cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Decentralized Routing in Nonhomogeneous Poisson Networks

In his seminal work, Jon Kleinberg considers a small-world network model consisting of a k-dimensional lattice augmented with shortcuts. Under the assumption that the probability of a shortcut being present between two nodes u and v decays as a power, d(u,v) -\alpha, of the distance d(u,v) between them, Kleinberg shows that decentralized routing scheme such as greedy geographic routing is efficient if alpha=k and that there is no efficient decentralized routing algorithm if alpha\neq k. The results are extended to a continuum model recently, wherein the nodes are distributed as a homogeneous Poisson point process by Franceschetti and Meester, Draief and Ganesh. In our work, we extend the result further to a more realistic model constructed from a nonhomogeneous Poisson point process, wherein each node is connected to all its neighbors within some fixed radius, as well as possessing random shortcuts to more distant nodes. More importantly, we show that in nonhomogeneous cases, the necessary and sufficient condition for greedy geographic routing to be efficient is that the probability of a shortcut being present from node u to v should be inversely proportional to the number of nodes which are closer to u than v is. We also demonstrate some applications of our results to wireless networks.
Partial Ureteral Quadruplication With Contralateral Multicystic Dysplastic Kidney

Ureteral quadruplication is a rare congenital anomaly of the urinary tract that is associated with other genitourinary malformations. Few cases have been reported worldwide, the majority being described in children. We report the first known case associated with contralateral multicystic dysplastic kidney.
Lightweight adaptive antennas for EHF payloads

In an antijam military satellite communications system, the service provided by a geosynchronous altitude satellite can be significantly enhanced through the use of lightweight, adaptive EHF antennas to provide theater coverage. The communications capabilities provided by payloads with these EHF antennas can include both low data rate services (75 to 2400 b/s per channel) and medium data rate links (with rates up to approximately 1 Mb/s per link). Through the use of EHF waveform standards, the EHF payloads will be compatible with existing and planned EHF terminals. The adaptive antennas on these payloads can be utilized to provide both variable-coverage spot beam patterns and autonomous nulling capabilities. With this type of antenna system, the coverage pattern can be adapted to match changing force deployments and to eliminate interference sources. One of the significant technology challenges is implementing these adaptive antennas in lightweight, compact configurations which enable their use in a variety of payloads. >
Constructing Heterogeneous Committees Using Input Feature Grouping: Application to Economic Forecasting

The committee approach has been proposed for reducing model uncertainty and improving generalization performance. The advantage of committees depends on (1) the performance of individual members and (2) the correlational structure of errors between members. This paper presents an input grouping technique for designing a heterogeneous committee With this technique, all input variables are first grouped based on their mutual information. Statistically similar variables are assigned to the same group. Each member's input set is then formed by input variables extracted from different groups. Our designed committees have less error correlation between its members, since each member observes different input variable combinations. The individual member's feature sets contain less redundant information, because highly correlated variables will not be combined together. The member feature sets contain almost complete information, since each set contains a feature from each information group. An empirical study for a noisy and nonstationary economic forecasting problem shows that committees constructed by our proposed technique outperform committees formed using several existing techniques.
Older Adults’ Use of Care Strategies in Response to General and Upper Respiratory Symptoms

This study examined the use of complementary and medical treatments, both individually and in combination, to address common general and upper respiratory symptoms. Data for the analysis were collected from a series of 18 daily diary questionnaires administered to community-living older African American and white adults living in rural counties in North Carolina. Participants reported symptoms experienced on each diary day and the treatment strategies they used each day in response to the particular symptom(s). Older adults used diverse categories of strategies to treat symptoms; treatment strategies were used inconsistently across symptoms. Use of only complementary strategies, only medical conventional strategies, or both complementary and medical strategies to treat any one symptom rarely corresponded to the use of the same strategy to address other symptoms. Future research would benefit from analyzing how older adults use health care strategies across symptom categories.
Brazzein, a Small, Sweet Protein: Effects of Mutations on its Structure, Dynamics and Functional Properties

The demand for non-calorigenic protein-based sweeteners with favorable taste properties is high. The optimal design of such sweeteners requires knowledge about structure–function relationships and the identification of chemical entities that trigger the sweetness response. Among the known, naturally occurring, sweet-tasting proteins, brazzein has properties that make it particularly attractive as a potential economic sweetener. It is highly stable over wide temperature and pH ranges and has taste properties that resemble those of carbohydrate sweeteners. Brazzein is a single polypeptide of 54 standard amino acids and contains no carbohydrate. The brazzein protein originally was purified from the fruit of Pentadiplandra brazzeana, a climbing vine that grows in Gabon, Zaire and Cameroon (Ming and Hellekant, 1994). The fruit is consumed by the local population and is prized for its sweetness. Pure brazzein has been shown to elicit sweetness responses in humans by taste trials and in a non-human primate (rhesus monkey) as determined from electrophysiological recordings of signals from the chorda tympani (van der Wel et al., 1989). Recently receptor proteins have been discovered that are responsive to sweet ligands. The human receptor appears to be a heterodimer of two conventional seven-transmembrane-helix Gcoupled type receptors (T1R2/T1R3) but with unusually large ectodomains ((Nelson et al., 2001; Li et al., 2002); P. Jiang and M. Max, personal communication). Different sweet proteins interact with and activate the same heterodimeric receptor in somewhat different ways and tentative models for such interactions have been elaborated ((Temussi, 2002); M. Max, personal communication). The discovery of the sweet taste heteroreceptor opens up exciting new avenues for research on the mechanism of action of sweet substances. Brazzein is an excellent candidate for experimental investigations of the chemical and structural requirements for extracellular triggering of a sweet response in humans and for understanding the mechanism of the signal transduction.
Direct formation of planar holograms and noise gratings at 820 nm in bleached silver-halide emulsions

