cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A multi-trait test of the leaf-height-seed plant strategy scheme with 133 species from a pine forest flora

Summary 1. Westoby’s [Plant and Soil (1998), 199, 213] Leaf-Height-Seed (LHS) plant strategy scheme quantifies the strategy of a plant based on its location in a three-dimensional space defined by three functional traits: specific leaf area (SLA), height, and seed mass. This scheme is based on aboveground traits and may neglect strategies of belowground resource capture if root functioning is not mirrored in any of the axes. How then do fine roots fit into the LHS scheme? 2. We measured 10 functional traits on 133 plant species in a ponderosa pine forest in northern Arizona, USA. This data set was used to evaluate how well the LHS scheme accounts for the variation in above and belowground traits. 3. The three most important plant strategies were composed of multiple correlated traits, but SLA, seed mass, and height loaded on separate principle components. The first axis reflected the widely observed ‘leaf economics spectrum’. Species at the high end of this spectrum had high SLA, high leaf and fine root nitrogen (N) concentration, and low leaf dry matter content. The second axis reflected variation in seed mass and fine root morphology. Plants at the positive end of this spectrum were plants with large seeds and low specific root length (SRL). The third axis reflected variation in height and phenology. Plants at the positive end of this spectrum were tall species that flower late in the growing season. 4. Leaf N concentration was positively correlated with fine root N concentration. SRL was weakly positively correlated with SLA. SRL was not correlated with fine root N concentration. Leaf litter decomposition rate was positively correlated with the leaf economics spectrum and was negatively correlated with the height and phenology spectrum. 5. Leaf traits, seed mass, and height appear to be integrating properties of species that reflect much of the variation in plant function, including root function. Fine root N concentration was positively mirrored by the leaf economics spectrum, and SRL was inversely mirrored by seed mass. The leaf and height axes play a role in controlling leaf litter decomposability, indicating that these strategy axes have important consequences for ecosystem functioning.
Therapy of streptococcal endocarditis: correlation of animal model and clinical studies

Streptococci (viridans group, Streptococcus bovis, enterococci still account for the majority of cases of infective endocarditis in the non-addict population. Experimental animal models of endocarditis have been used (primarily in rabbits) to delineate the major therapeutic principles of this disease; viz. bactericidal antimicrobial agents must be given parenterally in high dosages for prolonged period of time. Overall, there is a good correlation between results obtained by: (1) in-vitro susceptibility testing (especially killing kinetics in broth); (2) therapeutic comparisons in experimental animal models and (3) clinical trials of different antimicrobial regimens in humans with streptococcal endocarditis. This review contrasts the published results obtained in vivo with experimental animal models to those obtained with various therapeutic approaches to streptococcal endocarditis in humans. The contribution of animal models to current therapeutic recommendations in man is underscored.
Decisions to utilize hospice—Pilot study results

This research included surveys and interviews with 36 hospice clients to examine their decisions to enter hospice and to identify the factors which seemed to influence these decisions. Some of the issues addressed included the time in the client’s course of illness/treatment when the decision was made to enter hospice; who seemed to make the suggestion for the client to enter hospice; use of hospice by minorities, identification of variables which may indicate higher utilization and that could be used as predictors of use; and overall evaluation of the hospice experience.Ninety-seven percent of the study subjects stated that it was a good decision for them to have entered hospice. The one finding that is in direct contrast to the hospice literature is that 94 percent of the study subjects indicated that the timing of their referrals was appropriate and that they did not think that they should have been referred in sooner.
High β diversity in the flora of Californian serpentine 'islands'

Identification of global biodiversity hotspots is a leading conservationpriority ( Hotspots.Conservation International, Washington, DC; Precious Heritage: The Statusof Biodiversity in the United States. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK), but weknow little about the nature and structure of such hotspots. Botanical richnessin one recently identified hotspot, the California Floristic Province, has longbeen attributed by evolutionists to edaphic and climatic heterogeneity. Here we demonstrate that the flora restricted (endemic) toserpentine soil, the state's most botanically distinctive substrate, showsunusually high 'β diversity' – i.e., spatial variation inspecies composition – among regions, although 'α'diversity within any given region is low. Conservation of an endemic-rich florarequires a network of sites to capture this among-region or spatial component ofdiversity.
Towards comprehensive syntactic and semantic annotations of the clinical narrative.

