators reported detection of the virus in respiratory samples from 8 of 11 patients with KD and 1 of 22 control subjects by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). As a result of that article, laboratories around the world performed additional studies to determine whether an association between KD and HCoV NL-63 could be confirmed. This
The role of Blacks' discriminatory expectations in their prosocial orientations toward whites and blacks

Abstract The present research examined the role of discriminatory expectations in intergroup contact. In two experiments, Black participants who varied in discriminatory expectations were exposed to positive, negative, or racially neutral comments by a White person. Participants subsequently read about a different person-in-need and reported empathic concern for and prosocial attitudes/intentions toward that person. For participants with low discriminatory expectations, positive outgroup exposure increased and negative outgroup exposure decreased empathic concern for and prosocial attitudes/intentions toward a White person-in-need, relative to neutral exposure. Exposure had no effect on their reactions to a Black person-in-need. Findings were similar for participants with strong discriminatory expectations, except that positive exposure had no effect on prosocial attitudes/intentions toward a White person-in-need and negative exposure increased prosocial intentions toward a Black person-in-need. Empathic concern mediated the discriminatory expectations × outgroup exposure effect on prosocial attitudes/intentions. Findings highlight the role of discriminatory expectations in predicting contact outcomes.
Bronsted analysis of aspartate aminotransferase via exogenous catalysis of reactions of an inactive mutant.

Primary amines functionally replace lysine 258 by catalyzing both the 1,3-prototropic shift and external aldimine hydrolysis reactions with the inactive aspartate aminotransferase mutant K258A. This finding allows classical Bronsted analyses of proton transfer reactions to be applied to enzyme-catalyzed reactions. An earlier study of the reaction of K258A with cysteine sulfinate (Toney, M.D. & Kirsch, J.F., 1989, Science 243, 1485) provided a beta value of 0.4 for the 1,3-prototropic shift. The beta value reported here for the transamination of oxalacetate to aspartate is 0.6. The catalytic efficacy of primary amines is largely determined by basicity and molecular volume. The dependence of the rate constants for the reactions of K258A and K258M on amine molecular volume is nearly identical. This observation argues that the alkyl groups of the added amines do not occupy the position of the lysine 258 side chain in the wild type enzyme. Large primary C alpha and insignificant solvent deuterium kinetic isotope effects with amino acid substrates demonstrate that the amine nitrogen of the exogenous catalysts directly abstracts the labile proton in the rate-determining step.
Oleogustus: The Unique Taste of Fat

Considerable mechanistic data indicate there may be a sixth basic taste: fat. However, evidence demonstrating that the sensation of nonesterified fatty acids (NEFA, the proposed stimuli for "fat taste") differs qualitatively from other tastes is lacking. Using perceptual mapping, we demonstrate that medium and long-chain NEFA have a taste sensation that is distinct from other basic tastes (sweet, sour, salty, and bitter). Although some overlap was observed between these NEFA and umami taste, this overlap is likely due to unfamiliarity with umami sensations rather than true similarity. Shorter chain fatty acids stimulate a sensation similar to sour, but as chain length increases this sensation changes. Fat taste oral signaling, and the different signals caused by different alkyl chain lengths, may hold implications for food product development, clinical practice, and public health policy.
Fading Characteristics of Panchromatic Radar Backscatter from Selected Agricultural Targets

An experiment was performed to determine the fading characteristics of backscattered radar signals from four agricultural targets at 9 GHz. The targets included two different row crops (corn and soybeans), a continuous canopy (alfalfa) and bare ground. After a short review of the statistics of Rayleigh fading backscatter, the data processing method and the results of the experiment are analyzed. Comparison with theory shows adequate agreement with the experimental results provided crop type, soil moisture condition and incidence angle are correctly incorporated in the target model. Because recent studies indicate that a high degree of precision is required for mapping vegetotion types with radar, it is necessary to acquire as much a priori knowledge of target fading characteristics as possible.
Appropriate timing of surgical intervention after transmural acute myocardial infarction

