cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of coal conversion pathways in fluidized bed chemical looping combustion with oxygen uncoupling (CLOU)

Abstract Chemical looping with oxygen uncoupling (CLOU) is a variant of chemical looping combustion that uses oxygen carriers that release gaseous O2 in the fuel reactor to efficiently combust solid char. There are many different pathways by which fuel carbon can be converted in a CLOU system, including reaction of volatiles, oxidation of char and gasification of char followed by conversion of the gaseous products. Therefore, there is competition between volatiles and solid char for both gaseous and metal bound oxygen. This study presents an experimental method of analysis to better understand the conversion pathway and fate of fuel carbon in a fluidized bed reactor system. The analysis is applied to a Cu-based CLOU carrier in a bench-scale reactor, feeding either coal or coal char in small batches. The effect of coal particle size and reactor temperature on the relative contributions of different carbon conversion pathways is evaluated. Under the conditions studied, higher temperatures and smaller char particles were more effectively converted by gaseous O2 released by the CLOU carrier, resulting in less unconverted char. However, there was more unconverted volatiles exiting the reactor from small coal particles and the resulting char had a higher tendency to exit the fuel reactor unconverted. Larger char particles relied more on conversion by gasification and subsequent oxidation of combustible products. Results for other systems will depend on operating conditions and properties of the fuel, but conversion pathways can be systematically evaluated using the method described.
The Relational Aboutness of Emotions in Interpersonal Contexts

Emotion expressions communicate more than internal states; they function to signal the significance of our relations with the environment and how social partners may adaptively respond. This chapter first discusses how discrete emotions convey an “aboutness” concerning one’s appraisals of their environment. Next, we illustrate how differential qualities of discrete emotion signals regulate others’ behavior and interaction with the environment. Finally, we describe potential lines of empirical research to further our understanding of the regulatory functions of affective expressions in interpersonal contexts.
Segmentation-based image defogging using modified dark channel prior

Image acquisition under bad weather conditions is prone to yield image with low contrast, faded color, and overall poor visibility. Different computer vision applications including surveillance, object classification, tracking, and recognition get effected due to degraded hazy images. Dehazing can significantly improve contrast, balance luminance, correct distortion, remove unwanted visual effects/ and therefore enhance the image quality. As a result, image defogging is imperative pre-processing step in computer vision applications. Previously, dark channel prior-based algorithms have proven promising results over the available techniques. In this paper, we have proposed a modified dark channel prior that uses fog density and guided image-filtering technique to estimate and refine transmission map, respectively. Guided image filter speeds up the refinement of transmission map, hence reduces the overall computational complexity of algorithm. We have also incorporated segmentation of the foggy image into sky and non-sky regions, after which, the modified dark channel prior and atmospheric light is computed for each segment. Then, the average value of atmospheric light for each segment is used to estimate transmission map. We have performed quantitative and subjective comparison for effective evaluation of our proposed algorithm against the current state-of-the-art algorithms on natural and synthetic images. Different quality metrics, such as saturation, mean square error, fog density, peak signal to noise ratio, structural similarity index metric, dehazing algorithm index (DHQI), full-reference image quality assessmen (FR-IQA), and naturalness of dehazed images have shown the proposed algorithm to be better than existing techniques.
Atypical ophthalmic manifestations of disseminated intravascular coagulation in a newborn.

Ophthalmic manifestations of disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) in a newborn are rare. Ocular involvement typically involves the posterior segment bilaterally and manifests as choroidal and/or retinal hemorrhages associated with fibrin thrombi in the choriocapillaris. We present the case of a newborn girl with DIC secondary to sepsis who subsequently developed nonclearing hyphema, related secondary cataract, 360° posterior synechiae, and nonclearing vitreous hemorrhage in the right eye and diffuse retinal hemorrhage in the left eye. The right fundus was not visible because of intraocular bleeding. The patient underwent cataract surgery at 39 days of life and was left aphakic. Two weeks later, she required subsequent vitrectomy because of a nonclearing vitreous hemorrhage. She developed amblyopia of the right eye and a right esotropia that required strabismus surgery. At 7 years of age, the patient's visual acuity was 20/50 in the right eye and 20/20 in the left eye.
Analysis of the impact of secondary prophylaxis on Clostridioides difficile recurrence in critically ill adults

Introduction:Clostridioides (formerly Clostridium) difficile infection recurrence in patients re-exposed to antibiotics for treatment of a non-Clostridioides difficile infection is high at approxim...
Successful Aging in Older US Veterans: Results From the 2019-2020 National Health and Resilience in Veterans Study.

