cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Performance characterization of a novel marsh shoreline protection technology: The Wave Suppression and Sediment Collection (WSSC) system

Abstract Minimizing coastal wetland loss is a high priority in coastal areas worldwide. Typical shoreline protection consists of hard structures placed near areas affected by wave action. These commonly used protection methods are costly, and may have negative impacts on the surrounding areas. The Wave Suppression and Sediment Collection (WSSC) system, made of multiple Wave Robber® units, is an alternative shoreline protection structure. The primary goal of this study is to determine the performance characteristics of the technology in terms of energy coefficients. Experiments were performed on three scaled units within a laboratory wave tank. Performance characterization showed that the units have wave energy reflections of 0.47–0.83, transmission ranging from 0.10 to 0.42, and wave energy dissipation between 0.49 and 0.88, depending upon unit geometry and wave conditions. Performance data were also compared to other studies on shoreline protection structures. WSSC units reflect more wave energy and transmit less energy compared to other breakwater systems. These units could be utilized in coastal marshes with a large fetch, to reduce wave-induced erosion.
Image-based modeling of gas adsorption and deformation in porous media

Understanding adsorption of CO2 in porous formations is crucial to its sequestration in geological formations. We describe a model for adsorption of CO2 and the deformation that it induces in a sandstone formation over wide ranges of temperature and pressure. The model couples the thermodynamics of sorption with elastic deformation of the solid. Finite-element computations are then used in order to compute CO2 adsorption isotherms along with the induced strain in the formation. We also compute the Darcy permeability of the porous medium using the lattice-Boltzmann method. All the computations are carried out with a three-dimensional image of a core sample from Mt. Simon sandstone, the target porous formation for a pilot CO2 sequestration project that is currently being carried out by Illinois State Geological Survey. Thus, no assumptions are made regarding the shape and sizes of the pore throats and pore bodies. The computed CO2 sorption isotherm at 195 K is in excellent agreement with our experimental data. The computed permeability is also in good agreement with the measurement. As a further test we also compute the sorption isotherm of N2 in the same formation at 77.3 K, and show that it is also in good agreement with our experimental data. The model is capable of predicting adsorption of CO2 (or any other gas for that matter) in porous formations at high pressures and temperatures. Thus, it is used to study the effect of hydrostatic pressure on adsorption and deformation of the porous formation under various conditions. We find that the effect of the confining pressure is more prominent at higher temperatures. Also computed is the depth-dependence of the capacity of the formation for CO2 adsorption, along with the induced volumetric strain.
Integration of Energy Information for Product Assembly and Logistics Processes

This paper presents an on-going effort at NIST to model the energy information in assembly and logistics processes as a part of a larger sustainability improvement goal. Energy information comprises energy input, baseline energy consumption, and energy performance. An information model in this paper is developed for enabling integration of energy information in assembly and logistics processes. Based on this information model, industry will be able to share energy-related data on the overall plant level which is traceable to individual processes, equipment, and suppliers. This will enable manufacturers to identify energy saving opportunities in their assembly processes and supply chains.
Some Issues in the Standardized Testing of Minority Students.

The standardized testing of minority students has stimulated some of the most crucial and antagonistic debates in education today. In this crossfire, it is often difficult for the participants to s...
Youth violence: Developmental pathways and prevention challenges.

Youth violence is an important public health problem. During the latter half of the 1980s and early 1990s, the United States witnessed unprecedented levels of violence among the nation's youths. Homicide remains one of the leading causes of death for young people aged 10 to 24 years. This paper reviews the major trends in homicide victimization and perpetration among youths during the past decade, the developmental pathways of delinquent and violent behavior and the context in which these behaviors occur, and some of the challenges associated with disrupting these pathways and preventing violence. Previous research reveals that multiple pathways lead toward violence and delinquency. Predicting which pathway a youth will follow, or if one will be followed at all, depends to some extent on a host of other biological, psychosocial, and environmental factors present as young people transition from early childhood to adolescence to early adulthood. Preventing violence requires a comprehensive approach that takes into account developmental needs, tasks, and supports.
The Surprising Predictability of Long Runs

When data arise from a situation that can be modeled as a collection of n independent Bernoulli trials with success probability p, a simple rule of thumb predicts the approximate length that the lo...
Sons and Lovers: Political Stability in China and Europe Before the Great Divergence

Rulers’ long duration in the medieval period had contributed to the rise of Europe. But what explained premodern ruler duration? While the extant answers focus on formal, political institutions, I examine the role of marriage and inheritance norms in affecting ruler survival. Using a novel dataset of over 1,000 monarchs in China and Europe from 1000 to 1800 CE, I obtain two findings that have been overlooked by the existing literature. First, contrary to the view that European rulers had exceptional stability, I find that Chinese monarchs stayed in power longer than their European counterparts. Second, I find a strong effect of family practices on ruler survival. More liberal marriage and inheritance norms provided Chinese emperors with sustained availability of male heirs, which reduced palace coups. But the Church’s control of royal marriage and inheritance in Europe decreased the number of male heirs, which increased the probability of a deposition.
Performance variability during training on simulators is associated with skill transfer