Abstract Objective: Recommended timing of coronary revascularization after transmural acute myocardial infarction ranges from immediate surgical intervention to repair 4 weeks after infarction. Such wide variation has created a dilemma in the management of these patients. The objective of this study was to delineate the optimal timing of revascularization after transmural acute myocardial infarction in a large and contemporary patient population. Methods: We performed a retrospective multicenter analysis of 32,099 patients who underwent coronary artery bypass grafting as the sole procedure after transmural myocardial infarction between 1991 and 1996 by 179 surgeons at 33 hospitals in New York State. Results: Overall hospital mortality for all patients who underwent coronary revascularization with a history of transmural myocardial infarction was 3.3%. Hospital mortality decreased with increasing time interval between revascularization and transmural acute myocardial infarction: 14.2%, 13.8%, 7.9%, 3.8%, 2.9%, and 2.7% for less than 6 hours, 6 hours to 1 day, 1 to 3 days, 4 to 7 days, 7 to 14 days, and greater than 15 days, respectively. Multivariate analyses of 43 potential risk factors suggests that revascularization within 3 days of transmural acute myocardial infarction is independently associated with mortality. Conclusions: Coronary revascularization within 3 days of a transmural acute myocardial infarction might be an added risk for mortality. In the absence of absolute indications for emergency surgical intervention, such as structural complications and ongoing ischemia, a 3-day waiting period before surgical revascularization should be considered. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 2003;125:115-20
A low-cost memory remapping scheme for address bus protection

The address sequence on the processor-memory bus can reveal abundant information about the control flow of a program. This can lead to critical information leakage such as encryption keys or proprietary algorithms. Addresses can be observed by attaching a hardware device on the bus that passively monitors the bus transaction. Such side-channel attacks should be given rising attention especially in a distributed computing environment, where remote servers running sensitive programs are not within the physical control of the client. Two previously proposed hardware techniques tackled this problem through randomizing address patterns on the bus. One proposal permutes a set of contiguous memory blocks under certain conditions, while the other approach randomly swaps two blocks when necessary. In this paper, we present an anatomy of these attempts and show that they impose great pressure on both the memory and the disk. This leaves them less scalable in high-performance systems where the bandwidth of the bus and memory are critical resources. We propose a lightweight solution to alleviating the pressure without compromising the security strength. The results show that our technique can reduce the memory traffic by a factor of 10 compared with the prior scheme, while keeping almost the same page fault rate as a baseline system with no security protection.
Internet Use, Online Communication, and Ties in Americans’ Networks:

Drawing on nationally representative survey data, this article examines the implications of Internet use and online communication for strong and weak ties in Americans’ social networks. In line wit...
Direct deposition of trivalent rhodium hydroxide nanoparticles onto a semiconducting layered calcium niobate for photocatalytic hydrogen evolution.

Well-dispersed Rh(OH)3 nanoparticles were deposited in the interlayer galleries of a Dion−Jacobson type layered perovskite (ACa2Nb3O10: A = H or K). X-ray photoelectron spectra and ζ potential measurements suggest covalent bonding (Rh−O−Nb) between the nanoparticles and the niobate sheets. After calcination of Rh(OH)3/KCa2Nb3O10 at 350 °C in air, interlayer Rh(OH)3 nanoparticles were transformed to Rh2O3 and showed higher photocatalytic activity for hydrogen evolution using methanol as a sacrificial electron donor.
Information and Human Freedom: Nursing Implications and Ethical Decision-Making in the 21st Century

With globalization and the increasing volume of healthcare information available to people, questions surface as nurses contemplate and envision what role and how our nursing theory-guided discipline ought to be lived with colleagues of other disciplines, each other, and those we serve in the 21(st) century. This column begins a path of ethical exploration and possible implications for the opportunities and challenges associated with the information age in nursing research, practice, and education. Discussion focuses on the disciplinary responsibilities for information giving and receiving; coming to know, human freedom, and decision-making in the human-universe-health process.
Increasing Colon Cancer Screening in Primary Care Among African Americans

Background The study aimed to determine the effect of preference-based tailored navigation on colorectal cancer (CRC) screening adherence and related outcomes among African Americans (AAs).
Imitation Is Far More Than the Sincerest of Flattery: The Mimetic Power of Spirit Possession in Rajasthan, India