Objective To create annotated clinical narratives with layers of syntactic and semantic labels to facilitate advances in clinical natural language processing (NLP). To develop NLP algorithms and open source components. Methods Manual annotation of a clinical narrative corpus of 127 606 tokens following the Treebank schema for syntactic information, PropBank schema for predicate-argument structures, and the Unified Medical Language System (UMLS) schema for semantic information. NLP components were developed. Results The final corpus consists of 13 091 sentences containing 1772 distinct predicate lemmas. Of the 766 newly created PropBank frames, 74 are verbs. There are 28 539 named entity (NE) annotations spread over 15 UMLS semantic groups, one UMLS semantic type, and the Person semantic category. The most frequent annotations belong to the UMLS semantic groups of Procedures (15.71%), Disorders (14.74%), Concepts and Ideas (15.10%), Anatomy (12.80%), Chemicals and Drugs (7.49%), and the UMLS semantic type of Sign or Symptom (12.46%). Inter-annotator agreement results: Treebank (0.926), PropBank (0.891–0.931), NE (0.697–0.750). The part-of-speech tagger, constituency parser, dependency parser, and semantic role labeler are built from the corpus and released open source. A significant limitation uncovered by this project is the need for the NLP community to develop a widely agreed-upon schema for the annotation of clinical concepts and their relations. Conclusions This project takes a foundational step towards bringing the field of clinical NLP up to par with NLP in the general domain. The corpus creation and NLP components provide a resource for research and application development that would have been previously impossible.
Indirect assessment of pulsatile gonadotropin-releasing hormone release in agonadal prepubertal rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta)

The major purpose of this study was to characterize the open-loop frequency of pulsatile GnRH release in the female rhesus monkey at an age (15-20 months) when the prepubertal restraint on the hypothalamic-pituitary axis is maximally imposed. Additionally, evidence for pulsatile GnRH release in agonadal males of comparable age was also sought. Episodic LH secretion from the pituitary was used as an indirect index of GnRH discharges. In order to maximize the sensitivity of this in situ bioassay, the responsiveness of the pituitary gonadotrophs was usually first heightened by an i.v. intermittent infusion of the synthetic peptide. Monkeys (five females, three males) were castrated between 9 and 14 months of age, implanted with indwelling venous catheters, fitted with nylon jackets and housed in specialized cages that permitted remote access to the venous circulation with minimal restraint and without interruption of the light-darkness cycle. In females, LH secretion was generally assessed at 20-day intervals during alternate nighttime (1900-0200 h) and daytime (0700-1400 h) windows. In males, LH was assessed less frequently and only at night. The mean frequency of pulsatile LH release in agonadal prepubertal females was 4 pulses/7 h during the night and 2 pulses/7 h during the day. These findings indicate that, prior to puberty in the female monkey, the GnRH pulse generator operates at a relatively slow frequency and is subjected to diurnal modulation. In males, evidence for robust pulsatile GnRH release was not observed. The striking difference in activity of the GnRH pulse generator in agonadal prepubertal male and female monkeys reinforces the view that the ontogeny of the hypothalamic drive to the pituitary-gonadal axis in higher primates, including man, is sexually differentiated.
“It Was Nothing”—Extending Evolutionary Models Of Altruism By Two Social Cognitive Biases In Judgments Of The Costs And Benefits Of Helping

Abstract Evolutionary theories of helping (inclusive fitness, reciprocal altruism) require cognitive augmentation to account for the frequent helping of strangers and for the helper's willingness to incur immediate, certain costs for delayed, uncertain benefits. Both experiments reported here demonstrate two social cognitive biases in perceived cost to helper and benefit to recipient that promote helping, including helping strangers. Firstly, people show a counterintuitive self-effacing modesty bias, underestimating the value of help they provide relative to help received. This creates feelings of indebtedness that elicit and maintain helping, complementing a “cheater detection” mechanism that limits helping. A second cognitive bias is that as helper-recipient relationship becomes closer, opposing behavioral and cognitive effects appear. As closeness increases, more valuable help is exchanged; for the same behavior, judged benefit to recipient increases but, surprisingly, judged cost to helper decreases, ...
A critical review of the effectiveness of educational interventions applied in HIV/AIDS prevention

Abstract Objective A critical review of issues around the effectiveness of educational approaches applied in the field of HIV/AIDS prevention. Methods Published papers, systematic reviews and technical reports were reviewed. Results The review has identified the large gap between the current state of the art and the ultimate goal of the education-based approaches contributing to the reduction of HIV incidence rates. Significant positive impact has been reported mainly on mediating factors to behavioural change (knowledge, attitude, and intentions). The reported impact on actual behaviour change has been weak and short-lived. Biological markers are not used in many studies as outcome measures and follow-up period is too short to facilitate the measurement of impact on behaviour change or biological markers. Several methodological flaws and cultural issues militate against effective programming. A guideline for standardising practice and research in school-based programme is available for use. Conclusion There is only very modest evidence of the effectiveness of educational interventions as a result of several gaps in project design, implementation and follow-up. There is urgent need to raise practice and research standards. Practice implications Educational interventions should utilise scientifically valid data gathering methods. Follow-up period should be long enough to allow for impact measurement.
A teleseismic body-wave analysis of the May 1980 Mammoth Lakes, California, earthquakes

