cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Active quenching: a new approach to the bias and readout of superconducting nanowire single photon detectors (Conference Presentation)

Superconducting nanowire single photon detectors (SNSPDs) have emerged as a leading choice for high performance single photon detectors due to their low timing jitter, high detection efficiency, and low dark count rates. SNSPDs have typically been biased using a passive quenching scheme in which the bias current of the device is shunted through a resistive load to allow for recovery after a detection event. To prevent latching, the shunting resistor must be approximately an order of magnitude smaller than the peak normal domain resistance of the SNSPD. Consequentially, the pulse amplitude (∝IBRL) and recovery time (∝LK/RL) are both negatively impacted. In this talk, we will describe a novel approach to the bias and read-out of SNSPDs based upon active quenching. We will present detailed design considerations for an active quenching architecture and will show that such an approach has the potential to improve count rates while increasing signal swings to the point where external amplification is no longer required. A silicon germanium (SiGe) active-reset chip design has been designed, implemented, and integrated with a NbTiN SNSPD. The procedure for the SiGe chip design will be described and simulation results will be presented. Finally, detailed measurement results of the complete system will be shown and compared to measurements of the same detector when biased and read-out using a standard passive quenching scheme. It will be shown that the active quenching configuration enables a considerable enhancement to the system performance.
Some endocrine aspects of alcoholism.

Alcohol has long been known to affect endocrine organs. Early studies of postmortem material and animal investigations showed that alcohol could cause adrenal and testicular atrophy. As the role of the adrenal in glucose metabolism was elucidated, and before direct measures of hormones was possible, it was postulated that alcoholism was an endocrine disease, (adrenocortical insufficiency). While no substantive evidence to justify that hypothesis has evolved to date, the fact remains that endocrine systems are profoundly altered by alcohol. The full extent of this is not known primarily because relatively little effort has been devoted to the question using modern analytic tools such as radioimmunoassay. The following is a summary of the recent work from this and from other laboratories.
Vacancy reactions in stage III recovery of molybdenum

Single-crystal rods of high-purity Mo were prepared by zone refining and irradiated at 40/sup 0/C in the Hanford reactor. Post-irradiation study included isochronal annealing, lattice parameters and hardness. Resistance and hardness recovery proceed normally. Lattice parameter changes were not observed under 200/sup 0/C. Resistance decrease indicates fewer scattering centers.
Asymptotic Completeness for N-Body Quantum Systems

We give a sketch of a geometrical proof of asymptotic completeness for an arbitrary number of quantum particles interacting through short-range pair potentials.
Relationship between surgical balancing and outcome measures in total knees

Abstract Background The purpose of the study was to investigate the accuracy of balancing which could be achieved at total knee surgery and its relation to functional outcomes. Methods During surgery, the forces on the medial and lateral plateaus were measured at 10-15 degrees flexion in 101 patients, using an instrumented tibial trial, with equal forces being targeted. Of the initial 101 cases, 71 cases completed all follow-up visits to 1 year. At each follow-up visit, the function was measured using the Knee Society Scoring System, and varus and valgus laxity angles were measured. Results The mean medial/(medial + lateral) compartmental force ratio was 0.52, with a standard deviation of 0.09. The total contact force was 217 Newtons, with a standard deviation of 72 Newtons. No correlations were found between the functional scores and the compartmental force ratio or total contact force. However, the mean varus and valgus laxity angles, 2.8 and 2.3 degrees, respectively, were very close to the angles of normal intact knees. Conclusions The likely reason for the lack of correlation of function was that the large majority of the balancing ratios were within the range 0.4-0.6 but with a wide spread of functional scores typical of total knee study groups. However, the normal varus and valgus angles achieved at follow-up indicated that equal balancing in early flexion was a reasonable surgical target. Using instrumented tibial trials enabled accurate and consistent balancing values to be achieved, as well as normal varus and valgus laxity angles, which may be important in obtaining optimal outcomes.
Association of dermatomyositis with systemic and opportunistic infections in the United States

Patients with dermatomyositis have multiple risk factors for serious and opportunistic infections, including immune dysregulation, long-term systemic corticosteroid treatment and comorbid health conditions. We sought to determine whether dermatomyositis is associated with increased odds and burden of systemic, opportunistic and antibiotic-resistant infections. We analyzed data from the Nationwide Inpatient Sample from 2002 to 2012, containing a cross-sectional representative 20% sample of all hospitalizations in the US. Overall, dermatomyositis was associated with serious infections in adults (multivariable logistic regression; adjusted odds ratio [95% confidence interval]: 2.19 [2.08-2.30]) and children (1.45 [1.20-1.76]). In particular, dermatomyositis was significantly associated with 32 of 48 and 15 of 48 infections examined in adults and children, respectively, including infections of skin, bone, joints, brain, heart, lungs, and gastrointestinal system, as well sepsis, antibiotic-resistant and opportunistic infections. Predictors of infections included non-white race/ethnicity, insurance status, history of long-term systemic corticosteroid usage, Cushing's syndrome (likely secondary to corticosteroid usage), diabetes, and cancer. Serious infections were associated with significantly increased inpatient cost and death in dermatomyositis patients. In conclusion, dermatomyositis is associated with higher odds, costs and inpatient mortality from serious and opportunistic infections.
Socioeconomic Barriers to Child Contact with Incarcerated Parents

