cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Structural Weight Optimization of Frames Using Tabu Search. II: Evaluation and Seismic Performance

In a companion paper, a structural optimization computer program based on tabu search (TS) was developed and used to optimize three two-dimensional moment resisting frames. All three frames were representative of current design practice for steel structures in the Los Angeles area and were part of an SAC program of study following the Northridge earthquake. The weight reduction obtained for the three-story/three-bay, the nine-story/five-bay, and the twenty-story/five-bay frames in the initial study were 26.4, 18.3, and 25.5%, respectively. In this paper, the seismic performance of the optimized structures is evaluated by calculating the rotation demands in the plastic hinges that form in the structural elements during nonlinear time history analyses. Twenty ground motion records having the return probability of 10% in 50 years are considered in the study. The frames were expected to achieve the Life Safety performance level as outlined in the FEMA-273 guidelines, and in general, they were able to achieve this level of performance. Next, the same frames are optimized using the optimization module of a commercially available program, with the same assumptions (starting point sections, loading, etc.). The TS optimization program was able to achieve a larger weight reduction than the commercially available program. The performance of the final commercial program designs is then briefly evaluated by one nonlinear time history analysis for each building using the ground motion record that produced the most severe responses for the TS designs. Performance of these frames was very similar to the TS design frames. Finally, the performance of the three TS designed frames is compared to that of the original design frames, which were designed under the same code lateral forces. The original frame designs are analyzed for the ground motion record (or records) that resulted in the largest plastic hinge rotations in the TS design frames. The values of the maximum story plastic hinge rotations, story displacements, and interstory drift ratios are compared. The response of the TS optimized frames was comparable to the original frames.
Using a nuclear submarine for Arctic research

Oceanographers have been accused of not thinking big enough. Where is our Hubble Space Telescope? Where is our Superconducting Super Collider? Where is our project to map the human genome? An example of a highly successful “big” project in the marine sciences is the Ocean Drilling Program, currently funded at about $42 million per year. That effort is small by comparison to big projects in astronomy and in highenergy physics. Ocean-ice-atmosphere interactions in polar regions play a major role in driving deep ocean circulation and in regulating Earth's climate, and Arctic regions in particular are expected to be the first to respond to the predicted global warming. Despite the fundamental importance of polar regions to the habitability of planet Earth, most oceanographers have used only the most inefficient methods for exploring the ocean beneath the ice: drifting on floating ice camps and bashing through the ice with ice breakers. Neither of these methods is an effective way to explore a feature as large and as physiographically varied as the Arctic basin.
The gradation of effectiveness and absorption of desoxycorticosterone acetate pellets by dilution with cholesterol.

Since their introduction pellets of steroid hormones have enjoyed wide popularity, both in experimental and clinical medicine (Segaloff 1950). The usefulness of this method was greatly extended by Shimkin’s suggestion that pellets diluted with cholesterol are absorbed at a slower rate. There has been one experiment of which I am aware in which absorption of the cholesterol diluent was assessed by direct measurement of the cholesterol (Fuenzalida, 1944), and another in which the active steroid was measured by biologic assay (Shimkin, 1941). However, I know of no study in which an attempt was made to correlate the possible gradations of both effectiveness and absorption of the active steroid when progressive dilutions with cholesterol were employed. This report represents our first attempt to correlate effectiveness and absorption in pellets diluted with progressively larger amounts of cholesterol. MATERIALS AND METHODS Two types of desoxycorticosterone acetate (hereafter called DCA) pellets were employed.
Imaging with depth extension: where are the limits in fixed-focus cameras?

The integration of novel optics designs, miniature CMOS sensors, and powerful digital processing into a single imaging module package is driving progress in handset camera systems in terms of performance, size (thinness) and cost. The miniature cameras incorporating high resolution sensors and fixed-focus Extended Depth of Field (EDOF) optics allow close-range reading of printed material (barcode patterns, business cards), while providing high quality imaging in more traditional applications. These cameras incorporate modified optics and digital processing to recover the soft-focus images and restore sharpness over a wide range of object distances. The effects a variety of parameters of the imaging module on the EDOF range were analyzed for a family of high resolution CMOS modules. The parameters include various optical properties of the imaging lens, and the characteristics of the sensor. The extension factors for the EDOF imaging module were defined in terms of an improved absolute resolution in object space while maintaining focus at infinity. This definition was applied for the purpose of identifying the minimally resolvable object details in mobile cameras with bar-code reading feature.
Deformation and Fracture Properties of Damage Tolerant In-situ Titanium Matrix Composites

This paper discusses the tensile response and fracture toughness ofin-situ titanium alloy metal matrices discontinuously-reinforced withwhiskers of titanium boride which were successfully produced by ingotmetallurgy techniques. Additions of elemental boron resulted in a nearuniform dispersion of the rod-like titanium boride (TiB) reinforcements inthe alloy matrix. Such composites have engendered considerable scientificand technological interest due to their attractive combinations of improvedmechanical properties and low manufacturing cost. The improved elasticmoduli of the composites are explained using shear lag and rule-of-mixturestheories. The increased strengths of the in-situ composites are rationalizedby considering the combined effects of deformation restraints imposed by thestiff whiskers and strengthening contributions arising from the substructurethat evolves from the presence of additional dislocations.
Effects of chronic oral acrylamide exposure on incremental repeated acquisition (learning) task performance in Fischer 344 rats.

