cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The end of a conjecture of A.H. Stone

Abstract By a chain K in a normal, locally connected, connected space X , we mean a finite collection of closed and connected sets of X that can be so ordered K = {K 1 ,…, K n } so that K i ⌢ K j ≠ 0 if and only if | i - j | ⩽ 1. A circular chain in X is a collection of subcontinua K such that if K ϵ K , K ⧹{K} is a chain in X . Let n >2 be an integer and let S ( n ) denote the statement: S(n) - X is multicoherent if and only if X can be represented as the union of a circular chain containing exactly n members. A.H. Stone announced S (3) in 1949 and in a private communication he stated that he was able to establish S ( n ) for n >2, only under very strong hypotheses. The present authors showed by example, that S (7) was false (1978) and recently the second author established S (4). In this paper we give as an example a multicoherent, locally connected, connected metric which cannot be represented as the union of a circular chain with five members. Thus S (5) is false and this is the “end” of this conjecture.
Fermi-Level Alignment at Metal-Carbon Nanotube Interfaces: Application to Scanning Tunneling Spectroscopy

At any metal-carbon nanotube interface there is charge transfer and the induced interfacial field determines the position of the carbon nanotube band structure relative to the metal Fermi level. In the case of a single-wall carbon nanotube supported on a gold substrate, we show that the charge transfers induce a local electrostatic potential perturbation which gives rise to the observed Fermi-level shift in scanning tunneling spectroscopy measurements. We also discuss the relevance of this study to recent experiments on carbon nanotube transistors and argue that the Fermi-level alignment will be different for carbon nanotube transistors with low resistance and high resistance contacts.
Use of oral rehydration therapy in acute watery diarrhoea. A practical guide.

Various foods and fluids have been used in traditional treatments for diarrhoeal illnesses in infants and children for centuries. During the last 2 decades, however, with the advent of an improved scientific understanding of oral rehydration, effective treatment of dehydrating diarrhoea has been improved, expanded and simplified. The appropriate use of oral rehydration solutions depends on an appreciation of the physiological mechanisms of diarrhoeal illness. Since dehydrating diarrhoea is such a common cause of morbidity and mortality, and because oral rehydration therapy is inexpensive, effective and adaptable, it has become a powerful intervention for improvement in health care for all ages. Newer formulations using starches, cereals and/or amino acids promise to make oral rehydration therapy even more efficacious and acceptable. Nearly all developing countries now have active national diarrhoeal control programmes which facilitate rehydration therapy as the first treatment of diarrhoea while discouraging the use of other diarrhoea medicines (e.g. kaolin and pectin, antispasmodics, etc.). Industrialised countries are also increasingly using oral rather than intravenous fluids. For most patients with lesser degrees of dehydration (up to about 8%) or no detectable dehydration, oral rehydration therapy is the only form of hydration needed. The 'standard' oral replacement solution recommended by the World Health Organization has the advantage of wide experience, demonstrated safety and effectiveness and wide availability. However, rehydration is only part of the management of diarrhoea, and nutritional management (including electrolytes and glucose, alternative substrates to glucose, inclusion of starches and proteins in the solution if possible, etc.) must also be integrated into programmes for diarrhoea control.
Mobilization of metal-contaminated sediment by ice-jam floods

A large river ice jam and associated flooding in February 1996 on the Blackfoot and Clark Fork Rivers of western Montana mobilized large amounts of fine-grained sediment. Metal concentrations in sediment downstream from a reservoir containing large amounts of contaminated sediment were enriched in metals after the ice jam, while open reaches above the reservoir were diluted by ice-jam processes. This varied response shows the importance of understanding ice jam events to sediment and metal transport and suggests that ice jams must be considered as important agents affecting sediment metal concentrations in rivers.
Band structure of Al/Si/n-type GaAs with a strained Si interfacial layer

The band structure of a coherently strained Si layer (15 \AA{}) on GaAs has been calculated using the empirical pseudopotential method. The pseudopotential from factor of the strained Si layer is derived by considering that the pseudopotential of the strained layer is slightly modified by a factor which is proportional to the volume change of the unit cell. The band-structure calculation indicates that the band gap of the strained Si layer is 0.7 eV, which is substantially smaller than that of the bulk Si. A revised band-structure model for $\mathrm{AI}/\mathrm{Si}/n$-type GaAs based on the above calculation is proposed, which agrees very well with the experimental results. This model implies that for the coherently strained Si interfacial layer, the Fermi level is unpinned not only at the Si-GaAs interface but also at the Al-Si interface.
Citric acid cycle enzymes in normal and syphilitic rabbit tissues.