Teleseismic P -wave first motions for the M ≧ 6 earthquakes near Mammoth Lakes, California, are inconsistent with the vertical strike-slip mechanisms determined from local and regional P -wave first motions. Combining these data sets allows three possible mechanisms: a north-striking, east-dipping strike-slip fault; a NE-striking oblique fault; and a NNW-striking normal fault. Inversion of long-period teleseismic P and SH waves for the events of 25 May 1980 (1633 UTC) and 27 May 1980 (1450 UTC) yields moment tensors with large non-double-couple components. The moment tensor for the first event may be decomposed into a major double couple with strike = 18°, dip = 61°, and rake = −15°, and a minor double couple with strike = 303°, dip = 43°, and rake = 224°. A similar decomposition for the last event yields strike = 25°, dip = 65°, rake = −6°, and strike = 312°, dip = 37°, and rake = 232°. Although the inversions were performed on only a few teleseismic body waves, the radiation patterns of the moment tensors are consistent with most of the P -wave first motion polarities at local, regional, and teleseismic distances. The stress axes inferred from the moment tensors are consistent with N65°E extension determined by geodetic measurements by Savage et al. (1981). Seismic moments computed from the moment tensors are 1.87 × 1025 dyne-cm for the 25 May 1980 (1633 UTC) event and 1.03 × 1025 dyne-cm for the 27 May 1980 (1450 UTC) event. The non-double-couple aspect of the moment tensors and the inability to obtain a convergent solution for the 25 May 1980 (1944 UTC) event may indicate that the assumptions of a point source and plane-layered structure implicit in the moment tensor inversion are not entirely valid for the Mammoth Lakes earthquakes.
Modeling Effects of Operating Conditions on Biomass Fast Pyrolysis in Bubbling Fluidized Bed Reactors

This numerical study investigates the effects of operating conditions on the product yields of a biomass fast pyrolysis reactor. A numerical approach that combines a multifluid model and pyrolysis reaction kinetics was applied to simulate the biomass fast pyrolysis process in a bubbling fluidized-bed reactor. The model was first validated using experimental data, and a parametric study was conducted. Operating parameters were varied to characterize their effects on the final product yields. For the reactor studied, it was found that the maximum tar yield could be obtained by maintaining both the wall temperature and the inlet temperature of nitorgen at approximately 800 K. The inlet velocity of nitrogen at about 0.6 m/s also produced favorable results. Simulations indicated that the optimal biomass particle diameter and the feeding rate were 900 μm and 1.92 kg/h, respectively, for tar production. Larger sand particle diameter and deeper initial sand bed also favored the tar yield.
Age-related epileptogenic effects of corticotropin-releasing hormone in the isolated CA1 region of rat hippocampal slices.

1. The effects of corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) on synaptically evoked population and intracellular responses in the isolated rat CA1 region of hippocampal slices were studied to evaluate p...
Population structure reduces the benefits from partner choice in mutualism

Mutualisms are key drivers of evolutionary and ecological processes. Understanding how different species can evolve to interact in mutually beneficial ways is an important goal of evolutionary theory, especially when the benefits require costly investments by the partners. For such costly investments to evolve, some sort of fitness feedback mechanism must exist that more than recoups the direct costs. Several such feedback mechanisms have been explored both theoretically and empirically, yet we know relatively little how they might act together, as they probably do in nature. In this paper, I model the joint action of three of the main mechanisms that can maintain symbiotic cooperation: partner choice by hosts, population structure amongst symbionts, and undirected rewards from hosts to symbionts. My results show that population structure reduces the benefit from partner choice to hosts. It may help or hinder beneficial symbionts and create positive or negative frequency dependence depending on the nature of host rewards to the symbiont. Strong population structure also makes it less likely that host choosiness and symbiont cooperation will be jointly maintained in a population. The intuition behind my results is that all else being equal, population structure reduces local variation available to the host to choose from. Thus, population structure is not always beneficial for the evolution of cooperation between species. My results also underscore the need to do full analyses of multiple mechanisms of social evolution to uncover their interactions to uncover the interactions between them.
A Very Funny Fish

East of the Urals, there is a town called Karpinsk. On the Moon, there is a crater called Karpinsky. They are both named after the first president of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Alexander Karpinsky (1847–1936). It was Karpinsky who first described the bizarre fossil Helicoprion.
Acoustic Design of Large Reverberant Chambers

Acoustic testing of space systems and components is essential to the assurance of launch viability. Large acoustic test chambers that permit system-level testing are rapidly becoming the norm. The initial cost of such installations is typically 5 percent of that of a single large satellite. Their cost-effectiveness is easily demonstrated. This article provides design information on calculation of noise input power requirement; sound field uniformity; acoustic fatigue of chamber; noise breakout and soil vibration; and future trends in design.
On the Tropical Atmospheric Signature of El Niño

