cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Bio-Functional Legumes with Nutraceutical, Pharmaceutical, and Industrial Uses

To help or prevent certain health problems and adequately feed people, there is a need for added contributions from legumes. Legumes produce primary and secondary metabolites and other phytochemicals such as nutraceuticals, pharmaceuticals, pesticides, and industrial products. In addition, legumes such as hyacinth bean seed contain nearly 10% more fiber while winged bean contains three times more fiber than common bean. The potential breast cancer fighting chemical known as kievitone is found in hyacinth bean but not in common bean nor soybean. Both agmatine and isovitexin are potential combatants of microbial organisms in mammals including humans. Agmatine and isovitexin are not found in soybean nor common bean, however they exist in winged bean. Studies regarding value added traits such as the bio-functional and biologically active components of legumes have only recently begun because most specialty phytochemicals are extracted from other plant sources. Not only can bio-functional legumes provide healthy food constituents for use as nutraceuticals, pharmaceuticals, and pesticidals, but they can increase healthy food resources worldwide. Bio-functional legumes have been used in the past primarily for forage, pasture, minor food, green manuring, and erosion control. Current uses include these previously mentioned plus some fairly new ones such as hyacinth bean used as an ornamental and wildlife food. The future for these common bean relatives is for use in the health markets as new medicines or nutraceuticals and to provide farmers with additional crop production as phytopharmaceutical or nutraceutical crops.
Compression of hyperspectral imagery

High dimensional source vectors, such as those that occur in hyperspectral imagery, are partitioned into a number of subvectors of different length and then each subvector is vector quantized (VQ) individually with an appropriate codebook. A locally adaptive partitioning algorithm is introduced that performs comparably in this application to a more expensive globally optimal one that employs dynamic programming. The VQ indices are entropy coded and used to condition the lossless or near-lossless coding of the residual error. Motivated by the need for maintaining uniform quality across all vector components, a percentage maximum absolute error distortion measure is employed. Experiments on the lossless and near-lossless compression of NASA AVIRIS images are presented. A key advantage of the approach is the use of independent small VQ codebooks that allow fast encoding and decoding.
Modeling Fracture and Delamination of Spray-Applied Fire-Resisting Materials under Static and Impact Loads

A specially developed two-dimensional cohesive zone finite element (CZFE) scheme is applied to simulate the fracture and delamination phenomena that occur in spray-applied fire-resisting material (SFRM) on steel structures. A cohesive zone material model for the SFRM is introduced and utilized to model both the internal cohesion in SFRM and the interfacial adhesion at the steel-SFRM interface. The CZFE model is validated by comparing predictions from the model with results from an adhesion test conducted at ambient temperature. The validated model is successfully applied to simulate the spontaneous initiation and propagation of cracks in the SFRM under static and impact loads. Results from the numerical studies indicate that the proposed model is capable of predicting the initiation and propagation of cracks within the insulation material and at the interface. The results show that the development of transverse cracks in the insulation layer help prevent further delamination of the SFRM. Also, it was foun...
A high performance CMOS chipset for FFT processors

The authors describe a chipset (processor and controller) developed recently to implement the FFT (fast Fourier transform) algorithm on silicon. As the result of the highly parallel and concurrent architecture, the FFT processor built with one chip set can operate at a computing rate of about 500 million operations per second and an I/O transfer rate of about 5 billion b/s when running with 50-MHz input clock frequency. Utilizing multiprocessing techniques built into the architecture, the aggregated throughput is linearly proportional to the number of nodes employed in the FFT processor system. Using five nodes, each node consisting of a chip set, it can perform a 1024-point complex FFT in 21 mu s. >
Neo-positivist metaphysics

Some philosophers argue that many contemporary debates in metaphysics are “illegitimate,” “shallow,” or “trivial,” and that “contemporary analytic metaphysics, a professional activity engaged in by some extremely intelligent and morally serious people, fails to qualify as part of the enlightened pursuit of objective truth, and should be discontinued” (Ladyman and Ross, Every thing must go: Metaphysics naturalized, 2007). Many of these critics are explicit about their sympathies with Rudolf Carnap and his circle, calling themselves ‘neo-positivists’ or ‘neo-Carnapians.’ Yet despite the fact that one of the main conclusions of logical positivism was that metaphysical statements are meaningless, many of these neo-positivists are themselves engaged in metaphysical projects. This paper aims to clarify how we may see a neo-positivist metaphysics as proceeding in good faith, one that starts with serious engagement with the findings of science, particularly fundamental physics, but also has room for traditional, armchair methods.
Analysis of security data from a large computing organization

This paper presents an in-depth study of the forensic data on security incidents that have occurred over a period of 5 years at the National Center for Supercomputing Applications at the University of Illinois. The proposed methodology combines automated analysis of data from security monitors and system logs with human expertise to extract and process relevant data in order to: (i) determine the progression of an attack, (ii) establish incident categories and characterize their severity, (iii) associate alerts with incidents, and (iv) identify incidents missed by the monitoring tools and examine the reasons for the escapes. The analysis conducted provides the basis for incident modeling and design of new techniques for security monitoring.
An availability bias in professional judgment.