Experimental results are presented on the efficiency of holographic transmission gratings formed in bleached silver-halide emulsions (Agfa-Gevaert 8E75HD) with illumination at 820 nm. For comparison, data for planar gratings recorded at 780 and 632.8 nm in emulsions that were similarly processed are also given. Measurement of the spectral optical density indicates that the useful holographic recording range extends to 840 nm. We conclude with a comparison of the efficiency of noise gratings formed in this emulsion at 632.8, 780, and 820 nm and a discussion of the implications of these results.
Gregarious Data Re-structuring in a Many Core Architecture

As new massively multithreaded many-core architectural designs continue to evolve, the challenge of finding schedules that exploit concurrency, reuse and locality remains. Classically, data transformations were made with a limited view of both the memory hierarchy and the parallelism available to the machine. However, as the multithreaded designs become more complex, the machine resources tend to get "grouped" or shared in more sophisticated arrangements (e.g. distributed Level 2 caches serving collectively as a Level 3 cache or a large number of simultaneous multithreading). These new configurations present new optimization opportunities that the software tool chains might not be aware and, therefore, miss altogether. In this paper, we have developed a new methodology that takes in consideration the access patterns from a single parallel actor (e.g. a thread), as well as, the access patterns of "grouped" parallel actors that share a resource (e.g. a distributed Level 3 cache). We start with a hierarchical tile code for our target machine and apply a series of transformations at the tile level to improve data residence in a given memory hierarchy level. The contribution of this paper includes (a) collaborative data restructuring for group reuse and (b) low overhead transformation technique to improve access pattern and bring closely connected data elements together. Preliminary results in a many core architecture, TileraTileGX, shows promising improvements over optimized OpenMPcode (up to 31% increase in GFLOPS) and over our own previous work on fine grained runtimes (up to 16%) for selected kernels.
One-Day Wave Forecasts Based on Artificial Neural Networks

Abstract Sophisticated wave models like the Wave Model (WAM) and Simulating Waves Nearshore (SWAN)/WAVEWATCH are used nowadays along with atmospheric models to produce forecasts of ocean wave conditions. These models are generally run operationally on large ocean-scale domains. In many coastal areas, on the other hand, operational forecasting is not performed for a variety of reasons, yet the need for wave forecasts remains. To address such cases, the production of forecasts through the use of artificial neural networks and buoy measurements is explored. A modeling strategy that predicts wave heights up to 24 h on the basis of judiciously selected measurements over the previous 7 days was examined. A detailed investigation of this strategy using data from six National Data Buoy Center (NDBC) buoys with diverse geographical and statistical properties demonstrates that 6-h forecasts can be obtained with a high level of fidelity, and forecasts up to 12 h showed a correlation of 67% or better relative to a fu...
Section 367: A 'Wimp' for Inversions and a 'Bully' for Real Cross-Border Acquisitions

Pure inversion transactions involve reorganizing a publicly held U.S. corporation as a subsidiary of a newly formed, publicly held foreign holding company. These transactions avoid the controlled foreign corporation provisions of the Internal Revenue Code and are equivalent to the de facto adoption of a territorial system of taxation. Until and unless Congress decides to repeal or reform the controlled foreign corporation provisions, Congress and the U.S. Treasury should take steps to protect the integrity of these provisions by removing the incentive for companies to engage in pure inversion transactions. Section 367 is an inadequate tool (that is, is a wimp) in dealing with these transactions, and this article sets out a proposal that would be an effective deterrent. This article also argues that section 367 is too intrusive (that is, is a bully) in business-motivated cross-border acquisitive reorganizations involving substantial companies and therefore should be liberalized for these transactions.
Future Organization and Control of U.S. Agricultural Production and Marketing

IN HER biography of that genius who contributed so much to the scientific method but less to science, Francis Bacon, Catherine Drinker Bowen remarks that the origin of insight lies in "staring long at familiar, age-old patterns-and seeing suddenly a new import, a fresh direction and road to follow."' Bacon himself named requisites to scientific observation: "desire to seek, patience to doubt, fondness to meditate, slowness to assert, readiness to consider, carefulness to dispose and set in order."2
How Women Engage Homegrown Terrorism

