cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Construction and characterization of two rice bacterial artificial chromosome libraries from the parents of a permanent recombinant inbred mapping population.

Rice is a leading grain crop and the staple food for over half of the “world” population. Rice is also an ideal species for genetic and biological studies of cereal crops and other monocotyledonous plants because of its small genome and well developed genetic system. To facilitate rice genome analysis leading to physical mapping, the identification of molecular markers closely linked to economic traits, and map-based cloning, we have constructed two rice bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) libraries from the parents of a permanent mapping population (Lemont and Teqing) consisting of 400 F9 recombinant inbred lines (RILs). Lemont (japonica) and Teqing (indica) represent the two major genomes of cultivated rice, both are leading commercial varieties and widely used germplasm in rice breeding programs. The Lemont library contains 7296 clones with an average insert size of 150 kb, which represents 2.6 rice haploid genome equivalents. The Teqing library contains 14208 clones with an average insert size of 130 kb, which represents 4.4. rice haploid genome equivalents. Three single-copy DNA probes were used to screen the libraries and at least two overlapping BAC clones were isolated with each probe from each library, ranging from 45 to 260 kb in insert size. Hybridization of BAC clones with chloroplast DNA probes and fluorescent in situ hybridization using BAC DNA as probes demonstrated that both libraries contain very few clones of chloroplast DNA origin and are likely free of chimeric clones. These data indicate that both BAC libraries should be suitable for map-based cloning of rice genes and physical mapping of the rice genome.
Coal desulfurization by leaching involving acidophilic and thermophilic microorganisms

It was shown that thermophilic microorganisms can increase the rate and volume of pyrite leaching from pulverized, high-sulfur coal. This occurs not only because of the elevated temperature of operation possible, but also the apparent accelerated catalytic activity of thermophilic microorganisms as compared to autotropic microbes such as T. ferrooxidans. The ability of thermophilic microogranisms to successfully leach pyrite in coal as demonstrated in the study points toward an even greater potential for the develpment of a successful and economically viable large-scale desulfurization process involving biochemical leaching. (JMT)
Method for direct observation of biofilm formation during operation on forward osmosis membranes

The purpose of this study is to describe a method for direct visual observation of biofilm formation on membranes used in a forward osmosis flow cell. Until recently biofouling research has focused on biofouling during reverse osmosis, and generally examined biofilms after, not during, operation. Direct observation allows for more sensitive measurements of fouling than flux data and membrane autopsies alone. The flow cell proposed here can be used to examine the mechanism of membrane fouling and to systematically examine the effects of surface coatings, membrane materials, and cleaning methods on biofouling using a broad range of process conditions.
Competition in the international hotel industry

To identify rivals in the international hotel industry, current practice is to use price, segment and proximity. Using price and segment to identify rivals can be problematic due to price discounting. Additionally, a clear way to measure proximity does not exist. The aim of this study is to develop a process which managers can use to accurately identify rivals. Network analysis and affiliation matrices, in particular, are used to show managers a simple, systematic way to quantify proximity. Affiliation matrices give managers a simple, numeric value to distinguish between primary and secondary competitors. Managers should also compare chains on other competitive dimensions to distinguish their relative competitive threat. Results suggest there will be more than one competitive dimension to distinguish between rivals. At times, international experience is a relevant competitive dimension; at other times, nationality is a relevant competitive dimension. Size, however, is very rarely a relevant competitive di...
Eastern Europe : factors underlying the weakening : performance of tax revenues

The paper analyzes the decline of tax revenue/GDP ratios in transition economies of central and eastern Europe. The paper separates the effect on revenues of discretionary policy actions and finds that endogenous factors, notably the collapse of underlying profits and declining effective tax rates, were the main source of falling tax revenue/GDP ratios. Underlying factors are analyzed to provide a basis to discuss the outlook for tax revenues in coming years.
Agreement among 2 × 2 Agreement Indices

A variety of measures of reliability for two-category nominal scales are reviewed and compared. It is shown that upon correcting these indices for chance agreement, there are only five distinct indices: Fleiss's modification of A1, the φ coefficient, Cohen's kappa, and two intraclass coefficients. Additional derivations indicate that when marginals are held constant, all but one of the measures are linear functions of agreement and, thus, of one another. In particular, they are equal once the maximum obtainable values for a given data set are equated. The single exception is an intraclass correlation that explicitly includes variation due to observer mean differences as part of the error variance. This index is dependent on sample size; moreover, as the number of subjects increases, this index approaches the kappa coefficient as a limit. Recommendations for choosing an index of agreement are made based on definitions, magnitude, convenience, and consistency.
Diffusion in Compound Semiconductors