AbstractScholarship suggests that prison visitation is beneficial and may be especially so for children and their incarcerated parents. However, economically disadvantaged families face unique chal...
An Application of Image Classification to Saltwater Fish Identification in Louisiana Fisheries

Fish identification is a challenge to recreational anglers, but critically important to the management of fisheries. The state of Louisiana currently provides printed illustrations of species as the sole aid to anglers for the process of fish identification. This work describes the application of Google's TensorFlow machine learning library to the task of fish identification as a case study on the application of the image classification capabilities. We describe the implementation and results of the project.
Experimental Methodologies for Detection and Mapping of Epigenetic DNA Marks

Epigenetic marks of DNA such as 5-methylcytosine control the levels of gene expression in cells and tissues by altering DNA structure, inhibiting transcription factor binding, and recruiting chromatin-modifying enzymes. DNA methylation marks are introduced in both strands of DNA by DNA methyltransferases, allowing for heritable gene silencing. In addition to 5-methylcytosine, cells contain its oxidized forms 5-hydroxymethylcytosine, 5-formylcytosine, and 5-carboxylcytosine, as well as recently discovered DNA marks, 4-methylcytosine and 6-methyladenosine. Structural identification, quantitation, and mapping of DNA epigenetic marks are critical for our understanding of epigenetic control in healthy cells and to allow for insight into epigenetic deregulation in human disease and the efficacy of epigenetic therapies. This review focuses on experimental techniques and methodologies that can be used to study epigenetic modifications of DNA, including methods for quantifying global levels of epigenetically modified nucleosides and sequencing techniques for mapping the locations of various epigenetic marks along the genome, leading to better understanding of their biological functions and dynamics.
Factors influencing diagnostic delays of pediatric cancers in Botswana.

Background A major barrier in improving cancer outcomes in Botswana and other low- and middle-income countries is timely access to care. Understanding time to diagnosis of pediatric cancers in Botswana and evaluating factors contributing to delays was necessary to inform interventions. Methods A retrospective cohort study of children diagnosed with cancer at Princess Marina Hospital from 2008 to 2015 was performed utilizing the Botswana Pediatric Oncology Database. The time to diagnosis, pretreatment center delay, and pathology turnaround time were calculated. Time to diagnosis was analyzed using univariate and multivariate analyses to determine association with age, sex, distance to a treatment center, HIV status, cancer type, outcome, and presence of metastasis at diagnosis. Results The median time to diagnosis was 10.7 weeks, median pretreatment center delay was 9.6 weeks, and median pathology turnaround time was 3 weeks. Longer time to diagnosis was significantly correlated with presence of metastasis at diagnosis. Age, sex, distance to a treatment center, HIV status, cancer type, and outcome were not significantly associated with diagnostic delay. Conclusion Children with cancer in Botswana have more than three months of symptoms prior to diagnosis, which is associated with metastasis at diagnosis. Efforts should be made to empower and promote awareness of pediatric cancer symptoms among caregivers and community healthcare providers in order to shorten time to presentation at a treatment center.
Shallow Convolutional Neural Network for 3D Gamma Ray Localization in High Resolution PET

PET imaging inherently suffers from relatively poor spatial resolution compared with other clinical imaging modalities due to the size of the detector array elements, namely the scintillator crystals and readout pixels. Using 4-to-1 scintillator-to-readout coupling schemes, single-ended readout detector modules have been developed that simultaneously achieve depth-encoding readout to mitigate detector-based artifacts (i.e., parallax error) as well as sub-pixel spatial resolution equal to the scintillator crystal dimensions. Anger Logic-based localization schemes, such as energy weighted averaging, are commonly used to reconstruct the positions of photoelectric interaction sites within the modules, but these methods aren’t robust to edge and corner performance degradation, resulting in non-uniform position-dependent spatial performance. We explore the use of convolutional neural networks to perform 3D gamma ray localization with single-ended readout depth-encoding modules using Monte Carlo simulated PET data. Our approach to localizing gamma ray interactions in PET detectors outperforms conventional high resolution DOI readout methods, making it a step toward making cost-effective single-ended readout depth-encoding detector modules practically viable.
Investigation of bisphenol-substituted spirocyclic phosphazenes as cotton textile–based flame retardants:

Bisphenol-substituted spirocyclic phosphazene derivatives were synthesized in 85%–94% yields and analyzed for flame retardant application to cotton fabric using Limiting Oxygen Index, Fourier trans...
A protein folding intermediate pulls its weight.

