cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Appropriately Targeting Group Interventions for Academic Success Adopting the Clinical Model and PAR Profiles

Prevalence of academic risk (PAR) group profiles provide data enabling empirically based group-specialized prescriptions for targeted academic success interventions to increase student retention, completion, and graduation rates, while improving allocation of institutional resources. Postsecondary student attrition engenders student debt, shortages of highly trained professionals, and inadequate workforce diversity. Diagnostic PAR profiles, employing a proactive Diagnosis ⇒ Prescription ⇒ Intervention ⇒ Evaluation Model adapted from clinical medicine, enable empirically targeted, group-specialized, student-success interventions. Two-step cluster analysis of survey responses from 512 students entering first-semester urban health science community college differentiated three PAR-profile groups: (a) traditional, (b) language/education/financially challenged, and (c) older/supporting families/financially challenged. The latter two groups’ end-of-first-semester odds of adverse academic status events were, res...
Immune responses and efficacy after administration of a commercial Brucella abortus strain RB51 vaccine to cattle.

Brucella abortus strain RB51 (SRB51) is a newly approved live vaccine to protect cattle against brucellosis. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the immunologic responses of cattle to a commercially available SRB51 vaccine and to characterize the efficacy of the vaccine to protect against abortion or infection after midgestational challenge with virulent B. abortus strain 2308 (S2308). All cattle were pasture bred, and pregnancy was confirmed by rectal palpation. Pregnant cattle were intraconjunctivally challenged with 1 x 10(7) colony-forming units (CFUs) of S2308 at 180 days gestation. Serologic responses were monitored in all heifers after vaccination using the standard tube agglutination test and a dot-blot assay using killed SRB51 as antigen. In one study, 3-month-old Hereford heifers were subcutaneously inoculated with 10(9) CFU or 10(10) CFU of a commercially available SRB51 vaccine or 2 mL of 0.15M sodium chloride (saline). In this study, four of eight nonvaccinates, two of four 10(9) CFU SRB51 vaccinates, and two of 14 10(10) CFU SRB51 vaccinates aborted after midgestational challenge with virulent S2308. The challenge strain was recovered at necropsy from maternal or fetal tissue from six of nine nonvaccinates, four of four 10(9) CFU SRB51 vaccinates, and seven of 14 heifers vaccinated with 10(10) CFU of SRB51. In a separate study, 6-month-old Hereford heifers were subcutaneously inoculated with 10(10) CFU of SRB51 or saline. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells proliferative responses to gamma-irradiated SRB51 were monitored. In this study, three of seven nonvaccinates and one of 18 10(10) CFU SRB51 vaccinates aborted. The S2308 challenge strain was recovered from maternal or fetal tissue of five of seven nonvaccinates and seven of 18 SRB51 vaccinates. In both studies, cattle vaccinated with 10(10) CFU of SRB51 had greater (P .05) among 10(10) CFU SRB51 vaccinates and nonvaccinates.
Fibrous Dysplasia of Bone: Craniofacial and Dental Implications

Fibrous dysplasia (FD) is a rare bone disease caused by postzygotic somatic activating mutations in the GNAS gene, which lead to constitutive activation of adenylyl cyclase and elevated levels of cyclic AMP, which act on downstream signaling pathways and cause normal bone to be replaced with fibrous tissue and abnormal (woven) bone. The bone disease may occur in one bone (monostotic), multiple bones (polyostotic), or in combination with hyperfunctioning endocrinopathies and hyperpigmented skin lesions (in the setting of McCune-Albright Syndrome). FD is common in the craniofacial skeleton, causing significant dysmorphic features, bone pain, and dental anomalies. This review summarizes the pathophysiology, clinical findings, and treatment of FD, with an emphasis on the craniofacial and oral manifestations of the disease.
The Transduction of Light Signals in Plants: Responses to Blue Light

Although the majority of articles in this volume are devoted to studies of phytochrome, there has been considerable progress recently in understanding plant responses to blue light — mediated not by the blue light-absorbing bands of phytochrome, but rather by specific blue light photoreceptors. These inroads are being made at the cellular, biochemical, and molecular levels, and hold considerable promise of leading to an understanding of at least portions of the transduction chains set in action by blue light. While the systems under study do not involve phytochrome, they provide models for photoreceptor action that could apply to phytochrome, or phytochrome — blue light photoreceptor interaction.
Analysis of Causative Attacks against SVMs Learning from Data Streams

Machine learning algorithms have been proven to be vulnerable to a special type of attack in which an active adversary manipulates the training data of the algorithm in order to reach some desired goal. Although this type of attack has been proven in previous work, it has not been examined in the context of a data stream, and no work has been done to study a targeted version of the attack. Furthermore, current literature does not provide any metrics that allow a system to detect these attack while they are happening. In this work, we examine the targeted version of this attack on a Support Vector Machine(SVM) that is learning from a data stream, and examine the impact that this attack has on current metrics that are used to evaluate a models performance. We then propose a new metric for detecting these attacks, and compare its performance against current metrics.
Correlation between micro-hardness and mineral content in healthy human enamel.

