cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Numerical Simulation of Touchdown Dynamics of Thermal Flying-Height Control Sliders

With the advent of thermal flying-height control (TFC) technology the physical spacing in magnetic hard disk drives is now reduced to sub-1 nm. At this spacing the tribological flyability and reliability become critical issues for the performance of the read-write head. In this paper a numerical approach is applied to study the touchdown dynamics of TFC sliders by expanding a 3-degree-of-freedom slider dynamics model to a 250-degree-of-freedom head-gimbal assembly dynamics model and considering several significant tribological effects at this ultra-low clearance (adhesion, tribo-charge, friction, contact, etc.). The simulation results show that the slider's vibration amplitude increases substantially at the beginning of touchdown, and it gets suppressed with further reduction in flying height. Analysis in the frequency domain shows the excitation of the second air-bearing pitch mode when instability occurs. The expansion of the dynamic system to include a realistic model of the suspension is shown to be important in determining the frequency of the excited mode. Adhesion force is shown to play an essential role in exciting the second air-bearing pitch mode and causing instability, while electrostatic force and friction force affect only some details of the slider's dynamics at instability. Friction force is also shown to be related to the excitation of the first air-bearing pitch mode.
A high abundance midregion species of parathyroid hormone-related protein: immunological and chromatographic characterization in plasma.

The widespread expression of the gene for PTH-related protein (PTHrP) and the high interspecies conservation of the primary sequence of even the non-PTH-like portion of the protein argue for a vital role(s) for PTHrP in normal physiology. Emerging evidence suggests that PTHrP may be processed into smaller bioactive peptides, but the circulating forms of PTHrP are not well characterized. We have measured plasma concentrations in well defined patient groups using a RIA directed toward midregion PTHrP-(37-74), compared midregion concentrations to amino-terminal and carboxy-terminal PTHrP concentrations in the same patients, and further defined the components of midregion PTHrP immunoreactivity by high pressure liquid chromatography. Patients with humoral hypercalcemia of malignancy (HHM) had concentrations of PTHrP-(37-74) immunoreactivity of 90 +/- 10 pmol/L (mean +/- SEM), 9-fold higher than PTHrP-(1-74) immunoreactivity and about 3-fold higher than PTHrP-(109-138) immunoactivity. There was no consistent e...
The extension of the reduced Clifford algebra and its Brauer class

The shape Clifford algebra C f of a binary form f of degree d is the k-algebra k{x,y}/I, where I is the ideal generated by {(αx+βy) d −f(α,β)∥α,βk}. C f has a natural homomorphic image A f , called the reduced Clifford algebra, which is a rank d 2 Azumaya algebra over its center. The center is isomorphic to the coordinate ring of the complement of an explicit Θ -divisor in Pic C/k d +g −1 , where C is the curve (w d −f(u,v)) and g is the genus of C ([9]). We show that the Brauer class of A f can be extended to a class in the Brauer group of Pic C/k d + g −1 . We also show that if d is odd, then the algebra A f is split if and only if the principal homogeneous space Pic C/k 1 of the jacobian of C has a k-rational point.
Identification of Sorting Determinants in the C-terminal Cytoplasmic Tails of the γ-Aminobutyric Acid Transporters GAT-2 and GAT-3

In order to perform their physiologic functions, polarized epithelial cells must target ion transport proteins to the appropriate domains of their plasma membranes. Molecular signals responsible for polarized sorting have been identified for several membrane proteins which span the bilayer once. Most ion transport proteins are polytopic, however, and little is known of the signals responsible for the targeting of this class of polypeptides. Members of the gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) transporter family are polytopic membrane proteins found endogenously in both epithelial cells and neurons. We have identified narrowly defined sequences which are required for the proper accumulation of two members of this transporter family in Madin-Darby canine kidney cells. The highly homologous GABA transporter isoforms, GAT-2 and GAT-3, localize to the basolateral and apical surfaces, respectively, when expressed stably in Madin-Darby canine kidney cells. We have generated deletion constructs and chimeric transporters composed of complimentary portions of GAT-2 and GAT-3. We find that information which directs their differential sorting is present in the C-terminal cytoplasmic tails of these two polypeptides. A sequence of 22 amino acids at the C terminus of GAT-2 is required for the transporter's basolateral distribution and is capable of directing GAT-3 to the basolateral surface when appended to the C terminus of this normally apical polypeptide. The deletion of 32 amino acids from the C terminus of GAT-3 causes this transporter to become mislocalized to both surfaces. Moreover, removal of the final three amino acids of GAT-3 (THF) similarly disrupts its apical sorting. The GAT-3 C-terminal sequence resembles motifs which interact with PDZ domains, raising the possibility that the steady state distribution of GAT-3 at the apical plasmalemmal surface requires a protein-protein interaction mediated by its extreme C-terminal cytoplasmic tail. These data provide the first characterization of a protein-based signal required for the apical distribution of a membrane protein.
Regional dispersion of first-order overtone Rayleigh waves

