cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A COORDINATE-FREE APPROACH TO THE ANALYSIS OF GROWTH PATTERNS: MODELS AND THEORETICAL CONSIDERATIONS

Developmental biology holds keys to our understanding of morphological pattern formation whether these patterns are expressed in the fossil record or among extant species. Though much is known about osseous growth at the cellular level (e.g. Hall, 1991), we have minimal understanding of the coordinated processes that combine to produce a complex, three-dimensional form. We have proposed a framework for the coordinate-free representation of form, a statistical method for comparing and modelling growth trajectories for complex morphologies, and a means for the eventual elucidation of the role of growth in the evolution of morphology. Our method uses the coordinate locations of biological landmarks to represent form as a matrix of all possible linear distances between landmarks, the form matrix. When two forms are expressed in this way, comparison of these forms is accomplished by computing the ratios of like linear distances, the form difference matrix. When the forms being compared are from a growth series, the matrix of ratios is called a growth matrix. Patterns of growth for two groups can be compared by computing the growth difference matrix. We applied growth difference matrix analysis to the study of sexual dimorphism of ontogeny in the M. fascicularis craniofacial skeleton. Growth matrices describing growth in male and female M. fascicularis were presented along with the growth difference matrix that describes sexual dimorphism of growth to underscore the detailed information available from this analytical technique. The method is quite general and can be applied to two- or three-dimensional data sets of landmark coordinates (cross-sectional or longitudinal) collected from almost any developing structure. The methods that we propose enable us to go beyond a mathematical summary of the comparison of forms and the comparison of growth patterns. We provide examples of how growth patterns might be used in the study of phylogenetic relationships. Our plans for use of this method in the study of evolutionary change assumes that morphological change in the craniofacial skeleton results from evolutionary change in developmental units (as defined by Atchley & Hall, 1991) that underlie morphological structure. We believe we have the basic tools to ultimately propose informed phylogenies based solely on developmental data. This task requires the identification of 'growth features' and the polarization of these features as primitive or derived. It is also advisable to determine a set of primitive growth features for the groups of interest. This will necessitate the inclusion of outgroups in our growth analysis.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Evaluation of image quality metrics for comparison of synchronization algorithms for cardiac cine MRI

Cardiac MR image data is typically acquired over multiple cardiac cycles, thus necessitating the use of a synchronization algorithm. Comparison of such algorithms is challenging, as the MR environment distorts the signals that might be used to derive the gating signal for synchronization. In this study, we evaluated three cardiac synchronization algorithms by means of two full-reference image quality metrics and two no-reference metrics; we compared the resulting values of these metrics with subjective analysis by expert reviewers. Both full-reference metrics indicated that there was a statistically significant difference between the cardiac synchronization algorithms. However, both no-reference metrics indicated that there was no statistically significant difference between any of the synchronization algorithms, which corresponded with the subjective analysis. In conclusion, no-reference image metrics correlated well with expert analysis of cardiac MR images, while the full-reference metrics were most likely oversimplified which provided misleading results.
SURVEILLANCE PROBLEMS: POISSON MODELS WITH NOISE

The basic model starts with three stochastic processes satisfying y(t) = x(t) + z(t). Observations are made on the y-process from which inferences are made about the production process, x(t). The z-process constitutes noise. For each unit of time that x(t) = x the income is i(x). The producer, at a cost in both time and money, can repair the y-process, i.e., bring its value back to zero. Continuous surveillance at no cost and intermittent surveillance with a fixed cost for each observation are considered, When the x- and z-processes are independent Poisson processes, it is shown that the strategies which maximize the average income per unit of time depend only on the last observed value of the y-process. Production is continued until the y-process exceeds a specified integer which depends on the economic parameters. When i(x) is nonincreasing and costly inspections are being made, the time between inspections decreases as a function of the last observed value of the y-process. The model is a generalization of the model used in Ref. [3]1 .
Gastrointestinal perforation and peritonitis in infants and children: experience with 179 cases over ten years.

Background. Premature infants continue to have a high mortality after gastrointestinal perforation. This report describes 179 patients with gastrointestinal perforation and peritonitis and compares etiologic factors, mortality, and causes of death in premature infants and older children in an attempt to predict outcome. Methods. The 113 boys (63.1%) and 66 girls (36.9%) had an age range of newborn (n = 139, 77.6%) to 17 years. Site of perforation was gastric in 16, duodenal in 9, small bowel in 105, colon in 37, and undesignated in 12. Eighteen had multiple perforations. Etiologic factors in newborns (younger than 2 months) included necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) (75, 41.9%), isolated ileal perforations (30, 21.5%), malrotation/volvulus (8), iatrogenic causes (5), and others (6). Gestational age was 29.6 ± 4.3 weeks for NEC versus 31.4 ± 5.4 weeks for non-NEC. Birth weight for patients with NEC was 1.45 ± 0.8 gm and 1.81 ± 1.0 gm for non-NEC babies. Etiologic factors in 33 older children (older than 2 months to 17 years) were trauma (10), Meckel's diverticulum (4), intussusception (2), pseudomembranous colitis (2), adhesions (2), stomal leak (2), others (4), and nondesignated (7). Gastric perforations (n = 16) were iatrogenic in 7, idiopathic in 5, and caused by an ulcer in 4. Results. Mortality for NEC was 36 of 75 (48%), 15 of 55 (27.2%) for non-NEC infants (p < 0.05 versus NEC), 15.1% (5 of 33) for older children (p < 0.05 versus NEC), and 4 of 16 (25%) for gastric perforation. Infant deaths were related to overwhelming sepsis, immaturity of systems, and multiorgan failure. Deaths for older children were a result of sepsis, multiorgan failure, and immunodeficiency. Conclusions. Gastrointestinal perforation is more common in premature infants with the highest mortality (48%) noted in NEC. Despite surgical intervention and advances in neonatal intensive care unit care, premature low birth weight infants (especially NEC) continue to have a high mortality.
Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and changing attitudes toward dysmenorrhea.

