cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
An application of disjunctive kriging for earthquake ground motion estimation

For earthquake ground motion studies, the actual ground motion distribution should be reproduced as accurately as possible. For optimal estimation of ground motion, kriging has been shown to provide accurate estimates. Although kriging is accurate for this application, some estimates it provides are underestimates. This has dire consequences for subsequent design for earthquake resistance. Kriging does not provide enough information to allow an analysis of each estimate for underestimation. For such an application, disjunctive kriging is better applied. This advanced technique quantifies the probability that an estimate equals or exceeds particular levels of ground motion. Furthermore, disjunctive kriging can provide improved estimation accuracy when applied for local estimation of ground motion.
Swimming kinematics and respiratory behaviour of Xenopus laevis larvae raised in altered gravity

We examined the respiratory behaviours and swimming kinematics of Xenopus laevis tadpoles hatched in microgravity (Space Shuttle), simulated microgravity (clinostat) and hypergravity (3 g centrifuge). All observations were made in the normal 1 g environment. Previous research has shown that X. laevis raised in microgravity exhibit abnormalities in their lungs and vestibular system upon return to 1 g. The tadpoles raised in true microgravity exhibited a significantly lower tailbeat frequency than onboard 1 g centrifuge controls on the day of landing (day0), but this behaviour normalized within 9 days. The two groups did not differ significantly in buccal pumping rates. Altered buoyancy in the space-flight microgravity tadpoles was indicated by an increased swimming angle on the day after landing (day1). Tadpoles raised in simulated microgravity differed to a greater extent in swimming behaviours from their 1 g controls. The tadpoles raised in hypergravity showed no substantive effects on the development of swimming or respiratory behaviours, except swimming angle. Together, these results show that microgravity has a transient effect on the development of locomotion in X. laevis tadpoles, most notably on swimming angle, indicative of stunted lung development. On the basis of the behaviours we studied, there is no indication of neuromuscular retardation in amphibians associated with embryogenesis in microgravity.
The Company You Keep: International Socialization and the Diffusion of Human Rights Norms

Does membership in Intergovernmental Organizations (IGOs) affect states’ human rights behavior? One might expect IGOs with a specific human rights mandate, like the International Labour Organization or the Council of Europe, to have a positive effect on the human rights practices of their member states. But what about other sorts of IGOs, particularly those with no direct connection to human rights issues? This study employs cross-national data on abuses of “physical integrity rights” for 137 countries over the period 1982–2000 to test the hypothesis that IGOs can promote the diffusion of human rights norms by providing venues for interstate socialization. Recent empirical work on IGOs has suggested that this sort of socialization effect can play an important role in promoting democracy and can also lead to a more general convergence among states’ interests. The results presented here suggest that IGOs can have a surprisingly powerful influence on states’ human rights practices as a result of this process.
Recursive Identification of Switched ARX Models with Unknown Number of Models and Unknown Orders

We consider the problem of recursively identifying the parameters of a switched ARX (SARX) model from input/output data under the assumption that the number of models, the model orders and the switching sequence are unknown. Our approach exploits the fact that applying a polynomial embedding to the input/output data leads to a lifted ARX model whose dynamics are linear on the so-called hybrid model parameters and independent of the switching sequence. In principle, one can use a standard recursive algorithm to identify such hybrid parameters. However, when the number of models and the model orders are unknown the embedded regressors may not be persistently exciting, hence the estimates of the hybrid parameters may not converge exponentially to a constant vector. Nevertheless, we show that these estimates still converge to a vector that depends continuously on the initial condition. By identifying the hybrid model parameters starting from two different initial conditions, we show that one can build two homogeneous polynomials whose derivatives at a regressor give an estimate of the parameters of the ARX model generating that regressor. After properly enforcing some of the entries of the hybrid model parameters to be zero, such estimates are shown to converge exponentially to the true ARX model parameters under suitable persistence of excitation conditions on the input/output data. Although our algorithm is designed for the case of perfect input/output data, our experiments also show its performance with noisy data.
DISTRIBUTION RECORDS AND COMMENTS ON FLEAS IN SOUTHWESTERN SOUTH DAKOTA