Summary. Records of the first Rayleigh overtone in the 70-110s period range, following deep subduction zone events, are analysed through standard surface wave techniques to retrieve dispersion characteristics. In the oceanic environment, our data are in general agreement with published models obtained from regionalization of fundamental Rayleigh wave paths. A general increase in phase velocity with age is observed, with a somewhat smaller effect on group velocities. Continental and trench area data are processed through a regionalization scheme, indicating that the difference between average continental and oceanic velocities (both phase and group) is about 0.2 km s-l at periods of the order of 95 s. An investigation of a set of simple models, allowing structural heterogeneities between oceans and continents down to variable depth, suggests that they probably do not extend past the bottom of the asthenosphere (250 km).
Effects of acute exposure to increased plasma branched-chain amino acid concentrations on insulin-mediated plasma glucose turnover in healthy young subjects.

Background Plasma branched-chain amino acids (BCAA) are inversely related to insulin sensitivity of glucose metabolism in humans. However, currently, it is not known whether there is a cause-and-effect relationship between increased plasma BCAA concentrations and decreased insulin sensitivity. Objective To determine the effects of acute exposure to increased plasma BCAA concentrations on insulin-mediated plasma glucose turnover in humans. Methods Ten healthy subjects were randomly assigned to an experiment where insulin was infused at 40 mU/m2/min (40U) during the second half of a 6-hour intravenous infusion of a BCAA mixture (i.e., BCAA; N = 5) to stimulate plasma glucose turnover or under the same conditions without BCAA infusion (Control; N = 5). In a separate experiment, seven healthy subjects were randomly assigned to receive insulin infusion at 80 mU/m2/min (80U) in association with the above BCAA infusion (N = 4) or under the same conditions without BCAA infusion (N = 3). Plasma glucose turnover was measured prior to and during insulin infusion. Results Insulin infusion completely suppressed the endogenous glucose production (EGP) across all groups. The percent suppression of EGP was not different between Control and BCAA in either the 40U or 80U experiments (P > 0.05). Insulin infusion stimulated whole-body glucose disposal rate (GDR) across all groups. However, the increase (%) in GDR was not different [median (1st quartile – 3rd quartile)] between Control and BCAA in either the 40U ([199 (167–278) vs. 186 (94–308)] or 80 U ([491 (414–548) vs. 478 (409–857)] experiments (P > 0.05). Likewise, insulin stimulated the glucose metabolic clearance in all experiments (P 0.05). Conclusion Short-term exposure of young healthy subjects to increased plasma BCAA concentrations does not alter the insulin sensitivity of glucose metabolism.
Photoionization of Porphyrins in Mesoporous Siliceous MCM-41, AlMCM-41, and TiMCM-41 Molecular Sieves

The photoionization of meso-tetraphenylporphyrin (H2TPP) within mesoporous MCM-41 silica tube molecular sieves is studied with visible light irradiation at room temperature and 77 K. Porphyrin π-ca...
Policy Implications of Incorporating Hybrid Vehicles into High-Occupancy Vehicle Lanes

Abstract High-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes have been regarded as a cost-effective and environmental friendly option to help move people along congested routes. In spite of wide adaptation of policies, the effectiveness of HOV systems has been criticized for its under-utilization. A California statewide policy that allows hybrid vehicles to use HOV lanes was adopted under the expectation that vehicular emissions would be reduced by encouraging drivers to use fuel efficient vehicles as well traffic congestion would be eased through the more efficient use of the reserved capacity on the HOV lanes. To test the validity of this expectation, the impacts of the policy on the freeway network in Orange County, California was investigated using a method that combines a traditional planning model for demand estimation and analysis with a calibrated microscopic simulation model for accurate measures of system performance. The policy was analyzed in terms of overall system performance, corridor level performance and air quality. The key findings from this study are that the policy can be expected to have significant negative impact on HOV lanes that do not have reserve capacity. The maximum number of hybrid vehicles that the Orange County HOV system can absorb without significant degradation is about 50,000, and within this limitation, the policy can be expected to be successful in reducing emissions by allowing hybrid vehicles into HOV lanes.
Ecology and breeding behavior of a cichlid fish, Cyrtocara eucinostomus, on a large lek in Lake Malawi, Africa

Cyrtocara eucinostomus, a mouthbrooding cichlid, breeds on a 4 km long breeding arena between 3–9 m depth in the Cape Maclear region of Lake Malawi. At times over 50,000 males display there, making this breeding arena the largest ever reported. The form and function of the arena and the behavior of the fish on the arena are analogous to bird leks. This arena serves only as a mating ground. All parental care is provided by the females, which leave the arena with the eggs. Courtship takes place in the morning and most of the males leave in the afternoon to forage on zooplankton in deeper water. They return at dusk. The few males that remain on the arena switch their behavior from courting to foraging on zooplankton. Comparisons of this fish arena are made with bird leks and it is concluded that the mating system of this fish can be defined as a lek in the avian sense. 1) There is no male parental care and an absence of monogamous pair bonding. 2) Males and females are sexually dimorphic and there are males present which mimic females to gain entrance into the arena. 3) The arena is traditional with a lack of environmental constraints and is away from the primary feeding grounds.
Candida albicans colonization of surface-sealed interim soft liners.

