cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The Sound of Leadership: Presidential Communication in the Modern Age

Why did Gerald Ford speak in public once every six hours during 1976? Why did no president spreak in Massachusetts during one ten-year period? Why did Jimmy Carter conduct public ceremonies four times more often than Harry Truman? Why are television viewers two-and-a-half times more likely to see a president speak on the nightly news than to hear him speak? "The Sound of Leadership" answers these questions and many more. Based on analysis of nearly 10,000 presidential speeches delivered between 1945 and 1985, this book is the first comprehensive examination of the ways in which presidents Truman through Reagan have used the powers of communication to advance their political goals. This communication revolution has produced, Roderick P. Hart argues, a new form of governance, one in which public speech has come to be taken as political action. Using a rhetorical appraoch, Hart details the features of this new American presidency by carefully examining when and where presidents spoke in public during the last four decades and what they said. Even though presidents have been speaking more and more, Hart reveals, they have been saying less and less. Rather than leading the nation, the modern president usually offers only the hollow "sound" of leadership. Written with great flair and acuteness, "The Sound of Leadership" will become a standard guide to the voices of modern presidential politics.
Antimicrobial Peptides from Fish

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are found widely distributed through Nature, and participate in the innate host defense of each species. Fish are a great source of these peptides, as they express all of the major classes of AMPs, including defensins, cathelicidins, hepcidins, histone-derived peptides, and a fish-specific class of the cecropin family, called piscidins. As with other species, the fish peptides exhibit broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity, killing both fish and human pathogens. They are also immunomodulatory, and their genes are highly responsive to microbes and innate immuno-stimulatory molecules. Recent research has demonstrated that some of the unique properties of fish peptides, including their ability to act even in very high salt concentrations, make them good potential targets for development as therapeutic antimicrobials. Further, the stimulation of their gene expression by exogenous factors could be useful in preventing pathogenic microbes in aquaculture.
A Vortex Model with Superfluid and Turbulent Percolation

Simple lattice vortex models are presented that exhibit vortex percolation along lines in a temperature/chemical potential plane. Parts of these lines can be identified with the percolation threshold at the inertial range of turbulence, and other parts are analogous to the transition in a three-dimensionalXY model that may model the λ. transition in superfluidity. Flory exponents at percolation are calculated; for nonnegative temperatures, their values approximate the standard Flory value, and are approximately constant along the transition lines, in agreement with recent conjectures. Conclusions regarding coherent structures in turbulence are also reached.
The Turner Phenotype In The Male

The clinical, pathologic, and cytogenetic data of 5 phenotypic males who exhibited some of the stigmas of Turner's syndrome are reported. These findings and those complied from the previously reported cases indicate a wide diversity of gonadal development, ranging from normal to totally absent tests. In comparison to the female variety of the syndrome males show a relatively increased incidence of mental retardation, ocular deformities, and cardiac malformations. One of the five patients presented has been shown to have a chromosomal abnormality of one of the autosomes of the 6–12 group.
Endothelium-derived relaxing factor and coronary vasospasm

The endothelium releases the powerful vasodilator and antiaggregatory substance, EDRF, both under basal conditions and upon stimulation by a wide variety of agents. Endothelial injury or dysfunction may play an important role in the spasmogenicity of the coronary artery, although other possible alterations related to atherosclerosis should also be considered. Among the possible stimuli, aggregating platelets are important as a source of vasoconstrictor substances. The endothelium may also produce the vasoactive substances EDHF and EDCF(s). Their pathophysiologic significance remains to be determined.
Increased interleukin-6 activity in the serum of ponies acutely infected with equine infectious anaemia virus.

Abstract Seven ponies were infected with the virulent wild-type Wyoming strain of equine infectious anaemia virus ( EIAV ). Infection status was monitored by serum reverse transcriptase activity, rectal temperature, and complete blood count. Preinfection serum and serum obtained during the initial febrile episode following infection were assayed for interleukin 6 (IL-6) activity. Postinfection IL-6 activity was significantly increased as compared to preinfection values. The magnitude of increase in IL-6 was positively correlated with reverse transcriptase activity (an indirect measure of viraemia) but was not correlated with rectal temperature. IL-6 production in response to EIAV infection may play a role in pathogenesis of disease, especially the hyperglobulinaemia and apparent polyclonal B cell activation in these horses.
Histological technic for cerebellar climbing and mossy fibers.

In order to, avoid disadvantages attendant upon the use of fresh frozen sections, or of block impregnation with silver, in staining climbing or mossy fibers of the cerebellum, Rio Hortega's double impregnation method for nerve fibers is useful. This consists of prolonged formalin fixation prior to cutting frozen sections (which thereafter are easier to cut) and preliminary treatment with ammoniacal aqueous and alcoholic washes, mordanting in pyridine silver, and treatment with pyridine-silver-carbonate. Following this, sections are handled individually through one of several reduction methods after which they may be directly mounted or gold toned.
Stabilization of human fibroblast interferon purified on concanavalin A-agarose.