Proteins must acquire and maintain a specific fold to execute their biochemical function(s). In solution, unfolded proteins typically find this native structure through a biased sampling of preferred intermediate conformations. However, the initial search for these structures begins during protein synthesis, and it is unclear how much interactions between the ribosome and nascent polypeptide skew folding pathways. In this issue, Jensen and colleagues use a ribosomal force–profiling assay to show that RNase H forms a similar folding intermediate on and off the ribosome. In conjunction with measurements of the rate of RNase H unfolding on and off the ribosome, their results show that ribosomal interactions have little impact on the folding pathway of RNase H. These findings suggest that the ribosome itself does not necessarily rewire protein folding reactions.
Taming the Jabberwock: A Plain Redraft of Lewis Carroll's 1883 Publishing Contract

With the kind permission of the estate of Charles Dodgson (better known as Lewis Carroll), this article reproduces Dodgson's 1883 publishing contract for his "Alice in Wonderland" books and offers a plain-language redraft. The author found the original 1883 contract in an archive of Dodgson's personal papers in County Surrey, England, during an academic visitorship. Besides providing the original contract and a full redraft, the article offers a step-by-step analysis of selected provisions, exploring the thinking and technique behind user-centered documents. Featured drafting techniques include improving navigability with informative headings and subheadings; eliminating legalese; using vertical lists to break up dense text; and more. The discussion and methods reflect principles found in leading texts by Kenneth Adams, Bryan Garner, Joseph Kimble, and Tina Stark. The article would be a suitable supplement to those and other texts.
Surgical Ablative Treatment of Head and Neck Cancers

Principles of head and neck cancer extirpation weigh proper comprehensive resection with facial disfigurement and functional disorders. Preoperative assessment of tumor and nodal stages are essential to guide treatment. Management differs vastly based on the anatomic origin of the primary, which must be discussed on an individual basis. New advances including transoral laser microsurgery and transoral robotic surgery have allowed improved access with decreased surgical morbidity. In this chapter, we review the principles of head and neck cancer resection and provide an overview of various management options for each anatomical region of the head and neck.
R. Skidelsky's Study of J. M. Keynes is Based on the Many Myths About Keynes Told to Him by Joan Robinson

Practically all of R. Skidelsky’s views on Keynes’s General Theory are a reflection of the many myths about Keynes that Joan Robinson spread. Basically, these myths are figments of her imagination. For instance, one such myth about Keynes was that uncertainty for Keynes meant that all decision making over time takes place under conditions of complete and total uncertainty and ignorance. Therefore, there are no stable economic functions so that there can never be any equilibriums or equilibrium analysis. This means that the use of mathematics and statistics in economics is worthless. Of course, nowhere in anything written by Keynes in his life time did he state that uncertainty meant what Joan Robinson said it meant. Once this Robinsonian myth is accepted, then it results in the acceptance of the dozens of other myths spread by the mathematically and economically illiterate Joan Robinson about Keynes, based on the mistaken belief that she worked with Keynes on the writing of the General Theory. Joan Robinson never worked with Keynes on the writing of the General Theory because she did not have the necessary training in basic mathematics and economics to understand what he was talking about. Her understanding of Keynes comes directly from what she was told Keynes meant by Austin Robinson and Richard Kahn, both of whom completely failed to recognize Keynes’s IS-LP(LM) model of chapters 15 and 21 and Keynes’s D-Z model of chapter 20. The result is a completely fictitious claim by Skidelsky that Keynes’s theory of the rate of interest was a purely monetary theory in which the marginal efficiency of capital and the investment multiplier played no role in the determination of the rate of interest. Keynes’s summary of his model and critique on pp.298-306 is a complete and straightforward rejection of Skidelsky’s ‘Robinsonian’ Keynes. Robinson’s inability to do even sixth grade level, Introduction to Algebra, math is displayed in the September-November, 1936 exchanges between Keynes and Robinson over his liquidity preference function and his IS-LP(LM) model in CWJMK, volume 14, pp.134-148. Keynes’s conclusion is that her writings on liquidity preference were “nonsense”. Robert Skidelsky has incorrectly based his work on Keynes on Joan Robinson.
On the epistemological limits of “real food” discourse

As part of the wider discourse of “real food,” consumers today are exhorted to “know where their food comes from” and “know their farmers.” This paper presents a critical analysis of real food disc...
Placebo-controlled trial of bupropion for smoking cessation in pregnant women.