When branches of a fault tree are pruned, subjects do not fully transfer the probability of those branches to the ‘all other’ category. This underestimation of the catch-all probability has been interpreted as an ‘out of sight, out of mind’ form of the availability bias. The present work replicates this underestimation bias with professional managers. It then demonstrates the effectiveness of a corrective tactic, extending the tree by generating additional causes, and also reveals that more easily retrieved short-term causes dominate the generation process. These results do not differ across managers' culture, education or experience. After evaluating such alternative explanations as category redefinition, we conclude that availability is a major cause, though possibly not the sole cause, of the underestimation bias.
High birefringence phenyl tolane positive compounds for dual frequency liquid crystals

Dual frequency liquid crystals (DFLCs) provide a possibility to achieve sub-millisecond rise and decay times and are useful for various electro-optical devices. In most of DFLC mixtures, ester compounds are utilised in order to obtain a low crossover frequency. However, the ester linking group does not provide π electron conjugation so that the DFLC mixtures usually exhibit a limited birefringence (Δn < 0.3 at λ = 633 nm). For phase modulation a lower birefringence demands a thicker cell gap which, in turn, increases the response time and operating voltage. This problem becomes more severe as the wavelength increases. In this paper, we introduce a series of isothiocyanato phenyl tolane positive compounds with high birefringence and moderate dielectric relaxation frequency. The dielectric and electro-optical properties of these compounds are investigated. We also formulated a DFLC mixture using these new positive compounds which exhibits Δn = 0.39 at λ = 633 nm and 0.33 at λ = 1550 nm.
CD8(+) T cells restrict Yersinia pseudotuberculosis infection: bypass of anti-phagocytosis by targeting antigen-presenting cells.

All Yersinia species target and bind to phagocytic cells, but uptake and destruction of bacteria are prevented by injection of anti-phagocytic Yop proteins into the host cell. Here we provide evidence that CD8+ T cells, which canonically eliminate intracellular pathogens, are important for restricting Yersinia, even though bacteria are primarily found in an extracellular locale during the course of disease. In a model of infection with attenuated Y. pseudotuberculosis, mice deficient for CD8+ T cells were more susceptible to infection than immunocompetent mice. Although exposure to attenuated Y. pseudotuberculosis generated TH1-type antibody responses and conferred protection against challenge with fully virulent bacteria, depletion of CD8+ T cells during challenge severely compromised protective immunity. Strikingly, mice lacking the T cell effector molecule perforin also succumbed to Y. pseudotuberculosis infection. Given that the function of perforin is to kill antigen-presenting cells, we reasoned that cell death marks bacteria-associated host cells for internalization by neighboring phagocytes, thus allowing ingestion and clearance of the attached bacteria. Supportive of this model, cytolytic T cell killing of Y. pseudotuberculosis–associated host cells results in engulfment by neighboring phagocytes of both bacteria and target cells, bypassing anti-phagocytosis. Our findings are consistent with a novel function for cell-mediated immune responses protecting against extracellular pathogens like Yersinia: perforin and CD8+ T cells are critical for hosts to overcome the anti-phagocytic action of Yops.
Content, Consistency, and Quality of Black Box Warnings: Time for a Change

Black box warnings have been the subject of controversy, due in part to their opaque connection to the underlying body of evidence. This commentary proposes a new structure for presenting black box...
Growth and competitive abilities of the federally endangered Lindera melissifolia and the potentially invasive Brunnichia ovata in varying densities, hydrologic regimes, and light availabilities

Brunnichia ovata (Walter) Shinners is a native, perennial, woody vine with the potential to become an aggressive competitor of the federally endangered shrub Lindera melissifolia (Walt.) Blume. Our study simulated habitat disturbances to hydrologic regime and light availability that may occur naturally, or through active management practices aimed at ensuring the sustainability of L. melissifolia, and we determined the species responses to these changes. First-year plants of L. melissifolia and B. ovata were grown at varying densities, in flooding or nonflooding treatments, and receiving 100%, 47%, or 21% light availabilities. For both species, density effects, in combination with light availability and flooding regime influenced total biomass accumulation. Brunnichia ovata exhibited a high degree of plasticity with respect to biomass allocated between above- and below-ground tissues in response to flooding, whereas biomass allocation in L. melissifolia was relatively unaffected. Interspecific competition...
The real nature of variability of Levantine Epipalaeolithic assemblages

N&B, incorrectly attributing variability in these assemblages as representing strategies in lithic reduction, give as an example the differentiation between the Mushabian and the Geometric Kebaran complexes. Their thinking the microburin technique was used by the Geometric Kebarans but is masked by retouch on these trapeze/rectangles (sic!) suggest to me they have either never seen Geometric Kebaran and Mushabian microliths (although I understand that Neeley visited Goring-Morris' laboratory) or they cannot recognize microburin scars when they see them. In my original publication on the Mushabian (Phillips & Mintz 1977), they would see microburin scars on lamelles scalenes which were partially retouched in the Mushabian. Having recently analysed 12 Mushabian sites from Gebel Maghara, containing over 5000 microliths and 3000 microburins, and three new Geometric Kebaran sites from Sinai, containing over 800 trapeze/rectangles and no microburins, I can attest to the differences between these two assemblages in terms of reduction sequences, style of debitage, and the morphology of geometric and non-geometric microliths.
Potency of naloxone's anorectic effect in rats is dependent on diet preference