Summary1. Normal and syphilitic rabbit testes, liver, heart and kidneys were assayed for α-ketoglutaric oxidase, pyruvic oxidase, fumarase, aconitase, lactic dehydrogenase, TPN isocitric dehydrogenase and succinic dehydrogenase. 2. In syphilitic testes there is a definite decrease in pyruvic oxidase, α-ketoglutaric oxidase, aconitase and TPN isocitric acid dehydrogenase. 3. Both normal and syphilitic heart tissue showed very considerable variations in aconitase activity. 4. In syphilitic kidneys there was a decrease in pyruvic oxidase activity and a moderate decrease in aconitase activity. 5. The decreased enzyme values found in the testes and kidneys of the syphilitic groups are probably a demonstration of a general reaction to the infection.
A framework for systemic analysis of complex issues

This paper introduces a systems‐based framework to facilitate structured analysis of complex issues. The framework was created out of a management development effort with the primary emphasis on development of systems problem‐solving skills through analysis of complex operational issues. Drawing from systems science, the strength of the approach rests inthe holistic analysis of structure, relationships, and emergent dynamics of problematic situations. The fundamental systems principles underpinning the approach are developed to provide an essential “systems background” as a foundation for the framework. The utility of the framework is discussed with respect toresults from an application in an organizational setting. The paper concludes with a discussion of the implications and limitations of the framework for development of systemic thinking and complex problem analysis.
How a common language and consistent financial reporting practices could enhance the sector

Every sector needs an effective mechanism for reporting to the public and to appropriate authorities that allows for clear understanding and oversight. The development of a common language and performance standards for private foundations is critical to improve transparency and accountability.
The American Hospital Association's National Data Network and hospital data bases.

The growth and increasing complexity of the hospital industry has created on urgent need for hospital data. However, existing data bases have not been used as extensively or as intensively as they could be. This paper describes the major data bases of the American Hospital Association—the Annual Survey of Hospitals, the National Hospital Panel Survey, and the Special Surveys—and then discusses the American Hospital Association National Data Network, a remote-access, computer-time-sharing system that provides on-line entry into the AHA's data bases. The speed, economy, and ease with which Network data can be retrieved and manipulated means that national hospital data can now be disseminated more widely throughout the health care industry and can be regularly used for decision making even at the institutional level.
The Effectiveness of a Structured Remediation Program to Pass the NCLEX-RN Examination

The National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN) has been the standard by which all undergraduate nursing programs are judged for program effectiveness. Consistent patterns of low pass rates can have serious implications for the academic institution, the nursing program, the nursing faculty, the program graduates, and the community at large. Preparing undergraduate nursing students for licensure is a major concern for undergraduate nursing faculty. Present pass rates for the graduate nursing baccalaureate students at a state university are currently below the national average. To address this problem, these researchers have identified interventions that predict success on the NCLEX-RN examination. The implementation of a five week online NCLEX-RN review course in conjunction with three workshops taught and designed by these researchers is used to increase the pass rate on the NCLEX-RN exam. The goal of the implementation of this assessment project is to provide the nursing student with the necessary tools to be successful on the NCLEX-RN. Furthermore, findings from this project have the potential to identify areas for the improvement in the nursing curriculum as well as the increase of the nursing program’s NCLEX-RN pass rate.
Flow properties of freeze-concentrated skim milk

Abstract The flow properties of freeze-concentrated skim milk, determined with a concentric cylinder viscometer, were well described by the simple power-law rheological model over the temperature range from — 3.4 to + 20 °C. High-total-solids freeze-concentrated skim milk (35–40% total solids) exhibited non-Newtonian behaviour, while lower concentrations gave Newtonian flow properties. The magnitude of the flow behaviour index was between 0.8 and 1.0. The Arrhenius model described well the effect of temperature on apparent viscosity in this temperature range. Statistical analysis showed that there was no difference in viscosity between condensed thermally evaporated skim milk and freeze-concentrated skim milk. However, the viscosities of reconstituted skim milks were different: the reconstituted product made from evaporated milk had a slightly higher viscosity than that of freeze-concentrated milk.
Anatomical organization of the sexually dimorphic perineal neuromuscular system in the house mouse.

Abstract The anatomy of the sexually dimorphic motoneuron nuclei of the bulbocavernosus (BC) and ischiocavernosus (IC) muscles, as well as the non-sexually dimorphic external anal sphincter (EAS), was examined in hybrid B6D2F1 mice using the retrograde tracer, cholera toxin-bound horseradish peroxidase. Motoneurons innervating the BC were located in the dorsomedial nucleus (DM), as well as in the ventral nucleus (V) and in the mid-region of the ventral horn (MVH). Following injections restricted to the IC, labelled neurons were found in the dorsolateral nucleus (DL), as well as in V, DM and MVH. Cells innervating the EAS in both males and females were located in the DM, as well as in the V and MVH. An elaborate network of dendrites extended between all labelled nuclei. The present results demonstrate that the anatomical specificity of the sexually dimorphic neuromuscular system of the mouse differs from that observed in other species.
Wolves, elk, and aspen in the winter range of Jasper National Park, Canada