Human fibroblast interferon, obtained by chromatography on concanavalin A-agarose, was stable for at least a month in 30–50 per cent ethylene glycol at 4°, −20°, and −70° C. The succinct point of the present finding is that human fibroblast interferon may be stabilized by ethylene glycol alone without the addition of bovine serum albumin and ‘back-contamination’ of the interferon preparation.
ON THE CYCLICALITY OF SOUTH AFRICAN FISCAL POLICY

This paper examines the cyclicality of government revenue, spending and the key fiscal balances in South Africa during 1972-2001. The results suggest that while government revenues were largely acyclical, government spending appears to have been predominantly counter-cyclical, in line with the recommendations of neoclassical analysis. In addition, countercyclical government spending appears to have translated into a countercyclical policy stance overall. This finding contrasts markedly with the results from other empirical studies of South Africa and other emerging market and developing economies, which typically indicate procyclical fiscal policy.
Dynamic Optimization of the Grinding Process in Batch Production

This paper presents a novel dynamic optimization framework for the grinding process in batch production. The grinding process exhibits time-varying characteristics due to the progressive wear of the grinding wheel. Nevertheless, many existing frameworks for the grinding process can optimize only one cycle at a time, thereby generating suboptimal solutions. Moreover, a dynamic scheduling of dressing operations in response to process feedback would require significant human intervention with existing methods. We propose a unique dynamic programming - evolution strategy (DP-ES) framework to optimize a series of grinding cycles depending on the wheel condition and batch size. In the proposed framework, a dynamic programming module dynamically determines the frequency and parameter of wheel dressing while the evolution strategy (ES) locates the optimal operating parameters of each cycle subject to the constraints on the operating ranges and part quality. A case study based on experimental data is conducted to demonstrate the advantages of the proposed method over conventional approaches.Copyright © 2008 by ASME
Methodological appraisals, advice, and historiographical models

In the paper I examine (Section I) the best defense for the claim that methodologies shouldnot function heuristically (thesis-LW) as it appears in John Worrall. I then evaluate (Section II) his proposal of a criterion*M which is offered as a criterion for evaluating competing methodologies such as falsificationism, conventionalism, methodology of research programmes. etc. Finally, I consider (Section III) the consequences of arguments presented earlier (Section I and II) as they bear on the problem of selecting a historiographical model.
Low Molecular Weight Poly(ethylene glycol) as an Environmentally Benign Solvent for Pharmaceutical Crystallization and Precipitation

Low molecular weight poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG300) is examined as a possible environmentally benign replacement solvent for volatile organic solvents commonly used in crystallization and precipitation operations in pharmaceutical processing. It is shown to have solvating power comparable in magnitude to that of 2-propanol or methanol for model compounds including ibuprofen, salicylic acid, and amino acids. UNIFAC can be used to predict solvent effects for uncharged solutes. Antisolvent precipitation of salicylic acid from either aqueous PEG300 or methanol by water addition indicated a longer induction time for PEG solutions primarily due to a larger crystal−solution interfacial energy. Induction time measurements of glutamic acid precipitation with PEG or 2-propanol again indicated a higher interfacial energy for the PEG solution. Crystal growth rates of salicylic acid and glutamic acid were somewhat lower in PEG solutions than in aliphatic alcohols owing to an interfacial effect and not to transport lim...
Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA) Content of Milk from Cows Offered Diets Rich in Linoleic and Linolenic Acid

Two experiments were conducted to determine the conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) content of milk from cows offered diets rich in linoleic and linolenic acid. In experiment 1, 36 cows were assigned to a control and five treatment groups. Cows in the control group received a diet containing 51% forage and 49% grain on a dry matter basis. In the treatment group, grain was partly replaced by either 18% raw cracked soybeans, 18% roasted cracked soybeans, 3.6% soybean oil, 2.2% linseed oil, or 4.4% linseed oil. Experimental diets were fed for 5 wk. Average CLA contents in milk fat from wk 2 through 5 were 0.39% in control and 0.37, 0.77, 2.10, 1.58, and 1.63% of total fatty acids in the raw soybean, roasted soybeans, soybean oil, 2.2% linseed oil, and 4.4% linseed oil treatments, respectively. In experiment 2, 36 cows were assigned to a control and 5 treatment groups. Cows in the control group received a diet containing 55% forage and 45% grain. In the treatment groups, grain was partly replaced by soybean oil at 0.5, 1.0, 2.0, 4.0, or by linseed oil at 1.0% of the dietary dry matter. Experimental diets were fed for 5 wk. Average CLA contents in milk fat from wk 2 through 5 were 0.50% in control and 0.75, 0.76, 1.45, 2.08, and 0.73% of total fatty acids in 0.5, 1.0, 2.0, 4.0 soybean oil and 1.0% linseed oil treatments, respectively. Diets rich in linoleic or linolenic acid can increase CLA content of milk when dietary oil is accessible to the rumen microorganisms.
Raíces: Gender-Conscious Community Building in Santiago, Chile