Abstract Dysmenorrhea, which may be primary or secondary , is the occurrence of painful uterine cramps during menstruation. Until a decade ago, medical and social attitudes toward dysmenorrhea were shrouded with folklore, psychoanalytical profiles, or psychosomatic bases. In secondary dysmenorrhea, there is a visible pelvic lesion to account for the pain, whereas only a biochemical abnormality is responsible for primary dysmenorrhea. Recent advances in the biochemistry of prostaglandins and their role in the pathophysiology of primary dysmenorrhea and intrauterine device (IUD)-induced dysmenorrhea have now firmly established a rational basis for the disorder. In primary dysmenorrhea, menstrual prostaglandin release is significantly increased but can be readily suppressed to normal levels when nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) capable of inhibiting cyclo-oxygenase are given during menstruation. Many clinical trials (controlled and uncontrolled) have demonstrated the efficacy of NSAIDs such as the fenamates, indole-acetic acid derivatives, and arylpropionic acid derivatives in relieving primary dysmenorrhea as well as IUD-induced dysmenorrhea that is also due to elevated prostaglandin levels. With a few of these NSAIDs, it has been shown that the relief of pain is associated with a significant decrease in menstrual fluid prostaglandin levels. Cumulative data of clinical trials indicate that with the effective NSAIDs, 80 percent of patients with significant primary dysmenorrhea can be adequately relieved. Ongoing studies suggest that in some women, endometrial leukotriene, but not PGF 2a production, is increased. With the official approval and availability of several effective NSAIDs for the specific treatment of primary dysmenorrhea in the United States, women who have primary dysmenorrhea have been greatly relieved and their productivity increased. Primary dysmenorrhea affects 50 percent of postpubescent women and absenteeism among the severe dysmenorrheics has been estimated to cause about 600 million lost working hours or 2 billion dollars annually. Thus, an effective, simple, and safe treatment of primary dysmenorrhea for two to three days during menstruation will not only have a positive economic impact but will also enhance the quality of life. The availability of effective dysmenorrhea therapy with NSAIDs has induced greater expectations of relief by the patient, as well as greater willingness to seek medical help, a more rational approach to patient management by physicians, changes in attitude toward women with primary dysmenorrhea, and the debunking of myths about dysmenorrhea that often have been perpetuated as fact. NSAIDs have undoubtedly revolutionized a painful disorder.
An inter-city analysis of the inequality in black and white male earnings, 1950–70

This paper examines variations in black and white median earnings among males for 79 metropolitan areas over the period 1950 to 1970. By examining aggregated data from smaller areas, the results of this study suggest the literature has overlooked important intra-unit variations at the metropolitan level. Racial earnings are shown to have become slightly more unequal in Standard Metropolitan Statistical Areas over the twenty-year period of this study. The results of this study support the argument that younger blacks are better prepared and more able to secure relatively higher paying jobs in recent years than their predecessors. However, metropolitan industrial specialization, size and growth are found to be important factors working against equality in racial earnings.
Synthesis, structure-property relations and lyotropic behavior of perfluoroalkyl-substituted para-linked aromatic polyamides

A series of perfluoroalkyl-containing para-linked aromatic polyamides based on trifluoromethyl-p-phenylenediamine and a mixture of trifluoromethyl- and pentafluoroethyl-substituted terephthalic acid have been synthesized. The polyamides were prepared by a low temperature solution polycondensation of aromatic diacyl chlorides with N,N'-bis(trimethylsilyl)-substituted aromatic diamines. The influence of these perfluoroalkyl substituents on thermal properties, solubility and lyotropic behavior is discussed. 19 F NMR spectroscopy was utilized for molecular weight determination and for further examination of the polymer structure
Roadside slope design for safety