We undertook a retrospective study of aspen age structure in the winter range of Jasper National Park to assess potential trophic cascades in wolf–elk–aspen systems. We compiled historical wolf (Ca...
Accurate simulation of the optical properties of atmospheric ice crystals with the invariant imbedding T-matrix method

Abstract The invariant imbedding T-matrix method (II-TM) is employed to compute the optical properties of randomly oriented ice crystals of various shapes including hexagonal columns, hollow columns, droxtals, bullet rosettes and aggregates. The II-TM is shown to be numerically stable and capable of obtaining the single-scattering properties of hexagonal ice crystals with size parameters up to 150. The 22° and 46° halo peaks in the phase function of compact hexagonal ice crystals begin to emerge at a size parameter of approximately 80 and tend to become insensitive to particle size as the corresponding size parameter approaches 150. Furthermore, the II-TM solutions are shown to be in agreement with their counterparts based on the discrete dipole approximation (DDA) method and the pseudo-spectral time-domain (PSTD) method. In addition, the accuracy of the improved geometric-optics method (IGOM) is examined for randomly oriented hexagonal ice crystal cases over a wide size-parameter range from the resonant to geometric-optics regimes. The II-TM is also used to study the effects of particle surface roughness and internal inclusions on the single-scattering properties of ice particles.
Bilayer Surfactant Stabilized Magnetic Fluids: Synthesis and Interactions at Interfaces

Aqueous magnetic fluids were synthesized by a sequential process involving the chemical coprecipitation of Fe(II) and Fe(III) salts with ammonium hydroxide (NH4OH) followed by resuspension of the ultrafine particles in water using fatty acids. This procedure produced Fe3O4 nanoparticles stabilized against agglomeration by bilayers of n-alkanoic acids with 9−13 carbons encapsulating the metal particles. The magnetic properties and particle size and size distributions of these magnetic fluids, characterized by transmission electron microscopy and superconducting quantum interference device, indicated the formation of single-domain nanoparticles of mean diameter ∼9.3 and ∼7.5 nm, respectively; the difference in values determined by the two methods implies the presence of a nonmagnetic layer on the particle surface. Thermogravimetric analysis measurements showed the existence of two distinct populations of surfactants on the particle surface, each having surfactant coverage of ∼21−24 A2/molecule, that was con...
Cholesterol-Secreting and Statin-Responsive Hepatocytes from Human ES and iPS Cells to Model Hepatic Involvement in Cardiovascular Health

Hepatocytes play a central and crucial role in cholesterol and lipid homeostasis, and their proper function is of key importance for cardiovascular health. In particular, hepatocytes (especially periportal hepatocytes) endogenously synthesize large amounts of cholesterol and secrete it into circulating blood via apolipoprotein particles. Cholesterol-secreting hepatocytes are also the clinically-relevant cells targeted by statin treatment in vivo. The study of cholesterol homeostasis is largely restricted to the use of animal models and immortalized cell lines that do not recapitulate those key aspects of normal human hepatocyte function that result from genetic variation of individuals within a population. Hepatocyte-like cells (HLCs) derived from human embryonic and induced pluripotent stem cells can provide a cell culture model for the study of cholesterol homeostasis, dyslipidemias, the action of statins and other pharmaceuticals important for cardiovascular health. We have analyzed expression of core components for cholesterol homeostasis in untreated human iPS cells and in response to pravastatin. Here we show the production of differentiated cells resembling periportal hepatocytes from human pluripotent stem cells. These cells express a broad range of apolipoproteins required for secretion and elimination of serum cholesterol, actively secrete cholesterol into the medium, and respond functionally to statin treatment by reduced cholesterol secretion. Our research shows that HLCs derived from human pluripotent cells provide a robust cell culture system for the investigation of the hepatic contribution to human cholesterol homeostasis at both cellular and molecular levels. Importantly, it permits for the first time to also functionally assess the impact of genetic polymorphisms on cholesterol homeostasis. Finally, the system will also be useful for mechanistic studies of heritable dyslipidemias, drug discovery, and investigation of modes of action of cholesterol-modulatory drugs.
Reliability-based condition assessment and LRFD for existing structures

Safety and serviceability requirements for limit states design in North America have been developed and implemented in codes of practice during the past 20 years. The load and resistance criteria in limit states design are based on probabilistic methods. Statistical data on loads and on strengths are integrated by the reliability analysis to yield criteria that are consistent with a prescribed measure of reliability. The focus of code work to date has been on criteria for design of new buildings. However, professional practice frequently involves evaluation of existing structures. Research to support the development and implementation of probability-based condition assessment procedures for existing buildings is in progress.
Origin of Long-period Micropulsations