Abstract Objective To identify the current prevalence, and sociodemographic, military, health, and psychosocial correlates of successful aging in older US veterans. Methods Data were analyzed from the 2019–2020 National Health and Resilience in Veterans Study, which surveyed a nationally representative sample of 3,001 US veterans aged greater than or equal to 60 years (mean = 73). Multiple regression and relative importance analyses were conducted to identify key factors associated with successful aging. Results A total 79% of older veterans rated themselves as aging successfully. Physical and mental health difficulties emerged as the strongest correlates of successful aging (71% variance explained), while psychosocial factors, most notably perceived resilience, purpose in life, and positive expectations about emotional aging, explained 29% of the variance in this outcome. Conclusions Nearly 4 of 5 US veterans rate themselves as successful agers. Prevention and treatment efforts designed to mitigate physical and mental health difficulties, and promote protective psychosocial factors may help bolster successful aging in this population.
Tinder: A Game with Gendered Rules and Consequences:

The popularity of Mobile Dating Applications has increased in recent years, with Tinder transforming the dating landscape for college students. Drawing upon 249 peer-facilitated interviews with col...
Insects in Japanese culture: Influences on the fin de siècle glass and jewelry design

The following article focuses on the importance of insects as aesthetic, symbolic and allegorical objects of Japanese culture and their importance in terms of mainly their aesthetic influence on the shaping of decorative arts in the West and more specifically in the areas of glass and jewelry design at the end of the 19th century. In particular, it aims to exploring their long history in the culture and art of Japan and their impressive correlations with important historical characters, such as the caste of Samurai and their military and social importance from the time of medieval Japan to the end of the 19th century. Their meaningful presence in traditional Japanese art, especially during the Edo period, through the work of major artists mainly of the ukiyo-e print technique, such as Utamaro and Hokusai, is particularly highlighted. The new historical parameters that would lead Art Nouveau design to disregard the defiantly negative attitude of Western art to insects and to adopt the peculiar and, for many, primitive, cultural traditions of the Japanese, producing brand new design works will be profoundly discussed. In general, the way, according to which insects would be exonerated from their dark past in European art, they would become a new form of aesthetic excellence through glass and jewelry design and would manage to form a new thematic platform for designers of that time, will be highly commented upon, analyzed, and documented with relevant examples.
Asymmetric Effects of Monetary Policy

Abstract This paper uses standard econometric models of monetary policy to derive measures of policy shocks to the Federal funds rate. The measures of funds rate shocks are used to test 1) if positive and negative funds rate shocks have an asymmetric effect on real GDP growth and 2) if the effectiveness of monetary policy depends on whether or not the economy is in a recession. The results suggest that monetary policy is equally effective in a recession or expansion and that positive funds rate shocks have a larger absolute value impact on real GDP growth than negative funds rate shocks.
Recent works in Information andCommunication Technology (ICT) ethics

Seventy recent works that examine ethical, social, legal, and policy issues in information and communication technology (ICT) are cited and annotated below. Each work has a publisher’s date of 2000 or later. For information about books published between 1997 and 2000, see the bibliographies printed in three earlier issues of Ethics and Information Technology: Vol. 1, No. 1 (1999); Vol. 2, No. 1 (2000); and Vol. 3, No. 1 (2001). A comprehensive list of books and articles published before 1997 is included in my Bibliography of Computing, Ethics, and Social Responsibility (http://cyberethics.cbi.msstate.edu/biblio/). For a select list of recent journal articles on ICT ethics, see my annual bibliographic updates in Computers and Society.1
SIMULATION OF THERMAL BEHAVIOR DURING STEEL SOLIDIFICATION IN SLAB CONTINUOUS CASTING MOLD I. Mathematical Model

Thermal behavior of the solidifying shell in continuous casting mold is very important to final steel products. In the present work, one two-dimension transient thermal-mechanical coupling finite element model was developed to simulate the thermal behavior of steel solidifying in slab contin- uous casting mold by using the sequential coupling method. In this model, in order to get the physical properties of steel at high temperature, a microsegregation model which would give the relationship of phase fractions and temperature for acquiring the physical properties with �/ transformation in mushy zone was established. And the heat flux was obtained according to the displacement between the surface of solidifying shell and the hot face of mold as solidification contraction, the liquid/solid structure and distribution of mold flux, the temperature distribution of slab surface and mold hot face, and air gap distribution. In addition, the rate-dependent elastic-viscoplastic constitutive equation was applied to account for the evolution of shell stress in the mold.
Obese Patients with Binge-Eating Disorder

A substantial literature focuses on the subgroup of obese individuals who have persistent and frequent problems with binge eating (1, 2, 3). Initially, research evidence suggested that binge eating was associated with attrition and poorer outcome in obesity treatment programs (3,4), although subsequent investigations have disproved the notion that obesity treatment is contraindicated for patients with binge-eating disorder (BED) (5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10). Nonetheless, questions of how to best treat this group of patients remain. In this chapter, we discuss binge eating among obese individuals, examine findings that relate to its treatment in overweight patients, and provide recommendations for practitioners (see Table 1).
Anisotropy in the magnetic and electrical transport properties of Fe 1-x Cr x Sb 2