AbstractThe linear atmospheric signature of ENSO, obtained by regressing fields of geopotential height Z, wind, vertical velocity, and rainfall upon the Nino-3.4 sea surface temperature (SST) index, is partitioned into zonally symmetric and eddy components. The zonally symmetric component is thermally forced by the narrowing and intensification of the zonally averaged equatorial rain belt during El Nino and mechanically forced by the weakening of the upper-tropospheric equatorial stationary waves and their associated flux of wave activity. The eddy component of the ENSO signature is decomposed into barotropic (BT) and baroclinic (BC) contributions, the latter into first and second modal structures BC1 and BC2, separable functions of space (x, y), and pressure p, using eigenvector analysis. BC1 exhibits a nearly equatorially symmetric planetary wave structure comprising three dumbbell-shaped features suggestive of equatorial Rossby waves, with out-of-phase wind and geopotential height perturbations in the ...
Band-edge engineering for controlled multi-modal nanolasing in plasmonic superlattices.

Single band-edge states can trap light and function as high-quality optical feedback for microscale lasers and nanolasers. However, access to more than a single band-edge mode for nanolasing has not been possible because of limited cavity designs. Here, we describe how plasmonic superlattices—finite-arrays of nanoparticles (patches) grouped into microscale arrays—can support multiple band-edge modes capable of multi-modal nanolasing at programmed emission wavelengths and with large mode spacings. Different lasing modes show distinct input–output light behaviour and decay dynamics that can be tailored by nanoparticle size. By modelling the superlattice nanolasers with a four-level gain system and a time-domain approach, we reveal that the accumulation of population inversion at plasmonic hot spots can be spatially modulated by the diffractive coupling order of the patches. Moreover, we show that symmetry-broken superlattices can sustain switchable nanolasing between a single mode and multiple modes. Arrays of nanoparticles grouped into microscale arrays support multiple nanolasing modes that can be tailored by changing the geometry of the superlattice.
Computational Studies of the Molecular Recognition of Halide Anions by Calix[4]Aromatics

Monte Carlo statistical mechanics simulations have been carried out to elucidate the complexation of halide anions by a bis(phenylurea) calix[4]arene and by a calix[4]pyrrole. Optimized structures for the complexes in the gas phase are found to be maintained in chlorocabon solvents, though there are reorganization penalties of 20–30 kcal/mol for the hosts to achieve the binding geometries. All complexes feature coordination of the anions through four hydrogen bonds. The binding affinities decrease with increasing size of the anion. It is demonstrated that fluoride affinities are underestimated experimentally owing to difficulties in obtaining anhydrous tetraalkylammonium fluoride salts.
The Impact of RFID on Firm and Supply Chain Performance: a Simulation Study

Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is a tracking technology that enables firms to digitize their supply chain processes and manage their supply chain activities efficiently and effectively. This study develops an analytical model of the impact of RFID use on inventory accuracy and on the firm-level and supply chain-level performance of a single product line. Due to the complexity of the analytical model, we propose to analyze the model using simulation and to gain insights into the behaviors of the various players in the supply chain. This research in progress will help better understand RFID value in supply chain, from an inventory management perspective and also bring into focus the impact of product type and technology development status on technology use.
Minority Participation in Environmental and Energy Decision Making

The most eloquent decisions are most often made when the decision-making process includes multiple perspectives. In the past, the lack of participation of minority and low income populations has lead to disproportionate impacts as a result of decisions affecting the environment and human health. In 1994, President Clinton signed Executive Order 12898 to require all federal agencies to develop a strategy to ensure fair treatment and meaningful participation of minority and low income populations. This chapter outlines the range of minority and low income stakeholders that should be considered in environmental and energy decision-­making processes, their unique roles, and some of the key issues that should be included when identifying the stakeholders.
A Two-Level Additive Schwarz Preconditioner for C 0 Interior Penalty Methods for Cahn-Hilliard Equations

We study a two-level additive Schwarz preconditioner for C 0 interior penalty methods for a biharmonic problem with essential and natural boundary conditions with Cahn-Hilliard type. We show that the condition number of the preconditioned system is bounded by C(1 + (H 3 ∕ δ 3)), where H is the typical diameter of a subdomain, δ measures the overlap among the subdomains, and the positive constant C is independent of the mesh sizes and the number of subdomains.
Sporulation and Germination

