cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
How Many “Nones” Are There? Explaining the Discrepancies in Survey Estimates

While there has been a great deal of media focus recently on the rise of those without religious affiliation (also known as the “nones”), there is an underlying issue facing this line of research: different surveys come to completely different conclusions about how many nones actually exist in the United States. Using the General Social Survey (GSS) and the Cooperative Congressional Election Study (CCES) this work details how each of these instruments measures religious affiliation in a different manner and how that results in an estimate of the nones that diverges by over 8% points in 2018. Statistical analysis reveals that the GSS has a much higher share of Protestants who never attend church than that found in the CCES. In addition, the CCES Protestant subsample is more Republican, while the nones in the GSS are more to the left of the political spectrum than the nones in the CCES. Some advice and caution is offered to researchers who are interested in studying the religiously unaffiliated in these two surveys.
Chloride penetration in shrinkage-compensating cement concretes

Abstract Shrinkage-compensating cement (a.k.a., Type K expansive agent) is a calcium sulfoaluminate cement with the ability of providing volume expansion during early age, primarily due to the formation of ettringite. Despite the past studies on the strength, shrinkage, and hydration of shrinkage-compensating cement concretes, there was no systematic investigation to understand the performance of this type of concrete under exposure to aggressive agents, particularly chloride ions. To address this gap, a holistic testing program was established in this study to evaluate the strength, dimensional stability, and transport properties of concretes made with various dosages of Type K expansive agent. This included compressive strength, drying shrinkage, rapid chloride penetration, electrical resistivity, rapid chloride migration, and absorption tests. Both helium and mercury intrusion porosimetry analyses were also performed to further explain the experimental test results with the findings related to the distribution of pores. The results of this study confirmed the benefits of using Type K expansive agent (up to a certain dosage) in terms of increased compressive strength and reduced drying shrinkage. However, it was revealed that the permeability of concretes made with this type of cement is adversely affected. This issue was addressed by the identification of optimal dosages of supplementary cementitious materials, including fly ash and silica fume. Upon completing the necessary experiments on the improved mixtures, this study reported how low-shrinkage concretes with low susceptibility to chloride penetration can be developed with the promise of application in a wide variety of civil infrastructures exposed to harsh environmental conditions.
History of breastfeeding but not mode of delivery shapes the gut microbiome in childhood

Background The naive neonatal gut is sensitive to early life experiences. Events during this critical developmental window may have life-long impacts on the gut microbiota. Two experiences that have been associated with variation in the gut microbiome in infancy are mode of delivery and feeding practices (eg, breastfeeding). It remains unclear whether these early experiences are responsible for microbial differences beyond toddlerhood. Aims Our study examined whether mode of delivery and infant feeding practices are associated with differences in the child and adolescent microbiome. Design, subjects, measures We used an adoption-sibling design to compare genetically related siblings who were reared together or apart. Gut microbiome samples were collected from 73 children (M = 11 years, SD = 3 years, range = 3–18 years). Parents reported on child breastfeeding history, age, sex, height, and weight. Mode of delivery was collected through medical records and phone interviews. Results Negative binomial mixed effects models were used to identify whether mode of delivery and feeding practices were related to differences in phylum and genus-level abundance of bacteria found in the gut of child participants. Covariates included age, sex, and body mass index. Genetic relatedness and rearing environment were accounted for as random effects. We observed a significant association between lack of breastfeeding during infancy and a greater number of the genus Bacteroides in stool in childhood and adolescence. Conclusion The absence of breastfeeding may impart lasting effects on the gut microbiome well into childhood.
EVOLVING IDENTITY ECONOMIES IN SOCIAL VIRTUAL WORLDS

It is only in the past few years that the public has had much access to embodied, immersive, social virtual worlds through consumer virtual reality hardware. While these new experiences are still restricted to those who can access the proper equipment and have sufficient network connectivity, academics and others have rushed to explore and explain them. A rich history of experimental research scaffolds our understanding of what the experience of embodiment in an avatar brings to social experiences in immersive virtual reality. However, properly understanding these phenomena will also require a deep understanding of the history of social virtual worlds. Historically, platform constraints and affordances have influenced how people experience and express the social self in virtual worlds, and this has resulted in different “places” having different cultures, norms, and behaviors. We discuss how these cultures and norms may affect what users expect from an embodied experience, and how these expectations in turn will affect their concerns about privacy and identity. Specifically, different virtual cultures will result in different forms of “identity economies” in which users will either pay or exchange data to achieve embodiment. To illustrate, we discuss two models of embodied virtual reality worlds. We propose that this framing will help us to better understand how virtual worlds have evolved and are experienced now; how they may be studied, and how they may continue to evolve in the future as VR technologies create new experiences, affordances and limitations.
A Framework for Modeling Knowledge Graphs via Processing Natural Descriptions of Vehicle-Pedestrian Interactions