We have investigated anisotropy in magnetic and electrical transport properties of ${\mathrm{Fe}}_{1\ensuremath{-}x}{\mathrm{Cr}}_{x}{\mathrm{Sb}}_{2}$ $(0\ensuremath{\leqslant}x\ensuremath{\leqslant}1)$ single crystals. The magnetic ground state of the system evolves from paramagnetic to antiferromagnetic with gradual substitution of Fe with Cr. Anisotropy in electrical transport diminishes with increased Cr substitution and fades away by $x=0.5$. We find that the variable range hopping conduction mechanism dominates at low temperatures for $0.4\ensuremath{\leqslant}x\ensuremath{\leqslant}0.75$.
Metal Halide Vibrations

The assignments for metal-halogen vibrations have been, for the most part, well established. In most cases it is the investigation of the metal chloride vibration that has received the most attention. Usually, the metal halide stretching vibration can be assigned unequivocally, for the frequency of the vibration will decrease as the mass of the halogen atom increases. By noting the disappearance of the stretching vibration (e.g., metal-chlorine) and the appearance of a new vibration (e.g., metal-bromine and/or metal-iodine), as one goes from the chloride to the bromide and to the iodide, accurate assignments can be made. The method is useful except when there is a change in structure in the series. Examples are known in which the central metal atom may be in an octahedral environment in the chloride and a tetrahedral environment in the bromide or iodide. This causes the coordination-number effect to counteract the mass effect, and little difference in frequency position may be noted for the metal halide vibration.1
Euler Characteristics of Local Systems on $\mathcal M$ 2

We calculate the Euler characteristics of the local systems Sk\(\mathbb{V}\) ⊗ Sl Λ 2\(\mathbb{V}\) on the moduli space \(\mathcal{M}\)2 of curves of genus 2, where \(\mathbb{V}\) is the rank 4 local system R1π *\(\mathbb{C}\).
Basis partition polynomials, overpartitions and the Rogers-Ramanujan identities

In this paper, a common generalization of the Rogers-Ramanujan series and the generating function for basis partitions is studied. This leads naturally to a sequence of polynomials, called BsP-polynomials. In turn, the BsP-polynomials provide simultaneously a proof of the Rogers-Ramanujan identities and a new, more rapidly converging series expansion for the basis partition generating function. Finally the basis partitions are identified with a natural set of overpartitions.
Theory of laser-induced gas ionization

The mechanism of laser-induced gas ionization is analyzed in the context of the theories presently available, namely multiphoton and cascade theory, and their predictions are shown to be in serious divergence from experimentation. A novel hypothesis is then formulated which considers the classical photon energy expression e=hν as the limit of a general expression e=hν/[1−βν f(I)],f(I) being a function of light intensity and βν a coefficient such that βν f(I) significantly differs from zero only for high-intensity laser light. Starting from the new formulation of the photon energy expression, a theory is developed for the laser ionization phenomenon and a few simple relations are found. The successful use of these relations in the verification of the experimental results suggests that the new photon energy expression has a real physical meaning rather than an empirical significance, and some considerations on the physical meaning are presented.
The glass transition of thin film polymer/polymer blends: Interfacial interactions and confinement

We examined the influence of film thickness and composition on the effective Tg of compatible thin film mixtures of polystyrene (PS) and tetramethylbisphenol-A polycarbonate (TMPC) on SiOx/Si substrates using spectroscopic ellipsometry. Our measurements reveal that while the Tg of TMPC films increased with decreasing film thickness, h, the effective Tg of thin film mixtures of PS and TMPC decreased with decreasing film thickness. In these mixtures, Tg was independent of film thickness at large h. We also found that while the Tg of bulk mixtures of TMPC/PS exhibited large negative deviations from additivity with composition, such deviations were negligible in the thin film mixtures. The thickness dependence of Tg is compared with theory.
Childhood risk and protective factors and late adolescent adjustment in inner city minority youth

Abstract This investigation examined longitudinal relationships among childhood risk and protective factors and academic, social, and mental health outcomes in late adolescence. Data were drawn from the Chicago Longitudinal Study, a research project that has tracked a cohort of 1539 impoverished inner-city youth from birth to young adulthood. An ecological model containing information on child characteristics, family processes, early childhood intervention program participation, and middle childhood indicators of competence and problems was used to predict depression, juvenile delinquency, and high school or GED completion during late adolescence or young adulthood. Multivariate negative binomial and logistic regression analyses were used to show that cumulative family risk from birth to age 12 significantly predicted increases in juvenile court petitions and decreases in high school or GED completion. Early childhood intervention in preschool had the widest ranging protective effects on all three adolescent outcomes. The probability of high school or GED completion was significantly increased by preschool intervention, by parent(s) participating in the child's early elementary school experiences, by satisfactory elementary school grades, and by the child's ability to be task oriented. Being female, participating in preschool intervention, displaying shy or anxious behavior, and having higher grades in middle school predicted lower rates of juvenile court involvement while acting out behavior in middle school increased court involvement rates. Preschool intervention, peer social skills, early classroom adjustment, and shy or anxious behavior in middle school were protective factors against adolescent depression while being female and having higher grades in early elementary school were associated with higher rates of adolescent depression. Implications for social work practice and future research were discussed.
A CONTRIBUTION TO THE RELATION BETWEEN PROTEID CLEAVAGE PRODUCTS AND ANAPHYLAXIS