ABSTRACT. From October 2003 through April 2006, we collected 565 fleas incidental to a distribution survey of mammals in southwestern South Dakota. Sixty-one specimens, representing 18 species of mammals, possessed 20 species of fleas. The geographic distributions of these flea species revealed 8 new records for the Black Hills and its adjacent grasslands. Four species—Megarthroglossus divisus, Stenoponia americana, Odontopsyllus dentatus, and Amaradix euphorbi—constitute new records for South Dakota, thus increasing the state's known flea fauna to 42 species. Hunters, trappers, and field biologists should be aware that serosurveillance during the 1990s revealed the presence of sylvatic plague and tularemia in the Black Hills area.
The performance of parity placements in disk arrays

Due to recent advances in central processing unit (CPU) and memory system performance, input/output (I/O) systems are increasingly limiting the performance of modern computer systems. Redundant arrays of inexpensive disks (RAID) have been proposed to meet the impending I/O crisis. RAIDs substitute many small inexpensive disks for a few large expensive disks to provide higher performance, smaller footprints, and lower power consumption at a lower cost than the large expensive disks they replace. RAIDs provide high availability by using parity encoding of data to survive disk failures. It is shown that the way parity is distributed in a RAID has significant consequences for performance. The performances of eight different parity placements are investigated using simulation. >
Comparison between the C-leg microprocessor-controlled prosthetic knee and non-microprocessor control prosthetic knees: a preliminary study of energy expenditure, obstacle course performance, and quality of life survey.

This study investigated energy expenditure and obstacle course negotiation between the C-leg® and various non-microprocessor control (NMC) prosthetic knees and compared a quality of life survey (SF...
On Using Mental Model Interviews to Improve Camera Trapping: Adapting Research to Costeño Environmental Knowledge

In many regions, including our study area along the Caribbean coast of Nicaragua, it is necessary to apply traditional or local environmental knowledge in biological research projects based in Western scientific knowledge. In such projects, it is important for both researchers and local people that the integration of the two knowledge systems: a) produces scientifically rigorous reports, and b) justly benefits local people. As every knowledge system is unique, there is no universal list of best-practices that will attain these two goals. To discover the best-practices for a particular project, it is necessary to develop the unique relationship between the two knowledge systems and related research methodologies based on personal experience. To gain this experience in the context of our camera trapping project that integrates traditional environmental knowledge, we undertook mental model interviews with local people. Interview results revealed the environmental knowledge our local assistants are most likely to share with us. We used this information to refine our sampling methodology to ensure scientifically rigorous results, and to appropriately engage locals to ensure the project yielded locally desirable benefits. This or a similar technique could be used by other researchers in comparable contexts to yield more comprehensively beneficial results.
Mechanical shock testing and modeling of PC motherboards

Due to a variety of manufacturing, environmental, shipping, and end-use conditions, personal computer (PC) motherboards and other circuit boards may be subjected to potentially damaging mechanical shock loads. As these loads can lead to product failure, an understanding of the response of circuit boards subjected to suddenly applied loads is necessary. A first step in this direction is to develop and validate modeling approaches for the simulation of shock load response on PC motherboards. Since building a detailed model of the motherboard would be difficult due to the wide variation in length scales and localized concentrations of mass/stiffness due to components, two simplified modeling approaches were investigated: global property smearing and simple block modeling. Both of these methods approximate the influence of regions with widely differing stiffness and mass properties resulting from the placement of components, connectors and other items on the circuit board while simultaneously avoiding problems associated with developing large, expensive, detailed models. Both the shock response spectrum (SRS) method and an implicit direct integration (i.e., time-marching) scheme were used to simulate the shock response. In addition to modeling, programmed shock pulse and drop table measurements were carried out on the motherboard to validate and understand the limits of the finite element simulations. The results show that the predicted peak response at a number of locations on the motherboard correlated well with measurements made during the shock loading; however, improvements in the simple models are still required to strengthen their correlation. Surprisingly, the simple global smear approach produced good results with significantly less solution time than the block model. Finally, it was found that the SRS method significantly under predicted the response of the motherboard. This may be due to large displacements induced in the motherboard by the high-g shock loads.
Crosstalk between RyR2 oxidation and phosphorylation contributes to cardiac dysfunction in mice with Duchenne muscular dystrophy