The full-scale deployment of autonomous driving demands successful interaction with pedestrians and other vulnerable road users, which requires an understanding of their dynamic behavior and intention. Current research achieves this by estimating pedestrian’s trajectory mainly based on the gait and movement information in the past as well as other relevant scene information. However, the autonomous vehicles still struggle with such interactions since the visual features alone may not supply subtle details required to attain a superior understanding. The decision-making ability of the system can improve by incorporating human knowledge to guide the vision-based algorithms. In this paper, we adopt a novel approach to retrieve human knowledge from the natural text descriptions about the pedestrian-vehicle encounters, which is crucial to anticipate the pedestrian intention and is difficult for computer vision (CV) algorithms to capture automatically. We applied natural language processing (NLP) techniques on the aggregated description from different annotators to generate a temporal knowledge graph, which can achieve the changes of intention and the corresponding reasoning processes in a better resolution. In future work, we plan to show that in combination with video processing algorithms, the knowledge graph has the potential to aid the decision-making process to be more accurate by passively integrating the reasoning ability of humans.
High bio-content polyurethane composites with urethane modified lignin as filler

Abstract In order to improve the compatibility between lignin fillers and polyurethane matrix, two different chemical strategies were used to modify the lignin macromolecules. Modified lignin was incorporated into vegetable oil-based polyurethanes to produce composites with high bio-content. Lignin modified with octadecyl isocyanante (lignin urethane) was found to be more compatible with the polyurethane matrix than lignin modified with butyric anhydride. The effect of lignin urethane loading on the thermo-mechanical properties, thermal resistance, and dielectric properties were investigated. High lignin content (up to 30 wt. %) increased the Young's modulus and lowered the onset of thermal degradation. Incorporation of lignin urethane did not change the glass transition temperature of the polyurethane composites significantly, but it increased the dielectric constant compared to neat polyurethane. This work provides an effective way of using lignin as a low-cost bio-renewable resource in the polyurethane industry.
Expansion of Cytotoxic CD4+ T Cells in the Lungs in Severe COVID-19

The contributions of T cells infiltrating the lungs to SARS-CoV-2 clearance and disease progression are poorly understood. Although studies of CD8+ T cells in bronchoalveolar lavage and blood have suggested that these cells are exhausted in severe COVID-19, CD4+ T cells have not been systematically interrogated within the lung parenchyma. We establish here that cytotoxic CD4+ T cells (CD4+CTLs) are prominently expanded in the COVID-19 lung infiltrate. CD4+CTL numbers in the lung increase with disease severity and progression is accompanied by widespread HLA-DR expression on lung epithelial and endothelial cells, increased apoptosis of epithelial cells and tissue remodeling. Based on quantitative evidence for re-activation in the lung milieu, CD4+ CTLs are as likely to drive viral clearance as CD8+ T cells and may also be contributors to lung inflammation and eventually to fibrosis in severe COVID-19. Funding: This work was supported by NIH U19 AI110495 to SP. Funding for these studies from the Massachusetts Consortium of Pathogen Readiness, the Mark and Lisa Schwartz Foundation and Enid Schwartz is also acknowledged. Declaration of Interest: None to declare. Ethical Approval: This study was performed with the approval of the Institutional Review Boards at the Massachusetts General Hospital and the Brigham and Women’s Hospital.
Hazard Detection in Driving Simulation using Deep Learning

The advancement in Big Data and Analytics has led to a data driven approach in research and development. Many traffic research studies use experimental simulators for data acquisition. This enables researchers to collect large amounts of data from human test subjects. Some research practices involve manual procedures to process participant data. On a large scale this is very labor intensive, highly time consuming and expensive. In these cases, automated solutions to perform these tasks can be implemented using deep learning techniques. This paper considers alternative approaches to process data from a longitudinal research study that uses a high-fidelity driving simulator with integrated eye tracking technology. In the simulation, specific roadway hazard scenarios are programmed to replicate realistic driving hazards. These hazard elements are then annotated by a researcher for behavioral analysis. This process is typically done manually on a frame-by-frame level with the help of software. The process is then repeated for every participant. It is a long and tedious task requiring long hours and high labor costs to be completed reliably. A deep learning solution is implemented to automate the hazard detection and annotation process. This method is tested across a small subset of participant data to assess the performance of this solution. With this method, the labor intensive process can be mitigated and improve the overall time and labor efficiency and to ensure timely dissemination of results from this research study.
Trocylation of 3-quinuclidinol, a key marker for the chemical warfare agent 3-quinuclidinyl benzilate, for its enhanced detection at low levels in complex soil matrices by electron ionization gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.