This article discusses the history, activities, contributions, and challenges of Raices, a women's collective based in Santiago, Chile, whose participants promote community change through popular education. The article explores the philosophical foundations of Raices and locates the collective in its political and historical contexts. Particular attention is paid to the ways in which Raices has confronted the tensions and contradictions of emergent democracy in a neoliberal economy, officialist feminism in state-sanctioned women's organizations, and everyday life for poor and working-class women who are marginalized by both. The implications for feminist social work practice are addressed.
The inelastic scattering of He from Cu(001) at 20 K

Abstract The inelastic scattering of He atoms from a (001) surface of copper at 20 K has been studied. The energy analyzer consists of a LiF crystal situated close to the normal of the copper sample crystal. Incident energies of 23 and 64 meV have been used and evidence has been obtained of energy gain and energy loss events. The energy analyzer can be used in two modes: (1) to fix the analyzer crystal to receive atoms of a certain energy range while scanning the sample crystal or (2) to scan the analyzer crystal for a particular setting of the sample crystal. No evidence of phonons from a surface wave branch was found and most of the inelastic events occur very close to the forward direction.
A nickel complex cleaves uridine in folded RNA structures: application to E. coli tmRNA and related engineered molecules

To gain more insight about Escherichia coli tmRNA structure, NiCR, a square planar macrocyclic nickel (II) complex, was used to probe guanine N7 exposure. On the basis of this additional structural information, a refined secondary structure of the molecule is proposed. In addition to its known specificity for guanine N7, we show here that the chemical probe can also cleave at specific uridine residues. In contrast to the alkaline-labile modification of guanine, the reactivity of NiCR at these uridine residues results in direct strand scission. To better characterize the uridine cleavage sites and assess the importance of the RNA structure for the reaction to occur, smaller RNA molecules derived from one pseudoknot (PK4) of E. coli tmRNA containing two uridine cleavage sites were engineered and probed. It is shown that this pseudoknot can fold by itself in solution and that the expected uridine residues are also cleaved by the nickel complex, suggesting that only a local sequence and/or structural context is required for cleavage. In E. coli tmRNA, the five uridine cleavage sites are located in double-stranded regions. These sites contain a G-U wobble base-pair and a downstream uridine which is cleaved. Using smaller RNAs derived from one stem of PK4, systematic changes in the proposed recognition motif indicate that the G-U pair is required for cleavage. Furthermore, there is no cleavage if the G-U pair is reversed. If the recognition motif is moved within the stem, the cleavage site moves accordingly. Additionally, if the recognition motif is changed such that the G-U pair is flanked by two uridine residues, the reactivity occurs only at the 3' uridine. Radical quenching studies have indicated that sulfate radical, as in the case of guanine oxidation, is involved in uridine oxidation. Although additional studies are required to better characterize the reaction, this paper reports a novel specificity for a chemical probe which may be useful for investigating structural motifs involving G-U pairs in folded RNAs.
Paper or interactive?: a study of prototyping techniques for ubiquitous computing environments

We studied the effects of varying the fidelity and automation levels of a Ubicomp application prototype. Our results show that the interactive prototype captured the same usability issues that the paper prototype studies did and more. We found that paper prototyping is insufficient for supporting unique Ubicomp requirements, such as scalability, but a prototype with higher fidelity and automation levels can enhance the quality of interaction data available for evaluation.
Neutron diffraction studies on lattice strain evolution around a crack-tip during tensile loading and unloading cycles

Abstract Elastic lattice-strain profiles ahead of a fatigue-crack-tip were measured during tensile loading and unloading cycles using neutron diffraction. The crack-closure phenomenon after an overload was observed. Furthermore, the plastic-zone size in front of the crack-tip was estimated from the diffraction-peak broadening, which showed good agreement with the calculated result.
Theodor Bibliander's Machumetis saracenorum principis eiusque successorum vitae, doctrina ac ipse alcoran (1543) as the Sixteenth-century “Encyclopedia” of Islam

The Machumetis saracenorum principis (1543, second edition 1550), compiled by the Zurich theologian Theodor Bibliander, has long been recognized as one of the most significant texts on Islam published in the Latin West in the Early Modern era. The Qur'an translation it contained (the first ever to be printed) was not superseded for over 100 years. This article explores how the work functions as a whole text in the context of Bibliander's life and theology, with particular attention paid to its paratexts (that is, its framing devices) and organization. Bibliander's compilation is discovered to be a self-contradictory, problematic text. In the sixteenth century, new information on the Turks and their religion did not replace, but rather was placed simply alongside other materials, sometimes substantiating older materials, sometimes directly contradicting them. This ambiguity opened up space for new and different readings while supporting, simultaneously, the received tradition. All of this points to the imp...
Non-destructive characterization of materials by evanescent microwaves

A microstrip quarter wavelength ( lambda g/4) resonator in conjunction with a small probe is used to resolve objects with characteristic dimensions as small as a thousandth of the wavelength ( lambda g/1000). The characteristic length for the decay of the evanescent waves at the tip of the probe was measured to be approximately 100-150 mu m at a microwave frequency of 1 GHz ( lambda free approximately=30 cm). The authors applied this technique to map microwave conductivity of metallic lines on glass and printed circuit boards and to investigate conductivity variations across a silicon wafer. It was possible to detect holes in printed circuit boards that were covered with solder and were not detectable otherwise.
Depletion of Thyroid Iodine During Subacute Thyroiditis