Abstract Acrylamide (ACR) is a relatively potent neurotoxicant. The ingestion of carbohydrate-containing foods cooked at high temperature exposes humans to low levels of ACR virtually daily. At relatively high levels of exposure (i.e., sub-chronic through chronic levels of exposure of ≥ 20 mg/kg body weight/day), ACR has been shown in both rats and humans to produce a variety of effects on the nervous system. The possibility that chronic dietary exposure to ACR might produce brain toxicity which could impede the development of learning skills is a question of current concern. This research evaluated the effects of ACR on learning task performance in Fischer 344 rats exposed daily beginning prenatally and continuing throughout the lifespan. Dams were gavaged with ACR since implantation [gestation day (GD) 6] with 0, 0.1, 0.3, 1.0 or 5.0 mg/kg/day through parturition. Gavaging continued at the same doses to pups through weaning on post-natal day (PND) 22 after which dosing continued via their drinking water. One male and one female per litter (8–9 per treatment group) were tested. Using an incremental repeated acquisition (IRA) task to assess learning ability, ACR-exposed Fischer 344 rats exhibited altered performance by 4 months of age. From approximately 1–8 months of age (through ~ PND 240), over 52 testing sessions, a significant treatment effect was found on percent task completed (PTC), with Tukey's post-hoc test ( P P = 0.53), a significant decrease in response rate was seen at 5.0 mg/kg/day, suggesting that the noted decrease in PTC was due to a decrease in rate of responding, not to an effect on accuracy of task solution. Previous findings in these same animals performing a progressive ratio task for the assessment of motivation, as well as a range of tests of motoric function, suggest that this decreased response rate could be due to subtle motoric effects, or possibly due to decreases in psychomotor speed, but is most likely due to motivational effects.
Locality-preserving hash functions for general purpose parallel computation

Consider the problem of efficiently simulating the shared-memory parallel random access machine (PRAM) model on massively parallel architectures with physically distributed memory. To prevent network congestion and memory bank contention, it may be advantageous to hash the shared memory address space. The decision on whether or not to use hashing depends on (1) the communication latency in the network and (2) the locality of memory accesses in the algorithm. We relate this decision directly to algorithmic issues by studying the complexity of hashing in the Block PRAM model of Aggarwal, Chandra, and Snir, a shared-memory model of parallel computation which accounts for communication locality. For this model, we exhibit a universal family of hash functions having optimal locality. The complexity of applying these hash functions to the shared address space of the Block PRAM (i.e., by permuting data elements) is asymptotically equivalent to the complexity of performing a square matrix transpose, and this result is best possible for all pairwise independent universal hash families. These complexity bounds provide theoretical evidence that hashing and randomized routing need not destroy communication locality, addressing an open question of Valiant.
Making Tradeoffs in Federal Block Grant Programs: Understanding the Interplay Between SSBG and TANF

Welfare reform gave states the option of transferring up to 10 percent of their annual federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) award to the Social Services Block Grant (SSBG). Drawing on administrative data, we consider the impact of TANF transfers on SSBG. We find evidence suggesting that more innovative states, states that experienced larger TANF caseload declines, and states that transferred a higher percentage of TANF funds to the Child Care Development Fund (CCDF) have transferred higher portions of their TANF allocations to SSBG, all else equal. Preliminary analysis of changes in SSBG expenditure patterns from FY 1995 to FY 2000 indicates that states are transferring significant sums to SSBG, but that TANF transfers do not appear to have a consistent effect on SSBG spending priorities across states. Copyright 2004, Oxford University Press.
Family environment and parent‐child relationships as related to executive functioning in children

The present study examines the associations between family environment, parenting practices and executive functions in normally developing children. One hundred parents of children between the ages of 5 and 12 completed the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Functions from the Family Environment Scale and the Parent‐Child Relationship Inventory. Family Organisation, Parental Support and Parental Limit Setting were significantly associated with dimensions of children’s executive functions. Specifically, Organisation was significantly associated with the following executive functions: Plan‐Organise, Organisation of Materials, Working Memory, Inhibit, Shift and Monitor; Parental Support was associated with Plan‐Organise, Working Memory and Inhibit; and Limit Setting was associated with Emotional Control, Inhibit, Shift and Monitor. Results suggest the importance of positive family environment and parenting practices in the development of executive functions in normally developing children.
Nilotinib: A phenylamino-pyrimidine derivative with activity against BCR-ABL, KIT and PDGFR kinases

