cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Temperature Dependence of the Raman, Brillouin and Rayleigh Scattering by Crystalline Quartz

Crystalline quartz undergoes a phase transition at 573°C from its low temperature (α) phase with point symmetry D3 to its high temperature (β) phase with point symmetry D6. At the transition temperature there are anomalous changes in many of its properties [1]. In 1956, Yakovlev et al. [2] reported that as quartz underwent its transition it exhibited opalescence very similar to the critical opalescence observed in a liquid-vapor transition. Almost concurrently, Ginzburg[3] applied Landau’s theory of second order phase transitions to quartz and was able to calculate the increase in the intensity of light scattered at the transition temperature, which was in agreement with Yakovlev’s experiment. Ginzburg also predicted that the order parameter used to describe the quartz transition would be connected with one branch of the optic vibrations. The frequency of this mode should go to zero as the transition temperature is approached, while the fluctuations of the order parameter become very large; thus the intensity of the scattered light should increase. Early experiments [4] indicated that the mode exhibiting this behavior was the Raman active vibration with a frequency of 207 cm−1 at room temperature.
The Architecture of Health Care Markets: Economic Sociology and Antitrust Law

Why an economic sociology of health care markets? Surprisingly, while neoclassical economics has well-developed models of competition, it has a fairly impoverished understanding of markets. If economists treat the firm as a black box, the same is equally true of the market. Without a better theory of health care markets and how public and private elements interact, judges will be constrained in their ability to formulate workable antitrust policy, and legislators will be constrained in their ability to formulate a more rational competition policy. Much of my past work has sought answers to these questions looking, as an economist and antitrust lawyer, from the inside out. This essay is an effort to examine health care markets from the outside in, through the lens of economic sociology, rather than traditional economic theory. The principal aid in this process will be Neil Fligstein's book, "The Architecture of Markets: An Economic Sociology of Twenty-First-Century Capitalist Societies". The analysis proceeds as follows: Drawing upon Fligstein's insights, Part II highlights four general fallacies of neoclassical economic understandings of markets (fallacies, at least, from a sociological perspective). Part III uses the tools of economic sociology to construct an architecture of health care markets. Part IV considers the implications of the foregoing on three issues that are significant to the future of medical antitrust law: What are the implications for efforts to construct a competition policy in health care? What are the implications for efforts to better cultivate dynamic efficiency? Finally, what are the implications of economic sociology for the antitrust state action immunity doctrine, the principal tool courts use to police the boundary between the public and private sides of economic markets?
A low-cost socially assistive robot and robot-assisted intervention for children with autism spectrum disorder: field trials and lessons learned

Recent research has employed socially assistive robots as catalysts for social interaction and improved communication in young children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Studies describe observed therapeutic outcomes such as increased speech, social interaction, joint and directed attention, but few detail a robot-inclusive protocol which evaluates a set of robot tasks using widely-accepted, clinical assessments to evaluate the efficacy of the approach. In this study, we employed a low-cost, toy-like robot prototype with safety features such as a snap-off head and two snap-off arms, a camera for face, hand detection and session recording, two autonomous games and a teleoperated mode. We then developed and tested a new, robot-assisted intervention. Eight study participants and three controls diagnosed with ASD and a speech deficiency were recruited. The study group received pre-, post-intervention measures with the Vineland Adaptive Behavioral Scale II (VABS-II), mean length spontaneous utterance determination (MLSUD), motor imitation scale (MIS), unstructured imitation assessment (UIA) and Expressive Vocabulary Test 2 (EVT-2) and participated in twelve 30 min interventions. To explore the efficacy of the robot and new robot-assisted intervention we (1) measured improvements in spontaneous speech, communication and social skills using standard measures of performance, (2) compared improvements observed with a study group receiving the robot-assisted intervention with a control group receiving speech therapy but no robot-assisted intervention and, (3) validated a set of robot behaviors that may inform an integrated, cross-platform, approach for incorporating an autonomous, robot-assisted ASD intervention within a clinical methodology. Paired-samples t test results indicate significantly improved adaptive functioning in the VABS-II socialization and communication domains, MLSUD, UIA Social Interaction, UIA Requesting, and UIA Joint Attention domains. Between-group analyses also suggest significant improvement in VABS-II Play and Leisure, Receptive Language subdomains and trends in VABS-II Coping Skills and Interpersonal Scale subdomains.
Operating Experience of General Electric Gas Turbines

A review is made of all General Electric Company Gas Turbines installed and operated previous to January 1, 1958. The gas turbines are reviewed with respect to application, fuels burned, fired hours, and miscellaneous features. Each different basic design is briefly described, with date of first operation and total number installed given. Gas turbine failures that have occurred in operation are discussed.Availability, reliability, and use factors are given. A brief review of published articles by gas turbine owners and operators is made. Problems that have occurred in eight and one-half years of operation are discussed, and solutions are given. Maintenance requirements and life of gas-path parts are discussed.A brief description of future activity, new basic designs, new features, and new installations is included.Copyright © 1958 by ASME
Mixer/ejector noise suppressors

