cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of residual fuel oil standard reference materials as trace element standards

National Bureau of Standards residual fuel oil Standard Reference Materials, SRM 1619, 1620a, 1634a, and former SRM 1634 were analyzed for 20 trace elements by instrumental neutron activation analysis to determine whether these materials are suitable trace element standards for elements other than the 6 elements certified in SRM 1634a. The SRM 1634a is a suitable standard for Ni, V, Se, Na, Zn, As, Cr, Fe, Ce, Sm and La but Co, Ba, Nd, Cs, Eu, Sc, and Sb appear to be heterogeneously distributed and are probably present in mineral particulates. The SRM 1619 is a convenient standard for V and for low Ni content oils, but SRM 1620a does not appear to be a suitable standard for any trace element investigated.
Two-dimensional echocardiographic recognition of the right aortic arch

A mirror-image right aortic arch (RAA) is frequently associated with congenital heart disease. The chest roentgenogram with or without contrast remains the noninvasive diagnostic method of choice. While 2-dimensional (2-D) echocardiography has been used to elucidate the left aortic arch (LAA), detailed description of the technique for RAA has not been reported. This study was pursued to delineate the 2-D echocardiographic approach to the patient with RAA. Twenty-seven patients in this study had LAA (Group A) and 27 had RAA (Group B). The 2-D echocardiographic examinations concentrated on the standard suprasternal long-axis (SSNL), parasternal long and short axes, and the subcostal abdominal short-axis views. When the SSNL failed to demonstrate LAA, an alternate position for RAA was utilized. The SSNL correctly identified the LAA in all Group A patients, but in Group B it located only the ascending aorta. This simulated an interrupted aortic arch anomaly. Transducer realignment to position 2 confirmed RAA in all Group B patients. In the parasternal axes, the left descending aorta was detected posterior to the atrioventricular groove or the left ventricle in every Group A patient but in no Group B patient. The descending aorta was found to the left of the spine on the abdominal short-axis view in both groups. The 2-D echocardiographic technique proposed for RAA is simple, rapid, and definitive. It should be pursued whenever LAA cannot be demonstrated, especially in children suspected of having a congenital heart defect. Anticipation of RAA can expedite chest and cardiovascular surgery.
Current perspective regarding adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities accessing computer technology.

Purpose: This article was written to summarize current efforts in the research community in regards to assisting adults with severe developmental and intellectual disabilities to access a computer. Method: A literature search was conducted to determine contemporary research that has been conducted to enable computer use in persons with significant developmental disabilities utilizing databases such as ERIC or PubMed. Results: Although various assistive technology devices and interventions have been developed for persons with all types of disabilities, a lack of research into methods to help persons with severe developmental disabilities access a computer is evident. This perpetuates the underutilization of computers in this population such as those attending day programs or residing in residential facilities. Conclusions: Persons with developmental disabilities, particularly adults, are often overlooked and are not thought to be capable of using a personal computer. Though communities have endeavored to f...
Characterization of High Oxygen:Tetraethylorthosilicate Ratio Plasma‐Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposited Films

An investigation was conducted to characterize film properties of oxygen-rich tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS) films deposited by single-wafer plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition. By increasing the oxygen :TEOS gas ratio from 1 :1 to 4 :1 and maintaining a reduced gas flow rate, undoped silicon glass (USG) and phosphorus-doped silicon glass (PSG) films exhibited a lower fixed charge, increased Si-O bonding sites, higher compressive film stresses, and higher refractive indexes. The USG and PSG deposition parameters were optimized to achieve a film nonuniformity of <2.7% (1σ) and deposition rates of 1500 and 3100 A/min, respectively.
Sexual Assault Programming on College Campuses: Using Social Psychological Belief and Behavior Change Principles to Improve Outcomes

Sexual assault programming is often delivered without a theoretical framework and does not typically utilize applicable research that could help to induce change among participants. Such interventions may target male and/or female students, although the focus of this review is on men. It is important to examine these programs in light of current theoretical knowledge and empirical findings from the social psychological attitudinal and behavioral change literatures. To this end, current programming efforts and their limitations are briefly reviewed. Three social psychological theories targeting belief and behavior change (i.e., social norms, hypocrisy salience, decision, and deterrents) are discussed and their application to such programming is elaborated. Given this information, recommendations for the research and practice of such interventions are provided.
Formaldehyde and epigenetic alterations: MicroRNA changes in the nasal epithelium of nonhuman primates

Background: Formaldehyde is an air pollutant present in both indoor and outdoor atmospheres. Because of its ubiquitous nature, it is imperative to understand the mechanisms underlying formaldehyde-...
Excess Risk Premia of Asian Banks