Abstract Background Patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) are at risk of developing cardiomyopathy and cardiac arrhythmias. Studies in a mouse model of DMD revealed that enhanced sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) Ca 2 + leak contributes to the pathogenesis of cardiac dysfunction. In view of recent data suggesting the involvement of altered phosphorylation and oxidation of the cardiac ryanodine receptor (RyR2)/Ca 2 + release channel, we hypothesized that inhibition of RyR2 phosphorylation in a mouse model of DMD can prevent SR Ca 2 + leak by reducing RyR2 oxidation. Methods and results Confocal Ca 2 + imaging and single RyR2 channel recordings revealed that both inhibition of S2808 or S2814 phosphorylation, and inhibition of oxidation could normalize RyR2 activity in mdx mice. Moreover, Western blotting revealed that genetic inhibition of RyR2 phosphorylation at S2808 or S2814 reduced RyR2 oxidation. Production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in myocytes from mdx mice was reduced by both inhibition of RyR2 phosphorylation or the ROS scavenger 2-mercaptopropionyl glycine (MPG). Finally, it was shown that ROS production in mdx mice is proportional to the activity of RyR2-mediated SR Ca 2 + leak, and likely generated by Nox2. Conclusions Increased ROS production in the hearts of mdx mice drives the progression of cardiac dysfunction. Inhibition of RyR2 phosphorylation can suppress SR Ca 2 + leak in mdx mouse hearts in part by reducing RyR2 oxidation.
SOS3 Function in Plant Salt Tolerance Requires N-Myristoylation and Calcium Binding

The salt tolerance gene SOS3 (for salt overly sensitive3) of Arabidopsis is predicted to encode a calcium binding protein with an N-myristoylation signature sequence. Here, we examine the myristoylation and calcium binding properties of SOS3 and their functional significance in plant tolerance to salt. Treatment of young Arabidopsis seedlings with the myristoylation inhibitor 2-hydroxymyristic acid caused the swelling of root tips, mimicking the phenotype of the salt-hypersensitive mutant sos3-1. In vitro translation assays with reticulocyte showed that the SOS3 protein was myristoylated. Targeted mutagenesis of the N-terminal glycine-2 to alanine prevented the myristoylation of SOS3. The functional significance of SOS3 myristoylation was examined by expressing the wild-type myristoylated SOS3 and the mutated nonmyristoylated SOS3 in the sos3-1 mutant. Expression of the myristoylated but not the nonmyristoylated SOS3 complemented the salt-hypersensitive phenotype of sos3-1 plants. No significant difference in membrane association was observed between the myristoylated and nonmyristoylated SOS3. Gel mobility shift and (45)Ca(2)+ overlay assays demonstrated that SOS3 is a unique calcium binding protein and that the sos3-1 mutation substantially reduced the capacity of SOS3 to bind calcium. The resulting mutant SOS3 protein was not able to interact with the SOS2 protein kinase and was less capable of activating it. Together, these results strongly suggest that both N-myristoylation and calcium binding are required for SOS3 function in plant salt tolerance.
Winning Sets, Quasiconformal Maps and Diophantine Approximation

This paper describes two new types of winning sets in $${\mathbb{R}^n}$$ , defined using variants of Schmidt’s game. These strong and absolute winning sets include many Diophantine sets of measure zero and first category, and have good behavior under countable intersections. Most notably, they are invariant under quasiconformal maps, while classical winning sets are not.
Evaluation of the Raw Microprocessor: An Exposed-Wire-Delay Architecture for ILP and Streams