BACKGROUND Although a relatively small proportion of women who become pregnant continue to smoke cigarettes, no smoking cessation medication has been shown to be effective for this subgroup of smokers. Bupropion, a nonnicotine-based medication, is approved for the promotion of smoking cessation in nonpregnant individuals. We chose to study it in pregnant smokers because, although pregnancy increases nicotine metabolism, it does not affect the metabolism of bupropion. OBJECTIVE We evaluated the efficacy and safety of sustained-release bupropion for smoking cessation among pregnant women. STUDY DESIGN We conducted a multiple site, placebo-controlled, randomized clinical trial of bupropion for tobacco use among pregnant women (N=129) (clinical trial number NCT02188459). We enrolled women during the second trimester and randomly assigned them to receive 10 weeks of treatment with either bupropion or placebo, accompanied by a total of 6 smoking cessation counseling sessions (4 during treatment and 2 postpartum). The primary outcome was 7-day point prevalence smoking abstinence, confirmed with breath carbon monoxide measurements, at the end of treatment (week 10) and at week 24. Group differences were assessed as a binary abstinence outcome using a repeated measure generalized estimating equations model with a logit link. Prolonged abstinence and smoking rates were secondary outcomes. Safety measures included maternal treatment-related adverse events, gestational age, the rate of overall and spontaneous preterm births and infant birthweight and size for gestational age, head circumference, and 5-minute Apgar scores. RESULTS There were no significant differences in the safety measures across the treatment arms and bupropion was not efficacious in promoting smoking cessation at the end of treatment (7-day point prevalence quit rates: bupropion, 11.0%; placebo, 18.5%) or week 24 (7-day point prevalence quit rates: bupropion, 9.4%; placebo, 21.5%) (P>.05). African American women and women with a lower severity of nicotine dependence had significantly higher quit rates overall and women with an opioid use disorder who were being treated with opioid agonist therapy had significantly lower quit rates overall, irrespective of the treatment group (all P values CONCLUSION Although bupropion use was not associated with an elevated risk for pregnancy complications when initiated in the second trimester, it did not increase the likelihood of smoking cessation in this cohort of pregnant women. Because smoking is the major preventable source of poor pregnancy outcomes and psychosocial interventions have only modest beneficial effects, additional studies are needed to identify safe and efficacious smoking cessation medications for pregnant women who continue to smoke.
Parental knowledge is a contextual amplifier of associations of pubertal maturation and substance use

Earlier pubertal development and less parental knowledge have been linked to more substance use during adolescence. The present study examines interactions between pubertal timing and tempo and parental knowledge (children’s disclosure, parental control, and parental solicitation) for adolescent substance initiation. Data are from a northeastern US-based cohort-sequential study examining 1023 youth (52 % female) semiannually for up to 6 assessments (ages 10.5–19 years). The findings supported the hypothesis that lower knowledge is a contextual amplifier of early timing-substance use associations in girls and later timing/slower tempo-substance use associations in boys, though results varied based on source of knowledge. The findings suggest that prevention efforts may have the greatest impact when targeting families of early developing girls, and later developing boys, and that incorporating a focus on specific sources of knowledge depending on the pubertal maturation profile of the adolescent may prove valuable in prevention/intervention efforts.
Speculation or insider trading: Informed trading in options markets preceding tender offer announcements

In our sample of 305 cash tender offers occurring between 1993 and 1998, we find evidence that the options market has become the preferred trading venue for informed traders. Given this result, we analyze individual call option contracts for those tender offer targets with traded options, identifying the one optimal insider contract which maximizes the returns to insiders with perfect knowledge of a pending tender offer. This analysis allows us to test the competing market anticipation and insider trading theories of pre-bid stock price and volume run-ups using the trading patterns of options which should be preferred by insiders and those preferred by speculators. Our individual contract analysis is consistent with both theories as we find trading in both insider-preferred and speculator-preferred contracts drives aggregate call option volume run-ups. However, heavy trading in the optimal insider contract occurs on heavy volume days for all contracts. These results support the notion of Easley, O'Hara, and Srinivas (1998) that a substitution effect exists whereby informed traders prefer to trade in options markets when possible and that insiders will hide their trades within those of speculators.
Nectar: automatic management of data and computation in datacenters

Managing data and computation is at the heart of datacenter computing. Manual management of data can lead to data loss, wasteful consumption of storage, and laborious bookkeeping. Lack of proper management of computation can result in lost opportunities to share common computations across multiple jobs or to compute results incrementally.Nectar is a system designed to address the aforementioned problems. It automates and unifies the management of data and computation within a datacenter. In Nectar, data and computation are treated interchangeably by associating data with its computation. Derived datasets, which are the results of computations, are uniquely identified by the programs that produce them, and together with their programs, are automatically managed by a datacenter wide caching service. Any derived dataset can be transparently regenerated by reexecuting its program, and any computation can be transparently avoided by using previously cached results. This enables us to greatly improve datacenter management and resource utilization: obsolete or infrequently used derived datasets are automatically garbage collected, and shared common computations are computed only once and reused by others.This paper describes the design and implementation of Nectar, and reports on our evaluation of the system using analytic studies of logs from several production clusters and an actual deployment on a 240-node cluster.
Take My Advice—I Am Not Following It: Ad Hominem Arguments as Legitimate Rebuttals to Appeals to Authority