This paper develops a framework for gauging the risks of emerging market banks by using stock market data. Employing a multifactor asset pricing model that allows for time-varying risk premia, we find the presence of large excess risk premia on Asian bank stocks, especially in those markets affected by the Asian financial crisis. We find that the excess risk premia appear to be negatively related to the degree of economic freedom of a country but positively related to its corruption level. Thus, our findings are consistent with the view that crony capitalism in Asia may have distorted the market mechanism or the systematic risk exposure of banks. This suggests that the excess risk premium provides useful information on risk exposure for opaque banking systems where quality accounting information is not available.
Automated measurement of the refractive index of fluids

A method for automating refractive-index measurements of fluids has been developed. An encoded rotation stage and position-sensitive detector enable automated reading of angles typically acquired by visual means. Two tunable lasers are used to obtain index measurements at ten discrete wavelengths across the visible spectrum. This method has been implemented on a Hilger-Chance refractometer from which the bulk refractive-index values for various transparent fluids have been measured. An index measurement accuracy of better than one part in the fourth decimal place for distilled water and a few parts in the fourth decimal place for higher index fluids is obtained.
Missionary Positions: Reading the Bible in Forster's “The Life to Come”

E. M. Forster's short story "The Life to Come" intersects the concerns of both his colonial fiction (A Passage to India) and his homosexual fiction (Maurice). The confrontation in the story between a native chief and a missionary serves initially to explore the differences between permissive and prohibitional readings of the Bible, which reflects Forster's dislike of restrictive English morals. However, contextualizing the story within the project of translating Vedic scripture that attended British imperialism near the turn of the century demonstrates that Forster, like his contemporary and mentor Edward Carpenter, found within colonialism access to a mode of thinking that ultimately questioned the validity of either permission or prohibition as foundations for political argumentation.
Calibrating disaggregate economic models of agricultural production and water management

This paper describes calibration methods for models of agricultural production and water use in which economic variables can directly interact with hydrologic network models or other biophysical system models. We also describe and demonstrate the use of systematic calibration checks at different stages for efficient debugging of models. The central model is the California Statewide Agricultural Production Model (SWAP), a Positive Mathematical Programming (PMP) model of California irrigated agriculture. We outline the six step calibration procedure and demonstrate the model with an empirical policy analysis. Two new techniques are included compared with most previous PMP-based models: exponential PMP cost functions and Constant Elasticity of Substitution (CES) regional production functions. We then demonstrate the use of this type of disaggregated production model for policy analysis by evaluating potential water transfers under drought conditions. The analysis links regional production functions with a water supply network. The results show that a more flexible water market allocation can reduce revenue losses from drought up to 30%. These results highlight the potential of self-calibrated models in policy analysis. While the empirical application is for a California agricultural and environmental water system, the approach is general and applicable to many other situations and locations.
Visual discrimination and avoidance behavior in rats with cingulate cortical lesions.

Abstract Rats with lesions of the cingulate cortex showed no deficits in the postoperative retention or subsequent reversal of a visual discrimination task when either water or shock was used to reinforce behavior. However, experimental animals showed significantly poorer avoidance performance under shock reinforcement than did controls.
Early release of the neurovascular bundles and optical loupe magnification lead to improved and earlier return of potency following radical retropubic prostatectomy.

ABSTRACT Purpose: Since 1999 we have made 2 modifications in the nerve sparing approach to radical retropubic prostatectomy (RRP), namely early release of the neurovascular bundles (NVBs) before division of the posterior membranous urethra and the use of 2.5× optical loupe magnification during NVB preservation. We retrospectively reviewed our results. Materials and Methods: Between January 1998 and August 2003, 507 men underwent RRP for prostate cancer. All surgeries were performed by a single surgeon (CBB). Bilateral nerve sparing procedures were performed in 313 men. Modifications were introduced sequentially to the surgical technique and potency rates were compared to those of patients operated on before these modifications. Patients were divided into groups based on the technique of nerve sparing as group 1 (standard release of the NVB), group 2 (early release of the NVB) and group 3 (early release with loupe magnification). All patients were followed for a minimum of 5 months. Postoperative potency rates were compared among the 3 groups. Results: Mean followup was 15.9 months. Mean patient age was 56.2 years. The overall potency rate among groups 1, 2 and 3 was 40.5%, 54.8% and 66.1%, respectively. Mean time to potency was 10.7, 8.5 and 2.0 months, respectively. Significant differences were found in the overall potency rate among all groups (p Conclusions: Minor modifications in nerve sparing technique lead to improved postoperative potency rates and decreased time to potency in men undergoing RRP.
Enzymatic shot-gun 5'-phosphorylation and 3'-sister phosphate exchange: a two-dimensional thin-layer chromatographic technique to measure DNA deoxynucleotide modification.