The 241Americum thyroid scan has been found to be of use in the diagnosis and follow-up evaluation of subacute thyroiditis. This scan, unlike the radioactive iodine scintiscan, demonstrates the stable I content of the thyroid. In subacute thyroiditis, the 241Am scan shows the thyroidal 127I stores to be severely depleted. Reaccumulation of 127I is demonstrated during recovery from the illness.
Structure and Energetics of the Si- SiO 2 Interface

Using a Monte Carlo approach, we identify low-energy structures for the (001)-oriented $\mathrm{Si}\ensuremath{-}{\mathrm{SiO}}_{2}$ interface. The optimal interface structure found consists of an ordered array of Si-O-Si ``bridges,'' with low strain energy. This structure explains several puzzling experimental observations.
Cell and Tissue Responses to Electric Shocks Invited Paper

Existing models of myocardial membrane kinetics have not been able to reproduce the experimentally-observed negative bias in the asymmetry of transmembrane potential changes (DeltaVm) induced by strong electric shocks. The goals of this study are: 1) to demonstrate that this negative bias could be reproduced by the addition, to the membrane model, of electroporation and an outward current, Ia, part of the K+ flow through the L-type Ca2+-channel, and 2) to determine how such modifications in the membrane model affect shock-induced break excitation in a 2D preparation. We conducted simulations of shocks in bidomain fibers and sheets with membrane dynamics represented by the LRd'2000 model, to which electroporation (LRd+EP model) and the outward current, Ia , activated upon strong shock-induced depolarization (aLRd model) was added. Assuming Ia is a part of K+ flow through the L-type Ca2+-channel enabled us to reproduce both the experimentally observed rectangularly-shaped positive DeltaVm and the value of near 2 of the negative-to-positive deltaVm ratio. In the sheet, Ia not only contributed to the negative bias in DeltaVm asymmetry at sites polarized by physical and virtual electrodes, but also restricted positive DeltaVm. Electroporation, in its turn, was responsible for the decrease in cathode-break excitation threshold in the aLRd sheet, as compared to the other two cases, as well as for the occurrence of the excitation after the shock-end rather than during the shock. The incorporation of electroporation and Ia in a membrane model ensures match between simulation results and experimental data. The use of the aLRd model results in a lower threshold for shock-induced break excitation
The Electrocardiographic Diagnosis of Acute Myocardial Infarction in Patients with Ventricular Paced Rhythms

Use of the ECG for diagnosis of ischemic heart disease is more difficult in the setting of ventricular paced rhythms (VPRs). ST-segment/T-wave configuration are changed by the altered intraventricular conduction associated with ventricular pacing. The anticipated, or expected, morphology in patients with VPRs is one of QRS-complex-ST-segment to T-wave discordance. Several strategies are available to the physician to assist in the correct interpretation of the 12-lead ECG in patients with permanent ventricular pacemakers, including: a knowledge of the anticipated ST-segment-T-wave changes of VPRs and consequently the ability to recognize acute, ischemic morphologies; the performance of serial ECGs or ST-segment trend monitoring demonstrating dynamic changes encountered in acutely ischemic patients; a comparison with previous ECGs; and, if appropriate, an analysis of the native, underlying rhythm. The first strategy, an awareness of the anticipated ST-segment morphologies of VPRs, is the most important and not dependent on additional diagnostic testing, past medical records, or additional expertise in pacemaker function. Two cases are reported in which an analysis of the ECG in the setting of VPR assisted the treating physicians in establishing the correct diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction.
Fast 3-D Qualitative Method for Through-Wall Imaging and Structural Health Monitoring

A fast non-iterative 3-D imaging method is developed which incorporates several critical approximations to overcome computational burden and data collection constraints associated with imaging layered media. The method first invokes dyadic Green's function to relate the object reflectivity function (or image) to the collected data. Then, calculating the reflectivity function requires solving a computationally-intensive and ill-posed inverse problem. The data collection constraints and layered media modeling uncertainties also add to the complexity associated with this inverse problem. To address these challenges, a set of approximations are considered which simplify the imaging problem and cast it into a de-convolution problem with much less computational burden which is implemented using fast Fourier transform. The performance of the method is verified for through-wall imaging and structural health monitoring, indicating that it is reasonably tolerant to constraint associated with data collection limitations and modeling inaccuracies.
Molecular characterization of closteroviruses infecting Cordyline fruticosa L. in Hawaii