Examination of the anaphylactic lung by means of Van Slyke's amino nitrogen method gave no evidence of an increased amount of proteid cleavage products of any kind in this organ. This investigation gives no support to the hypothesis that the true anaphylactic lung of the guinea pig is caused by proteid split products.
Effects of tryptophan depletion in panic disorder

Tryptophan (TRP) depletion is a useful paradigm for evaluating serotonin (5-HT) function in psychiatric disease. Primate studies have shown that plasma TRP depletion can be induced by the ingestion of an amino acid (AA) mixture lacking TRIP (Young et al ! 989). In this report the AA mixture without TRP reduced cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) TRP by 61% relative to a control AA mixture, which effect was associated with a 34% reduction in 5-hydroxyindole, acetic acid. Oral administration of this AA mixture following a Iow-TRP diet is known to reduce plasma TRP levels in healthy humans by over 80% of baseline levels (Zimmerman et a l i 993). In other clinical studies we have found that TRP depletion by this method produces a transient exacerbation of depressive symptoms in antidepressant-remitted depressed (Delgado et al 1990) and obsessive-compulsive patients (Barr et al 1994); however, to date there have been no studies utilizing TRP depletion in panic disorder (PD) patients. The norepinephrine (NE) and 5-HT systems have been implicated in the pathophysiology of PD (Kahn et al ! 988a, Charney et al 1992). Furthermore, the 5-HT system may provide inhibitory inputs to the principal NE nucleus, the locus coeruleus (AstonJones et ai ! 99 I). If TRP depletion sufficiently reduced presynaptic 5-HT inhibition of NE function in PD patients, this could lead to a transient increase in NE function with accompanying increases in anxiety, blood pressure, and the NE metabolite 3-methoxy-4hydroxyphenylglycol (MHPG).
Frontogenesis and subsequent formation of cold filaments and eddies on an idealized shelf

Cold filaments in the eastern Gulf of Mexico are investigated using a numerical model to simulate the effect of cooling over an idealized shelf. A horizontal density gradient induces an alongshelf current that in time becomes unstable. As these instabilities grow, filaments and latter eddies are generated, so that dense water near the coast is exchanged with the offshore in an attempt to balance the surface heat loss over the sloping shelf.
Analysis of Acetaminophen and Salicylate by Reverse Phase HPLC

Abstract A method for the simultaneous measurement of acetaminophen and salicylate by reverse phase HPLC using N,N-Diethyl-m-toluamide as internal standard is described. The method, which utilizes a one step acetonitrile precipitation of serum, can be applied to as little as 25ul. of sample. Serum is Vortex-mixed with acetonitrile containing the internal standard and following centrifugation an aliquot of the supernatant is analyzed on a reverse-phase column. The eluting solvent consists of methanol/5% acetic acid (60/40, V/V) and the effluent is monitored at 248 nm.
On absolute ruin minimization under a diffusion approximation model

Abstract In this paper, we assume that the surplus process of an insurance entity is represented by a pure diffusion. The company can invest its surplus into a Black–Scholes risky asset and a risk free asset. We impose investment restrictions that only a limited amount is allowed in the risky asset and that no short-selling is allowed. We further assume that when the surplus level becomes negative, the company can borrow to continue financing. The ultimate objective is to seek an optimal investment strategy that minimizes the probability of absolute ruin, i.e. the probability that the liminf of the surplus process is negative infinity. The corresponding Hamilton–Jacobi–Bellman (HJB) equation is analyzed and a verification theorem is proved; applying the HJB method we obtain explicit expressions for the S-shaped minimal absolute ruin function and its associated optimal investment strategy. In the second part of the paper, we study the optimization problem with both investment and proportional reinsurance control. There the minimal absolute ruin function and the feedback optimal investment–reinsurance control are found explicitly as well.
Whistle Matching in Wild Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops truncatus)

Dolphin communication is suspected to be complex, on the basis of their call repertoires, cognitive abilities, and ability to modify signals through vocal learning. Because of the difficulties involved in observing and recording individual cetaceans, very little is known about how they use their calls. This report shows that wild, unrestrained bottlenose dolphins use their learned whistles in matching interactions, in which an individual responds to a whistle of a conspecific by emitting the same whistle type. Vocal matching occurred over distances of up to 580 meters and is indicative of animals addressing each other individually.
THE DEVELOPMENT OF A FORGIVENESS SCALE

This paper reports on the development, validity, and reliability of a self-report instrument designed to assess a respondent's perspective of pain resulting from relational violations and work toward relational forgiveness based on a framework proposed by Hargrave (1994a). Presented here is the five-stage procedure used in the development of the Interpersonal Relationship Resolution Scale. Construct validity and reliability were determined from an initial sample of 164 subjects. Concurrent validity of the scale was supported by another sample of 35 respondents who took the Interpersonal Relationship Resolution Scale, the Personal Authority in the Family System Questionnaire, the Relational Ethics Scale, the Fundamental Interpersonal Relations Orientation-Behavior scale, and the Burns Depression Checklist. Finally, a predictive validity study of the scale was performed with a clinical and nonclinical sample of 98 volunteers. Data are presented that support the validity and reliability of the instrument, as well as the final version of the scale.
Measuring interregional functional connectivity using coherence and partial coherence analyses of fMRI data