On May 11 and 13, 1998, India tested a series of nuclear devices in the desert state of Rajasthan. On May 28, Pakistan completed similar trials. During these tests I was researching spirit possession in Rajasthan in the town of Udaipur just to the east and south of the blasts. The trials, though not of direct concern to my research, were hard to ignore. Everyone was eager to discuss them with me as an American and thus a representative of the nuclear power. Virtually all Rajasthanis with whom I spoke saw these tests as dangerous and wrong. They feared the tests might lead to nuclear war with Pakistan and perhaps to the destruction of the world. Although the tests were unanimously condemned, they were, just as univocally, deemed necessary. India,' I was told, was surrounded by nuclear and soon-to-be nuclear states who longed for her land and resourcesnot only Pakistan, but China and Russia as well. Threatened with invasion, she needed to imitate the technologies and weapons of her enemies-especially the dangerous ones-if she were to survive. Meanwhile, in my formal research during this period, I was learning that Rajasthanis are possessed by a range of spiritual entities. Some of these are judged good and beneficial: spirits of murdered royalty, a god of the underworld referred to as Bhaironji, and deceased Muslim saints. Others are regarded as evil and malevolent: perpetual debtors who die perpetual debtors, stillborn babies whose mounts (ghorala, related to the Hindi term for horse) open and close their mouths in a sucking motion like a breast-feeding child, deceased widows (considered sexually voracious or "hungry" entities who lust after the bodies of newlyweds), and foreign tourists (particularly those who have committed suicide far from home and wander the grounds of Rajasthan's palace hotels).2 Possession by a spirit, even by those who are considered good, is typically construed as undesirable. The loss of control of one's senses that
Smaller beetles are better scramble competitors at cooler temperatures

The role of temperature is central to both organic evolution and ecological processes. However, how temperature affects selection on body size is unknown. We tested whether small seed beetles (Stator limbatus) have an advantage over large beetles during scramble competition for mates, and whether this advantage varies with temperature. Within lines of beetles artificially selected to be large versus small, small males have a significant advantage over large males in scramble competition for females because the former takeoff more quickly and thus reach females before larger males. Selection favouring small male body size is significantly (and substantially) more intense at cooler temperatures. The adaptive significance of small male body size thus depends on ambient temperature.
Novel array-feed distortion compensation techniques for reflector antennas

Degradation of antenna performance by reflector surface distortion, which lowers gain and increases sidelobe levels, is addressed. Distortion compensation concepts based on the applications of properly matched array feeds are presented. Results of conceptual developments, numerical simulations, and measurement verifications are presented in support of this approach, with particular attention to the measurement technique. It is shown that the concept is most useful for overcoming the deterioration effects of slowly varying surface distortions, which would make the method very useful for future large space and ground antennas. It is further shown that for a typical, slowly varying thermal or gravitational surface distortion, a 19-element array feed can improve the reflector performance considerably. >
Effects of Temperature on the Raman Spectra and Dispersed Oxides

An investigation has been conducted of the effects of temperature on the intensities and positions of Raman bands of bulk and supported metal oxides. The relationship of band intensity to optical absorption of the sample at frequencies close to that of the laser used for Raman spectroscopy was also investigated. It was observed that bulk oxides exhibit an increase in optical absorption with increasing temperature due to a loss of oxygen and the consequent formation of nonstoichiometric oxides and stoichiometric suboxides. When the increase in optical absorption is significant at or near the frequency of the laser used for Raman spectroscopy, this gives rise to a loss in Raman signal intensity due to a decrease in the sampling depth. The closer the absorption band edge of the oxide is to the laser frequency and the weaker the metal−oxygen bond in the oxide, the more severe will be the effects of temperature on the intensity of the Raman spectrum. For dispersed metal oxides, the influence of temperature on ...
The Costs of Inflation Revisited

Neoclassical treatments of inflation understate the costs associated with inflation, even at very low levels. A comparative institutions perspective that recognizes the epistemological properties of prices and the institutional process by which inflation takes place, reveals the costs of inflation to be both larger and more widespread than standard treatments suggest. This paper makes use of insights from Austrian economics, public choice theory, and the new institutional economics to argue that inflation imposes costs by undermining the coordinative properties of the price system. Not only are there the direct costs of increased economic error, but actors also divert resources away from direct want-satisfaction into attempts to either prevent or cope with the increased degree of uncertainty inflation imposes. These resource costs are best understood from a comparative institutions perspective, as traditional measures of economic well-being, such as GDP, cannot distinguish between exchanges that directly satisfy wants, and exchanges that are attempts to correct or prevent utility-diminishing activities. The analogy between these coping costs and rent-seeking behavior is explored. In addition, inflation imposes costs by undermining the coordinative properties of markets and inducing actors to, on the margin, prefer to seek wealth or allocate resources through the political process.
Changes in Canopy Processes Following Whole-Forest Canopy Nitrogen Fertilization of a Mature Spruce-Hemlock Forest