Abstract Background Expert performance is characterized by consistency. The degree of variability of performance from repetition to repetition during proficiency-based simulator training could potentially indicate acquisition of expertise. We hypothesized that learners with less variability in performance during simulator training would achieve greater performance at the end of training and improved transfer of skills to a live, anesthetized, porcine model. Methods The performance of 93 subjects (surgery residents and medical students) who had participated in 3 randomized controlled trials was analyzed for variability. All participants had trained in laparoscopic suturing on the Fundamentals of Laparoscopic Surgery (FLS) simulator. Their performance had been assessed on the simulator before (baseline) and after training (posttest) and on a live, anesthetized, porcine model (transfer test). We computed the coefficient of variations of suturing scores during training for each participant. Linear regression was used to assess whether variability in performance during training predicted posttest and transfer-test scores. Results Decreased practice variability in performance was associated with greater scores in posttests and transfer tests. For each percent decrease in variability performance, posttest scores increased by 3.8 points (P Conclusion Decreased variability in performance during practice on simulators is associated with improved performance at the end of training and during transfer to a live, anesthetized, porcine model. These findings suggest that variability in performance during simulator training may be used to track the progress and readiness of a trainee for the clinical environment. Further studies are needed to verify the robustness of this potentially new metric of performance.
High power laser mode conversion with volume phase elements recorded in PTR glass

The manipulation of a laser’s transverse profile is of great interest for many applications. The most common and simple approach to beam shaping is by the use of optical phase masks. Conventional phase masks fabricated by surface profiling using spatially selective etching or deposition are easily damaged and limit high energy applications. We have shown in past work, that it is possible to create different phase profiles in the volume of photo-thermorefractive (PTR) glass, which unlike conventional phase mask materials has a high damage threshold that can withstand high peak and average powers. Here we present an approach for mode conversion of a high power fiber laser system using two different types of phase masks fabricated by encoding phase profiles into volume Bragg gratings. These holographic phase masks (HPMs) can successfully introduce wavefront change and achieve high diffraction efficiency (based on wavelength and the grating strength) for a broad range of wavelengths by tuning the element to the gratings Bragg condition. The first element had a grayscale vortex phase profile for HG1 conversion. The second had a binary four-sector phase profile, and was capable to perform fundamental mode conversion to a TEM01, TEM10, or TEM11. Mode conversion efficiency and thermal stress on each type of phase element were investigated using a 150 W of continuous wave power with a TEM00 profile Yb:fiber laser.
Packed Red Blood Cell Transfusion Associates with Acute Kidney Injury After Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement

Acute kidney injury after cardiac surgery significantly associates with morbidity and mortality. Despite not requiring cardiopulmonary bypass, transcatheter aortic valve replacement patients have an incidence of post-procedural acute kidney injury similar to patients who undergo open surgical aortic valve replacement. Packed red blood cell transfusion has been associated with morbidity and mortality after cardiac surgery. We hypothesized that packed red blood cell transfusion independently associates with acute kidney injury after transcatheter aortic valve replacement, after accounting for other risk factors. This is a single-center retrospective cohort study of 116 patients undergoing transcatheter aortic valve replacement. Post-transcatheter aortic valve replacement acute kidney injury was defined by Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes serum creatinine-based criteria. Univariate comparisons between patients with and without post-transcatheter aortic valve replacement acute kidney injury were made for clinical characteristics. Multivariable logistic regression was used to assess independent association of packed red blood cell transfusion with post-transcatheter aortic valve replacement acute kidney injury (adjusting for pre-procedural renal function and other important clinical parameters). Acute kidney injury occurred in 20 (17.2%) subjects. Total number of packed red blood cells transfused independently associated with post-procedure acute kidney injury (OR = 1.67 per unit, 95% CI 1.13–2.47, P = 0.01) after adjusting for pre-procedure estimated glomerular filtration rate (OR = 0.97 per ml/min/1.73m2, 95% CI 0.94–1.00, P = 0.05), nadir hemoglobin (OR = 0.88 per g/dL increase, CI 0.61–1.27, P = 0.50), and post-procedure maximum number of concurrent inotropes and vasopressors (OR = 2.09 per inotrope or vasopressor, 95% CI 1.19–3.67, P = 0.01). Packed red blood cell transfusion, along with post-procedure use of inotropes and vasopressors, independently associate with acute kidney injury after transcatheter aortic valve replacement. Further studies are needed to elucidate the pathobiology underlying these associations.
Change in visual acuity and retinal structures following Repository Corticotropin Injection (RCI) therapy in patients with acute demyelinating optic neuritis: Improvement in low contrast visual acuity in both affected and contralateral eyes in a single-armed open-label study.