Background Enamel is the hardest and the stiffest tissue in the human body. The enamel undergoes multidirectional stresses, withstands multimillion chewing cycles, all while protecting the internal dentin and pulp from damage due to mechanical overload and exposure to the harsh chemical environment of the mouth. Raman spectroscopy allows to study enamel mineral content in a non-destructive and site-specific way. While Raman spectroscopy has been applied in other studies to assess tooth mineralization, there are no studies that examine the relationship between micro-hardness and mineral content of the untreated enamel. An understanding of this relationship is extremely important in a clinical context. The effect of various agents on enamel hardness was investigated, though the relationship between healthy enamel mineral content and micro-hardness remains obscure. Material and methods Twenty human incisor teeth were obtained in compliance with the NIH guidelines and imaged site-specifically with a Raman microscope and evaluated with a Brinell hardness measurement device. The front portion of each tooth was divided into apical, medium and cervical regions and subsequently imaged with a Raman microscope in these three locations. Results and conclusions The results demonstrated that enamel mineral content varies significantly between individuals and is correlated with the hardness of the enamel. Non-invasive, sample preparation free Raman spectroscopy was successfully employed to measure the mineral content of healthy enamel and it correlated the mineralization score to the hardness measurements of the selected cervical location. The overall level of enamel mineral content may serve as a robust predictor of patients' susceptibility to developing caries, and overall enamels wear resistance, thus allowing for the prevention of caries via clinically available methods of remineralization, fluoride treatment and frequent cleaning. Key words:Enamel, raman spectroscopy, micro-hardness, extracted teeth.
Soviet workers’ clubs: lessons from the social condensers

What was a workers' club? What was its purpose and vision? How did it manifest itself spatially and formally? These are some of the questions that this paper addresses through the historical and architectural analysis of the Soviet workers' clubs.It looks at the complex phenomenon of the workers' club from a number of viewpoints. Starting with the idea of club as ‘life itself’, the paper examines it as an instrument of the Proletkult and traces this radically new typology, which aimed to become both a ‘second home’ and a ‘church of a new cult’. It addresses the ideological and educational role of the workers' club as a ‘school of communism’. It analyses the architecture of the club, from its dynamic form to its agency as a multifunctional ‘social condenser’. Finally, it challenges the outcomes of the workers' club as embodied ideology—a paralysed condenser, resistant to transcending the utopian aspirations of the era that brought it to life.
New neutron capture and transmission measurements for 134,136Ba at ORELA and their impact on s-process nucleosynthesis calculations

Abstract We have made high-resolution neutron capture and transmission measurements on isotopically enriched samples of 134 Ba and 136 Ba at the Oak Ridge Electron Linear Accelerator (ORELA) in the energy range from 20 eV to 500 keV. Previous measurements had a lower energy limit of 3 – 5 keV, which is too high to determine accurately the Maxwellian-averaged capture cross section at the low temperatures (kT ≈ 6 – 12 keV) favored by the most recent stellar models of the s-process. Our results for the astrophysical reaction rates are in good agreement with the most recent previous measurement at the classical s -process temperature, kT = 30 keV, but show significant differences at lower temperatures. We discuss the astrophysical implications of these differences.
Preparing special education teacher candidates to teach English language learners with disabilities: How well are we doing?:

A utilization-focused evaluation (Patton, 2008) was conducted to systematically investigate special education teacher candidates’ preparation to teach English language learners (ELLs) with disabili...
Designing a Place Called School: A Case Study of the Public School Quest to Learn

Abstract This case study will delve into the organization and engagement models developed to bring game-like learning to the New York City public school sector. It will explore design’s capacity to transform artificial systems, in this case a public school operating within the context of the US Department of Education (DOE). The case explores the role played by Mission Lab, a design studio embedded in the school and staffed by game designers and learning specialists. It then goes on to look at the school’s grade format (6–12) and its non-selective enrollment policy. Each defined a key aspect of the school model, from its innovative approach to collaboration, to it emphasis on continuity and diversity.
Pedicled Vascularized Bone Grafts for Posterior Occipitocervical and Cervicothoracic Fusion: A Cadaveric Feasibility Study.

BACKGROUND Arthrodesis is critical for achieving favorable outcomes in reconstructive spine surgery. Vascularized bone grafts (VBGs) have been successfully used to augment fusion rates in a variety of skeletal pathologies, and pedicled VBG has numerous advantages over free transfer VBG. Pedicled VBG has not previously been described for the posterior occipitocervicothoracic spine. OBJECTIVE To identify, describe, and assess potential donor sites for pedicled VBGs from occiput to T12 using a cadaver model and to describe important technical considerations for graft harvest and placement. METHODS A multidisciplinary team of plastic surgeons and neurosurgeons hypothesized that it is feasible to rotate a pedicled VBG from the occiput to T12 via a posterior approach. In 6 cadavers, 3 VBG donor sites were identified as anatomically feasible: occiput, scapula, and rib. RESULTS Split- and full-thickness occipital VBGs were mobilized on a semispinalis pedicle. Occipital VBGs could be mobilized from occiput to T1 and span up to 4 levels. Scapular VBGs were mobilized on a subscapular pedicle and could be mobilized from occiput to T7 and span up to 8 levels. Rib VBGs were mobilized on subcostal pedicles and could be mobilized from C6 to T12. Ribs T2 to T4 and T11 and T12 could cover 2 levels, and ribs T5 to T10 could cover 3 levels. The first rib was anatomically unsuitable as a VBG due to its primarily ventral course. CONCLUSION Pedicled VBGs can feasibly be applied to posterior spinal arthrodesis from occiput to T12. Patients at high risk for nonunion may benefit from this strategy.
Loading Patterns of Rubber-Based Resistance Bands across Distributors