The design engineer needs objective criteria to aid him in selecting safe combinations of slopes for roadway design and in evaluating alternatives to achieve optimum roadside safety in his design. This paper is concerned with research efforts conducted under this project to provide objective criteria for safe slope combinations and various ditch configurations. The research approach involved simulated traversals of combinations of front and back slope from 3:1 to 6:1 using the TTI version of Calspans Highway Vehicle Object Simulation Model (HVOSM). Curves are presented to aid in evaluation of combinations of slopes forming vee, round, trapezoidal, and rounded trapezoidal ditch configurations having widths to 16 ft (4.9 m). The principal tool used to evaluate or rate the slope combinations at the hinge-point and ditch was the severity index, based on an ellipsoidal mode of failure for tolerance to deceleration forces when these forces are applied to all three axes. The hinge-point region and front slope are also treated. Vehicle rollover does not appear to be a problem for slopes 3:1 or less for standard American-made vehicles.
Effects of stoichiometry in undoped CdTe heteroepilayers on Si

Crystalline CdTe layers have been grown heteroepitaxially onto crystalline Si substrates to establish material parameters needed for advanced photovoltaic (PV) device development and related simulation. These studies suggest that additional availability of the intrinsic anion (i.e., Te) during molecular beam epitaxy deposition can improve structural and optoelectronic quality of the epilayer and the interface between Si substrate and the epilayer. This is seen most notably for thin CdTe epitaxial films (< ∼10 µm). Although these observations are foundationally important, they are also relevant to envisioned high-performance multijunction II–VI alloy PV devices—where thin layers will be required to achieve production costs aligned with market constraints.
Biodiversity and metacommunity structure of animals along altitudinal gradients in tropical montane forests

The study of altitudinal gradients has made enduring contributions to the theoretical and empirical bases of modern biology. Unfortunately, the persistence of these systems and the species that compose them is threatened by land-use change at lower altitudes and by climate change throughout the gradients, but especially at higher altitudes. In this review, we focus on two broad themes that are inspired by altitudinal variation in tropical montane regions: (1) dimensions of biodiversity and (2) metacommunity structure. Species richness generally decreased with increasing altitude, although not always in a linear fashion. Mid-altitudinal peaks in richness were less common than monotonic declines, and altitudinal increases in richness were restricted to amphibian faunas. Moreover, gradients of biodiversity differed among dimensions (taxonomic, phylogenetic and functional) as well as among faunas (bats, rodents, birds) in the tropical Andes, suggesting that species richness is not a good surrogate for dimensions that reflect differences in the function or evolutionary history of species. Tropical montane metacommunities evinced a variety of structures, including nested (bats), Clementsian (rodents, bats, gastropods), quasi-Clementsian (reptiles, amphibians, passerines) and quasi-Gleasonian (gastropods) patterns. Nonetheless, compositional changes were always associated with the ecotones between rain forest and cloud forest, regardless of fauna.
A new record of the freshwater polychaete Namanereis hummelincki (Polychaeta: Nereididae) from epigean waters of Montserrat

The presence of the freshwater polychaete, Namanereis hummelincki (Augener), on Montserrat is documented for the first time. Although collected in the sediment of a freshwater stream, this subterranean species most likely lives in groundwater aquifers. A mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) sequence obtained from this material supports assignment to the genus Namanereis Chamberlin, and morphological analysis supports identification as N. hummelincki. Differences in jaw morphology observed in the Montserrat specimens may indicate long-term separation from other Caribbean island populations.
Implementation of an Internet Weight Loss Program in a Worksite Setting

Background. Worksite wellness programs typically produce modest weight losses. We examined whether an efficacious Internet behavioral weight loss program could be successfully implemented in a worksite setting. Methods. Participants were 75 overweight or obese employees/dependents of a large healthcare system who were given access to a 12-week Internet-based, multicomponent behavioral weight loss program. Assessments occurred at baseline, Month 3 (end of intervention), and Month 6 (follow-up). Results. Retention was excellent (93% at Month 3 and 89% at Month 6). Intent-to-treat analyses demonstrated that participants lost an average (±SE) of kg from baseline to Month 3 and regained kg from Month 3 to Month 6; overall, weight loss from baseline to Month 6 was kg, . Men lost more weight than women, , and individuals who had a college degree or higher lost more weight than those with less education, . Adherence to viewing lessons (8 of 12) and self-monitoring (83% of days) was excellent and significantly associated with weight loss, . Conclusions. An Internet-based behavioral weight management intervention can be successfully implemented in a worksite setting and can lead to clinically significant weight losses. Given the low costs of offering this program, it could easily be widely disseminated.
Targeting regulatory T cells in tumors

Regulatory T (Treg ) cells play a crucial role in maintaining peripheral tolerance and preventing autoimmunity. However, they also represent a major barrier to effective antitumor immunity and immunotherapy. Consequently, there has been considerable interest in developing approaches that can selectively or preferentially target Treg cells in tumors, while not impacting their capacity to maintain peripheral immune homeostasis. In this review, we describe our current understanding of the mechanisms underlying the recruitment, expansion, and suppressive activity of tumor-associated Treg cells, and discuss the approaches used and the challenges encountered in the immunotherapeutic targeting of Treg cells. In addition, we summarize the primary clinical targets and some emerging data on exciting new potential Treg cell-restricted targets. We propose that discovering and understanding mechanisms that are preferentially used by Treg cells within the tumor microenvironment will lead to strategies that selectively target Treg cell-mediated suppression of antitumor immunity while maintaining peripheral immune tolerance.
Rising Government Debt Under Labor Endogeneity