In this paper, I argue that ad hominem arguments are not always fallacious. More explicitly, in certain cases of practical reasoning, the circumstances of a person are relevant to whether or not the conclusion should be accepted. This occurs, I suggest, when a person gives advice to others or prescribes certain courses of action but fails to follow her own advice or act in accordance with her own prescriptions. This is not an instance of a fallacious tu quoque provided that such circumstantial ad hominem arguments are construed as rebuttals to appeals to (administrative) authority (of expertise), or so I argue.
Comparative efficacy of prophylactic cephalothin and cefamandole for elective colon surgery: Results of a prospective, randomized, double-blind study

Thirty-four patients undergoing elective colon resection or anastomosis received either intravenous cephalothin or cefamandole prophylactically and were observed for evidence of intraabdominal or wound infection, or both, postoperatively. The infection rates were 31 and 33 per cent, respectively. Infections were caused predominantly by cephalosporin resistant aerobes and anaerobes. All four bacteremias were caused by members of the B. fragilis group. The overall infection rate (32 per cent) and the frequency of anaerobic bacteremia (12 per cent) observed in this study were much higher than previously reported after cephalosporin prophylaxis for colorectal surgery.
The Effects of Ambient Temperature and Vehicle Load on a Diesel Powered Truck Cooling System Performance Using a Computer Simulation Program

A computer simulation model to predict the thermal responses of an on-highway heavy duty diesel truck in transient operation was used to study several important cooling system design and operating variables. The truck used in this study was an International Harvester COF-9670 cab-over-chassis vehicle equipped with a McCord radiator, Cummins NTC-350 diesel engine, Kysor fan-clutch and shutter system, aftercooler, and standard cab heater and cooling system components. Input data from several portions of a Columbus to Bloomington, Indiana route were used from the Vehicle Mission Simulation (VMS) program to determine engine and vehicle operating conditions for the computer simulation model. The thermostat-fan, thermostat-shutter-fan, and thermostat-winterfront-fan systems were studied. Investigations were conducted for ambient temperatures of -10, 32, 85, and 100 deg F, full- and half-vehicle load (72,000 and 36,000 1bm Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW)), and alternate routes of operation utilizing recent improvements in the model. The results show that the thermostat-shutter-fan system provides the best cooling system performance in terms of coolant temperature control, minimization of fan and thermostat operation, and provides adequate cab comfort over the range of vehicle operation and ambient temperatures.
Utilizing Rapid Prototyping for Architectural Modeling

This paper will discuss our approach to, success with and future direction in rapid prototyping for architectural modeling. The premise that this emerging technology has broad and exciting applications in the building design and construction industry will be supported by visual and physical evidence. This evidence will be presented in the form of photographs, video recordings and several models of student projects. Our approach to the future of this technology is discussed without a definitive conclusion, as despite our successes we remain in an exploratory mode regarding software, equipment and industry adoption.
Project highlight: GeoCollaborative crisis management

The major natural disasters that occurred in the last few months have shown the importance and necessity for collaborative, international crisis management. Current geoinformation technologies are potentially powerful tools for mitigation, preparation, response, and recovery tasks in crisis situations; however, they fail to support group work and have typically been designed without scientific understanding of how groups (or groups of groups) work in crisis management to collect, process, and use geospatial information. The GeoCollaborative Crisis Management (GCCM) project investigates how groups utilize geospatial technologies in crisis situations and uses findings to design novel, multimodal (speech and gesture-based), collaborative interfaces for geospatial technologies.
Glycerol Ester Hydrolase Activity of Lactic Acid Bacteria

Seventeen strains of lactic acid bacteria were assayed for their glycerol ester hydrolase activity by using an improved agar-well technique, and eight strains by determining the activity in cell-free extracts using a pH-stat procedure. All cultures tested showed activity and hydrolyzed tributyrin more actively than they did tricaproin. The cell extract studies demonstrated that the cells contained intracellular esterases and lipases. The culture supernatant fluid was without activity. The lipase and the esterase differed in their relative activity to each other in the different extracts and in the ease by which they could be freed from the cellular debris. It is suggested that the lipase of these organisms is an endoenzyme and the esterase an ectoenzyme.
‘The devil’s bargain’ Censorship, identity and the promise of empowerment in a prison newspaper

A free press is necessary for a healthy democracy but how can imprisoned journalists speak the truth to power? To answer that question, this article maps the development of an inmate newspaper over...
Thermal and structural characterization of selenium-rich As–Se fibers

Abstract Se-rich optical fibers have been drawn from As–Se-based preforms and their corresponding thermal properties have been analyzed. Micro-Raman spectroscopy has been used to characterize and compare the structure of the preform and the resulting fiber. The spectra show that the fibers possessing the same thermal properties as their corresponding preforms, exhibit similar structure while no evidence of crystallization, as assessed via X-ray diffraction analysis, could be detected.
The epidemiology of diabetic nephropathy