Understanding functional connectivity within the brain is crucial to understanding neural function; even the simplest cognitive operations are supported by highly distributed neural circuits. We developed a novel method to measure task-related functional interactions between neural regions by applying coherence and partial coherence analyses to functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data. Coherence and partial coherence are spectral measures that estimate the linear time-invariant (LTI) relationship between time series. They can be used to generate maps of task-specific connectivity associated with seed regions of interest (ROIs). These maps may then be compared across tasks, revealing nodes with task-related changes of connectivity to the seed ROI. To validate the method, we applied it to an event-related fMRI data set acquired while subjects performed two sequence tapping tasks, one of which required more bimanual coordination. Areas showing increased functional connectivity with both tasks were the same as those showing increased activity. Furthermore, though there were no significant differences in mean activity between the two tasks, significant increases in interhemispheric coherence were found between the primary motor (M1) and premotor (PM) regions for the task requiring more bimanual coordination. This increase in interhemispheric connectivity is supported by other brain imaging techniques as well as patient studies.
The intimate hybridity of roadkill: A Beckettian view of dismay and persistence

Abstract While theoretical problems associated with “wilderness” have been widely noted, less attention has been granted to the potential effects produced by wilderness’s dissolution. The present paper highlights the potential emotional consequences of the elimination of wilderness in the modern world by examining the topic of roadkill. Roadkill are now ubiquitous throughout the world and a thoroughly emblematic feature of contemporary life. They also present a concise manifestation of hybridity, being entities created through the dissolution of wilderness and the more intimate integration of society and nature. To examine these hybrid formations, the present paper utilizes the work of Samuel Beckett, particularly the text of The Unnamable , to draw out some of the emotions that emerge from our engagement with roadkill. The Unnamable’s narrator is typified by flows (in word and body) and by persistence, characteristics which resonate with the embodied beings of roadkill, or rather the “have-not-always-been-roadkill.” In short, roadkill suggest animals are as persistent as humans, a characteristic which is apparent even in death. I contend these vital, non-representable qualities, which embody a deeper evolutionary commonality of animacy than the face of the fallen, generate misgivings about ourselves and hybridity. Advocates of wilderness dissolution must acknowledge these interminable consequences.
On the Ethics of Product Placement in Media Entertainment

Abstract This study examines the ethical propriety of current trends in product placement in television and film entertainment. Historical background for the product placement concept and practice is provided. Changes in the marketing climate that have provided a push for product placement are outlined. A characterization of the product placement industry as it stands today, and the ethical issues raised by the practice frame the analysis. Three distinct “genres” of contemporary product placement are analyzed: (1) Product Placement, (2) Product Integration, and (3) Video Insertion. First, the rise of Product Placement, strategic changes in use, and increased dependence on revenues in production will be discussed. The second section examines a newly mounted form of Product Integration, whereby product placement plays a key role in content development and support of production in television and film. Third, the origins of Video Insertion will be traced to the Princeton Video Image invention of its proprieta...
Stem cells and the impact of ROS signaling

An appropriate balance between self-renewal and differentiation is crucial for stem cell function during both early development and tissue homeostasis throughout life. Recent evidence from both pluripotent embryonic and adult stem cell studies suggests that this balance is partly regulated by reactive oxygen species (ROS), which, in synchrony with metabolism, mediate the cellular redox state. In this Primer, we summarize what ROS are and how they are generated in the cell, as well as their downstream molecular targets. We then review recent findings that provide molecular insights into how ROS signaling can influence stem cell homeostasis and lineage commitment, and discuss the implications of this for reprogramming and stem cell ageing. We conclude that ROS signaling is an emerging key regulator of multiple stem cell populations.
Circuit breakers in the Bonneville power system

USE OF THE FACILITIES of the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) network for tests of the Brown Boveri 230-kv air-blast circuit breaker at the switchyard of Grand Coulee powerhouse of the Bureau of Reclamation was motivated by the desire of all concerned to check the operating characteristics of a high-voltage, high-interrupting-capacity air-blast-type circuit breaker which has the following important advantages as compared with the conventional dead-tank-type oil circuit breaker: 1. absence of fire-hazardous oil; 2. decrease in oil storage facilities; and 3. ease of inspection of contacts and of maintenance and less frequent maintenance.
Interaction parameters for blends containing polycarbonates: 2. Tetramethyl bisphenol A polycarbonate-styrene copolymers