Several advanced economies are heading towards a period of fiscal stress; aging population raises government transfers which in turn increases nominal government debt. Existing literature studies how alternative combinations of monetary and fiscal policies can stabilize real debt in the face of exponentially rising transfers. This paper develops an overlapping generations (OG) model to study the implications of endogenous labor supply on the path of real government debt under alternative policy regimes and finds that switching to an alternative policy regime where monetary authority is passive in the face of rising transfers, even before the economy is at the fiscal limit, might stabilize inflation better than an active monetary regime. The model in the paper has been calibrated to the US economy to demonstrate dynamic effects.
Crisis and Continuity in U.S. Oil Politics, 1965–1980

June 2012 The Journal of American History 177 The 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill has faded rapidly as a focus of public attention, leaving in its wake an important question about energy politics in the United States: What role do crises play in bringing change to the American energy system? This essay considers the relationship between crisis and continuity by examining halting and incomplete efforts to sever the link between oil consumption and American economic growth between 1965 and 1980. In recent years, commentators have looked back to the 1970s and seen in that decade lost opportunities to change the nation’s energy path. Yet those opportunities, upon closer examination, appear fewer and smaller than they seemed at the time and are sometimes described today. To be sure, Congress passed a great deal of legislation and three successive presidents made energy policy a priority of their administrations. New pollution laws, offshore drilling restrictions, financial reforms, and efficiency measures represented significant breaks from the past. At the same time, however, underlying obstacles, including a national commitment to low oil prices and the enduring conflict between energy producers and consumers, blocked more substantial changes. The political context of the 1970s also diluted and distorted national policy making. The rise of a national environmental movement absorbed anger about oil pollution into a broader set of environmental initiatives, reducing the focus on oil. Public fears about national security resulted in policies, such as promoting new domestic production, that targeted dependence on oil from foreign countries only, rather than petroleum dependency more generally. While striving to reduce imports, the United States simultaneously secured inexpensive oil from overseas by deploying its military in the Middle East. As a result of these contradictory impulses, national political leaders only modestly changed the lockstep relationship between oil and the American economy during the 1970s. Assessing the significance of 1970s energy reforms from the vantage point of more than thirty years later risks applying an unrealistically high standard for change. Yet understanding the significant limitations of 1970s reforms still helps illuminate why U.S. energy policy has remained stalled and why crises such as the Deepwater Horizon oil spill are likely insufficient catalysts for large-scale change in energy and climate policy. To Crisis and Continuity in U.S. Oil Politics, 1965–1980
Walter Lowdermilk's Journey: Forester to Land Conservationist

Walter Clay Lowdermilk often described his profession as reading "the records which farmers, nations, and civilizations have written in the land." Few others have belonged to this profession. Certainly few had the inclination, ability, and opportunity to indulge in it as did Lowdermilk. The profession required expertise in many fields of study, but as practiced by Lowdermilk it was not a purely academic exercise. Rather he sought an ambitious objective a permanent agriculture for the world. Through an understanding of human activities in the past and the earth's response, he hoped to "find the basis for a lasting adjustment of human populations to the Earth."' Lowdermilk became a member of the early twentieth century conservation movement in the United States, a movement with a strong scientific bent.2 The scientists held that treatment of natural resources should be in accordance with scientific principles, not propelled by emotionalism or untested theories. Lowdermilk's inquisitiveness, intellect, and foreign travel took him on an unusual professional journey. Veering from forestry, he circled the field of land conservation a field encompassing several sciences and disciplines. In foreign travels Lowdermilk found situations where people's relationship with the land had reached a precarious balance, or an imbalance resulting in famines. Coping with these situations required an integration of knowledge from science, technology, and engineering. Other scientists in the movement had not embraced a multidisciplinary approach. The abundance of natural resources in the United States, and the low population density, had allowed scientists of his era to view solutions to resource problems as a set of discrete alternatives a view which further entrenched their fealty to their chosen disciplines.
Analysis on Epidemiological Trend of Pulmonary Tuberculosis in Chenzhou from 1997 to 2009