Self-diffusion in single crystal InP and GaAs has been measured, together with the diffusion of the acceptors Cd and Zn and the donors S and Se in GaAs. Radioactive isotopes of these elements were used as tracers. The diffusions of In and P in InP are characterized by activation energies of 3.85 ev and 5.65 ev, respectively; those for Ga and As in GaAs are characterized by activation energies of 5.60 ev and 10.2 ev, respectively. The marked differences in both activation energies and diffusion rates of the constituent atoms in these materials indicate that the basic mechanism of the self-diffusion is one of migration within a specific sublattice.The impurity diffusion measurements in GaAs suggest that the concept of sublattice diffusion be extended to include impurity diffusion when the impurities enter the lattice substitutionally. The activation energy of the diffusion of both Cd and Zn in GaAs is about 2.5 ev, while that of the diffusion of both S and Se in GaAs is about 4.1 ev. Experimental details of interest include the observation of GaS compound formation when GaAs is heated in S vapor, and the formation of glassy layers on the surface of GaAs due to Se.
NBC's “10.5” may answer an age‐old seismologic question

There is a new NBC 4-hour mini-series set to air during the May sweeps period (2–3 May), titled simply enough “10.5.” No, this is not a sequel to “9 and 1/2 weeks,” nor is it a mini-sequel to"10.” This number instead refers to a megaearthquake that rocks the west coast of the United States. One may think that the network writers have done their homework and have consulted a geophysicist or two regarding the realism of their program, let alone the title. This is just a short note to comment on their potential folly I would like to clarify to the network writers, as well as to the non-seismologists in the Earth science community what exactly a magnitude 10.5 earthquake could be, and why, if such were to occur, it may be more than just a west coast problem. Alternatively, NBC may just soon answer an age-old seismologic question…
NMR studies of drugs. Sulindac methyl ester. Applications of achiral and chiral lanthanide shift reagents

Abstract The potent nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agent, sulindac, (Z) -5-fluoro-2-methyl-1-{[4-(methylsulfinyl) - phenyl]methylene} -1H-indene-3-acetic acid, has been examined by 1H NMR as its methyl ester in CDCl3 solution with the added achiral lanthanide shift reagent (LSR) tris (6,6,7,7,8,8,8-heptafluoro-2,2-dimethyl-3,5-octanedionato) europium (III), Eu (FOD)3, 2, for spectral simplification, and with the chiral LSRs, tris[3-(heptafluoropropylhydroxymethylene) - (+) - camphorato] europium (III), 3, and tris[3-(trifluoromethyl-hydroxymethylene) - (+) -camphorato] europium (III), 4, to induce enantiomeric shift differences (ΔΔδ) for several nuclei. Studies employed 60 and 300 MHz spectrometers. At the higher frequency, analytically useful ΔΔδ values were observed with added 3 for the aryl protons ortho to the methylsulfinyl group that should permit direct determinations of enantiomeric excess (% ee). By conversion of sulindac samples to the methyl ester, use of 3 would then formally constitute an ee ...
Peripheral serotonin administration selectively reduces fat intake in rats.

Abstract Recent research has led to the hypothesis that serotonergic mechanisms may be involved in both the control of energy intake and appetites for specific nutrients. Most of this research has focused on serotonin (5-HT) within the central nervous system. However, there is evidence which suggests that peripheral 5-HT also may be involved in the control of energy intake and nutrient selection. To further assess this suggestion, the effects of peripheral 5-HT administration on energy consumption and nutrient intakes were examined in adult male Sprague-Dawley rats given separate sorces of protein, fat and carbohydrate. Administration of 5-HT (doses ranging from 2–6 mg/kg) led to significant dose-related decreases in total energy intake in both freely feeding and food-restricted rats. Examination of individual nutrient intakes revealed that following 5-HT, fat intake was more suppressed than either carbohydrate or protein intakes. Administration of the 5-HT antagonist, methysergide, blocked the suppressive effects of 5-HT on both total energy intake and fat intake. The present data support the proposal that peripheral serotonergic mechanisms play a role in ingestive behaviors.
United States and Caribbean tropical cyclone activity related to the solar cycle

[1] The authors report on a finding that annual U.S hurricane counts are significantly related to solar activity. The relationship results from fewer intense tropical cyclones over the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico when sunspot numbers are high. The finding is in accord with the heat-engine theory of hurricanes that predicts a reduction in the maximum potential intensity with a warming in the layer near the top of the hurricane. An active sun warms the lower stratosphere and upper troposphere through ozone absorption of additional ultraviolet (UV) radiation. Since the dissipation of the hurricane's energy occurs through ocean mixing and atmospheric transport, tropical cyclones can act to amplify the effect of relatively small changes in the sun's output thereby appreciably altering the climate. Results have implications for life and property throughout the Caribbean, Mexico, and portions of the United States.
A zero-inventory production and distribution problem with a fixed customer sequence

