cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
TQM and collaborative learning: a perfect match

Total quality management has long been considered a philosophy of management and leadership in industry. Because educators are becoming increasingly concerned with various methods of teaching, TQM principles are also finding their way into the classroom. These principles advocate empowering students to learn by directing them to take a more active part in the learning process. Perhaps one of the most interesting areas for TQM in an educational setting is its use with collaborative learning. Proper leadership and management within student peer groups are essential for successful collaboration, and many TQM group concepts can be applied to the student groups to achieve this. This paper describes the author's experiences with TQM and collaborative learning in the classroom. Various team and motivational techniques are discussed as well as the results from combining these two different philosophies of teaching.
The inheritance of the Rho variant-Du.

Summary 1 The Du observed in this family is a definite genetic entity which is inherited according to the accepted laws. 2 No isolated Du should be presumed to be due to suppression without first ruling out the parents as possible sources of a genetic Du, as suggested by individuals III-18, III-19 and III-22. 3 The indirect Coombs technic demonstrated all Du'S, including the low grade Du's, in which many of the initial reactions were negative. 4 The Du observed in this family was not constant in its serologic expression. 5 It is believed that Du is essentially a part of a larger spectrum of D antigens. 6 It was observed that Du in the presence of C expressed intermediate to high grade serologic reactions, whereas Du in the absence of C expressed low grade reactions in this family. 7 In random series, Du was found to have an incidence of 1.0 per cent among whites and 1.1 per cent among Negroes. Both figures are probably too low, for reasons which have been discussed. Resume 1 L'antigene Du observe dans cette famille est un caractere genetique determine, herite selonleslois genetiques usuellement reconnues. 2 Les antigenes Du isoles ne devraient pas etre consideres comme le resultat d'un phenomene de suppression sans avoir elimine auparavant la presence possible du gene Du chez les parents comme le demontrent les sujets III/18, III/19 et III/22. 3 La technique indirecte de Coombs a permis de mettle en evidence tom les antigenes Du, y compris ceux de faible degre pour lesquels les reactions pratiquees initialement ont donne des resultats negatifs. 4 L'antigene Du observe dans cette famille n'est pas constant dans son expression serologique. 5 On pense que cet antigene Du fait essentiellement partie d'antigene D a large spectre. 6 On a observe dans cette famille, que l'antigene Du, en presence de l'antigene C, s'exprimait serologiquement par des reactions de fort degre a degre intermediaire, tandis que, en l'absence de l'antigene C, l'antigee Du s'exprimait serologiquement par des reactions de faible degre. 7 Des tests pratiques au hasard et en serie ont montre que l'antigene Du avait une incidence de 1 % chez les sujets de race blanche et une incidence de 1,1 % chez les sujets de race noire. Ces chiffres sont probablement de valeur trop basse pour des raisons qui sont evoquees dans la discussion. Zusammenfassung 1 Das Du-Antigen in der hier untersuchten Familie erwies sich als genetische Einheit, die einen den Regeln entsprechenden Erbgang aufwies. 2 Die Individuen III-18, III-19 und III-22 zeigen, das bei einem Du erst dann ein genetischer Hemmechanismus postuliert werden darf, wenn nachgewiesen werden kann, das im Erbgut der Eltern das Gen Du fehlt. 3 Es gelang lediglich im indirekten Coombstest, samtliche «lowgrade» Du'S nachzuweisen. Die ubrigen Bestimmungsmethoden erwiesen sich in dieser Hinsicht als unzureichend. 4 Das Du-Antigen dieser Familie zeigte Unterschiede in der phanotypischen Auspragung. 5 Die Du'S gehoren zu einem erweiterten Spektrum von D-Antigenen. 6 Bei Anwesenheit von C war die phanotypische Auspragung von Du starker als beim Fehlen dieses Rh-Antigens.
High power and linearity CMOS RFIC transmit-receive switch for ultra-Wideband radar and communication systems

We report on the development of an ultrawideband fully-integrated T/R switch, fabricated on a commercial standard 0.18-mum CMOS process, with unprecedented performance. It occupies a very small die area of 230 mum times 250 mum. The new T/R switch employs an ultrabroadband topology based on the synthetic transmission-line concept with on-chip spiral inductors. Simultaneously floating and applying negative bias to the bulk or positive bias to the drain are implemented to enhance the linearity and power handling of the switch. The developed CMOS T/R switch exhibits an insertion loss lower than 1 dB from DC to 18 GHz and less than 2.5 dB up to 20 GHz. The measured isolation is between 32-60 dB, 25-32 dB, and 25-27 dB and P1dB varies between 25.4-26.2 dBm, 22.6-25.4 dBm, and 19.8-22.6 dBm from DC-10 GHz, 10-18 GHz, and 18-20 GHz, respectively. The measured input third-order intercept point (IIP3) reaches as high as 41 dBm.
Calibration of AVHRR sensors using the reflectance-based method