Abstract Background Current treatments after an episode of optic neuritis have limited success protecting the retinal nerves and restoring visual function. Objective To assess the effectiveness of Repository Corticotropin Injection (RCI) after the onset of optic neuritis. Methods Twenty-four adults were treated with RCI within 2 weeks of symptom onset. Seven exams over 400 days measured low- and high-contrast visual acuity (LCVA and HCVA) and spectral domain optical coherence tomography of the retinal structures. Differences between and among affected and contralateral eyes were assessed using linear mixed models. Results HCVA improved in the affected eye over the study (36.2 letters to 52.5), and LCVA improved in both the affected eye (1.8 letters to 6.8) and the contralateral eye (8.3 letters to 11.7). These functional improvements occurred concurrent to a thinning in the papillomacular bundle and the ganglion cell, inner plexiform, and retinal nerve fiber layers, while the inner nuclear, outer plexiform, outer nuclear, and photoreceptor layers thickened. Conclusion The eyes affected by the ON and treated with RCI improved in both LCVA and HCVA, and unexpectedly LCVA improved in the contralateral eye as well. This functional improvement was mirrored by structural changes in the retina. This study lays the groundwork for future studies to explore potential neuro-protective and neuro-restorative effects of RCI.
Deep Truck : A deep neural network model for longitudinal dynamics of heavy duty trucks

This article demonstrates the use of deep neural networks (NN) and deep reinforcement learning (deep-RL) for modeling and control of longitudinal heavy duty truck dynamics. Instead of explicit use of analytical model derived information or parameters about the truck, the deep NN model is fitted to data using a brief set of historical data collected from an arbitrary driving cycle. The deep model is used in this article to design a cruise controller for the truck using model-free deep-RL. The deep model and the control loop performances are demonstrated both using state-of-the-art commercial simulation software, and using a real-physical truck. Model and control performances are compared to classical physics-based modeling and control design approaches. The deep NN model is shown to capture latent nonlinear state dynamics and the deep-RL cruise controller is shown to achieve comparable results to a carefully designed and calibrated controller.
Supervised learning of model observers for assessment of CT image reconstruction algorithms

Given the wide variety of CT reconstruction algorithms currently available { from filtered back projection, to non- linear iterative algorithms, and now even deep learning approaches { there is a pressing need for reconstruction quality metrics that correlate well with task-specific goals. For detection tasks, metrics based on a model observer framework are an attractive option. In this framework, a reconstruction algorithm is assessed based on how well a statistically optimal "model observer" performs on a signal present/signal absent detection task. However, computing exact model observers requires a detailed description of the statistics of the reconstructed images, which are often unknown or computationally intractable to obtain, especially in the case of non-linear reconstruction algorithms. Instead, we study the feasibility of using supervised machine learning approaches to approximate model observers in a CT reconstruction setting. In particular, we show that we can well-approximate the Hotelling observer, i.e., the optimal linear classifier, for a signal-known-exactly/background-known-exactly task by training from labeled training images in the case of FBP reconstruction. We also investigate the feasibility of training multi-layer neural networks to approximate the ideal observer in the case of total variation constrained iterative reconstruction. Our results demonstrate that supervised machine learning methods achieve close to ideal performance in both cases.
Authenticity and the true self in religion and spirituality

Abstract Achieving self-knowledge and authentic selfhood are significant existential concerns. Experiencing these states subjectively is associated with meaning in life and other forms of well-being; conversely, people may develop anxiety, depression, or other pathologies in the absence of these states. This chapter considers how religion and spirituality might relate to issues of authenticity and self-knowledge, focusing on three central aspects of religion: (1) having religious or spiritual experiences; (2) holding religious beliefs; and (3) participating in religious communities. There are many possible connections between each of these domains and that of authentic experience, and it seems that religion has the potential to both contribute to and detract from subjective experiences of authenticity. A central conclusion of our analysis is that moral functioning (including both moral judgment and action) is a primary domain in which religion and authenticity intersect, and that focusing on this domain may be the best avenue to understand how religion and authentic experience bear on each other. Where possible, direct empirical evidence is presented, but as the intersection of religion and authenticity has not been systematically studied, some of this chapter’s content is speculative, and recommendations for future research are included throughout.
Coblation intracapsular tonsillectomy in pediatric patients