Many areas of information in the epidemiology of diabetic nephropathy are lacking, but multiple studies designed specifically to answer these questions are currently being conducted. In the next 5-10 years, our current understanding of the epidemiology of diabetic nephropathy may either be confirmed or discredited. In the meantime, clinicians should use the data available to make decisions about treatment and should focus on the modifiable factors of glucose and blood pressure control in both IDDM and NIDDM, especially in patients with low-level albuminuria or clinical proteinuria.
INHIBITION OF AEROBIC AND ANAEROBIC GROWTH OF STAPHYLOCOCCUS AUREUS IN A MODEL SAUSAGE SYSTEM

Sodium nitrite, potassium sorbate, and glycerol monolaurate all inhibited anaerobic growth of Staphylococcus aureus more than its aerobic growth in an agar-meat model sausage system, and all were more inhibitory when lactic acid was added. Whereas anaerobic growth of S. aureus was inhibited by concentrations of 100, 2500, and 2500 ppm, respectively, of nitrite, potassium sorbate, and glycerol monolaurate, corresponding concentrations of 150, 5000, and 5000 ppm were required to inhibit aerobic growth ((20 meq lactic acid added). Sorbic acid, a 3:1 mixture of sorbic acid and glycerol monolaurate by weight, and butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA), however, did not show differential inhibitory effects toward aerobic and anaerobic growth of S. aureus and also were more effective inhibitors with addition of lactic acid. Sorbic acid suppressed staphylococcal growth in the model sausage system at 500 ppm, the mixture of sorbic acid and glycerol monolaurate at 750 ppm, and BHA at 10,000 ppm (20 meq lactic acid added).
Recommendation and installation of retrofit measures in the Hood River Conservation Project

Abstract The Hood River Conservation Project (HRCP) is a major residential retrofit research and demonstration project. The project is being conducted in the community of Hood River, Oregon, will cost $21 million, and take three years (mid-1983 through 1986). HRCP's primary purpose is to determine the size and cost of conservation resources in existing homes in the Pacific Northwest. The project seeks to install as many cost-effective retrofit measures in as many electrically-heated homes as possible. HRCP offers a package of “super” retrofit measures and pays for installation of these measures up to a cost-effectiveness limit roughly four times that in other residential retrofit programs in the region. Thus, HRCP offers the chance to determine levels of retrofit installation when cost to the household and prior retrofit activities are largely eliminated as barriers. This paper documents the extent to which measures included in the Project are actually installed in participant homes. The paper also examines the reasons for noninstallation of measures — the barriers between potential and practice. Almost 90% of the measures recommended during HRCP energy audits were subsequently installed by the Project. However, almost half the measures hypothetically available in the HRCP package were neither recommended nor installed, generally because the measures were already partially or fully in place or because of physical barriers to installation.
Thermal acceptors in germanium

Abstract Thermal acceptors in germanium are identified as vacancies with an energy of formation 2 eV. The annealing of thermally introduced acceptors in germanium is described by a mechanism involving the formation of divacancies as the first step. The activation energy for the formation of a divacancy is 1.7 eV, consisting of a contribution of 0.96 eV from the activation energy for the diffusion of a vacancy and 0.7 eV from the long-range repulsion of two vacancies. The energy of formation and the binding energy of a divacancy are 1.1 and 2.9 eV, respectively. The diffusion coefficient of a divacancy possibly may be represented by Dvv = 0.1 exp(−2.2/kT) cm2sec−1. At dry-ice temperatures, a vacancy accepts one electron and a divacancy, four, while at room temperature these are one and two, respectively. The second step of the annealing process involves the formation of clusters of four, the activation energy for the formation of which is 2.8 eV. Further annealing may take place through the formation of clusters of higher order. The behavior of the model is compared with experiments reported by others, and it is shown to account for the slow rate of annealing as well as the initial increase in acceptor density often observed during annealing.
Size measurement of narrow distribution aerosols by the polarization ratio of 90° scattered light

Abstract The ratio of intensities of horizontal (in the scattering plane) and vertical polarization components of 90° scattered light is considered to be an accurate means for determining the particle size of monodisperse aerosols in the 0.1 to 0.4 μm size range. Numerical analysis and experimental results presented here show that polarization ratio depends strongly on particle size (α) and that a polarization ratio Owl used with a calibration curve based on perfectly monodisperse aerosols yields a diameter of average polarization ratio which may be up to 18% larger than the CMD for aerosols that are not perfectly monodisperse but that meet the criteria for monodispersity suggested by Fuchs and Sutugin (1966), i.e. σ g ≤ 1.22. For precise measurement of log normally distributed aerosols, σ g must be ≤ 1.10 to ensure that the size measured with the Owl is within 5% of the CMD.
Experimental and theoretical approaches to understanding two-photon absorption spectra in polymethine and squaraine molecules

We performed a detailed experimental investigation and quantum-chemical analysis of two-photon absorption (2PA) spectra of a series of symmetrical cationic polymethines and neutral squaraines having similar structures. Degenerate 2PA spectra of these molecules are taken by using two-photon fluorescence spectroscopy and the Z-scan technique. All measurements are made with 150 fs laser pulses of 1 kHz repetition rate in the tuning range of 520-2100 nm(0.6-2.4 eV). Comparing 2PA spectra of polymethines and squaraines, we find that we can access considerably larger 2PA cross sections (≥8600×10−50 cm4s/photon) in the squaraines owing to narrower linear absorption spectra and an increase in the density of unoccupied molecular orbitals introduced by the squaraine acceptor group in the conjugated chain.
Non homologous end joining-mediated DNA break repair is impaired in B lymphocytes of aging mice