U.S. Extremist Crime Database (ECDB) Study data of homicides by far-right extremists and arsons and bombings by environmental and animal rights extremists suggest that compared with men, relationships are catalysts for women’s involvement in domestic terrorism; recruitment and opportunity differ by ideology and are not always effective in victimizing their intended hate group. We suggest an inter-disciplinary approach that considers criminological principles of strain theory along with sociological emphasis on gendered social networks and the strength of weak ties.
Taphonomic study of Ediacaran organic-walled fossils confirms the importance of clay minerals and pyrite in Burgess Shale−type preservation

Burgess Shale−type (BST) macrofossils and organic-walled microfossils are preserved as carbonaceous compressions and may share similar taphonomic processes. Previous taphonomic investigations of carbonaceous compressions have primarily focused on the microchemistry of Cambrian BST fossils, but comparative data from organic-walled microfossils were not available. To address these issues, we analyzed two organic-walled taxa from the Yangtze Gorges area of the South China block, Chuaria (an acritarch) and Vendotaenia (a ribbon-shaped fossil). Their abundance offers the opportunity for destructive microanalysis, including petrography, electron microscopy, and elemental mapping on both bedding planes and in cross sections. Our data suggest that Chuaria preservation is remarkably similar to BST fossils in that its vesicle walls are closely associated with clay minerals. In addition, like many BST macrofossils, Chuaria and Vendotaenia are also closely associated with pyrite; Chuaria vesicles are often filled with framboidal pyrite, and Vendotaenia fossils are associated with sulfate, partly derived from pyrite oxidation. The comparative taphonomy of Chuaria and Vendotaenia and BST macrofossils indicates that the preservation of organic-walled acritarchs may be aided by clay and pyrite mineralization, and that these abundant microfossils may serve as proxies for uncovering in more detail the taphonomic histories of BST preservation.
Common Sense and Common Language in Thomas Reid's Ethical Theory

Contemporary commentators on the history of ethics have devoted little attention to the ethical theory of Thomas Reid. The main reason for this neglect concerns the perspective from which they are very likely to view his theory. Roughly, this perspective is as follows. Eighteenth century ethics tends to be viewed as consisting mainly in the prolonged dispute concerning the nature of the moral faculty. In identifying Reid's part in this dispute it should be noted that his Essays on the Active Powers of the Human Mind, his major work on ethics, was published in 1788. It was therefore preceded by the works of such early rational intuitionists as Cudworth, Clarke, Balguy, and Wollaston and by the criticisms directed against them by such defenders of the moral sense position as Shaftesbury, Hutcheson, and Hume. Moreover, it was preceded by the intuitionistic counterattack directed against the latter by Richard Price, a near contemporary of Reid, who has often been described as the greatest of the intuitionists and whose prominence is such that his ethical theory has tended to eclipse that of Reid. The result is that there are in Reid a large number of pages devoted to restatements of an intuitionistic position which a contemporary reader has already encountered in earlier writers and which he is therefore likely to find rather boring. Even those who have main tained correctly that Reid is the founder of the Scottish school of common sense and that his ethical theory is to be seen in the context of his defense of common sense have added little to this perspective, since, generally speaking, they have found no significant differences between his ethical theory as seen in this context and intuitionism. Viewed from this perspective, Reid's ethics might well be deserving of neglect and of the comment made by Alasdair Maclntyre that "the successors of Hume and Adam Smith in Scottish philosophy have little to say to us. Thomas Reid was a rationalist in the spirit of Price."1
Outwash Measurements of a Dual Impinging Jet Scale Model

Measurements were made in the flow-field of a dual impinging jet scale model representative of a STOVL aircraft configuration. The model consists of two nozzles, one sonic and one supersonic, separated by about 11 diameters. The roughly 12.7 mm exit diameter nozzles were operated at NPRF = 1.89 and NPRR = 2.93 respectively, with a ground plane surface located at 12 and 24 D below the model. Several techniques were used to investigate the local flow-field including shadowgraphy and surface oil flow visualization. A five probe total pressure pitot rake was used to characterize the mean flow inside each free-jet plume. Detailed measurements were made with the pitot rake inside the wall jet boundary layer along the surface of the ground plane. The boundary layer velocity profiles were obtained azimuthally around both the front and rear impinging jets with the ground plane surface at a separation distance of 12 D and 24 D. Various normalization schemes were also used to compare characteristics of the wall jet, such as peak velocity, to the flow measured in each impinging jet plume.
Knowledge transfer in higher education: the case of Monterrey Institute of Technology

While research exists on knowledge transfer in the private and public sectors, there is limited understanding of such efforts in higher education. Universities interested in serving society beyond academic curricula often develop outreach programmes that lack a significant societal impact. We present an alternative model developed at the Instituto Tecnologico y de Estudio Superiores de Monterrey in Mexico (Monterrey Tech). This school has created a comprehensive structure designed to transfer knowledge from the university to the community and back. Monterrey Tech's model presents an institution-wide effort aimed at developing students' sense of citizenship while transferring knowledge that addresses societal needs.
Piezoresistive pressure sensor array for robotic skin