Abstract DNA adducts occur through environmental, therapeutic, dietary, oxygen stress, and aging processes. A modified thin-layer chromatographic (TLC) technique can assess base composition and adduct formation. This requires labeling DNA by “shot-gun” 5'-phosphorylation of representative 32 P-α-deoxyribonucleotide monophosphates. Subsequent 3'-monophosphate digest “sister exchanges” a radioactive 32 PO 4 2− to the neighboring cold nucleotide. Separation in two-dimensional polyethyleneimine-cellulose TLC is carried out in acetic acid, (NH 4 ) 2 SO 4 , and (NH 4 )HSO 4 . The technique was applied to control DNA, cold substition of dUMP, methylation, depurination, and pBR322. This technique quantifies low-molecular-mass adducts and DNA integrity both in vivo and in vitro .
Direct and semidirect aerosol effects of southern African biomass burning aerosol

[1] Direct and semidirect radiative effects of biomass burning aerosols from southern African fires during July–October are investigated using 20 year runs of the Community Atmospheric Model (CAM) coupled to a slab ocean model. Aerosol optical depth is constrained using observations in clear skies from Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and for aerosol layers above clouds from Cloud Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observation (CALIPSO). Over the ocean, where the aerosol layers are primarily located above cloud, negative top of atmosphere (TOA) semidirect radiative effects associated with increased low cloud cover dominate over a weaker positive all‐sky direct radiative effect (DRE). In contrast, over the land where the aerosols are often below or within cloud layers, reductions in cloud liquid water path (LWP) lead to a positive semidirect radiative effect that dominates over a near‐zero DRE. Over the ocean, the cloud response can be understood as a response to increased lower tropospheric stability (LTS) which is caused both by radiative heating in overlying layers and surface cooling in response to direct aerosol forcing. The marine cloud changes are robust to changes in the cloud parameterization (removal of the hard‐wired dependence of clouds on LTS), suggesting that they are physically realistic. Over land, decreased LWP is consistent with weaker convection driven by increased static stability. Over the entire region the overall TOA radiative effect from the biomass burning aerosols is almost zero due to opposing effects over the land and ocean. However, the surface forcing is strongly negative, which leads to a reduction in precipitation and also a reduction in sensible heat flux. The former is primarily realized through reductions in convective precipitation on both the southern and northern flanks of the convective precipitation region spanning the equatorial rain forest and the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) in the southern Sahel. The changes are consistent with the low‐level aerosol‐forced cooling pattern. The results highlight the importance of semidirect radiative effects and precipitation responses for determining the climatic effects of aerosols in the African region.
The Orientation and Molecular Movement of a K+ Channel Voltage-Sensing Domain

Voltage-gated channels operate through the action of a voltage-sensing domain (membrane segments S1-S4) that controls the conformation of gates located in the pore domain (membrane segments S5-S6). Recent structural studies on the bacterial K(v)AP potassium channel have led to a new model of voltage sensing in which S4 lies in the lipid at the channel periphery and moves through the membrane as a unit with a portion of S3. Here we describe accessibility probing and disulfide scanning experiments aimed at determining how well the K(v)AP model describes the Drosophila Shaker potassium channel. We find that the S1-S3 helices have one end that is externally exposed, S3 does not undergo a transmembrane motion, and S4 lies in close apposition to the pore domain in the resting and activated state.
The effects of a videotape preparation package in reducing children's arousal and increasing cooperation during cardiac catheterization.

Abstract Recent research has demonstrated the effectiveness of filmed modeling in preparing children for hospitalization and surgery. The purpose of the present investigation was to investigate the effectiveness of filmed modeling in preparing children for cardiac catheterization, a procedure which differs in several respects from previously examined situations. Twenty-four children received the preparation routinely provided to such patients either alone, in combination with an attention placebo control or in combination with the filmed modeling preparation. Group differences were not obtained for type of preparation; however, several demographic and self-report measures were found to be predictive of behavior and ratings while hospitalized and during the catheterization itself. Possible reasons for these findings are discussed.
On what will be: reply to Westphal

Jonathan Westphal's recent paper attempts to reconcile the view that propositions about the future can be true or false now with the idea that the future cannot now be real. I attempt to show that Westphal's proposal is either unoriginal or unsatisfying. It is unoriginal if it is just the well-known eternalist solution. It is unsatisfying if it is instead making use of a peculiar, tensed truthmaking principle.
The Celluloid Teacher

Abstract Though the filmed portrayal of teachers can be inspiring or humorously satirical, the stereotype offered in those films might tell us much about how the larger culture views traditionally trained teachers and how schools can be reformed. It is argued here that Hollywood's emphasis on the need for outsiders to come in and rescue students from teachers and on the power of personality over pedagogy is potentially damaging to the image of the profession.
Parenteral nutrition and human gastrointestinal tumor protein metabolism.