Since the 1950s bacterial sporulation in Bacillus has been recognized as a model system for analyzing differentiation in a prokaryotic organism. Earlier studies focused on the physiological and morphological changes which occurred during conversion of the vegetative cell into a heat-resistant, dormant spore. The physiological and morphological studies were complemented by the isolation of mutants which developed up to specific recognizable stages and were blocked in further development. However, the nature of spore-forming bacteria and the absence of suitable genetic and technical approaches precluded the precise analysis of the regulatory mechanisms which controlled sporulation. It was not possible to determine (1) which events regulated the initiation of sporulation, (2) what products were encoded by the sporulation and germination genes, (3) how genes were expressed in a temporally regulated fashion, (4) what the relationship was between catabolite repression and the initiation of sporulation, (5) what temporally regulated genes were essential for sporulation, (6) what transcriptional mechanism was required for the expression of sporulation genes, and (7) how the morphologically complex spore structure was assembled.
Teaching general music to young adolescents: Findings from a survey of music teacher perspectives

Middle school general music is an often-overlooked aspect of music education in the United States. Yet at some point, many music educators face a teaching assignment including one or more sections ...
Renal Transplantation and Survival Among Patients With Lupus Nephritis: A Cohort Study

Background Patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) due to lupus nephritis (LN) have high rates of premature death. Objective To assess the potential effect on survival of renal transplant among patients with ESRD due to LN (LN-ESRD) in the United States. Design Nationwide cohort study. Setting United States Renal Data System, the national database of nearly all patients with ESRD. Participants Patients with incident LN-ESRD who were waitlisted for a renal transplant. Measurements First renal transplant was analyzed as a time-varying exposure. The primary outcomes were all-cause and cause-specific mortality. Time-dependent Cox regression analysis was used to estimate the hazard ratio (HR) of these outcomes associated with renal transplant in the primary analysis. Sequential cohort matching was used in a secondary analysis limited to patients with Medicare, which allowed assessment of time-varying covariates. Results During the study period, 9659 patients with LN-ESRD were waitlisted for a renal transplant, of whom 5738 (59%) had a transplant. Most were female (82%) and nonwhite (60%). Transplant was associated with reduced all-cause mortality (adjusted HR, 0.30 [95% CI, 0.27 to 0.33]) among waitlisted patients. Adjusted HRs for cause-specific mortality were 0.26 (CI, 0.23 to 0.30) for cardiovascular disease, 0.30 (CI, 0.19 to 0.48) for coronary heart disease, 0.41 (CI, 0.32 to 0.52) for infection, and 0.41 (CI, 0.31 to 0.53) for sepsis. Limitation Unmeasured factors may contribute to the observed associations; however, the E-value analysis suggested robustness of the results. Conclusion Renal transplant was associated with a survival benefit, primarily due to reduced deaths from cardiovascular disease and infection. The findings highlight the benefit of timely referral for transplant to improve outcomes in this population. Primary funding source National Institutes of Health.
Incentive Mechanisms and Influence of Negotiation Power in Multi-Relay Cooperative Wireless Networks

Cooperative relaying in wireless networks is strongly affected by the way that the source and relays are incentivized. However, existing studies have not paid enough attention to the influence of negotiation power of the involved parties. In this paper, two incentive mechanisms for cooperative relaying are proposed, wherein the source possesses different degrees of negotiation power. One mechanism is for the source with strong negotiation power posting a series of take-it-or- leave-it contract offers for the relays while the relays are not entitled to negotiate the counteroffers, and the other mechanism is for the source with weak negotiation power while the relays confer substantial negotiation power, i.e., are capable of doing business with the source by crafting more profitable deals. The relay selection rules, the optimal amounts of relaying service, and the optimal rewards for the relays, are derived for the proposed mechanisms, respectively. A distributed algorithm is further proposed to iteratively obtain the optimal solution for the second mechanism. A case study is also presented to show the influence of negotiation power on the behaviors of the participants and the efficiency and distribution of profits. Numerical results are provided to verify the theoretical analyses of the proposed mechanisms.
"That's Not What I Said:" Communication Gaps in Advising

The ability to comprehend, act upon, and disseminate essential communication plays a critical part in student success in higher education. Yet many faculty, staff, and administrators can recollect dozens of stories about students who missed important information, and the resulting consequences ranged from hilarious to tragic. Therefore, academic advisers must read the signposts of missing comprehension; advisers must detect students' selective hearing, partial reading, or limited grasp of complex, detailed instructions. Acquiring diagnostic skills, including practices from other disciplines, enables advisers to engage students in an I-You dialog where the adviser actively participates in the student's understanding.
Executive Market Segmentation: How Local Market Density Affects Incentives and Performance

I study how the density of executive labor markets affects managerial incentives and thereby firm performance. I find that U.S. executive markets are locally segmented rather than nationally integrated, and that the density of a local market provides executives with non-compensation incentives. Empirical results show that in denser labor markets, executives face stronger performance-based dismissal threats as well as better outside opportunities. These incentives result in higher firm performance in denser markets, especially when executives have longer career horizons. Using state-level variation in the enforceability of non-compete clauses, I find that the positive effects of market density on incentive alignment and firm performance are stronger in markets where executives are freer to move. This evidence further supports the argument that local labor market density works as an external incentive alignment mechanism.
Designing for engagement with self-monitoring: A user-centered approach with low-income, Latino adults with Type 2 Diabetes