Modulation of feeding behavior by neuropeptide Y (NPY) and opioids is well established, but the possibility that these neural influences provoke specific appetites, NPY for carbohydrate and opioids for fat, has also been considered. In other studies, intake of standard chow after NPY stimulation can be blocked by naloxone, indicating an interaction between these systems in the regulation of feeding. The present experiments examined the nature of NPY-opioid interactions in diet selection. Rats were administered NPY and naloxone concurrently, then chose between high-fat and high-carbohydrate diets. Subcutaneous administration of naloxone (0.01-0.3 mg/kg) potently reduced intake of the preferred diet, but not the nonpreferred diet. A similar pattern of selection was seen in a separate experiment where the same doses of naloxone were administered after 24-h food deprivation. These data support the idea that the opioid system mediates the “rewarding” aspects of feeding.
Gender, Conspicuous Consumption and the Risk of 'Having Nothing' in Socialist Dar Es Salaam

In 1967, Tanzanian president Julius Nyerere called for citizens to move to rural collective villages as the central directive of Ujamaa (African socialism). This policy platform was accompanied by a rhetoric of citizenship that emphasized the virtues of frugality, physical discipline and modesty, all of which were promoted as characteristics of the rural family. Yet despite official policy, young people sought lives and livelihoods in the city of Dar es Salaam in unprecedented numbers during the Ujamaa years. In Dar es Salaam’s leisure spaces, young urban-dwellers shaped a public culture of conspicuous consumption that emphasized cosmopolitan savvy, access to black market imported commodities and gendered modes of exchange. Through consumption, urban youth cultivated reputations, sought romantic and economic partnerships, and gained access to urban social networks and opportunities. Drawing on oral histories, popular song texts, newspaper images and pulp fiction representations of Dar es Salaam’s 1970s nightlife, this paper will argue that in the context of heavy restrictions on imported luxury items—especially clothing, music and beauty products—practices of conspicuous consumption became all the more crucial as arenas for the performance and contestation of gender roles for Ujamaa-era urban youth.
Simultaneous Ipsilateral Torsion of the Appendices Testis and Epididymis

AbstractThe unusual occurrence of a simultaneous ipsilateral torsion of the appendices testis and epididymis in a 10-year-old boy is reported.
Immunomodulation by Vasoactive Intestinal Polypeptide (VIP)

Vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) is one of the major neuropeptides expressed and produced by the enteric nervous system. VIP release in the proximity of GI resident immune cells facilitates its immunoregulatory functions, including effects on macrophages, dendritic cells, and T lymphocytes. Here we discuss the functions of VIP as a modulator and possible therapeutic target in gastrointestinal inflammation in the larger context of its general immunoregulatory role.
Intuitive Thinking and Misconceptions of Independent Events: A Case Study of US and French Pre-Service Teachers

In this article we study the conceptions of an American and a French group of undergraduate pre-service teachers regarding the concept of independent events. Specifically, we study the role that intuition plays in their answers, ascertain the presence of probabilistic biases, and compare the findings with previous results collected on a different population. Participants were asked to provide essay-type answers to a three-part questionnaire that asked them to solve problems, react to hypothetical students’ answers, and answer direct questions. The concept of independent events was problematic for most participants as was the distinction between mutually exclusive and independent events. In addition, representativeness bias and the Falk Phenomenon were observed among several participants.
Evidence for Electrostatic Interactions in the S2 Subsite of Porcine Pepsin

A convenient system for studying protein-ligand interactions and structure-activity relationships has been the Aspartic proteinase family of enzymes. Pepsin, a member of this family involved in the digestion of proteins in the stomach, has been a valuable model system for investigation into enzymatic specificity. The active site cleft of porcine pepsin is made of distinct subsites S5-S3’ (I. Schecter and A. Berger, 1967, B. B. R. C. 27: 157) all of which may contribute to the specificity of the enzyme. Herein, we report the cation binding preference of the S2 subsite of porcine pepsin, utilizing chromogenic octapeptide substrates at pH values ranging from 3 to 6. Residue 287 is within the S2 region of the active site cleft, and varies widely among the aspartic proteinase family, with Glu, Gln, Met, and Gly occurring in various enzymes.
Autocorrelation-based multiantenna spectrum sensing in colored noise