UNLABELLED We determined the tissue free amino acid distribution in human gastrointestinal tumors and the adjacent normal tissue in two groups of patients. The patients were maintained on dietary control for 7--10 days prior to the surgical removal of the tumor. Patients in Group I ate the house diet ad lib. Their nutritional intake was about half their normal requirement. The second group received parenteral nutrition. Both groups were equally malnourished at the beginning of the period of nutritional control. Group I were 88.2 +/- 7.8% of ideal body weight and Group II, 90.6 +/- 13.8% of ideal body weight. The net calorie and nitrogen intake was about double that of Group I. Tissue-free amino acid analyses were done by gas chromatography. RESULTS There was a statistically significant increase in the essential amino acids in the tumor tissue relative to the normal tissue in Group II, in contrast to the orally fed Group I where no discernible differences were found.
Review: prophylactic use of Vitamin D reduces falls in older persons.

Source Citation Bischoff-Ferrari HA, Dawson-Hughes B, Willett WC, et al. Effect of vitamin D on falls: a meta-analysis. JAMA. 2004;291:1999-2006. 15113819
Examining Knowledge, Attitudes, and Beliefs About Depression Among Latino Adults With Type 2 Diabetes

PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to explore knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs about depression among Latinos with type 2 diabetes. METHODS Eight 90-minute focus groups were conducted, each moderated by a bilingual, bicultural woman. Participants included 45 self-identified Latino adults with diabetes. Discussion topics included diabetes management, perceived control, emotional barriers, conceptualization of depression, and help-seeking behavior. Themes pertinent to depression and emotional health were identified using a combined deductive/inductive approach and an iterative process of consensus coding. RESULTS Participants' mean age was 40 years, 44% were male, and most were born in Mexico. The mean time with diabetes was 6.5 years. The primary theme identified was the bidirectional relationship between emotional health and diabetes. Diagnosis of diabetes led to feelings of hopelessness and upset, while difficulty with diabetes management led to feelings of anxiety and depression. Participants felt that being "stressed out" or sad directly affected their blood sugar. Participants described factors that influence the relationship between emotions and diabetes, including family and societal stressors, and they reported little discussion of depression with providers. Depression and emotional health are closely associated with diabetes in the minds of these Latino adults. It is important to ask patients with diabetes about their emotional health, to screen for depression, and to elicit preferences about treatment when indicated.
The Norwich Grocers’ play and its three cyclic counterparts: Four English mystery plays on the fall of man 1

(1981). The Norwich Grocers’ play and its three cyclic counterparts: Four English mystery plays on the fall of man. Studia Neophilologica: Vol. 53, No. 1, pp. 77-89.
How Can Hydrophobic Association Be Enthalpy Driven

Hydrophobic association is often recognized as being driven by favorable entropic contributions. Here, using explicit solvent molecular dynamics simulations we investigate binding in a model hydrophobic receptor−ligand system which appears, instead, to be driven by enthalpy and opposed by entropy. We use the temperature dependence of the potential of mean force to analyze the thermodynamic contributions along the association coordinate. Relating such contributions to the ongoing changes in system hydration allows us to demonstrate that the overall binding thermodynamics is determined by the expulsion of disorganized water from the receptor cavity. Our model study sheds light on the solvent-induced driving forces for receptor−ligand association of general, transferable relevance for biological systems with poorly hydrated binding sites.
Properties of PC4 and an RNA polymerase II complex in directing activated and basal transcription in vitro

A human RNA polymerase II (pol II) complex was isolated from a HeLa-derived cell line that conditionally expresses an epitope-tagged RPB9 subunit of human pol II. The isolated FLAG-tagged pol II complex (f:pol II) contains a subset of general transcription factors but is devoid of TFIID and TFIIA. In conjunction with TATA-binding protein (TBP) or TFIID, f:pol II is able to mediate both basal and activated transcription by Gal4-VP16 when a transcriptional coactivator PC4 is also provided. Interestingly, PC4, in the absence of a transcriptional activator, actually functions as a repressor to inhibit basal transcription. Remarkably, TBP is able to mediate activator function in this transcription system. The presence of TBP-associated factors, however, helps overcome PC4 repression and further enhance the level of activation mediated by TBP. Alleviation of PC4 repression can also be achieved by preincubation of the transcriptional components with the DNA template. Sarkosyl disruption of preinitiation complex formation further illustrates that PC4 can only inhibit transcription prior to the assembly of a functional preinitiation complex. These results suggest that PC4 represses basal transcription by preventing the assembly of a functional preinitiation complex, but it has no effect on the later steps of the transcriptional process.
2009 Special Issue: Nonlinear modeling of neural population dynamics for hippocampal prostheses