The Remote Sensing Group at the University of Arizona has been active in the vicarious calibration of numerous sensors through the use of ground-based test sites. Recent efforts have included work to develop cross-calibration information between these sensors using the results from the reflectance-based approach. The current work extends the cross-calibration to the AVHRR series of sensors, specifically NOAA-17, and NOAA-18. The results include work done based on data collected by ground-based personnel nearly coincident with the sensor overpasses. The available number of calibrations for the AVHRR series is increased through a set of ground-based radiometers that are deployed without the need for on-site personnel and have been operating for more than three years at Railroad Valley Playa. The spectral, spatial, and temporal characteristics of the 1-km 2 large-footprint site at Railroad Valley are well understood. It is therefore well suited for the radiometric calibration of AVHRR, which has a nadir-viewing footprint of 1.1 x 1.1 km. The at-sensor radiance is predicted via a radiative transfer code using atmospheric data from a fully-automated solar radiometer. The results for AVHRR show that errors are currently larger for the automated data sets, but results indicate that the AVHRR sensors studied in this work are consistent with the Aqua and Terra MODIS sensors to within the uncertainties of each sensor.
Reexploring differences among for-profit and nonprofit dialysis providers.

Several studies have examined differences in mortality rates among for-profit and nonprofit dialysis facilities. These studies have been widely criticized for having insufficiently considered risk adjustment and possible referral bias. A recent comprehensive analysis conducted by Brooks et al. (2006) utilized an instrumental variable approach and demonstrated no significant difference in mortality rates among for-profit and nonprofit dialysis facilities. Because mortality is a terminal event that happens infrequently (at most once for each patient), we are concerned that statistical tests lack sufficient power to detect differences in mortality among for-profits and nonprofits. This paper considers a more frequent event, days in the hospital, to test whether there are significant differences among for-profit and nonprofit dialysis. Selecting a clinical outcome for comparing for-profit and nonprofit dialysis providers should be based on a theoretical justification of how the behavior of providers differs based on their profit status and leads to differences in that outcome. The most common justification is based on the assumption of different objectives: for-profits are profit maximizers while nonprofits adopt public interest goals (Horwitz 2007). Therefore, for-profits will be more likely than nonprofits to provide profitable services and less likely to provide unprofitable ones. Empirical evidence supporting that theoretical justification in the context of nonprofit and for-profit hospitals has been reported previously. To apply this theoretical justification in the context of dialysis we need to identify a clinical outcome that is inadequately rewarded by the existing reimbursement system: an outcome in which the financial rewards to the provider from interventions that aim to improve it are less than the cost of these interventions. Days in the hospital could provide such a clinical outcome. Preventing infections and other complications in dialysis patients that lead to lengthy hospitalizations is within the realm of activities undertaken by dialysis providers. However, the financial rewards are modest in the form of avoiding missed treatments while the costs can be considerable. If the costs exceed the rewards, then we expect for-profit providers to have higher hospitalization days than nonprofit providers. If the costs are less than the rewards, we would expect the opposite. One would expect relatively high costs of hospitalization avoidance strategies, as these would generally require input from professionals (e.g., physicians, pharmacists, or registered nurses, functioning to monitor or screen for drug–drug interactions or problems with vascular access) whose services would be more expensive than those conducted for the routine provision of dialysis, which are principally performed by technicians. We explored these issues using Medicare data to test for differences in hospital outcomes among patients treated in for-profit versus nonprofit facilities.
Structure and signaling mechanism of Per-ARNT-Sim domains

Per-ARNT-Sim (PAS) domains serve as versatile sensor and interaction modules in signal transduction proteins. PAS sensors detect chemical and physical stimuli and regulate the activity of functionally diverse effector domains. In contrast to this chemical, physical, and functional diversity, the structure of the core of PAS domains is broadly conserved and comprises a five-stranded antiparallel β sheet and several α helices. Signals originate within the conserved core and generate structural and dynamic changes predominantly within the β sheet, from which they propagate via amphipathic α-helical and coiled-coil linkers at the N or C termini of the core to the covalently attached effector domain. Effector domains are typically dimeric; their activity appears to be largely regulated by signal-dependent changes in quaternary structure and dynamics. The signaling mechanisms of PAS and other signaling domains share common features, and these commonalities can be exploited to enable structure-based design of artificial photosensors and chemosensors.
Regulation of isoprene emission in Populus trichocarpa leaves subjected to changing growth temperature