Several workers1 have discussed the origin of micropulsations in the geomagnetic field with periods of several minutes. Recently, after the discovery of the magnetospheric tail2, ideas about the origin of these micropulsations have been extended to include the effect of the tail. It has been suggested that the definite and regular shape of the geomagnetic tail will allow hydromagnetic waves of only certain discrete frequencies to propagate, which may appear as micropulsations3. A simple double-cylinder waveguide model4 of the tail allows the propagation of 3.3, 20 and 30 min periods. Another model5 of theta geometry also explains some long period micropulsations originating from the magnetospheric tail. It seems that many of the long periods, such as the 20 and 30 min periods discovered long ago in the geomagnetic field data, can now be explained by these models3,4. Indeed, one possible source for the generation of these micropulsations is the magnetospheric tail.
The Effects of Social Context on the Food‐Caching Behavior of Florida Scrub‐Jays (Aphelocoma coerulescens)

Florida scrub-jays are cooperative breeders that live in family groups consisting of a breeding pair, often with several non-breeding helpers. Florida scrub-jays cache food by scatter-hoarding items for later consumption. Within family groups, members have the opportunity to observe and pilfer the caches of other members. We observed jays harvesting experimentally provisioned peanuts alone and in the presence of other family members, to determine whether jays modify their food-handling behavior relative to social context. Non-breeding helpers were less likely to cache in the presence of the dominant male breeder than when alone and all jays tended to cache out of sight when observed by another jay. These changes in caching behavior are consistent with cache protection strategies employed by other species. However, the adaptive value of such cache protection within a sedentary cooperatively breeding family group on a year-round territory is unclear.
Some Thoughts on Results Following Intermittent Streptomycin in Pulmonary Tuberculosis

The contribution made by streptomycin (SM) towards the success of antituberculous chemotherapy is by now well established. It is not an “all safe, all powerful” drug, as its use can lead to serious consequences. There appears to be some danger from toxicity of the drug itself, but in our experience this has been relatively low. However, the dosage of streptomycin when used intermittently (two or three injections per week) in combination with daily INH and/or PAS is generally inadequate and invites therapeutic failure. This results in the patient’s excreting organisms resistant to one or more of the principal antimicrobial agents. Retreatment is rather difficult, the percentage of success being comparatively low ; and surgery in these patients carries a definite risk of postoperative complications such as bronchopleural fistula and empyema. One sees a number of private physicians and chest hospitals throughout the country using combinations of drugs including biweekly streptomycin, believing this to be “adequate” initial treatment in tuberculosis. The reason is difficult to understand. Papers have been published to confirm the earlier findings of the British Medical Research Council-that intermittent SM with daily INH or PAS is not the treatment of choice in tuberculosis.�
CHONDRAL INJURIES: CLINICAL OVERVIEW

Abstract The natural history of focal chondral injuries is unpredictable. The success of any cartilage regeneration proceduremust have a control group. One should be very careful in recommending the treatment to young patients with focal chondral injuries in attempts to prevent arthritis in the future. There is currently no effective method of facilitating cartilage repair for osteoarthrotic joints.
Fullerene-porphyrin supramolecular nanocables

Novel fullerene-porphyrin supramolecular nanocables were designed and their electronic properties were studied using computational modeling and first-principles density functional theory. It is demonstrated that two well-defined fullerene-porphyrin nanocables have clear channels for charge transport by electrons and holes. These two interesting nanocables have zigzag or helical chains of molecules around a π-stacked porphyrin core. They also have frontier electronic states which are spatially extended along the axes of the nanocables. Ballistic electronic transport is possible for ultrafast transfer of electrons along chains. We believe these supramolecular nanocables can play important roles in molecular electronics, optoelectronics and photovoltaics.
The frequency and cause of shallow winter mixed layers in the Gulf of Maine

[1] The frequency and cause of shallow winter mixed layers in the Gulf of Maine (GOM) is investigated using hydrographic profiles, Gulf of Maine Ocean Observing System (GOMOOS) moorings, and National Center for Environmental Prediction wind data. Historical and recent observations of mixed layer depth reveal distinct spatial variability. Mooring data show that shallow mixed layers often occur and persist through the entire winter in the coastal and eastern GOM. In the interior GOM, however, cast data suggest that deep mixing is more common. Both mooring and cast data show that the presence of shallow wintertime mixed layers throughout the GOM is primarily controlled by salinity increase (not temperature decrease) with depth. Additionally, mooring data indicate that periods of increased stratification are caused by freshening at both 1 and 20 m, with more freshening occurring at the surface (1 m) than at depth (20 m). Comparison of wind stress and stratification at the GOMOOS moorings shows that winter wind events are not responsible for long-term temporal variability in salinity-driven stratification.
RETAIL PHARMACIES IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES: A BEHAVIOR AND INTERVENTION FRAMEWORK*