Abstract Background and significance Data-driven interventions for health can help to personalize self-management of Type 2 Diabetes (T2D), but lack of sustained engagement with self-monitoring among disadvantaged populations may widen existing health disparities. Prior work developing approaches to increase motivation and engagement with self-monitoring holds promise, but little is known about applicability of these approaches to underserved populations. Objective To explore how low-income, Latino adults with T2D respond to different design concepts for data-driven solutions in health that require self-monitoring, and what features resonate with them the most. Material and methods We developed a set of mockups that incorporated different design features for promoting engagement with self-monitoring in T2D. We conducted focus groups to examine individuals’ perceptions and attitudes towards mockups. Multiple interdisciplinary researchers analyzed data using directed content analysis. Results We conducted 14 focus groups with 25 English- and Spanish-speaking adults with T2D. All participants reacted positively to external incentives. Social connectedness and healthcare expert feedback were also well liked because they enhanced current social practices and presented opportunities for learning. However, attitudes were more mixed towards goal setting, and very few participants responded positively to self-discovery and personalized decision support features. Instead, participants wished for personalized recommendations for meals and other health behaviors based on their personal health data. Conclusion This study suggests connections between individuals’ degree of internal motivation and motivation for self-monitoring in health and their attitude towards designs of self-monitoring apps. We relate our findings to the self-determination continuum in self-determination theory (SDT) and propose it as a blueprint for aligning incentives for self-monitoring to different levels of motivation.
Gender and Social Justice: An Examination of Attitudes and Behaviors Among Undergraduate Liberal Arts Students:

This study examines university student attitudes concerning social justice and their perceptions of inequality. In this article, we explore how gender shapes students’ understanding of issues of in...
AoA Estimation With Practical Antenna Arrays Using Neural Networks

We study the problem of estimating angle-of-arrival (AoA) using practical antenna arrays. In practical antenna arrays, the antenna elements have nonuniform radiation patterns. However, most existing AoA estimation algorithms are developed based on the assumption that antenna elements are isotropic sources with uniform radiation patterns. Hence, the performance of existing algorithms can be significantly degraded when they are deployed on practical antenna arrays. To overcome the difficulty from nonuniform radiation patterns, we propose a fundamentally different approach of AoA estimation, where we train a neural network to learn the mapping from received signals to AoAs. Since we can generate a large amount of training data from propagation models of electromagnetic waves, our neural network can achieve high estimation accuracy (e.g., 10% estimation errors), which greatly improves the performance of state-of-the- art algorithms (e.g., up to 30% estimation errors). Moreover, by training with data generated from different radiation patterns, our neural network is agnostic of the specific radiation patterns of antenna elements. Since most computation is done in the training phrase, our trained neural network can perform AoA estimation in real time and can be used for tracking AoAs of mobile targets.
Sex differences in cognitive performance, style and domain relationships in mosquitofish (Gambusia affinis)

Given that the sexes often differ in their ecological and sexual selection pressures, sex differences in cognitive properties are likely. While research on sexually dimorphic cognition often focuses on performance, it commonly overlooks how sexes diverge across multiple cognitive tasks (cognitive domains) and in behaviors associated with cognitive performance (cognitive style). We tested male and female western mosquitofish (Gambusia affinis) in three cognitive tasks: associative learning (numerical discrimination), cognitive flexibility (detour task), and spatio-temporal learning (shuttlebox). We characterized statistical relationships between cognitive performances and cognitive style during the associative learning task with measures of anxiety, boldness, exploration, reaction time, and activity. We found sex differences in performance, cognitive style, and the relationships between cognitive domains. Females outperformed males in spatio-temporal learning task, while the sexes performed equally in associate learning and cognitive flexibility assays. Females (but not males) exhibited a "fast-exploratory" cognitive style during associative learning trials. Meanwhile, only males showed a significant positive relationship between domains (associative learning and cognitive flexibility). We propose that these sexually dimorphic cognitive traits result from strong sexual conflict in this taxon; and emphasize the need to explore suites of sex-specific cognitive traits and broader comparative work examining sexual selection and cognition.
A bucket in the river: race and public discourse on water shutoffs in Detroit

Since 2014, the city of Detroit has undertaken a massive program of water shutoffs targeting households behind in their water bills. In this article, I ask how, given the level of hardship to such ...
Hiroshima and Nagasaki Verification of an Unstructured Mesh-Based Transmutation Toolkit

In order to model the activated isotopes and resulting dose from a nuclear detonation in an urban environment, the Activation and Transmutation of Isotopes in an Unstructured Mesh (ACTIUM) Python t...
Effects of racial residential segregation on oral squamous cell carcinoma prognosis and survival