The hydrocarbon isoprene is emitted in large quantities from numerous plant species, and has a substantial impact on atmospheric chemistry. Temperature affects isoprene emission at several levels: the temperature at which emission is measured, the temperature at which leaves develop, and the temperatures to which a mature leaf is exposed in the days prior to emission measurement. The molecular regulation of the response to the last of these factors was investigated in this study. When plants were grown at 20 °C and moved from 20 to 30 °C and back, or grown at 30 °C and moved from 30 to 20 °C and back, their isoprene emission peaked within 3 h of the move and stabilized over the following 3 d. Trees that developed at 20 °C and experienced 30 °C episodes had higher isoprene emission capacities than did leaves grown exclusively at 20 °C, even 2 weeks after the last 30 °C episode. The levels and extractable activities of isoprene synthase protein, which catalyses the synthesis of isoprene, and those of dimethylallyl diphosphate (DMADP), its substrate, alone could not explain observed variations in isoprene emission. Therefore, we conclude that control of isoprene emission in mature leaves is shared between isoprene synthase protein and DMADP supply.
The Moral Basis of Religious Exemptions

Justifying religious exemptions is a complicated matter. Citizens ask to not be subject to laws that everyone else must follow, raising worries about equal treatment. They ask to be exempted on a religious basis, a basis that secular citizens do not share, raising worries about the equal treatment of secular and religious citizens. And they ask governmental structures to create exceptions in the government’s own laws, raising worries about procedural fairness and stability. We nonetheless think some religious exemptions are appropriate, and in some cases, that exemptions are morally required. So how are we to determine when religious exemptions are justified? This article employs a public reason framework to provide an answer. I show how to publicly justify religious exemptions. My thesis is that a citizen merits a religious exemption under four conditions: (a) if she has sufficient intelligible reason to oppose the law, (b) if the law imposes unique and substantial burdens on the integrity of those exempted that are not off-set by comparable benefits, (c) if the large majority of citizens have sufficient reason to endorse the law, and (d) if the exempted group does not impose significant costs on other parties that require redress. If these conditions are met, then legislative and/or judicial bodies should carve out an exemption for those requesting them.
Motivational Factors Affecting Fluctuations of Female Sexual Activity at Menstruation

The hypothesis was tested that pre-menstrual and post-menstrua I increases in sexual activity are due to anticipation of deprivation and rebound following deprivation (Ford & Beach, 1951). Thirty-five married women completed daily questionnaires about their sexual activity for at least two menstrual cycles. Evidence supported the hypothesis that the post-menstrual peak in intercourse is a rebound phenomenon. There was less evidence to support the hypothesis that a pre-menstrual rise represents anticipation of deprivation. In addition, there was a tendency to increase autosexual activity during periods of sexual abstention, which may represent a compensation phenomenon.
Radio Relaying by Reflection from the Sun

The possibility of using radio reflection from the sun to provide a communication link supplementing that using moon reflections is investigated analytically. Reflection and absorption of an incident signal in the solar atmosphere, and thermal noise radiated by the sun, are considered together with transmitter capabilities to find the operating frequency giving optimum signal-to-noise ratio. The design principles for a receiver which can separate the signal from the noise are indicated. Finally, achievable signaling rates and reliability are estimated.
Effect of Cell Type on the Subcellular Localization of the Thyrotropin-Releasing Hormone Receptor

The localization of an epitope-tagged receptor for thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH) expressed in different cell contexts was studied with immunofluorescence microscopy. In pituitary lactotrophs, which normally express TRH receptors, and in AtT20 pituitary corticotrophs, TRH receptor immunoreactivity was primarily confined to the plasma membrane. In HEK 293 and COS7 cells, TRH receptors were predominantly intracellular. In transiently transfected COS7 cells, the TRH receptor colocalized with endoplasmic reticulum and Golgi markers. The pattern of TRH receptor immunofluorescence was the same over a wide range of receptor expression in transiently transfected COS7 cells, and all cell lines bound similar amounts of3H- and rhodamine-labeled TRH analogs, suggesting that cell-specific differences in TRH receptor localization were not simply the result of overexpression. In all cell contexts, TRH receptors on the plasma membrane underwent extensive ligand-driven endocytosis. Inhibitors of glycosylation did not alter the subcellular distribution of receptors. In HEK 293 cells expressing the transfected TRH receptor, protein synthesis inhibitors caused translocation of intracellular receptors to the cell surface, as shown by a marked increase in cell surface immunofluorescence and [3H][N3-methyl-His2]TRH binding. These results demonstrate that the subcellular localization of the TRH receptor depends on the cell context in which it is expressed and that intracellular receptors are capable of translocation to the plasma membrane.
LIQUIDATION OF A LARGE BLOCK OF STOCK WITH REGIME SWITCHING

In the literature, stock-selling rules are mainly concerned with liquidation of the security within a short period of time. In practice, this is feasible only when a relatively smaller number of shares of a stock is involved. Selling a large position in a market place normally depresses the market if sold in a short period of time, which would result in poor filling prices. Comparing to the existing results in the literature, this work has two distinct features. First, the underlying stock price is modeled using a geometric Brownian motion formulation with regime switching in which the jump rate depends on the selling intensity. A larger selling intensity makes the regime more likely to change from a higher return mode to a lower one or forces the return mode to stay in the lower one longer. Secondly, we consider the liquidation strategy for selling a large block of stock by selling much smaller number of shares over a longer period of time. By using a fluid model, in which the number of shares is treated as fluid (continuous), we treat the selling rule problem where the corresponding liquidation is dictated by the rate of selling over time. Our objective is to maximize the expected overall return. Thus it may be formulated as a stochastic control problem with state constraints. Method viscosity solution is used to characterize the dynamics governing the optimal reward function and the associated boundary conditions. Numerical examples are reported to illustrate the results.
Perceptual image similarity experiments