Abstract Introduction: Intracapsular tonsillectomy is a relatively new technique with the potential to replace the traditional total tonsillectomy approach. While there have been many studies describing the benefits of intracapsular tonsillectomy is over total tonsillectomy, there is limited literature detailing the actual technique and nuances behind the intracapsular operation, particularly using coblation. This report aims to describe in detail the intracapsular tonsillectomy technique performed at our institution and provide insight on how to approach common issues. Methods: Intracapsular tonsillectomy was performed using a coblator to remove tonsillar tissue down to the capsule, preserving nerve endings and most vasculature. Results: Coblation intracapsular tonsillectomy is an elegant and easy-to-learn technique. Discussion: Intracapsular tonsillectomy is a powerful technique which has become the gold standard at our institution. This article details the basic technique as well as nuances of coblation intracapsular tonsillectomy.
Increased cellular senescence in the murine and human stenotic kidney: Effect of mesenchymal stem cells

Cell stress may give rise to insuperable growth arrest, which is defined as cellular senescence. Stenotic kidney (STK) ischemia and injury induced by renal artery stenosis (RAS) may be associated with cellular senescence. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) decrease some forms of STK injury, but their ability to reverse senescence in RAS remains unknown. We hypothesized that RAS evokes STK senescence, which would be ameliorated by MSCs. Mice were studied after 4 weeks of RAS, RAS treated with adipose tissue-derived MSCs 2 weeks earlier, or sham. STK senescence-associated β-galactosidase (SA-β-Gal) activity was measured. Protein and gene expression was used to assess senescence and the senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP), and staining for renal fibrosis, inflammation, and capillary density. In addition, senescence was assessed as p16+ and p21+ urinary exosomes in patients with renovascular hypertension (RVH) without or 3 months after autologous adipose tissue-derived MSC delivery, and in healthy volunteers (HV). In RAS mice, STK SA-β-Gal activity increased, and senescence and SASP marker expression was markedly elevated. MSCs improved renal function, fibrosis, inflammation, and capillary density, and attenuated SA-β-Gal activity, but most senescence and SASP levels remained unchanged. Congruently, in human RVH, p21+ urinary exosomes were elevated compared to HV, and only slightly improved by MSC, whereas p16+ exosomes remained unchanged. Therefore, RAS triggers renal senescence in both mice and human subjects. MSCs decrease renal injury, but only partly mitigate renal senescence. These observations support exploration of targeted senolytic therapy in RAS.
A Profile of Returning Graduates in Community College Occupational Education A Decade Later

Just over a decade ago, Lynch studied adult students in community colleges who had already earned a postsecondary credential, but “returned to learn.” Lynch situated his study at a mid-western comm...
Effects of unsupervised behavioral and pelvic floor muscle training programs on nocturia, urinary urgency, and urinary frequency in postmenopausal women: Secondary analysis of a randomized, two-arm, parallel design, superiority trial (TULIP study).

Abstract Objective To determine and compare the effects of an unsupervised behavioral and pelvic floor muscle training (B-PFMT) program delivered in two formats on nocturia, urinary urgency, and urinary frequency in postmenopausal women. Study design A secondary analysis used data collected from women enrolled in the TULIP study. Women aged 55 years or more with no urinary incontinence were provided the B-PFMT program. Each woman was randomly assigned to a face-to-face class that took about 2 h (2-hrClass) or to a DVD showing essentially the same information as a 20-minute video (20-minVideo). All women were instructed to independently continue the program following their education session. Three urinary outcomes were assessed at baseline, 3, 12, and 24 months. Main outcome measures Nocturia and urinary urgency were examined with one item each from the questionnaire-based voiding diary, and urinary frequency was assessed with patients’ self-documenting 3-day bladder diary. Results Women in the 2-hrClass group experienced significantly fewer nocturia episodes and longer average inter-void interval at each follow-up and fewer urinary urgency episodes at 12 months. Women in the 20-minVideo group experienced significantly fewer episodes of nocturia and urinary urgency and longer average inter-void interval at each follow-up time point. No significant between-group differences were found for any outcome, except for nocturia at 24 months, when effectiveness favored women in the 20-minVideo group. Conclusions Unsupervised B-PFMT programs are effective for improving postmenopausal women’s urinary outcomes regardless of the format. The optimal format to deliver B-PFMT programs in terms of effectiveness should be explored in future studies.
Abstract SP083: Treatment of HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer - advances and challenges