RATIONALE Detection of 3-quinuclidinol (3Q), a marker for the chemical warfare agent 3-quinuclidinyl benzilate, is very difficult by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS), providing low, broad signals even when analyzed in isolated form. Therefore, a method that can convert 3Q into a substrate with enhanced detectability by GC/MS would be an important tool for its analysis. METHODS 2,2,2-Trichloroethoxycarbonyl chloride (TrocCl) was used in the derivatization of 3Q in three different soils of varying composition and total organic content (Virginia type A soil, Nebraska EPA standard soil and Ottawa sand) when present at a 10 μg g-1 concentration in each. A direct derivatization protocol and one involving the pre-extraction of the analyte were evaluated for their individual efficiencies and subsequent analysis using electron ionization GC/MS. RESULTS The practical derivatization of 3Q, when present at low levels (10 μg g-1 ) in three different soil matrices, was found to be rapid (1 h) and to take place smoothly at ambient temperature (and as low as 4°C). The method detection limit was determined to be 30 ng mL-1 for the Virginia type A soil, 49 ng mL-1 for the Nebraska EPA standard soil and 72 ng mL-1 for the Ottawa sand sample. CONCLUSIONS An expedient and practical derivatization method for 3Q, a chemical warfare degradation product difficult to detect by GC/MS, has been realized using trichloroethyl chloroformate. The reaction provides 3Q-Troc, a derivative with better detectability than 3Q by electron ionization GC/MS such as peak sharpness and a unique mass spectrum for its unambiguous identification.
The Perceived Effects of Psychological Skills Training on Anaerobic Performance of College Students

The purpose of this study was to test the perceived effects of psychological skills training (PST) on anxiety and anaerobic performance in college-aged students. Fifty-five college students (44 females, 11 males) volunteered to complete an online survey instrument. Participants were recruited via convenience sampling methods to answer questions built through a Qualtrics online survey. The questionnaire was split into two sections. The first section asked participants to identify psychological skills, their familiarity with them, and their frequency of use. The second section consisted of categorizing each skill so participants could mark the extent to which it influences their training goal. Data analysis showed males were more familiar with five out of six psychological skills when compared to females. This is result is likely due to males showing higher stress levels during training and performance compared to females. The findings of this study confirm the importance of mental health education and PST in college students.Subscribe to TPE
Taming Sparsely Activated Transformer with Stochastic Experts.

Sparsely activated models (SAMs), such as Mixture-of-Experts (MoE), can easily scale to have outrageously large amounts of parameters without significant increase in computational cost. However, SAMs are reported to be parameter inefficient such that larger models do not always lead to better performance. While most on-going research focuses on improving SAMs models by exploring methods of routing inputs to experts, our analysis reveals that such research might not lead to the solution we expect, i.e., the commonly-used routing methods based on gating mechanisms do not work better than randomly routing inputs to experts. In this paper, we propose a new expert-based model, THOR (Transformer witH StOchastic ExpeRts). Unlike classic expert-based models, such as the Switch Transformer, experts in THOR are randomly activated for each input during training and inference. THOR models are trained using a consistency regularized loss, where experts learn not only from training data but also from other experts as teachers, such that all the experts make consistent predictions. We validate the effectiveness of THOR on machine translation tasks. Results show that THOR models are more parameter efficient in that they significantly outperform the Transformer and MoE models across various settings. For example, in multilingual translation, THOR outperforms the Switch Transformer by 2 BLEU scores, and obtains the same BLEU score as that of a state-of-the-art MoE model that is 18 times larger. Our code is publicly available at: https://github.com/microsoft/Stochastic-Mixture-of-Experts.
Assessment of State and Federal Health Policies for Opioid Use Disorder Treatment During the COVID-19 Pandemic and Beyond

Importance Federal and state governments implemented temporary strategies for providing access to opioid use disorder (OUD) treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic. Advocates hope many of these policies become permanent because of their potential to expand access to care. Objective To consider the multitude of ways access to and utilization of treatment for individuals with OUD might have been expanded by state and federal policy so researchers can do a better job evaluating the effectiveness of specific policy approaches, which will depend on the interaction with other state policies. Evidence Review We summarize state-level policy data reported by government and nonprofit agencies that track health care regulations, specifically the Kaiser Family Foundation, Federation of State Medical Boards, American Association of Nurse Practitioners, American Academy of Physician Assistants, and the National Safety Council. Data were collected by these sources from September 2020 through January 2021. We examine heterogeneity in policy elements adopted across states during the COVID-19 pandemic in 4 key areas: telehealth, privacy, licensing, and medication for opioid use disorder. The analysis was conducted from March 2020 through January 2021. Findings This cross-sectional study found that federal and state governments have taken important steps to ensure OUD treatment availability during the COVID-19 pandemic, but few states are comprehensive in their approach. Although all states and Washington, DC have adopted at least 1 telehealth policy, only 17 states have adopted telehealth policies that improve access to OUD treatment for new patients. Furthermore, only 9 states relaxed privacy laws, which influence the ability to use particular technology for telehealth visits. Similarly, all states have adopted at least 1 policy related to health care professional licensing permissions, but only 35 expanded the scope of practice laws for both physician assistants and nurse practitioners. Forty-four states expanded access to initiation and delivery of medication for OUD treatment. Together, no state has implemented all of these policies to comprehensively expand access to OUD treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic. Conclusions and Relevance With considerable policy changes potentially affecting access to treatment and treatment retention for patients with OUD during the pandemic, evaluations must account for the variation in state approaches in related policy areas because the interactions between policies may limit the potential effectiveness of any single policy approach.
Functional inclusions in prokaryotic cells.