Variable resistance implemented through concurrent use of rubber-based resistance bands and free weights is commonly used in training athletes. The purpose of this study was to examine the consistency of rubber-based resistance (RBR) band loading patterns across four distributors. Bands (n = 141) were obtained from online distributors (Rogue Fitness, EliteFTS, RubberBanditz, and Power Systems) across a spectrum of available widths (0.635, 1.270, 2.860, 4.450, 6.350, and 10.160 cm). At least five bands for each width were stretched in 5 cm increments from resting (100 cm) to twice resting length (200 cm) while tensile resistance was measured using a load cell integrated with a digital controller. Each band was tested twice on non-consecutive days producing an intertrial intraclass correlational coefficient (ICC) between 0.93–0.99 with a grand mean ICC across all repeated measures of 0.99. Statistical differences were observed in mean resistance for bands of equal thickness across distributors. Significant correlations were found between a range of tensile load expressed as a total load and band thickness (r = 0.658) and when expressed as a percentage (r = −0.386). This study is useful for strength and conditioning professionals and clinicians who should be cognizant of loading variability within both bandwidths and between distributors.
15.6 A 10MHz i-Collapse Failure Self-Prognostic GaN Power Converter with T J -Independent In-Situ Condition Monitoring and Proactive Temperature Frequency Scaling

With superior figure of merits, GaN switchs are highly anticipated to replace MOSFETs in high-performance power circuits [1], [2]. However, GaN technology today still faces formidable reliability challenges [3]. While GaN device aging and failure mechanisms are not as well-studied as silicon counterparts, its unique structure and operation also induce new aging and failure problems. Use a GaN switch $\mathrm {M}_{H}$ in a buck converter of Fig. 15.6.1 as an example. As a high-side switch, it faces large-switching-current and high-input-voltage stress in each charge phase. After repetitive switching actions, a number of electron carriers can be injected into the AlGaN barrier and buffer layers, known as hot-electron injection. In discharge phase, $\mathrm {M}_{H}$ is off, but $\mathrm {M}_{L}$ becomes conductive, which shorts the source of $\mathrm {M}_{H}$ to ground, creating high $\mathrm {V}_{DS}$ stress on $\mathrm {M}_{H}$. This induces charge traps in the insulator and buffer layers, known as charge trapping. As a joint effect of both mechanisms, trapped or injected electrons in the insulator, AlGaN barrier and buffer layers repel free electrons in the channel when $\mathrm {M}_{H}$ is on, weakening the 2-dimensional electron-gas (2DEG) layer and further elevating hot-electron injection. This effect, known as current collapse or $i-$ collapse for short, degrades channel conductivity, increases the on-resistance $\mathrm {R}_{DS\_{} ON}$, and is a major cause of GaN-switch aging and failure [3]. On the other hand, another aging cause is thermal effect. To reduce manufacture costs and improve technology compatibility, it is common to fabricate GaN transistors on a silicon substrate. Accordingly, to reduce lattice mismatch, an AlGaN buffer layer is often inserted (Fig. 15.6.1). However, this increases the junction-to-ambient thermal resistance $\mathrm { R } _ { \theta \mathrm { J } \mathrm { A } }$, which, together with the increased $\mathrm {R}_{DS\_{} ON}$ due to the $i-$ collapse, causes higher power and heat generation, elevating the junction temperature, $\mathrm {T}_{J}$. According to Arrhenius’ Law, as $\mathrm {T}_{J}$ increases, the mean-time-to-failure (MTTF) drops exponentially [4]. Even worse, the elevated $\mathrm {T}_{J}$ deteriorates the $i-$ collapse effect with even higher $\mathrm {R}_{DS\_{} ON}$, significantly reducing device lifetime.
1‐[(E)‐Butadienylsulfon­yl]‐3,3‐dimethyl­but‐2‐yl methacrylate

The title compound, C14H22O4S, was synthesized as a precursor for intra­molecular Diels–Alder cyclo­addition reactions. The (E)-buta-1,3-dienyl and methacrylate ester systems adopt an s–trans conformation in the solid state, with the two π units in both cases being almost coplanar.
I Coveted That Wind: Ganondorf, Buddhism, and Hyrule’s Apocalyptic Cycle:

This article examines the cultural background informing the overarching narrative of the Legend of Zelda series, focusing on the references to Japanese religious traditions associated with the char...
A Third-Generation Swirl-Venturi Lean Direct Injection Combustor with a Prefilming Pilot Injector