One of the first steps to be accomplished by a cognitive user in cognitive radio applications is spectrum sensing: analysis of the received electromagnetic transmissions to search for unoccupied spectrum bands (spectrum holes). Recently several time-domain approaches relying on the generalized likelihood ratio test (GLRT) paradigm have been proposed for multiple antenna spectrum sensing in cognitive radios. These approaches are suitable for flat-fading channels in white noise with equal noise variances across antennas; knowledge of the noise variance is not required, unlike the energy detector. In this paper we investigate a method based on the sample autocorrelation of the received multiantenna signal where we allow the noise to be colored and its variances to be different at different antennas without requiring knowledge of their spectra. Supporting simulation examples are provided.
Differential sediment stability for two federally threatened and one common species of freshwater mussels in Southeastern Coastal Plain Streams, USA

ABSTRACTThe current study examined differences in sediment stability preferences for two federally threatened and a locally common mussel species’ habitats in the Choctawhatchee River watershed located in southeastern Alabama and northwestern Florida. Relative shear stress (RSS), the ratio of shear stress to critical shear stress, was calculated for individuals of two threatened mussel species, Fusconaia burkei (N = 94), and Pleurobema strodeanum (N = 201), and a common mussel species, Elliptio pullata (N = 94). Relative shear stress is related to sediment movement and deposition as sediment movement takes place when RSS > 1. Mussels were collected and RSS measured at each individual mussel location (N = 389). The Kruskal–Wallis H-test and/or Mann–Whitney U-test found that RSS for the target-threatened species’ habitats were significantly higher than that for E. pullata at all sites (p < 0.05). Spearman's rank correlation found significant negative correlations between shear stress and total mussel abunda...
Learning Factors Transfer Analysis: Using Learning Curve Analysis to Automatically Generate Domain Models

This paper describes a novel method to create a quantitative model of an educational content domain of related practice item-types using learning curves. By using a pairwise test to search for the relationships between learning curves for these item-types, we show how the test results in a set of pairwise transfer relationships that can be expressed in a Q-matrix domain model. Creating these Q-matrices for various test criteria we show that the new domain model results in consistently better learning curve fits as shown by cross- validation. Further, the Q-matrices produced can be used by educators or curriculum designers to gain a richer, more integrated perspective on concepts in the domain. The model may also have implications for tracing student knowledge more effectively to sequence practice in tutoring/training software.
Yamaguchi syndrome presenting as atrioventricular nodal re-entrant tachycardia in an African-American patient

Apical hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (Yamaguchi syndrome) is a rare subtype of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. The syndrome is more common in Japan where it was first described. Outside Asia, it is a very rare cause of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Apical hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is usually detected incidentally and has a good long-term outcome. We present a case of apical hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in an African-American patient manifesting as atrioventricular nodal re-entrant tachycardia.
Cosmopolitan Sexualities: Hope and the Humanist Imagination.

I was excited to read the book Cosmopolitan Sexualities, which aims to provide a framework for how we can live in a global society containing such a wide variety of sexualities. Ken Plummer, the au...
Computational Equivalence and Classical Recursion Theory

Two central results in Wolfram’s A New Kind of Science [17] have attracted close scrutiny by the computability theory community: the first is the computational universality of elementary cellular automaton rule number 110, the other the Principle of Computational Equivalence, see section 2 below.
Correcting for trace gas absorption when retrieving aerosol optical depth from satellite observations of reflected shortwave radiation

Abstract. Retrieving aerosol optical depth (AOD) from top-of-atmosphere (TOA) satellite-measured radiance requires separating the aerosol signal from the total observed signal. Total TOA radiance includes signal from the underlying surface and from atmospheric constituents such as aerosols, clouds and gases. Multispectral retrieval algorithms, such as the dark-target (DT) algorithm that operates upon the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS, on board Terra and Aqua satellites) and Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS, on board Suomi-NPP) sensors, use wavelength bands in “window” regions. However, while small, the gas absorptions in these bands are non-negligible and require correction. In this paper, we use the High-resolution TRANsmission (HITRAN) database and Line-By-Line Radiative Transfer Model (LBLRTM) to derive consistent gas corrections for both MODIS and VIIRS wavelength bands. Absorptions from H 2 O, CO2 and O3 are considered, as well as other trace gases. Even though MODIS and VIIRS bands are “similar”, they are different enough that applying MODIS-specific gas corrections to VIIRS observations results in an underestimate of global mean AOD (by 0.01), but with much larger regional AOD biases of up to 0.07. As recent studies have been attempting to create a long-term data record by joining multiple satellite data sets, including MODIS and VIIRS, the consistency of gas correction has become even more crucial.
Change implementation: the association of adaptive reserve and burnout among inpatient medicine physicians and nurses

Adaptive Reserve (AR) is positively associated with implementing change in ambulatory settings. Deficits in AR may lead to change fatigue or burnout. We studied the association of self-reported AR ...
Enterocyte digestive enzyme activity along the crypt-villus and longitudinal axes in the neonatal pig small intestine.