Publisher Summary This chapter reviews the functional inclusions in prokaryotic cells. Inclusions are visible expressions of cell metabolism. The inclusion is an integral part of the cell's metabolic machinery, it is important in adjusting the environment of the cell, thereby regulating certain metabolic events, or might represent a product of the cell's metabolism. Gas vesicles are rigid shells of protein that are found in a wide variety of prokaryotic organisms. The protein subunits of the gas vesicle have unique properties that enable their association to result in a structure that is impermeable to water. The genes encoding the structural components of the phycobilisome, gas vesicle, andthe genes for the enzymes involved in glycogen biosynthesis are cloned and sequenced. Site-directed mutagenesis provides valuable information relating to the molecular mechanisms of catalysis and allosteric regulation. The organization of the genes for a given inclusion is determined and is found to be clustered on the chromosome.
Lithic Analysis and Questions of Cultural Complexity

The ways that stone tool production and use were organized among the Maya and in the southeastern United States were not much different from one another, despite obvious differences in cultural complexity. In both regions, the bulk of the stone tools produced during the periods of sedentary, centralized control were flakes derived from ad hoc cores. One of the most vexing problems has been the role of craft specialization and the degree to which it was controlled by the elite among the Maya. An analysis of obsidian artifacts from the Classic site of Nohmul and a review of other data on stone tool manufacture lead to the conclusion that specialized production of elite paraphernalia may have been centrally controlled, while the manufacture of subsistence items was based on direct, consumer-producer relationships. A general lesson derived from looking at the Maya from the Southeast is the need to be careful about the way that the presence of hieroglyphs influences our reading of the lithic record.
Design considerations for high-density high-speed bipolar ROM

This paper presents a high-density high-speed cross-point bipolar ROM (XROM) design for control store applications. The cross-point architecture reduces the cell size up to 35% by sharing the word-line base contact in a silicided-base technology. Circuit simulations show that the performance impact due to the series base silicide resistance is insignificant. Data-dependent access-time skew inherent to the conventional bipolar ROM circuit is discussed, and an active pull-down bit-line discharge circuit technique to reduce the skew is described. The density and performance potential of the XROM in a 0.5 mu m bipolar technology are assessed. >
Blind adaptive beamforming for narrowband co-channel digital communications signals in a multipath environment

The problem addressed is that of narrowband digital cellular communications in the presence of multipath and co-channel interferers having the same symbol rate and same overall signal characteristics as the desired source. For a given signal source, an algorithm is presented for blindly estimating the weight vector yielding the optimum SINR at the beamformer output. The instrumental quantity, denoted S/sub xx/(f), is the Fourier transform of the expected value of the zero-lag autocorrelation matrix for one symbol period. The proposed scheme employs the PRO-ESPRIT algorithm to exploit the relationship between the timing offset and optimum beamforming weight vector for each source and the principal generalized eigenvalues and eigenvectors of the matrix pencil.
Guaranteeing throughput for real-time traffic in multi-hop IEEE 802.11 wireless networks

This paper presents a centralized rate assignment scheme for multi-hop flows in a static IEEE 802.11 wireless network. The rate assignment scheme takes into account not only which flows contend with each other but also how they contend. A centralized arbiter obtains this information, as well as flow requirements, and attempts to maximize aggregate utility under the channel capacity constraints. Centralized resource provisioning eliminates the overhead involved with distributed decision-making and synchronized state-maintenance. Our results show that we are able to control contention, guarantee throughput, and minimize delay, while incurring low overhead
Technological change under residual risk regulation: The case of coke ovens in the U.S. steel industry

An engineering-economic model is used within a dynamic setting to determine the least cost mix of investment and import activities as the U.S. steel industry faces successively tighter controls on coke oven emissions over the next 10 years. In response to Maximum Achievable Control Technology (MACT) standards proposed for 1995, U.S. steel producers would likely export their toxic pollution by importing 6 million tons of coke per year. About 4 million tons of coke oven capacity is retrofit and about 1 million tons of annual coke consumption is replaced by new iron technologies, such as Corex. The Lowest Achievable Emission Rate (LAER) standards proposed for 1998 roughly double the coke oven retirements estimated to occur under MACT. Coke imports also are substantial but are no higher than under MACT because the additional time allows the industry to invest in more coke-saving blast furnaces and in new less toxic coke-making technologies, such as the Jewell process. The LAER standards in conjunction with higher capital costs, however, force coke imports to more than 8 million tons per year and sharply increase imports of semi-finished steel. Such a situation could exacerbate existing disputes on international steel trade.
Measuring spatial factors in comparative judgments about large numerosities