The BCR-ABL kinase inhibitor imatinib mesylate is currently the standard therapy for patients with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). However, mutations within the ABL kinase domain interfering with drug binding have been identified as the main mechanism of resistance to imatinib. Multiple distinct BCR-ABL kinase mutant isoforms conferring varying degrees of resistance to tyrosine kinase inhibitors have been reported. Nilotinib is a tyrosine kinase inhibitor 30-fold more potent than imatinib against BCR-ABL kinase. Nilotinib is active against a wide range of imatinib-resistant BCR-ABL mutant isoforms, except for T315I. Results from Phase II studies of nilotinib for patients with CML after failure or intolerance to imatinib therapy have shown a favorable toxicity profile and confirmed the high efficacy of nilotinib in this setting. Studies addressing the activity of nilotinib in newly-diagnosed patients with CML are underway. Furthermore, nilotinib is a potent inhibitor of KIT and PDGFR kinases. Here, we review the preclinical development of nilotinib and the activity of this agent in patients with CML and in tumors driven by KIT and/or PDGFR mutant kinases, such as gastrointestinal stromal tumors and some forms of clonal hypereosinophilia.
New employment regimes in cities: the impact on immigrant workers.

Abstract The major cities of highly developed countries exhibit marked changes in job supplies and employment relations. It is frequently held that post‐industrial societies require plentiful supplies of highly educated workers and will hold no openings for the low skilled. It is this latter category of jobs that immigrants have tended to fill in recent decades. Empirical data on major cities in advanced economies negate this supposition, revealing that there is an ongoing demand for immigrant labour and a continuing stream of employment opportunities which do not require high educational levels and which pay low wages. The article examines whether this job supply is merely a residue, to some extent augmented by the supply of low wage workers themselves, or whether it is a feature of a reconfigured labour market in advanced urban economies, i.e. a systemic development.
The effects of triacetyloleandomycin and oleandomycin phosphate on the glucocorticoid receptor in cultured skin fibroblasts

Triacetyloleandomycin (TAO) has been described as a "steroid-sparing" drug in that poorly controlled asthmatic patients can be stabilized or improved with the addition of TAO despite decreasing dosages of steroids, specifically methylprednisolone (MP). It is not clear whether the beneficial effects of TAO are due to decreased MP clearance or are due to enhanced glucocorticoid effect peripherally. We tested the latter possibility by studying the interaction of TAO and oleandomycin phosphate (OLEO), the active metabolite of TAO in vivo, with glucocorticoid receptors in dispersed, intact cultured human skin fibroblasts. With the use of cells incubated with [3H]dexamethasone at 22 degrees C, we examined the competitive binding properties of TAO and OLEO (at varying concentrations) with and without MP as compared with several other steroids and MP alone. We also studied the effects on cellular glucocorticoid receptor number and affinity when TAO at a concentration of 4 X 10(-5) alone, at 10(-5) M in combination with a receptor saturating concentration of MP (5 X 10(-8) M), with MP alone, or with OLEO (10(-5) M) combined with MP was added to fibroblasts in the growth phase 1 wk before assay. TAO and OLEO did not compete for the binding of [3H]dexamethasone to the fibroblast glucocorticoid receptor, nor did they alter the binding properties of MP. With prolonged cellular exposure, TAO alone did not alter the number of glucocorticoid receptors (per cell) or their affinity for [3H]dexamethasone. Interestingly, prolonged exposure to saturating concentrations of MP alone decreased glucocorticoid receptor density; this effect was not altered by the presence of TAO or OLEO.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Surgical Pearl: The vertical mattress tip stitch

From Dermatology, Stanford University School of Medicine. Reprints not available from author. J Am Acad Dermatol 2001;44:523-4. Copyright © 2001 by the American Academy of Dermatology, Inc. 0190-9622/2001/$35.00 + 0 16/74/109850 doi:10.1067/mjd.2001.109850 S uturing fine tips of tissue, such as with the “Mplasty” repair, is a delicate surgical challenge. The primary concern is to correctly stabilize and advance/pull the tip into the correct position without interrupting its tenuous vascular supply. To prevent this complication, authors advise against interrupted sutures near the tip.1 Instead, the most common solution is a half-buried horizontal mattress corner stitch.1-3 However, the pattern of this stitch can lead to wound edge inversion despite perfect execution. The vertical mattress tip stitch is a simple answer that achieves excellent wound edge eversion, precise epidermal approximation and that poses no risk to the vascular supply to the tip. The vertical mattress suture is a classic technique used to provide eversion and precise approximation of the epidermal edges, as well as closing any potential space. The suture course is a far-far near-near pattern in which the far-far stitch is placed within the reticular dermis and several millimeters lateral to the wound edges. The near-near stitch is less than 1 mm lateral to the wound edge and no deeper than the papillary dermis (Fig 1). The far-far section provides eversion of the closure, stabilization of the wound edges, and closure of any underlying potential space. The near-near stitch provides meticulous epidermal approximation. The vertical mattress tip stitch variation follows the same pattern with the added step of securing the tip within the near-near stitch (Figs 2 and 3); that is, the suture course starts with the far-far as described above, but on the return, the epidermal bites include the tissue tip. This near-tip-near bite should remain within the papillary dermis through the entire tip such that the epidermis is precisely approximated at both edges. An important point of this technique is to place the far-far stitch distal to the tip and the near-tip-near stitch 1 to 2 mm proximal to the tip. This feature serves to delicately advance or pull the tip into the proper position. Without the slinglike effect, the tip may retract from its initial placement. I have found this stitch to be a fast and reliable technique that produces consistently excellent cosmetic results. Surgical Pearl: The vertical mattress tip stitch
Conditioned place preference from ventral tegmental injection of morphine in neonatal rats