This paper presents experimental results for a low-NOxaero gas turbine combustor, in particular, a third-generationswirl-venturi lean direct injection (SV-LDI-3) combustor conceptcalled V4. The purpose of testing was three-fold. First,to evaluate the combustor against the 80% NOx reduction goalset by NASA’s AATT project. Second, to compare V4 to a previousSV-LDI-3 combustor concept called V3, especially at lowpower conditions. Third, to examine the accuracy of a type ofcorrelation equation frequently used by engine systems analysisgroups to estimate NOx emissions. All three testing goals weremet. For the first testing goal, with an estimated NOx reductionof 85%-90%, SV-LDI-3 V4 surpassed the AATT goal. For thesecond goal, however, V4 did not perform better than V3 at lowpower conditions. For the third goal, it was found that a majorassumption of the correlation equations — a simple dependenceon combustor inlet pressure — did not hold.
Ketogenesis activates metabolically protective γδ T cells in visceral adipose tissue

Ketone bodies are essential alternative fuels that allow humans to survive periods of glucose scarcity induced by starvation and prolonged exercise. A widely used ketogenic diet (KD), which is extremely high in fat with very low carbohydrates, drives the host into using β-hydroxybutyrate for the production of ATP and lowers NLRP3-mediated inflammation. However, the extremely high fat composition of KD raises the question of how ketogenesis affects adipose tissue to control inflammation and energy homeostasis. Here, by using single-cell RNA sequencing of adipose-tissue-resident immune cells, we show that KD expands metabolically protective γδ T cells that restrain inflammation. Notably, long-term ad libitum KD feeding in mice causes obesity, impairs metabolic health and depletes the adipose-resident γδ T cells. In addition, mice lacking γδ T cells have impaired glucose homeostasis. Our results suggest that γδ T cells are mediators of protective immunometabolic responses that link fatty acid–driven fuel use to reduced adipose tissue inflammation. The ketogenic diet is a low-carbohydrate, high-fat diet that forces a metabolic switch towards fatty acid oxidation. Here, Goldberg et al. show that a ketogenic diet initially improves metabolic health and expands adipose tissue γδ T cells that are important for glycaemic control during obesity.
Effects of ingested food-grade titanium dioxide, silicon dioxide, iron (III) oxide and zinc oxide nanoparticles on an in vitro model of intestinal epithelium: Comparison between monoculture vs. a mucus-secreting coculture model

Abstract The majority of in vitro studies of ingested engineered nanomaterials (iENMs) in the past decade employed a Caco-2 monoculture test system. However, the small intestinal epithelium is much more complex and includes a defensive mucus layer secreted by goblet cells and submucosal glands. Here, we used a monoculture and a mucus-secreting coculture/triculture model to evaluate the toxicity of 5 food-grade nanomaterials. We employed an integrated in vitro testing methodology that includes: (i) utilizing food-grade variants of four major iENMs (TiO2, SiO2, ZnO, and two types of Fe2O3: rod-shaped and acicular); (ii) preparing standardized nanoparticle dispersions; (iii) matching in vitro doses to in vivo doses using equivalent surface area-based mathematical and computational in vitro dosimetry models; and (iv) addressing iENM dissolution kinetics in relevant cell culture medium. In addition, in vitro mucus-secreting coculture (C2BBe1- Caco-2 subclone/HT29-MTX) and triculture (C2BBe1/HT29-MTX/Raji B) models of the intestinal epithelium, and a C2BBe1 monoculture system were used to assess effects of exposure to each test iENM, over a range of concentrations, on indicators of epithelial cell health and function, including barrier integrity, cell cytotoxicity and viability, morphology, and pro-inflammatory cytokine and chemokine production. Barrier integrity was less vulnerable to iENM exposures in tricultures than in monocultures: trans-epithelial resistance (TEER) in tricultures was unaffected by any iENM exposures, but was reduced in monocultures by up to 50% after some treatments. However, cocultures/tricultures were otherwise more sensitive than monocultures to iENM exposures, as reflected by (i) morphological changes in the brush border (blunted microvilli) in triculture; (ii) loss of cell viability and metabolic activity in cocultures but not monocultures at low (TiO2) and all (SiO2 and ZnO) doses; (iii) increased membrane damage (LDH release) and; (iv) enhanced inflammatory response, with up to 3-fold higher IL-6, 2-fold higher IL-1β, and significantly higher IL-8 production in cocultures than in monocultures. Irrespective of the model, ZnO was consistently the most cytotoxic iENM, followed by rod-shaped and acicular Fe2O3, and TiO2. We demonstrated that the C2BBe1 coculture and triculture models are physiologically more relevant than and superior to the C2BBe1 monoculture, or the commonly used Caco-2 monoculture system, for assessing iENM toxicity.
Autism Spectrum Disorder as a Brain‑Gut‑Microbiome Axis Disorder