Numerical information is crucial to successful performance on many tasks. Accordingly, as a basis for developing augmented cognition applications, it is important to understand how people apprehend numerical information and whether there are systematic limitations on their ability to do so accurately. This paper reports research on the role of non-numerical spatial information and of numerical representations in adults' judgments about large-numerosity spatial arrays. Arrays that contained more open space tended to be perceived as less numerous than ones with less open space. Further, the accuracy with which viewers estimated the arrays' numerosities bore little relation to their success in identifying the more numerous array in each pair. Numerical judgments thus are heavily influenced by spatial information that is not necessarily a reliable cue to numerosity. While some information about absolute numerosity is extracted in making numerical comparisons, it appears to be very imprecise.
Family members' experiences with decision making for incompetent patients in the ICU: a qualitative study

Background Understanding the challenges faced by family members involved in decisions about the use of life-sustaining treatment for incompetent patients in the ICU is necessary for developing empirically based supportive interventions. Objectives To describe and explain the experiences of family members who were involved in decisions on behalf of their loved ones in order to promote understanding of such experiences and to suggest areas for effective, supportive intervention. Methods The grounded-theory method of qualitative research was used. Data collection involved semistructured interviews of 17 persons who had been involved in decisions about the use of life-sustaining treatment for a family member in the ICU. Results Family members discussed the need to arrive at a judgment of the patient's condition and to work with caregivers to have the family member's decision about life-sustaining treatment enacted. Data analysis suggests that clinicians can best support family members by helping the members arrive at a judgment about the patient's condition and treatment desires and by connecting with the family members to ensure that treatment goals are mutual. Supporting family members in this way helps them accept and go on in a positive way after the experience. Conclusions Family members of patients in the ICU are willing and able to take responsibility for decisions about the use of life-sustaining treatment for their loved ones. The long-term acceptance of the experience and the decisions made depends greatly on the interactions between the family member who makes the decision and nurses and physicians in the clinical setting.
Educating to Use Evidence in Thinking about Education.

There is an increasing emphasis on evidence-based education, and the sciences of learning are progressing rapidly. But are reports, guidelines, and outreach enough to disseminate this knowledge and affect educational practice? In fact, policy makers and the public often resist evidence-based recommendations about education. This article suggests that some of the problems lie in well-known difficulties in everyday reasoning and decision making, especially in situations that involve probability and uncertainty. We should communicate and educate so as to address these difficulties.
Ion Polymer Interactions in DNA Solutions and Gels

Summary Systematic investigations using small angle neutron scattering (SANS) were made to reveal the effect of calcium ions on the structure of DNA gels and solutions in near-physiological salt solutions. To describe the neutron scattering response two characteristic distances are required. The shorter length scale, R (≈10 A), was found to be governed by the geometry of the DNA chain and is close to the cross-sectional radius of the double helix. The longer length scale L corresponds to the mesh size of the network of overlapping polymer chains. L decreases with increasing DNA concentration as L ∝ cDNA−0.73. With increasing CaCl2 concentration both L and the scattering intensity increase. The increase in the scattering intensity reflects the reduction of the osmotic modulus as the calcium ion concentration increases. The values of the osmotic modulus derived from osmotic swelling pressure measurements are in reasonable agreement with those obtained from SANS.
Parallel venous channel as the recipient pouch in transverse/sigmoid sinus dural fistulae.

Objective The most common location for dural arteriovenous fistulae (AVFs) is the transverse/sigmoid sinus. We describe our prospective analysis of data for 10 patients with recipient fistulae parallel to the transverse/sigmoid sinus. Recognition of this entity allows embolization of the fistula with preservation of the parent sinus. This report reviews the presentation and angiographic characteristics of the "parallel venous channel" and the treatment results for this series of patients. Methods Between 1995 and June 2002, at the medical center of the University of California, San Francisco, we identified 10 patients with a parallel venous channel as the recipient pouch for all arterial input into a transverse/sigmoid sinus AVF. The clinical presentations, angiographic features, endovascular treatments, and outcomes are described. Angiographic follow-up monitoring was performed for 1 to 6 years for all patients with cortical venous drainage (5 of 10 patients). Clinical follow-up periods ranged from 1 to 7 years. Results All patients presented with pulsatile tinnitus disruptive to sleep. Other symptoms included severe headaches, papilledema and visual disturbances, hemiparesis, and mastoid pain. All 10 parallel venous channels communicated with the transverse or sigmoid sinus. Cortical venous drainage was present in 50% of cases. Endovascular ablative procedures, using either coils or ethanol, were performed for all patients. The parallel venous channel was successfully embolized, with preservation of the transverse/sigmoid sinus, for all 10 patients. There were no major complications. All patients experienced resolution of their symptoms, with no recurrence. Conclusion The existence of a parallel venous channel as the recipient pouch for all arterial inflow in a series of 10 transverse/sigmoid sinus AVFs is described. Endovascular obliteration of the parallel channel, with preservation of the parent sinus, was successfully performed for all 10 patients. Recognition of the parallel venous channel is clinically important for the treatment of transverse/sigmoid AVFs.
Prediction of Resonant Response of Shrouded Blades With 3D Shroud Constraint