Abstract The phase behaviour of binary blends of tetramethyl bisphenol A polycarbonate (TMPC) and styrene copolymers with methyl methacrylate (SMMA) and acrylonitrile (SAN) has been re-examined as a function of copolymer composition. The interaction parameters for TMPC blends with each SAN copolymer and each SMMA copolymer were evaluated from the lower critical solution temperature (LCST) type phase boundary using the lattice fluid thery of Sanchez and Lacombe. From such information for several copolymer compositions, bare interaction parameters for various monomer unit pairs, ΔP∗ ij , were calculated using a binary interaction model. The interactions of styrene with the methyl methacrylate monomer units and with TMPC were weakly repulsive, while those of acrylonitrile with the styrene monomer units and with TMPC were strongly repulsive. The phase behaviour at the critical composition suggests that there exists an optimum content of MMA and AN in the copolymer at which the interactions are most favourable. Thermodynamic analysis based on the lattice fluid theory shows that the more favourable interactions of TMPC blends with some SAN and SMMA copolymers relative to polystyrene (PS) are achieved by different routes. A more negative energetic term caused by strong intramolecular repulsion between S and AN and a reduced compressibility effect are the main reasons why TMPC blends with certain SAN copolymers have higher LCST than do blends with PS. Compressibility or equation-of-state effects, especially the decrease in the characteristic temperature difference between TMPC and SMMA as MMA content increases, is the main reason why certain SMMA copolymers have higher LCST than PS when blended with TMPC. Note that the intramolecular repulsion between S and MMA is weak.
Evaluating the North Carolina safety belt wearing law

The North Carolina Seat Belt Law required an evaluation of the effectiveness of the act with a report of the findings to the Legislature three years after the law went into effect. This paper addresses changes in statewide belt usage and in occupant injury associated with that law. Observational data collected bimonthly from a probability sample of 72 sites stratified by geographic region, rural/urban location, road type, and time of day show that belt use rose from a baseline rate of 25% to a warning ticket phase rate of 45%. Belt use then reached 78% upon enforcement and is now nearly 64%. Time series analysis showed that statistically significant reductions in percentages of moderate and serious injuries occurred at the beginning of both the warning ticket and the enforcement phases. Forecasts of injuries and deaths were also developed from the time series models and were compared with observed totals. Warning tickets brought about a modest 5.4% reduction in serious injuries; fatalities among occupants covered by the law showed no change. In contrast, the subsequent enforcement phase saw a reduction of 11.6% in fatalities and 14.6% in serious or worse injuries. This represents an estimated annual savings of 131 lives and over 2,300 serious injuries in North Carolina during the 18 months following onset of enforcement.
Lignocellulosic Fiber-Reinforced Keratin Polymer Composites

Short fiber reinforced polymer composites were prepared from lignocellulose fibers and feather keratin polymer (FKP). The FKP matrix was prepared from the reactive processing of poultry feather keratin, glycerol, water, and sodium sulfite. Lignocellulose fibers of varying source, length, and mass fraction were used and it was found that positive reinforcement of FKP was affected by all three. Positive reinforcement was defined as an increase in elastic modulus when normalized by FKP with the same amount of glycerol but no fibers. Positive reinforcement was only able to occur for modulus but not stress at break indicating that the composites were of high physical properties only under small deformations. At large deformations, fiber pull-out was observed in the composites using scanning electron microscopy. The most likely origin of this behavior appeared to be from weak fiber–polymer interactions dominated by friction and rationalized by a force balance across the fiber–polymer interface. High fiber loadings were shown to be reinforcing because of the formation of a network of lignocellulose fibers. The addition of lignocellulose fibers increased the thermal stability of the material.
Evaluation of polyaza macrocyclic methylene phosphonate chelates of Gd3+ ions as MRI contrast agents.

Gd(DTPA)2− (diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid) and the polyaza macrocyclic Gd(DOTA)− (1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane-N, N′,N″,N′″) are paradigms of general purpose paramagnetic complexes useful for enhancing contrast in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). It is of both fundamental and practical interest to determine how one might modify the chemical structure of these chelate complexes to improve their utility for MRI in specific circumstances. In the present work, we investigated polyaza methylene phosphonate complexes of Gd3+ ions to compare their NMRD profiles with those of their carboxylate analogs and with Gd(DTPA)2−. We find that the number q of exchangeable water molecules coordinated directly to the Gd3+ ions tends to be smaller in the phosphonates, in principle reducing their utility in MRI. However, these phosphonates have a tendency to oligomerize, and the resulting decrease in rotational mobility of the paramagnetic oligomers increases their relaxivity at higher fields, offsetting the effect of decreases in q. In particular, Gd(DOTRP)3− (1,5,9-triazacyclododecane N, N′,N″,-tris (methylenephosphonic acid) would be an increasingly effective contrast agent above ∼ 10 MHz if the oligomerization was stable in vivo (and the Gd3+ ions were sufficiently well bound). At lower fields, the relaxivity of these small chelate complexes is dominated by τso, the relaxation time of the spin moments of the paramagnetic ions. We find this to be favorably long for complexes of Gd3+ with the macrocyclic phosphonate ligands, as was found earlier by us for Gd( DOTA)−. This situation, ostensibly related to the relatively high symmetry and rigidity of the macrocyclic complexes, can increase the low-field relaxivity of the phosphonates almost a factor of 2 beyond that of Gd(DTPA)2−. © 1989 Academic Press, Inc.
Testing Lorentz invariance in baryon decay