This paper evaluates the Raw microprocessor. Raw addresses thechallenge of building a general-purpose architecture that performswell on a larger class of stream and embedded computing applicationsthan existing microprocessors, while still running existingILP-based sequential programs with reasonable performance in theface of increasing wire delays. Raw approaches this challenge byimplementing plenty of on-chip resources - including logic, wires,and pins - in a tiled arrangement, and exposing them through a newISA, so that the software can take advantage of these resources forparallel applications. Raw supports both ILP and streams by routingoperands between architecturally-exposed functional units overa point-to-point scalar operand network. This network offers lowlatency for scalar data transport. Raw manages the effect of wiredelays by exposing the interconnect and using software to orchestrateboth scalar and stream data transport.We have implemented a prototype Raw microprocessor in IBM's180 nm, 6-layer copper, CMOS 7SF standard-cell ASIC process. Wehave also implemented ILP and stream compilers. Our evaluationattempts to determine the extent to which Raw succeeds in meetingits goal of serving as a more versatile, general-purpose processor.Central to achieving this goal is Raw's ability to exploit all formsof parallelism, including ILP, DLP, TLP, and Stream parallelism.Specifically, we evaluate the performance of Raw on a diverse setof codes including traditional sequential programs, streaming applications,server workloads and bit-level embedded computation.Our experimental methodology makes use of a cycle-accurate simulatorvalidated against our real hardware. Compared to a 180 nmPentium-III, using commodity PC memory system components, Rawperforms within a factor of 2x for sequential applications with a verylow degree of ILP, about 2x to 9x better for higher levels of ILP, and10x-100x better when highly parallel applications are coded in astream language or optimized by hand. The paper also proposes anew versatility metric and uses it to discuss the generality of Raw.
DSP system architecture using signed-digit number representation

Signed-digit (SD) arithmetic techniques are evaluated for applicability to DSP (digital signal-processing) architectures used for high-speed applications. Binary number representations limit the speed of the system due to carry propagation in addition, Residue arithmetic has been tried to alleviate this problem but its use introduces other problems in algebraic comparison, conversion, division, and floating-point representation. It is shown that signed-digit arithmetic offers the advantage of parallelism in computation without the problems associated with the residue number system. An overview of the basic features of SD arithmetic is given, followed by structures for primitive operations required for a general-purpose signal processor. >
Electromagnetic scattering from and transmission through arbitrary apertures in conducting bodies

The general 3-D aperture coupling problem is formulated in terms of an integral equation for the equivalent magnetic current in the aperture, which is numerically solved by the method of moments. The aperture is characterized by two aperture admittance matrices, one for the exterior region and the other for the interior region. These two admittance matrices are determined separately but in a similar manner if the pseudo-image method is used. Numerically workable expressions are developed for the two aperture admittance matrices by decomposing each of them into a half-space admittance matrix and a supplementary admittance matrix. The half-space admittance is relatively easy to compute and has been investigated in the literature. The supplementary admittance matrix is expressed in terms of the generalized impedance combining the existing numerical codes for an arbitrarily shaped scatterer and for an arbitrary aperture in a conducting plane, one can obtain a code which is especially designed for an arbitrary aperture in a conducting surface of arbitrary shape. >
Self-Locked Excitation Scheme for Microsphere Resonators

We propose a new scheme for exciting a resonant mode of a glass microsphere resonator. The concept is based on unique properties of coupled resonators. In the proposed setup, the microsphere plays the role of a feedback mirror in an erbium-doped fiber laser, where the lasing wavelength is automatically locked to a resonant mode of the microsphere. As a result, the laser radiation builds up to very high intensities inside the microsphere. Using a (multimode) pump diode laser at relatively low pump power, we achieve continuous-wave stimulated Raman lasing and generation of new laser frequencies by four-wave mixing
An alternative proof of the Greville formula