Purpose This in-vivo investigation evaluated the effect of 2 denture sealer agents on the microbial colonization of a newly placed soft interim denture liner during a period of 14 days. Materials and Methods An interim soft denture liner (Coe-Soft; GC America, Alsip, IL) was coated with 2 different denture surface sealants (Palaseal [Heraeus Kulzer, Irvine, CA] and Mono-Poly [Plastodent, New York, NY]). Three rectangular wells of 1 cm wide × 2 cm long × 2 mm deep were placed in the intaglio of 10 maxillary complete dentures and filled with the soft liner material. The soft liner surface was treated with Palaseal (first well) and Mono-Poly (second well), and the unsealed (third well) was used as a control. These were exposed to the oral cavity for 14 days. The effect the sealant had in the prevention of Candidal colonization in vivo of the soft liner material was evaluated. Microbiological specimens were recovered from all samples and cultivated. Microbiological data from the control and 2-test samples in each denture were tabulated, and statistical analyses were performed. Results This investigation showed clear differences (p < .001) between the sealed and unsealed soft liners. The sealed material showed significantly less colonization by yeast and bacteria. Intercomparison of the surface denture sealers, Palaseal versus Mono-Poly, showed no statistically significant differences (p < .005) in total yeast or bacterial colonization. Conclusion Coating of Coe-Soft denture liner with either Palaseal or Mono-Poly significantly decreased yeast and bacterial colonization.
Lack of association between staphylococcal colonization and the development of wound infection after cardiac surgery.

To the Editor?We read with interest the article by Kluytmans et al. [1] about nasal carriage of Staphylococcus aureus and wound infections after cardiac surgery. Our 705-bed institution has an active cardiac surgery program, with ~900 open heart surgical procedures performed each year. The overall wound infection rate was 7.1 l07o in 1993 and 6.65(K) in 1994, with sternal wound infection rates of 3.02o7o and 3.60o7o, respectively. Our hospital isolates a high number of methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRS A) and has periodic clusters of cases. In an attempt to prevent these infections after open heart surgery, we implemented preoperative surveillance cultures of the nares, axilla, and groin
Interfacial segregation at Cu-rich precipitates in a high-strength low-carbon steel studied on a sub-nanometer scale

Abstract The local composition of small, coherent Cu-rich precipitates with a metastable body-centered cubic structure in a ferritic α-Fe matrix of a high-strength low-carbon steel was studied by conventional atom-probe tomography. The average diameter, 〈D〉, of the precipitates is 2.5 ± 0.3 nm at a number density of (1.1 ± 0.3) × 1024 m−3 after direct aging at 490 °C for 100 min to a near-peak hardness condition, yielding a value of 84 Rockwell G. Besides Cu, the precipitates contain 33 ± 1 at.% Fe and are enriched in Al (0.5 ± 0.1 at.%). Nickel and Mn are significantly segregated at the α-Fe matrix/precipitate heterophase interfaces. The Gibbsian interfacial excesses relative to Fe and Cu are 1.5 ± 0.4 atoms nm−2 for Ni and 1.0 ± 0.3 atoms nm−2 for Mn. The reduction of the interfacial free energy, calculated utilizing the Gibbs adsorption isotherm, is 16 mJ m−2 for Ni and 11 mJ m−2 for Mn.
Phylogeny and genetic diversity of palolo worms (Palola, Eunicidae) from the tropical North Pacific and the Caribbean.

Palolo worms (Palola, Eunicidae) are best known for their annual mass spawnings, or "risings," in the South Pacific. Palola currently contains 14 morphologically similar species, mostly from shallow tropical waters. In this study, 60 specimens of Palola from nine locations in the tropical North Pacific and the Caribbean were sequenced for the two mitochondrial markers cytochrome c oxidase sub- unit I and 16S ribosomal RNA to infer phylogenetic rela- tionships, genetic diversity, and phylogeography within the taxon. Phylogenetic analysis was performed using Bayesian statistics and parsimony. Vouchers of the same specimens were examined morphologically. Two major clades (A and B) can be distinguished within the monophyletic Palola. A number of individuals in clade B bear rows of ventral eyespots in the posterior body region, typical for swarming P. viridis and probably a synapomorphy for clade B. No morphological synapomorphy was found for clade A. Hap- lotypes from divergent clades often co-occur in the same location. Some haplotypes are geographically widespread, in one case covering the entire east-west expansion of the tropical Pacific. These results imply that despite the appar- ent absence of teleplanic larvae in eunicid polychaetes, long-distance dispersal is possible in at least some lineages of Palola. With the first taste of palolo I understood the Samoans' love for it. Certainly it suggested a salty caviar, but with something added, a strong, rich whiff of the mystery and fecundity of the ocean depths. —R. Steinberg. Pacific and Southeast Asian cooking. Time-Life Books, New York, 1970
Moderately nonlinear ultrasound propagation in blood-mimicking fluid.