Our objective was to examine the distri- bution of enterocyte digestive enzyme activity along the crypt-villus and longitudinal axes of the small intestine in formula-fed neonatal pigs between the ages of 14 and 18 d. The distended intestinal sac method was used to isolate 12 sequential fractions (F1 through F12) of epithelial cells. Enterocyte migration rate was mea- sured in the proximal and distal intestine using in vivo bromodeoxyuridine labeling. Specific activities of repre- sentative villus cell marker enzymes of alkaline phos- phatase, aminopeptidase N, sucrase, and lactase in- creased 6- to 17-fold from F12 (crypt cells) to F1 (villus cells), whereas the crypt cell marker ( 3 H)thymidine in- corporation increased 8- to 18-fold from F1 (villus cells) to F12 (crypt cells). Enterocyte migration rate was simi- lar (3.2 vs 3.0 m/h), whereas the villus height (547.4 vs 908.5 m) and enterocyte life span (4.7 vs 10.2 d) were markedly lower (P < 0.05) in the proximal than in the distal segments, respectively. In general, the specific activities of all enzymes were lowest in the crypt fractions (F9 through F12) but increased markedly (ranging from 8- to 17-fold) from F12 to F1. The activity of aminopeptidase N was higher and that of sucrase was lower in the distal than in the proximal segment. The activities of the remaining enzymes were similar in the proximal and the distal segments. Our results suggest that the enterocyte life span in the distal small intestine is approximately twice as long as in the proxi- mal small intestine. However, despite the difference in life span, the patterns of enzyme activities along the crypt-villus axis were generally similar in the proximal and the distal regions.
Pathology of Small Airways

The small conducting airways consist of the membranous bronchioles and the respiratory bronchioles. Bronchiolitis is a generic term for inflammatory and fibrotic injuries of these small airways. The histology of normal bronchioles is discussed in detail in Chapter 2. A brief review is warranted here before discussing the histopathologic patterns associated with small airway injury.
Public Policy Inquiry and Simulations

The methods we use to study policy issues must be able to apprehend the complexity inherent in these issues. This chapter describes some of the characteristics of policy issues that make them complex. Simulations are proposed as a class of readily available computational tools that can capture some of that complexity and can provide insights to inform policy decisions and actions.
The Joint Effect of Power, Relationship Type, and Corporate Social Responsibility Type on Customers’ Intent to Donate:

This study examines how the type of dining companion, type of cause-related marketing (CRM) program, and power influence restaurant consumers’ prosocial behavior and loyalty intentions. A 2 × 2 × 2...
Aquatic insect diversity in streams across a rural–urban land-use discontinuum

Urbanization negatively impacts the diversity of aquatic insect assemblages in headwater streams and can lead to the homogenization of insect communities at the regional level. However, less is known about the impact of urbanization on insects in headwater streams within smaller cities that have significant upstream portions outside of urban land use. We collected insects monthly from April to September in 2014 and 2015 from five streams that flowed from rural upstream through urban downstream land use, plus two rural reference streams, in Greater Binghamton, New York, in the northeast USA. While urbanization was associated with lower insect taxonomic richness ( $$\bar{\alpha }$$ ) and elevated stream water conductivity, the regional diversity (γ) was similar among urban and rural land use. This corresponded to higher dissimilarity among urban sites (β) than among rural sites. To our knowledge, this is the first report of higher urban stream insect community β-diversity. Our results suggest that urbanization in this medium-sized city negatively impacts stream insect richness, but the change of community assemblages is not homogenous across the urban landscape. Connectivity between upstream rural sites and downstream urban sites may provide some relief from the impacts of urbanization in smaller cities.
Flies in the Face: Entomology and the Mechanics of Becoming-Living in Westworld

In the opening of Westworld’s pilot, the viewer is introduced to Dolores, seen with a black fly crawling on her face. Her non-response to the fly is one of the first indicators that Dolores is not-quite- human and initiates the role of the fly as a being with the ability to discern the boundary between the living and non-living. As the series progresses, the fly continues to act as a harbinger, signaling moments of slippage between the organic and the technological. Animal life (albeit almost entirely synthetic) figures consistently in Westworld. The role of the fly, however, is unique, serving as an interface between life, death, and liminal spaces. This chapter considers how the fly, a non-human being deeply and historically associated with the passage from life to death and with technological construction, assists other non-humans, the Hosts, in becoming-living.
Aspects of Deixis in the Language of Children with Autism and Related Childhood Psychoses

Focus on language as an instrument of communication has recently characterized the study of language and of its development in normal and non-normal populations. When the subject of concern is how sentences actually function in conversation between two or more speakers, the aspect of language known as deixis takes on renewed interest. If spoken sentences are to be fully communicative, they must provide information that allows the listener to relate the content of the utterance to the relevant context; among these contextual factors are person, place, and time. Natural languages universally have mechanisms for indicating these relationships.
“Working at the Same Time to Animate and to Restrain”:Tocqueville on the Problem of Authority

Alexis de Tocqueville is often seen as a champion of personal liberty and human greatness in the face of the conformism and mediocrity of the democratic social state. In this light, his vision of “...
Game development for teaching physics

The paper describes two computer games which we developed to teach abstract physics concepts: A Slower Speed of Light, designed to teach Special Relativity, and Kirchhoff's Revenge, designed to teach circuit laws. We report on experiences and research results using these games in physics lessons at college and high school level, user feedback, as well as information informally gathered from "Let's Play" videos on YouTube. Finally, we describe plans for future developments.
Children's Intuitive Theories of Academic Performance.