In this paper, we study the zero-inventory production and distribution problem with a single transporter and a fixed sequence of customers. The production facility has a limited production rate, and the delivery truck has non-negligible traveling times between locations. The order in which customers may receive deliveries is fixed. Each customer requests a delivery quantity and a time window for receiving the delivery. The lifespan of the product starts as soon as the production for a customer’s order is finished, which makes the product expire in a constant time. Since the production facility and the shipping truck are limited resources, not all the customers may receive the delivery within their specified time windows and/or within product lifespan. The problem is then to choose a subset of customers from the given sequence to receive the deliveries to maximize the total demand satisfied, without violating the product lifespan, the production/distribution capacity, and the delivery time window constraints. We analyze several fundamental properties of the problem and show that these properties can lead to a fast branch and bound search procedure for practical problems. A heuristic lower bound on the optimal solution is developed to accelerate the search. Empirical studies on the computational effort required by the proposed search procedure comparing to that required by CPLEX on randomly generated test cases are reported.
Learning and Processes of Associative Mediation

In the attempt to evaluate product and process views of associative mediation, 80 male and female university students learned paired-associate lists under one of several instructional sets. Those with mediation instructions wrote down associative mediators on cards-with (Intentional) or without (Incidental) instructions to learn the pairs--as pairs were projected onto a daylight screen. Others learned with Standard or Repetition instructions. Incidental mediation instructions were at least equal to Intentional mediation instructions in percent recall and were superior in number of associative mediators produced for normatively linked pairs (p < .05). Production of a mediator was significantly predictive of later recall (p < .001), but mediational instructions may have improved recall even when a rote strategy or no effective strategy was reported. Thus neither the product nor the process view could be rejected; it appeared possible that both types of factor were operating.
Uptake, elimination, and metabolism of three phenols by fathead minnows.

Uptake rates of total14C in fathead minnows (Pimephales promelas) exposed to sublethal concentrations of radiolabeled test compounds followed the order: phenol > 2,4,5-trichlorophenol >p-nitrophenol. Mean whole body14C concentration factors were 15,800, 1,850, and 180 for phenol, 2,4,5-trichlorophenol, andp-nitrophenol exposures, respectively. Only minor amounts of tissue14C was parent compound after 28 days of exposure in fish exposed to phenol andp-nitrophenol, while 78.6% of the14C was parent compound in 2,4,5-trichlorophenol exposed fish. Tissue14C in fish exposed to 2,4,5-trichlorophenol was eliminated at a faster rate than in fish exposed to phenol orp-nitrophenol. Observed mean14C depuration half-lives for lower and higher exposures combined were 387, 150, and 12 hours for phenol,p-nitrophenol, and 2,4,5-trichlorophenol, respectively. Parent compound comprised 1.5, 2.7, and 0.7% of total14C for phenol, 2,4,5-trichlorophenol, andp-nitrophenol, respectively, after 28 days of depuration. The percentage of acetone-unextractable14C increased from the end of uptake to the end of depuration for phenol and 2,4,5-trichlorophenol, and decreased slightly forp-nitrophenol.14C contribution from polar metabolites increased relative to total14C during the depuration phase for 2,4,5-trichlorophenol andp-nitrophenol.
Business strategy and competitive advantage in family businesses in Ghana: the role of social networking relationships

The business strategy perspective argues that achieving competitive advantage hinges on pursing a coherent competitive strategy. Family businesses are also said to manifest a strong desire to develop enduring and committed social relationships with external stakeholders. This study examines the effect of business strategy on performance of family businesses and how their managerial social networking relationships with external entities moderate the business strategy–performance link. Using data from 54 family firms from Ghana, the findings indicate that: (1) the pursuit of the business strategies of cost leadership and differentiation create competitive advantage for family businesses; (2) social networking relationships with government bureaucratic officials and community leaders are beneficial to family businesses, but social networking relationships with political leaders is detrimental to family businesses; and (3) the benefit of business strategy to family businesses is moderated positively by networking with community leaders, but negatively by networking with political leaders.
Corrections and Punishment in China: Information and Analysis:

This article attempts to describe and analyze the Chinese system of corrections and punishment as it appears in front of the world. First is a review of historical development. The focus is then placed on the analysis of the Chinese correctional system with respect to its structure, legal framework, practice, management, and operational effectiveness. The article ends up with an examination of what reforms China is undertaking in response to domestic and international criticisms against its practices in corrections and punishment.
Teaching business/IT ethics

This paper describes the research and conclusions regarding adding an ethics course to a business/technology oriented masters program. The status of various codes of ethics and the incorporation of such codes into the business and academic world is discussed. Established collage ethics courses and the government propensity to regulate social change are discussed. The decision not to add the course is partially based on the fact that there are ethical themes already present in five courses that can be expanded. It is also based on a faculty, who possess years of business and technological experience. Encouraging and giving them direction on how to add their ethical experience will improve our program.
Integrating Virtual Execution Platform for Accurate Analysis in Distributed Real-Time Control System Development

A distributed real-time control system is modeled by automatically generating a virtual execution platform and integrating it with an abstract run-time model. This allows us to capture the dynamic effects of non-deterministic behavior of the underlying hardware and real-time operating system (RTOS), which cannot be accurately evaluated by existing static approaches. Our framework has been implemented and integrated with the existing AIRES toolkit. The construction of a virtual execution platform for a control application is observed to take 422ms. The integrated platform and control application consists of 56 software components connected by 1280 links for data exchanges and precedence relations, and the constructed platform executes the application at a normalized speed-defined as the ratio of simulation time to real time -10.6. Our preliminary evaluation has demonstrated the virtual execution platform's capability of providing accurate run-time information at a reasonable time-cost.
An Ontology to Support Empirical Studies in Software Engineering