In medical diagnostic ultrasound (US), higher than-in-water nonlinearity of body fluids and tissue usually does not produce strong nonlinearly distorted waves because of the high absorption. The relative influence of absorption and nonlinearity can be characterized by the Gol'dberg number Gamma. There are two limiting cases in nonlinear acoustics: weak waves (Gamma > 1). However, at diagnostic frequencies in tissue and body fluids, the nonlinear effects and effects of absorption more likely are comparable (Gol'dberg number Gamma approximately 1). The aim of this work was to study the nonlinear propagation of a moderately nonlinear US second harmonic signal in a blood-mimicking fluid. Quasilinear solutions to the KZK equation are presented, assuming radiation from a flat and geometrically focused circular Gaussian source. The solutions are expressed in a new simplified closed form and are in very good agreement with those of previous studies measuring and modeling Gaussian beams. The solutions also show good agreement with the measurements of the beams produced by commercially available transducers, even without special Gaussian shading.
Localization of sensor networks considering energy accuracy tradeoffs

Localization in sensor networks is a prerequisite for associating the sensed phenomenon to a particular location. Various aspects of sensor network localization have recently been studied. However, amongst the vast number of localization schemes proposed, tradeoff between the energy required for localization and resulting accuracy of localization is not addressed. In a highly resource-constrained environment such as a sensor network, it is important to address the above energy accuracy relationship during the localization process. Network lifetime is enhanced by applying energy-aware localization schemes periodically. In this paper, a localization algorithm is presented which transforms the network into a system of springs. Using optimization techniques the stable state of such a system is determined, which yields the locations of the nodes in the network. The energy accuracy tradeoff obtained from the algorithm is studied using MATLAB simulations. Results for a centralized and distributed implementation of the scheme are presented.
Demonstration of a microwave spectrum analyzer using time-domain processing in optical fibers

In this paper we demonstrate a novel method of direct, frequency domain, spectrum analysis relying on the manipulation of microwave-modulated optical pulses using chromatic dispersion. In our approach the utility of dispersion for signal processing is extended when fiber of opposite dispersion sign and appropriate length is added to a preceding link to perform an inverse Fourier transform (IFT).
Introduction: Family Law Reimagined

One of the law’s most important and far-reaching roles is to govern family life and family members. Family law decides who counts as kin, how family relationships are created and dissolved, and what legal rights and responsibilities come with marriage, parenthood, sibling ties, and other family bonds. It structures both the details of daily life and the overarching features of society. Yet while there are wonderful scholars and lawyers working in family law, the field continues to attract much less critical attention than it deserves.Family Law Reimagined is the first book to explore the canonical stories that judges and legislators repeatedly invoke to explain family law and its governing principles. These stories contend that family law is exclusively local, that it repudiates market principles, that it has eradicated the imprint of common law doctrines that subordinated married women, that it is dominated by contract rules permitting individuals to structure their relationships as they choose, and that it consistently prioritizes children’s interests over parents’ rights. Canonical stories about family law ignore the family law governing the poor and overlook family relationships other than marriage, parenthood, and (sometimes) their functional equivalents.This book reveals how family law’s canon misdescribes the reality of family law, misdirects attention away from the actual problems that family law confronts, and misshapes the policies that legal authorities pursue. It demonstrates how much of the “common sense” that decisionmakers expound about family law actually makes little sense.Family Law Reimagined uncovers and critiques the family law canon and outlines a path to reform. The book challenges conventional answers and asks questions that judges and lawmakers routinely overlook.
Identifying Tertiary Radiations of Fabaceae in the Greater Antilles: Alternatives to Cladistic Vicariance Analysis

The fossil record shows that the legume family was abundant and taxonomically diverse in Early Tertiary tropical deciduous forests of North America. Today, woody members of this family are almost nonexistent in temperate deciduous forests. This former North American legume diversity now lies in the Tropics, including the Greater Antilles. To show the Antillean refugia, we detail a phylogenetic and biogeographic analysis of two legume groups, the Ormocarpum and Robinia clades, which have either a Tertiary fossil record in North America or a sister clade with such a fossil record. A combined analysis of molecular and nonmolecular data is used for the cladistic vicariance approaches, while an exhaustively sampled data set of nrDNA ITS/5.8S sequences is used for the molecular biogeographic analysis. Results from component, three‐area‐statements, and Brooks parsimony analysis are equivocal in suggesting an influence of Tertiary history on the distribution of the woody genera Pictetia (Ormocarpum clade) and Poi...
Spliceman – A computational web server that predicts sequence variations in pre-mRNA splicing