Noise regulations wiU require older airplanes to w noise suppresson to operate in and out of some major airports. Ejector schemes provide a simple means OF reducing jet noise by mixing high velocity exhaust gases with cool ambient air. Ideally, Uw Iwer mbed exhaust velocities provide a Uuust gain while reducing jet noise. In the pars weight and performance penalties resulting from mixing inefficicnces, limited the application of such ejector systems. This paper dacnbeJ developments inejec:OK which increase lhcir atuacrivtness for suppressor application New data is presented on using low loss, mixer lobes to improve ejector efficiencies. Model test data is presented which s h w that properly deslgned mberlejecton perfom at near ideal prediction levels. Also. the optimum mbring duct lengths of such devices have a length to diameter ratio of one or less. This means that mixer/ejector exhaust components can provide a light, compact jet noise suppressor for aircraft operation Engine test stand data for an optimized mlrer/ejector exhaust supprasor is presented. The test data shows that the mbr.r/ejector suppressor provides design nokc reduction with a 5% thrust gain a: static takeoff conditions.
Quantitative analysis of gibberellins in plant tissues by GPC-HPLC-LC / MS

We developed a protocol to determine the contents of gibberellins( GAs) in various plant tissues,such as Populus euphratica leaves,Nicotiana tabacum plantlets,and germinated green beans( Vigna radiata). GAs samples were purified with gel permeation chromatography( GPC),confirmed by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry( LC-MS),and quantified by high performance liquid chromatography( HPLC). Plant samples were ground with 80% methanol and extracted at 4 ℃ overnight. Crude extract was filtrated and then centrifuged at 5 000 r / min for 20 min. Two drops of ammonia were added to the liquid sample which was concentrated to aqueous phase,then frozen,thawed and centrifuged. Upper liquids were re-extracted with ethyl acetate at p H 2. 5- 3. 0( × 3),and purified by Sep-pak C18 columns. The samples were resolved by 5% methanol-CH2Cl2 and filtrated through 0. 22 μm filter. Then samples were purified through GPC and GAs fluid was collected for subsequent quantification. GAs in the GPC-purified samples was quantified with HPLC by means of external standard curves. The gibberellins detected in plant tissues were confirmed with LC-MS. The result showed that the GA3 content was1 162. 789 8 ng / g FW in poplar leaves,920. 906 7 ng / g FW in tobacco leaves and 700. 923 6 ng / g FW in germinated green beans.
Pharmacologic interruption of the renin-angiotensin system and the kidney: differential responses to angiotensin-converting enzyme and renin inhibition

Pharmacologic interruption of the renin-angiotensin system has played a crucial role in determining its contribution to physiology, pathophysiology, and has made an enormous contribution to therapeutics. Despite this record of success, no pharmacologist would have chosen the angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) step for pharmacologic blockade. As renin is rate-limiting in the cascade and has remarkable specificity for its substrate, renin inhibition would have made a far more attractive target. Indeed, evidence reviewed in this article supports this case. A renin inhibitor developed to block rat renin produced a larger reduction in plasma angiotensin II concentration than did two ACE inhibitors at the top of their dose-response relationship. In humans, renin inhibition led to a larger increase in renal plasma flow in healthy human volunteers studied on a low salt diet to activate the renin system than did ACE inhibitors. Again, the studies used doses in each case at the top of the dose-response relationships for renal hemodynamics. Because the response to AT1 receptor blockade was very similar to the response induced by renin inhibitors, the results suggest that both classes of agent acted via their influence on the renin system. Moreover, the data suggest that 30 to 40% of angiotensin II formation influencing the kidney in the healthy human during renin system activation is formed via renin-dependent, but ACE-independent, pathways. These findings have potentially important therapeutic implications, and certainly help to justify the major therapeutic trials now ongoing and planned.
Increased Frequency of Hormone Negative and Polyhormonal Endocrine Cells in Lean Individuals With Type 2 Diabetes

Context: It has been suggested that beta cell loss in type 2 diabetes (T2D) may be due to beta cell degranulation and/or altered cell identity. While shown to have a minor role in obese T2D, this has not been evaluated in lean T2D. Objective: To establish the contribution of altered beta cell identity in lean T2D and, using a rodent model of lean T2D, whether changes in beta cell identity precede hyperglycemia. Design, Setting, and Participants: We investigated the frequency of chromogranin A positive hormone negative (CPHN) and polyhormonal endocrine cells in pancreas from 10 lean nondiabetic and 10 lean T2D subjects and in pancreas from wild-type and human IAPP transgenic rats at the prediabetic and diabetic stages. Results: CPHN cells and polyhormonal-expressing cells were comparably increased in lean T2D and human IAPP transgenic rats, in the latter both before and at onset of diabetes. However, the extent of these cells could only account for approximately 2% of beta cell loss. Conclusion: Degranulat...
Lupus and Lupus Overlap Diseases: Emerging Therapies