When given peripherally, morphine produces a conditioned place preference (CPP) in adult and infant rats. In adults, morphine injected into the ventral tegmental area (VTA) is reinforcing and likely acts by activating mesolimbic dopamine neurons. Little is known of the neurobiological basis of reinforcement in the immature animal. To test whether the neural substrate of drug reinforcement is similar in adults and infants, 4-day-old pups were injected with one of 4 doses (0.05, 0.15, 0.45, 1.35 micrograms) of morphine or the vehicle directly into the VTA and were immediately confined to an odor-cued environment for 30 min. They were then tested for a preference between the cued environment and unadulterated wood shavings. The low dose of morphine (0.05 micrograms) injected into the VTA significantly increased duration of time spent in the conditioned environment, demonstrating conditioned preference for the conditioned area over the unscented area; the most effective injection sites were directly into the VTA. Stimulation of structures just outside the VTA, and higher doses of morphine were ineffective. On the basis of these findings we conclude that the neural substrates of reward in the neonate are similar to those of the adult.
Treatment with botulinum toxin type B for upper-limb spasticity

Abstract Brashear A, McAfee AL, Kuhn ER, Ambrosius WT. Treatment with botulinum toxin type B for upper-limb spasticity. Arch Phys Med Rehabil 2003;84:103-7. Objective: To determine if botulinum toxin type B (MyoBloc) decreases spasticity. Design: Investigator-initiated trial, open-label, single-treatment session. Setting: Single site. Participants: Ten patients with stable upper-limb spasticity and an Ashworth Scale score of 2 or higher at the elbow, wrist, and fingers. Interventions: Total dose of 10,000U of botulinum toxin type B injected into 5 major muscles. Main Outcome Measures: The Ashworth Scale, goniometry, and functional assessments were performed at injection and weeks 4, 8, and 12. The principal investigator (PI) global assessment of change (GAC) and the patient GAC were done at weeks 4, 8, and 12 postinjection. The safety of the procedure was measured by adverse events and vital signs. Results: Improvements in Ashworth Scale scores were observed at weeks 4, 8, and 12 postinjection. At week 4, the mean changes (in Ashworth score) were elbow, [minus ]1.0 ( P =.016); wrist, [minus ]1.7 ( P =.004); finger, [minus ]1.35 ( P =.02); at week 8: elbow, [minus ].83 ( P =.016); wrist, [minus ]1.00 ( P =.016); finger, [minus ].94 ( P =.08); and at week 12: elbow, [minus ].61 ( P =.07); wrist, [minus ]1.00 ( P =.016); and finger, [minus ].89 ( P =.10). The PI GAC improved at all visits. Nine of the 10 subjects reported dry mouth at week 4, with resolution by week 12. No changes were seen on the functional measures. Conclusions: Botulinum toxin type B may be useful in treatment of spasticity. [copy ] 2003 by the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine and the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
"Be Pagan Once Again": Folk Music, Heritage, and Socio-sacred Networks in Contemporary American Paganism

Religious music serves to co-create and carry strategies of theology, authen¬ticity, and behavior. This article examines the history of folk music and folk ideology in creating and maintaining such strategies. I examine several prominent examples of American folk music and Pagan music, articulating their shared historical and theological relationships. Focusing on national¬ism, feminism, and populism, I also argue that an ideology of the common ritual year is a prominent shared theme between American folk music and contemporary Paganism. While underscoring the need for greater attention to this area, the article concludes that the legitimization processes at work are similar to other American heritage musics and aspects of American cultural politics.
A 20 Centimeter VLA Survey of Abell Clusters of Galaxies. VII. Detailed Radio Images

We present detailed radio images, and models, obtained with the Very Large Array at 20 cm for 199 radio galaxies in Abell clusters of galaxies.
Neutral Evolution of Ten Types of mariner Transposons in the Genomes of Caenorhabditis elegans and Caenorhabditis briggsae