Summary: It was previously demonstrated that splicing elements are positional dependent. We exploited this relationship between location and function by comparing positional distributions between all possible 4096 hexamers around a database of human splice sites. The distance measure used in this study found point mutations that produced higher distances disrupted splicing, whereas point mutations with smaller distances generally had no effect on splicing. Reasoning the idea that functional splicing elements have signature positional distributions around constitutively spliced exons, we introduce Spliceman—an online tool that predicts how likely distant mutations around annotated splice sites were to disrupt splicing. Spliceman takes a set of DNA sequences with point mutations and returns a ranked list to predict the effects of point mutations on pre-mRNA splicing. The current implementation included the analyses of 11 genomes: human, chimp, rhesus, mouse, rat, dog, cat, chicken, guinea pig, frog and zebrafish. Availability: Freely available on the web at http://fairbrother.biomed.brown.edu/spliceman/ Contact: ude.nworb@rehtorbriaf
Quality of designs from an automatic logic generator (ALERT)

Automation of the design of computer logic has evoked wide-spread interest and activity. Nevertheless, detailed comparisons of automatically generated logic and manually prepared logic have not been made available.The ALERT program is a logic generator which accepts as input a summary description of a new computer in a high-level language, and from this it compiles logic designs to carry out the functions specified. This paper examines the quality of logic generated by the ALERT system.The specifications of several computers have been processed through the ALERT system. This report discusses the most comprehensive design processed, the central processor of the IBM 1800 computer.The 1800 had been designed by conventional manual techniques prior to this study, and its logic schematics were, therefore, available for comparison with the logic generated by ALERT.It was found that the automatically produced circuitry required 160% more components than used in the corresponding parts of the actual computer. Reasons for this discrepancy are considered, and methods are described which are expected to reduce the discrepancy between automatically generated designs and manual designs.The study indicates that automatic generation of computer logic and circuitry from high-level system descriptions offers a practical and viable alternative to traditional methods of logic design. Within the limits of the study, the automatically prepared design was found to be correct, functional, and manufacturable.
The dawn of X-ray astronomy (Nobel Lecture).

Riccardo Giacconi joined the American Science and Engineering Corporation (AS & E) after leaving Princeton University in 1959, and in 1962 his group there detected the first extrasolar Xray source. Prof. Giacconi was subsequently responsible for the launch and use of the satellite UHURU (1970) and the EINSTEIN observatory (1978). He was appointed Associate Director of the High Energy Astrophysics Division of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in 1973 and was also appointed Professor of Astronomy at Harvard University that same year. In 1981 he became the first Director of the Space Telescope Science Institute and was also appointed Professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Johns Hopkins University. In 1992 he was appointed Director General of the European Southern Observatory, an intergovernmental organization of eight nations. Prof. Giaconni is currently President of Associated Universities, Inc., and Research Professor at Johns Hopkins University. He was awarded the Wolf Prize in 1987, and the Nobel Prize for Physics in 2002.
Normal forms and quadratic nonlinear Klein‐Gordon equations

On construit une transformation qui change l'equation a non-linearite cubique que l'on sait resoudre a (3+1) dimensions. On demontre que la solution du probleme original a le meme comportement asymptotique que l'equation de Klein-Gordon non lineaire
Superresolution Imaging of Aquaporin-4 Cluster Size in Antibody-Stained Paraffin Brain Sections

Abstract The water channel aquaporin-4 (AQP4) forms supramolecular clusters whose size is determined by the ratio of M1- and M23-AQP4 isoforms. In cultured astrocytes, differences in the subcellular localization and macromolecular interactions of small and large AQP4 clusters results in distinct physiological roles for M1- and M23-AQP4. Here, we developed quantitative superresolution optical imaging methodology to measure AQP4 cluster size in antibody-stained paraffin sections of mouse cerebral cortex and spinal cord, human postmortem brain, and glioma biopsy specimens. This methodology was used to demonstrate that large AQP4 clusters are formed in AQP4 −/− astrocytes transfected with only M23-AQP4, but not in those expressing only M1-AQP4, both in vitro and in vivo. Native AQP4 in mouse cortex, where both isoforms are expressed, was enriched in astrocyte foot-processes adjacent to microcapillaries; clusters in perivascular regions of the cortex were larger than in parenchymal regions, demonstrating size-dependent subcellular segregation of AQP4 clusters. Two-color superresolution imaging demonstrated colocalization of Kir4.1 with AQP4 clusters in perivascular areas but not in parenchyma. Surprisingly, the subcellular distribution of AQP4 clusters was different between gray and white matter astrocytes in spinal cord, demonstrating regional specificity in cluster polarization. Changes in AQP4 subcellular distribution are associated with several neurological diseases and we demonstrate that AQP4 clustering was preserved in a postmortem human cortical brain tissue specimen, but that AQP4 was not substantially clustered in a human glioblastoma specimen despite high-level expression. Our results demonstrate the utility of superresolution optical imaging for measuring the size of AQP4 supramolecular clusters in paraffin sections of brain tissue and support AQP4 cluster size as a primary determinant of its subcellular distribution.
Competency-Based Curriculum: An Effective Approach to Digital Curation Education.