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is the prototypical systemic autoimmune disease and is characterized by a clinical course of flares and remissions. The etiology of the disease is unknown and presumed to be due to genetic, hormonal, and environmental factors. After a long preclinical course, the disease manifests with the production of an array of autoantibodies, activation of the complement system, and immune cells that accumulate in target tissues, such as the kidneys. The ensuing flare is to this date managed with a variety of nonspecific immune-suppressive medications, including corticosteroids. New insights in the pathogenesis of SLE has allowed for primarily preclinical studies of new targeted therapies in SLE that are herein discussed.
p27Kip1, a cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor, might be a marker of choice for preclinical in vitro screening of nutritional and chemopreventive anti-breast cancer agents.

A214 Background: A marker for preclinical in vitro screening of potential nutritional and chemopreventive anti-breast cancer agents must be efficient and reliable. p27(Kip1) is a cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor and, when up-regulated, p27 inhibits G1-to-S phase transition of the cell cycle, thereby inhibiting DNA replication and cell division. In this study, we investigated whether p27 could be a useful marker for preclinical in vitro screening of nutritional and chemopreventive anti-breast cancer agents. Methods: Human breast cancer (MCF7, MDA-MB-321, and AU565) and mouse epidermal (JB6) cells were transfected with luciferase reporter plasmid containing proximal 59-upstream region of p27 gene and then exposed to various nutritional and chemopreventive anti-breast cancer agents. Results: The results presented in the first half of this report show that various nutritional and chemopreventive anti-breast cancer agents fairly faithfully up-regulated synthesis of p27 in human breast cancer (MCF7, MDA-MB-321, AU565) and mouse epidermal (JB6) cells. Up-regulation appeared to be specific to p27 because synthesis of cyclin D1, E, and A, and p21Cip1/Waf1 was not modulated by these agents. Up-regulation of p27 is likely due to activation of translation rather than transcription of p27 because (a) up-regulation was mediated by the 59-untranslated region (-575) of the p27 gene and (b) the antibiotic actinomycin D, an inhibitor of transcription, did not attenuate the up-regulation of the synthesis of p27. The results, presented in the second half of this report, was obtained using the 59-untranslated region (-575) of p27 gene. The evidence suggested that cancer preventive agents up-regulate the synthesis of p27 by at least four different molecular signaling pathways: (a) Caloric restriction is likely to up-regulate the synthesis of p27 via 59-AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK; a metabolic energy sensor or cellular fuel gauge), tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC), and mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR). Amino acid deficiencies also up-regulate the synthesis of p27 using some components of this pathway. (b) 4-Hydroxytamoxifen (but not tamoxifen), genistein (but not genistin), daidzein, and probably other nutritional and chemopreventive anti-cancer agents up-regulate the synthesis of p27 via receptor protein tyrosine kinases (RPTKs), phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K), phosphoinosite-dependent kinase (PDK), Akt/PKB and mTOR. (c) The synthesis of p27 is also up-regulated via RPTKs followed by MAPKs - MEK, ERK and p38MAPK - and probably MNK. Finally, (d) global hypomethylation of 59-m 7 G cap of mRNAs also up-regulates the synthesis of p27. Conclusion: Based on these findings, we conclude that p27 might be a marker of choice for preclinical in vitro screening of potential nutritional and chemopreventive anti-breast cancer agents.
Continuous Transformations of Subdivided Periodic Surfaces

A unified morphological method for generating subdivisions of periodic surfaces is presented. The surfaces are characterized by symmetry, frequency, and the topology of subdivision. An open-ended h...
Likelihood of voting outcomes with generalized IAC probabilities

Abstract After determining all supporting profiles with any number of voters for any specified three-candidate pairwise majority vote outcome, a new, large class of “octahedral” probability distributions, motivated by and including IAC, is introduced to examine various three-candidate voting outcomes involving majority vote outcomes. Illustrating examples include computing each distribution’s likelihood of a majority vote cycle and the likelihood that the Borda Count and Condorcet winners agree. Surprisingly, computations often reduce to a simple exercise of finding the volumes of tetrahedrons.
Longitudinal optical monitoring of blood flow in breast tumors during neoadjuvant chemotherapy