Ten types of mariner transposable elements (232 individual sequences) are present in the completed genomic DNA sequence of Caenorhabditis elegans and the partial sequence of Caenorhabditis briggsae. We analyze these replicated instances of mariner evolution and find that elements of a type have evolved within their genomes under no selection on their transposase genes. Seven of the ten reconstructed ancestral mariners carry defective transposase genes. Selection has acted during the divergence of some ancestral elements. The neutrally-evolving mariners are used to analyze the pattern of molecular evolution in Caenorhabditis. There is a significant mutational bias against transversions and significant variation in rates of change across sites. Deletions accumulate at a rate of 0.034 events/bp per substitution/site, with an average size of 166 bp (173 gaps observed). Deletions appear to obliterate preexisting deletions over time, creating larger gaps. Insertions accumulate at a rate of 0.019 events/bp per substitution/site, with an average size of 151 bp (61 events). Although the rate of deletion is lower than most estimates in other species, the large size of deletions causes rapid elimination of neutral DNA: a mariner‘s “half-life” (the time by which half an element’s sequence should have been deleted) is ~0.1 subsitutions/site. This high rate of DNA deletion may explain the compact nature of the nematode genome.
Photometric methods in bacteriology

The elementary features of light-scattering by small particles are described and illustrated by examples relevant to bacteriological practice. A number of specialised applications are reviewed.
Conversion and temperature profiles during the photoinitiated polymerization of thick orthopaedic biomaterials

Abstract Polymerization of a tetrafunctional monomer was investigated under a variety of photoinitiation conditions to assess the ability to form thick materials in situ for orthopaedic applications. The major biological concerns include local cell and tissue necrosis due to the polymerization exotherm and low conversions at greater depths due to light attenuation through thick samples. Experimental results indicate that depth of cure and temperature rises are controllable by altering the photoinitiator concentration, initiating light intensity, and type of photoinitiator. For example, no measurable conversion was detected at a 1.0 cm depth when polymerization was initiated with 1.0 wt% DMPA and 100 mW/cm2 ultraviolet light, whereas ∼40% conversion was obtained when the initiator concentration was lowered to 0.1 wt%. This conversion was further increased to ∼55% when a photobleaching initiator system was employed. At the highest rate of initiation studied (i.e., 1.0 wt% DMPA irradiated with 100 mW/cm2 ultraviolet light), a maximum temperature of ∼49°C was reached at the sample surface; however, this temperature dramatically decreased to ∼33°C when the light intensity was decreased to 25 mW/cm2. Finally, dual initiating systems that synergistically combine the advantages of photoinitiation and thermal initiation were investigated.
Using quantile averages in matched observational studies

In two observational studies, one investigating the effects of minimum wage laws on employment and the other of the effects of exposures to lead, an estimated treatment effect's sensitivity to hidden bias is examined. The estimate uses the combined quantile averages that were introduced in 1981 by B. M. Brown as simple, efficient, robust estimates of location admitting both exact and approximate confidence intervals and significance tests. Closely related to Gastwirth's estimate and Tukey's trimean, the combined quantile average has asymptotic efficiency for normal data that is comparable with that of a 15% trimmed mean, and higher efficiency than the trimean, but it has resistance to extreme observations or breakdown comparable with that of the trimean and better than the 15% trimmed mean. Combined quantile averages provide consistent estimates of an additive treatment effect in a matched randomized experiment. Sensitivity analyses are discussed for combined quantile averages when used in a matched observational study in which treatments are not randomly assigned. In a sensitivity analysis in an observational study, subjects are assumed to differ with respect to an unobserved covariate that was not adequately controlled by the matching, so that treatments are assigned within pairs with probabilities that are unequal and unknown. The sensitivity analysis proposed here uses significance levels, point estimates and confidence intervals based on combined quantile averages and examines how these inferences change under a range of assumptions about biases due to an unobserved covariate. The procedures are applied in the studies of minimum wage laws and exposures to lead. The first example is also used to illustrate sensitivity analysis with an instrumental variable.
Sodium dependence of intermedin action on melanophores in tissue culture.

Abstract The effect of reduction of the sodium content of the medium on the response to MSH of perfused embryonic salamander melanophores in tissue culture has been studied. MSH in the perfusate (Niu-Twitty solution) produced melanin dispersion accompanied by true melanophore expansion. Replacement of sodium by potassium was followed by melanophore contraction. Melanophore contraction also occurred in the potassium medium if MSH were present, although in a few cases MSH action was only partially inhibited. Such contracted melanophores were capable of expanding with MSH in Niu-Twitty solution. There were a few cases of inhibition of MSH action in a medium in which sodium was replaced largely by choline. These results strongly indicate that there is a sodium requirement for MSH action on isolated melanophores.
Gender, policy, politics, and work: Feminist comparative and transnational research

This article reviews feminist comparative and transnational research on workplace policy, politics and the state. The first section examines a range of theoretical approaches to the topic. We then present a variety of methodologies for conducting comparative and transnational research on policy developments. Informed by a number of case studies included in the symposium, we explore the dynamics and determinants, both national and supranational, of policy formation and its impacts. Finally, we tease out the implicit and explicit notions of gender equity for future policy analysis.
TRELLIS+: an effective approach for indexing genome-scale sequences using suffix trees.

