cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Pressure-shear waves and spall fracture described by a viscoplastic-damage constitutive model

Abstract A model to predict material damage and spall fracture is applied to low-angle oblique plate-impact experiments. In this configuration, impact of parallel plates occurs along a direction inclined relative to the flyer velocity direction, resulting in normal and transverse deformations in both plates. The model uses the Perzyna viscoplastic constitutive theory that contains a scalar field variable description of the material damage, which is taken as the void volume fraction of the polycrystalline material. Incorporation of the damage parameter permits description of rate-dependent, compressible, inelastic deformation and ductile fracture. The model for microvoid growth is based upon a random distribution of microvoids idealized as spherical holes of arbitrary size, which, as an approximation, are assumed to remain spherical under the high mean stresses and moderate shear stresses that occur when the angle of inclination of the impact is small. A local spall fracture criterion based on critical microvoid volume is utilized. The constitutive equations are specialized for deformation associated with propagating plane waves of combined pressure and shear. Normal and transverse rear surface velocities are computed for oblique impact of 6061-T6 aluminum and compared to measured velocity histories. Numerical predictions are extended to conditions resulting in spallation under combined pressure-shear waves, using OFHC copper as the plate material. The void volume distribution resulting from the tensile mean stress in the target plate is computed to predict material damage. Computations are performed to illustrate the effect of damage on both the normal and transverse rear surface velocities.
A modified mapping-collocation technique for accurate calculation of stress intensity factors

A technique combining the advantages of conformal mapping and boundary collocation arguments for calculating stress intensity factors for cracks in plane problems is described. The difficulty of finding the mapping function on a rigidly prescribed parameter region is avoided at the expense of using boundary collocation methods on part of the boundary. Conventional collocation arguments are modified by prescribing stress, force, and moment conditions in a least-square collocation sense. These pseudo-redundant conditions provide a reasonable basis for estimation of the effects of inaccuracy of the boundary conditions. The technique is applied to the problem of a circular disk with an internal crack under a loading of external hydrostatic tension.
A 20-ns 256 K*4 FIFO memory

A 256 K*4 FIFO (first-in-first-out) CMOS memory with 20-ns access time and 30-ns cycle time is described. To accomplish full static and asynchronous operation, signal synchronizer and arbiter circuits have been developed and implemented into the device. A pair of 120-word*4-bit static memories are furnished to provide 20-ns data access from the very first read cycle. The average current measured at 30-ns read/write operation and the standby current are typically 23 and 1.2 mA, respectively. >
Real-time shader rendering of holographic stereograms

Horizontal-parallax-only holographic stereograms of nearly SDTV resolution (336 pixels by 440 lines by 96 views) of textured and normal-mapped models (500 polygons) are rendered at interactive rates (10 frames/second) on a single dual-head commodity graphics processor for use on MIT’s third-generation electro-holographic display. The holographic fringe pattern is computed by a diffraction specific holographic stereogram algorithm designed for efficient parallelized vector implementation using OpenGL and Cg vertex/fragment shaders. The algorithm concentrates on lightfield reconstruction by holographic fringes rather than the computation of the interferometric process of creating the holographic fringes.
In vivo human brachial artery elastic mechanics: effects of smooth muscle relaxation.

Background—–The effects of smooth muscle relaxation on arterial wall mechanics are controversial. We used a new, in vivo, noninvasive technique to measure brachial artery wall mechanics under baseline conditions and following smooth muscle relaxation with nitroglycerin (NTG). Methods and Results—Eight healthy, normal subjects (6 male, 2 female; age 30±3.1 years) participated in the study. The nondominant brachial artery was imaged through a water-filled blood pressure cuff using an external ultrasound wall-tracking system at baseline and following 0.4 mg sublingual NTG. Simultaneous radial artery pressure waveforms were recorded by tonometry. Transmural pressure (TP) was reduced by increasing water pressure in the cuff. Brachial artery area, unstressed area, compliance, stress, strain, incremental elastic modulus (Einc), and pulse wave velocity (PWV) were measured over a TP range from 0 to 100 mm Hg. Baseline area versus TP curves generated 30 minutes apart were not significantly different. NTG significan...
Alcohol consumption and risk of heart failure: the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study.