In this paper, we study how human observers judge image similarity. To do so, we have conducted two psychophysical scaling experiments and have compared the results to two algorithmic image similarity metrics. For these experiments, we selected a set of 97 digitized photographic images which represent a range of semantic categories, viewing distances, and colors. We then used the two perceptual and the two algorithmic methods to measure the similarity of each image to every other image in the data set, producing four similarity matrices. These matrices were analyzed using multidimensional scaling techniques to gain insight into the dimensions human observers use for judging image similarity, and how these dimensions differ from the results of algorithmic methods. This paper also describes and validates a new technique for collecting similarity judgments which can provide meaningful results with a factor of four fewer judgments, as compared with the paired comparisons method.
Mode Choice Estimation for Small Areas

The traditional approach is examined as one of the alternatives and it is concluded that it may be accepted as valid only if a significant change is not expected or desired. The other is the radical approach, which sets a desired level of transit usage. The third alternative is the compromise approach. The objective of this approach is to evaluate the various possibilities about the future transit usage and develop a model that would consider each possibility in proportion to its merit or likelihood, or both. None of the existing techniques used in conjunction with the compromise approach are satisfactory since they lack a rigorous, and yet flexible, analytical basis. The paper presented the use of Bayesian statistics, which explicitly recognizes the uncertainty associated with an estimate, to combine information from various sources, and recommended the technique as it provides the scope of continued surveillance and revision of a model.
Initialization in Scratch: Seeking Knowledge Transfer

With the growing movement to use visual block-based languages (VBBLs) in elementary and middle school classrooms, questions arise about the learning outcomes of such activities. While some schools are content to use VBBLs to spark interest and motivation for the future pursuit of computing, others are asking, "Does this early exposure produce knowledge that transfers to traditional text-based languages (TBLs)?" If transfer is a goal, then a corollary is, "How do we design the transition to maximize the transfer?" This paper focuses on initialization of state and variables, exploring the differences between Scratch and two TBLs: C and Java. Based on observations of 9-12 year old students in a VBBL curriculum, we identify four "pieces of knowledge" that are critical for C and Java but are not nearly as obvious in Scratch, including whether, when, and how to perform initialization. We conclude with suggestions for instruction and development environment that may improve transfer.
New technologies, wages and employment

What are the consequences of innovative activity on the demand for labor and on wages? While economists have been quite active in theoretically and empirically describing innovative activity, the empirical literature concerned with the differentiated effects of new technologies on the demand for heterogeneous labor and on wages is quite recent. Moreover, just as it was the case for studies on research and research organization, most scholars analyze manufacturing industries and leave out services, although the service sector usually is the most promising part of developed economies in terms of employment gains.
“The intersections of trans women and lesbian identities, communities, and movements”: An introduction

This introduction to the special issue on "The Intersections of Trans Women and Lesbian Identities, Communities, and Movements" considers the interconnectedness of "trans" and "lesbian" as identities and as concepts. Our approach challenges a reading of the two communities as largely separate and adversarial. In reviewing the articles included in this issue, we highlight places of intersection between the two identities, including the experiences of the individuals who live at the intersectional point: trans lesbians.
FastPM: a new scheme for fast simulations of dark matter and haloes

We introduce FastPM, a highly scalable approximated particle mesh (PM) N-body solver, which implements the PM scheme enforcing correct linear displacement (1LPT) evolution via modified kick and drift factors. Employing a two-dimensional domain decomposing scheme, FastPM scales extremely well with a very large number of CPUs. In contrast to Comoving-Lagrangian (COLA) approach, we do not require to split the force or track separately the 2LPT solution, reducing the code complexity and memory requirements. We compare FastPM with different number of steps (N_s) and force resolution factor (B) against three benchmarks: halo mass function from friends-of-friends halo finder; halo and dark matter power spectrum; and cross-correlation coefficient (or stochasticity), relative to a high-resolution TreePM simulation. We show that the modified time stepping scheme reduces the halo stochasticity when compared to COLA with the same number of steps and force resolution. While increasing N_s and B improves the transfer function and cross-correlation coefficient, for many applications FastPM achieves sufficient accuracy at low N_s and B. For example, N_s = 10 and B = 2 simulation provides a substantial saving (a factor of 10) of computing time relative to N_s = 40, B = 3 simulation, yet the halo benchmarks are very similar at z = 0. We find that for abundance matched haloes the stochasticity remains low even for N_s = 5. FastPM compares well against less expensive schemes, being only 7 (4) times more expensive than 2LPT initial condition generator for N_s = 10 (N_s = 5). Some of the applications where FastPM can be useful are generating a large number of mocks, producing non-linear statistics where one varies a large number of nuisance or cosmological parameters, or serving as part of an initial conditions solver.
Interim outcomes for a community-based program to prevent perinatal HIV transmission