Ontologies are semantically organized collections of information pieces. Ontologies provide a way of organizing and encoding the collected knowledge for a given domain.Formalizing the accumulated knowledge in such a framework enables all sorts of automated analysis. We present an ontology for analyzing empirical studies of software engineering, in particular the design of software engineering experiments. The design of such experiments consists of assigning human subjects to apply treatments, such as techniques or tools, to artifacts such as code or specifications. The particular design and available treatments depend on the goals of the experiment. Provisions for addressing various threats to validity constrain the available design space. Furthermore, the assignments have to be consistent with the available resources. By encapsulating the existing knowledge on designing experiments, we posit that it is possible to check a given design for validity and consistency. We present a case study encoding software inspection experiments into an ontology and show how we can use it for checking a proposed design for a new inspection experiment.
Wnt signaling antagonists are potential prognostic biomarkers for the progression of radiographic hip osteoarthritis in elderly Caucasian women

Objective To determine whether serum levels of 2 Wnt signaling antagonists, Frizzled-related protein (FRP) and Dkk-1, are associated with the development and progression of radiographic hip osteoarthritis (RHOA). Methods Pelvic radiographs were obtained a mean of 8.3 years apart in 5,928 Caucasian women ≥65 years of age who were enrolled in the Study of Osteoporotic Fractures. Random sampling of this cohort was performed, with ∼180 subjects per group assigned to 2 nested case–control studies on RHOA incidence and progression. Baseline serum levels of FRP and Dkk-1 were measured by capture enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) were calculated using logistic regression analyses with adjustment for potential covariates. Results There were no differences in serum levels of FRP and Dkk-1 between case subjects with incidence or progression of RHOA and their respective control subjects. There was a trend for higher baseline serum levels of FRP to be associated with a reduced risk of incident RHOA (age-adjusted OR 0.59 [95% CI 0.32–1.09], P = 0.09 for women in the highest quartile versus women in the lowest quartile). There was no association of serum levels of FRP with progression of RHOA. Serum levels of Dkk-1 did not correlate with incident RHOA. However, higher serum levels of Dkk-1 were associated with diminished risk of RHOA progression (age-adjusted OR 0.43 [95% CI 0.23–0.79], P = 0.007 for women in the highest quartile compared with women in the lowest quartile). Conclusion Elevated circulating levels of Dkk-1 appeared to be associated with reduced progression of RHOA in elderly women, whereas the highest quartile of serum FRP levels tended to be associated with a modest reduction in risk of incident RHOA.
On Runs in Independent Sequences

Given an i.i.d. sequence of n letters from a finite alpha- bet, we consider the length of the longest run of any letter. In the equiprobable case, results for this run turn out to be closely related to the well-known results for the longest run of a given letter. For coin-tossing, tail probabilities are compared for both kinds of runs via Poisson approximation.
Thin Layer Chromatography/Diffuse Reflectance Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometry Of Coal Extracts

Coupling thin layer chromatography (TLC) with diffuse reflectance infrared spectrometry facilitates the analysis of coal extracts. Like coal itself, the extracts are composed of a complex mixture of many different components. After the easy, inexpensive TLC separation of the extracts into broad classes, the components are transferred simultaneously to a series of cups from which their diffuse reflectance spectra may be measured. The cups are packed with a chalcogenide matrix, which is transparent through much of the mid infrared. Because chromatographic resolution is preserved in the transfer, infrared spectra of all the separated component classes may be obtained. Studying various extracts of three different coals allows for investigation of the molecular differences between them thus providing valuable information concerning the structure of coal.
The Nurse Theorists: 21st-Century Updates—Jean Watson:

This edited transcript of an interview with Jean Watson presents Watson’s recent thoughts about the current state of the discipline of nursing and the emergence of new perspectives; the contributions of her theory of human caring; and her other work on the advancement of the discipline of nursing, complementary and alternative therapies, nursing research, and nursing education.
Role of Glucose Transport in the Postreceptor Defect of Non-insulin-dependent Diabetes Mellitus