How do children reason about academic performance across development? A classic view suggests children?s intuitive theories in this domain undergo qualitative changes. According to this view, older children and adults consider both effort and skill as sources of performance (i.e., a ?performance = effort + skill? theory), but younger children can only consider effort (i.e., a ?performance = effort? theory). Results from two studies (N = 240 children aged 4?9) contradict the claim of theory change, suggesting instead that children as young as 4 operate with an intuitive theory of academic performance that incorporates both effort and skill as explanatory concepts. This work reveals that children?s understanding of academic performance is more continuous across development than previously assumed.
Postorgasmic illness syndrome: potential new treatment options for a rare disorder

Postorgasmic illness syndrome (POIS) is a rare postejaculatory disorder first described by Waldinger and Schweitzer in 2002 [1]. In their seminal case report, they described two men experiencing ra...
Who Voted in 2016? Using Fuzzy Forests to Understand Voter Turnout

Objective: What can machine learning tell us about who voted in 2016? There are numerous competing voter turnout theories, and a large number of covariates are required to assess which theory best explains turnout. This article is a proof of concept that machine learning can help overcome this curse of dimensionality and reveal important insights in studies of political phenomena. Methods: We use fuzzy forests, an extension of random forests, to screen variables for a parsimonious but accurate prediction. Fuzzy forests achieve accurate variable importance measures in the face of high‐dimensional and highly correlated data. The data that we use are from the 2016 Cooperative Congressional Election Study. Results: Fuzzy forests chose only a small number of covariates as major correlates of 2016 turnout and still boasted high predictive performance. Conclusion: Our analysis provides three important conclusions about turnout in 2016: registration and voting procedures were important, political issues were important (especially Obamacare, climate change, and fiscal policy), but few demographic variables other than age were strongly associated with turnout. We conclude that fuzzy forests is an important methodology for studying overdetermined questions in social sciences.
Determinants of capital structure complexity

Abstract While capital structure is usually presented in the context of a choice between debt and equity, even within these choices we observe different sources of capital, especially related to debt. Recent studies have arrived at differing conclusions regarding the reliance upon different sources for capital and regarding the importance of those sources. We find that the complexity of capital structure is related to the need for external capital, access to debt markets and the capacity for additional borrowing. Each of these determinants has a unique impact on capital structure complexity; however, access to capital markets serves as a mitigating factor in capital structure complexity for those firms with a financial deficit.
Study on Price Consistency regarding Pack Size via Product Variant Retrieval and Pack Size Extraction

Price perception is extremely important for retailers. Customers assess the price of a product not only from the product’s own price history, but also from the prices of the product’s close variants. One particular kind of variant considered is the same product sold in different sizes, where a reduced unit price is generally expected for the ones sold in large quantities. Such price consistency between product variants could be important for customer experience, yet very challenging for retailers which carry millions of products with possibly missing and noisy catalog information. We propose a framework to measure pricing consistency between product size variants by retrieving product variants via search and extracting product size information with natural language processing methods. We evaluate three monotonic regression models that regularize the unit price instead of simple heuristics. To quantify the extent of price inconsistency, we define new metrics and demonstrate that one method can lower the inconsistency measure by up to 45% on the experiment sample set.
Collars for Dollars: Arrests and Police Overtime

How do public sector workers balance pro-social motivations with private interests? In this study of police officers, an arrest often requires working overtime. We document two consequences to officer behavior. First, contrary to popular wisdom, officers reduce arrests near the end of their shift, and the quality of arrests increases. Second, officers further reduce late-shift arrests on days in which they “moonlight” after work. Using these results, we estimate a dynamic model that identifies officers’ implied tradeoff between private and pro-social motivations. Incentives created by overtime pay are insufficiently large to change police decision-making at the margin.
Erratum to “Relationships Between the Zeros, Weights, and Weight Functions of Orthogonal Polynomials: Derivative Rule Conjecture (the DRC) Applied to Stieltjes and Spectral Imaging”