In this paper, the 3D shroud contact kinematics of a shrouded blade system is studied. The assumed blade motion has three components, namely axial, tangential, and radial components, which result in a three dimensional relative motion across the shroud interface. The resulting relative motion can be decomposed into two components. The first one is on the contact plane and can induce stick-slip friction. The other component is perpendicular to the contact plane and can cause variation of the contact normal load and, in extreme circumstances, separation of the two contacting surfaces. In order to estimate the equivalent stiffness and damping of the shroud contact an approach is proposed. In this approach, the in-plane slip motion is assumed to be elliptical and is decomposed into two linear motions along the principal major and minor axes of the ellipse. A variable normal load friction force model (Yang and Menq, 1996) is then applied separately to each individual linear motion, and the equivalent stiffness and damping of the shroud contact can be approximately estimated. With the estimated stiffness and damping, the developed shroud contact model is applied to the prediction of the resonant response of a shrouded blade system. The effects of two different shroud constraint conditions, namely 2D constraint and 3D constraint, on the resonant response of a shrouded blade system are compared and the results are discussed.Copyright © 1998 by ASME
Bedside Ultrasound in Resuscitation and the Rapid Ultrasound in Shock Protocol

Assessment of hemodynamic status in a shock state remains a challenging issue in Emergency Medicine and Critical Care. As the use of invasive hemodynamic monitoring declines, bedside-focused ultrasound has become a valuable tool in the evaluation and management of patients in shock. No longer a means to simply evaluate organ anatomy, ultrasound has expanded to become a rapid and noninvasive method for the assessment of patient physiology. Clinicians caring for critical patients should strongly consider integrating ultrasound into their resuscitation pathways.
Thermal contours from magnetic resonance images of laser irradiated gels

The ability of MRI to non-invasively monitor energy deposition with high spatial and temporal resolution provides the critical feedback required to make laser therapy procedures safe and efficacious. We have previously proposed the use of polyacrylamide gelatin as a phantom material whose optical and MR properties can be controlled independently by adding different dopants to the base gel. We have also begun to investigate the most effective imaging strategies for measuring temperature variations within this material. In this paper we further characterize the gels, delineate the temperature dependance of their MR properties and show how imaging can be used to determine thermal contours within an interstitially laser-irradiated gel.© (1994) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Evaluation of Heat Transfer and Pressure Drop for the Heater-Core in an Automotive Heat Pump System

The heat transfer and pressure drop results for a heater-core of an automotive system are presented and discussed in this article. The heater-core is a type of compact heat exchanger that is used as part of an automobile heating-cooling system for heating the passenger cabin on cold seasons. The automotive heating-cooling system in this study includes a standard refrigeration cycle consists of a condenser, an evaporator, a compressor and an expansion valve using the refrigerant R134a as the working fluid. Furthermore, the system uses two separate secondary fluid loops using a 50% glycol-water mixture to exchange energy with the main refrigeration loop. During the cold weather season, the system is operated in the heat pump mode and one of the fluid loops is used to transfer heat from the condenser to the heater-core for heating the passenger cabin. The heat transfer from the heater-core to the passenger cabin is accomplished using air flow through the heater-core openings in an unmixed and cross-flow fashion. The air-side of the heater-core has a unique louver system that is intended to enhance the air-side heat transfer while the glycol-side has a twisted wire inserts to enhance flow turbulence and heat transfer. Semi-empirical correlations for the heat transfer and pressure drop for both glycol-water mixture and air flows in the heater-core are proposed. The flow of the glycol-water mixture in the heater-core is a single-phase flow within a bundle of parallel circular tubes with the twisted wire inserts. The flow of air through the heater-core is approximated as a flow across a finned-tube compact heat exchanger with continuous plate-fins. A modified Wilson plot technique is applied to determine correlations for heat transfer on both glycol-water mixture and air sides. The frictional pressure drop on the glycol-side is calculated from the total measured pressure drop and adjusted for pressure drops within manifolds and inlet/outlet ports. The results for the heat transfer and pressure drop analyses are finally plotted, discussed and compared with the relevant previous studies. These results show that the heat transfer rate is increased in the glycol-side due to the twisted wire inserts, in comparison with the smooth circular tubes. The air-side heat transfer rate is also enhanced due to the louvers in the air passages, as compared to flat-plate fins in compact heat exchangers.Copyright © 2004 by ASME
TIME ESTIMATES MEASURED BY REPRODUCTION.