Robots are starting to transition from the confines of the manufacturing floor to homes, schools, hospitals, and highly dynamic environments. As, a result, it is impossible to foresee all the probable operational situations of robots, and preprogram the robot behavior in those situations. Among human-robot interaction technologies, haptic communication is an intuitive physical interaction method that can help define operational behaviors for robots cooperating with humans. Multimodal robotic skin with distributed sensors can help robots increase perception capabilities of their surrounding environments. Electro-Hydro-Dynamic (EHD) printing is a flexible multi-modal sensor fabrication method because of its direct printing capability of a wide range of materials onto substrates with non-uniform topographies. In past work we designed interdigitated comb electrodes as a sensing element and printed piezoresistive strain sensors using customized EHD printable PEDOT:PSS based inks. We formulated a PEDOT:PSS derivative ink, by mixing PEDOT:PSS and DMSO. Bending induced characterization tests of prototyped sensors showed high sensitivity and sufficient stability. In this paper, we describe SkinCells, robot skin sensor arrays integrated with electronic modules. 4x4 EHD-printed arrays of strain sensors was packaged onto Kapton sheets and silicone encapsulant and interconnected to a custom electronic module that consists of a microcontroller, Wheatstone bridge with adjustable digital potentiometer, multiplexer, and serial communication unit. Thus, SkinCell’s electronics can be used for signal acquisition, conditioning, and networking between sensor modules. Several SkinCells were loaded with controlled pressure, temperature and humidity testing apparatuses, and testing results are reported in this paper.
The MPA Program in Small Markets: An Exploratory Analysis

The public administration/policy academic community has had little systematic data on which to base decisions about program location or expansion, especially in small markets. This study presents the results of a multivariate regression of MPA student numbers on eight independent variables.
Performance optimization of topic modeling algorithms using a graphic processing unit

Text mining can be effectively deployed to improve our understanding of the real world by extracting relevant features such as cultural context from text data. Techniques such as topic models are shown to be useful in automatically extracting the topical or semantic content from unstructured data. Such a system should consume a large amount of text and extract meaningful patterns usually within a specified amount of time. Graphics Processing Unit is increasingly being used for computationally intensive tasks because of the inexpensive, high-performance raw processing power it has to offer. In this paper, we implement, test, and compare various topic modeling algorithms in a Graphics Processing Unit to achieve faster computing time compared to traditional implementations in a Central Processing Unit. The goal is to execute parallel Graphics Processing Unit versions of algorithms, such as Latent Dirichlet Allocation and Latent Semantic Analysis, and quantitatively assess the performance of each algorithm in comparison with serial or multi-core versions of the same topic modeling algorithms. The study aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of the effectiveness of a spectrum of Topic Model algorithms, the merits of such models in the Graphics Processing Unit, and the magnitude of efficiency improvement that can be achieved. Experimental results show that Topic Modeling algorithms can achieve 10x to 40x speedup in the GPU framework.
Use of PET/MRI in clinical oncology: An update on applications and pitfalls.

1918 Learning Objectives 1. To provide an update on applications of PET/MRI in diagnosis, prognosis assessment, staging, pretreatment planning, and response evaluation of patients with cancer. 2. To review the pros and cons of PET/MRI and to compare it to other available imaging techniques. Since the introduction of PET/MRI for clinical use, there has been great progress in the application of this novel modality in the clinic, owing to its combination of high soft-tissue contrast, enhanced lesion detection and characterization and its ability to use functional sequences. Additionally, it combines multiplanar imaging by MR along with molecular information of PET in one single hybrid image, which also facilitates our understanding of tumor biology and microenvironment. The initial results from the indirect PET/MR and few PET/MR devices around the world have shown that this modality has promise in neuro-oncology, head and neck cancers and abdominopelvic malignancies specifically in pediatric, young adult and pregnant patients. In this review, we will discuss the following topics: 1. Utility and performance of PET/MRI (compared to PET/CT) for a. Tumor detection and characterization b. Staging c. Pre-treatment planning d. Response assessment e. Radiation dose considerations 2. Technical considerations relevant to PET/MRI 3. Specific clinical applications of PET/MRI a. Pediatric patients and pregnant patients b. CNS and H&N cancers c. Thoracic cancers d. Abdominopelvic cancers e. Musculoskeletal cancers 4. Limitations of PET/MRI
Resegregation as Curriculum: The Meaning of the New Racial Segregation in U.S. Public Schools. Jerry Rosiek and Kathy Kinslow, 2016, New York, NY: Routledge

Segregations are the water in which we swim—slavery, Jim Crow, segregation, desegregation, neosegregation—at any one point, our history is connected to the imposition of policy and practice that ef...
TESTING A THEORY OF SENSE OF COMMUNITY AND COMMUNITY RESPONSIBILITY IN ORGANIZATIONS: AN EMPIRICAL ASSESSMENT OF PREDICTIVE CAPACITY ON EMPLOYEE WELL-BEING AND ORGANIZATIONAL CITIZENSHIP