In Hawaii, common green ti plants (Cordyline fruticosa L.) have been shown to harbor Cordyline virus 1 (CoV-1) which, along with Little cherry virus 1 (LChV-1) and Grapevine leafroll-associated virus 7 (GLRaV-7), form a distinct clade within the family Closteroviridae. Preliminary work has indicated that, aside from CoV-1, three additional closteroviruses may infect common green ti plants in Hawaii. In this study, pyrosequencing was used to characterize the genomes of closteroviruses infecting a single common green ti plant. The sequence data confirmed the presence of CoV-1 as well as three additional closteroviruses. Although all four viruses had the same general genome organization, the sequence divergence between the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase, heat shock protein 70 homolog, and coat protein ranged from 22 to 61%, indicating these represent four distinct closterovirus species. The names CoV-2, CoV-3, and CoV-4 are proposed for the three new viruses. Phylogenetic analyses placed CoV-2, CoV-3, and CoV-4 in the same clade as CoV-1, LChV-1, and GLRaV-7.
Subgroups of variable region genes of beta chains of T-cell receptors for antigen

The beta-chain variable regions of 6 human, 21 mouse, and 1 rabbit T-cell receptors for antigen, including two pairs of duplicates, have been classified into two subgroups. Subgroup I has an invariant Phe at residue 65 and a salt bridge can be formed between the Asp at position 86 and the 11 Arg, 2 Lys, and 1 His residues at position 64. In one instance Tyr replaces Asp at position 86 so that a salt bridge cannot be formed with the Lys at position 64. Subgroup II has an invariant Tyr at residue 65; 8 chains have Gly and 3 have Ala at position 63. These 3 have Asp at position 64. Those with Gly-63 cannot form a salt bridge in this region of the beta chain. The 3 with Asp-64 have Arg at position 86, can form a reverse salt bridge, and could constitute a third subgroup. The relation of these findings to functional parameters in beta chains of the T-cell receptors for antigen deserves further study. The use of variability plots on the assumption that the beta chains are a single population may be misleading for the variable region. Most of the variability in the expressed beta chains would be created by variable-diversity-joining assortment, junctional diversity, and the possible insertion of N sequences.
Direct-detected rapid-scan EPR at 250 MHz

EPR spectra at 250 MHz for a single crystal of lithium phthalocyanine (LiPc) in the absence of oxygen and for a deoxygenated aqueous solution of a Nycomed triarylmethyl (trityl-CD3) radical were obtained at scan rates between 1.3 x 10(3) and 3.4 x 10(5)G/s. These scan rates are rapid relative to the reciprocals of the electron spin relaxation times (LiPc: T1 = 3.5 micros and T2 = 2.5 micros; trityl: T1 = 12 micros and T2 = 11.5 micros) and cause characteristic oscillations in the direct-detected absorption spectra. For a given scan rate, shorter values of T2 and increased inhomogeneous broadening cause less deep oscillations that damp out more quickly than for longer T2. There is excellent agreement between experimental and calculated lineshapes and signal amplitudes as a function of radiofrequency magnetic field (B1) and scan rate. When B1 is adjusted for maximum signal amplitude as a function of scan rate, signal intensity for constant number of scans is enhanced by up to a factor of three relative to slow scans. The number of scans that can be averaged in a defined period of time is proportional to the scan rate, which further enhances signal amplitude per unit time. Longer relaxation times cause the maximum signal intensity to occur at slower scan rates. These experiments provide the first systematic characterization of direct-detected rapid-scan EPR signals.
Working gas pressure and flow effects on reactively sputtered molybdenum oxide thin films

Abstract The microstructure and composition of reactively sputtered, molybdenum oxide thin films are found to be especially sensitive to the working gas pressure and flow conditions. The variations in composition and crystallographic texture of nominal Mo 2 O 3 films are studied, as formed at low pressure (less than 5 mTorr) and flow (less than 25 cm 3 min −1 ) conditions, using Auger electron spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction. The structure and composition of the Mo 2 O 3 films are categorized as part of a continuous series of molybdenum oxide compounds based on a body centered tetragonal unit cell.
ANALYSIS OF A LINEARIZATION HEURISTIC FOR SINGLE-MACHINE SCHEDULING TO MAXIMIZE PROFIT

We consider the problem of schedulingn jobs without preemption on a single machine to maximize total profit, where profit is given by a nonincreasing, concave separable function of job starting times. A heuristic is given in which jobs are sequenced optimally relative to a specific linear approximation of the profit, function. This heuristic always obtains at least 2/3 of the optimal profit, and examples exist where the heuristic obtains only 2/3 of the optimal profit. A large class of alternative linearizations is considrred and shown to give arbitrarily bad results.
U2AF1 mutations in primary myelofibrosis are strongly associated with anemia and thrombocytopenia despite clustering with JAK2V617F and normal karyotype.