Abstract Objectives The objective of this study is to evaluate the impact of racial residential segregation on disease prognosis and overall survival in Black patients diagnosed with oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), relative to White patients. Materials and methods This retrospective cohort study identified individuals diagnosed with OSCC between 2005 and 2015 using the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results Database. Patients were included with cancers diagnosed in the following locations: lip, tongue, gum, floor of mouth, palate, and other/unspecified. Tumors located at the base of tongue, tonsils, and oropharynx were excluded. The primary predictor variable was the degree of residential segregation. The primary outcome was overall survival. A Kaplan Meier survival analysis and univariate/multivariate analyses were performed to account for potential confounders of survival. Results A total of 35,769 patients met inclusion criteria. At the time of initial diagnosis, Black patients presented with OSCC of higher grades and more advanced stages (p Conclusion Racial residential segregation results in poorer long-term cancer survival among Black patients. Understanding the links between residential segregation and inequities in cancer outcomes will allow policymakers to better implement targeted, population-based interventions in treating various cancers.
Abuse of Authority and Hierarchical Communication

If managers and their subordinates have the same basic qualifications, organizations can benefit from replacing unproductive superiors with more productive subordinates. This threat may induce superiors to deliberately recruit unproductive subordinates, or abuse their personnel authority in other ways, to protect themselves. We show that requiring intrafirm communication to pass through a “chain of command” can be an effective way to provide superiors with an incentive to recruit the best possible subordinates. We discuss alternative ways to prevent the abuse of authority and general implications of our analysis for organizational design. We also present supporting evidence from the literature on human resource management and organizational behavior. One of your jobs as a manager is to identify and promote new managers. Ideally, each new manager should be less qualified than you. Otherwise that new manager will try to take your job or make you look dumb. It’s in your best interest to keep the talent pool as thin as possible, just as the people who promoted you have done. Dogbert’s Top Secret Management Handbook (Adams, 1996, Ch. 1, p.15)
Inactivation of Escherichia coli K12 on raw almonds using supercritical carbon dioxide and thyme oil

Abstract Raw almonds could be contaminated by pathogens, but the current pasteurization practice using propylene oxide in the U.S. has flammability and carcinogenicity concerns. Supercritical carbon dioxide (scCO2) is a water-free technology and is a solvent of essential oils that are effective antimicrobial preservatives. The objective of this study was to investigate the possibility of combining scCO2 and thyme oil (TO) to reduce Escherichia coli K12 inoculated on raw almonds. Raw almonds inoculated with ∼6 log CFU/g E. coli K12 were batch-treated with scCO2 alone or the combination of presoaking in pure TO followed by scCO2 treatments at different combinations of temperature, pressure, and duration. Compared to scCO2 alone treatments, the combination of TO and scCO2 treatments significantly improved the disinfection effectiveness. Temperature had the most significant effect on the log reduction. At 70 °C, the log reduction by the combination treatment was over 4-log CFU/g and the maximum reduction was 5.16 log CFU/g. The findings suggest that the combination of TO and scCO2 may be a potential water-free technology to meet the requirement of over 4-log reduction of target microorganism for almond and other tree nut products.
Visual-vestibular interaction during OVAR in the elderly

This study assessed visual-otolith interaction in healthy older humans and compared responses from older subjects to those of younger subjects. Using off-vertical axis rotation (OVAR) to stimulate the otolith organs, eye movement responses, measured using electro-oculography, were recorded during rotation in the dark, rotation with an earth-fixed lighted visual surround, and rotation with a subject-fixed fixation target. Results indicated that older subjects, like young subjects, exhibit a modulation component that was as large during rotation with a lighted earth-fixed visual surround as that seen in the dark and a modulation component during rotation with a subject-fixed visual target that was incompletely suppressed. The modulation component was, in general, larger in the older subjects. This study confirms findings from a previous study of visual-otolith interaction in young subjects and suggests that older subjects, like young subjects, have difficulty visually suppressing the modulation component induced by off-vertical axis rotation.
Esalen: America and the Religion of No Religion

Jeffrey J. Kripal here recounts the spectacular history of Esalen, the institute that has long been a world leader in alternative and experiential education and stands today at the center of the human potential movement. Forged in the literary and mythical leanings of the Beat Generation, inspired in the lecture halls of Stanford by radical scholars of comparative religion, the institute was the remarkable brainchild of Michael Murphy and Richard Price.Set against the heady backdrop of California during the revolutionary 1960s, "Esalen" recounts in fascinating detail how these two maverick thinkers sought to fuse the spiritual revelations of the East with the scientific revolutions of the West, or to combine the very best elements of Zen Buddhism, Western psychology, and Indian yoga into a decidedly utopian vision that rejected the dogmas of conventional religion. In their religion of no religion, the natural world was just as crucial as the spiritual one, science and faith not only commingled but became staunch allies, and the enlightenment of the body could lead to the full realization of our development as human beings.
Formulary control of antimicrobial usage: What price freedom?