Abstract We show that, in contrast with μ decay, measurements of the baryon lifetime and semileptonic branching ratios for ΔB =0 and ΔS =1 decays at different energies lead to a test to Lorentz invariance.
Effect of Cyclodextrin Derivation and Amorphous State of Complex on Accelerated Degradation of Ziprasidone

ABSTRACT: Inclusion complexes of ziprasidone with several β-cyclodextrins [β-CDs; sulfobutylether-β-cyclodextrins (SBEβCD), hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrins (HPβCD), methyl-β-cyclodextrins (MβCD), and carboxyethyl-β-cyclodextrins (CEβCD)] were prepared and solution stability was evaluated at elevated temperature. Solid-state stability was assessed by subjecting various CD complexes of ziprasidone, spray-dried dispersion (SDD), partially crystalline ziprasidone–SBEβCD salts, and the physical mixture of ziprasidone–SBEβCD to γ-irradiation. Degradant I was formed by oxidation of ziprasidone, which upon aldol condensation with ziprasidone formed degradant II in both solution and solid states. In the solution state, CD complexes with electron-donating side chains, such as SBEβCD and CEβCD, produced the highest oxidative degradation followed by HPβCD with 6, 3, and 4 degrees of substitution. In the solid state, crystalline drug substance and physical mixture of crystalline drug–SBEβCD showed very little to no degradation. In contrast, amorphous βCD, MβCD, CEβCD, and SBEβCD complexes as well as the amorphous SDD exhibited greatest extent of oxidative degradation. Results suggest that electron-donating side chains of the derivatized CD interact with transition state of the oxidation reaction and catalyze drug degradation in solution, However, higher mobility in the amorphous state of CD–drug complexes promoted chemical instability of ziprasidone under accelerated conditions irrespective of the chemical nature of the side chain on CD.
The missing language of the classroom

Abstract In this paper, we explore teachers’ use of moral language in their descriptions and interpretations of their K-12 classroom and graduate school experiences. We analyze student products that were developed by practicing K-12 teachers who graduated from a nontraditional master's program. We focused on their end of program exit portfolios and reflective essays. We also examined student admission essays and data from an on-line conference space. In our conclusions, we argue that teacher education needs to encourage teachers to envision classrooms as moral rather than technical arenas, and we urge teachers to use a moral vocabulary to describe their work.
A Survey of the Stete of the Art in Dynamic Programming

Abstract The purpose of this paper is to provide a survey of the state of the art of dynamic programming. An indication of the problem areas to which dynamic programming has been applied is contained. In addition, a discussion of various theoretical advances in dynamic programming is presented. The paper is divided into four areas, a discussion of continuous parameter dynamic programs is given and applications optimal control problems are discussed. The second section contains a discussion of discrete deterministic dynamic programs and applications to areas such as scheduling. The third section contains a discussion of a solution in stochastic decision problems via dynamic programming. The final section is devoted to the treatment of combinatorial problems and an indication of how they can often be handled via dynamic programming. An extensive bibliography of both theory and applications is appended.
Psychosocial and health status variables independently predict health care seeking in fibromyalgia.

Objective. To determine whether variables derived from the self-regulatory model of health and illness behavior accurately predict status as a patient or nonpatient with fibromyalgia (FM). Methods. Subjects were 79 patients who met American College of Rheumatology (ACR) criteria for FM and 39 community residents who met ACR criteria for FM but had not sought medical care for their symptoms (nonpatients). Subjects were administered 14 measures that produced 6 domains of variables: background demographics and pain duration; psychiatric morbidity; and personality, environmental, cognitive, and health status factors. These domains were entered in 4 different hierarchical logistic regression analyses to predict status as patient or nonpatient. Results. The full regression model was statistically significant (P < 0.0001) and correctly identified 90.7% of the subjects with a sensitivity of 92.4% and a specificity of 87.2%. The best individual predictors of group status were self-reports of self-efficacy, negative affect, recent stressful events, and perceived pain. Relative to nonpatients, patients reported higher levels of negative affect and perceived pain and a greater number of recent stressful experiences, as well as lower levels of self-efficacy. Conclusion. Consistent with the self-regulatory model of health and illness behavior, psychosocial and health status variables predict health care‐seeking behavior in persons with FM independently of background demographics and psychiatric morbidity. These variables may influence the severity of symptoms experienced by persons with this disorder as well as their health care‐seeking behavior, but they are not necessary to produce abnormal pain sensitivity in FM.
Cholesterol Depletion of Caveolae Causes Hyperactivation of Extracellular Signal-related Kinase (ERK)