Aim Alcohol is a known cardiac toxin and heavy consumption can lead to heart failure (HF). However, the relationship between moderate alcohol consumption and risk for HF, in either men or women, remains unclear. Methods and results We examined 14 629 participants of the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) study (54 ± 6 years, 55% women) without prevalent HF at baseline (1987–89) who were followed for 24 ± 1 years. Self-reported alcohol consumption was assessed as the number of drinks/week (1 drink = 14 g of alcohol) at baseline, and updated cumulative average alcohol intake was calculated over 8.9 ± 0.3 years. Using multivariable Cox proportional hazards models, we examined the relation of alcohol intake with incident HF and assessed whether associations were modified by sex. Overall, most participants were abstainers (42%) or former drinkers (19%), with 25% reporting up to 7 drinks per week, 8% reporting ≥7 to 14 drinks per week, and 3% reporting ≥14–21 and ≥21 drinks per week, respectively. Incident HF occurred in 1271 men and 1237 women. Men consuming up to 7 drinks/week had reduced risk of HF relative to abstainers (hazard ratio, HR 0.80, 95% CI 0.68–0.94, P = 0.006); this effect was less robust in women (HR 0.84, 95% CI 0.71–1.00, P = 0.05). In the higher drinking categories, the risk of HF was not significantly different from abstainers, either in men or in women. Conclusion In the community, alcohol consumption of up to 7 drinks/week at early-middle age is associated with lower risk for future HF, with a similar but less definite association in women than in men. These findings suggest that despite the dangers of heavy drinking, modest alcohol consumption in early-middle age may be associated with a lower risk for HF.
Enumeration of graphs with the same Ihara zeta function

Abstract We enumerate all connected graphs with minimal vertex degree 2 on at most 11 vertices and determine their Ihara zeta functions. We also count the number of such graphs for which there is another graph with the same zeta function. We then use these graphs to conjecture properties of the graphs determined by the zeta function. In addition, we study switching constructions, proposed by Godsil and McKay, to determine whether they preserve the zeta function. We show that GM switching is not strong enough to preserve the zeta function, but GM ∗ switching, following the notation of Haemers and Spence, does preserve the zeta function.
On Earnings Manipulation and the Cost of Capital: Does Accounting Matter in the Aggregate?

This article develops further results on earnings management and the cost of capital, which complement Strobl (Journal of Accounting Research, forth.). Within a simplified version of the model, I illustrate the existing linkage between earning management activities and firms' cost of capital, even if the individual fraud risk is diversifiable. I identify plausible conditions under which the cost of capital will increase with more earnings management and show that the level of managerial ownership and enforcement are important testable determinants of this association. Lastly, I argue that, in the absence of an observable aggregate wealth portfolio, whether accounting quality is informative on firms' beta or a separate risk factor are observationally equivalent propositions. I then show that an aggregate accounting quality measure would provide information about expected returns.
An empirical evaluation of walk-and-round heuristics for mixed integer linear programs

Feasibility pump is a general purpose technique for finding feasible solutions of mixed integer programs. In this paper we report our computational experience on using geometric random walks and a random ray approach to provide good points for the feasibility pump. Computational results on MIPLIB2003 and COR@L test libraries show that the walk-and-round approach improves the upper bounds of a large number of test problems when compared to running the feasibility pump either at the optimal solution or the analytic center of the continuous relaxation. In our experiments the hit-and-run walk (a specific type of random walk strategy) started from near the analytic center is generally better than other random search approaches, when short walks are used. The performance may be improved by expanding the feasible region before walking. Although the upper bound produced in the geometric random walk approach are generally inferior than the best available upper bounds for the test problems, we managed to prove optimality of three test problems which were considered unsolved in the COR@L benchmark library (though the COR@L bounds available to us seem to be out of date).
Quality Assurance Program for Clinical Measurement of Antiretrovirals: AIDS Clinical Trials Group Proficiency Testing Program for Pediatric and Adult Pharmacology Laboratories

Clinical trials designed to compare antiretroviral regimens, investigate therapeutic drug monitoring, or measure pharmacometrics often include protease inhibitors (PIs), nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTIs), and nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors, requiring the measurement of these antiretrovirals in plasma. Within the adult and pediatric AIDS Clinical Trials Group (ACTG), a network of Pharmacology Support Laboratories (PSLs) is a component of the group laboratory infrastructure and conducts these types of pharmacologic assays. The adult ACTG has developed a comprehensive quality assurance program for the conduct of clinical pharmacology protocols, one component of which is the antiretroviral proficiency testing (PT) program that has been implemented between the adult and pediatric pharmacology laboratories of the ACTG. PT testing samples were prepared and distributed in July 2001, February 2002, and July 2002. High, medium, and low concentrations of PIs (indinavir, saquinavir, amprenavir, lopinavir, ritonavir, and nelfinavir) and NNRTIs (nevirapine and efavirenz) were added to drug-free EDTA plasma and distributed, on dry ice, to eight ACTG PSLs. One testing laboratory used liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry, and seven used high-performance liquid chromatography-UV analysis. A result was considered acceptable if it was within 20% deviation of the assigned concentration. For all concentrations of PIs evaluated, 96% of samples tested (430 of 448 measurements) met the acceptance criteria. For both NNRTIs, 100% of samples tested (140 of 140 measurements) met the acceptance criteria. In conclusion, the PT program results presented demonstrate excellent interlaboratory agreement for all antiretrovirals tested and provide support for the merger of plasma concentration data among laboratories for large clinical trials.
Theoretical analysis of evolutionary algorithms with an infinite population size in continuous space. Part II: Analysis of the diversification role of crossover