We measure tissue blood flow markers in breast tumors during neoadjuvant chemotherapy and investigate their correlation to pathologic complete response in a pilot longitudinal patient study (n = 4). Tumor blood flow is quantified optically by diffuse correlation spectroscopy (DCS), and tissue optical properties, blood oxygen saturation, and total hemoglobin concentration are derived from concurrent diffuse optical spectroscopic imaging (DOSI). The study represents the first longitudinal DCS measurement of neoadjuvant chemotherapy in humans over the entire course of treatment; it therefore offers a first correlation between DCS flow indices and pathologic complete response. The use of absolute optical properties measured by DOSI facilitates significant improvement of DCS blood flow calculation, which typically assumes optical properties based on literature values. Additionally, the combination of the DCS blood flow index and the tissue oxygen saturation from DOSI permits investigation of tissue oxygen metabolism. Pilot results from four patients suggest that lower blood flow in the lesion-bearing breast is correlated with pathologic complete response. Both absolute lesion blood flow and lesion flow relative to the contralateral breast exhibit potential for characterization of pathological response. This initial demonstration of the combined optical approach for chemotherapy monitoring provides incentive for more comprehensive studies in the future and can help power those investigations.
Adsorption Calculations Using the Film Model Approximation for Intraparticle Mass Transfer

An approximate rate equation based on a film-model representation of diffusional mass transfer has been developed to describe the kinetics of multicomponent adsorption. The model describes mass transfer as a pseudo-steady state diffusion process through a flat film of thickness equal to one fifth of the particle radius. The flux relationships are integrated across the film yielding analytical expressions for the rate of mass transfer in a multicomponent adsorption system. The usefulness of the film model approximation is tested by carrying out calculations for three different practical adsorption systems: the adsorption of n-pentane and n-heptane mixtures on NaCaA zeolite discussed by Marutovsky and Bulow (1987); the adsorption of air in molecular sieve RS-10 discussed by Farooq et al. (1993); and the separation of air in a kinetically-controlled nitrogen PSA process discussed by Farooq and Ruthven (1990) and Sundaram and Yang (1998). In each case, the film model approximation predicts the expected trends accounting for the coupling of diffusion fluxes in the adsorbed phase.
eSport management: Embracing eSport education and research opportunities

Abstract Consumer demand for eSport and the growth of organized video game competitions has generated considerable attention from the sport, event, and entertainment industries. eSport therefore represents a novel and popular area for sport management academics to conduct research, educate students, and service industry. However, despite growth and acceptance by consumers and practitioners, academics debate eSport’s position within the domain of sport management, their debates largely concentrated around the question of whether eSport can be classified as sport. In this article, the authors argue for the inclusion of organized eSport events and competitions within sport management vis-a-vis eSport’s meeting certain defining criteria of sport in general. eSport’s connection to traditional sport and defining characteristics are addressed to support eSport’s role as a sport entertainment product recognized by industry as representing a substantial growth opportunity for sport and related organizations. As eSport continues to evolve, practitioners face managerial challenges that are similar to those in traditional sport, particularly in areas of governance and diversity. Sport management academics should embrace the potential of eSport in order to examine this evolution and provide guidance to industry through education and research.
Recent Advances in Neurogenic Hypertension: Dietary Salt, Obesity, and Inflammation.

Neurogenic hypertension has been a fixture in the hypertension literature for well over half a century. Early reports documented an increase in arterial blood pressure (ABP) after manipulation of baroreceptor afferent nerve signaling, so the hypertension was clearly of neural origin. Today, neurogenic hypertension often refers to a sympathetically driven increase in ABP.1 However, it could also refer to increased ABP caused by hormonal outputs of the brain or even any form of hypertension that involves neural signaling. Neurogenic hypertension applies whether the true origin of the hypertension is neural (ie, the primary underlying issue is in the brain or in afferent or efferent nerves) or the origin is non-neural but results in neurally mediated increase in ABP. This is a distinction worth making, as the causative factors are quite distinct. Indeed, the term neurogenic hypertension may encompass too much and relate forms of hypertension that share little in terms of pathogenic mechanism or common mechanistic output. Even if one considers a limited definition of neurogenic hypertension as hypertension resulting from increased sympathetic drive to the cardiovascular system, this could result from an increased activity (or increased relative normal for the given physiological conditions) of different sympathetic nerves with different targets (ie, the sympathetic signature).2 Yet, what factor(s) increase sympathetic nerve activity (SNA) or enhance neurotransmitter release from sympathetic terminals? If, for example, a circulating substance derived from a certain tissue acted on the brain (or afferent or efferent neurons) to produce a pattern of sympathetic outflow resulting in hypertension, would the hypertension be neurogenic (ie, of neural origin) or neurally mediated hypertension? Nonetheless, primary alterations in neural function can result in hypertension, that is, true neurogenic hypertension. Indeed, several recent advances in understanding central neural control of cardiovascular function have focused on hypertension resulting from specific manipulations …
Association of the nurse work environment with nurse incivility in hospitals.