Retail pharmacies in developing countries are one of the most important sources of advice on pharmaceuticals. Among the reasons the clients give are ease of access; availability of medicines; quality of service (no waiting and convenient hours of operation); and cheaper products, availability of credit, or the option to buy drugs in small amounts. However, the appropriateness of prescribing by retail pharmacy staff has been found to be far from acceptable. In childhood diarrhea, for example, oral rehydration salts (ORS), the appropriate diarrhea treatment, are recommended much less than pharmaceuticals of limited value, such as antimotility agents, adsorbents, etc. Little information is available for reasons underlying such behaviors. In this paper, we present a conceptual framework in which to analyze factors that may affect retail pharmacy prescribing, and we suggest strategies for behavior change. We developed this framework after examining relevant literature on retail pharmacy prescribing. We propose that pharmacy factors, client factors, physician practice and regulatory factors are the four sets of important factors for understanding pharmacy prescribing behavior. For intervention, we present four types of interventions which could be used for changing the behavior of pharmacy staff: information alone, persuasion, incentives and coercion. The behavior and intervention frameworks presented in this paper should also help in guiding further research in this area. For example, new information on the effects of ownership type, availability vs actual role of professional staff and authority structure on pharmacy treatment behaviors would be useful areas for future research. Similarly, additional research is needed on the comparative effects of coercive, persuasive and incentive strategies on pharmacy treatment behaviors.
Deformation and fatigue behaviors of case-hardened steels in torsion: Experiments and predictions

Abstract This study investigates cyclic deformation and fatigue behavior of case-hardened solid specimens made of 1050 steel in torsion. Specimens were case-hardened to a case depth to diameter ratio of 0.2, which is typical of many applications. von Mises criterion was found to provide good predictions of the shear cyclic deformation based on the uniaxial behaviors of the core and the case materials. Shear fatigue properties estimated from uniaxial properties by employing maximum principal strain criterion were in good agreement with experimental results. In the absence of any fatigue data, the Roessle–Fatemi hardness method in combination with the maximum principal strain criterion was found to provide excellent estimate of the shear fatigue behavior for the case-hardened specimens. It is also suggested that significant weight reduction of about 50% could be obtained by changing the solid cross section configuration to tubular configuration for shafts under pure torsion or when torque is the dominant load, while maintaining the same torque carrying capacity and fatigue life.
Pelvic floor function before and after robotic sacrocolpopexy: one-year outcomes.

Abstract Study objective Estimate pelvic floor function and support 1 year after robotic sacrocolpopexy. Design Prospective cohort analysis of women undergoing robotic sacrocolpopexy for correction of advanced pelvic organ prolapse (Canadian Task Force Classification III). Primary outcome was pelvic floor function. Secondary outcomes included anatomic support and long-term surgical failures and complications. Setting One university hospital in the southeastern United States. Patients Primarily postmenopausal women (mean age 60) with advanced pelvic organ prolapse. Interventions All subjects underwent robotic sacrocolpopexy during the study period. Subjects then underwent 1-year postoperative assessment of pelvic floor function via validated condition-specific quality of life questionnaires and assessment of pelvic floor support, long-term surgical failures, and complications via physical examination. Measurements and main results From November 2007 to April 2009, there were 28 subjects, 25 of whom (89.3%) were evaluated. Mean time since surgery was 14.8 months. Pelvic floor function remained significantly improved over preoperative baseline: PFDI-20 (117 vs 38, p Conclusion Robotic sacrocolpopexy demonstrates durable improvement in pelvic floor function and support, with high sexual function and reasonable failure and complication rates 1 year after surgery.
Performance measurement for radiology providers: a national study

Hospitals and medical centres' radiology departments, and free standing radiology centres, employ a variety of capital-intensive technologies for patient diagnosis, treatment, and management. In this paper, we report the performance of these entities and illustrate how performance can be improved for the underachievers. Data were acquired through an annual radiologic workplace survey conducted by the American Society of Radiologic Technologists. Using data envelopment analysis, we determined that the majority of departments featuring basic diagnostic radiology are technically efficient. However, as the complexity of technologies increases (e.g., computed tomography, magnetic resonance, etc.), a smaller percentage of departments are efficient. Attention to the best blend of inputs to maximise outputs is critical for maintaining efficient radiology departments in difficult economic times. However, the unique nature of radiology technologies and the referral nature of the profession may impact managers' ability to influence significantly these efficiency parameters.
Optimizing ages for cervical smear examinations in followed healthy individuals