Aging is an irreversible physiological process characterized by increased risk of diseases, reduced effectiveness of vaccines, and decreased immune responses. One of the most prominent paradigms of aging and age related conditions is the progressive accumulation of un-repaired DNA breaks leading to apoptosis and exhaustion of stem cells. Here we hypothesized that B lymphocytes from old mice have reduced DNA repair mechanisms as a contributing factor for DNA break accumulation. We analyzed class switch recombination (CSR) of naive B lymphocytes from old and adult mice to delineate the DNA double strand repair mechanisms during aging. In vitro CSR assays and DNA break analysis by labeling phosphorylated histone H2AX showed that old mice had significantly reduced DNA repair efficiency following DNA breaks. Functional efficiency analysis of DNA break repairs using plasmid ligation method showed that B lymphocytes from old mice had poor repair efficiency and increased misrepair of linear plasmid. Diminished DNA repair in old age can contribute to reduced immune cell repertoire and impaired immunity; increased occurrence of cancer; and reduced stem cell reserve.
A family of kurtosis orderings for multivariate distributions

In this paper, a family of kurtosis orderings for multivariate distributions is proposed and studied. Each ordering characterizes in an affine invariant sense the movement of probability mass from the ''shoulders'' of a distribution to either the center or the tails or both. All even moments of the Mahalanobis distance of a random vector from its mean (if exists) preserve a subfamily of the orderings. For elliptically symmetric distributions, each ordering determines the distributions up to affine equivalence. As applications, the orderings are used to study elliptically symmetric distributions. Ordering results are established for three important families of elliptically symmetric distributions: Kotz type distributions, Pearson Type VII distributions, and Pearson Type II distributions.
Adhesive wear of nickel- and cobalt-base alloys

Abstract Metal-to-metal wear tests of commercial nickel- and cobalt-base alloys were conducted under unlubricated conditions. The effect of various factors such as load, speed, sliding distance and surface finish on wear volumes and coefficient of friction were studied. In general the wear volumes increased linearly with sliding distance and load. Types of surface finish had virtually no effect on wear or coefficient of friction. In cobalt-base alloys wear volumes increased rapidly at high rotational speeds whereas in nickel-base alloys wear volumes decreased at high rotational speeds. These findings are discussed with reference to existing wear theories.
The wear kinetics of NaCl under dry nitrogen and at low humidities

NaCl step edges are worn under repetitive scanning by an atomic force microscope tip. The change in the wear rate when either the mechanical load on the tip or the NaCl substrate temperature is changed is well described by a thermal activation model. Two principal kinetic parameters, the activation volume and the activation energy, are extracted. The effect of low relative humidities on wear is also studied. It is found that at relative humidities (RH) less than ∼12%, the wear rate was enhanced with respect to wear under dry nitrogen. At RH > 12%, the wear rate is suppressed.
586 Impact of the Number of Blood Pressure Medications on the Outcome of Heart Transplant Recipients

Purpose: Hypertension is common in heart transplant recipients due to the effects of calcineurin inhibitor immunosuppression, and often patients require multiple medications to control blood pressure (BP). The purpose of the current study was to determine if there is an association between the number of BP medications and outcomes after heart transplantation and if a particular BP medication offered significant benefit in long term outcomes. Methods and Materials: We evaluated 558 patients transplanted between 1994 and 2008. Patients were divided into groups based on the number of BP medications taken at 6 months to 2 years post transplant (0 BP meds, N 199; 1 BP med, N 268; 2 BP meds, N 54; 3 BP meds, N 37). The following 5-year outcomes were assessed: survival, freedom from cardiac allograft vasculopathy (CAV, any stenosis 30%), and freedom from non-fatal major adverse cardiac events (NF-MACE, myocardial infarction, heart failure, coronary intervention, defibrillator, stroke, and new peripheral vascular disease). Outcomes were compared for patients on beta blockers, calcium channel blockers, ACE Inhibitors, and angiotensin II receptor blockers. Results: Patients on 3 BP medications exhibited a trend toward lower 5-year survival compared to patients with 0,1, or 2 BP medications (70% in 3 BP meds vs. 82%, 82%, 85% in 0, 1, 2 BP meds respectively, p 0.06). Subsequent freedom from CAV and NF-MACE were similar between groups. Over half of the patients were maintained on the anti-hypertensive medication for the subsequent 5-year follow up. There was no difference in outcome for the use of any particular class of BP medication. Specifically, ACE inhibitors did not reduce angiographic CAV as previously reported. Conclusions: Patients requiring three or more BP medications demonstrate a trend towards worse survival. The number of required BP medications is likely a marker for poorly controlled BP, and emphasizes the importance of risk factor modification in heart transplant recipients.
Skin biopsies in veterinary dermatology