For pt. I see ibid., p. 102-19. In this part of the paper the authors concentrate on the unique diversification role of the crossover operator in genetic algorithms. The explorative behavior of a generic crossover operator is revealed through a detailed large-sample analysis. Recursive equations for the population distributions are derived for a uniform crossover operator in multi-dimensional continuous space, showing how the crossover operator probes new regions of the solution space while keeping the population within the feasible region. The results of this analysis can be extended to the setting of a discrete space in a straightforward manner, shedding much light on the understanding of the essential role of crossover in genetic algorithms. >
A Biophysical Model of Cortical Up and Down States: Excitatory-Inhibitory Balance and H-Current

During slow-wave sleep, cortical neurons oscillate between up and down states. Using a computational model of cortical neurons with realistic synaptic transmission, we determined that reverberation of activity in a small network of about 40 pyramidal cells could account for the properties of up states in vivo. We found that experimentally accessible quantities such as membrane potential fluctuations, firing rates and up state durations could be used as indicators of the size of the network undergoing the up state. We also show that the H-current, together with feed-forward inhibition can act as a gating mechanism for up state initiation.
Gene Structure and Multiple Regulations of the Ethanol-Inducible Cytochrome P45O2E1 (CYP2E1) Subfamily

Acute and chronic alcohol (ethanol) consumption affects virtually all cellular functions of various tissues, such as brain, liver, digestive systems, immune system, reproductive and endocrine organs, and so forth.1 In liver, ethanol drinking causes alcoholic fatty liver, hepatitis, fibrosis, and cirrhosis. Although the pathoetiological mechanisms of these disease states caused by ethanol consumption are still unknown, several mechanisms have been proposed.2 Ethanol drinking induces microsomal proteins involved in the metabolism of various substrates. The metabolic reactions are predominantly catalyzed by members of the cytochrome P450 system,3 some of which are induced by ethanol or other chemicals. Cytochrome P4502E1 (CYP4502E1) 1 is induced by ethanol and can catalyze metabolism. It is considered a major component of the microsomal ethanol-oxidizing system (MEOS).4The substance of (CYP4502E1) include ethanol, acetaldehyde, acetone, acetol, glycerol, ethylene, glycol, propanol, butanol, dimethylsulfoxide, diethylether, ethyl carbamate, lipid hydroperoxides, acrylamide, benzene, bromobenzene, phenol, aniline, 4-nitrophenol, pyridine, pyrazole, CS2,CCI4,chloroform, chloroethylene, acetaminophen (Tylenol™), halothene, chlorzoxazone, and potent carcinogens of certain nitrosamines, such as N-dimethylnitrosamine.5Some of the substances in turn regulate the activity below.
Growth optimal investment in horse race markets with costs

We formulate the problem of growth optimal investment in horse race markets with proportional costs and study growth optimal strategies both for stochastic horse races as well as races where one does not make any distributional assumptions. Our results extend all known results for frictionless horse race markets to their natural analog in markets with costs.
Taguchi-based metrics for software quality

A set of metrics (numerical software measurements) based on the Taguchi philosophy are proposed for measuring software quality. The Taguchi approach, originally developed for manufacturing processes, define quality in terms of "loss imparted to society" by a product after delivery of the product to the end user. The nominal-the-best and smaller-the-best loss functions developed by Taguchi are adapted for software products and case studies are presented to support the adaptation. The proposed Taguchi-based metrics are in line with six-sigma statistical quality control techniques that have been used with software products in recent years. Experiences with the proposed metrics have shown good correlation with existing popularly known software quality metrics.
Efficacy of shared-control guidance paradigms for robot-mediated training

Robot-mediated training has seen a plethora of implementations of shared-control haptic guidance, intended to teach novices to perform dynamic tasks by providing them with real-time visual and haptic feedback from real or virtual experts. The efficacies of these paradigms are difficult to quantify and compare, as the paradigms have typically been developed in an ad-hoc manner to suit specific devices and tasks. This work proposes a novel guidance paradigm taxonomy intended to help classify and compare the multitude of implementations in the literature, as well as a revised proxy rendering model to allow for the implementation of two relatively novel guidance paradigms (in addition to existing paradigms). The efficacies of these two paradigms, plus two more paradigms representing the vast majority of implementations in the literature, are compared in a controlled study with 50 healthy subjects. The results show that none of these paradigms are superior to visual-only guidance (the control condition), and that the two newer paradigms are actually detrimental to training for a target-hitting task. These results contradict many intuitions about how haptic guidance should be implemented and raise doubts about the efficacies of the most commonly-implemented paradigms.
Nutrition and the allergic athlete