Aim To determine whether nurse coworker incivility is associated with the nurse work environment, defined as organisational characteristics that promote nurse autonomy. Background Workplace incivility can negatively affect nurses, hospitals and patients. Plentiful evidence documents that nurses working in better nurse work environments have improved job and health outcomes. There is minimal knowledge about how nurse coworker incivility relates to the United States nurse work environment. Methods Quantitative, cross-sectional. Data were collected through online surveys of registered nurses in a southwestern United States health system. The survey content included the National Quality Forum-endorsed Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index and the Workplace Incivility Scale. Data analyses were descriptive and correlational. Results Mean levels of incivility were low in this sample of 233 staff nurses. Incivility occurred ‘sporadically’ (mean = 0.58; range 0.00–5.29). The nurse work environment was rated highly (mean = 3.10; range of 1.00–4.00). The nurse work environment was significantly inversely associated with coworker incivility. The nurse manager qualities were the principal factor of the nurse work environment associated with incivility. Conclusions Supportive nurse managers reduce coworker incivility. Implications for Nursing Management Nurse managers can shape nurse work environments to prevent nurse incivility.
Role and Effectiveness of Public Distribution System in India

This paper highlights agricultural productivity and the food security through public distribution system in a brief manner. Agricultural sector is the backbone of the country’s development and sustenance for 65 per cent of the population in rural areas and approximately more than 58 per cent of the population is still dependent on agriculture. Besides this, to achieve an ambitious rate of growth for the country of as high as 9-10 per cent in the Eleventh Five Year Plan, the country needs a strong pull-up support to agriculture sector which should grow at least at the rate of 4 per cent per annum, all the more, since in 2015-16 the growth in agriculture was merely 8.7 per cent which is feared to go even negative next year. The problems of Public Distribution System have not been uniform in the country. In some states the administration is weak and corrupt. In these states deficiencies regarding huge shortage of stocks, fake supply entries in ration cards, diversion of commodities for sale to open market and bogus ration cards are noted. The paper concludes that globally there is enough food for all and that inequitable access and mismanagement is the main problem for food insecurity. To sum up, technical and policy reforms should be sure. Banking and Information technologies have superior rapidly and should permit governments to bring transparency and pace in all applications without extra expenses. In addition, computerization can help in modernizing the PDS. A number of states are already innovating in PDS execution, and improved performance can be seen in some cases. Although the introduction of modern tools such as smart cards may not be a panacea for all the evils, it can solve many of the problems particularly that of pilferage and spurious beneficiaries. They are like low hanging fruits which can be picked up easily.
A simple all-time model for the birth, big bang, and death of the universe

We model the standard ΛCDM model of the universe by the spatially flat FLRW line element dsΛCDM2 = −c2dt2 + 8πGρm,0 Λc22/3 sinh 1 23Λct4/3dσ Euclid2 which we extend for all time t ∈ (−∞,∞). Although there is a cosmological singularity at the big bang t = 0, since the spatial part of the metric collapses to zero, nevertheless, this line element is defined for all time t ∈ (−∞,∞), is C∞ for all t≠0, is C1 differentiable at t = 0, and is non-degenerate and solves Friedmann’s equation for all t≠0. Thus, we can use this extended line element to model the universe from its past-asymptotic initial state dS4− at t = −∞, through the big bang at t = 0, and onward to its future-asymptotic final state dS4+ at t = ∞. Since in this model the universe existed before the big bang, we conclude that (1) the universe was not created de novo at the big bang and (2) cosmological singularities such as black holes or the big bang itself need not be an end to spacetime. Our model shows that the universe was asymptotically created de novo out of nothing at t = −∞ from an unstable vacuum negative half de Sitter dsdS4−2 initial state and then dies asymptotically at t = ∞ as the stable positive half de Sitter dsdS4+2 final state. Since the de Sitter states are vacuum matter states, our model shows that the universe was created from nothing at t = −∞ and dies at t = ∞ to nothing.
An investment risk assessment of microgrid utilities for rural electrification using the stochastic techno-economic microgrid model: A case study in Rwanda

Access to electricity is a key enabler of social and economic development. However, 1.2 billion people still do not benefit from reliable electricity services. Microgrids have been proposed as a cost-effective means to accelerate access for communities located far from existing grid infrastructure. Scarcity of capital has been a barrier to both on-grid and off-grid electrification efforts and governments have sought private sector participation in an effort to close this gap. There is a lack of quantitative analysis to critically evaluate the key drivers of risk in microgrid utilities, or how different business models and technologies affect the potential for these projects to attract finance and scale up deployment. This paper introduces the Stochastic Techno-Economic Microgrid Model (STEMM), which enables assessment of the effect of technical design decisions as well as financial conditions on the financial viability of microgrid projects from an investment perspective. Using STEMM, this paper presents a risk analysis of the key uncertain variables affecting microgrid investments to both debt and equity investors using four technology scenarios as case studies in Rwanda. We find that major contributors to risk are fuel price volatility, uncertain electricity demand, and foreign exchange risk for investments in hard currency. Choice of technology strongly influences the risk profile of microgrids, with solar powered microgrids susceptible to demand uncertainty and diesel-based systems exposed to fuel price volatility. Hybrid solutions provide a middle ground with partial mitigation of both fuel price and demand risk. If electricity tariffs are linked to changes in fuel price, fuel price risk can be effectively passed to consumers.
Evolution of a safe and effective management protocol for velopharyngeal incompetence: Seeking good speech without airway compromise