UNLABELLED With advances in high-throughput sequencing methods, and the corresponding exponential growth in sequence data, it has become critical to develop scalable data management techniques for sequence storage, retrieval and analysis. In this paper we present a novel disk-based suffix tree approach, called TRELLIS+, that effectively scales to massive amount of sequence data using only a limited amount of main-memory, based on a novel string buffering strategy. We show experimentally that TRELLIS+ outperforms existing suffix tree approaches; it is able to index genome-scale sequences (e.g., the entire Human genome), and it also allows rapid query processing over the disk-based index. AVAILABILITY TRELLIS+ source code is available online at http://www.cs.rpi.edu/-zaki/software/trellis
EDFA Noise Figure Standard

As Erbium Doped Fiber Amplifiers (EDFA) see increasing use in fiberoptic systems, there is a developing requirement to accurately compare and calibrate measurement systems used to characterize these devices
Intestinal obstruction from midgut volvulus after laparoscopic appendectomy

We present the case of a 30-year-old man who developed a small bowel obstruction from an acute midgut volvulus 8 days after undergoing a laparoscopic appendectomy. There was no evidence of congenital malrotation or midgut volvulus on the initial computed tomography (CT) scan or at laparoscopy. Subsequently, a midgut volvulus developed in the absence of congenital malrotation.
Epidemic Pertussis in 2012 — The Resurgence of a Vaccine-Preventable Disease

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the United States is currently experiencing what may turn out to be the largest outbreak of reported pertussis in 50 years. Why has this theoretically vaccine-preventable disease been on the upswing?
Minority Rights, Majority Rule: Partisanship and the Development of Congress

Minority Rights, Majority Rule seeks to explain a phenomenon evident to most observers of the US Congress. In the House of Representatives, majority parties rule and minorities are seldom able to influence national policy making. In the Senate, minorities quite often call the shots, empowered by the filibuster to frustrate the majority. Why did the two chambers develop such distinctive legislative styles? Conventional wisdom suggests that differences in the size and workload of the House and Senate led the two chambers to develop very different rules of procedure. Sarah Binder offers an alternative, partisan theory to explain the creation and suppression of minority rights, showing that contests between partisan coalitions have throughout congressional history altered the distribution of procedural rights. Most importantly, new majorities inherit procedural choices made in the past. This institutional dynamic has fuelled the power of partisan majorities in the House but stopped them in their tracks in the Senate.
The discharge characteristics of single units in the oculomotor and abducens nuclei of the unanesthetized monkey.

1. Extracellular single unit records were obtained in the brainstem oculomotor complex of alert monkeys. 2. Maintained eye position, smooth pursuit and saccadic eye movement appear to be brought about by the same population of neurons. 3. Increasing deviation in eye position for fixation and for smooth pursuit movement is accomplished in two ways: (a) increase and decrease in firing rate and (b) change in the number of neurons discharging concurrently. 4. Saccadic eye movement is brought about by a rapid burst of firing in these same units. Saccade size is determined by the duration of the burst; the speed of the saccade appears to be influenced both by discharge frequency and the size of the neuronal pool discharging in synchrony. 5. A small population of units discharges specifically in association with vergence operations, increasing their firing rate to convergence and decreasing it to divergence.
Factor Structure of AMAS-C Scores Across Gender among Students in Collegiate Settings

The factor structure of scores on the Adult Manifest Anxiety Scale-College Version (AMAS-C), a new self-report measure of chronic, manifest anxiety, is examined across gender for a sample of 943 college students (608 women and 335 men). Values for the coefficient of congruence and salient variable similarity index are calculated between each of five matched factors (Physiological Anxiety, Social Concerns/Stress, Test Anxiety, Worry/Oversensitivity, and Lie) and the Total Anxiety factor. Values obtained suggest that the factors are similar across gender and provide support for the existence of the AMAS-C scales for college women and men. Examination of the mean levels of performance across gender indicates that college women report more anxiety than college men on all the anxiety scales, except one, the Social Concerns/Stress subscale, and the Lie scale. Implications of the findings are discussed.
Enhancement of linear ATC calculations by the incorporation of reactive power flows

Fast, accurate algorithms to compute network capabilities are indispensable for transfer-based electricity markets. Most transfer studies involve contingencies and multipattern scenarios that often can only be performed in reasonable time with the use of linear methods. One of the limitations of linear ATC is the error produced by neglecting the effect of reactive power flows in line loading. This paper describes a fast algorithm to incorporate this effect. The estimation of the line post-transfer complex flow is based on circle equations and a megavar-corrected megawatt limit. The method can be easily integrated into existing linear ATC software because the computation remains based on active power distribution factors. The algorithm is illustrated in a small example and the error correction demonstrated for transfers in larges systems.
THE LIMITS OF A TECHINICAL CONCEPT OF A GOOD MARRIAGE: EXPLORING THE ROLE OF VIRTUE IN COMMUNICATION SKILLS

Teaching communication skills is one of the most common approaches used to improve couples' relationships. These skills are typically presented as content-free techniques that are value neutral. Yet, marital therapists frequently see that exercising communication skills, particularly in conflict situations, can be quite difficult, requiring personal strengths such as self-restraint, courage, generosity, justice, and good judgment. These personal strengths are virtues that are presupposed in communication skills and are necessary for their successful use. The traditional attempt to see marital therapy as value neutral has made it difficult to recognize the importance of these virtues. Therapists might be more effective if they could help couples to identify and cultivate underlying character strengths necessary for good communication. This paper presents an Aristotelian reading of virtues in marriage that can broaden our understanding of marriage and open new avenues for helping couples.
Gene function in the mammalian genome, courtesy of the mouse.