This study attempts to advance our understanding of the experience of community in organizational settings by empirically testing a theory of sense of community responsibility (SOC-R) in relation to traditional measures of sense of community [SOC] on outcomes of employee well-being and organizational citizenship. Findings support the notion that SOC is a better predictor of employee well-being, while SOC-R more strongly predicts organizational citizenship behavior. The findings add new knowledge to the literature on the experience of community in organizations, as well as representing an important contribution to our understanding of the factors that drive employee action and well-being at work.
RAYGRANTITE, Pb10Zn(SO4)(6)(SiO4)(2)(OH)(2), A NEW MINERAL ISOSTRUCTURAL WITH IRANITE, FROM THE BIG HORN MOUNTAINS, MARICOPA COUNTY, ARIZONA, USA

Abstract A new mineral species, raygrantite, ideally Pb 10 Zn(SO 4 ) 6 (SiO 4 ) 2 (OH) 2 , has been found in the Big Horn Mountains, Maricopa County, Arizona, USA. Associated minerals are galena, anglesite, cerussite, lanarkite, leadhillite, mattheddleite, alamosite, hydrocerussite, caledonite, and diaboleite. Raygrantite crystals are bladed with striations parallel to the elongated direction (the c axis). Twinning (fish-tail type) is pervasive on (1 2 ). The mineral is colorless, transparent with white streak, and has a vitreous luster. It is brittle and has a Mohs hardness of ∼3; cleavage is good on {120} and no parting was observed. The calculated density is 6.374 g/cm 3 . Optically, raygrantite is biaxial (+), with n α = 1.915(7), n β = 1.981(7), n γ = 2.068(9), 2V meas = 76(2)°, and 2V calc = 85°. It is insoluble in water, acetone, or hydrochloric acid. An electron microprobe analysis yielded the empirical formula Pb 2+ 9.81 Zn 2+ 0.93 (S 1.00 O 4 ) 6 (Si 1.05 O 4 ) 2 (OH) 2 . Raygrantite is a new member of the iranite mineral group. It is triclinic, with space group P and unit-cell parameters a 9.3175(4), b 11.1973(5), c 10.8318(5) A, α 120.374(2), β 90.511(2), γ 56.471(2)°, and V 753.13(6) A 3 . Its crystal structure, refined to R 1 = 0.031, is characterized by slabs that lie parallel to (120) of SO 4 and SiO 4 tetrahedra with ZnO 4 (OH) 2 octahedra, held together by Pb 2+ cations displaying a wide range of Pb–O bond distances. The discovery of raygrantite indicates that, in addition to complete OH–F and Cu–Zn substitutions, there is also a complete substitution between (CrO 4 ) 2– and (SO 4 ) 2– in the iranite group of minerals, pointing to the possible existence of a number of other (SO 4 ) 2– -bearing iranite-type phases yet to be found or synthesized.
Transient Expression and Cellular Localization of Recombinant Proteins in Cultured Insect Cells

Heterologous protein expression systems are used for the production of recombinant proteins, the interpretation of cellular trafficking/localization, and the determination of the biochemical function of proteins at the sub-organismal level. Although baculovirus expression systems are increasingly used for protein production in numerous biotechnological, pharmaceutical, and industrial applications, nonlytic systems that do not involve viral infection have clear benefits but are often overlooked and underutilized. Here, we describe a method for generating nonlytic expression vectors and transient recombinant protein expression. This protocol allows for the efficient cellular localization of recombinant proteins and can be used to rapidly discern protein trafficking within the cell. We show the expression of four recombinant proteins in a commercially available insect cell line, including two aquaporin proteins from the insect Bemisia tabaci, as well as subcellular marker proteins specific for the cell plasma membrane and for intracellular lysosomes. All recombinant proteins were produced as chimeras with fluorescent protein markers at their carboxyl termini, which allows for the direct detection of the recombinant proteins. The double transfection of cells with plasmids harboring constructs for the genes of interest and a known subcellular marker allows for live cell imaging and improved validation of cellular protein localization.
Social Dominance Orientation: A root of resistance to intercultural dialogue?

Abstract Intercultural dialogue is a process central to creating a just social world. Despite this, people are often prejudiced against it. In order to better understand the nature of this antagonism, the present research investigated the role of Social Dominance Orientation as one potential source of resistance. Across three studies, the direct and mediated impact of SDO on both self-reported and behaviorally-indicated dialogic engagement was assessed. Results provide evidence that increasing levels of SDO encourage ideological beliefs and social evaluations that, in turn, prejudice participants against dialogue with an African-American woman. The significance of these results is discussed, along with suggestions for future research.
Stressful Surfaces: Cell Metabolism on a Poorly Adhesive Substrate.

The adhesion and proliferation of cells are exquisitely sensitive to the nature of the surface to which they attach. Aside from cell counting, cell “health” on surfaces is typically established by measuring the metabolic rate with dyes that participate in the metabolic pathway or using “live/dead” assays with combinations of membrane permeable/impermeable dyes. The binary information gleaned from these tests—whether cells are attached or not, and whether they are living or dead—provides an incomplete picture of cell health. In the present work, proliferation rates and net metabolism of 3T3 fibroblasts seeded on “biocompatible” ultrathin polyelectrolyte multilayer films and on control tissue culture plastic were compared. Cells adhered to, and proliferated on, both surfaces, which were shown to be nontoxic according to live/dead assays. However, adhesion was poorer on the multilayer surface, illustrated by diffuse organization of the actin cytoskeleton and less-developed focal adhesions. Proliferation was ...
Cause or Effect? Microvascular Dysfunction in Insulin-Resistant States.