While there are numerous medical comorbidities associated with ASD, gastrointestinal (GI) issues have a significant impact on quality of life for these individuals. Recent findings continue to support the relationship between the gut microbiome and both GI symptoms and behavior, but the heterogeneity within the autism spectrum requires in-depth clinical characterization of these clinical cohorts. Large, diverse, well-controlled studies in this area of research are still needed. Although there is still much to discover about the brain-gut-microbiome axis in ASD, microbially mediated therapies, specifically probiotics and fecal microbiota transplantation have shown promise in the treatment of GI symptoms in ASD, with potential benefit to the core behavioral symptoms of ASD as well. Future research and clinical trials must increasingly consider complex phenotypes in ASD in stratification of large datasets as well as in design of inclusion criteria for individual therapeutic interventions.
Statistics of Financial Stochastic Models

In this chapter we consider filtering, interpolation and extrapolation problems for financial stochastic model of (B, S, X)-incomplete securities market, or (B, S)- securities market with incomplete information [141, 142].
Anorectal neuroendocrine carcinoma (NEC): Patient characteristics and treatment outcomes.

e16702Background: There are only a few reports examining the treatment patterns for poorly differentiated rectal/anal NEC. In this study, we sought to report treatment and survival outcomes for pat...
Treasure Chess: Worthy Contributions of the Game in the Lives of Student Champions

This study explored the holistic benefits assimilated by former chess university varsities who became regional champions. Using basic qualitative research design, the researcher uncovered and described the experiences of 15 purposively sampled participants in their years of playing the game. Five major themes emerged in the thematic analysis. The first theme "the kickoff" pertains to the participants' acquisition of chess skills. The second theme “sharp as a tack” refers to the developed thinking skills, and the third theme “mathemathchess” (mathematics utilized by the participants while playing chess), which they have found useful in their studies and in taking government examinations. The fourth theme “feather in the cap" makes public of the merits and achievements of the participants as recognized chess players. Lastly, “the treasures within" discloses good virtues developed among the participants in their years of continuous training, playing and studying chess. The findings of the study have valuable implications for policy regarding chess and education.
Standards of evidence for institutional review board decision-making

A standard of evidence is a rule or norm pertaining to the type or amount of evidence that is required to prove or support a conclusion. Standards of evidence play an important role in institutional review board (IRB) decision-making, but they are not mentioned in the federal research regulations. In this article, I examine IRB standards of evidence from a normative, epistemological perspective and argue that IRBs should rely on empirical evidence for making decisions, but that other sources of evidence, such as intuition, emotion, and rational reflection, can also play an important role in decision-making, because IRB decisions involve an ethical component which is not reducible to science. I also argue that an IRB should approve a study only if it has clear and convincing evidence that the study meets all the approval criteria and other relevant, ethical considerations; and that for studies which expose healthy volunteers to significant risks, an IRB should require that evidence be more than clear and convincing as a condition for approval. Additional empirical research is needed on how IRBs use evidence to make decisions and how standards of evidence influence IRB decision-making at the individual and group level.
Relationships between constituents of energy drinks and beating parameters in human induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-Derived cardiomyocytes

Consumption of energy drinks has been associated with adverse cardiovascular effects; however, little is known about the ingredients that may contribute to these effects. We therefore characterized the chemical profiles and in vitro effects of energy drinks and their ingredients on human induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived cardiomyocytes, and identified the putative active ingredients using a multivariate prediction model. Energy drinks from 17 widely-available over-the-counter brands were evaluated in this study. The concentrations of six common ingredients (caffeine, taurine, riboflavin, pantothenic acid, adenine, and L-methionine) were quantified by coupling liquid chromatography with a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer for the acquisition of LC-MS/MS spectra. In addition, untargeted analyses for each beverage were performed with a platform combining LC, ion mobility spectrometry and mass spectrometry (LC-IMS-MS) measurements. Approximately 300 features were observed across samples in the untargeted studies, and of these ~100 were identified. In vitro effects of energy drinks and some of their ingredients were then tested in iPSC-derived cardiomyocytes. Data on the beat rate (positive and negative chronotropy), ion channel function (QT prolongation), and cytotoxicity were collected in a dilution series. We found that some of the energy drinks elicited adverse effects on the cardiomyocytes with the most common being an increase in the beat rate, while QT prolongation was also observed at the lowest concentrations. Finally, concentration addition modeling using quantitative data from the 6 common ingredients and multivariate prediction modeling was used to determine potential ingredients responsible for the adverse effects on the cardiomyocytes. These analyses suggested theophylline, adenine, and azelate as possibly contributing to the in vitro effects of energy drinks on QT prolongation in cardiomyocytes.
Pi pulses in a ferromagnet: Simulations for yttrium iron garnet

Abstract Using a many spin micromagnetic simulation tool that directly integrates the Landau-Lifshitz equation, we demonstrate that by applying an r.f. pulse, generally referred to as a Pi pulse, it is possible to near-perfectly reverse the direction of the magnetization in a ferromagnet, provided that the sample is sufficiently small and the angular dependence of the precession frequency is continuously matched using an appropriately “chirped” r.f. pulse of the proper length. Simulations are carried out for “prolate” uniaxially symmetric cylindrical samples in the presence of dipole and exchange interactions. Such reversals can be performed in the presence of a static external magnetic field or, importantly, at zero field under the sample’s own internal demagnetization field. However, the ability to perform near-perfect Pi or two-Pi rotations is lost for samples above certain dimensions for which additional internal degrees of freedom are excited, particularly at higher static fields. In such larger samples the magnetization may still be reversed by utilizing damping, provided it can be rotated past a critical angle.
Ultrasmooth cobalt films on SiO2 by chemical vapor deposition using a nucleation promoter and a growth inhibitor