A report on the 16th International Mouse Genome Conference, San Antonio, USA, 17-20 November, 2002.
Hydrogen ion production using carbon nanotube field emitter arrays

We have used micro-gated carbon nanotube field emitter arrays to produce hydrogen ions via two mechanisms; direct field ionization, and electron impact ionization. The changes in the fabrication process have improved the maximum emission current. The nanotubes are about 20nm in diameter (and so are likely multiwalled), and the gate electrodes are made of Cr. It is concluded that it should be possible to create very brief ion pulses using this method because the electron trajectory is short. Relatively long pulses will allow higher ionization rates. Because the arrays are small and the ion energy distribution is not too large, it should be possible to focus the ion beam to a spot size similar to the area of the array.
Anthelmintics Increase Survival of American Coot (Fulica americana) Chicks

ABSTRACT. Helminthic parasites occur at high frequencies in waterbirds, but little is known about their effects on host population dynamics. In 2004–2005, we examined the effect of helminthic parasites on fledging success of semiprecocial American Coot (Fulica americana) chicks by experimentally dosing day-old chicks with the anthelmintic drug fenbendazole (treatments) or sterile water (controls) and measuring their survival to 40 days of age using mark—resighting analyses. In 2005, we also provided anthelmintic (treatment) or plain (control) supplemental food to incubating adults to determine whether chick survival was further influenced by parasite burdens of parents. Treated offspring had approximately half as many helminthic parasites as untreated offspring, but we could not demonstrate a reduction in parasite burdens among treated adults. Chicks that received fenbendazole in 2004 had 0.510 (85% confidence interval [CI]: 0.447–0.588) cumulative survival to 40 days of age, versus 0.387 (85% CI: 0.305–0...
Integrating Educational Technology into the Secondary Science Teaching.

The integration of technology in teaching is still challenging for most teachers, even though there has been a historical growth of Internet access and available educational technology tools in schools. Teachers have not incorporated technology into their teaching for various reasons, such as lack of knowledge of technology, time, and support. In this study, three beginning science teachers who successfully achieved technology integration were followed for 3 years to investigate how their beliefs, knowledge, and identity contributed to their uses of technology in their classroom instruction. The findings demonstrate that the participating teachers were all intrinsically motivated to use technology in their teaching and this motivation allowed them to enjoy using technology in their instruction and kept them engaged in technology use. The major findings of the study are displayed in a model, which indicates that the internalization of the technology use comes from reflection and that teachers’ use of technology in classroom instruction is constructed jointly by their technology, pedagogy, and content knowledge; beliefs; identity; and the resources that are available to them. The study has implications for teachers and teacher educators for successful technology integration into science classrooms.
Corporate Nonfinancial Disclosure Practices and Financial Analyst Forecast Ability Across Three European Countries

This paper presents evidence that companies across three continental European countries (Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands) provide varying degrees of analyst recommended nonfinancial disclosures to the marketplace. This study is the first to examine the relationship of Jenkins Committee nonfinancial disclosure levels with the accuracy and dispersion of financial analysts’ earnings forecasts. Seemingly unrelated regression tests show that larger companies and companies with a global focus voluntarily provide higher levels of both forward looking and historical nonfinancial disclosures. Additionally, higher levels of forward looking nonfinancial disclosures are associated with lower dispersion and higher accuracy in financial analysts’ earnings forecasts.
Rotating disk electrode voltammetric determination of the heterogeneous electron transfer kinetics of soluble spinach ferredoxin

The heterogeneous electron transfer kinetics of soluble spinach ferredoxin reacting at modified gold electrodes have been characterized by both steady state and transient electrochemical methods. The steady state analysis was conducted at a methyl viologen modified gold disk electrode using rotating disk hydrodynamic voltammetry. The results presented are the first reported steady state kinetic parameters observed for the unmediated reduction of ferredoxin at this surface. Single potential step chronoabsorptometry was utilized to observe the transient kinetic behavior of ferredoxin at modified gold minigrid electrodes. The kinetic parameters reported herein were evaluated using a recetly advanced, generalized analysis that is applicable to heterogeneous electron transfer systems that exhibit any degree of reversibility. Both analyses yield a formal heterogeneous electron transfer rate constant, ks,h0', and electrochemical transfer coefficient, α, in the following ranges: 1×10−4 cm/s<ks,h0'<6×10−4 cm/s and 0.4<α<0.5 for the experimental conditions employed. These results indicated that ferredoxin exhibits quasi-reversible heterogeneous electron transfer kinetics at this electrode surface. Moreover, agreement between the methods utilized to characterize this reaction points to a direct one-electron transfer process between the modified gold electrode surface and ferredoxin as the rate determining step.
Interactions between the adducin 2 gene and antihypertensive drug therapies in determining blood pressure in people with hypertension.