See Article by Hu et al Conventionally, it is understood that the vasculature is one of many tissues that are adversely affected in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Accelerated development of arterial atherosclerosis and microvascular dysfunction are 2 of the diabetic complications that cardiovascular clinicians commonly encounter. Microvascular dysfunction, defined as inadequate microvascular response to metabolic demand at rest or during a physiological or metabolic challenge that normally requires a reduction in vascular resistance, occurs as a consequence of multiple pathways that become abnormal in response to obesity, insulin resistance (IR), hyperglycemia, and T2DM. These pathways are diverse and include reduced bioavailability of nitric oxide and other vasodilators (eg, eicosanoids and other arachidonic acid metabolites), increased production or sensitivity to vasoconstrictors, including endothelin or angiotensin-II, heightened response to α-adrenergic signaling, functional abnormalities in cation channels, diffuse glycosylation, and increased reactive oxygen species.1,2 Tissues affected by secondary microvascular dysfunction include the heart, skeletal muscle, adipose tissue, and the kidney. A somewhat underappreciated concept is that microvascular dysfunction can actually contribute to the pathogenesis of IR and T2DM. Much of research supporting this notion has focused on the microcirculation of skeletal muscle which in humans is a major storage site for glucose. In limb skeletal muscle, insulin produces an augmentation in limb skeletal muscle blood flow in a dose-dependent fashion.3,4 This vascular action of insulin is thought to influence the delivery of glucose, and possibly insulin itself, to muscle and other glucose storage sites.5 The measurement of blood flow alone may not tell the whole story of how vascular responses influence glucose homeostasis. …
Photodegradation of Wastes and Pollutants in Aquatic Environment

Photocatalytic processes have considerable potential to contribute to the degradation of pollutants in the aquatic environment and in wastewater treatment. The sunlight irradiation of humic substances in natural waters has been shown to produce several reactant species including singlet oxygen, Superoxide, hydroxyl radical and hydrogen peroxide. These species can react with organic pollutants to cause oxidation and/or dechlorination of these chemicals. Biological components of natural waters such as algae can contain a significant fraction of certain contaminants and studies have shown that algae can photocatalyze the breakdown of several persistent organic compounds. Heterogeneous photolysis using semiconductors such as titanium dioxide (anatase) has been shown to break down several organic and inorganic pollutants. Some mechanistic considerations as well as practical applications of this method for wastewater treatment are discussed.
Evaluation of Heart Rhythms

The electrocardiogram (ECG) is synonymous with a cardiac evaluation, just as a chest x-ray is with a pulmonary ­evaluation. The ECG is inexpensive, non-invasive and easy to perform. All hospitals and most offices can perform electrocardiography and because they are so ubiquitous, being able to accurately interpret an ECG is important. The goal of this chapter is to provide a basic understanding of the principles of how to “read” an ECG, why an ECG looks the way it does, and when to order an ECG. Because the readers of this book will likely have quite varied backgrounds and exposures to ECG interpretation, this chapter will begin with more basic principles of what an ECG is and how it is generated. We will then focus on understanding the ECG waveforms and basic rhythm diagnosis. Finally, we will conclude with a discussion of additional ECG tests that can be performed to assess heart rhythm disturbances.
Thermorheologic Properties of Aqueous Solutions and Gels of Tetronic 1508

The rheologic properties of aqueous solutions and gels of Tetronic 1508 were investigated as a function of polymer concentration and temperature utilizing rotational viscometry. Below the sol–gel transition temperature the polymer solutions were low in viscosity and exhibited Newtonian rheologic behavior even at concentrations of 20 and 25% (w/w). Upon sol–gel transition, the more concentrated polymer solutions underwent a dramatic four- to five-orders of magnitude increase in viscosity, resulting in the formation of a rigid gel structure. Above the sol-gel transition temperature, the gels displayed pseudoplastic and plastic rheologic properties and the viscosity of the gels remained at a relatively constant value over a wide temperature range. Eventually, the thermal energy of the system exceeded the bonding forces within the gel structure, resulting in a gel–sol transition which was marked by a dramatic decrease in the viscosity of the system. Above the gel–sol transition temperature, the system reverted to a Newtonian fluid with viscosities very similar to those found for the Tetronic 1508 solutions at temperatures below the sol–gel transition temperature. The thermodynamic implications of the gel–sol transition are discussed.
Experimental Simulation of High Energy-Density Plasma Interaction with Liquid Metal Media for Inertial Fusion Reactor First Wall Studies