In an attempt to elucidate the cellular mechanism(s) of the insulin resistance associated with impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) and non-insulin-dependent diabetes (NIDDM), insulin-sensitive glucose transport was studied employing isolated adipocytes obtained from these subjects using the nonmetabolized glucose analogue, 3-O-methyl glucose. In the subjects with IGT, basal and maximal rates of 3-O-methyl glucose uptake were normal while the responses at submaximal insulin concentrations were decreased, i.e., the dose-response curves were shifted rightward, indicative of decreased insulin sensitivity. In contrast, the dose-response curves for insulin-stimulated 3-O-methyl glucose uptake in adipocytes obtained from subjects with NIDDM were right-shifted and, in addition, there was a marked decrease in both the basal and maximally stimulated rates of glucose transport (i.e., decreased insulin responsiveness). Thus, the adipocytes from subjects with IGT show decreased insulin sensitivity consistent with decreased insulin binding, whereas the adipocytes from subjects with NIDDM exhibit both decreased insulin sensitivity and decreased insulin responsiveness consistent with a combined receptor and postreceptor defect in cellular insulin action. In the groups as a whole, the magnitude of the rightward shift in the dose-response curve for insulin-stimulated glucose transport correlated with the reduction in adipocyte insulin binding (r = 0.47, P
Safety and efficacy of heliox as a treatment for upper airway obstruction due to radiation-induced laryngeal dysfunction*

The mixture of helium and oxygen, called heliox, has been successfully used in the management of different respiratory diseases since 1935. Despite several reports on its usefulness, it is not widely available in acute care facilities and it remains somewhat controversial. In this article we present the case of a 69-year-old woman in whom bilateral vocal cord paralysis developed after radiation therapy and in whom heliox was successfully used to manage her upper airway obstruction. Although heliox offers an additional tool in the treatment of various airway and pulmonary problems, it can be used only as a temporizing agent to allow time for appropriate therapy of the underlying process. Given its beneficial physiologic and clinical effects, it seems that further studies are warranted to define a clear and concise protocol for its use in the emergency setting.
Revisiting a Model of Ontogenetic Growth: Estimating Model Parameters from Theory and Data

The ontogenetic growth model (OGM) of West et al. provides a general description of how metabolic energy is allocated between production of new biomass and maintenance of existing biomass during ontogeny. Here, we reexamine the OGM, make some minor modifications and corrections, and further evaluate its ability to account for empirical variation on rates of metabolism and bio- mass in vertebrates both during ontogeny and across species of vary- ing adult body size. We show that the updated version of the model is internally consistent and is consistent with other predictions of metabolic scaling theory and empirical data. The OGM predicts not only the near universal sigmoidal form of growth curves but also the scaling of the characteristic times of ontogenetic stages in 1/4
Attenuation of light and daily integral rates of photosynthesis attained by planktonic algae1

The daily integral rate of photosynthesis attained by planktonic algae in Lake Minnetonka, Minnesota, conforms to an equation for a rectangular hyperbola proposed by Bannister. The rate depends on the concentration of chlorophyll a in the mixed layer and also upon two kinetic parameters that are analogous to the kinetic constants in equations for reactions catalyzed by enzymes. One parameter is an upper limit, $, that would be attained by very dense populations, and the other is a concentration of chlorophyll, c’, at which attenuation of photosynthetically active radiation (PhAR) by the algae equals background attenuation by the water. The parameters were evaluated with the same statistical procedures used to evaluate the kinetic constants for enzyme reactions. The limit, 9, for the daily integral rate in this lake would be about 0.5 mol 0,. rnp2* d-l. Observed daily rates are usually ~0.7 9, because chlorophyll in the water usually intercepts <70% of the radiant energy. Coefficients for the attenuation of PhAR by chlorophyll, E,, and by the water, Q, were estimated from the linear regression of the total attenuation coefficient, E, on chlorophyll concentration. The estimate of E, is 0.022 + 0.005. m-‘*(mg Chl* m-3)-1. Background attenuation, E,, affects integral photosynthesis in the same way as a competitive inhibitor affects enzyme reactions: it is a constituent of c’ = E,/+ which, together with chlorophyll concentration, determines the fraction of underwater PhAR intercepted by planktonic algae.
Liquid chromatography/mass spectrometric analysis of explosives: RDX adduct ions.

In liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS) of 1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazacyclohexane (RDX), attachment of an anion to the analyte molecule is the major way of producing characteristic ions under electrospray ionization (ESI) and atmospheric pressure chemical ionization (APCI) conditions. The formation of RDX cluster ions in LC/MS and the origin of the clustering agents have been studied. In order to determine whether the clustering anions originate from self-decomposition of RDX in the source or from impurities in the mobile phase, isotopically labeled RDX ((13)C(3)-RDX and (15)N(6)-RDX) and isotopically labeled glycolic acid, acetic acid, ammonium formate and formaldehyde have been used in order to establish the composition and formation route of RDX adduct ions produced in ESI and APCI sources. The results showed that, in ESI, self-decomposition of RDX plays no role in adduct ion formation; rather, RDX clusters with formate, acetate, hydroxyacetate, and chloride anions present in the mobile phase as impurities at ppm levels. In APCI, part of the RDX molecules decompose yielding NO(2) (-) species which in turn cluster with a second RDX molecule producing abundant [M+NO(2)](-) cluster ions.
Successive convex approximation for system performance optimization in a multiuser network with multiple mimo relays