The University of North Texas conducted a project involving rigorous curriculum development and instructional design to address the goal of building capacity in the Library and Information Sciences...
Taking a Page from Retail: Secret Shopping for Academic Libraries

Abstract Objective – The University Libraries at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG) sought to gain feedback on the customer service experience beyond satisfaction surveys. After reviewing a variety of methods, it was determined to conduct a mystery or secret shopper exercise, a standard practice in the retail and hospitality world. Methods – Two mystery shopper assessments were conducted in 2010 and 2012. Students were recruited from a Hospitality Management class to serve as the secret shoppers. “Shoppers” completed a rating sheet for each encounter based on customer service values established by the Libraries. Data was analyzed and presented to staff. Results - Initial findings were generally quite positive but indicated that we could improve “going the extra mile” and “confirming satisfaction.” As a result, we developed training sessions for public services staff which were delivered during summer 2011. A LibGuide that included training videos was created for public services student employees who were required to view the videos and provide comments. In addition, we developed more specific public service standards for procedures such as answering the telephone, confirming satisfaction, and referring patrons to other offices. The Secret Shopper assessment was administered again in spring 2012 to see if scores improved. The results in the second study indicated improvement. Conclusions - The mystery shopper exercises provided the UNCG University Libraries with the opportunity to examine our services and customer service goals more closely. Conducting the mystery shopper study identified several areas to address. We realized we needed more clearly defined standards for staff to follow. We saw that we needed to discuss what “going the extra mile” means to us as an organization. We also needed to develop a scalable training method for student employees.
sizzled function and secreted factor network dynamics

Studies on the role of the E-box binding transcription factor Snail2 (Slug) in the induction of neural crest by mesoderm (Shi et al., 2011) revealed an unexpected increase in the level of sizzled RNA in the dorsolateral mesodermal zone (DMLZ) of morphant Xenopus embryos. sizzled encodes a secreted protein with both Wnt and BMP inhibitor activities. Morpholino-mediated down-regulation of sizzled expression in one cell of two cell embryos or the C2/C3 blastomeres of 32-cell embryos, which give rise to the DLMZ, revealed decreased expression of the mesodermal marker brachyury and subsequent defects in neural crest induction, pronephros formation, and muscle patterning. Loss of sizzled expression led to decreases in RNAs encoding the secreted Wnt inhibitor SFRP2 and the secreted BMP inhibitor Noggin; the sizzled morphant phenotype could be rescued by co-injection of RNAs encoding Noggin and either SFRP2 or Dickkopf (a mechanistically distinct Wnt inhibitor). Together, these observations reveal that sizzled, in addition to its established role in dorsal-ventral patterning, is also part of a dynamic BMP and Wnt signaling network involved in both mesodermal patterning and neural crest induction.
Considerations for Management of Hereditary Rectal Cancer and Desmoid Tumors

Hereditary colorectal cancer affects the rectum as well as the colon. Treatment strategies need to take into account the cancer risks posed by a retained rectum, and the threats to lifestyle caused by proctectomy. This chapter will discuss decision making in detail. Desmoid disease is a manifestation of the germline APC mutation that causes familial adenomatous polyposis. The relationship of desmoid disease to surgery in general and the rectum in particular will also be discussed.
Interaction of p53 with Cellular Proteins

Cellular proteins that interact with p53 play a major role in both positive and negative regulation of this tumor suppressor and can fine-tune its response to specific cellular stresses. As a consequence, p53 biology will not be complete until these interacting proteins are fully characterized. This chapter outlines two methods for identifying and characterizing p53-binding proteins: (i) glutathione-S-transferase (GST) protein-protein interaction assay; and (ii) co-immunoprecipitation (co-IP) assay. These two methods are ideal for any laboratory to perform; the assays are short in duration, do not require specialized expertise to establish in the laboratory, give reliable and reproducible data, and are cost-efficient, because few reagents are needed. This chapter gives a basic description of these two techniques and provides tips that are not found in other protocol manuals on how to achieve the best results.
Diagnosis, Prophylaxis and Treatment of Central Nervous System Involvement by Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma in HIV-Infected Patients

With the widespread use of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), the incidence of systemic non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) in patients infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) has declined. HAART has also modified the clinical manifestations of these tumours, with a lower frequency of involvement of the central nervous system (CNS). Before the introduction of HAART, up to 25 % of patients showed CNS involvement; currently, the frequency of meningeal involvement at the time of diagnosis of NHL in HIV-infected patients varies between 3 and 5 %, and its frequency is related to histological subtype, ranging from uncommon in indolent lymphomas to more frequent in aggressive lymphomas such as diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), lymphoblastic lymphoma, blastoid variant of mantle cell lymphoma and Burkitt’s lymphoma (BL). Clinical criteria, such as involvement of the paranasal sinus, testes, orbital cavities or bone marrow, advanced stage, high International Prognostic Index, elevated LDH levels and the involvement of multiple extranodal sites all help to better identify the risk factors in patients for whom the administration of prophylaxis is strongly recommended.
Undermining Justice: The Two Rises of Freedom of Contract and the Fall of Equity