Over the past two decades, there have been tremendous advances in treatment options for patients with HER2+ metastatic breast cancer (MBC). Median overall survival (OS) in control arm of the pivotal trastuzumab + chemotherapy study (Slamon et al, NEJM 2001) was 20.3 months. By contrast, median OS in the taxane/trastuzumab/pertuzumab arm of the CLEOPATRA trial was approximately 5 years, with an 8-year landmark OS of 37% (Wong et al, Oncologist 2019). Notably, OS improvements have also been demonstrated in the pivotal trials of ado-trastuzumab emtansine, tucatinib/capecitabine/trastuzumab, and trastuzumab deruxtecan in pre-treated patients with HER2+ MBC, such that we expect that median OS will only continue to lengthen. Indeed, with current therapies, a subset of patients can survive a decade or longer. Despite these improvements, there is still much progress to be made. First, the problem of brain metastases continues to contribute substantial morbidity and mortality in at least half of patients. While there have been advances in local therapy for brain metastases, breakthroughs in systemic therapy and prevention strategies ultimately will be needed to truly tackle this problem. Second, drug resistance nearly always appears over time, yet our understanding of HER2-resistance remains woefully incomplete. Developing a deeper understanding of therapeutic resistance may uncover novel targets that allow for more effective and durable treatment. Finally, with multiple highly active drugs now available, is it now time to pivot to testing curative-intent approaches in HER2+ MBC, particularly in those patients who present with de novo stage IV disease. Citation Format: N Lin. Treatment of HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer - advances and challenges [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2020 San Antonio Breast Cancer Virtual Symposium; 2020 Dec 8-11; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2021;81(4 Suppl):Abstract nr SP083.
Terahertz pulse shaping using diffractive networks

We present a diffractive network, trained for pulse engineering to shape input pulses into desired optical waveforms. The synthesis of square-pulses with various widths was experimentally demonstrated with 3D-fabricated passive diffractive layers that control both the amplitude and phase profile of the input terahertz pulse across a wide range of frequencies. Pulse-width tunability was also demonstrated by altering the layer-to-layer distances of a diffractive network. Furthermore, the modularity of this framework was demonstrated by replacing part of an already-trained network with newly-trained layers to tune the width of the output terahertz pulse, presenting a Lego-like physical transfer learning approach.
III-nitride strain relaxation enabled by porous GaN for optoelectronic applications

InGaN based blue and green LEDs are quite attractive owing to their high efficiency, low power consumption, and high performance even at scaled dimensions. However, for red emission higher indium content in the QWs leads to poor performance due to increased strain in the structure. We will discuss a novel elastic strain relaxation technique using porous GaN pseudo-substrates which will allow enhanced indium uptake in the quantum wells for high-efficiency red InGaN micro-LEDs outperforming AlInGaP based micro-LEDs. Results including green and orange luminescence from micro-LEDs (<5 µm) fabricated on these pseudo-substrates will be discussed.
Radial storage efficiency for CO2 injection: Quantifying effectiveness of local flow control methods

Author(s): Oldenburg, CM | Abstract: Basin-scale geologic carbon sequestration will require hundreds of injection wells, each of which has costs related to property rights and regulatory requirements that correlate with the areal size of the carbon dioxide plume. These surface-footprint-related issues motivate maximizing storage efficiency radially away from each well. Radial storage efficiency (RSE) is defined here as the ratio of the volumetrically weighted carbon dioxide free-phase saturation within a given radius away from the injection well to the available pore space within that same radius. Maximizing RSE effectively minimizes the radial extent of the CO2 plume. Optimizing RSE around individual wells requires local flow control injection strategies that can increase the uniformity of the filling of pore space around the well over the entire length of the perforated injection interval despite differences in local formation transmissivity. The goal of uniform filling of the storage reservoir starting from the well outward is to maximize carbon dioxide sweep and trapping locally outward from the well in all of the layers of the storage region before buoyancy forces predominate and drive carbon dioxide upward where it will spread laterally under lower-permeability layers. Example simulations of carbon dioxide injection into a layered storage system with and without local flow control are presented to show the advantage of uniformly filling all layers and how RSE can be used to quantify storage efficiency for the two different injection approaches. Published 2021. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.
An unscented Kalman filter method for real time input-parameter-state estimation

Abstract The input-parameter-state estimation capabilities of a novel unscented Kalman filter is examined herein on both linear and nonlinear systems. The unknown input is estimated in two stages within each time step. Firstly, the predicted dynamic states and the system parameters provide an estimation of the input. Secondly, the corrected with measurements states and parameters provide a final estimation. Importantly, it is demonstrated using the perturbation analysis that, a system with at least a zero or a non-zero known input can potentially be uniquely identified. This output-only methodology allows for a better understanding of the system compared to classical output-only parameter identification strategies, given that all the dynamic states, the parameters, and the input are estimated jointly and in real-time.
Aggregation of silica nanoparticles and its impact on particle mobility under high-salinity conditions