We consider the problem of jointly optimizing amplify-and-forward (AF) multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) relays and single-antenna receivers for multipoint-to-multipoint (MP2MP) communications using weighted summean-square-error (MSE) as a system performance measure. This optimization problem is nonconvex and the optimal solution cannot be obtained in polynomial time. By applying first-order approximation for the quadratic term, we show that this problem can be approximately reformulated as a semidefinite programming (SDP) problem, which is then solved successively in an iterative way. The performance of the proposed scheme is compared with the lower bound (LB) of the global optimal solution that is obtained with increased complexity using the MSE-profile approach, and the bisection and semidefinite relaxation (SDR) techniques. Numerical results show that the performance of the proposed successive convex approximation (SCA) approach is very close to the LB of the global optimal solution and is much better than the zero-forcing MIMO relays.
Infrared photoconductivity via deep copper acceptors in silicon-doped, copper-compensated gallium arsenide photoconductive switches

Silicon-doped, copper-compensated, semi-insulated gallium arsenide of various doping parameters was studied with respect to infrared photoconductivity. This material is used as a photoconductive switch, the bistable optically controlled semiconductor switch (BOSS). One limitation was the relatively low conductivity of the device during the on-state. Typically, silicon-doped gallium arsenide is converted to semi-insulating gallium arsenide by the thermal diffusion of copper into the GaAs:Si. It is shown that variation of the diffusion parameters can improve the on-state conductivity by the enhancement of the concentration of a copper center known as Cu/sub B/. The conductivity of the device 150 ns after irradiation from a 20-ns FWHM laser pulse ( lambda =1.1 mu m) is recorded for various incident energies. This on-state conductivity saturates at a value that is predicted by the densities of the copper levels and the mobility. >
Successful Treatment of Pseudomonas aeruginosa Septicemia Following Total Aortic Valve Replacement

The successful treatment of Pseudomonas aeruginosa septicemia in a 24-year-old patient by antibiotic therapy, reoperation, and insertion of a new aortic valve prosthesis three weeks after total aortic valve replacement is reported. This patient also presented other interesting features. She had a Hufnagel valve inserted for severe aortic insufficiency in December, 1955; a Teflon subcoronary, tricuspid, cage prosthesis replaced her destroyed aortic valve in April, 1960; and two Starr-Edwards aortic valve prostheses were inserted during September and October, 1963. The patient is clinically well 12 months after her last operation.
Stocking Density Effects on Male Broilers Grown to 1.8 Kilograms of Body Weight

This study examined the effects of stocking density on live performance, physiological stress level indicators, and processing yields of male broilers grown to 1.8 kg. A total of 3,120 Ross x Ross 708 male chicks was placed into 32 floor pens (5.57 m2/pen). Stocking density treatments were 25, (75 birds/pen), 30 (90 birds/ pen), 35 (105 birds/pen), and 40 (120 birds/pen) kg of BW/m2. The BW gain, feed consumption, and feed conversion were adversely affected with increasing stocking densities by 35 d. Physiological stress indicators (plasma corticosterone, glucose, cholesterol, total nitrites, and heterophil:lymphocyte) were not affected. Litter moisture was higher as stocking density increased, which led to higher footpad lesion scores. In parallel to growth responses, carcass weight was depressed by increasing stocking density, but carcass yield, absolute and relative amounts of abdominal fat, and carcass skin defects were not affected. Increasing stocking density decreased breast fillet weight and its relative yield and breast tender weight, but not breast tender yield. As calculated stocking density increased 5 kg of BW/m2 beyond 25 kg of BW/ m2, final BW and breast fillet weight decreased by 41 and 12 g, respectively. We conclude that increasing stocking density beyond 30 kg of BW/m2 adversely affects growth responses and meat yield of broilers grown to 1.8 kg but does not alter physiological stress indicators.
Reducing or delaying egg depredation by punishing free-ranging predators for opening eggs

Abstract We tried to deter free-ranging, mammalian predators from opening untreated eggs by first teaching them during a training period that such behavior will cause discomfort. The discomfort was inflicted by injecting eggs with pulegone, a volatile chemical which irritates the trigeminal nerve upon inhalation and produces gastric distress upon digestion. Pulegone-injected eggs were distributed in eight study sites and were followed by an experiment where untreated eggs were placed in either untreated nests or ones sprayed with pulegone. Our objective was to deceive predators into thinking that the eggs in the latter nests contained pulegone. Some nests were clumped together to simulate the nests of a colonial nesting species, and others were dispersed and hidden to simulate the nests of solitary nesters. Among colonial nests, eggs in nests treated with pulegone survived an average of 4 days compared to 3 days for those in untreated nests. Among solitary nests, there were no differences in the survival of treated and control nests. These findings suggest that egg predation in nesting colonies can be reduced or delayed by training local predators to avoid pulegone-injected eggs and then making the nests in the colony smell of pulegone.
The Foundation Payout Puzzle