This article explores a crucial moment in American legal history, known as the Lochner era, in which the rise of freedom of contract was sharp enough to defeat equity concerns, and then argues that a second rise of the freedom of contract has recently been developed by the Supreme Court in the domain of arbitration agreements. It contends that this second rise is not only a revival of Lochnerism but also, and more so, what the article names “neoliberal-Lochnerism”: a process of legal dissemination of neoliberal common sense outside of the world of contracts. Via close reading of leading recent cases, the article demonstrates that the genus of arbitration agreements now allowed by the US Supreme Court represents an assault on fairness, morality, and justice that is larger than the eye can see at first glance. The result, it is argued, is “law without equity”, a form of neoliberal jurisprudence that allows, and even incentivizes, humans who have accumulated enough power to act opportunistically. Without equity’s restraining power, the article concludes, those possessing a combination of economic means, political influence, and intellectual sophistication can and will exploit the legal rules to undermine justice.
Construction and Analysis of an Allelic Series of Ccn1 Knockin Mice.

Abstract The embryonic lethality of mice with conventional global knockout of Ccn1 (Cyr61) precludes analysis of Ccn1 functions in late embryonic development or in adulthood. To circumvent this limitation, we have generated conditional knockout mice that allow cell type-specific deletion of Ccn1, and constructed an allelic series of Ccn1 knockin mice that express CCN1 defective for binding specific integrins in lieu of the wild type protein. Here we describe the construction of these mice and discuss how analysis of these animals can provide unique insights into Ccn1 functions mediated through specific integrin receptors. It is anticipated that future analysis of mice carrying specific mutations in genes of the Ccn family will be greatly facilitated by application of the CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing methodology.
Resource Allocation and Strategy

Resource allocation is fundamental to strategic management. Yet, surprisingly, there is not a large body of literature specifically about the allocation of financial, physical, technological, and h...
It is not always about brand: Design-driven consumers and their self-expression

Abstract Consumers often utilize product design as one of the central means for expressing identity. However, few studies have investigated how consumers leverage product design for self-expression, and how a dominant design preference can influence consumers’ self-expression through brands. Drawing upon identity theory, this study examines how design-driven consumers express their personal and social identities. The results suggest that design-dominance among consumers leverages their need-for-uniqueness as a conduit for social identity expression. For consumers with a clear self-concept, expressing uniqueness through product design is weaker. The results also demonstrate that when design-dominance is strong, consumer exhibit a reduced reliance on brands to express their social identity, thus weakening brand loyalty.
STUDIES ON TWO HIGH-AFFINITY, CALCIUM-BINDING PROTEINS IN SQUID OPTIC LOBE

Publisher Summary This chapter presents studies on two high-affinity, calcium-binding proteins in a squid optic lobe. The calcium ion-binding properties of proteins were characterized under three different ionic conditions, using equilibrium dialysis and ultraviolet (UV) absorption difference spectroscopy. Both squid calcium-binding protein (SCaBP) and squid calmodulin (SCaM) underwent a calcium-induced increase in mobility when electrophoresed in 8% alkaline polyacrylamide gels in the presence of 6M urea, and in 15% polyacrylamide SDS gels. Both proteins were found to be present in similar amounts on electrophoresis of axoplasm extruded from a single giant axon. Ca 2+ binding by SCaBP, SCaM and bovine brain calmodulin (BCaM) was measured over a range of free Ca 2+ concentrations, and under various ionic conditions using equilibrium dialysis. UV absorption difference spectroscopy was used to study calcium-induced conformational changes in SCaBP and SCaM under the same ionic conditions as used for equilibrium dialysis. It was concluded that SCaM and SCaBP coexist in the cytoplasm of axons, and probably other components of squid nervous tissue. While both may serve as receptors for Ca 2+ and they presumably have discrete functional roles.
Synchronizing International Accounting Standards through Expert Systems

Publisher Summary This chapter elaborates the synchronization of international accounting standards through expert systems. The global accounting standards are set under the influence of the United Nations, Organization of Economic Cooperation, and Development, among others. Global investors and financial statement users have different needs, and concerns than national users. Risks inherent in global financial statements are quite different. Measurement of income, and valuation concepts used in preparation of financial statements are flexible, and differ widely. Flexible financial standards allowed in different countries provide considerable freedom of choice in global reporting. Reliance on an ad hoc change of accounting standards cannot be in the best interest of the accounting profession. On a trading bloc level, an expert system project may generate financial statements in accordance with national reporting standards. It would be a smaller and manageable task than the megasystem. The knowledge base would consist of only one set of standards based on accounting directives, and accounting policy of that bloc, making it easier to create, and maintain.
Sensitivities of Eigenvalues and Eigenvectors from Complex Perturbations

The utility of complex perturbations to estimate the sensitivity of modal parameters in self-adjoint conservative models is examined. In the Complex Step Derivative (CSD) approach the parameter for which the derivative is required is perturbed in the direction of the imaginary axis and the eigenvalue problem for the perturbed matrices is solved; the real part has the solution of the unperturbed eigenvalue problem and the imaginary the sensitivities times the perturbation magnitude. This paper examines the utility of the CSD approach as a method to compute sensitivities in structural dynamics.
Informed Trading by Hedge Funds