Abstract A method is described and illustrated for calculating near optimal planned lifetime schedules of cervical smear examinations on an individual-by-individual basis. The method can be used to minimize the sum (discounted present value) of lifetime costs for prevention, management, treatment, and follow-up, plus the expected cost or loss if death occurs prematurely. A stochastic model of health, and of disease and death if they occur, is the basis of a computer program for finding the required examination ages. The program has built-in options of data and parameter values, which the user may override with preferred other values. The built-in data include estimates drawn from the British Columbia screening program, and, for loss due to death, from Social Security Administration data. Early cervical neoplasia is treated as being potentially nonprogressive to an extent that is unpredictable in the affected individual. Illustrations are presented of the comparative effects on optimal examination schedules, and on costs and return on preventive cytology regarded as an investment, of relatively low vs relatively high likelihood of disease onset occurring, of various levels of costs, including an effect of inflation, and of false-positive reports in cytology.
Flag-stabilizers in the symmetric and alternating groups and their overgroup lattices

(1988). Flag-stabilizers in the symmetric and alternating groups and their overgroup lattices. Communications in Algebra: Vol. 16, No. 7, pp. 1437-1451.
Creating "Jewish History for Our Own Needs": The Evolution of Cecil Roth's Historical Vision, 1925-1935

Remembered today as one of the great popularizers of Jewish history, in the inter-war year the Anglo-Jewish historian Cecil Roth was unable to secure an academic appointment until 1939. As such he turned to writing popular history as a means of support, and while some academic historians discounted his work (then and now), an examination of Roth’s correspondence with individuals such Henry Hurwitz of the Intercollegiate Menorah Society, reveal that Roth worked assiduously to develop an approach to history that would be both academically sound and “useful” to those readers who wanted to understand the contours of Jewish life.
Design and Optimization for Nanoscale Power Distribution Networks in Gigascale Systems

For the first time, an optimization methodology has been presented for power distribution interconnects at the local level. For a given IR drop budget, compact models are presented for the optimal widths of power and ground lines in the first two metal levels for which the total metal area used for power distribution is minimized. Wire widths and thicknesses at the end of the ITRS are projected to scale down to 14 nm, and size effects are expected to increase copper resistivity by more than 4 times. Either a 3 times increase in wiring area for local power lines or a 2 times decrease in the power via pitch is necessary to compensate for size effects.
Grain Growth and Twin Formation in 0.74PMN·0.26PT

The mechanisms controlling normal and exaggerated grain growth in lead magnesium niobate–lead titanate (PMN–PT) ceramics have been investigated by varying the PbO-based liquid-phase volume fraction from 0.03 to 0.6 and sintering temperature from 900° to 1100°C. There is a transition in matrix grain growth rate and matrix grain shape with liquid fraction; samples with liquid volume fractions less than ∼0.15 show relatively small equiaxed grains resulting from grain-to-grain impingement. Samples with higher liquid fractions show significantly larger, facetted, cube-shaped grains, whose size is independent of liquid fraction, indicating that a surface nucleation rate mechanism controls growth in this regime. Exaggerated grains were found in the high liquid fraction samples. Electron backscatter diffraction showed that all of the exaggerated grains contained 60°〈111〉 twins but none of the normal matrix grains contained twins. The reentrant angles in the twinned grains give them a growth advantage over untwinned grains, resulting in a population of exaggerated grains.
Efficient power profiling for battery-driven embedded system design

The ability to efficiently and accurately estimate battery life under different design choices at the system level is an important aid in designing battery-efficient systems. Recently developed battery models help by estimating battery life under given profiles of the battery discharge current over time. However, existing techniques for energy (or average power) estimation do not provide sufficient information (such as time profiles of system power consumption) to drive battery-life estimation. Techniques that are capable of generating such profiles often lack the efficiency required to support exploration at the system level. In this paper, we describe techniques for efficient generation of system-level power profiles, for use in a battery-life estimation framework. Our power profiling technique allows a designer to experiment with: 1) the mapping of system tasks to a set of architectural components and 2) the mapping of system communications to a specified communication architecture, and efficiently generate system power profiles for each alternative. The resulting profiles can then be analyzed using existing battery models to estimate battery lifetime and capacity. Extensive experiments conducted on an IEEE 802.11 MAC processor design demonstrate that our power profiler offers orders of magnitude improvement in runtimes over state-of-the-art cosimulation-based power estimation techniques, while suffering minimal loss of accuracy (average profiling error was 3.8%).
Toward Good Governance and Sustainable Development: The African Peer Review Mechanism

To accomplish the objectives and the outcomes of the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), African leaders have agreed, among other things, to subject their countries to peer review through the use of a unique and innovative African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM). This paper analytically describes and assesses the APRM. It contends that peer review represents a sea of change in the thinking of African leaders as they seek to reverse the trend of lack of accountability, political authoritarianism, state failure, and corruption to embrace and consolidate democracy as well as effect sound and transparent economic management. It is further argued that peer review would provide a number of benefits to those countries that subject themselves to it and that, in turn, would have positive multiplier effects on Africa's development performance.
air radiation in photographic meteor spectra