Most experimental additions of nitrogen to forest ecosystems apply the N to the forest floor, bypassing important processes taking place in the canopy, including canopy retention of N and/or conversion of N from one form to another. To quantify these processes, we carried out a large-scale experiment and determined the fate of nitrogen applied directly to a mature coniferous forest canopy in central Maine (18–20 kg N ha−1 y−1 as NH4NO3 applied as a mist using a helicopter). In 2003 and 2004 we measured NO3 −, NH4 +, and total dissolved N (TDN) in canopy throughfall (TF) and stemflow (SF) events after each of two growing season applications. Dissolved organic N (DON) was greater than 80% of the TDN under ambient inputs; however NO3 − accounted for more than 50% of TF N in the treated plots, followed by NH4 + (35%) and DON (15%). Although NO3 − was slightly more efficiently retained by the canopy under ambient inputs, canopy retention of NH4 +as a percent of inputs increased markedly under fertilization. Recovery of less than 30% of the fertilizer N in TF suggested that the forest canopy retained more than 70% of the applied N (>80% when corrected for N which bypassed tree surfaces at the time of fertilizer addition). Results from plots receiving 15N enriched NO3 − and NH4 + confirmed bulk N estimations that more NO3 − than NH4 + was washed from the canopy by wet deposition. The isotope data did not show evidence of canopy nitrification, as has been reported in other spruce forests receiving much higher N inputs. Conversions of fertilizer-N to DON were observed in TF for both 15NH4 + and 15NO3 − additions, and occurred within days of the application. Subsequent rain events were not significantly enriched in 15N, suggesting that canopy DON formation was a rapid process related to recent N inputs to the canopy. We speculate that DON may arise from lichen and/or microbial N cycling rather than assimilation and re-release by tree tissues in this forest. Canopy retention of experimentally added N may meet and exceed calculated annual forest tree demand, although we do not know what fraction of retained N was actually physiologically assimilated by the plants. The observed retention and transformation of DIN within the canopy demonstrate that the fate and ecosystem consequences of N inputs from atmospheric deposition are likely influenced by forest canopy processes, which should be considered in N addition studies.
The managerial class and surplus population

n an 1896 publication of the American Economic Asso- ciation, the statistician Frederick Hoffman, warned of the imminent disappearance of blacks from the United States: "the colored race is ... on the downward grade, tending toward a condition in which matters will be worse than they are now, when diseases will be more destruc- tive, vital resistance still lower, when the number of births will fall below the deaths, and gradual extinction of the race take place." Hoffman's work, colored by white supremacist ideology, attributed the demise of "the Negro" to an inherent weakness in the black race. Today concrete circumstances are in place that could validate Hoffman's century-old expectations. But the reason will not be, as Hoffman believed, a fundamental weakness in the character and personality makeup of black Americans. Instead, the reason will be the disproportionate presence of blacks in that segment of American society which in- creasingly is deemed superfluous. The situation is inten- sified by the rapid development and deployment of tech- niques, subtle and otherwise, that facilitate control and even elimination of this "unnecessary" population. The growing marginalization of "the Negro" is a con~ sequence associated with the growing marginalization of the underclass. To understand fully the pessimistic pros- pects for the underclass requires an understanding of the fundamental tendencies of contemporary American so- ciety. Such tendencies propel the nation toward a social form that is managerial in character, supplanting capitalist society. Arguably these tendencies are global rather than merely national in scope. Peter Berger, in "Ethics and the Present Class Strug- gle," has described the emergence of a "New Class [that] is an international phenomenon to be found in all advanced industrial societies." Berger acknowledged the existence of "a parallel phenomenon in the Soviet orbit." Alvin Gouldner also proclaimed the rise of a New Class, "composed of intellectuals and technical intelligentsia ... in the third world of developing na- tions, in the second world of the USSR and its client states, and in the first world of late capitalism of North America, Western Europe, and Japan." In the Third World, in particular, the New Class is represented not only by state bureaucrats but also by the often young and well-educated officer corps in their military establish- ments. This emerging managerial society has its own peculiar law of population--the Law of the Progressive Elimina- tion of Undesirable Population. The operation of this law of population has the grim air about it of a "final solu- tion" to the plight of the poor. In distinguishing between historical epochs, Karl Marx focused on differences in the appropriation of