Abstract CO 2 foams that are stabilized with nanoparticles are being considered to improve volumetric sweep efficiency for CO 2 enhanced oil recovery (EOR) processes. To better understand the nanoparticle retention/transport under high salinity conditions often associated with typical hydrocarbon reservoirs, the aggregation of the surface-treated silica nanoparticles was studied as a function of salinity and nanoparticle concentration. At pH 8.5, an enhancement in aggregation kinetics occurred with increasing calcium and particle concentration. However, when the pH was reduced to ca. 3, close to the CO 2 saturated condition, the aggregation was insignificant regardless of the salinity and the particle concentration over 10 days. In the transport test of silica nanoparticles in the sandpack column, a negligible amount of nanoparticles was retained with non-aggregated nanoparticles and for aggregates less than 235 nm regardless of flow rate. However, the retention of larger aggregates (>ca. 1000 nm) was enhanced as Darcy velocity decreased. Modeling based on a modified version of clean-bed filtration theory was able to explain experimental breakthrough curves only for the non-aggregated and slightly aggregated particles, suggesting that further considerations are essential to understand the physical effect of aggregation on the transport of larger aggregates. These results suggest a possible breakdown of the aggregates due to the hydrodynamic forces, hence retrieving the mobility of silica nanoparticles in the porous media. These observations demonstrate that silica nanoparticle aggregation can be prevented by increasing flow rate and lowering pH. The findings of this study would provide an insight on the behavior of nanoparticle in the reservoirs and a guideline for the application of the nanoparticles in enhanced oil recovery operations.
When can the maximin share guarantee be guaranteed

The fairness notion of maximin share (MMS) guarantee underlies a deployed algorithm for allocating indivisible goods under additive valuations. Our goal is to understand when we can expect to be able to give each player his MMS guarantee. Previous work has shown that such an MMS allocation may not exist, but the counterexample requires a number of goods that is exponential in the number of players; we give a new construction that uses only a linear number of goods. On the positive side, we formalize the intuition that these counterexamples are very delicate by designing an algorithm that provably finds an MMS allocation with high probability when valuations are drawn at random.
Cinnamoylation of the sugar hydroxyls of 3-methylthymidine. Formation of a relatively stable ester derivative.

Abstract A trace amount (51 ng) of 3-methylthymidine is derivatized with cinnamic anhydride in the presence of the acylation catalyst 4-dimethylaminopyridine. The yield of the diacylated product, 3′-5′-bis-(O-cinnamoyl)-3-methylthymidine, is 102 ± 3.6%. The product is stable at pH 4–8 in aqueous acetonitrile for 16 days and can be determined at the low pg level by gas chromatography with electron-capture detection. These results encourage the further development of α,β-unsaturated acylating reagents for use in this and related chromatographic analyses.
Social Complexity and Technological Choice: The Bay Area Rapid Transit System

There are two strategies in planning transportation for a metropolitan area; one is flexible and can adapt to future changes in the area. The second adopts a particular technology and the area must adapt to it in the future. The Bay Area Rapid Transit System is an example of the inflexible strategy. In this case community leaders decided that improving transportation in the area, thus improving accessibility, would save San Francisco from decay. The flaw in the decision making process was that even though consultants were used, they designed and implemented on particular form of transit system rather than deciding what the future needs of the region would be and then deciding what mode would best fit those needs. The choice of rapid rail implies a political strategy. A bus system would have been more flexible, less expensive, use already existing and multipurposes facilities. The building of a rail system forces development, growth and prescribed uses of land. Technology becomes an independent variable in political decision making because it forecasts what the future will be. This is called technocracy; rule by technology. The author proposes a socio-political impact statement which would report probable consequences of a proposed investment in a particular technology.
The association between cognition and histamine-2 receptor antagonists in African Americans.

Objectives To evaluate the association between histamine-2 receptor antagonist (H2A) exposure and incident cognitive impairment in a community-based sample of African Americans.
Clioquinol and pyrrolidine dithiocarbamate complex with copper to form proteasome inhibitors and apoptosis inducers in human breast cancer cells

A physiological feature of many tumor tissues and cells is the tendency to accumulate high concentrations of copper. While the precise role of copper in tumors is cryptic, copper, but not other trace metals, is required for angiogenesis. We have recently reported that organic copper-containing compounds, including 8-hydroxyquinoline-copper(II) and 5,7-dichloro-8-hydroxyquinoline-copper(II), comprise a novel class of proteasome inhibitors and tumor cell apoptosis inducers. In the current study, we investigate whether clioquinol (CQ), an analog of 8-hydroxyquinoline and an Alzheimer's disease drug, and pyrrolidine dithiocarbamate (PDTC), a known copper-binding compound and antioxidant, can interact with copper to form cancer-specific proteasome inhibitors and apoptosis inducers in human breast cancer cells. Tetrathiomolybdate (TM), a strong copper chelator currently being tested in clinical trials, is used as a comparison. Breast cell lines, normal, immortalized MCF-10A, premalignant MCF10AT1K.cl2, and malignant MCF10DCIS.com and MDA-MB-231, were treated with CQ or PDTC with or without prior interaction with copper, followed by measurement of proteasome inhibition and cell death. Inhibition of the proteasome was determined by levels of the proteasomal chymotrypsin-like activity and ubiquitinated proteins in protein extracts of the treated cells. Apoptotic cell death was measured by morphological changes, Hoechst staining, and poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase cleavage. When in complex with copper, both CQ and PDTC, but not TM, can inhibit the proteasome chymotrypsin-like activity, block proliferation, and induce apoptotic cell death preferentially in breast cancer cells, less in premalignant breast cells, but are non-toxic to normal/non-transformed breast cells at the concentrations tested. In contrast, CQ, PDTC, TM or copper alone had no effects on any of the cells. Breast premalignant or cancer cells that contain copper at concentrations similar to those found in patients, when treated with just CQ or PDTC alone, but not TM, undergo proteasome inhibition and apoptosis. The feature of breast cancer cells and tissues to accumulate copper can be used as a targeting method for anticancer therapy through treatment with novel compounds such as CQ and PDTC that become active proteasome inhibitors and breast cancer cell killers in the presence of copper.
Working While Narcoleptic