Air radiation (N, O, N2) is present in major amounts in the spectra of three high-geocentric-velocity photographic meteor spectra. These spectra are high-definition spectra with over 50 identifiable features in each. These meteor spectra are compared with N2 radiation from a Geissler tube and with calculated N2 first-positive band intensities. An 'effective vibrational temperature' of about 20,000 K is obtained from the nitrogen first-positive band relative intensities. Electron excitation is indicated as the primary excitation process.
Determining the K Most Critical Paths in PERT Networks

A fundamental problem in PERT networks is to identify a project's critical paths and its critical activities. In this paper we define the criticality index of a path as the probability that the duration of the path is greater than or equal to the duration of every other path in the network and define the criticality index of an activity as the sum of the criticality indices of the paths containing that activity. The most critical path or K most critical paths in a PERT network could be found by enumerating all the paths and calculating the corresponding criticality indices, both of which are burdensome tasks. This paper uses stochastic dominance to develop a procedure to identify the K most critical paths without using this path enumeration. The procedure has been applied to various sized PERT networks generated at random, and the results are found to be very close to those obtained by extensive Monte Carlo sampling.
Seizure control and side-effect profile after switching adult epileptic patients from standard to extended-release divalproex sodium.

Objectives: To assess changes in seizure frequency, medication side-effects (especially tremor) and formulation preference after switching patients overnight from immediate-release to extended-release divalproex sodium. Methods: Prospective evaluation of consecutive adult outpatients at an urban public hospital who were followed for 6 months after switching drug formulations. Seizure frequency was estimated from patient self-reports. Medication side-effects were monitored with a structured interview (tremor, fatigue, GI upset, hair loss), physician exam (nystagmus, tremor), a drawing test (tremor) and a specific 25-item questionnaire assessing the impact of tremor on activities of daily living. Results: Forty-seven patients were included in the study but six patients were either lost to follow-up or had insufficient data. Seizure frequency and side-effect profile did not change significantly after switching drug formulations. However, patients had significant subjective improvement in their tremor with the extended-release formulation as assessed by the 25-item questionnaire (p = 0.009 at 3 months and p = 0.04 at 6 months); other measures of tremor severity showed no change during the 6-month follow-up period. Most patients (71%) preferred the extended-release formulation. Conclusion: Patients with epilepsy can be switched overnight from standard to extended-release divalproex sodium, without significant change in seizure frequency and drug side-effect profile. Most patients prefer the extended-release formulation, in part due to subjective decrease in tremor during daily activities.
Early, short-term treatment with captopril permanently attenuates cardiovascular changes in spontaneously hypertensive rats.

The purpose of the current study was to determine if early, short-term treatment of spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) with captopril would cause a persistent attenuation of the structural alterations of the heart, aorta, and coronary arteries that are commonly seen in adult SHR. Therefore, mating pairs of SHR were treated with captopril and the pups were kept on captopril (SHRC) or were taken off captopril at two months (SHROC). Untreated SHR and Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) rats were mated and served as controls. At 8–10 months of age, heart weight and left ventricular weight/body weight ratios were increased in SHR compared to WKY, SHRC, and SHROC. Aortic medial areas of SHR and SHROC were similar and were larger than WKY and SHRC. Nuclear density in SHR and SHROC was less than WKY and SHRC suggesting hypertrophy of the medial wall. In coronary vessels, medial thickness was greatest in SHR, while there was no difference among WKY, SHRC, SHROC. These data suggest that early, short-term treatment of SHR with ca...
Increasing Age Alters Transbilayer Fluidity and Cholesterol Asymmetry in Synaptic Plasma Membranes of Mice

Previous studies examining age differences in membrane fluidity and cholesterol content have reported on the average or total change in membrane structure, respectively. However, a membrane consists of an exofacial leaflet and a cytofacial leaflet that differ in fluidity and cholesterol distribution. The purpose of the present experiments was to determine fluidity and cholesterol distribution of the exofacial and cytofacial leaflets of brain synaptic plasma membranes (SPMs) from 3-4-, 14-15-, and 24-25-month old C57BL/6NNIA mice by using trinitrobenzenesulfonic acid (TNBS)-quenching techniques and fluorescent probes. The exofacial leaflet of SPMs from young mice was significantly more fluid compared with the cytofacial leaflet. The large difference in fluidity between the two leaflets was abolished in SPMs of the oldest age group. Total SPM cholesterol and the cholesterol-to-phospholipid molar ratio did not differ among the three different age groups of mice. However, considerable differences were observed in the distribution of cholesterol in the two SPM leaflets. The exofacial leaflet contained substantially less cholesterol than did the cytofacial leaflet (13 vs. 87%, respectively) in SPMs of young mice. This asymmetric distribution of cholesterol was significantly modified with increasing age. There was an approximately twofold increase in exofacial leaflet cholesterol in the oldest group compared with the youngest age group. Transbilayer fluidity and cholesterol asymmetry were altered in SPMs of older mice. This approach is a new and different way of viewing how aging modifies membrane structure. Age differences in SPM leaflet structure may be an important factor regulating activity of certain membrane proteins.
Filtering Spam by Using Factors Hyperbolic Tree