Developing a neural prosthesis for the damaged hippocampus requires restoring the transformation of population neural activities performed by the hippocampal circuitry. To bypass a damaged region, output spike trains need to be predicted from the input spike trains and then reinstated through stimulation. We formulate a multiple-input, multiple-output (MIMO) nonlinear dynamic model for the input-output transformation of spike trains. In this approach, a MIMO model comprises a series of physiologically-plausible multiple-input, single-output (MISO) neuron models that consist of five components each: (1) feedforward Volterra kernels transforming the input spike trains into the synaptic potential, (2) a feedback kernel transforming the output spikes into the spike-triggered after-potential, (3) a noise term capturing the system uncertainty, (4) an adder generating the pre-threshold potential, and (5) a threshold function generating output spikes. It is shown that this model is equivalent to a generalized linear model with a probit link function. To reduce model complexity and avoid overfitting, statistical model selection and cross-validation methods are employed to choose the significant inputs and interactions between inputs. The model is applied successfully to the hippocampal CA3-CA1 population dynamics. Such a model can serve as a computational basis for the development of hippocampal prostheses.
Fast motion vector estimation by using spatiotemporal correlation of motion field

Motion vector (MV) estimation plays an important role in motion compensated video coding. In this research, we first examine a stochastic MV model which enables us to exploit the strong correlation of MVs in both spatial and temporal domains in a given image sequence. Then, a new fast stochastic block matching algorithm (SBMA) is proposed. The basic idea is to select a set of good MV candidates and choose from them the one which satisfies a certain spatio-temporal correlation rule. The proposed algorithm reduces matching operations to about 2% of that of the full block matching algorithm (FBMA) with only 2% increase of the sum of absolute difference (SAD) in motion compensated residuals. The excellent performance of the new algorithm is supported by extensive experimental results.© (1995) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Earth Strain Measurements with a Laser Interferometer: An 800-meter Michelson interferometer monitors the earth's strain field on the surface of the ground.

The development of the laser as a source of coherent optical radiation has permitted the application of interferometric techniques to the problem of earth strain measurement. By use of this technology, an 800-meter laser strain meter has been developed which operates above the surface of the ground. The instrument has a strain least count of 10-10, requires no calibration, and has a flat and linear response from zero frequency to 1 megahertz. The linearity and large dynamic range of the laser strain meter offer unprecedented versatility in the recording of seismic strains associated with earthquakes and nuclear blasts. The extremely wide bandwidth opens new areas of the strain spectrum to investigation. A key to the understanding of the state of stress of the earth and the association phenomona of tectonic activity and earthquakes is a knowledge of the spatial distribution of the earth strain. Measurements of secular strain and earth tides indicate that, even at these long periods, surface strain measurements are valid representations of earth strain at depth. The LSM thus provides a means of making crustal strain measurements at points selected for maximum geophysical interest and ultimately allow the mapping of strain field distributions.
Sex-specific differences in coronary artery disease risk factors, evaluation, and treatment: Have they been adequately evaluated?

Abstract Women constitute a significant, growing proportion of patients at risk for acute coronary events. Analyses of the pathophysiology, prevention, diagnosis, and management of coronary disease in women have been hampered in that most clinical trials have studied predominantly male populations. For example, most diagnostic studies have not accounted for sex-specific differences in prevalence of disease or for confounding factors. Disease management in women has also been guided by outcomes data from mostly male populations. Although a review shows no sex-specific differences in relative risk reduction from treatment, it remains possible that differences exist, given the under-representation of women in trials. Including adequate numbers of women in future trials is important yet costly, because of the larger total sample size required. Nevertheless, continued inquiry is required to answer the questions raised by current investigations.
Instruction generation and regularity extraction for reconfigurable processors

The increasing demand for complex and specialized embedded hardware must be met by processors which are optimized for performance, yet are also extremely flexible. In our work, we explore the tradeoff between flexibility and performance in the domain of reconfigurable processor design. Specifically, we seek to identify regularly occurring, computation-heavy patterns in an application or set of applications. These patterns become candidates for hard-logic implementation, potentially embedded in the flexible reconfigurable fabric as special optimized instructions. In this work we present an extension to previous work in instruction generation: an algorithm that identifies parallel templates. We discuss the advantages of parallel templates, and prove the correctness of our algorithm. We introduce an All-Pairs Common Slack Graph (APCSG) as an effective tool for parallel template generation. Finally, we demonstrate the effectiveness of our algorithm on several applicationse dataflow graphs, reducing latency on average by 51.98%, without unreasonably increasing chip area.
Etomica: An object‐oriented framework for molecular simulation

We describe the design of an object-oriented library of software components that are suitable for constructing simulations of systems of interacting particles. The emphasis of the discussion is on the general design of the components and how they interact, and less on details of the programming interface or its implementation. Example code is provided as an aid to understanding object-oriented programming structures and to demonstrate how the framework is applied.
Classification of the comtrans algebras of low dimensionalities

The paper classifies multilincnr algebras, known as comlrans algebras, that are determined by pairs of matrices and have dimensions which are less than or equal to two. The comtrans algebras are isomophic if and only if the corresponding pairs of matrices arc multiplicatively cogredient by a matrix M.
A direct method for computing a closest saddle node bifurcation in the load power parameter space of an electric power system