Abstract Nutritional management of the allergic athlete centers around providing a diet adequate to meet the increased needs of the athlete at the same time that it is modified by the exclusion of any problematic foods. The athlete has an increased need for water, total energy, carbohydrate, B vitamins, and perhaps protein, the last two of which are usually met when the diet fulfills the energy requirements of the athlete. Requirements for electrolytes are minimally increased, and the need for additional iron is unclear in light of "sports anemia." There is no evidence to support the use of vitamins C and E as ergogenic aids; however, the findings relating vitamin C to bronchospasm and bronchial hyperreactivity are interesting. Caffeine and bee pollen, often believed to increase performance, may be harmful for the allergic athlete. An approach for determining the problematic foods for the allergic athlete and necessary supplementation when they are avoided is given.
An experimental study of cooperative learning in cs1

An experiment was conducted to study the effectiveness of the cooperative learning approach to teaching CS1. The cooperative learning exercises, which used specific roles to focus students' attention on key concepts, were designed so they could be used in a variety of educational settings. Experimental results show that the benefits of cooperative learning clearly outweighed any possible losses due to reduced lecture time. These benefits were enjoyed by both male and female students, and by students from a variety of majors. Majority and minority students performed at approximately the same overall level when using the cooperative learning approach. There are indications that the educational benefits continue when students who had a cooperative learning experience in CS1 go on to CS2.
The parallel c++ statistical library 'QUESO': quantification of uncertainty for estimation, simulation and optimization

QUESO is a collection of statistical algorithms and programming constructs supporting research into the uncertainty quantification (UQ) of models and their predictions. It has been designed with three objectives: it should (a) be sufficiently abstract in order to handle a large spectrum of models, (b) be algorithmically extensible, allowing an easy insertion of new and improved algorithms, and (c) take advantage of parallel computing, in order to handle realistic models. Such objectives demand a combination of an object-oriented design with robust software engineering practices. QUESO is written in C++, uses MPI, and leverages libraries already available to the scientific community. We describe some UQ concepts, present QUESO, and list planned enhancements.
Systematic Review of ED-based Intimate Partner Violence Intervention Research

INTRODUCTION: Assessment reactivity may be a factor in the modest results of brief interventions for substance use in the emergency department (ED). The presence of assessment reactivity in studies of interventions for intimate partner violence (IPV) has not been studied. Our objectives were to identify ED IPV intervention studies and evaluate the presence of a consistently positive effect on the control groups. METHODS: We performed a systematic search of electronic databases for English=language intervention studies addressing IPV in the ED published since 1990. Study selection and assessment of methodologic quality were performed by two independent reviewers. Data extraction was performed by one reviewer and then independently checked for completeness and accuracy by a second reviewer. RESULTS: Of 3,620 unique manuscripts identified by database search, 667 underwent abstract review and 12 underwent full-text review. Only three met full eligibility criteria; data on the control arm were available for two studies. In these two studies, IPV-related outcomes improved for both the experimental and control condition. CONCLUSION: The paucity of controlled trials of IPV precluded a robust evaluation for assessment reactivity. This study highlighted a critical gap in ED research on IPV. Language: en
Effects of velocity on human force control

Although many robots and haptic interfaces are of the impedance type, admittance-type devices offer distinct advantages, such as high damping and stiffness display, particularly in applications requiring precise motion control. This study seeks to quantify human force control limitations in admittance control systems, where robot velocity is controlled to be proportional to the force applied by a human operator. Measurements of human force control in both admittance- and velocity-controlled scenarios were used to quantify force control precision, as well as to find a threshold over which a human cannot control a constant force and determine if that threshold depends on admittance gain or velocity. Experimental results show that robot velocity, not admittance, determines force control precision. Thus, velocities in admittance control systems should be limited to ensure that human force inputs remain precise.
Electronic Commerce: Changing Income Tax Treaty Principles a Bit?

In this report, Doernberg examines the impact of electronic commerce on income tax treaty principles.
Rapid communication: a MspI restriction fragment length polymorphism at the swine PIT-1 locus.

A Rahman, J Woollard, M F Rothschild and C K TuggleOCT11 locus.Rapid communication: an SstI restriction fragment length polymorphism at the swineJ ANIM SCI€1994, 72:2201.http://jas.fass.org/content/72/8/2201.citationthe World Wide Web at: The online version of this article, along with updated information and services, is located on
Problems of Integrating Humanities and Social Science Approaches in Far Eastern Studies

ONH E of the most encouraging trends in contemporary scholarship is the considerable raprochment between fields of study conventionally classed as the "humanities" and those called the "social sciences," or now fashionably, "behavioral sciences." A strong contributing factor here has been the growth, especially during and since World War II, of so-called "area" studies which focus various disciplinary and interdisciplinary approaches upon a region. Furthermore, the region which has constituted perhaps the most active front for such experiments in coordination is the Fat East. Warmly as we welcome such collaboration, the fact must be recognized that it is by no means easy in a scholarly sense. It is difficult enough to keep up with the internal elaboration of our own disciplines-their new data, and especially their concepts, theoretical sets, methods. An old-timer might well say what a "dean" of American geologists once remarked after chairing the geological section of a scientific congress: "It went wonderfully well, but most of the time I didn't know what the younger men were talking about." For an individual to master the discourse of two disciplines makes him a rarity, perhaps even a suspicious character; and for an interdisciplinary group to learn to respond to common symbols, without one or another going under ignominiously, calls for prolonged and painful effort. To achieve what a certain jargon terms "significant research design" in which there is some semblance of equality of effort and of methodological contribution from two or more disciplines is a difficult quest indeed. Yet in all these respects efforts are being made in a number of institutional settings over the country. One would not, of course, want such scholarly collaboration to be too smooth sailing. Knowledge tends to move crabwise, propelled by opposition and friction between disciplinary ideas. In my own discipline, anthropology, some of the notable advances in theory came in one of the more sluggish and
Anomalous dehydration of 2-phenylindole-3-carboxamide to 2-phenylindole-3-carbonitrile by lithium aluminum hydride