Using daily equity transactions, we create a hedge fund informed trading measure (ITM) that separates information related trades from liquidity driven trades. We find that stocks with higher hedge fund informed trading are associated with higher future stock performance. The long-short portfolio delivers 4% annual alpha after controlling for size, value, momentum, and illiquidity factors. The results are mainly driven by the long side of informed trading. We attribute the informed trading to funds' ability to identify and correct stock underpricing. The results are robust to various ways of constructing and sorting the measure, and we do not find a return reversal in 4 quarters, indicating that the measure is information related.
All Together Now! The Benefits of Adaptively Fusing Pre-trained Deep Representations.

Pre-trained deep neural networks, powerful models trained on large datasets, have become a popular tool in computer vision for transfer learning. However, the standard approach of using a single network potentially misses out on valuable information contained in other readily available models. In this work, we study the Mixture of Experts (MoE) approach for adaptively fusing multiple pre-trained models for each individual input image. In particular, we explore how far we can get by combining diverse pre-trained representations in a customized way that maximizes their potential in a lightweight framework. Our approach is motivated by an empirical study of the predictions made by popular pre-trained nets across various datasets, finding that both performance and agreement between models vary across datasets. We further propose a miniature CNN gating mechanism operating on a thumbnail version of the input image, and show this is enough to guide a good fusion. Finally, we explore a multi-modal blend of visual and natural-language representations, using a label-space embedding to inject pre-trained word-vectors. Across multiple datasets, we demonstrate that an adaptive fusion of pre-trained models can obtain favorable results.
Assessment of Differences in Clinical Activity and Medicare Payments Among Female and Male Radiation Oncologists.

Importance Although physician sex is known to influence salary even after controlling for productivity, sex-based differences in clinical activity and reimbursement among radiation oncologists are poorly understood. Objectives To evaluate differences by sex in productivity, breadth of practice, and payments and to characterize Medicare reimbursement by sex among similarly productive groups of radiation oncologists. Design, Setting, and Participants A retrospective cohort study was conducted using the January 1 to December 31, 2016, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Physician and Other Supplier Public Use File (POSPUF) to identify charge and payment information for individual radiation oncologists. Clinicians were part of a population-based sample of US radiation oncologists who bill Medicare in both non–facility-based (NFB) and facility-based (FB) practice settings. Analysis was conducted from June 5 to 25, 2018. Main Outcomes and Measures Outcome measurements included physician productivity (measured by number of Medicare charges), physician payments (reported as total Medicare payments as well as mean payments per charge submitted and per beneficiary treated), and physician breadth of practice (measured by number of unique Medicare billing codes) in NFB and FB settings. Results A total of 4393 radiation oncologists (1133 women and 3260 men) were included in the POSPUF in 2016. Compared with their male counterparts, female physicians in the NFB setting submitted a mean of 1051 fewer charges (95% CI, –1458 to –644;P Conclusions and Relevance This study suggests that female radiation oncologists submit fewer Medicare charges, are reimbursed less per charge they submit, and receive lower Medicare payments overall compared with male radiation oncologists. Even among similarly productive radiation oncologists, women in this study still collected less revenue than men. Further research is required to understand the sex-based barriers to economic advancement within radiation oncology.
The Changing Role of the Anesthesiologist in Pain Management

Changing concepts of pain mechanisms deemphasize the somatic aspects of chronic pain and enhance the concept that chronic pain is primarily a psychological disorder. As such, interruption of straight-through pain pathways through nerve blocking may not always be the treatment of choice. Evidence is given encouraging anesthesiologists to modify their thinking on the value of nerve blocks in the treatment of chronic pain and direct their efforts to the management of acute, postoperative, and cancer pain problems.
Preparations and reactions of trifluoromethylthiocopper

Trifluoromethylthiocopper, a versatile reagent for the introduction of the trifluoromethylthio group into organic compounds, has been prepared in a crystalline form. The thiyl radicals, generated in situ from this precursor, cause the cleavage of the 3S bond of di- and trisulfides to give unsymmetrical di- and trisulfides. Unsymmeirical n-butyl trifluoromethyl disulfide is formed by the cleaveage of the CS bond of n-butyl sulfide.
A PRECISION-GUIDED APPROACH TO INFORM ATRIAL FIBRILLATION SCREENING

Some guidelines endorse screening for atrial fibrillation (AF) in individuals aged ≥65 years, but concerns exist about screening effectiveness and overdiagnosis. A precision-guided approach using absolute AF risk may improve screening efficiency by identifying individuals at highest risk for AF
Effect of growth differentiation factor 15 (GDF-15) inhibition on energy balance in cancer cachexia and in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced sepsis mouse models.

e24153Background: Growth differentiation factor 15 (GDF-15) is a cytokine that induces anorexia, weight loss and has been reported to be associated with cachexia and poor survival in illnesses char...