As part of the NHLBI Family Blood Pressure Program, the Genetic Epidemiology Network of Arteriopathy (GENOA) recruited 575 sibships (n = 1583 individuals) from Rochester, MN who had at least two hypertensive siblings diagnosed before age 60. Linkage analysis identified a region on chromosome 2 that was investigated using 70 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) typed in 7 positional candidate genes, including adducin 2 (ADD2). To investigate whether blood pressure (BP) levels in these hypertensives (n = 1133) were influenced by gene-by-drug interactions, we used cross-validation statistical methods (i.e., estimating a model for predicting BP levels in one subgroup and testing it in a different subgroup). These methods greatly reduced the chance of false positive findings. Eight SNPs in ADD2 were significantly associated with systolic BP in untreated hypertensives (p-value < 0.05). Moreover, we also identified SNPs associated with gene-by-drug interactions on systolic BP in drug-treated hypertensives. The TT genotype at SNP rs1541582 was associated with an average systolic BP of 133 mmHg in the beta-blocker subgroup and 148 mmHg in the diuretic subgroup after adjusting for overall mean differences among drug classes. Our findings suggest that hypertension candidate gene variation may influence BP responses to specific antihypertensive drug therapies and measurement of genetic variation may assist in identifying subgroups of hypertensive patients who will benefit most from particular antihypertensive drug therapies.
Reaction of H + ketene to formyl methyl and acetyl radicals and reverse dissociations

Thermochemical properties for reactants, intermediates, products, and transition states important in the ketene (CH 2 =C=O) + H reaction system and unimolecular reactions of the stabilized formyl methyl (C.H 2 CHO) and the acetyl radicals (CH 3 C.O) were analyzed with density functional and ab initio calculations. Enthalpies of formation (ΔH f ° 2 9 8 ) were determined using isodesmic reaction analysis at the CBS-QCI/APNO and the CBSQ levels. Entropies (S° 2 9 8 ) and heat capacities (C p °(T)) were determined using geometric parameters and vibrational frequencies obtained at the HF/6-311G(d,p) level of theory. Internal rotor contributions were included in the S and C p (T) values. A hydrogen atom can add to the CH 2 -group of the ketene to form the acetyl radical, CH 3 C.O(E a = 2.49 in CBS-QCI/APNO, units: kcal/mol). The acetyl radical can undergo β-scission back to reactants, CH 2 =C=O+H (E a = 45.97), isomerize via hydrogen shift (E a = 46.35) to form the slight higher energy, formyl methyl radical, C.H 2 CHO, or decompose to CH 3 +CO (E a = 17.33). The hydrogen atom also can add to the carbonyl group to form C.H 2 CHO (E a = 6.72). This formyl methyl radical can undergo β scission back to reactants, CH 2 =C=O+H (E a = 43.85), or isomerize via hydrogen shift (E a = 40.00) to form the acetyl radical isomer, CH 3 C.O, which can decompose to CH 3 +CO. Rate constants are estimated as function of pressure and temperature, using quantum Rice-Ramsperger-Kassel analysis for k(E) and the master equation for falloff. Important reaction products are CH 3 +CO via decomposition at both high and low temperatures. A transition state for direct abstraction of hydrogen atom on CH 2 =C=O by H to form, ketenyl radical plus H 2 is identified with a barrier of 12.27, at the CBS-QCl/APNO level. ΔH f ° 2 9 8 values are estimated for the following compounds at the CBS-QCl/APNO level: CH 3 C.O (-3.27), C.H 2 CHO (3.08), CH 2 =C=O (-11.89), HC.CO (41.98) (kcal/mol).
A SOCIAL ROLE THEORY PERSPECTIVE ON GENDER GAPS IN POLITICAL ATTITUDES

Men and women tend to espouse different political attitudes, as widely noted by both journalists and social scientists. A deeper understanding of why and when gender gaps exist is necessary because at least some gender differences in the political realm are both pervasive and impactful. In this article, we apply a social role theory framework to understanding gender gaps in political attitudes. The core principles are that men's and women's political attitudes diverge because of diffuse gender roles (e.g., broad expectations based on sex) as well as differential specific roles (e.g., family and occupational roles). We delineate several mechanisms by which diffuse and specific roles would produce differences and similarities in political attitudes. In particular, our analysis examines (a) the influence of gender-stereotypic expectations, (b) internalized traits and goals, and (c) variations in status and resources. A range of evidence shows that the general shape of gender differences in political attitude...
Optimal linear parameter-varying control design for a pressurized water reactor

The applicability of employing parameter-dependent control to a nuclear pressurized water reactor is investigated. The synthesis technique produces a controller which achieves specified performance against the worst-case time variation of a measurable parameter which enters the plant in a linear fractional manner. The plant can thus have widely varying dynamics over the operating range. The controllers designed perform well over the entire operating range.