Zeros, ${\mathbf x}[ {{{\mathbf k}},{{\mathbf N}}} ],{\mathrm{\ }}{{\mathbf k}}{\mathrm{\ }} = {\mathrm{\ }}1 \ldots {{\mathbf N}},$x[k,N],k=1...N, of orthogonal polynomials are useful for numerical applications, e.g., Gaussian quadrature were combined with quadrature weights, ${{\mathbf w}}[ {{{\mathbf k}},{{\mathbf N}}} ],$w[k,N], integrals with weight function ${\boldsymbol{\rho }}({\boldsymbol{x}})$ρ(x) are performed to high precision. For broad classes of OPs, the ratios ${{\mathbf w}}[ {{{\mathbf k}},{{\mathbf N}}} ]/\rho ({{{\mathbf x}}[ {{{\mathbf k}},{{\mathbf N}}} ]}){\mathrm{\ }}$w[k,N]/ρ(x[k,N])are independent of the OPs at hand if ${{\mathbf x}}[ {{{\mathbf k}},{{\mathbf N}}} ]{\mathrm{\ }}$x[k,N]lie within a smooth part of $\rho ({{\mathbf x}})$ρ(x). This universality as ${{\mathbf N}}{\mathrm{\ }} \to \infty {\mathrm{\ }}$N→∞suggests that these ratios may be evaluated as ${{\mathbf x}}^\prime [ {{{\mathbf k}},{{\mathbf N}}} ]{\mathrm{\ }} = {\mathrm{\ }}{{\mathbf d}}({{{\mathbf x}}[ {{{\mathbf k}},{{\mathbf N}}} ]})/{{\mathbf dk}}$x'[k,N]=d(x[k,N])/dk. This Derivative Rule Conjecture, or DRC, then gives, even for small ${{\mathbf N}}$N, $\rho ({\mathbf x}[ {\mathbf K},{\mathbf N} ])={{\mathbf w}}[ {{{\mathbf k}},{{\mathbf N}}} ]/{{\mathbf x}}^\prime [ {{{\mathbf k}},{{\mathbf N}}} ],$ρ(x[K,N])=w[k,N]/x'[k,N], and Stieltjes imaging, or inversion, with exponential convergence. Similar methods apply to the numerics of Schrodinger resolvents. The example chosen to illustrate this latter indicates that the assumption of universality, while suggesting and validating the DRC, is not necessary.
Exploring pre-service teachers’ technology-integration belief and scientific inquiry in a teacher-development course

We implemented design practices for a total of 85 pre-service teachers in a teacher-development course. This mixed-method study explored how design practices promoted pre-service teachers’ technology-integration belief and the awareness of scientific-inquiry. In teacher-development courses, the goal of design practices is to enhance pre-service teachers’ awareness and capabilities of design practices and their educational applications. A recent integration between design practices and scientific inquiry in teacher-development courses aims to foster pre-service teachers’ contextual understandings of technology integration in STEM education. Despite the potential impact of design practices on scientific inquiry in teacher training, a challenge remains. Existing studies appear limited to capture in-situ data on how pre-service teachers’ technology-integration belief emerges via design practices. Also, few empirical studies explored how design practices can foster pre-service teachers’ scientific inquiry experiences. Hence, the present study used both text mining and qualitative thematic analysis to uncover how pre-service teachers’ technology-integration beliefs and scientific-inquiry experiences emerged throughout design practices. The result of this study suggests that pre-service teachers enhanced technology-integration beliefs and the awareness of scientific-inquiry via design practices. This study has several implications on design practices in teacher training, as well as the viability of text mining as an alternative assessment to measure design learning experiences.
Effect of Covid-19 quarantine on diabetes Care in Children.

With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and state-mandated school closures in the spring of 2020, the management of type 1 diabetes in children underwent significant changes. The aim of our study was to assess the effect of stay-at-home orders on glycemic control in children. We conducted a retrospective review of 238 children with type 1 and type 2 diabetes who were seen in the Pediatric Endocrinology Clinic at the University of South Alabama. Average Hemoglobin A1c (A1c) levels in the year prior to stay-at home orders (May 2019–April 2020) were compared with A1c values during the quarantine period (May 2020–July 2020) using a paired t-test. We also analyzed the change of A1c level with respect to sex, race, type of diabetes, type of insurance, and mode of insulin administration, using a 2-sample t-test. The average A1c significantly increased from 9.2% during the previous year to 9.5% during the quarantine period (p = 0.0097). The increase of A1c was significantly higher in public insurance patients (0.49% increase) compared to private insurance patients (0.03% increase), (p = 0.0137). We also observed a significant association between the direction of change and type of insurance. Forty-eight percent of public insurance patients had an A1c increase of > 0.5% while 54% of private insurance patients had no change or decrease in A1c (p = 0.0079). The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in worsening glycemic control in children with type 1 diabetes, with those on public insurance affected in greater proportion than those with private insurance.
P26 Health 360 Policies: Lessons for Healthy Habits to Reduce Childhood Obesity Risk

Background Childhood obesity is the most pressing public health problem in the United States. Prevalence of child obesity has tripled in the past 3 decades, leading to comorbidities. Teaching children healthy habits is vital to reducing obesity. Children need role models to set positive examples and edify consequences of unhealthy habits. The Boys and Girls Club of Charlestown, MA implemented Health360 policies to educate children about healthy habits. Objective To examine if the Health360 policies make an impact on children to develop healthy habits in order to reduce risk of obesity. Study Design, Setting, Participants Qualitative study focused on the 4 Health360 policies. Eight hands-on lessons were taught weekly for 2 months at The Boys and Girls Club after school program. An assessment survey was given at the start and end of the study. Participants were 8 third and fourth grade Latino girls. Measurable Outcome/Analysis Increased participants’ knowledge and appreciation of healthy lifestyle benefits. Narrative analysis assessed information from pre- and post-surveys, as well as observations and experiences of participants. Results The pre- and post-survey assessment revealed children had higher awareness of the Health360 policies after attending the lessons. All participants believed in the importance of embodying the policies post-lessons, as opposed to 25% pre-instruction. It was observed that the more lessons attended, the more children were engaged in learning about healthy habits. When a health policy was taught a second time it reinforced the lesson and participants retained information. They asked insightful questions, grasped the benefits of healthful lifestyles, and contemplated making changes in their lives. Conclusion Childhood obesity is a major health concern, which is exacerbated by a lack of positive examples for healthy habits. When children are exposed to the benefits of healthy lifestyles they are more likely to make changes. This could aid in reducing the risk of chronic disease.
Tuning Confidence Bound for Stochastic Bandits with Bandit Distance