U2AF1 mutations in primary myelofibrosis are strongly associated with anemia and thrombocytopenia despite clustering with JAK2 V617F and normal karyotype
Reading Fayol with 3D glasses

Reading Fayol′s Administration Industrielle et Generale entails more than an examination of the text′s apparent meaning and utility to managers today. A text like Fayol′s Administration never comes to us in pristine form. Our reading of it today is shaped both by the author Fayol′s management of the data – his experiences – and by the many subsequent readings of the text which necessarily influence how Administration is read today. Examines briefly Fayol′s decision not to mention in print a long history of conflict with the board of directors of his firm Comambault which was crucial in helping him formulate his ideas. Discusses the reception of Administration in France and the USA and how readings of the text have helped delineate communities of management theorists.
Laws of iterated logarithm of multiparameter wiener processes

Let {X(t) : t ∈ R+N} denote the N-parameter Wiener process on R+N = [0, ∞)n. For multiple sequences of certain independent random variables the authors find lower bounds for the distributions of maximum of partial sums of these random variables, and as a consequence a useful upper bound for the yet unknown function P{supt∈DnX(t) ≥ c}, c ≥ 0, is obtained where DN = Πk = 1N [0, Tk]. The latter bound is used to give three different varieties of N-parameter generalization of the classical law of iterated logarithm for the standard Brownian motion process.
Correlation of the Health Utilities Index Mark 2 cognition scale and neuropsychological functioning among survivors of childhood medulloblastoma.

Children surviving medulloblastoma have a high risk for chronic, treatment-related neurocognitive deficits. Neuropsychological testing provides important data regarding the comparative toxicities of various therapeutic approaches. However, such testing can be expensive and logistically difficult, especially if a consulting psychologist is not readily available at the treating institution. Our purpose was to investigate the usefulness of a health-related quality of life inventory that does not require a psychologist for completion. We assessed the concurrent validity of traditional intelligence (IQ) testing and levels on the Cognition attribute of the multi-attribute Health Utilities Index Mark 2 (HUI 2) in estimating academic achievement scores of 22 patients treated for medulloblastoma with craniospinal irradiation following surgical resection. The results demonstrated that the Cognition utility scores were significantly lower than scores from the other components of the HUI 2 (Sensation, Mobility, Emotion, Self-Care, Pain). Cognition scores were also significantly positively correlated with IQ and achievement scores. Furthermore, Cognition scores were significantly lower among children who had received special educational services when compared with those who had not received such services. Our results provide preliminary evidence of the potential usefulness of the HUI 2 Cognition attribute in estimating IQ, achievement and the likelihood of the need for special educational services among children treated for medulloblastoma.
Nanocrystal-based bioelectronic coding of single nucleotide polymorphisms.

A bioelectronic method for coding unknown single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) based on the use of different encoding nanocrystals is described. Four such nanocrystals, ZnS, CdS, PbS, and CuS, linked to the adenosine, cytidine, guanosine and thymidine mononucleotides, respectively, are sequentially introduced to the DNA hybrid-coated magnetic-bead solution. Each mutation captures via base pairing different nanocrystal−mononucleotide conjugates, and yields a characteristic multipotential voltammogram, whose peak potentials reflect the identity of the mismatch. The mismatch recognition events are being amplified by the metal accumulation feature of the stripping voltammetric transduction mode. Each of the eight possible one-base mismatches can thus be identified in a single voltammetric run. The use of nanocrystal tracers for detecting two known mutations in a single DNA target is also illustrated in connection to nanocrystals linked to two nucleotides along with a single voltammetric run. The protocol pr...
The case for primary endoscopic management of upper urinary tract calculi: II. Cost and outcome assessment of 112 primary ureteral calculi.

Abstract Objectives To compare extracorporeal shock-wave lithotripsy (ESWL) with endoscopic lithotripsy to establish the more efficacious and cost-effective treatment for ureteral calculi. Methods The records of 112 patients with primary ureteral calculi treated at one center with either ESWL or endoscopic lithotripsy were retrospectively reviewed. Follow up data at 1 and 3 months were obtained in all patients. Success was defined as complete clearance of a stone burden in the endoscopy group. In the ESWL group patients with a residual, asymptomatic 2-mm fragment were also considered successful treatments. The number of auxiliary procedures, retreatments, postoperative office visits, and imaging studies required before a patient was considered stone free was defined. The impact of these variables on global costs was carefully reviewed. Results Patients with ureteral calculi primarily treated with ESWL or ureteroscopic lithotripsy had stone-free rates after a single session of 45% versus 95% at 1-month follow-up, and 62% versus 97% at 3-month follow-up. Retreatment and auxiliary procedure rates were significantly higher in the ESWL group (31% versus 3%). The mean number of postoperative visits and imaging studies until a patient was stone free was also higher in the ESWL group (2.07 versus 1.13). Operative treatment costs were similar for both modalities, but overall costs weighed heavily against ESWL. Conclusions ESWL remains the treatment of choice for moderately sized, uncomplicated renal calculi. In skilled hands, ureteroscopic lithotripsy is by far the most expeditious and cost-effective means of clearing a ureteral stone burden.
Laboratory evaluation of desiccants and insecticidal soap applied to various substrates to control the deer tick Ixodes scapularis.