Formulary controls are the most common and probably the most effective method for controlling abuse of antimicrobial agents in hospitalized patients. Such programs may include restriction of both the number of agents available and the way these agents may be used. These programs have been demonstrated to control pharmacy expenditures. Other potential advantages include reductions in the incidence of adverse drug reactions and the antimicrobial resistance among the hospital flora, and improvements in the overall quality of prescribing of antimicrobials. There are few data to document such benefits, however. Potential disadvantages are also poorly documented but include inconvenience for prescribing physicians, increased administrative costs, prescribing errors, and increased antimicrobial resistance. Antimicrobial control programs will likely remain common, but the availability of new information technologies should enable a transition to systems based on concurrent assessment of antimicrobial appropriateness with immediate feedback to the prescribing physician.
Interaction of Photons and Charged Particles with Matter

An x-ray image records variations in the passage of x rays through the body because of scattering and absorption. This chapter describes the mechanism by which x-rays and charged particles interact with tissue. Photons interact by several mechanisms, including the photoelectric effect, Compton scattering, and pair production. Other processes can lead to the transfer of energy between photons and electrons, such as the production of Auger electrons, bremsstrahlung radiation, and emission of fluorescence photons. The interaction of tissue with charged particles is described by their range and stopping power, and they often deposit most of their energy near the end of their path in the Bragg peak.
Influence of technology on product development process

Summary form only given. It is a commonly accepted notion that a product development process (PDP) depends upon at least three key basic elements: organizational design; people and prevailing culture; and technology. Each element influences the PDP differently and to varying degrees, based upon the element's characteristics and associated time constant (i.e., the time it requires to take root and begin exerting influence in a significant manner). This paper mainly examines ways in which technology influences the PDP. Within that context, it then considers how the pace of technology evolution (slow, medium and fast) potentially impacts the product development process. It then addresses the issues related to investments required for the deployment of technology for process improvement. Finally, it examines the bounds or limits of technological influence on the PDP in terms of cost reduction and lead time.
Does Latin America Have a Common History

Nearly forty years ago Lewis Hanke edited a volume titled Do the Americas Have a Common History? This book of essays sought to revive discussion of Herbert Eugene Bolton’s call for the writing of a “history of the Americas” in his 1932 presidential address to the American Historical Association.2 In his writing and his teaching over a half-century, Bolton promoted an approach that sees all of the Americas as part of a common set of historical processes.3 Although few historians have chosen to follow Bolton’s entreaty, and most historians of the Americas probably do not believe that we should try to write a history of all the Americas, Bolton’s controversial essay does force us to think about the commonalities (and dissimilarities) in the colonization, conquest, and development of all the Americas. I would like to pose a similar question that compels us to think hard about an enormous part of the Americas that we do generally assume to have a common history. I want to pose the question: Does Latin American have a common history? And, if it does, what exactly is that common history? I want us to take a hard look at Latin American history and rethink
Comparing Global Link Arrangements for Dragonfly Networks

High-performance computing systems are shifting away from traditional interconnect topologies to exploit new technologies and to reduce interconnect power consumption. The Dragonfly topology is one promising candidate for new systems, with several variations already in production. It is hierarchical, with local links forming groups and global links joining the groups. At each level, the interconnect is a clique, with a link between each pair of switches in a group and a link between each pair of groups. This paper shows that the intergroup links can be made in meaningfully different ways. We evaluate three previously-proposed approaches for link organization (called global link arrangements) in two ways. First, we use bisection bandwidth, an important and commonly-used measure of the potential for communication bottlenecks. We show that the global link arrangements often give bisection bandwidths differing by 10s of percent, with the specific separation varying based on the relative bandwidths of local and global links. For the link bandwidths used in a current Dragonfly implementation, it is 33%. Second, we show that the choice of global link arrangement can greatly impact the regularity of task mappings for nearest neighbor stencil communication patterns, an important pattern in scientific applications.
The Argonauts of postcolonial modernity: elite Barbadian schools in globalising circumstances

In her book, Neoliberalism as Exception, Aihwa Ong usefully observes that the North American university has been dirempted from it historical role of preparing young people for democratic citizenship. It has instead, according to Ong, become the great global marketplace and grand bazaar for international students' ambitions. In what follows, we draw on Ong's insights. Specifically, we report on a global ethnographic study that looks at the way in which six form students (whom we are calling the ‘Argonauts’) in two Barbadian elite schools – Old Cloisters and Ardent Arbors – are orienting themselves to the future in a moment of aggressive recruiting by North American universities. These developments bring students' global imaginations into profound tension with historical narratives and traditions linking these schools to England. This new context is epitomised by the transactions between the students and international college representatives at an annual international college fair that brings North America...