Objective To analyze the epidemiological trend of pulmonary tuberculosis(TB)in Chenzhou,and to provide a scientific basis for preventing and controlling TB. Method The epidemiological data of TB in Chenzhou during 13 years were analyzed by means of descriptive epidemiology study. Results The average annual incidence rate of TB was 60.74/100,000 from 1997 to 2009.The incidence rate of TB went up from 40.25/100,000 in 1997 to 84.66/100,000 in 2005,and it fluctuated in a high level around 80.00/100,000 from 2006 to 2009.The average annual incidence rate of TB was 39.40/100,000 during the first five years;however,it was 68.56/100,000 during the second five years and 83.70/100,000 during the last three years.The differences among the three periods were statistically significant(χ2=3,063.40,P0.01).TB patients aged between 20 and 55 years accounted for 63.28%,and the morbidity rate of men to women was 2.67 to 1.The occupational distribution showed that peasants,workers and students were the high-risk vocation,and they occupied 69.09%,7.04% and 3.94% of all the TB cases,respectively. Conclusions The incidence rate of TB was very high in Chenzhou,and it showed an upward trend.It is important to implement modern TB Control Strategy(DOTS Strategy) strictly and strengthen the management of the TB Control Programme.More efforts should be made in the case finding.
Substation Inspection Robot Based on Intelligent Analysis of Cooling System

Three kinds of heat transfer types which are heat transfer,circulated in heat and radiation heat transfer are discussed,analyzing the nature of the different types of heat transfer,studying the relationship between heat transfer and quantity of heat.In combination with the substation intelligent inspection robot structure characteristics,working environment factors such as the characteristics,the comprehensive analysis in the form of heat source inspection robot is done,and how to adopt the corresponding cooling mode according to different forms of heat is analyzed,providing technical solutions for internal structure layout of inspection robot,and protective shell design,at the same time laying theoretical basis for the product research and development,and quantitative analysis basis for production management and project management for future product development.
Portions Wholly Savage: Ongoing Reforms at Home and Abroad

In Lord Ormont and His Aminta (1894), George Meredith depicts a heroine who rebels against her overbearing husband. After Lord Ormont returns to England from India, having lost his commission in the Indian army for using excessive force, Aminta abandons him to live with her lover, Matthew Weyburn, a scholar who promotes internationalism and sexual equality. In this broad outline, the novel seems, like other New Woman novels of the period, to endorse a woman’s bid for freedom within oppressive patriarchal culture. Yet Meredith specifically withholds self-governing sovereignty from Aminta, restricting her agency through a pattern of figures comparing her to India. He seeks to amend the oppressive treatment of the “dark brown-red” heroine not by granting her independence, but rather by reforming the colonial authority to which she is subject (123). The sequence of romantic relationships in the novel corresponds to an idealized historical narrative of colonial relations between England and India. Meredith characterizes Lord Ormont as a military force that first conquers and subjugates Aminta, Matthew as a colonial government concerned to cultivate her intellectual and moral progress. Thus conferring authority upon a newly installed administration committed to “civilizing” the heroine, the novel strategically defers her own independence.
Application of X-ray computed tomography for the characterization of graphite morphology in compact-graphite iron

Abstract In the present study, high-energy X-ray tomography technique was used to characterize the graphite morphology of compact graphite iron. The size, shape, spatial connectivity and structure of different graphite morphologies were examined in 3D using computer-aided image analysis. In addition, nodularity analysis was performed in 3D and the results are compared to the traditional 2D technique. It is found that the variation of nodularity within 2 × 2 × 1.2 mm3 of the sample can be as high as 20 (%) from 2D analysis and the averaged nodularity (2D) is higher than that from 3D analysis. The size distribution of spheroidal graphite shows a tri-modal distribution, which suggests a multi-step nucleation process during solidification.
Probing the Contribution of Nav1.7 and Nav1.8 to Cold Tolerance in Hibernators

Voltage-gated sodium (Nav) channels play an important role in the transduction of sensory signals. Nav1.7 and Nav1.8 are primarily expressed in peripheral sensory neurons, particularly small diameter nociceptors and temperature sensors. Mutations that alter the functional properties of these channels cause severe pain disorders or pain insensitivity in humans.Small depolarizations of the neuronal membrane caused by sensory receptor channels activate Nav channels, which further depolarize the sensory neuron and generate action potentials. Here, we test this general paradigm with regard to cold sensitivity using a model organism that is tolerant to cold. Thirteen-lined ground squirrels (Ictidomys tridecemlineatus ) are able to tolerate very low temperatures during hibernation, but also show resistance to cold in the active state. Electrophysiological recordings of dissociated sensory neurons from active squirrels reveal that both Nav1.7 and Nav1.8 activity is suppressed at cold temperatures. The suppression is manifested as a shift in activation voltage-dependence and a reduction of current density. We propose that these changes regulate neuronal firing in response to cold and thus contribute to a mechanism for cold tolerance. Our results suggest a molecular model of cold resistance at the level of primary afferents.
Many-Body Potentials for Aqueous Be2+ Derived from ab Initio Calculations

An effective three-body potential for the aqueous Be2+ ion has been constructed from a large number of high-level ab initio cluster calculations. The new potential was validated in subsequent molecular dynamics simulations of both gas phase ion–water clusters and bulk liquid. The structures of the first and second solvation shells were studied using radial distribution functions and angular distribution functions. The vibrational spectrum of Be2+ and first shell waters was examined by computing power spectra from the molecular dynamics simulations. The observed bands showed reasonable agreement with experimental spectroscopic frequencies. The potential of mean force for water exchange between the first and second solvation shells was calculated and the energy barrier for exchange was found to have improved agreement with experiment relative to two-body force fields. Examination of the solvation structure near the transition state yielded results consistent with an associative mechanism.
Implicit Definability in Number Theories