Steric factors have been shown to be responsible for the anomalous dehydration of 2-phenylindole-3-carboxamide (1) to 2-phenylindole-3-carbonitrile (3) by lithium aluminum hydride. This steric effect was also reflected in the reactions of 2-phenylindole (4) and its derivatives.
Evaluation of Uncertainty in Determining Lead contents in the Standard Reference Material of Food

[Objective]To evaluate the uncertainty in determining lead contents in the standard reference material of food by hydride generation atomic fluorescence spectrometry,to understand the sources of uncertainty and its size,to adopt corresponding measures to correct it,and enhance the technical level of testing lead and lab quality control capability. [Methods]Atomic fluorescence spectrometer was used to determine lead content in food reference material.The mathematical model was established based on the measuring method.The uncertainty source was analyzed and the components of uncertainty and expanded uncertainty were calculated. [Results]When k=2(95% confidence probability),The lead content in the standard reference material of food is 0.36 mg/kg,the uncertainty is±0.035 mg/kg. [Conclusion]The main source of uncertainty is resulted from standard curve fitting and repeated measurement through quantitative analysis,analysis errors in the laboratory can be controlled in the range of the permitted limit.Analysis errors in the laboratory can be controlled in the range of the permitted limit.
Frequent falsely negative renal vein renin tests in unilateral renal parenchymal disease.

AbstractA retrospective analysis of 12 hypertensive patients with unilateral renal parenchymal disease was done to evaluate the roles of renal vein renin testing and an operation. The patients were considered to have renal parenchymal disease on the basis of radiographic and/or pathologic findings. Only 2 patients had positive renal vein renin studies. Both of these patients were improved after unilateral nephrectomy but 1 had subsequent progression of disease and renal failure. Of the 10 patients with negative studies 5 had unilateral nephrectomy: 4 of them, nevertheless, experienced substantial improvement in the hypertension.It is concluded that hypertensive patients with unilateral renal parenchymal disease often can benefit from an operation and that renal vein renin testing in such patients can be misleading.
Development and application of microbiosensors for in-vivo diagnostics

This review focuses on the advances in development of in-vivo microbiosensors in last five years. Many of the in-vivo microsensors that sometimes are loosely termed “biosensors,”but that don't contain biological recognition elements. For example, in-vivo real-time detection of nitric oxide, non-enzymatic electrochemical sensors using direct oxidation of glucose on the electrode surface that don't have biological recognition elements (such as enzymes, proteins, oligonucleotides),or boronic acid derivatives based fluorescence glucose sensors fall outside this survey.
Integrin α2β1 targeted nanosheet for multimodal imaging of prostate cancer

1358 Objectives Accumulating experimental evidence indicates that the upregulation or overexpression of integrin α2β1 may correlate with tumor progression in human prostate cancers. In this study, a novel class of nanosheets was developed for PET/MR imaging of integrin α2β1 expression in prostate cancers. Methods A high-quality, carboxyl-functionalized nanosheet (NS) was synthesized by a facile solvothermal reaction combined with a ligand exchange procedure. Furthermore, DOTA and DGEA peptide (a ligand for integrin α2β1) were conjugated to the NS surface, which was then labeled with 64Cu. micro-PET and MR imaging were performed on PC-3 xenograft model. Results NS was successfully synthesized with a thickness of ~ 5 nm and width of ~150 nm. 64Cu labeled NS was obtained with 20% radiochemical yield. The targeting ability of DOTA-DGEA-NS was confirmed by in vitro confocal microscopy using PC-3 cancer cell. 64Cu labeled DGEA-NS demonstrated prominent tumor accumulation in PC-3 model, which could be attributed to the high integrin α2β1 expression in PC-3 tumor cells. Conclusions We have demonstrated that 64Cu labeled DGEA-NS exhibited specific targeting capability in prostate cancer overexpressing integrin α2β1. In vitro and in vivo experiment demonstrated the potential of this agent for future multimodal imaging applications. Research Support This work was supported by the American Cancer Society (MRSG-12-034-01-CCE).
A general workload conservation law with applications to queueing systems