Very smooth thin films of Co are deposited on SiO2 by chemical vapor deposition from the precursor dicobalt octacarbonyl Co2(CO)8 by augmenting the process conditions in two ways: (1) pretreating the surface to promote nucleation and (2) adding a coflow of a growth inhibitor. The surface pretreatment involves brief exposure of the SiO2 surface at 70 °C to a tetrakis(dimethylamido) metal complex M(NMe2)4, where M = V, Ti, or Hf. This pretreatment affords a self-limiting, submonolayer coverage of a metal-containing intermediate. When the pretreated surface is then exposed to 0.025 mTorr of the Co2(CO)8 precursor, nucleation occurs to afford a high density (1 × 1012 cm2) of nanoscale islands; the rms surface roughness for a sample with an areal density of 100 Co atoms/nm2 is 1.0 nm. Comparisons show that the M(NMe2)4 pretreatment has three benefits: it accelerates the nucleation process, it increases the nucleation density by about a factor of 3, and it reduces the surface roughness by about a factor of 2. The rms surface roughness of a sample with ∼100 Co atoms/nm2 can be further reduced to only 0.3 nm by adding up to 4 mTorr of ammonia NH3 to the feed gas along with the Co2(CO)8 precursor. Ammonia serves as a growth inhibitor that reduces the steady-state growth rate of Co by a factor of 4. This slower growth allows additional nucleation to occur on bare areas, and the growth of these nuclei affords coalescence with a smaller roughness.
Association of Sleep With Risk of Alzheimer’s Disease Mortality: NIH-AARP Diet and Health Study:

Objectives:Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and related dementias contribute to one in three senior deaths. Lifestyle factors, including sleep, may contribute to AD risk and mortality; however, current evi...
Representations of temporal community structure in hippocampus and precuneus predict inductive reasoning decisions

Our understanding of the world is shaped by inferences about underlying structure. For example, at the gym, you might notice that the same people tend to arrive around the same time and infer that they are friends that work out together. Consistent with this idea, after participants are presented with a temporal sequence of objects that follows an underlying community structure, they are biased to infer that objects from the same community share the same properties. Here, we used fMRI to measure neural representations of objects after temporal community structure learning and examine how these representations support inference about object relationships. We found that community structure learning affected inferred object similarity: when asked to spatially group items based on their experience, participants tended to group together objects from the same community. Neural representations in perirhinal cortex predicted individual differences in object grouping, suggesting that high-level object representations are affected by temporal community learning. Furthermore, participants were biased to infer that objects from the same community would share the same properties. Using computational modeling of temporal learning and inference decisions, we found that inductive reasoning is influenced by both detailed knowledge of temporal statistics and abstract knowledge of the temporal communities. The fidelity of temporal community representations in hippocampus and precuneus predicted the degree to which temporal community membership biased reasoning decisions. Our results suggest that temporal knowledge is represented at multiple levels of abstraction, and that perirhinal cortex, hippocampus, and precuneus may support inference based on this knowledge.
Ligand Recognition by β3 Integrins

Integrins are alpha/bets heterodimeric adhesion receptors. αIIbβ3 (GPIIb-IIIa) and αvβ3 (the vitronectin receptor) share the same beta subunit, S3, but have distinct alpha subunits. These sister integrins not only recognize many of the same ligands but also have certain unique ligands. Based upon current information in the literature, we propose that four classes of β3 ligands can be distinguished. Since the β3 integrins have multiple functions in vivo and are targets for therapy, this classification system may be useful in the design and characterization of therapeutic agents.
Kant: A Biography

Chronology of Kant's life and work Prologue and epilogue, 'As You Like It' 1. Childhood and early youth (1724-1740) 2. Student and private teacher (1740-1755) 3. The elegant magister (1755-1764) 4. Palingenesis and its consequences (1764-1769) 5. Silent years (1770-1780) 6. 'All-crushing' critic of metaphysics (1780-1784) 7. Founder of a metaphysics of morals (1784-1787) 8. Problems with religion and politics (1788-1795) 9. The old man (1796-1804) Bibliography.
The Structure of Bovine Proinsulin