. Desiccant and soap pest control products were tested against Ixodes scapularis nymphs on sod, pachysandra, landscaping stones and pinebark wood-chips in a laboratory study. High mortality (91–100%) was obtained with the silica-based desiccant Drione and Safer's insecticidal soap (SIS) treatments except for SIS treated woodchips. SIS and Drione contain 0.2 and 1% pyrethrins, respectively. SIS may be absorbed by the woodchips and not picked up by the nymphs as mortality decreased to 78%. Diatomaceous earth and Dri-die reduced nymphs by only 10–41%; neither desiccant contains insecticides. Nymphal mortality increased 15–17% after 20 or 100 ml of water was sprayed over sod plugs treated with SIS or Drione. The addition of isopropyl alcohol (ROH) to SIS increased the efficacy of SIS against nymphal I. scapularis on treated sod plugs but not on treated landscaping substrates. Drione, SIS, SIS-ROH and chlorpyrifos 50WP treated landscaping stones and pinebark woodchips resulted in 88–95% and 72–96% nymphal mortality, respectively. Unexpectedly, these substrates and treatments affected tick movement as well. Effective pest control products applied to xeric landscaping substrates present in maintained beds and borders near wooded areas could deter tick movement and provide significant levels of tick control.
Molecular evidence for an extreme genetic bottleneck during introduction of an invading grass to California

Although exotic species cause tremendous economic and ecological loss, we know relatively little about the post-introduction evolutionary dynamics of the invasive species themselves. Barbed goatgrass, Aegilops triuncialis L., is a cleistogamous annual grass with a native range throughout the Mediterranean Basin and Asia and introduced to California during the last century. It is considered a serious noxious range weed and is one of the few exotic plant species that is invading serpentine soil habitats. We examined whether patterns of molecular variation are consistent with a single or multiple introduction events into California and further, if individual populations show evidence for a genetic bottleneck during introduction. Fingerprinting patterns, using microsatellite loci derived from Triticum aestivum, were investigated for 57 Eurasian accessions, broadly spanning the native range and for 108 individuals from 11 localities in California. There is strong evidence for an extreme bottleneck in this species as it colonizes its new range because we detected only three multilocus genotypes occurring in California and 36 genotypes in Eurasia. In California one of the genotypes differs from one other by only one fragment and only occurs in one individual. This suggests two separate introductions. Each population is composed of highly uniform individuals and the two main genotypes are geographically separated. A. triuncialis is still expanding its range in California despite genomic uniformity after a strong bottleneck and its recently increased rate of spread is not correlated to a high within-population variability created by multiple introductions.
Analysis of MMIC structures using an efficient iterative approach

A class of two-dimensional and three-dimensional monolithic microwave integrated circuit (MMIC) structures is analyzed theoretically using an efficient iterative technique. The transfer-matrix approach to constructing the spectral Green's functions of multilayered structures is adopted. Discretization of the continuous functions and utilization of the periodicity of the MMIC structures enclosed by sidewalls lead to a discrete convolution operation, which is carried out efficiently using the FET (fast Fourier transform) algorithm. The spectral Green's functions are modified for both the periodic and aperiodic structures to improve the numerical efficiency of the iterative algorithm. Numerical results are presented and compared with available data. >
Single-crystal elasticity of brucite, Mg(OH)2, to 15 GPa by Brillouin scattering

The second-order elastic constants of brucite were determined by Brillouin scattering to 15 GPa in a diamond anvil cell. The experiments were carried out using a 4:1 methanol-ethanol mixture as pressure medium, and ruby as a pressure standard. Two planes, one perpendicular to the c axis (basal plane) and the other containing the c axis (meridian plane), were measured at room pressure and 10 elevated pressures. Individual elastic stiffnesses, aggregate moduli, and their pressure derivatives were obtained by Þ tting the data to Eulerian Þ nite strain equations. The inversion yields individual elastic constants of C11 = 154.0(14) GPa, C33 = 49.7(7) GPa, C12 = 42.1(17) GPa, C13 = 7.8(25) GPa, C14 = 1.3(10) GPa, C44 = 21.3(4) GPa, and their pressure derivatives of (∂C11/∂P)0 = 9.0(2), (∂C33/∂P)0 = 14.0(5), (∂C12/∂P)0 = 3.2(2), (∂C13/∂P)0 = 5.0(1), (∂C14/∂P)0 = 0.9(1), (∂C44/∂P)0 = 3.9(1). Aggregate moduli and their pressure derivatives are KS0 = 36.4(9) GPa, G0 = 31.3(2) GPa, (∂KS/∂P)T0 = 8.9(4), (∂G/∂P)0 = 4.3(1) for the Reuss bound, and KS0 = 43.8(8) GPa, G0 = 35.2(3) GPa, (∂KS/∂P)T0 = 6.8(2), (∂G/P)0 = 3.4(1) for the Voigt-Reuss-Hill average. The ratio of the linear compressibility along the c and a axes decreased from 4.7 to 1.3 over the examined pressure range. The shear anisotropy (C66/ C44) decreased from 2.6(1) at ambient condition to 1.3(1) with increase of pressure to 12 GPa. Axial compressibilities and a compression curve constructed from our Brillouin data are in good agreement with previous X-ray diffraction data. The increased interlayer interactions and hydrogen repulsion that occurs as brucite is compressed produce a continuous variation of elastic properties rather than any abrupt discontinuities.
Surface of the Equatorial Segment of the Mammalian Acrosome