Most of current anti-spam techniques, like the Bayesian anti-spam algorithm, primarily use lexical matching for filtering unsolicited bulk E-mails (UBE) and unsolicited commercial E-mails (UCE). However, precision of spam filtering is usually low when the lexical matching algorithms are used in real dynamic environments. For example, an E-mail of refrigerator advertisements is useful for most families, but it is useless for Eskimos. The lexical matching anti-spam algorithms cannot distinguish such processed E-mails that are junk to most people but are useful for others. We propose a Factors Hyperbolic Tree (FHT) based algorithm that, unlike the lexical matching algorithms, handles spam filtering in a dynamic environment by considering various relevant factors. The new Ranked Term Frequency (RTF) algorithm is proposed to extract indicators from E-mails that are related to environmental factors. Type-1 and Type-2 fuzzy logic systems are used to evaluate the indicators and determine whether E-mails are spam based on the environmental factors. Additionally, weights of factors in a FHT database are continuously updated according to dynamic conditional factors in a real environment. Simulation results show that the FHT algorithm filters out spam with high precision. Furthermore, the FHT algorithm is more efficient than other methods when it filters E-mails with complex influencing factors. The main contribution of this paper is that the FHT based algorithm can filter E-mails based on influencing factors instead of matched words to allow dynamic filtering of spam E-mails.
Noble metal penetrating cortical stimulating electrode array: preliminary results

Electrical stimulation of the visual cortex causes subjects to see spots of light (phosphenes) in their visual fields. The authors have developed arrays of penetrating electrodes which can form the basis of a visual prosthesis centred around electrical stimulation of the visual cortex. These arrays have been constructed of inert materials, and have been implanted into cats to test array insertability and biocompatibility. Tests to determine electrode wire insertion force have also been performed. Preliminary acute histological results have shown little cortical damage due to the implants. >
Utilizing query change for session search

Session search is the Information Retrieval (IR) task that performs document retrieval for a search session. During a session, a user constantly modifies queries in order to find relevant documents that fulfill the information need. This paper proposes a novel query change retrieval model (QCM), which utilizes syntactic editing changes between adjacent queries as well as the relationship between query change and previously retrieved documents to enhance session search. We propose to model session search as a Markov Decision Process (MDP). We consider two agents in this MDP: the user agent and the search engine agent. The user agent's actions are query changes that we observe and the search agent's actions are proposed in this paper. Experiments show that our approach is highly effective and outperforms top session search systems in TREC 2011 and 2012.
Quality of service issues in Internet Web services

A large fraction of Internet users access network resources through Web clients/browsers. The quality of service (QoS) experienced by their Internet users has gained great importance in recent years. Furthermore, new Web applications require the delivery of multimedia data in real time (e.g., streaming stored video and audio) and information transfer through the Internet is becoming one of the principal paradigms for business: electronic sales, banking, finance, collaborative work are a few examples of this. The QoS perceived by its users is thus becoming a dominant factor for the success of an Internet-based Web service. The principal QoS attributes users perceive include those related to the service "responsiveness", i.e., the service availability and timeliness.
Restructuring an Academic Pediatric Inpatient Service Using Concepts Developed by Hospitalists

In an effort to increase continuity of inpatient care by attending physicians, decrease use of hospital resources, and improve medical education without compromising quality of care, an inpatient pediatric ward service was restructured by using concepts developed by hospitalists. This reorganization reduced the number of yearly inpatient attendings, added a consistent 14-day call schedule, and eliminated attending outpatient responsibilities during their ward service. The restructured ward service attending acted as the attending of record for all general and specialty patients, excluding hematology/oncology, with the subspecialists fulfilling a consultant role. To evaluate the impact of this restructuring, a baseline year of the traditional ward service (TWS) was compared with a subsequent year of the restructured ward service (RWS). Our goal was to evaluate the impact of this new system on average costs of hospitalization, length of stay, resource utilization, inpatient mortality, and 7- and 31-day read...
Estimation of Linoleate Intake of Men From Serum Lipid Analysis

I N A previous report from our laboratories the essential fatty acid requirement of infants was estimated from the polyunsaturated fatty acid composition of the total fatty acids of 1 The same data were used to derive estimation equations whereby the intake of linoleate was determined from polyunsaturated fatty acid analysis of serum. The development of the latter approach was made through anima! experimentation.2 The availability of a similar body of data relating linoleate intake to polyunsaturated fatty acid composition of serum lipids of young men offered the possibility of developing comparable equations for the estimate of dietary linoleate of adults.