Several insulin-related substances, comprising 1 to 2% of the total protein, were isolated from commercial crystalline bovine insulin. The main components of this mixture were: the 81-residue, single chain proinsulin, two degradation products of proinsulin, termed Intermediate Forms I and II, and an insulin dimer, possibly linked by covalent bonds and apparently an artifact of the preparation. Treatment of the biologically inactive proinsulin or intermediate forms with trypsin yielded dealanylinsulin, which is fully biologically active. The amino acid sequence of the intact proinsulin was shown to be bovine insulin B chain-Arg-Arg-Glu-Val-Glu-Gly-Pro-Gln-Val-Gly-Ala-Leu-Glu-Leu-Ala-Gly-Gly-Pro-Gly-Ala-Gly-Gly-Leu-Glu-Gly-Pro-Pro-Gln-Lys-Arg-bovine insulin A chain. The only disulfide bonds in this protein are those in the insulin moiety. Intermediate Form I is a two-chain protein consisting of the insulin B chain extended to the glutaminyl residue preceding the Lys-Arg terminal sequence of the connecting peptide segment, and the A chain, these two chains being held together by the disulfide bonds found in insulin. Intermediate Form II is a similar protein, consisting of the insulin B chain and an A chain extended to the glutamyl residue following the Arg-Arg sequence at the amino terminus of the connecting segment. Proinsulin is the biosynthetic precursor of insulin and functions to facilitate the folding of the molecule to yield the correct pairing of cysteinyl residues required to form the disulfide bonds of insulin. The transformation of proinsulin to insulin occurs intracellularly in the β cells of the islets of Langerhans and insulin is the major storage form. The structures of the intermediate forms, the recovery from pancreas of connecting peptide lacking the amino- and carboxyl-terminal basic dipeptide sequences in molar quantities equal to those of insulin, and the variability of the residue at the carboxyl terminus of the B chain of the insulins of various species, all indicate that the proteolytic enzyme or enzymes responsible for the proinsulin to insulin transformation probably act by virtue of trypsin-like and carboxypeptidase B-like specificities.
Transaction reordering and grouping for continuous data loading

With the increasing popularity of operational data warehousing, the ability to load data quickly and continuously into an RDBMS is becoming more and more important. However, in the presence of materialized join views, loading data concurrently into multiple base relations of the same materialized join view can cause a severe deadlock problem. To solve this problem, we propose reordering the data to be loaded so that at any time, for any materialized join view, data is only loaded into one of its base relations. Also, for load transactions on the relations that contain "aggregate" attributes, we propose using pre-aggregation to reduce the number of SQL statements in the load transactions. The advantages of our methods are demonstrated through experiments with a commercial parallel RDBMS.
Home literacy environments, interest in reading and emergent literacy skills of children with Down syndrome versus typical children

Background The present study examined home literacy environments, children's interest in reading and emergent literacy skills of pre-school-aged children with Down syndrome (DS; n = 20), school-aged children with DS (n = 17) and typically developing children (n = 18) matched on chronological age with the younger DS group and mental age (MA) with the older DS group. Method Parents filled out questionnaires on their home literacy environments and their children's interest in reading. School-aged children with DS and typical children were assessed on cognitive functioning, receptive vocabulary, alphabet knowledge, familiarity with print conventions and comprehension of meaning. Results School-aged children with DS and typical children – as opposed to pre-school-aged children with DS – were exposed to more literacy-rich home environments and had greater interest in reading. School-aged children with DS also outperformed the MA-matched typical group on letter and sight word knowledge and familiarity with print conventions. Conclusions Parents of children with DS tailor home literacy environments to their children's developmental levels. Confirming earlier studies, children with DS achieved some higher literacy skills than what was expected for their MA, emphasising the importance of early reading interventions for this population.
An Empirical View of the Moral Order

Raoul Naroll. The Moral Order: An Introduction to the Human Situation. Beverly Hills, London, New Delhi: Sage Publications, 1983. 498 pp. $32.50 (cloth), $14.95 (paper).
Cobalamin- and Corrinoid-Dependent Enzymes

This chapter reviews the literature on cobalamin- and corrinoid-containing enzymes. These enzymes fall into two broad classes, those using methylcobalamin or related methylcorrinoids as prosthetic groups and catalyzing methyl transfer reactions, and those using adenosylcobalamin as the prosthetic group and catalyzing the generation of substrate radicals that in turn undergo rearrangements and/or eliminations.
SPECIALIZED TRANSDUCTION WITH Λplac5: INVOLVEMENT OF THE RecE AND RecF RECOMBINATION PATHWAYS

Several aspects of the recombination resulting from λ plac5 transduction were investigated in strains of Escherichia coli K-12 that use the RecE or RecF recombination pathways. In a RecBC pathway strain, F42lac recombination with λplac5 is 20- to 50-fold higher than chromosomal lac times λplac5 recombination, and this recombination enhancement is largely dependent on constitutive expression of F42lac fertility functions. Here, it was observed that F42 lac fertility functions do not effect the ability of F42lac to recombine with λplac5 in a RecE or RecF pathway strain. Therefore, the enhancement observed in a Rec+ (or RecBC pathway) strain is directly dependent on the recBC gene product. The end product of recombination between λplac5 and either F42lac or chromosomal lac in RecE and RecF pathway strains was monitored by scoring for addition and substitution transductants. It was observed that the percentage of addition transductants was lower in all cases for RecE and RecF pathway strains as compared with RecBC pathway or a recB strain. It is concluded that the introduction of sbcA or sbcB into a recB strain produces a change in recombination mechanism that is reflected in the nature of the end product of recombination.
Effect of coherency stresses on α + α2 phase equilibria in TiAl alloys