In the spirit of Little's law $$L=\lambda W$$L=źW and its extension $$H=\lambda G$$H=źG we use sample-path analysis to give a general conservation law. For queueing models the law relates the asymptotic average workload in the system to the conditional asymptotic average sojourn time and service times distribution function. This law generalizes previously obtained conservation laws for both single- and multi-server systems, and anticipating and non-anticipating scheduling disciplines. Applications to single- and multi-class queueing and other systems that illustrate the versatility of this law are given. In particular, we show that, for anticipative and non-anticipative scheduling rules, the unconditional delay in a queue is related to the covariance of service times and queueing delays.
IMPACT OF GENDER ON MORTALITY AND PERCUTANEOUS CORONARY INTERVENTION IN NON ST-SEGMENT ELEVATION MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION: A NATIONWIDE ANALYSIS

Background: Gender has been shown to affect the management and outcomes in Non-ST-segment Elevation Myocardial Infarction (NSTEMI). The aim of this study was to determine differences in the outcomes of patients diagnosed with NSTEMI and the effect gender has on these factors. Methods: This was a
C-STEM: Engaging Students in Computing with Robotics (Abstract Only)

This workshop is an introduction to using Linkbots as a teaching tool to engage students in CS0/CS1 courses, both at the college/university and high school levels. Participants will learn how to program Linkbot robots using RoboBlockly (block-based) and Ch (C/C++ interpreter with ChIDE) in C-STEM Studio through hands-on activities. Additionally, we will present an overview of the curricula developed by the UC Davis Center for Integrated Computing and STEM Education (C-STEM) that integrates robotics into computing and math classes for the elementary school level through the college level. In the second half of the session, participants will gain more hands-on practice and a better understanding of how Linkbots inspire learning in the classroom by forming teams and tackling problems from the annual C-STEM RoboPlay Challenge Competition, which is designed for students to showcase their real-world problem solving skills. Further information about C-STEM is at: http://c-stem.ucdavis.edu/. Laptop with administrative installation privileges is required to install the software used in this workshop.
Pitfalls in modeling mantle convection with internal heat production

The mantle of the Earth, and probably of other terrestrial planets as well, is heated from below and within. The heating mode of mantle convection is thus mixed heating, and it is also time-dependent because the amount of heat-producing isotopes in the mantle is steadily decreasing by radioactive decay, and because the basal heat flux originating in the cooling of the core can vary with time. This mode of transient mixed heating presents its own challenges to the study of mantle convection, but such difficulties are not always appreciated in the recent literature. The purpose of this tutorial is to clarify the issue of heating mode by explaining relevant concepts in a coherent manner, including the internal heating ratio, the Urey ratio, secular cooling, and the connection between the thermal budget of the Earth and the geochemical models of the Earth. The importance of such basic concepts will be explained with some illustrative examples in the context of the thermal evolution of the Earth, and a summary of common pitfalls will be provided, with a possible strategy for how to avoid them.
Quantification and Systematic Characterization of Stuttering-Like Disfluencies in Acquired Apraxia of Speech.

Purpose The purpose of this article is to quantify and describe stuttering-like disfluencies in speakers with acquired apraxia of speech (AOS), utilizing the Lidcombe Behavioural Data Language (LBD...
Stability and Multi-Species Interactions with Delays

The purpose of this chapter is to explore briefly some models for species interactions when time delays are present in at least some of the growth rate responses to interactions with either members of other species or the same species. We will confine ourselves mostly to mathematical investigations of the stability of equilibria for models which involve only quadratic interaction terms (i.e. for models (1.1) with fi linear in Nj). Many ecological models have been proposed and studied in which these response functions fi are not linear, both for models with delay and (even more so) without. For example models with Michaelis-Menten type terms and with delays have been studied by Caperon (1969) and MacDonald (1976) and with In Nj. terms with delays by Gomatam and MacDonald (1976). Caswell (1972) numerically studied a delay model involving complicated rational expressions in Nj. In principle however the linearization techniques we use would of course apply to these and any other more general model as well and in fact the results would be identical (allowing for differences in parameter interpretations) for models with identical linearizations. We will also upon occasion consider models in which the response functions are not necessarily linear.
New Research on Heredity and Alcoholism

In 1940, Jellinek 1 proposed a diagnostic category called “familial alcoholism” characterized by early age of onset and a particularly severe course. Neglected for nearly 40 years, the concept of familial alcoholism has recently awakened new interest. The impetus for the revival has been a number of twin and adoption studies indicating a possible genetic predisposition to alcoholism. Two kinds of research have evolved from these studies: (1) comparisons of familial and nonfamilial alcoholics, and (2) camparisons of children of alcoholics with children of non-alcoholics (high-risk studies).
The Role of Law in Settlement