The AIDS Prevention for Pediatric Life Enrichment (APPLE) project is a community-based program to prevent perinatal HIV infection by preventing infection in women. One project component tested a primary prevention model developed from principles of cognitive social learning theory which used street outreach and community-targeted small media materials to increase the use of condoms. Formative research was used to explore community perceptions about HIV/AIDS and to design media materials. Program evaluation employed a two-community time series quasi-experimental design. Annual street surveys sampled individuals in areas where they were likely to encounter outreach workers. Baseline surveys found substantial pre-programmatic behavior change. After two years considerable APPLE name recognition (40%) contact with media materials (63%) and contact with outreach workers (36%) were found and norms reflecting social acceptability of condoms were more positive among women in the intervention community. Condom use at last sexual encounter rose in both communities but was significantly higher in the intervention community. Condom use also was higher among women who reported exposure to either small media or small media plus street outreach. Other self-reported HIV prevention behaviors did not show change in the initial period. (authors)
Competitive Alliances and Civil War Recurrence

Why do internal wars start anew after they apparently end? I argue that rebel arrangements made for strategic reasons during wars sometimes create provocative effects even after conflicts end; coalitions formed between opposing groups during conflicts often precipitate disruptive commitment problems at the end of wars. This competition can abet the conflict renewal process, especially after wars terminating in military outcomes. Using new data on competitive militant alliances in civil wars, this study probes how rebel rivalries impact peace duration after wars. The evidence indicates that rivalry within coalitions shortens the period of postconflict peace. Wars ending in military victories give way, as many scholars argue, to lengthier periods of peace. But this effect reverses in the context of conflicts characterized by competitive alliances. Indeed, the combination of competitive alliances and a military victory strongly precipitates a resumption of hostilities. This perpetuation of the “conflict trap” proves especially pronounced when rebels win wars. My study implies that peacekeeping or third party forces may find the least local consent for their presence precisely where they matter most in post-conflict environments. As former work has shown, victorious rebels, having wrested power by force from vanquished governments, have relatively little desire for outside interference.
Frontal monitoring and parietal evidence: Mechanisms of error correction

When we respond to a stimulus, our decisions are based not only on external stimuli but also on our ongoing performance. If the response deviates from our goals, monitoring and decision-making brain areas interact so that future behavior may change. By taking advantage of natural variation in error salience, as measured by the RT taken to correct an error RTEC, here we argue that an evidence accumulation framework provides a potential underlying mechanism for this variable process of error identification and correction, as evidenced by covariation of frontal monitoring and parietal decision-making processes. We study two early EEG signals linked to monitoring within medial PFC-the error-related negativity ERN and frontocentral theta activity-and a third EEG signal, the error positivity Pe, that is thought to share the same parietal substrates as a signal the P3b proposed to reflect evidence accumulation. As predicted, our data show that on slow RTEC trials, frontal monitoring resources are less strongly employed, and the latency of the Pe is longer. Critically, the speed of the RTEC also covaries with the magnitude of subsequent neural intertrial alpha power and behavioral post-error slowing adjustments following the correction. These results are synthesized to describe a timing diagram for adaptive decision-making after errors and support a potential evidence accumulation mechanism in which error signaling is followed by rapid behavioral adjustments.
Participatory news websites feature more opinion pieces

A content study of top stories in eight cities compares professional newspaper story placement to its participatory competitor and finds both are intensely local. While the latter runs softer and m...
Pathogenicity of Environmental Origin Salmonellas in Specific Pathogen-Free Chicks

Abstract Two hundred sixty 1-d-old specific pathogen-free (SPF), Single Comb White Leghorn chicks were used in this study to determine pathology caused by Salmonella enteritidis (SE) isolated from a poultry environment. The chicks were subdivided into 10 equal groups of 26 chicks each. Eight groups of chicks were inoculated individually with 0.5 mL of brain heart infusion broth culture containing 1 x 106 cfu of SE phage type (PT) -8 (1, 2, 3), SE PT5 A (1, 2), or SE PT4 (Ch-env-CA, chicken-CA, and human) by crop gavage. One group of 26 chicks were inoculated with 1 x 106 cfu of Salmonella pullorum per bird by crop gavage. Another group of 26 chicks were kept as an uninoculated control group. All the chicks were observed daily for clinical signs and mortality. Salmonella was reisolated from different organs at 7, 14, 21, and 28 postinoculation (DPI). All of the chicks were weighed individually at each interval. Two chicks at random from each group were euthanised and necropsied at each DPI for gross pathology. Selected tissues were examined for histopathological changes at 7 and 14 DPI. Dead chicks were examined for gross and histopathological lesions. Mortality rates were 30.7, 15.3, and 7.6% in the groups inoculated with S. pullorum, SE PT5A, and SE PT4 (chicken-CA), respectively. No mortality or clinical sign were observed in other treatment groups or in uninoculated control groups. Cecal pouches were found to be the ideal organ for reisolation of Salmlonella at acute or chronic infection compared with other organs. Mean body weights were reduced to 1.8 to 12.6% in inoculated groups compared with the uninoculated control group. The consistent gross and hispathological lesions were of peritonitis, perihepatitis, yolk sac infection, and enteritis. Subclinical Salmlonella infection identified in this study resulted in reduced body weights of inoculated birds compared with uninoculated controls.
Evidence of positive force feedback among hindlimb extensors in the intact standing cat