In this chapter we consider several ways in which number-theoretic functions and relations can be implicitly defined in number theories. We do not mean elementarily definable as in Chapter 11; the present notions of definability are expressed in terms of theories and not of structures. As we shall see, the notions lead to new equivalents of the notion of recursiveness; see 14.12, 14.20, and 14.26. They also form the basis for diagonalization procedures which produce many undecidable theories (see the next chapter). We shall be concerned with two types of implicit definability. The first, syntactic definability, follows; the second, spectral representability, is given in 14.22.
Enhanced Current Collection in 1.7 eV GaInAsP Solar Cells Grown on GaAs by Metalorganic Vapor Phase Epitaxy

Quaternary GaInAsP solar cells with a bandgap of ∼1.7 eV offer an attractive Al-free alternative to AlGaAs solar cells for integration in next generation of III–V multijunction solar cells with five or more junctions. Development of a high quality 1.7 eV solar cell is also highly sought for III–V/Si tandem solar cells. In this work, we systematically investigate the impact of varying base thicknesses and doping concentrations on the carrier collection and performance of 1.7 eV GaInAsP solar cells. The photoresponse of these cells is found to be very sensitive to p-type zinc doping concentration in the base layer. Prototype 1.7 eV GaInAsP n-i-p solar cell designs are demonstrated that leverage enhanced depletion width as an effective method to achieve peak quantum efficiency exceeding 90%. We also show the importance of optimal i-layer thickness as a critical parameter to reduce the drop in fill-factor (FF) due to field-aided collection. Furthermore, we demonstrate substantial improvement in the cell performance when the GaInAsP base layer is grown at 650 °C instead of 600 °C. The best GaInAsP solar cell ( Eg ∼ 1.65 eV) in this study achieved J SC of 21.1 mA/cm2, V OC of 1.18 V, FF of 83.8%, and an efficiency of 20.8 ± 1% under AM1.5D spectrum (21.5 ± 1% under AM1.5G spectrum). These results highlight the potential of Al-free GaInAsP solar cells for integration in the next generation of III–V multijunction solar cells.
Negative Parental Disclosures as Mediators of Coparental Communication and Relational Outcomes in Parent-Child Relationships

ABSTRACTThis study explored the associations among perceptions of coparental communication (i.e., supportive and antagonistic), parents’ negative disclosures, and relational outcomes in parent-child relationships (i.e., closeness and satisfaction). Participants included 241 young adult children who completed online surveys. Results indicate that parents’ negative disclosures to their children mediated the associations between both dimensions of coparental communication and both relational outcomes. Indirect effects of supportive and antagonistic coparental communication through mothers’ negative disclosures emerged for children’s closeness with mothers, but not satisfaction. Indirect effects of both forms of coparental communication through mothers’ negative disclosures also emerged for children’s closeness and satisfaction with fathers. Ultimately, the results underscore the importance of disclosure as an explanatory mechanism for the associations between coparental communication patterns and relational ...
Factors analysis on the physical properties of the low-temperature SOC of memory cell characteristics

In recent year, the thermal effect has become a critical issue on the operation of memory cell. As heating time or temperature increases, the performances of memory cells are degraded due to its low thermal stabilities. Therefore, processes working at low temperature are necessary not to hurt the thermal stability. In this paper, we introduced LTSOC (Low Temperature Spin-On Carbon), which is believed to minimize the thermal loads because its cross-linker works at low temperature. Also, it would be important to fulfill the needs for the other properties of SOC like filling ability and etching resistance. So, we verified all these basic characteristics with proper resist and etching processes by getting good final pattern profile. As a result, LT-SOC is suggested for etching barrier without affecting on cell operation of memory devices.
Dual-functioning peptides discovered by phage display increase the magnitude and specificity of BMSC attachment to mineralized biomaterials.