Surface replicas were made of spermatozoa of 8 mammalian species, which had been fixed after either brief washing in isotonic Hank’s BSS or exposure to hypotonic Hank’s for several minutes. In bull, rabbit, hamster, guinea pig, degu and Rhesus monkey the surface of the outer acrosomal membrane in the equatorial region was found to be composed of regular rows of hexagonally packed particles with center-to-center spacing of 170A. These particles are limited to the equatorial segment. The majority of the surface of the outer acrosomal membrane in mouse and rat was composed of similar 170A spaced particles suggesting that the major portion of the acrosomal surface in mouse and rat is analogous to the equatorial segment of other species. The postacrosomal region in several species was found to be composed of material arranged in parallel ridges with center-to-center spacing of 1 50A.
Quantitative assessment of visual acuity in projective head mounted displays

One issue of head mounted display design relates to the tradeoff between field of view (FOV) and resolution, which can lead to reduced visual acuity (VA). Essentially, an increase in FOV causes a decrease in visual acuity, for a given LCD display that has a fixed number of pixels. The effects of enhanced brightness on VA using two different types of retro-reflective material (cubed or beaded) were tested using a 52 deg. FOV projective helmet mounted display with VGA resolution. Three lighting conditions were also tested. Based on the display size, resolution, and FOV, we estimated a maximum visual acuity of 4.1 minutes of arc. In a counter-balanced between measures design, subjects' psychometric acuity functions were determined using a computer-generated 4AFC Landolt C test presented stereoscopically and probit analysis. The results confirmed that the maximum visual acuity possible within the setup was 4.1 arc minutes, the limit imposed by the microdisplay, and not the retroreflective material.
Industrial applications of computer image processing

Abstract This work presents few industrial applications of computer image processing. The first application is concerned with material testing and evaluation of mechanical properties for strength and quality control applications. The application involves computer processing of a deformed and undeformed grid on the material and generates elastic and plastic deformation properties and variations. The second application considers the effect of surface quality on laser speckle images. This deals with the computer processing of these images and thus finding the effect of surface quality on the spectral density of laser speckle images.
An approach to analytical modeling of snapback in SOI devices

The snapback effect in N channel SOI devices in which the drain to source breakdown voltage is less than the drain to body breakdown voltage is addressed. The purpose is to present an approach to snapback modeling based on nonlinear feedback mechanisms between impact ionization current, the body to source forward bias, the threshold voltage, and the drain current supplying carriers to enhance impact ionization. NMOS SOI devices with the body either tied to the source of floating are analyzed. As the gate voltage first increases and then decreases, the device first operates in the subthreshold region, then jumps abruptly to the strong inversion regime and finally jumps back to the subthreshold region of operation. The model results in transcendental feedback expressions. It is possible to obtain closed-form expressions for the device currents and voltages at the jump points. >
On the stress-based and strain-based methods for predicting optimal orientation of orthotropic materials

In this paper, the strain-based and stress-based methods for solving optimal orientation problems of orthotropic materials are studied. Closed form solutions for both methods are derived and classified. The optimal orientation of both shear "weak" and some shear "strong" orthotropic materials may coincide with the major principal stress direction in the stress-based method. Similar results from the strain-based method are also derived. From the derivations, however, it can also be shown that both methods may fail under a special condition called "repeated global minimum" condition.
Familiarity Scale Values for 420 Nouns in Twelve Combinations of Frequency of Occurrence and Conceptual Categorization.

A category-scaling technique was used to obtain familiarity scale values for 420 nouns. The judges were instructed to base their ratings of familiarity on exposure frequency. The nouns were selected with random numbers from word pools of approximately equal sizes in the Thorndike-Lorge (T-L) source with control of word length and syllabification. 12 sets of words, with 35 words in each set, were scaled. The word sets were formed from words in three T-L frequency categories (.22 < 1, 1–4, and 5–100+ words per million) and four conceptual categories (names of animals, persons, occupations and articles of dress). Correlation coefficients which ranged from .68 to .95 were obtained between scale values having frequency-specific anchors and scale values with anchors which were not specific to the frequency categories. Indices of internal consistency show that empirical cumulative rating proportions were predicted from normal-theory cumulative proportions with an average error of .016.
Comparison of in vitro activities of gatifloxacin and ciprofloxacin against four taxa of rapidly growing mycobacteria.

By using current NCCLS broth microdilution methods, we found that gatifloxacin inhibited 90% of the isolates of the Mycobacterium fortuitum group at ≤0.12 μg/ml and 90% of the Mycobacterium chelonae isolates at ≤4 μg/ml. Gatifloxacin was generally fourfold more active than ciprofloxacin. We recommend that both gatifloxacin and ciprofloxacin be tested routinely against rapidly growing mycobacteria.
SU 3,1 and relativistic quantum string in the orthonormal gauge

An invariance group of the Hamiltonian of the relativistic quantum string in the orthonormal gauge is proposed. The group is identified asSU3,1 which is shown to contain the homogeneous Lorentz group as a subgroup. The unitary representations ofSU3,1 are explicitly constructed and some physical interpretations are discussed.