Experiments were performed on two TiAl alloys to examine recent theoretical predictions concerning the characteristics of coherent two-phase equilibria in binary alloys. Equilibrium phase compositions in both the coherent and incoherent α + α2 states at 725 and 800°C were determined by analytical electron microscopy. The results provide experimental evidence for the following predictions: (1) tie-line ends (equilibrium phase compositions) need not coincide with phase boundaries in the temperature-composition phase diagram and (2) the tie-line ends change with alloy composition at constant temperature. The experimental results have been compared with theoretical calculations of α + α2 phase equilibria incorporating both elastic and ordering effects.
Survey: Linear Temporal Logic Symbolic Model Checking

We are seeing an increased push in the use of formal verification techniques in safety-critical software and hardware in practice. Formal verification has been successfully used to verify systems such as air traffic control, airplane separation assurance, autopilot, CPU designs, life-support systems, medical equipment (such as devices which administer radiation), and many other systems which ensure human safety. This survey provides a perspective on the formal verification technique of linear temporal logic (LTL) symbolic model checking, from its history and evolution leading up to the state-of-the-art. We unify research from 1977 to 2009, providing a complete end-to-end analysis embracing a users' perspective by applying each step to a real-life aerospace example. We include an in-depth examination of the algorithms underlying the symbolic model-checking procedure, show proofs of important theorems, and point to directions of ongoing research. The primary focus is on model checking using LTL specifications, though other approaches are briefly discussed and compared to using LTL.
Checker for data structures which sort elements

Abstract The data structure checker introduced by Blum et al. (1994) checks programs which store and retrieve data from memory according to prescribed data-structure definitions. We present a checker for data structures which sort elements — for example binary search trees or sorted lists. For these data structures the way of performing the user's operations (First, Last, Next, Previous, Add, Delete, Find) depends on the values of the data they contain. The presented checker is on-line and invasive; if universal one-way hash functions exist, then the checker is secure.
Imaging models for three-dimensional transmitted-light DIC microscopy

Nomarski Differential-Interference-Contrast (DIC) microscopy is a widely used method for imaging transparent specimens that are not visible with ordinary light microscopy. DIC microscopy enhances contrast in the images of such specimens by converting differential phase changes to intensity variations via the method of light interference. These phase changes are introduced in light as it passes through regions of different refractive index within a specimen. In this paper, the development of an imaging model that describes 3D DIC imaging under partially-coherent illumination is presented. Our approach in deriving the model involves the derivation of a 2D model and its extension to three dimensions, assuming weak optical interactions within the specimen. The coherent limit of our 2D model coincides with existing DIC models. Model predictions generated with the coherent limit of the 3D model are compared to real DIC images acquired from imaging phantom specimens. It is shown that the model predictions resemble the real images obtained with the condenser aperture closed better than the images obtained with the aperture open. This result confirms the need for the general model that we have derived.
Integrable Models for Galaxies

Discussion centree sur les modeles dynamiques avec un potentiel de Stackel pour lequel l'equation de Hamilton-Jacobi est separable en coordonnees ellipsoidales, permettant une etude approfondie de la structure des galaxies axisymetriques et triaxiales
Two-Dimensional PDF/SPH Simulations of Compressible Turbulent Flows

This paper describes recent progress made in the development and implementation of a two-dimensional Monte Carlo/PDF/SPH particle method. The approach, which is applicable to compressible turbulent flows, incorporates elements of smoothed particle hydrodynamics to extract mean quantities from the particles, including the mean pressure gradient. A new and efficient algorithm based on Fourier-series expansions of the SPH kernel is used to compute these means; for a simulation withNparticles the computational work scales purely asO(N). A thorough study of numerical errors introduced by the finite series expansion is also performed, and results are presented which show that these errors scale as expected and can be made negligibly small using modest computing requirements. The particle method has been used to simulate a variety of 2D flows, including a stationary turbulent plane wake, flows under the influence of simple body forces, and an unsteady flow featuring compression/expansion waves and a pair of decaying vortices. The plane wake calculation includes comparisons with self-similar experimental data and good agreement is obtained for the mean velocity and Reynolds stress profiles.
On Optimizing XOR-Based Codes for Fault-Tolerant Storage Applications

For fault-tolerant storage applications, computation complexity is the key concern in choosing XOR-based codes. We observe that there is great benefit in computing common operations first (COF). Based on the COF rule, we describe a generic problem of optimizing XOR-based codes and make a conjecture about its NP-completeness. Two effective greedy algorithms are proposed. Against long odds, we show that XOR-based Reed-Solomon codes with such optimization can in fact be as efficient and sometimes even more efficient than the best known specifically designed XOR-based codes.
Output regulation of nonlinear systems using conditional servocompensators

This paper studies the output regulation of nonlinear systems using conditional servocompensators. Previous work introduced the conditional servocompensator, which acts as a traditional servocompensator in the neighborhood of a zero-error manifold while acting as a stable system otherwise, leading to improvement in the transient response while achieving zero steady-state regulation error. The conditional servocompensator tool was introduced for sliding-mode feedback controllers. This paper extends the technique to more general feedback controllers by using Lyapunov redesign and saturated high-gain feedback.