Design of biomaterials for cell-based therapies requires presentation of specific physical and chemical cues to cells, analogous to cues provided by native extracellular matrices (ECM). We previously identified a peptide sequence with high affinity towards apatite (VTKHLNQISQSY, VTK) using phage display. The aims of this study were to identify a human MSC-specific peptide sequence through phage display, combine it with the apatite-specific sequence, and verify the specificity of the combined dual-functioning peptide to both apatite and human bone marrow stromal cells. In this study, a combinatorial phage display identified the cell binding sequence (DPIYALSWSGMA, DPI) which was combined with the mineral binding sequence to generate the dual peptide DPI-VTK. DPI-VTK demonstrated significantly greater binding affinity (1/KD) to apatite surfaces compared to VTK, phosphorylated VTK (VTKphos), DPI-VTKphos, RGD-VTK, and peptide-free apatite surfaces (p < 0.01), while significantly increasing hBMSC adhesion strength (τ50, p < 0.01). MSCs demonstrated significantly greater adhesion strength to DPI-VTK compared to other cell types, while attachment of MC3T3 pre-osteoblasts and murine fibroblasts was limited (p < 0.01). MSCs on DPI-VTK coated surfaces also demonstrated increased spreading compared to pre-osteoblasts and fibroblasts. MSCs cultured on DPI-VTK coated apatite films exhibited significantly greater proliferation compared to controls (p < 0.001). Moreover, early and late stage osteogenic differentiation markers were elevated on DPI-VTK coated apatite films compared to controls. Taken together, phage display can identify non-obvious cell and material specific peptides to increase human MSC adhesion strength to specific biomaterial surfaces and subsequently increase cell proliferation and differentiation. These new peptides expand biomaterial design methodology for cell-based regeneration of bone defects. This strategy of combining cell and material binding phage display derived peptides is broadly applicable to a variety of systems requiring targeted adhesion of specific cell populations, and may be generalized to the engineering of any adhesion surface.
Solvable Double-Well Potential Models

Great attention has been paid to constructing exactly solvable double-well models. In this paper the Darboux transformation together with a new integral transformation are used to transform the Weber equation. By this means, solvable double-well potential models are obtained for both the Schrődinger equation and the Fokker-Planck equation.
The Molecular Physiopathogenesis of Islet Amyloidosis

Human islet amyloid polypeptide or amylin (hA) is a 37-amino acid peptide hormone produced and co-secreted with insulin by pancreatic β-cells. Under physiological conditions, hA regulates a broad range of biological processes including insulin release and slowing of gastric emptying, thereby maintaining glucose homeostasis. However, under the pathological conditions associated with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), hA undergoes a conformational transition from soluble random coil monomers to alpha-helical oligomers and insoluble β-sheet amyloid fibrils or amyloid plaques. There is a positive correlation between hA oligomerization/aggregation, hA toxicity, and diabetes progression. Because the homeostatic balance between hA synthesis, release, and uptake is lost in diabetics and hA aggregation is a hallmark of T2DM, this chapter focuses on the biophysical and cell biology studies investigating molecular mechanisms of hA uptake, trafficking, and degradation in pancreatic cells and its relevance to h’s toxicity. We will also discuss the regulatory role of endocytosis and proteolytic pathways in clearance of toxic hA species. Finally, we will discuss potential pharmacological approaches for specific targeting of hA trafficking pathways and toxicity in islet β-cells as potential new avenues toward treatments of T2DM patients.
Not-So-Smart Blockchain Contracts and Artificial Responsibility

The first high-profile decentralized autonomous organization formed in 2016. Called “TheDAO,” it used smart contracts on a bitcoin-style blockchain to allow strangers to come together online to vote on and invest in venture capital proposals. Newspapers raved about the $160 million it quickly raised, even though it purported to have no central human authority, including no managers, executives, or board of directors. Technologists have grand plans for smart contracts and autonomous organizations. Rather than staying at traditional hotels with elaborate human staff, we may pay for hotel rooms using bitcoin (or another cryptocurrency) which will automatically unlock the room door. If the toilet breaks, the room itself will contract with a plumber to fix it. Similarly, a smart contract may allow us to hire a self-driving car. The car will not only drive passengers around but arrange for its own routine maintenance. TheDAO itself, however, is now a cautionary tale. A bug in its smart contract code was exploited to drain more than $50 million in value. Some purists denounced efforts to mitigate the problem, arguing that the alleged hacker simply withdrew money in accordance with the organization’s agreed-upon contractual terms in the form of computer code. Since the “code is the contract” in their minds, the alleged hacker did nothing wrong. I defend two related claims. First, contra the purists, I argue that the code does not reflect the entirety of the parties’ agreement, and so the “code is the contract” slogan does not resolve whether TheDAO exploitation should have been mitigated. I take no position on whether mitigation was appropriate except to say that the matter depends on many considerations aside from smart contract code itself. Second, I point to a broader danger lurking in the code-is-the-contract view. TheDAO had tremendous “artificial responsibility” in that we gave it considerable control that couldn’t be easily revoked or reined in. Not-so-smart contracts in the future may prove even more dangerous: hotel guests might be locked out of their rooms, and self-driving cars might drive off bridges. I argue that unadulterated commitment to the code-is-the-contract slogan increases artificial responsibility and its associated risks.
Age Screening of Deep-Sea Corals and the Record of Deep North Atlantic Circulation Change at 15.4KA

Uranium rich, density banded deep-sea corals are a new archive of deep ocean behavior on decadal time scales. Large numbers of samples can be rapidly and inexpensively screened for their ages using an Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) technique. With this new method, 300 samples have been sorted into 5,000 year age bins and several dozen of these are useful for coupled precise uranium series and radiocarbon dating. Together with Cd/Ca data from a single coral’s skeleton, these coupled ages show that there was a rapid and large shift in the deep circulation of the western north Atlantic at 15.4ka and 1,800m depth. This deep-sea coral signal, also found in sediment records from around the Atlantic, leads the Bolling/Allerod warming in the Greenland ice cores by 840 ± 340 years. Coupled ages from the two dating methods in the corals also constrain the southern source deep waters to be about 600 years older than their initial value just prior to 15.4ka. This result is in contrast to the modern Atlantic where western basin deep waters are on average 100 years old or less.
Assuring software reliability while using web services and commercial products