As a young person with narcolepsy, the author chronicles some of the challenges and hopes of being in the workforce. These journal entries center around the issues created by excessive daytime sleepiness and the experiences that drive the narrator to become self-employed.
Tumor Metabolic Rates in Sarcoma Using FDG PET

UNLABELLED In a busy clinical environment, the arterial blood sampling and long imaging time used for the determination of tumor metabolic rates are not always feasible. In this study, the relationship of tumor standard uptake value (SUV) and metabolic rate of FDG (MRFDG) was investigated in a group of patients with sarcoma. To further investigate the implications of reducing blood sampling requirements for determining tumor metabolic rate, the relationship between FDG blood clearance, obtained from serial venous blood sampling and from a hybrid method of early cardiac blood pool imaging, and late venous blood sampling was analyzed. METHODS Comparisons of the sarcoma SUV and MRFDG obtained using graphical analysis, dynamic FDG imaging and venous blood sampling were made. Also, venous and hybrid blood time-activity curves were analyzed for similarity and for their effect on the estimated tumor metabolic rate. RESULTS For this group of patients with sarcoma (n = 42), the tumor SUV and MRFDG had a consistent relationship, with an overall correlation coefficient of 0.94. The MRFDG, determined by venous blood sampling, had a 6% average overestimate, compared to the same value obtained by the hybrid method of early blood pool imaging and late venous sampling. CONCLUSION Both the correlation of SUV and MRFDG and the hybrid blood pool/tumor imaging protocol provide clinically feasible methods for obtaining tumor metabolic rate information in a busy clinical PET service.
Florida at the Crossroads: Integrating Sentencing with Corrections?

Effective January, 1994, Florida made substantial changes in its sentencing guidelines and several other laws which may have a dramatic impact on the future sentencing of offenders as well as corrections in the state. The purpose of this paper is to critically assess these recent changes in the sentencing guidelines and law.
Effects of Pre-Process Temperature Stressing on AlGaN/GaN HEMT Structures

In an effort to investigate the stability of the surface and hetero-interface of AlGaN/GaN HEMTs during high temperature device processing steps, AlGaN/GaN HEMT samples were subjected to temperatures from 650°C to 1150°C for a period of 30 seconds prior to processing. Hall and photoluminescence measurements were performed on samples before and after temperature stressing. The samples annealed at 700°C and 1150°C were then processed, and electrical parametric data were collected during and after processing. Large increases in HEMT Schottky gate diode reverse leakage current are observed at higher pre-process annealing temperatures, while the low-field mobility decreases.
Solid state motor protective devices provide sophisticated motor protection and communications

Recent advances in technology and motor control design have resulted in the use of electronic components in motor starters and specifically overload relays. The benefits of utilizing electronics in motor starters includes: enhanced protection against various types of faults; improved features; and communication between a programmable logic controller or other host control system and a motor starter. This combination of enhanced protection, improved features and communication provides users, especially in the process control field, with the opportunity to directly control and monitor process elements. Control and monitoring can provide warning of impending problems, minimize downtime, and improve process results. >
SERIAL EEG STUDY FOLLOWING THALAMOTOMY.

Abstract 1. 1. EEG changes were studied in 45 Parkinson patients pre- and post-operatively. 2. 2. In one-half of the pre-operative tracings mild to moderate, diffuse, non-specific dysrhythmia was present. 3. 3. Post-operatively, two-thirds of the patients had no or only moderate EEG changes which consisted of decreased alpha frequency and newly appearing theta and sharp waves. 4. 4. In one-third of the patients delta activity was present primarily in the early post-operative period. 5. 5. Decrement in psychological test performance occurred irrespective of the presence or absence of EEG changes. 6. 6. Delayed recovery in psychological tests was predominantly seen in those patients with associated EEG changes.
Anti-lysergyl antibody: Measurement of binding parameters in IgG fractions☆