Voltage collapse and blackout can occur in an electric power system when load powers vary so that the system loses stability in a saddle node bifurcation. A direct method is presented to compute the load powers at which bifurcation occurs and which are locally closest to the current operating load powers. The computation is illustrated in the 6-dimensional load power parameter space of a 5 bus power system. >
Far-field noise of a subsonic jet under controlled excitation

The role of large-scale coherent structures in broadband jet noise suppression and amplification under controlled excitation are studied experimentally. It is found that suppression occurs only at low Reynolds and Mach numbers, when the boundary layer at the jet exit is laminar; the optimum St(Theta) (St, based on the initial shear-layer momentum thickness) value is 0.017, at which the excitation results in a quick roll-up and transition of the laminar shear-layer vortices, yielding coherent structures similar to those existing at high speeds. At the asymptotic level the broadband jet noise can only be amplified by the excitation. The amplification is inferred to be maximum for excitation in the St(D) (St based on the jet diameter) range of 0.65-0.85. Finally, it is noted that the pairing process induced by the excitation is at the origin of the broadband noise amplification.
Context-sensitive state estimation

This paper reports on developments in the systematic exploitation of contextual information for entity state estimation. It attempts to cut through the mystique that has prevented serious penetration of Situation and Impact Assessment (respectively, Level 2 and Level 3 fusion in the beloved JDL Data Fusion model (I)). The key development is that of a unified approach to the exploitation of attributive and relational information. to include organizational, functional and causal relationships among entities (e.g. in analyses offorce structures, communications nets, or force-on-force relationships) or within entities (e.g. in tracking targets across state changes or in model-based Automatic Target Recognition). Relationships within and among entities are modeled as constructive Bayesian networks, allowing context-sensitive entity state estimation to be performed by propagating evidence through network structures.
Teaching Computer Security

This paper describes three courses in computer security, and offers come comments about their appropriateness, their advantages and their disadvantages.
Near-surface defect distributions in Cu(In,Ga)Se2

The density and distribution of point defects in Cu(In,Ga)Se (CIGS) layers used for solar cell applications is critical to the 2 resulting device performance.These devices are generally thought to be limited by recombination in the space-charge region of the collecting heterojunction.The situation is complicated by the presumed presence of an n-type surface layer on the CIGS absorber.Both the surface inversion and space-charge recombination processes are intimately tied to near-surface point defects. Here, we overview recent results on surface chemistry, transient photocapacitance spectroscopy (TPC) and depth-resolved cathodoluminescence (CL) for polycrystalline device layers from two laboratories, and single crystal epitaxial layers of three orientations.The results are combined with device modeling to provide a picture of the near-surface defect structures in these materials.The TPC results show deep defect levels ;0.7 and 0.9 eV above the valence band. CL shows evidence of subgap radiative recombination, which increases dramatically near the sample surfaces.The results point to a near-surface Cd-containing layer, which could be responsible for the surface carrier type inversion, a near-surface region containing an elevated defect density, possibly near the valence band edge, and deep hole traps near the conduction band.Implementation of the results in a device model provides reasonable fits to the device performances. 2003 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
Design of the SEASAT-A Radar Altimeter

A third generation satellite radar altimeter to be flown on the SEASAT-A mission in 1978 is described. Building on SKYLAB and GEOS-C experience, a design has evolved that will allow a long-term goal of 10-cm altimetry to be realized. While dependent on recent developments in surface acoustic-wave device technology, the design in all other respects presents no major difficulty. A linear FM/full-deramp waveform and processing technique allows fine range tracking to be done in the frequency domain. A digital filter bank will provide 60 contiguous samples of the ocean return waveform with 3.125-ns resolution. An adaptive tracker built around a microprocessor will operate on the waveform samples to implement the basic height tracking function, adjusting its parameters in response to sensed waveheight.
Language barriers between nurses and asylum seekers: their impact on symptom reporting and referral

The objective of this study was to determine whether language barriers during the screening interview affected the reporting of asylum seekers' health problems and their referral to further health care. Seven hundred and twenty-three standard screening questionnaires, administered by nurses to asylum-seekers at the time of entry into Geneva/Switzerland between June and December 1998, were reviewed, as well as information pertaining to language use during the interview. Language concordance between nurses and asylum seekers was assessed by considering the presence/absence of an interpreter, the type of interpreter present (trained, untrained), and the nurse's self-assessed proficiency in the language used during the medical interview. Nurses also recorded their own subjective assessment of the overall quality of communication during the interview. More than half of the asylum seekers came from Europe, mainly the Balkan regions, and a third of them from Africa. Most asylum seekers were men (72%). The median age was 26.5 years, and 50% were younger than 25 years. Severe physical and psychological symptoms were reported by 19% and traumatic events prior to migration were reported by 63%. The nurses referred 36% of all refugees to further medical care and 6% to psychological care. Professional interpreters were used in 8% of the interviews and ad hoc interpreters in 16%. Adequate, partial and inadequate language concordance was reported for 54%, 27% and 18% of the consultations respectively. Adequate language concordance was significantly associated with higher reporting of past experience of traumatic events and of severe psychological symptoms, contrasting with much fewer referrals to psychological care when language concordance was inadequate. These results suggest the importance of addressing language barriers in primary care centres in order to adequately detect and refer traumatised refugees. To address this problem, the use of professional interpreters is recommended.
PEPped up: induction of Candida albicans virulence by bacterial cell wall fragments.