Objective: To document an evidence based evolution of VPI management over an 18 year period with the goal of optimizing speech while minimizing complications and need for re-operation. Design: An institutional review board approved, retrospective 18-year single surgeon, single-center series of 370 patients undergoing surgery for velopharyngeal incompetence (VPI). Methods: A review of our database between the years of 1997 and 2015 identified 370 patients who underwent surgical procedures for VPI. Records were reviewed for types of procedures performed each year. Procedures were evaluated for safety and efficacy as regards to speech outcome. The study population was divided into an earlier period (1997–2009) and a later period (2010–2015). Results: We demonstrated a reduction in the use of airway obstructive procedures such as sphincter pharyngoplasty from 25.2% of VPI surgeries in the early period to 10.4% in the late period. There has been a progressive shift toward more physiologic procedures such as re-repair with intravelar veloplasty (IVVP). The extent of IVVP has become more aggressive over the time period of the study. In our re-repair population, 89.7% of patients had improvement of the speech scores with 64.5% of all the re-repair patients achieving normal speech postoperatively. Autologous fat augmentation of the palate was introduced in the second period and represents about half of the procedures in the later period. Focused autologous fat augmentation of the palate resulted in statistically significant improvement in speech in 75.7% of cases. Conclusion: This study demonstrates an evidence-based evolution in management, shifting away from potentially airway obstructive procedures and toward a more physiologic approach to velopharyngeal competence. We outline the steps taken to reach the author's current approach to VPI management based on periodic outcome audits, specific anatomic findings, and goal-directed surgical interventions. With correct diagnosis and patient selection, VPI can be safely eliminated in over 70% of patients with a single procedure. We believe that this anatomic and physiologic approach improves safety while minimizing risks of airway obstruction.
Integral Transforms: Finite Intervals *

This chapter explains integral transforms with finite intervals. To solve a linear differential equation, it is sometimes easier to transform the equation to some “space,” solve the equation in that “space,” and then transform the solution back. Given a linear differential equation, the equation is multiplied by a kernel and integrated over a specified region. Integration by parts is used to obtain an equation for the transform of the dependent variable. The “correct” transform is used (correct kernel and limits), if the boundary conditions given with the original equation are utilized. The equation is solved for the transform of the dependent variable. The solution is obtained by multiplying by the inverse kernel and performing integration. There are many tables of transforms available, and it is generally easier to look up a transform than to compute it. The chapter also highlights that transform techniques may also be used with systems of linear equations.
Activation of Gold Spheres and Foils in Nonisotropic Neutron Incidence

Gold spheres and foils were activated in a nonisotropic neutron flux in the center of boxes that were cadmium-lined on five sides and located in the graphite thermal column of the JUGGERNAUT reacto...
Critical problems of geographical unemployment models

The full-text of this article is not available in ORA. Citation: Clark, G. L. (1980). 'Critical problems of geographical unemployment models', Progress in Human Geography, 4, 157-80.
SEEING WITH LIGHT, SOUND, MICROWAVES, X-RAYS, GAMMA RAYS, ETC.

It is common to regard humans as being able to see only with light, but about a hundred years ago at the beginning of the modern era, along came x-rays and sonograms. By now technology has made it possible for us to see in a great many different ways. Important views such as underground pools of oil, tumors in the brain, fine structure in the rings of Saturn, ship wreckage on the bottom of the ocean, cracks in the ice packs of the Arctic, all these views and many more, completely unperceivable one hundred years ago, are available to us now with our technology in astonishing clarity and detail.
The Heisenberg Group: A Different Point of View

Time-frequency shifts are the fundamental operators in time-frequency analysis. In this chapter we change the point of view and consider the collection of time-frequency shifts {TxMw: (x,w)ℝ2d} as an object of independent interest. The Heisenberg group and its representation theory emerge as the underlying structure. The existence of a non-commutative group as the background of time-frequency analysis is the very reason for the rich and beautiful mathematical structures and the wide arsenal of methods that appear in time-frequency analysis. The Heisenberg group adds new insights even to the classical harmonic analysis on ℝd, as is shown in the enlightening article “On the role of the Heisenberg group in harmonic analysis” by R. Howe [152]. In time-frequency analysis the Heisenberg group is omnipresent, and it is not an exaggeration to claim that time-frequency analysis is an aspect of the theory of the Heisenberg group. An exposition of time-frequency analysis cannot be considered complete without a brief excursion into the non-commutative harmonic analysis of the Heisenberg group. This chapter offers a pedestrian approach to some of its aspects. As a reward we will not only gain a deeper insight into the mathematical foundations of time-frequency analysis but also new results about Gabor frames. For a more thorough treatment of the Heisenberg group the reader should consult [104] or [238].
Energy Management in Wireless Communications