Four Ss, two adults and two children, were asked to reproduce time intervals. Contrary to expectation, the time estimates can not be described by a single monotonic function of the actual time. However, for each individual, a family of power functions having the same constant exponent can adequately fit the data. Therefore, there are several objectively measured times which are reproduced most exactly for each individual. This fact implies that internal rhythms serve as cues for time estimates. For all Ss, the times reproduced most exactly are shown to be approximately 2n times 1.5 sec., where n has integer values.
The development and evaluation of computer assisted instruction modules for an introductory, college-level nutrition course

Abstract The purposes of this study were to develop a coordinated set of seven Computer Assisted Instruction (CAI) modules for a one-semester, introductory, college-level nutrition course and to compare the effectiveness of the CAI Modules with traditional lectures. A quasi-Solomon four-group experimental design was used. Two instruments were used to collect pretest and posttest data: a nutrition knowledge test and a Likert-type attitude instrument containing three scales designed to assess students' attitudes toward computers. After finishing each of the seven CAI modules, students in the experimental groups completed a semantic differential attitude instrument containing four scales designed to evaluate student attitudes toward each CAI module. The results of analysis of covariance procedures indicate that the adjusted mean post scores of the experimental group on the knowledge test and Likert-type attitude scales Computers Help Me Learn and I Am Capable of Using Computers differed significantly from those of the control group. Mean scores on the semantic differential instrument scales tended to rise steadily for the first four modules assigned, then decline to a plateau. The findings indicate that CAI can improve nutrition knowledge and that students enjoy using CAI; thus, CAI modules may be a valuable and effective educational tool for nutrition educators.
(The Ethics of) Teaching Science and Ethics: A Collaborative Proposal

I offer a normative argument for a collaborative approach to teaching ethical issues in the sciences. Teaching science ethics requires expertise in at least two knowledge domains—the relevant science(s) and philosophical ethics. Accomplishing the aims of ethics education, while ensuring that science ethics discussions remain grounded in the best empirical science, can generally best be done through collaboration between a scientist and an ethicist. Ethics as a discipline is in danger of being misrepresented or distorted if presented by someone who lacks appropriate disciplinary training and experience. While there are exceptions, I take philosophy to be the most appropriate disciplinary domain in which to gain training in ethics teaching. Science students, who must be prepared to engage with many science ethics issues, are poorly served if their education includes a misrepresentation of ethics or specific issues. Students are less well prepared to engage specific issues in science ethics if they lack an appreciation of the resources the discipline of ethics provides. My collaborative proposal looks at a variety of ways scientists and ethicists might collaborate in the classroom to foster good science ethics education.
New immigrants in America: Contributions to ethnography and theory

Changing Identities: Vietnamese Americans 1975–1995. James M. Freeman. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 1995, 141pp From the Workers’ State to the Golden State: Jews from the Former Soviet Union in California. Steven J. Gold. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 1995, 138pp New Pioneers in the Heartland: Hmong Life in Wisconsin. Jo Ann Koltyk. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 1998, 146pp From the Ganges to the Hudson: Indian Immigrants in New York City. Johanna Lessinger. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 1995, 166pp Salvadorans In Suburbia: Symbiosis and Conflict. Sarah J. Mahler. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 1995, 137pp An Invisible Minority: Brazilians in New York City. Maxine I. Margolis. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 1998, 141pp Changes and Conflicts: Koreans Immigrant Families in New York. Pyong Gap Min. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 1998, 133pp A Visa for a Dream: Dominicans in the United States. Patricia R. Pessar. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 1995, 98pp Pride Against Prejudice: Haitians in the United States. Alex Stepick. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 199...
Laser Acupuncture and Analgesia: Preliminary Evidence for a Transient and Opioid-Mediated Effect