In this issue, Xu et al. (2008) report that Candida albicans , a prevalent fungal pathogen, expresses virulence-related attributes in response to bacterial peptidoglycan components, muramyl dipeptides, in human serum. Conserved elements in human and fungal detection of muramyl dipeptides highlight a common ability to perceive proximal bacterial populations.
Biodegradable dextran-polylactide hydrogel network and its controlled release of albumin.

The objective of this paper was to study the release of bovine serum albumin (BSA) from a series of biodegradable hydrogels having a wide range of hydrophilicity to hydrophobicity, swelling, and biodegradation properties. BSA was incorporated into a series of biodegradable hydrogels made from a dextran derivative of allyl isocyanate (dex-AI, as the hydrophilic constituent) and poly(DL-lactic acid) diacrylate macromer (PDLLAM, as the hydrophobic constituent). The release kinetics of BSA from these dex-AI/PDLLAM hydrogels was studied. Laser confocal scanning microscopy was used to investigate the morphological change of the hydrogels, as well as BSA distribution in the hydrogels, as a function of dex-AI to PDLLAM composition ratio and incubation time. We found that the incorporation of PDLLAM into dex-AI reduced the initial burst release of BSA due to its more homogeneous distribution in the hydrogels. As the PDLLAM component increased, the rate of formation of a loose three-dimensional (3D) network structure increased; consequently, the sustained rate and extent of BSA release increased. Both release index and diffusion coefficient (from release kinetics data) increased as the PDLLAM component increased in the hydrogels. The data suggest that the release of BSA was controlled by both diffusion of BSA through swelling of the hydrophilic phase during an early stage, and degradation of the hydrophobic phase during a late stage, and also that the magnitude of diffusion versus degradation controlled release is dependent on composition ratio and immersion time.
Acute postnatal exposure to the pentaBDE commercial mixture DE-71 at 5 or 15 mg/kg/day does not produce learning or attention deficits in rats.

Abstract Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), flame retardant chemicals added to polymer products, have become ubiquitous in the environment, and they are bioaccumulating in humans and wildlife. Therefore, understanding their biological effects is important for public health. We have previously observed learning deficits in rats exposed to DE-71, a commercial PBDE mixture consisting primarily of pentabrominated diphenyl ethers, at a dose of 30 mg/kg/day from postnatal day (PND) 6 to 12. The purpose of the current study was to determine if this effect could be seen with lower doses of DE-71. Long–Evans rats were administered daily oral doses of corn oil alone or DE-71, 5 or 15 mg/kg/day, dissolved in corn oil, from PND 6 to 12. As young adults, the rats were administered a series of five-choice visual learning and attention tasks. No effects of DE-71 were found on learning, attention, or inhibitory control. Given that developmental DE-71 exposure at similar doses and for shorter time periods has been shown in other laboratories to affect locomotion and hyperactivity, the current results suggest that cognitive functions may not be as sensitive as neuromotor functions to the effects of acute DE-71 exposure.
A model of feedback control for the charge-balanced suppression of epileptic seizures

Here we present several refinements to a model of feedback control for the suppression of epileptic seizures. We utilize a stochastic partial differential equation (SPDE) model of the human cortex. First, we verify the strong convergence of numerical solutions to this model, paying special attention to the sharp spatial changes that occur at electrode edges. This allows us to choose appropriate step sizes for our simulations; because the spatial step size must be small relative to the size of an electrode in order to resolve its electrical behavior, we are able to include a more detailed electrode profile in the simulation. Then, based on evidence that the mean soma potential is not the variable most closely related to the measurement of a cortical surface electrode, we develop a new model for this. The model is based on the currents flowing in the cortex and is used for a simulation of feedback control. The simulation utilizes a new control algorithm incorporating the total integral of the applied electrical potential. Not only does this succeed in suppressing the seizure-like oscillations, but it guarantees that the applied signal will be charge-balanced and therefore unlikely to cause cortical damage.
Design and alignment strategies of 4f systems used in the vectorial optical field generator