A simple proof of the Greville formula for the recursive computation of the Moore–Penrose (MP) inverse of a matrix is presented. The proof utilizes no more than the elementary properties of the MP inverse.
Methylation of thymine residues during oligonucleotide synthesis

Thymine residues in an oligodeoxyribonucleotide are subject to methylation at N3 by the internucleotide methyl phosphotriester linkages. This alkylation occurs most rapidly in the presence of a strong base such as DBU, but also takes place, at a much slower rate, during oligonucleotide synthesis.
Arterial pressure-flow relationships in hypertensive dogs: effect of carotid sinus baroreflex

The effect of the carotid sinus baroreflex reflex on arterial pressure-flow relationships was studied in Goldblatt hypertensive and normotensive dogs on cardiopulmonary bypass. Dogs were anesthetized with pentobarbital sodium, vagotomized, and the carotid sinuses were isolated at controlled carotid sinus pressures (CSP). The mean arterial pressure-flow relationships were measured at different levels of CSP. The arterial pressure-flow relationship was found to be linear except at extreme levels of flow. The slopes derived from the linear regression of the pressure-flow relationships [total peripheral resistance (TPR)] were 1.466 +/- 0.111 and 0.786 +/- 0.13 mmHg.ml-1 x min.kg at CSP of 50 and 200 mmHg in the normotensive group and 1.758 +/- 0.183 and 0.937 +/- 0.114 mmHg.ml-1 x min.kg at CSP of 50 and 250 mmHg in the hypertensive group. The increases in slope measured when CSP was decreased from saturation to threshold were 0.68 mmHg.ml-1 x min.kg (187% increase) in the normotensive group and 0.82 mmHg.ml-1 x min.kg (188% increase) in the hypertensive group. Zero-flow arterial pressures at CSP of 50, 125, and 200 mmHg were found to be 23.1 +/- 2.9, 21.7 +/- 2.2, and 17.1 +/- 1.8 mmHg in the normotensive group and 28.4 +/- 2.2, 23.8 +/- 1.5, and 20.0 +/- 1.2 mmHg in the hypertensive group. A nonlinear model fit was found to give a significantly better fit [coefficient of determination (r2) = 0.932 linear, 0.956 nonlinear] of the arterial pressure-flow relationships. We conclude that, in experimental hypertension, carotid baroreflex control of TPR is shifted to a higher operating point without any reduction in overall reflex gain.
The Legacy of Las Casas in the French Enlightenment:A Tale of Assimilation and Exclusion

In this paper, I explore the legacy of Bartolome de las Casas in the French Enlightenment. Las Casas, an early defender of the Indians, offers an argument for including the Other under the umbrella of moral egalitarianism that masks a latent tension between alterity and universalist claims about humanity – the disquiet that emerges if the Other persists in nefarious ways – with a continuous faith in the assimilability of the Other. Projecting the philosophical claims made by Las Casas about the Other into the historical future, however, one sees that a Las Casasian-style faith in the Other is never unlimited, and one finds alarming arguments about the plight of the Other, deep in the Enlightenment, that emerged when it was lost. While the legacy of Las Casas’s defense of the Indians was initially transposed onto the ideals of the French Enlightenment by the likes of Voltaire, Marmontel and Raynal who admired him as a beacon of hope amidst Spanish fanaticism, this legacy proved to have its limits. Towards the end of the eighteenth century, especially following the arguments of the polemical Cornelious de Pauw, the European understanding of the Indian changed. One of the factors for this change was a loss in the faith in the Indians’ potential to assimilate. When faith in their assimilability ran out, then arguments which legitimize the political exclusion and even the annihilation of the Other, as a natural consequence of the spread of modernity, emerged.
Precision Measurements of the Magnetoresistance of CePb3, CePb2.97and Ce.6La.4Pb3at 50 mk