In this paper, our goal is to study the “bits per joule” efficiency rating of a protocol in the wireless environment. We explore and compare three approaches to evaluating the energy efficiency and assess their accuracy and complexity. Although our technique allows us to accommodate other profiles, for concreteness we model the battery as a device that has the means to support the transmission of a fixed number of packets. We model the fading as a Markov channel, and we present some particular results for link error control protocols. For the particular examples considered, the exact recursive approach and an asymptotic approach were found to predict results that were very close. In addition, a lower bound and an approximation lead to analytical expressions. The quality of the bound and the accuracy of the approximation improves quite quickly as the amount of available energy increases.
Multihormonal regulation of IGFBP-1 promoter activity

Insulin-like growth factor binding protein-1 (IGFBP-1) is a 25 kiloDalton protein which can compete with IGF receptors for binding of IGF-I and IGF-II peptides. Such high affinity binding allows IGFBP-1 to influence IGF action; IGFBP-1 can inhibit or potentiate the effects of IGF peptides depending on experimental conditions and on post-translational modifications of this binding protein (1). IGFBP-1 is expressed in a tissue-specific manner, with significant expression essentially limited to liver and uterus in most individuals (2,3).
Inconsistent Statements As Substantive Evidence: A Critical Review and Proposed Amendment to Federal Rule of Evidence 801(d) (1) (A); Lack of Recollection’s Impact Upon Substantive Admissibility

The proposed Federal Rules of Evidence as drafted by the Advisory Committee and approved by the Supreme Court, dealt in a comprehensive manner with a party’s impeachment of his own or his opponent’s witness by means of prior inconsistent statements. Proposed rule 801(d)(1)(A), advocating a significant departure from the common law, provided that all prior statements inconsistent with the testimony given by a witness during trial were not hearsay. Congress, motivated by concerns over the reliability of prior inconsistent statements, amended proposed rule 801(d)(1)(A) to provide that only prior inconsistent statements "given under oath subject to the penalty of perjury at a trial, hearing, or other proceeding, or in a deposition" were admissible as substantive evidence. Thus, under Rule 801(d)(1)(A) of the Federal Rules of Evidence as enacted, a party may introduce a prior inconsistent statement as substantive evidence only if it was originally made in testimonial form. This article maintains that Fed.R.Evid. 801(d)(1)(A) unduly restricts the types of prior inconsistent statements substantively admissible thereunder. Accordingly, it proposes an amendment to Fed.R.Evid. 801(d)(1)(A) that expands the substantive admissibility of prior inconsistent statements while seeking to preserve the guarantees of reliability that Congress has seen fit to impose. Lack of Recollection: Subject to Cross-Examination Interestingly, the same witness “unavailable” for hearsay exception purposes under Fed.R.Evid. 804 because of lack of recollection is “available” for purposes of cross-examination under Fed.R.Evid. 801(d)(1), i.e., “subject to cross-examination” about a prior statement as well as “subject to cross-examination” for confrontation clause purposes. “Subject to cross-examination” requires solely that the witness be placed on the stand, under oath, and respond willingly to questions.
Do predators influence the behaviour of temperate-zone bats? An analysis of competing models of roost emergence times

Temperate-zone bats likely feed in an environment with few dangerous nocturnal predators, suggesting a life largely free of the antipredator trade-offs faced by most other animals. Such bats may, however, encounter dangerous diurnal raptors with an early start to their nightly feeding, and thus may face predation-related trade-offs in deciding when to emerge from a daytime roost. Non-predator-related factors could also come into play in this nightly decision. We used an information-theoretic approach to examine which combination of a wide range of variables exerts the greatest influence over emergence times from maternity roosts in a population of Indiana bats, Myotis sodalis, covering a 12-year period. Our competing statistical models were based on two broad environmental influences on emergence times: predators and physical (meteorological and astronomical) variables. The best-performing model included most of the variables associated with antipredator trade-offs, assuming that bats emerging before or near sunset experience a foraging benefit and a substantial risk of predation by diurnal raptors. Accordingly, state-dependent behaviour was apparent, with emergence beginning earlier during the more energetically demanding portion of the reproductive cycle. During lactation (the most demanding period), about 20% of emergence events began before sunset, compared to only 5% during colony formation. Earlier emergence was also associated with high cloud cover (darker conditions), larger roost populations and roosts located deep into the forest. Moonlight at sunset, however, was absent from the best-supported model and had no apparent influence on emergence times. Overall, the emergence behaviour of our species is consistent with a trade-off between energetic needs and predation risk, most likely due to the temporal overlap of early emergences with the activity period of diurnal raptors. This behaviour may be more common than expected in temperate-zone bats.
Crypto Economics - The Top 100 Token Models Compared

The article provides an overview of the evolving economic incentive designs in decentralized systems. After introducing the decentralized economic policy tools that influence token design, the author examines the leading token models in a hand-selected dataset comprising the top one hundred cryptocurrencies by market capitalization (N=100). The dataset enables a time series trend analysis of token models, consensus algorithms, and governance mechanisms, among other data points.
Pedal and haptic estimates of slant suggest a common underlying representation.