Skin biopsies are an important diagnostic tool in veterinary dermatology. Used appropriately, they can make or confirm a definitive diagnosis or at least guide the clinician in the right direction (e.g. hypersensitivity, endocrinopathy). Sadly, they are all too often performed because the clinician is unsure what to do next and so chooses what is perceived to be the ‘best’ and ‘most comprehensive’ test. In such cases, the patient should perhaps first be referred to a veterinary dermatologist.
QUENCHING OF THE EXCITED STATES OF 2‐PHENYLBENZOXAZOLE BY AZIDE ANION. FLUORESCENCE AND ESR STUDY

Electron spin resonance, spin-trapping and fluorescence techniques demonstrate that 2-phenylbenzoxazole (P) participates in photo-induced reactions with alcohols and electron donors like the azide ion. Irradiation of Pat 300 nm in deaerated ethanol produces ethoxyl and hydroxyethyl radicals which can be detected with the spin trap, 5,5-dimethyl-l-pyrroline-l-oxide (DMPO). However, irradiation of P in the presence of N-3 leads to the appearance of the azide radical, N-3, which also reacts with DMPO. Studies with the nitroxyl radical, 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine-l-oxyl (TEMPO), suggest that electron transfer from the azide anion to an excited state of P yields the semi-reduced sensitizer, P-, which in turn reacts with TEMPO. The effect of sodium azide upon the fluorescence intensity and lifetime of P in aqueous ethanol has also been studied.
The origin and development of the acidity function

The acidity function is a thermodynamic quantitative measure of acid strength for non-aqueous and concentrated aqueous Bronsted acids, with acid strength being defined as the extent to which the acid protonates a base of known basicity. The acidity function, which was developed, both theoretically and experimentally, by Louis P. Hammett of Columbia University during the 1930s, has proven useful in the area of physical organic chemistry where it has been used to correlate rates of acid-catalyzed reactions and to quantitate the acidity of superacids, acids with protonating abilities greater than pure sulfuric acid. All Bronsted acids can now be compared using a common measure. Karl Popper’s seminal idea of theory falsification does not apply here because of the many successful applications of the acidity function. Likewise, Thomas Kuhn’s idea of a paradigm shift does not apply here, even though the acidity function concept was revolutionary, because the acidity function is commensurate with classical concepts of acidity.
Comparison of data reduction techniques based on SVM classifier and SVR performance

In this work, we applied several data compression techniques to simulated data and the Turbofan engine degradation simulation data set from NASA, with the goal of comparing their performance when coupled with the Support Vector Machine (SVM) classifier and the SVM regression (SVR) predictor. We consistently attained correct rates in the neighborhood of 90% for simulated data set, with the Principal Component Analysis (PCA), Sparse Reconstruction by Separable Approximation (SpaRSA) and Partial Least Squares (PLS) having a slight edge over the other data reduction methods for data classification. We achieved 22% error rate with SRM for the Turbofan data set 1 and 40% error rate with PCA for Turbofan data set 2. Throughout the tests we have performed, PCA proved to be the best data reduction method.
Adatom vacancies on the Si(111)-(7 × 7) surface

Abstract The structures, energies and electronic properties of the adatom vacancies on the Si(111)-(7×7) surface are studied by tight-binding molecular dynamics calculations using the recently developed environment-dependent potential of silicon. Adatom vacancies on the edge of the (7×7) unit cell are found to have formation energies lower than those on the corner of the unit cell by about 0.1 eV. Structure relaxation induced by the vacancies is found to be significant. Localized electronic states associated with the vacancies are also observed at energy about 0.5 eV below the Fermi energy level.
Robust tracking of human body parts for collaborative human computer interaction

Visual analysis and tracking of human motion in a video sequence is very useful and was motivated by a wide spectrum of applications for example, surveillance and human computer interaction. The ability to track multiple people and their body parts (i.e., face and hands) in a complex environment is crucial for designing a collaborative natural human computer interaction (HCI). One of the most challenging issue in this context is detecting and tracking body parts of multiple people robustly in an unconstrained environment. More specific problem arises during tracking multiple body parts is the data association uncertainty while assigning measurements to the proper tracks in case of occlusion and close interaction of body parts. This paper describes a framework for tracking body parts (hands and faces) of multiple people in 2D/3D in an unconstrained environment. We use a probabilistic model to fuse the color and motion information to localize the body parts and employ multiple hypothesis tracking (MHT) algorithm to track these features simultaneously. In real world scenes, extracted features usually contains spurious measurements which create unconvincing trajectories and needless computations. To deal with this problem we incorporated a path coherence function along with MHT to reduce the number of hypotheses which in turn reduce the computational cost and improve the structure of the trajectories. The performance of the framework has been validated using experiments on synthetic and real sequence of images.