1. The functional organization of heterogenic reflexes produced by activation of extensor force receptors (Golgi tendon organs) was studied in intact cats during stationary stance. Intramuscular stimulation (200 Hz, 20 ms) of hindlimb extensor muscles via chronically implanted electrodes was used to evoke weak muscle contractions and naturally activate Golgi tendon organ Ib afferents while cats stood unrestrained with each paw on a moveable triaxial force plate. 2. Intramuscular stimulation of every hindlimb extensor muscle tested in this study evoked excitatory responses that were widely distributed among hindlimb extensor muscles. Source and target specializations in the functional organization of this positive force feedback system were also observed. For example, stimulation of ankle extensors typically excited extensors and flexors at the ankle and hip (but not knee), whereas stimulation of hip extensors typically excited only extensors at all three joints. In addition, intramuscular stimulation of either lateral (LG) or medial (MG) gastrocnemius consistently inhibited soleus while exciting other extensors at the ankle and more proximal joints. 3. The electromyographic (EMG) reflex responses described above are attributed to the natural (via muscle contraction) activation of extensor group Ib afferents. Direct activation of intramuscular afferents by the stimulus was unlikely because there was no evidence that Ia afferents, which have the lowest electrical thresholds, were activated. Both the observed inhibition of the synergist, soleus, and the excitation of the antagonist, tibialis anterior, produced by gastrocnemius stimulation are opposite to the reflex effects that would be produced at the ankle by activation of gastrocnemius Ia afferents.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Understanding Employee Engagement: Theory, Research, and Practice

Series Foreword 1. The Story of Engagement Part I: Engagement Under the Microscope: What is Employee Engagement? 2. What is Employee Engagement? 3. What Makes Engagement Different From Other Concepts? Part II: Securing an Engaged Workforce 4. How Do We Get Employee Engagement? 5. What Prevents Employee Engagement? 6. How Do We Assess Employee Engagement and Choose a Good Measure? Part III: Competitive Advantage 7. How Do We Improve Engagement for Competitive Advantage? 8. How Do We Use Engagement to Create a Healthy-Thriving Organization? Part IV: The New Frontiers of Engagement 9. Shining an International Light: Is Engagement the Same Everywhere? 10. The Paradox of Employee Engagement: Is There a Dark Side? 11. Summing it all Up: Where do we go from here?
Circuit techniques for leakage reduction

This chapter proposes different integrated circuit techniques to reduce overall leakage in both logic and cache memories. The subthreshold or weak inversion conduction current between source and drain in a metal–oxide semiconductor (MOS) transistor occurs when gate voltage. The leakage reduction techniques described in the latter sections utilizes these parameters in a MOS fluid–effect transistor to achieve a low leakage state. The gate direct tunneling current is due to the tunneling of electron from the bulk silicon through the gate oxide potential barrier into the gate. The different circuit techniques have been proposed to reduce leakage energy utilizing this slack without impacting performance. The low–power benefits without compromising performance, two methods of lowering supply voltage can be employed: static and dynamic supply scaling. The leakage currents in n-type MOS or p-type MOS transistors depend exponentially on the voltage at the four terminals of transistor. The access transistors benefit from the leakage reduction, the overall leakage savings is moderate.
Asking for Help through Adaptable Autonomy in Robotic Search and Rescue

Robotic search and rescue teams of the future will consist of both robots and human operators. Operators are utilized for identifying victims, by means of camera feeds from the robot, and for helping with navigation when autonomy is insufficient. As the size of these robot teams increases, the mental workload on operators increases, and robots find themselves in precarious situations with no assistance for resolution. This paper presents an approach that utilizes multiple levels of autonomy to allow a robot to consider a range of options, including asking for operator assistance, for dealing with problematic situations to maximize efficient use of the operator’s time. Individual robots use self monitoring to determine failures in task progression, a form of local autonomy. Upon this trigger, the robot evaluates decisions to properly route asking for help, consensus autonomy. A Call Center alerts the operator(s) to incoming requests for assistance. This results in a better use of operator time by focusing attention where it is needed. Experiments explore the effectiveness of agents’ decisions, both local and team-level, with multiple simulators. A high fidelity simulator and user interface further evaluate how effective robot information is relayed to the operator, through human trials.
Increasing water vapor transport to the Greenland Ice Sheet revealed using self-organizing maps

The Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS) has been losing mass in recent decades, with an acceleration in mass loss since 2000. In this study, we apply a self-organizing map classification to integrated vapor transport data from the ERA-Interim reanalysis to determine if these GrIS mass loss trends are linked to increases in moisture transport to Greenland. We find that “moist” days (i.e., days featuring anomalously intense water vapor transport to Greenland) were significantly more common during 2000–2015 compared to 1979–1994. Furthermore, the two most intense GrIS melt seasons during the last 36 years were either preceded by a record percentage of moist winter days (2010) or occurred during a summer with a record frequency of moist days (2012). We hypothesize that moisture transport events alter the GrIS energy budget by increasing downwelling longwave radiation and turbulent fluxes of sensible and latent energy.
Short Proof of a General Weight Burnside Lemma

A trace evaluation is shown to supply an elementary proof of a weighted Burnside lemma for weights not necessarily constant on orbits.
Rapid detection of bacterial endotoxins in ophthalmic viscosurgical device materials by direct analysis in real time mass spectrometry

Abstract Bacterial endotoxins are lipopolysaccharides bound to the bacterial cell wall and released when bacteria rupture or disintegrate. Possible contamination of endotoxin in ophthalmic devices can cause a painful eye inflammation or result in toxic anterior segment syndrome after cataract surgery. Measurement of bacterial endotoxin in medical device materials is difficult since endotoxin binds with polymer matrix and some of the materials are very viscous and non-water soluble, where traditional enzyme-based Limulus amebocyte lysate (LAL) assay cannot be applied. Here we propose a rapid and high throughput ambient ionization mass spectrometric (MS) method using direct analysis in real time (DART) for the evaluation of endotoxin contamination in medical device materials. Large and structurally complex endotoxin instantaneously breaks down into low-mass characteristic fragment ions using DART and is detected by MS in both positive and negative ion modes. This method enables the identification and separation of endotoxin from medical materials with a detection limit of 0.03 ng mL−1 endotoxins in aqueous solution. Ophthalmic viscosurgical device materials including sodium hyaluronate (NaHA), non-water soluble perfluoro-n-octane (PFO) and silicone oil (SO) were spiked with different known concentrations of endotoxin and analyzed by DART MS, where the presence of endotoxin was successfully detected and featured small mass fragment ions were generated for NaHA, PFO and SO as well. Current findings showed the feasibility of measuring endotoxin contamination in medical device materials using DART-MS, which can lead to a one-step analysis of endotoxins in different matrices, avoiding any potential contamination during sample pre-treatment steps.
Basal cortisol's relation to testosterone changes may not be driven by social challenges

Multiple studies show a negative correlation between basal cortisol and testosterone changes in the presence of competition and social-evaluative stressors. These negative associations are proposed to be derived from psychological responses to competition and social-evaluative stress. However, we argue that the association between basal cortisol and testosterone change may instead be a statistical consequence of positively associated variables. In this paper, we present a mathematical rationale for this alternative explanation and examples from two studies that are consistent with this alternative explanation. Both studies show that the associations between basal cortisol and testosterone change have covariance patterns consistent with this alternative possibility. We conclude that the often-found positive association between basal cortisol and basal testosterone opens the door for alternative explanations of the basal cortisol-testosterone change association rooted in the patterns of associations between hormones measured over time. We also suggest future research directions and methods for testing alternative explanations.
Spasmodic Dysphonia: A Review. Part 1: Pathogenic Factors.

ObjectiveThe purpose of this review is to describe the recent advances in identifying possible factors involved in the pathogenesis of spasmodic dysphonia. Spasmodic dysphonia is a task-specific focal laryngeal dystonia characterized by irregular and uncontrolled voice breaks. Pathogenesis of the disorder is poorly understood.Data SourcesPubMed, Google Scholar, and Cochrane Library.Review MethodsThe data sources were searched using the following search terms: (spasmodic dysphonia or laryngeal dystonia) and (etiology, aetiology, diagnosis, pathogenesis, or pathophysiology).ConclusionsSeveral potential etiological factors have been proposed by epidemiological, genetic, and neuropathological studies. Spasmodic dysphonia is a rare disorder primarily affecting females beginning in their 40s. Vocal tremor co-occurs in 30% to 60%. Large cohort studies identified risk factors such as a family history of neurological disorders including dystonia and tremor, recent viral illness, and heavy voice use. As none are ra...
Male Social Behavior and Dominance Hierarchy in the Sulawesi Crested Black Macaque (Macaca nigra)