We have measured the magnetoresistance of polycrystalline CePb3 at 50 millikelvin in magnetic fields up to 20 tesla. At low magnetic fields, a positive magnetoresistance corresponding to the destruction of the antiferromagnetic ground state is observed, with a peak resistivity of 3 µΩ-cm. Above 5 tesla, we observe a pronounced negative magetoresistance, with the resistivity reduced to 0.6 µΩ-cm by a magnetic field of 20 tesla. Ce.6La.4Pb3 also exhibits a five fold reduction in resistivity in 20 tesla magnetic field. The magnetoresistance of Ce.6La.4Pb3 is well described by the single ion Kondo model for a double ground state, suggesting that the high field behavior of the heavy fermion system CePb3 may be similarly described. Measurements on the off-stochiometric CePb2.97 suggest that the high field resistivity is strongly sensitive to stochiometry. Within our experimental resolution, no magnetic field induced superconductivity was observed in these samples, contrary to some previous measurements of polycrystalline CePb3.
‘Decent girls with good hair’: Beauty, morality and race in Venezuela:

This article describes the use of idealised women's bodies as avatars of national identity and morality in early twentieth century Venezuela, as evidenced in works of classic literature from the pe...
On Some Abstract Properties of Binomial Coefficients

(1982). On Some Abstract Properties of Binomial Coefficients. The American Mathematical Monthly: Vol. 89, No. 7, pp. 433-443.
Tiratricol-induced periodic paralysis: a review of nutraceuticals affecting thyroid function.

ABSTRACT Objective To review the potential adverse effects of thyroid hormone-based nutraceuticals and describe a case of Thyrotoxic Periodic Paralysis (TPP) after abuse of a dietary supplement containing 3,5,3′-triiodothyroacetic acid (tiratricol). Methods We review the literature on potential dangers and therapeutic misadventures of thyroid hormonebased nutraceuticals and present the clinical, laboratory, and radiologic data of a bodybuilder in whom hypokalemic TPP developed after use of “Triax Metabolic Accelerator.” Results A 23-year-old white man developed lower extremity paralysis, diaphoresis, and palpitations in the setting of low serum potassium levels. Laboratory results showed suppressed thyroid-stimulating hormone, low levels of free and total thyroxine, low total triiodothyronine level, and very low 24-hour radioiodine uptake. The patient ultimately admitted to taking a supplement containing tiratricol for approximately 2 months, and hypokalemic TPP was diagnosed. He was treated with potassium supplementation and a b-adrenergic blocking agent, which completely resolved his symptoms. Results of thyroid function tests normalized or approached normal 1 week after hospitalization, and future use of dietary supplements was strongly discouraged. Despite 2 warnings by the US Food and Drug Administration, products containing tiratricol are still available for sale on the Internet. Conclusion This report illustrates both an unusual adverse effect of a nutraceutical containing tiratricol and the importance of educating our patients about the risks versus benefits of using these widely available but loosely regulated products. (Endocr Pract. 2011;17:610-615)
Factors Mediating Lipopolysaccharide‐Induced Ganglioside Expression in Murine Peritoneal Macrophages

The ganglioside composition of endotoxin-responsive C3H/HeN murine peritoneal macrophages is known to undergo dramatic changes in vivo in response to intraperitoneal lipopolysaccharides (LPS), unlike endotoxin-hyporesponsive C3H/HeJ macrophages. To better investigate the mechanism behind LPS-induced macrophage ganglioside changes, resident C3H/HeN peritoneal macrophages were treated in vitro with 0.1-1.0 micrograms/ml LPS for 6-96 hr, but showed no differences in membrane ganglioside patterns. Coincubation of macrophages with lymphocytes and treating with LPS again elicited no ganglioside changes. In contrast, interferon gamma (IFN-gamma)-primed macrophages showed a dramatic shift in intensity of one ganglioside when treated with LPS in vitro; an additional macrophage ganglioside appeared when IFN-gamma-primed, LPS-treated macrophages were coincubated with lymphocytes. Ganglioside expression induced in vitro still did not approach the complex changes seen in vivo. However, transplanting C3H/HeN macrophages intraperitoneally into C3H/HeJ mice, followed by administration of intraperitoneal LPS, did reveal striking changes in ganglioside expression that resembled the pattern seen in vivo. Thus, LPS alone does not provide the necessary direct signal to promote macrophage ganglioside change even though it alters macrophage function. IFN-gamma appears to be one important mediator; however, complex interactions involving other cytokines or migration of independent populations of mononuclear cells may be required for the full manifestation of LPS-induced ganglioside expression in macrophages.
Technologies of Batteries Used in Coal Mine Vehicles