Inertial confinement fusion (ICF) is a promising technology positioned to address the future energy needs of the world.An advanced design concept for ICF reactors is to use a circulating liquid barrier to protect the first wall of the target chamber.With the impaction of the high energy-density plasma on the liquid barrier, sputtering and vaporization can occur causing particulate matter to enter the target chamber interior volume.In order to best engineer the design of the target chamber, this interaction must be well characterized.A small-size experimental facility was designed, constructed, and operated at NC State University to simulate the interaction of high energy-density plasma with liquid metals.This study focuses on characterization of the plasma-liquid metal plume.Characterization of the generated plumes shape and size of evolved vaporized liquid metal particulates; density and other plasma parameters were studied in this research.Electrical and spectral data were obtained for each experiment to obtain the plasma parameters including total power, impedance, electron temperature and density and identification of species.It was determined that a typical plasma generated from a 2 kV discharge has a temperature of 1.0 ± 0.3 eV and a density of 4.2 ± 1.7 x 1017 cm-3.The height and geometric configurations of the collection substrates were changed to produce a model of the generated metallic plume.Data analysis of the substrates indicates that the plume has a higher density profile and smaller particulates at distances closer to the point of impact, and the particulate size increases and the particulate density profile decreases with increased distance from liquid metal pool.
End Winding Protections Improvements Helping To Downsize dV/dt Filter For Medium Voltage Machine Fed By NPP Multi-Levels VSI Drive

In recent years, a growth trend is evident in power electronics from Load Commutated Inverter to Voltage Source Inverter drives based on Neutral Point Piloted 5-levels topology up to 15kV using fast switching devices for better efficiency and compactness. However, a dV/dt filter is required to avoid fast insulation degradation of the motor when exposed to rapid rise repetitive impulses voltage from the Drive. Especially in the ending winding region where preeminent electrical stress is localized toward the slot exit with fast rise time of pulsed voltage. For dV/dt above 3kV/us, traditional corona protection method using conventional stress grading tape is no longer sufficient to prevent the surface discharge and excessive heating at the slot exit. Numerical simulation established in multi-physics finite element analysis indicates that electrical stress distribution and power dissipation at the end winding is closely related to the rise time of drive pulses and stress grading materials properties. New corona protection method is developed based on modeling results and validated on real stator bars under fast pulses. This paper will describe the typical dV/dt patterns generated by those multilevels drives impacting the dV/dt filter and the system of insulation of medium voltage machine. It will also discuss the effectiveness of end winding surface discharge prevention by proper stress grading design and materials selection under high stresses of dV/dt.
Gender norms and modern contraceptive use in urban Nigeria: a multilevel longitudinal study.

Evidence suggests that gender equality positively influences family planning. However, the evidence from urban Africa is sparse. This study aimed to examine the association between changes in gender norms and modern contraceptive use over time among women in urban Nigeria. Data were collected in 2010/2011 from 16,118 women aged 15–49 living in six cities in Nigeria (Abuja, Benin, Ibadan, Ilorin, Kaduna, and Zaria) and again in 2014 from 10,672 of the same women (34% attrition rate). The analytical sample included 9933 women living in 480 neighborhoods. A four-category outcome variable measured their change in modern contraceptive use within the study period. The exposure variables measured the changes in the level of gender-equitable attitudes towards: a) wife beating; b) household decision-making; c) couples’ family planning decisions; and d) family planning self-efficacy. Multilevel multinomial logistic regression models estimated the associations between the exposure variables at the individual and neighborhood levels and modern contraceptive use controlling for the women’s age, education, marital status, religion, parity, household wealth, and city of residence. The proportion of women who reported current use of modern contraceptive methods increased from 21 to 32% during the four-year study period. At both surveys, 58% of the women did not report using modern contraceptives while 11% reported using modern contraceptives; 21% did not use in 2010/2011 but started using by 2014 while 10% used in 2010/2011 but discontinued use by 2014. A positive change in the gender-equitable attitudes towards household decision-making, couples’ family planning decisions, and family planning self-efficacy at the individual and neighborhood levels were associated with increased relative probability of modern contraceptive use (adoption and continued use) and decreased relative probability of modern contraceptive discontinuation by 2014. No such associations were found between the individual and neighborhood attitudes towards wife beating and modern contraceptive use. Accounting for the individual and neighborhood gender-equitable attitudes and controlling for the women’s demographic characteristics accounted for 55–61% of the variation between neighborhoods in the change in modern contraceptive use during the study period. Interventions that promote gender equality have the potential to increase modern contraceptive use in Nigerian cities.
Axial Fourier Rebinning for Time-of-Flight PET