Litigants often view the choice between seeking an adjudicated outcome of a dispute and settling out of court as one between invoking the public rule of law as a dispute resolution mechanism on one hand and substituting private contract for law on the other. This dichotomy overstates the difference in the role law plays in adjudication and in alternative dispute resolution (ADR). Law significantly affects non-adjudicative settlements in two related but distinct ways. First, the parties' substantive legal entitlements affect out-of-court settlement outcomes, because a litigant with a strong case can demand more as a condition of agreeing to a private settlement than can a party with a weaker case. Lawyers are quite familiar with the fact that, for this reason, substantive legal entitlements affect disputants' bargaining power and thus influence the outcomes of private dispute resolution. Second, the legal rules governing settlement behavior and many of the rules governing the adjudication process also influence nominally private dispute resolution activities. This less-recognized effect of law on ADR is the subject of this article, written for the forthcoming Handbook of Dispute Resolution. More specifically, this article considers the ways in which these bodies of law create, shape, and constrain the ability of disputants to exercise bargaining power in ADR processes, which in turn affects both the likelihood that disputes will settle out of court and the terms of such settlements. In order to assess this role of law in ADR, the article begins by presenting a brief analytical model of bargaining that explains the process by which lawyers attempt to settle disputes outside of the adjudicatory process. It then considers the extent to which the law of bargaining behavior limits misrepresentation and coercion as sources of bargaining power in non-judicial fora, and the extent to which certain adjudication rules - such as fee shifting statutes and offer of settlement rules, evidentiary restrictions concerning settlement negotiations, and judicial review of some types of settlement agreements - affect disputants' bargaining power outside the courthouse.
Fine scale registration of walking paths and other ribbon-like features

We present a novel approach for segmenting ribbon-like features, such as sidewalks. Given approximate locations and thicknesses of thin features, this approach can register coarsely digitized footways to high-resolution aerial imagery with high accuracy. The key innovation is a dynamic-programming solution to search for the optimal set of thicknesses and offsets from an initial path. The method provides control over the rate of change of thickness and direction, and it does not rely prior knowledge of the materials in the image. The approach will be helpful as an aid to digitization, and downstream applications such as registration of walking paths, canals, or roadways as well as for damage and change detection.
Ambivalence and Representations of Women’s Work in Nineteenth-Century Spanish American Writing, 1861–1896

Debates over shifting gender roles in nineteenth-century Spanish America included the question of women’s participation in the workforce. Writers of fiction and nonfiction posed arguments about paid employment for middle-class women and often represented work itself in ways that reinforced traditional gender norms by envisioning women’s entry into the labor force as an extension of their family and household roles. Nonetheless, the tactics that allowed writers to make stronger claims for women’s right to paid employment often reimposed limitations on women. The complex rhetorical maneuvers that many authors deployed bespeak their anxieties about the potential for social change brought by newly visible options for women. This essay examines novels and nonfictional essays and argues that authors who advance progressive agendas about and for women sometimes undermine their own purported arguments when they fall back on more conventional attitudes about women’s roles in families and society. This article contends that these problematic moments in the selected texts serve to maintain a system in which privilege accrues to male elites. Resumen Los debates sobre los papeles de genero en el siglo decimononico hispanoamericano incluyeron la cuestion de la participacion de las mujeres en la fuerza laboral. Autores de ficcion tanto de ensayo propusieron argumentos sobre el empleo pagado para las mujeres de la clase media y muchas veces representaron el trabajo en si en maneras que apoyaron las normas tradicionales de genero al retratar la entrada de las mujeres en la fuerza laboral como una extension natural de sus papeles en la familia y el hogar. Sin embargo, las estrategias que permitian que los autores hicieran argumentos mas fuertes a favor de los derechos de las mujeres de ganar un sueldo por su trabajo muchas veces re-impusieron limites en las mujeres. Los mecanismos retoricos complicados que muchos escritores utilizaban indican sus ansiedades sobre el potencial para el cambio social relacionado con las nuevas opciones para las mujeres. Este trabajo examina novelas y ensayos periodisticos y arguye que los autores que avanzan agendas progresivas para y sobre las mujeres a veces subvierten sus propios fines cuando tienen recurso a actitudes mas convencionales sobre los papeles domesticos de las mujeres. Este trabajo propone que estos momentos problematicos en los textos analizados mantienen un sistema en que las elites masculinas siguen acumulando privilegio.
Posterior Inference on Parameters in a Nonlinear DSGE Model via Gaussian-Based Filters

This paper studies Gaussian-based filters within the pseudo-marginal Metropolis Hastings (PM-MH) algorithm for posterior inference on parameters in nonlinear DSGE models. We implement two Gaussian-based filters to evaluate the likelihood of a DSGE model solved to second and third order and embed them into the PM-MH: Central Difference Kalman filter (CDKF) and Gaussian mixture filter (GMF). The GMF is adaptively refined by splitting a mixture component into new mixture components based on Binomial Gaussian mixture. The overall results indicate that the estimation accuracy of the CDKF and the GMF is comparable to that of the particle filter (PF), except that the CDKF generates biased estimates in the extremely nonlinear case. The proposed GMF generates the most accurate estimates among them. We argue that the GMF with PM-MH can converge to the true and invariant distribution when the likelihood constructed by infinite Gaussian mixtures weakly converges to the true likelihood. In addition, we show that the Gaussian-based filters are more efficient than the PF in terms of effective computing time. Finally, we apply the method to real data.
Thermophysical and mechanical property assessment of UB2 and UB4 sintered via spark plasma sintering