In this paper, the design and alignment strategies of 4f systems used in the vectorial optical field generator are described in detail. Reflection-type 4f systems were adopted due to limited spacing. Alignment patterns are designed and introduced as alignment tools so that the optical property (degree of freedom) controlled by each specific spatial light modulator section can be visualized and alignment of the 4f systems can be performed using the CCD image sharpness as the metric. In particular, blurring due to diffraction effects is minimized when the 4f system is fully aligned.
OF MARKSMANSHIP AND MARX: REFLECTIONS ON THE LINGUISTIC CONSTRUCTION OF CLASS IN SOME RECENT HISTORICAL SCHOLARSHIP

The historiographical trend that goes under the name of the “linguistic turn,” or, more capaciously, the “new cultural history,” has stressed the enormous plasticity and contingency of the human world. Its proponents have maintained that, instead of being determined by laws analogous to those that govern the physical world, human reality is to a large degree—just how large a degree is, of course, a hotly contested issue—autonomously constructed by the human manipulation of language. Language is, in this view, not confined to passively mirroring a prior social reality; rather, linguistically constituted entities can powerfully influence social life even in the absence of “real,” objective referents. As Sarah Maza notes in the introduction to The Myth of the French Bourgeoisie: An Essay on the Social Imaginary, 1750–1850, cultural historians have, since the 1970s, enthusiastically embraced such an approach with respect to newer topics of investigation like gender, race, ethnicity, and sexual orientation. Yet its application to the venerable historical category of class, while not altogether lacking, has lagged noticeably behind.
On variational downscaling, fusion, and assimilation of hydrometeorological states: A unified framework via regularization

[1] Improved estimation of hydrometeorological states from down-sampled observations and background model forecasts in a noisy environment has been a subject of growing research in the past decades. Here we introduce a unified variational framework that ties together the problems of downscaling, data fusion, and data assimilation as ill-posed inverse problems. This framework seeks solutions beyond the classic least squares estimation paradigms by imposing a proper regularization, expressed as a constraint consistent with the degree of smoothness and/or probabilistic structure of the underlying state. We review relevant smoothing norm regularization methods in derivative space and extend classic formulations of the aforementioned problems with particular emphasis on land surface hydrometeorological applications. Our results demonstrate that proper regularization of downscaling, data fusion, and data assimilation problems can lead to more accurate and stable recovery of the underlying non-Gaussian state of interest with improved performance in capturing isolated and jump singularities. In particular, we show that the Huber regularization in the derivative space offers advantages, compared to the classic solution and the Tikhonov regularization, for spatial downscaling and fusion of non-Gaussian multisensor precipitation data. Furthermore, we explore the use of Huber regularization in a variational data assimilation experiment while the initial state of interest exhibits jump discontinuities and non-Gaussian probabilistic structure. To this end, we focus on the heat equation motivated by its fundamental application in the study of land surface heat and mass fluxes.
Non-intrusive testing, monitoring and control of distributed CORBA objects

The architecture of Wabash, a tool for testing, monitoring and control of CORBA based distributed applications, is described. The need and utility of Wabash in testing and managing such applications is discussed. A comparison with similar tools is provided.
THE PROPOSED INTRODUCTION OF FUTURES-STYLE MARGINING IN THE UNITED STATES: AN AUSTRALIAN COMPARISON

We extend the quadratic approximation method to examine American-style options traded using futures-style margining and show that an early exercise premium can exist when the cost of carry is negative. Empirical results based on a reduced form of the model using futures-style call options traded on the Australian All Ordinaries Share Price Index are consistent with previous research: call option early exercise premiums are economically zero. Full option prices are examined by comparing observed futures-style with theoretical stock-style values. We find futures-style values exceed stock-style values and argue that the increase results from improvements in liquidity. The findings are particularly relevant given the pending decision at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to introduce a futures-style system in the United States. JEL classification: G13, C13
Randomly amplified polymorphic DNA PCR for comparison of Mycobacterium abscessus strains from nosocomial outbreaks

Mycobacterium abscessus is an important cause of water-related nosocomial outbreaks or pseudo-outbreaks. Strain comparison has relied on pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). Unfortunately, almost 50% of strains cannot be assessed by this method. We studied 118 strains of M. abscessus previously studied by PFGE by randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) PCR, including isolates from eight nosocomial outbreaks. Ten random primers were evaluated by using DNA prepared by boiling or phenol-chloroform extraction. Both DNA preparations gave the same grouping of isolates for three outbreaks compared to the groupings obtained by PFGE. Five outbreaks due to M. abscessus which gave broken DNA by PFGE gave evaluable patterns when studied by RAPD-PCR, with isolate clustering being consistent with that from other laboratory and epidemiologic data. The patterns were highly method dependent, strain comparison required the use of multiple primers, and the method worked best with purified DNA and by using strains for comparison on the same gel. We propose categories of indistinguishable, different, and inconclusive when comparing strains by RAPD-PCR. This study demonstrates that RAPD-PCR can be used for genetic comparison of M. abscessus strains, including strains which cannot be compared by PFGE, but the potential for misinterpretation is greater than that by PFGE.