One of the few regulations that all private foundations in the United States face is the requirement that they spend in grants and administrative expenses at least 5 percent of the value of their endowment. This number remains less a product of economic reasoning than three decades old political bargaining. The decision about how much to pay out in grants is a critical one because, across the entire foundation field, every one percent increase in the annual payout rate of all foundations translates into approximately $4 billion in new grant funds for the nonprofit sector. Given the stakes that are at issue, foundations must give serious thought to the question of how much should be given away today and how much should be saved for the future. Pulling at foundations as they deliberate over this complex issue are compelling arguments for a higher payout rate and a strong case for a low payout rate. This paper lays out the arguments on both sides of the payout debate. We then draw on a new dataset on foundation financial management to examine how a group of large and influential foundations has resolved the payout decision over the past two and half decades. After finding a remarkable convergence in foundation payout behavior, we explore several possible explanations for this behavior. We conclude by exploring policy alternatives to the long-standing 5 percent minimum payout rule and why a revisiting of this thirty-year old public policy is in order.
Measuring vibrational motion in the presence of speckle using off-axis holography

We present a holographic laser vibrometer designed to mitigate the effects of speckle noise when measuring the vibrational motion of a rough object. We show that multiplexing the interferometric measurement across 105 pixels provides a 50 dB reduction in the incoherent noise. Using a high-speed camera, this enables a displacement sensitivity of 50 fm/√Hz with a bandwidth of 12.5 kHz when measuring rough objects, representing a 20 dB improvement compared with a commercially available single-detector-based laser vibrometer. Finally, we show that the holographic vibrometer system is capable of stand-off acoustic sensing by measuring the acoustic-induced vibrations of a piece of paper with sensitivity as low as 10 dB (re 20 μPa). The ability to sensitively and noninvasively measure the vibrations of arbitrary rough surfaces could enable new applications in laser vibrometry.
The Economics of Education Provision by For-Profit Contractors

School districts in the U.S. have begun to use for-profit contractors to provide management and instructional services. Studies of this phenomenon are limited because of the newness of this alternative to public education provision. This article begins to fill this void by examining the conditions under which contractors can be financially viable and can also improve quality. Also considered is the potential role of for-profit contractors in other policies to restructure public education.
Distributed information gathering policies under temporal logic constraints

We present an algorithm for synthesizing distributed control policies for networks of mobile robots such that they gather the maximum amount of information about some a priori unknown feature of the environment, e.g. hydration levels of crops or a lost person adrift at sea. Natural motion and communication constraints such as “Avoid obstacles and periodically communicate with all other agents”, are formulated as temporal logic formulae, a richer set of constraints than has been previously considered for this application. Mission constraints are distributed automatically among sub-groups of the agents. Each sub-group independently executes a receding horizon planner that locally optimizes information gathering and is guaranteed to satisfy the assigned mission specification. This approach allows the agents to disperse beyond inter-agent communication ranges while ensuring global team constraints are met. We evaluate our novel paradigm via simulation.
All-fiber Tunable SWIR Parametric Source at 2.4 µm

We report a record long-wavelength silica fiber optic source, capable of reaching 2.4µm, based on cascaded four-wave-mixing. The source is tunable over a spectral range of more than 130nm, with a peak power exceeding 10mW.
Modeling Intrajunction Dispersion at a Well-Mixed Tidal River Junction

AbstractThe relative importance of small-scale, intrajunction flow features such as shear layers, separation zones, and secondary flows on dispersion in a well-mixed tidal river junction is explored. A fully nonlinear, nonhydrostatic, and unstructured three-dimensional (3D) model is used to resolve supertidal dispersion via scalar transport at a well-mixed tidal river junction. Mass transport simulated in the junction is compared against predictions using a simple node-channel model to quantify the effects of small-scale, 3D intrajunction flow features on mixing and dispersion. The effects of three-dimensionality are demonstrated by quantifying the difference between two-dimensional (2D) and 3D model results. An intermediate 3D model that does not resolve the secondary circulation or the recirculating flow at the junction is also compared to the 3D model to quantify the relative sensitivity of mixing on intrajunction flow features. Resolution of complex flow features simulated by the full 3D model is not ...
Characterization of the DFZ in Silicon Wafers by a Non-Destructive Technique

This paper presents a non-destructive technique for characterizing The Defect Free Zone (DFZ) of silicon wafers. The method consists in measuring the decay of microwave reflection following the creation of excess carriers by a light pulse. For wafers with similar surface passivation we have found a direct correlation between the transient duration and the size of the DFZ. A computer model of the microwave reflection in silicon wafers with different size of DFZ agrees with experimental observation.
Design Concepts for Improved Thermoelectric Materials

Some new guidelines are given that should be useful in the search for thermoelectric materials that are better than those currently available. In particular, clathrate and crypto-clathrate compounds with filler atoms in their cages offer the ability to substantially lower the lattice thermal conductivity.
Ureteropelvic Obstruction in Adults with Previously Normal Pyelograms: A Report of 5 Cases