Previously we showed that activation of Erk in quiescent cells occurs in the caveolae fraction isolated from fibroblasts. Since the structure and function of caveolae is sensitive to the amount of cholesterol in the membrane, it might be that a direct link exists between the concentration of membrane cholesterol and mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase activation. We acutely lowered the cholesterol level of the caveolae fraction by incubating Rat-1 cells in the presence of either cyclodextrin or progesterone. Cholesterol-depleted caveolae had a reduced amount of several key protein components of the MAP kinase complex, including Ras, Grb2, Erk2, and Src. Incubation of these cells in the presence of epidermal growth factor (EGF) caused a rapid loss of EGF receptor from the caveolae fraction, but the usual recruitment of c-Raf was markedly inhibited. Despite the reduced amount of c-Raf and Erk2 in the cholesterol-depleted caveolae fraction, EGF caused a hyperactivation of the remaining caveolae Erk isoenzymes. This was followed by an increase in the amount of active Erk in the cytoplasm. The increased amount of activated Erk produced under these conditions was linked to a 2-fold higher level of EGF-stimulated DNA synthesis. Even cholesterol depletion by itself stimulated Erk activation and DNA synthesis. These results suggest that the MAP kinase pathway can connect the cholesterol level of caveolae membrane to the control of cell division.
A facile synthesis of ergostanol

Ergosteryl acetate is hydrogenated in one step to ergostanyl acetate over 10% Pd/C in ethyl acetate-acetic acid at 150 C.
Systematic significance of pollen arrangement in MICROSPORANGIA OF POACEAE AND Cyperaceaei REVIEW AND OBSERVATIONS ON REPRESENTATIVE TAX A

An anatomical survey of anthers of the Poaceae and Cyperaceae and two related families, the Restionaceae and Flagellariaceae, was conducted to determine the taxonomic distribution and possible phylogenetic significance of pollen arrangement. An unusual pollen arrangement was known from a small number of taxa in the Poaceae and Cyperaceae, in which a single, uniseriate cylinder of pollen grains is arranged in the anther locule such that each grain is in contact with the tapetum (termed here "peripheral" pollen). This contrasts with the prevailing arrangement in other angiosperms in which the locule contains a relatively large number of pollen grains in no special configuration, with many interior grains that never touch the tapetum (termed here "central" pollen). A total of 48 species in these four families was examined in this study, and observations on pollen arrangement for numerous additional species in these families were gleaned from the literature. We confirm that the peripheral arrangement is predominant in Poaceae and Cyperaceae, although both families also include species with central pollen, whereas only central pollen is found in Restionaceae and Flagellariaceae. In the peripheral arrangement, the pore of the pollen grain or pseudomonad, when observed, is in contact with the tapetum, but it has not been definitively demonstrated that this is always the case. Peripheral pollen in the Poaceae and Cyperaceae is nonhomologous because of the presence of pseudomonads in the latter family. It remains unexplained why peripherally arranged pollen or pseudomonads, with the attendant reduction in the number of pollen grains, should be associated with anemophily in these two families.
Medical data transformation using rewriting.

This paper presents a system for declaratively transforming medical subjects' data into a common data model representation. Our work is part of the “GAAIN” project on Alzheimer's disease data federation across multiple data providers. We present a general purpose data transformation system that we have developed by leveraging the existing state-of-the-art in data integration and query rewriting. In this work we have further extended the current technology with new formalisms that facilitate expressing a broader range of data transformation tasks, plus new execution methodologies to ensure efficient data transformation for disease datasets.
Weak measurement with a single qubit

Weak measurement is a technique whereby the coupling between the measuring device and the observable is sufficiently weak that the uncertainty in a single measurement is large compared with the separation between the eigenvalues of the observable. It is found here that weak measurement can be achieved with a single qubit. An additional feature of using single qubits as weak measurement devices is that the entanglement that results between the measured and measuring qubits can be easily quantified. An analysis is provided of the effect of entanglement using an example similar to the Hardy paradox of double interferometers with positron-electron annihilation.
Light exposure is related to social and emotional functioning and to quality of life in older women

While there are data supporting the use of light in clinical populations, there has been less investigation of relationships among light and psychological variables in non-clinical samples. Subjects were 459 ethnically diverse women (mean age 67.68) recruited as part of the Women's Health Initiative. Light exposure and sleep were measured with an Actillume wrist actigraph. Subjects completed questionnaires, investigating Social Support, Social Functioning, Social Strain, Quality of Life, Satisfaction with Life, Emotional Well-being, Optimism, Negative Emotional Expressiveness, and Role Limitation Due to Emotional Problems. Significant partial correlations (controlling for age, education and ethnicity) were found between mesor light exposure and Social Functioning, Quality of Life, Satisfaction with Life, and Emotional Well-Being. Quality of Life and Satisfaction with Life were also found to be significantly correlated with morning light. The most parsimonious model to account for the variance shared between mesor light and the predictors included only Quality of Life. The variance shared between mesor light exposure and social and emotional functioning could be subsumed under the variance shared between mesor light exposure and Quality of Life. Increased light exposure is related to improved quality of life and social and emotional functioning.