We propose a novel modification of the standard upper confidence bound (UCB) method for the stochastic multi-armed bandit (MAB) problem which tunes the confidence bound of a given bandit based on its distance to others. Our UCB distance tuning (UCB-DT) formulation enables improved performance as measured by expected regret by preventing the MAB algorithm from focusing on non-optimal bandits which is a well-known deficiency of standard UCB. "Distance tuning" of the standard UCB is done using a proposed distance measure, which we call bandit distance, that is parameterizable and which therefore can be optimized to control the transition rate from exploration to exploitation based on problem requirements. We empirically demonstrate increased performance of UCB-DT versus many existing state-of-the-art methods which use the UCB formulation for the MAB problem. Our contribution also includes the development of a conceptual tool called the "Exploration Bargain Point" which gives insights into the tradeoffs between exploration and exploitation. We argue that the Exploration Bargain Point provides an intuitive perspective that is useful for comparatively analyzing the performance of UCB-based methods.
Interactive Segmentation and Analysis of Fetal Ultrasound Images

The ability of ultrasound scanners to image anatomical structures in real time have led to their use in two important applications of medicine, (1) for monitoring the unborn baby (fetal ultrasound), and, (2) coronary treatment of blockages in blood vessels (intravascular ultrasound). The generated images (in the form of a continuous video) are typically noisy and contain numerous artifacts, making it difficult to isolate and measure features of interest. We explore the use of two algorithms, region growing and a variant of split/merge algorithm for segmenting sequences of fetal ultrasound images. We describe an interactive system that can rapidly process and segment an arbitrary number of features. The system exploits frame to frame coherence for accelerating the segmentation process, while at the same time combining the strengths of these algorithms and some post-processing for accurate and robust detection of features.
Suitability and feeding preference of selected North American, European, and Asian elm (Ulmus spp.) biotypes to elm leaf beetle (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae).

Abstract Recently introduced North American elm cultivars, simple and complex elm hybrids of European and Asian parentage, and simple Asian hybrids of U. pumila and U. japonica parentage growing at The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL, were evaluated in laboratory bioassays for ovipositional response, and feeding preference and suitability for larvae and adults of the elm leaf beetle, Xanthogaleruca luteola (Muller). Larval and adult no-choice and adult multiple-choice feeding studies revealed that the North American cultivars of U. americana ‘Jefferson’ and U. americana ‘Valley Forge’, U. americana (diploid form), and U. americana were the least preferred for feeding and reproduction by the elm leaf beetle. Among simple and complex European hybrids, ‘Homestead’, ‘Patriot’, and ‘Prospector’ were least preferred and least suitable for larval development, feeding, and reproduction by adult elm leaf beetles. Hybrids of ‘Frontier’, ‘Pioneer’, and ‘Regal’; the simple Asian hybrids of ‘Cathedral’ and ‘New Horizon’; ...
In defense of the Articles of Confederation and the contribution mechanism as a means of government finance: A general comment on the literature

I attempt to dispel several widely-held myths regarding government finance under the Articles of Confederation, some of which were reiterated in Dougherty and Cain (1997). I defend the contribution mechanism as a method of government finance that is superior to direct taxation by the federal government, and present evidence contradicting the belief that revenue collections under the Articles were poor. A proper comparison is with alternatives at that time, such as state tax collections and the federal governments own tax collections under the new U.S. Constitution, both of which were lower than the collection rate from states under the Articles.
Conduit and regional compliance of female canine urethra: Observations during voiding and passive urethral infusion

Abstract Studies with induced voiding and passive urethral infusion were conducted in female dogs to investigate the effects of compliance restriction and constriction on the proximal, middle, and distal urethral regions. The studies included an evaluation of various surgical procedures on the distal urethral segment and external meatus. Compliance restriction on the proximal and midurethral regions produced abnormal elevations in the voiding pressure and urethral infusion resistance. No such effects were noted when similar restriction to the expansibility was applied around the distal segment. Constrictions, on the other hand, resulted in severe degrees of obstruction. Procedures such as meatal dilation, generous meatotomy, and distal third urethrotomy paradoxically produced increases in infusion resistance (4 to 15 per cent) and slight diminution in the functional diameter of the proximal region. The physiologic and clinical implications of these results are presented.