AbstractUreteropelvic obstruction usually is thought to be congenital. However, 5 cases of ureteropelvic junction obstruction are presented, which document acquired obstruction in adults who previously had normal pyelograms. The etiology of this development is unclear. This report emphasizes the importance of continued followup and the need for periodic re-evaluation of patients with unexplained urinary symptoms or persistent flank pain, even when the initial pyelograms are normal
A Scale for Assessing Multicultural Ethical Sensitivities to Information Disclosure on Hiv/Aids and Cancer

This study relates health care services marketing to culturally sensitive physician’s duties of information disclosure on HIV/AIDS and Cancer. An ethical scale to assess multicultural ethical imperatives of medical residents to information disclosure is developed, validated and checked for convergent, discriminant and nomological validities. Health care marketing implications are discussed.
Long-Term Follow-Up of Patients With Hairy Cell Leukemia After Treatment With 2'-Deoxycoformycin

Twenty-four patients with advanced hairy cell leukemia treated with 2'-deoxycoformycin (dCF) were studied after achieving complete remission to determine the impact of treatment on survival, disease-free survival, long-term complications of treatment, and response to retreatment. At a median follow-up time of 82 months (range, 54 to 104 months), 23 of 24 patients remain alive. One patient has died of recurrent disease refractory to treatment. Of the remaining 23 patients, 11 have relapsed at a median time of 30 months (range, 7 to 80 months) after treatment completion. Of these 11 patients, 7 have been retreated with dCF or 2'-chlorodeoxyadenosine (2-CdA), including one patient that was retreated twice. All seven patients have responded, with five patients achieving second complete remission. Two patients have had normalization of blood cell counts, but repeat bone marrows have not been performed. No serious infections have been seen in dCF-treated patients during follow-up. One case of Hodgkin's disease and three cases of skin malignancies have developed in these 24 patients. From initiation of treatment, survival is 93 months (range, 63 to 116 months). We concluded that dCF significantly prolongs the survival of patients with advanced hairy cell leukemia without resultant long-term complications. It is too early to predict if this therapy will be curative for the patients still in remission.
Real-Time Reporting of Small Operational Failures in Nursing Care

Addressing microsystem problems from the frontline holds promise for quality enhancement. Frontline providers are urged to apply quality improvement; yet no systematic approach to problem detection has been tested. This study investigated a self-report approach to detecting operational failures encountered during patient care. Methods. Data were collected from 5 medical-surgical units over 4 weeks. Unit staff documented operational failures on a small distinctive Pocket Card. Frequency distributions for the operational failures in each category were calculated for each hospital overall and disaggregated by shift. Rate of operational failures on each unit was also calculated. Results. A total of 160 nurses participated in this study reporting a total of 2,391 operational failures over 429 shifts. Mean number of problems per shift varied from 4.0 to 8.5 problems with equipment/supply problems being the most commonly reported category. Conclusions. Operational failures are common on medical-surgical clinical units. It is feasible for unit staff to record these failures in real time. Many types of failures were recognized by frontline staff. This study provides preliminary evidence that the Pocket Card is a feasible approach to detecting operational failures in real time. Continued research on methodologies to investigate the impact of operational failures is warranted.
External Validation and Optimization of International Consensus Clinical Target Volumes for Adjuvant Radiation Therapy in Bladder Cancer

Purpose International consensus (IC) clinical target volumes (CTVs) have been proposed to standardize radiation field design in the treatment of patients at high risk of locoregional failure (LRF) after radical cystectomy. The purpose of this study was to externally validate the IC CTVs in a cohort of postsurgical patients followed up for LRF and identify revisions that might improve the IC CTVs' performance. Methods and Materials Among 334 patients with pT3 to pT4 bladder cancer treated with radical cystectomy, LRF developed in 58 (17%), of whom 52 had computed tomography scans available for review. Images with LRF were exported into a treatment planning system, and IC CTVs were contoured and evaluated for adequacy of coverage of each LRF with respect to both the patient and each of 6 pelvic subsites: common iliac (CI) region, obturator region (OR), external and internal iliac region, presacral region, cystectomy bed, or other pelvic site. Revisions to the IC contours were proposed based on the findings. Results Of the 52 patients with documented LRF, 13 (25%) had LRFs that were outside of the IC CTV involving 17 pelvic subsites: 5 near the CI CTV, 5 near the OR CTV, 1 near the external and internal iliac region, and 6 near the cystectomy bed. The 5 CI failures were located superior to the CTV, and the 5 OR failures were located medial to the CTV. Increasing the superior boundary of the CI to a vessel-based definition of the aortic bifurcation, as well as increasing the medial extension of the OR by an additional 9 mm, decreased the number of patients with LRF outside of the IC CTV to 7 (13%). Conclusions Modified IC CTVs inclusive of a slight adjustment superiorly for the CI region and medially for the OR may reduce the risk of pelvic failure in patients treated with adjuvant radiation therapy.
State Health Department Requirements for Reporting of Antibiotic-Resistant Infections by Providers, United States, 2013 and 2015.

Due to the high burden of antibiotic-resistant infections, several US states mandate public reporting of these infections. To examine the extent to which state departments of health require reporti...