In a 6-week study of the social behavior of wild Sulawesi crested black macaques (Macaca nigra), we found a linear and transitive dominance hierarchy among the six adult males in one social group. Dominance rank, as determined by the direction of supplantations, correlated strongly with percentage of time near more than four neighbors, frequency of grooming received from adult females, and percentage of time with an adult female as nearest neighbor. These results suggest that high-ranking males are socially attractive. Adult females sexually solicited high-ranking males more often than low-ranking males, but frequency of copulation was not correlated with dominance rank. Frequency and intensity of aggression between males are strongly correlated with rank distance, but aggression toward females was greatest for mid-ranking males. Males of all rank displayed significantly more aggression toward sexually receptive females than toward females in other estrous states. These data indicate that male Sulawesi crested black macaques display a social organization similar to that reported for multimale groups in other macaque species rather than the egalitarian social organization described for female Sulawesi macaques.
A Combined Energy and Geoengineering Optimization Model (CEAGOM) for climate and energy policy analysis

Abstract Addressing greenhouse gas emissions and the associated global temperature rise will be one of the key issues of the 21st century. The supply and use of energy is the single largest contributor to anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions through the burning of fossil fuels. Given the role fossil fuel use plays in the global economy, curtailing their use in order to mitigate climate change will be very difficult. This has led to proposals to deploy various types of geoengineering as a means of mitigating the global temperature increase. Current integrated assessment models (IAMs) do not readily incorporate geoengineering options. They are also complex to set up and run. This has led the authors to develop the Combined Energy and Geoengineering Optimization Model (CEAGOM)©. CEAGOM provides an easy to use software platform that explicitly includes geoengineering as potential options as part of the optimization of the energy resource mix for meeting a specified energy demand while still meeting specified climate targets. This paper describes the CEAGOM model and shows that its results compare quite favorably with those from a more complex IAM.
The Role of Attachment Anxiety and Avoidance in Communication Modality and Relationship Quality of Romantic Relationships Initiated Online

ABSTRACTThis study explores the relationships among an individual's attachment anxiety and avoidance, the ratio of technology mediated communication (TMC) in their relationship, and relationship quality for individuals who met their romantic partners online. Participants (N = 219) consisted of individuals between the ages of 18–25, who were US citizens, and met a romantic partner utilizing online dating, dating mobile web applications, social networking sites, online chatrooms, or any way of meeting through technology. A survey measuring relationship beliefs, relationship attitudes, and use of technology was distributed and completed via MTurk. Structural equation modeling revealed that anxious attachment was associated with a higher ratio of TMC, whereas avoidant attachment was not significantly related with the ratio of TMC. Higher ratios of TMC were associated with lower relationship quality. Implications for intervention are discussed.
Between Bolivar and Bureaucracy: The Mesoamerican Biological Corridor

This article explores how the different elements of the Meso- american Biological Corridor (MBC) may not be so "naturally united" as implied by this slogan. I trace the history and evolution of this conservation corridor from its roots in the Central American environment movement to its transformation by the World Bank into a vague bureaucratic framework. The shift to embrace green neoliberalism, in turn, has served to mask threats to biodiversity from three other more powerful economic corridors being simul- taneously constructed in the Mesoamerican region, namely: (1) the Puebla to Panama Plan, (2) Mundo Maya, and (3) the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA). I conclude by describing some lost opportunities for in- digenous and bottom-up environmental initiatives to suggest what a Boli- varian alternative might have been before the MBC became bureaucratised by transnational conservation interests.
Auditory Neuronal Networks and Chronic Tinnitus

Tinnitus, or ringing in the ears, is a chronic auditory disorder that negatively impacts 2–10% of the adult population. With contributions from laboratory animal models, the neuronal basis of this heterogeneous disorder is unfolding. The most common cause of tinnitus is loss of peripheral sensitivity. Homeostatic compensation, or overcompensation, in the central auditory system produces the sensation of sound in the absence of acoustic input. Current knowledge indicates that even in animal models, where causal factors are singular, a distributed network of neural alterations underpins tinnitus. These alterations begin with a partial loss of cochlear neurons, and downregulation of inhibition in the auditory brainstem. Excitatory glutamatergic interneurons also upregulate. Downstream from the cochlear nuclei, alterations in neural discharge patterns are evident in the inferior colliculus, and tonotopic reorganization may occur in the auditory cortex. In animals, gamma-aminobutyric acid agonists and glutamatergic antagonists have been used successfully as therapeutics. In humans, therapeutic success has been more limited.
Do Accounting Educators Need a PhD? A Look at Some Neglected Economic and Ethical Issues

Accounting educators need a PhD because accreditors and universities say they need one. But when one looks beneath the surface, one finds that there is little economic justification for the requirement. In fact, requiring a PhD actually leads to diseconomies and may violate rights. The author elaborates on some of the overlooked diseconomies involved in requiring a PhD and touches on the ethics of having such a requirement, from both a utilitarian and rights perspective.