Abstract Antibodies directed against lysergyl-poly- l -lysine were elicited in rabbits. A ligand binding assay was developed to monitor antibody activity. Results using this assay showed that immunoadsorption selects for the antibody population representing the average affinity in the serum with subsequent loss of high and low affinity subpopulations. Measurements of average intrinsic association constants ( K o ) and heterogeneity indices ( a ) were made with IgG fractions of anti-lysergyl antisera and compared with purified antibody populations after immunoadsorption.
Prolonged enhancement in surface ultraviolet radiation during the Antarctic spring of 1990

Measurements of the ultraviolet solar spectral irradiance from the earth's surface at Palmer Station, Antarctica, latitude 64.8 degrees South, show behavior in the spring of 1990 which differs from that observed during the seasonal ozone depletions of the previous two years. As the Austral spring progresses, the sun rises in the sky, and the duration of daylight increases up to the summer solstice on December 21. This is naturally accompanied by increasing ultraviolet irradiances irrespective of the behavior of column ozone. If, as in 1988, the ozone depletion is confined to October and early November, the irradiances at local noon may remain at or below values characteristic of an unperturbed summer solstice. However, in 1990 enhanced irradiances persisted well into December. The largest values observed at a wavelength of 306.5 nm were approximately double those expected at summer solstice with an unperturbed ozone amount.
Entrepreneurial orientation and the performance of service business

The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of entrepreneurial orientation (EO) on the performance of service businesses. For this purpose, we analyzed the data from the owners of Japanese food restaurants. The results of this study suggest: (1) the owner’s personal attributes have a strong influence on the performance of small- and medium-sized service businesses and (2) most EO dimensions have a positive impact on the service firm’s performance. These findings emphasize the importance of developing EO among the owners of small- and medium-sized service businesses for their success.
Location of the origin of replication for the 7.5-kb Chlamydia trachomatis plasmid

The hypothetical origin of replication for the 7.5-kb plasmid common to Chlamydia trachomatis is believed to be in a region of the plasmid that contains four 22-bp tandem repeats preceded by an A-T-rich region. To test this hypothesis, replication of plasmid DNA in metabolically active reticulate bodies of the Lymphogranuloma venereum biovar of C. trachomatis was examined by electron microscopy. The results presented show that the origin of replication appears to be near the tandem repeats of pCHL2. In addition, replication of the 7.5-kb plasmid is unidirectional, and the copy number during replication is 7-10. The evidence presented suggests that C. trachomatis has a homologue to the Escherichia coli dnaA gene and that this homologue might be involved in replication of the C. trachomatis 7.5-kb plasmid.
Mechanical Stress Induces Biotic and Abiotic Stress Responses via a Novel cis-Element

Plants are continuously exposed to a myriad of abiotic and biotic stresses. However, the molecular mechanisms by which these stress signals are perceived and transduced are poorly understood. To begin to identify primary stress signal transduction components, we have focused on genes that respond rapidly (within 5 min) to stress signals. Because it has been hypothesized that detection of physical stress is a mechanism common to mounting a response against a broad range of environmental stresses, we have utilized mechanical wounding as the stress stimulus and performed whole genome microarray analysis of Arabidopsis thaliana leaf tissue. This led to the identification of a number of rapid wound responsive (RWR) genes. Comparison of RWR genes with published abiotic and biotic stress microarray datasets demonstrates a large overlap across a wide range of environmental stresses. Interestingly, RWR genes also exhibit a striking level and pattern of circadian regulation, with induced and repressed genes displaying antiphasic rhythms. Using bioinformatic analysis, we identified a novel motif overrepresented in the promoters of RWR genes, herein designated as the Rapid Stress Response Element (RSRE). We demonstrate in transgenic plants that multimerized RSREs are sufficient to confer a rapid response to both biotic and abiotic stresses in vivo, thereby establishing the functional involvement of this motif in primary transcriptional stress responses. Collectively, our data provide evidence for a novel cis-element that is distributed across the promoters of an array of diverse stress-responsive genes, poised to respond immediately and coordinately to stress signals. This structure suggests that plants may have a transcriptional network resembling the general stress signaling pathway in yeast and that the RSRE element may provide the key to this coordinate regulation.
Gauge-Field Theory of Particles. II. Fermions

We construct classes of Lagrangians which describe families of fermions containing an infinite number of particles. The Lagrangians depend on Rarita-Schwinger fields with $k$ Lorentz indices, $k=1, 2,\dots{}$, which have bilinear interactions among themselves. These Lagrangians are invariant under gauge transformations of the second kind. The physical states appear as the normal modes of these field theories, and by suitable choices of the masses of the underlying gauge fields, the physical fermions can be made to lie on linearly rising Regge trajectories. The currents have nontrivial diagonal matrix elements, and also have matrix elements between states of different spin. By considering time-ordered products of currents between single-particle states, we are able to construct on- and off-mass-shell $N$-point functions in the narrow-resonance approximation. Specifically, we give rules for calculating $\ensuremath{\pi}N$ scattering and inelastic electron scattering in that approximation.