Abstract It is well known that people verbally exaggerate the slant of visually perceived geographical, virtual, and man-made hills. More recently it has been shown that haptic and verbal estimates of slant result in similar exaggerations, supporting the proprioception calibration hypothesis—that similar biases exist in both verbal estimates of visually perceived slant and proprioceptively perceived hand orientation. This seems to point to a common underlying representation of slant. However, it is unclear if and how manual proprioceptive estimates might be relevant for perception of ground surface slant or how this might translate to pedal perception of surface orientation. In the current work we tested whether pedal perception is systematically connected to a representational system shared by haptic and visual perception. We did this by having people orient their foot to four different orientations of a ramp (Experiment 1) or to a staircase (Experiment 2) and compared these to estimates made using a free hand measure as well as to verbal estimates. Our results show that verbal, haptic, and pedal measures of visually perceived surface orientation all result in similar estimates of slant and do so across different slanted surfaces. This suggests that verbal and haptic proprioceptive estimates tap into a representational system of visually perceived surface orientation that is relevant for walking up various surface orientations.
The Definition and Delineation of Each Inflection Point

And so we postulate that the call to reinstate the themes of “fate and mutability, mortality and finitude, suffering and wisdom” (see Cole 1992, p. 243) are certainly noble ideals; nevertheless, they have been swept aside by the rising tide of a postmodern culture that has not only embraced the ever-expanding sphere of the “ageing industry” (Estes 1979, 1993) but has taken the scientific management of ageing and morphed it into many macro-level extensions of a “scientific-industrial” complex emerging out of the 1950s.There may be a “new ageing enterprise” (Moody 2004/2005, 2008) on the rise, but we argue that there has not been any relinquishment of the hegemony found with the “positive” pole of the duality (i.e., the striving toward an optimal ageing) and instead, ironically, there is the emerging value-laden zeitgeist in gerontology that seems to embrace only the way forward—exponentially—without much regard for premodern, modern or postmodern values of ageing at all.
Open mesh repair of interstitial hernia containing small bowel

Interparietal hernias are rare entities of the anterior abdominal wall in which the hernia sac protrudes between peritoneum, fascia, muscle, or subcutaneous tissue. There are three types of interparietal hernias: interstitial, superficial, and preperitoneal. The interstitial type hernia is rare and involves herniation between the abdominal wall musculature and fascial planes. Diagnosis is rarely made preoperatively, and treatment consists of operative reduction of the hernia sac with primary tissue or mesh repair. Repair of interparietal hernias can be performed open or laparoscopically. We report the case of a 40-year-old male who presented with an incarcerated interstitial hernia which contained small bowel and had developed after open appendectomy performed 20 years prior. The hernia was repaired using the open technique and employed a mesh for reinforcement. The patient tolerated the procedure well and remained free of recurrence.
Genomics of autism spectrum disorders

Abstract Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a panoply of different diseases that share a set of common behavioral traits, specifically social communication deficits, and repetitive and fixed/rigid functional patterns. The application of diagnostic technologies over the past 50 years resulted initially in the association of chromosomal mutations, and subsequently, in single gene defects and copy number variations (NCV) of the genome, and most recently, in variations in the whole genome sequence, resulting in the elucidation of syndromic and nonsyndromic ASD. At present, more than 800 gene mutations and 2300 CNVs have been associated with the pathophysiology of ASD. Contemporary research has focused on attempts to identify unifying molecular pathways (networks) to explain common behavior patterns among these different ASDs. These approaches are based on the postulation that synaptic transmission is aberrant, and that this phenomenon is initiated during fetal development, and results from an alteration of synaptic transmission, and cell synaptic formation and function, leading to altered brain connectivity.
Ion irradiation response and mechanical behavior of reduced activity high entropy alloy

Abstract Refractory alloys consisting of reduced activity elements are attractive for nuclear applications to allow safe post-service recycling and meet fusion reactor requirements. Here, ion irradiation response was studied for a newly developed refractory high entropy alloy, HfTaTiVZr, with low activation constituent elements. Ion irradiation led to around 20% hardening for the high entropy alloy compared to 50% hardening for stainless steel under identical conditions. Superior irradiation resistance of the concentrated alloy was explained by the reduced mobility of point defects and self-healing ability.