Fully 3D time-of-flight (TOF) PET scanners offer the potential of substantially improved image quality in clinical PET imaging. The main challenges of 3D TOF PET imaging are the data storage with either list-mode or binned formats, and the reconstruction time using iterative algorithms. Previously, we derived the Fourier rebinning and consistency equations (FORCEs), and showed 3D TOF data can be fully characterized by two consistency equations. In this work, we present an exact Fourier rebinning for 3D TOF data based on the axial consistency equation to dramatically reduce the data storage and the reconstruction time. Starting from pre-corrected 3D TOF data, the axial Fourier rebinning algorithm estimates a 2D TOF sinogram for each transverse slice without information loss. Since the 3D TOF data are axially truncated, we provide a solution to estimate the missing portion in the oblique TOF projection data. The proposed axial Fourier rebinning for TOF data (axFRT) can take advantage of all the 3D TOF data statistics, and the rebinned 2D TOF data can then be reconstructed using any algorithms for 2D or 2. 5D TOF reconstructions. The axFRT algorithm allows the axial data sets being rebinned independently, and there are tens of thousands of such data sets which can naturally take advantage of the massively parallel processors to dramatically speedup the rebinning. We show numerical simulations to demonstrate that axFRT produces accurate and unbiased rebinned sinograms even for TOF PET with large axial acceptance angle. The axFRT will be particularly useful for 3D TOF PET with large axial field of view for PET imaging applications including dynamic, whole- or total-body imaging.
Experimental assessment of proton dose calculation accuracy in small-field delivery using a mevion S250 proton therapy system

Purpose: Dose calculation accuracy of the Varian Eclipse treatment planning system (TPS) is empirically assessed for small-aperture fields using a Mevion S250 double scattering proton therapy system. Materials and Methods: Five spherical pseudotumors were modeled in a RANDO head phantom. Plans were generated for the targets with apertures of 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 cm diameter using one, two, and three beams. Depth-dose curves and lateral profiles of the beams were taken with the planned blocks and compared to Eclipse calculations. Dose distributions measured with EBT3 films in the phantom were also compared to Eclipse calculations. Film quenching effect was simulated and considered. Results: Depth-dose scans in water showed a range pullback (up to 2.0 mm), modulation widening (up to 9.5 mm), and dose escalation in proximal end and sub-peak region (up to 15.5%) when compared to the Eclipse calculations for small fields. Measured full width at half maximum and penumbrae for lateral profiles differed <1.0 mm from calculations for most comparisons. In the phantom study, Eclipse TPS underestimated sub-peak dose. Gamma passing rates improved with each beam added to the plans. Greater range pullback and modulation degradation versus water scans were observed due to film quenching, which became more noticeable as target size increased. Conclusions: Eclipse TPS generates acceptable target coverage for small targets with carefully arranged multiple beams despite relatively large dose discrepancy for each beam. Surface doses higher than Eclipse calculations can be mitigated with multiple beams. When using EBT3 film, the quenching effect should be considered.
Quantifying biochar content in a field soil with varying organic matter content using a two-temperature loss on ignition method.

Abstract While the use of biochar as a soil amendment for agronomic and environmental management is gaining popularity, quantification of biochar in soil is still challenging. The objective of this work was to develop a fast, simple and inexpensive method to quantify biochar content in field soil with varying organic matter content – the two-temperature loss on ignition (LOI) method. In this approach, biochar mass fraction in a biochar-amended soil is computed by measuring the dry mass of biochar/soil mixture after heating sequentially at two temperatures: low temperature (LT), and high temperature (HT). This method requires the LOI profile for pure soil and pure biochar that are representative of soil and biochar in the field. Although the soil LOI profile may vary due to spatial variation in soil organic matter (SOM) content, the method only requires that the relative soil LOI at LT with respect to LOI at HT is uniform because of similarity in SOM chemical composition. In this method, LT and HT are selected such that the maximum difference in LOI exists at these temperatures between pure soil and biochar. The method was tested by quantifying the biochar content in roadway filter strips with and without a wood biochar pyrolyzed at high temperature (550 °C). The estimates of biochar content from the method matched independent measurements for soils with low (−0.23 ± 0.09 CI%, CI = 95% confidence interval, versus actual 0%) and high (3.9 ± 0.3 CI% versus actual 4.0 ± 1.1 CI%) biochar mass fraction. The method is applicable when SOM content is low to moderate (e.g. 400 °C) and composed of relatively low ash content (e.g.
3D T1-weighted contrast-enhanced brain MRI in children using a fat-suppressed golden angle radial acquisition: an alternative to Cartesian inversion-recovery imaging

Abstract Background T1-weighted post-contrast MRI is essential in brain protocols. We demonstrate the feasibility and utility of a 3D non-Cartesian radial acquisition in children. Purpose To compare bulk motion artifacts, image quality, and lesion conspicuity in 3D T1-weighted post-contrast brain MRI between a new fat-suppressed radial gradient-echo and a traditional non-fat-suppressed inversion-recovery Cartesian gradient-echo sequence. Material and methods Images from 53 patients acquired at 3 Tesla were compared. Three radiologists rated the images in three categories, including the presence of bulk motion and whether it impacted diagnosis, whether one sequence was preferred over the other in overall image quality and conspicuity of vascular structures and lesions, and whether diagnosis was possible if only the new fat-suppressed radial acquisition was obtained. Results The Fleiss' kappa for inter-rater agreement was 0.67 for bulk motion and 0.54 for sequence preference. Of the 53 cases, 56% were identified to have significant motion on conventional imaging, while only 13% had motion artifacts on the radial acquisition (p Conclusion We demonstrate the potential utility of a fat-suppressed 3D T1-weighted post-contrast brain gradient-echo sequence in children. The technique is useful in non-sedate pediatric imaging due to its reduced sensitivity to bulk motion.