FAA's recent large Ada based En-Route Automation Modernization (ERAM) program has reintegrated many disparate system components into a modern composite architecture. The program must now deliver on its promise to facilitate the evolution of the U.S. National Airspace System (NAS) by integrating Next Generation Air Traffic Control (ATC) capabilities starting with System Wide Information Management (SWIM), Automatic Dependent Surveillance (ADS-Broadcast) and the En Route Data Communications (Data Comm). One of the major challenges is to implement and leverage more open, flexible interfaces made possible by web service technologies and to ensure reliability and security of high performance data and communications services despite increased reliance on less trusted commercial products. The paper focuses on maturity, problems and lessons learned during the development of the initial SWIM as a Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) extension to the En Route Automation Modernization ERAM System.
Loewner’s Theorem for General Open Sets

In this chapter, we discuss versions of Loewner’s theorem that replace (a, b) by a more general open subset of \({\mathbb {R}}\). Let \(\Omega \subset {\mathbb {R}}\) be an open subset of \({\mathbb {R}}\).
Detailed Analysis of Neutropenic Risk Factors in Patients with Prostate Cancer Treated with Chemotherapy.

Background: Although thousands of patients (Pts) receive chemotherapy every year in the United States, only few retrospective studies have been done to address the risk factors for chemotherapy (CT) induced neutropenia in patients with cancer. The data in androgen-independent prostate cancer (AIPC) patients is extremely scarce. We decided to perform a retrospective analysis of patients with metastatic AIPC treated with chemotherapy in an open phase II clinical trial looking for predictive factors for neutropenia. Methods: We reviewed the records of all patients with AIPC who completed at least 2 cycles of CT with cyclophosphamide 50 mg/m 2 , etoposide 50 mg/m 2 and estramustine 280 mg orally every night for 14 days out of a 28 day-cycle. We divided the patients into 2 groups according to neutropenia grade 3–4 (Group 1) versus 0–2 (Group 2). Risk factors reviewed included age, number of organs involved with metastases, number of bone metastasis, prior radiotherapy (RT) to the prostate/pelvis, prior number of areas treated with palliative RT, prior CT regimens, baseline PSA, absolute neutrophil count (ANC) and ECOG performance status (PS). Results: See table and figures. Conclusions: Average age and PSA were the only risk factors that were different between the patients who developed severe neutropenia and the ones who did not, albeit not statistically significant. Studies with a larger sample size may detect clinically and statistically significant differences.
Low Serum Albumin Correlates With Adverse Events Following Surgery for Male Urinary Incontinence: Analysis of the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Project.

Abstract OBJECTIVE To investigate the incidence and risk factors associated with artificial urinary sphincter (AUS) and male urethral sling placement (MUS), revision, and removal. METHODS We identified CPT codes of patients undergoing AUS and sling placement, revision, and removal in the American College of Surgeons National Surgery Quality Improvement Program database. Bivariate analysis was used to compare preoperative parameters against adverse events of interest (Length of stay (LOS) >1, readmission, reoperation, other postoperative complications, and death). Variables that were significant or neared significance (P RESULTS About 2792 patients underwent surgical treatment for stress urinary incontinence in the American College of Surgeons National Surgery Quality Improvement Program database from 2008 to 2016. Increased length of stay was the most common adverse event (12.7%), followed by other postoperative complications (4.9%), readmission (4%), reoperation (2.3%), and death (0.3%). We noted an association between perioperative adverse events and preoperative hypoalbuminemia. Patients with preoperative hypoalbuminemia compared with patients with normal preoperative serum albumin had an increase predicted probability of LOS >1 day (42% vs 10%), readmission (10% vs 4%), reoperation (6% vs 2%), other postoperative complications (18% vs 4%) after adjusting for other factors. CONCLUSION Surgical treatment for stress urinary incontinence is well tolerated with acceptable levels of perioperative adverse events. Low serum albumin (
Zinc Deficiency-induced Hypogeusia in a Patient with Refractory Iron-deficiency Anemia: A Case Report.

Zinc deficiency is a relatively common condition in various American populations but is frequently unrecognized and under-diagnosed. It typically presents with nonspecific symptoms, including lethargy, immune dysfunction, dermatitis, diarrhea, and decreased taste sensation (hypogeusia). Zinc deficiency often occurs concurrently with iron deficiency and has been linked to more severe clinical manifestations of iron deficiency anemia. We describe a 66-year-old man who presented with weakness and fatigue and was found to have persistent iron-deficiency anemia attributable at least in part to malnutrition caused by zinc deficiency-induced hypogeusia. The hypogeusia rapidly improved and nutritional intake normalized with zinc supplementation.