Abstract Uranium diboride (UB2) and uranium tetraboride (UB4) are candidate constituents for multi-phase accident tolerant fuel due to their anticipated high thermal conductivity. These fuels have high uranium density that contributes to fission, and by tailoring the ratio of 10B/11B, can also act as an integrated burnable poison. Understanding the thermophysical and mechanical properties of uranium borides, for which only limited data are available in the literature, is of importance to determine their accident tolerance. In this work UB2 and UB4 have been synthesized via arc melting and sintered to high densities via spark plasma sintering (SPS). High density samples, >90% theoretical density, were used to measure the thermal diffusivity and thermal expansion of UB2 and UB4 and, in conjunction with specific heat literature data, their thermal conductivities were calculated from 298 to 1773 K. Additionally, resonance ultrasound spectroscopy (RUS) and nanoindentation were performed to investigate the mechanical properties of the uranium borides. Our results are discussed in the context of available literature. Both UB2 and UB4 exhibit thermal conductivities higher than that of UO2, with UB2 having the highest. The thermal conductivity of UB2 increases with temperature above 874 K, while for UB4 there is a linear increase over the entire measured range. X-ray diffraction (XRD) results indicate that impurity phases were present in the fabricated materials, which could explain why literature density functional theory (DFT) results predict higher values. This suggests that if impurity phases or any microstructural defects can be eliminated then the thermal conductivity can be further increased.
Pulsed field ablation for pulmonary vein isolation in the treatment of atrial fibrillation.

Pulsed-field ablation (PFA) is a promising new ablation modality for the treatment of atrial fibrillation. This energy form employs a train of microsecond duration high amplitude electrical pulses that ablate myocardium by electroporation of the sarcolemmal membrane without measurable tissue heating. The ablation pulse waveform has multiple variable components that can affect ablation efficacy, thus each proprietary system has unique properties that cannot be generalized to other systems. Success with PFA depends upon the proximity of the electrode to the target tissue, but not necessarily upon contact. A unique feature of PFA is tissue specificity. Myocardium is very susceptible to irreversible injury whereas the esophagus, phrenic nerves, pulmonary veins, and coronary arteries are relatively resistant to injury. The tissue specificity of PFA may result in a wide therapeutic range and improved safety profile during atrial fibrillation ablation. Vein isolation can be achieved very rapidly (seconds) promising that PFA may reduce procedure time to 1 hour or less. This attractive new technology promises to be a major advance in the field of atrial fibrillation ablation.
Online social work education and the disinhibition effect

In this paper, theoretically anchored composite case examples will be presented from a mid- sized, fully online MSW program to illustrate the disinhibition effect and how it impacts on classroom and program dynamics. Classroom communications (discussion boards and emails) as well as program communications (social media postings) will be analysed to better understand the conditions under which disinhibition can occur and exacerbating factors unique to the social work curriculum. An examination of effective classroom and program management strategies (i.e., articulation of communication standards and expectations, student and faculty training), as well as a consideration of the productive pedagogical uses of disinhibition will be included.
Ecophysiology of exotic and native shrubs in Southern Wisconsin : I. Relationship of leaf characteristics, resource availability, and phenology to seasonal patterns of carbon gain.

We compared seasonal trends in photosynthesis of two naturalized exotic shrubs (Rhamnus cathartica and Lonicera X bella) and two native shrubs (Cornus racemosa and Prunus serotina) in open and understory habitats in southern Wisconsin. We examined the relationships between resource availability and leaf photosynthetic performance in these four species. All four species had similar relationships between leaf nitrogen (N) content and photosynthetic rate, but the species differed in absolute leaf N content and therefore in photosynthetic rates. Maximum daily photosynthetic rates of all species were significantly correlated with leaf N content in the open habitat, but not in the understory, where low light availability was the major limitation to photosynthesis. Extended leaf longevity was important in the forest understory because it allowed shrubs to take advantage of high light availability at times when the overstory canopy was leafless. Early leaf emergence was more important than late senescence: from 27% to 35% of the annual carbon gain of P. serotina, R. cathartica, and L. X bella occurred prior to leaf emergence of C. racemosa, the species with the shortest leaf life span. Extended leaf longevity of exotic shrubs may help explain their persistence in the understory habitat, but it contributed relatively less to their annual carbon gain in the open habitat.
Tabular Model: Structure and Formats

In this chapter, we describe the principles of tidy data, the variables and values of a data set, the concept of a logical mapping from independent variables to dependent variables, and file formats. We introduce the “pandas” module and the concept of a “DataFrame.” We illustrate how to read data from a comma-separated value file using Python programming, and using “pandas.” Lastly, we introduce basic “pandas” methods that operate on an entire “DataFrame” and are commonly used in exploratory data analysis.