Acupuncture is frequently used to treat pain. Although human pain quantification is difficult and often subjective, in rodent models the tail-flick test provides a well-established and objective assessment of analgesia. This test measures the time taken before a rat withdraws its tail from a heat source. Needle and electroacupuncture at the acupuncture point Spleen-6, located at the tibia's posterior margin above the medial malleolus, has been found to increase tail-flick time in rats. The aim of the current study was to determine if laser acupuncture had a similar effect. A 550 μm diameter optic fiber was used to irradiate Spleen-6 for 2 minutes (690 nm, 130 mW) in female Sprague-Dawley rats. In addition, control experiments were performed in which rats were subjected to sham treatment (restraint but no irradiation) or irradiation of an non-acupuncture point (the tail's dorsal surface, 1cm from the base) using the same laser parameters. The baseline tail-flick time was measured and 15 minutes later the laser acupuncture or the control protocols were performed and tail-flick time re-measured 10 minutes after treatment. Additional experiments were done in which the opioid-blocker naloxone (20 mg/kg, intraperitoneal injection) was administered one hour before laser acupuncture. Tailflick time increased after laser acupuncture (P = 0.0002), but returned to baseline values one hour later. In contrast, no increase was found after either sham treatment or tail irradiation. Pretreatment with naloxone attenuated the increase in tail-flick time. In summary, laser acupuncture exerts a transient analgesic effect which may act via an opioid-mediated mechanism.
Social comparison and persuasive arguments as determinants of group polarization

In a study of group polarization, Boster and Mayer (1984) found that social comparison information influenced perception of persuasive argument information. In their investigation, however, position of majority was confounded with other of presentation. The present study attempted to replicate Boster and Mayer while varying order of presentation. Results of the present investigation, first, support the persuasive arguments explanation of group polarization. Second, results are inconsistent with an order effect. Finally, results indicate a parallel between the group polarization literature and the cognitive response literature in persuasion.
Laparoscopic gastric resection for gastrointestinal stromal tumors

This study aimed to review clinical outcomes for patients selected to undergo laparoscopic resection for gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) of the stomach. All 112 laparoscopic gastric resections performed from February 1995 to March 2007 were reviewed. Pre- and postoperative variables were analyzed, and data are given as mean ± standard deviation. Laparoscopic gastric resection was attempted for 63 GIST in 61 patients (31 men and 30 women) with a mean age was 59.1 ± 19 years. The tumors were located at the fundus (n = 19), antrum (n = 18), body (n = 17), gastroesophageal junction/cardia (n = 7), and pylorus (n = 2). Common presentations were upper gastrointestinal bleed (n = 29) and incidental finding on esophagogastroduodenoscopy (n = 17). The laparoscopic procedures performed were partial gastrectomy (n = 52), antrectomy (n = 4), esophagogastrectomy (n = 3), and endoscopically assisted and/or transgastric resection (n = 3). There was one conversion to open procedure for control of bleeding from the spleen. The mean tumor size was 3.8 ± 1.8 cm. Negative surgical margins were achieved in all but one case. The mean operative time was 151.9 ± 67.3 min, and the mean estimated blood loss was 97.4 ± 200.7 ml. A regular diet was resumed at a mean of 2.9 ± 1.6 days, and the mean length of hospital stay was 3.9 ± 2.2 days. The perioperative complication rate was 16.4% including deep vein thrombosis postoperative bleed, anastomotic stricture, and incisional hernia. One mortality occurred, due to respiratory failure. The GISTs included 48 rated as low risk, six rated as intermediate risk, and nine rated as high malignant potential. At a mean follow-up period of 15 ± 21.8 months (range, 0–103 months), three of nine patients with high malignant potential GIST experienced, respectively, metastatic disease to the liver, liver and lung, and peritoneum. At this writing, all the other patients are disease free. Laparoscopic gastric resection for GIST is a feasible option. Adequate oncologic resection was achieved with 98.4% of patients chosen for laparoscopic resection. Resection margin positivity and recurrence rates are low after laparoscopic approaches for appropriately selected patients with GIST, demonstrating favorable characteristics.
A SIMPLE METHOD FOR ESTABLISHING STABLE CONCENTRATIONS OF RADIOACTIVE CALCIUM, STRONTIUM AND PHOSPHORUS IN THE PLASMA OF GOATS AND COWS.

A simple method for establishing a constant concentration of a radioactive tracer in the blood plasma for periods of several days or weeks is described. The method consists of the subcutaneous injection of a saline suspension of a sparingly soluble compound labeled with an isotope of the element concerned. This acts as a depot of radioactivity from which slow leaching occurs into the blood stream. In the case of Ca, calcium orthophosphate labeled with / sup 45/Ca was used as the depot, and for phosphorus the same compound labeled with /sup 32/P. Some experiments with Sr were also carried out using strontium sulfate labeled with /sup 45/Sr as the depot, and the princip1e may presumably be extended to other elements of biological interest. (P.C.H.)
Cervical disc arthroplasty: A selective alternative to fusion

Abstract Anterior cervical decompression and fusion is a dependable and successful treatment option for single-level cervical radiculopathy. However, due to the deleterious effects a fusion has on the kinematics of the adjacent level, artificial cervical disc arthroplasty has become a favorable alternative. Even though the short-term clinical data does not strongly support that a total disc arthroplasty decreases the risk of adjacent segment disease, it does have equal and in some aspects greater clinical outcomes than a fusion. Understanding the biomechanics, indications, outcomes, complications, and implant design will help one better decide which procedure is optimal for a given patient.