The paper introduced characteristics of various batteries used in trackless auxiliary haulage vehicles of coal mine including special type lead-acid battery of coal mine,flame-proof and start lead-acid battery,flame-proof and fixed lead-acid battery and new type lithium iron phosphate battery,and analyzed existed problems of the batteries in application and corresponding solutions.It pointed out development direction of batteries used in coal mine vehicles at present,namely large-scale trackless auxiliary haulage vehicles can also use special type lead-acid battery of coal mine,small-scale trackless auxiliary haulage vehicles would use new type lithium iron phosphate battery,and electric start and air start flame-proof diesel locomotives can use combined power supply of new type lithium iron phosphate battery and super capacitor.
Detection of organic pollutants in coiled mosquito incense smoke by GC/MS assay

Objective To detect the organic pollutants in the coiled mosquito incense smoke. Methods The coiled mosquito incense smoke was collected in alcohol solution,separated by FFAP capillary column and determined by GC/MS assay using SCAN mode. Results In addition to the effectual ingredient,there were other organic pollutants endangering the health of the residents during the burning of coiled mosquito. Conclusion Smokeless mosquito coil have lower influence on health of human body than smoke mosquito coil.
Partisan Justice: Framing Effects and Support for Investigating Electoral Malfeasance

Numerous studies have documented the role of party identification, personal demographics, and environmental context in shaping public attitudes about ballot security and ballot access measures. However, recent research suggests that partisan identification, as an evaluative heuristic and as a social identity maker, may trump environmental context and personal demographics as predictors of perceptions about registration fraud and voter intimidation. What remains unknown therefore is whether and how the partisan affiliation of the complainant (i.e., the group alleging electoral malfeasance) or of the receiver (i.e., the group hearing the allegation) affects support for federal investigative action. Also unclear is whether accusations of registration fraud or of voter intimidation are most likely to enhance public support for federal action, and whether certain signaler complainant-signaler receiver sets produce greater opposition to federal action. Using data from three framing experiments embedded in surveys based on national samples, this paper examines the effects of (1) altering the political party alleging the malfeasance and of (2) altering the allegation from registration fraud to voter intimidation on public support for federal action. The results demonstrate that same-party signaler complainant-signal receiver dyads produce higher support for federal action. Other factors influencing complainant-receiver response include presidential approval, ideology, race, perceptions of election fraud, and support for Election Day registration (EDR) and photo voter-identification laws. The results further illuminate the attitudinal and collective action dynamics affecting public response to allegations about electoral malfeasance. To that, these findings counter ideas that citizens treat allegations of voter fraud and intimidation with equal merit, and these findings confirm suspicions that allegations of misconduct are heard with partisan ears.
SU-F-J-84: Comparison of Quantitative Deformable Image Registration Evaluation Tools: Application to Prostate IGART

Purpose: Errors in displacement vector fields (DVFs) generated by Deformable Image Registration (DIR) algorithms can give rise to significant uncertainties in contour propagation and dose accumulation in Image-Guided Adaptive Radiotherapy (IGART). The purpose of this work is to assess the accuracy of two DIR algorithms using a variety of quality metrics for prostate IGART. Methods: Pelvic CT images were selected from an anonymized database of nineteen prostate patients who underwent 8–12 serial scans during radiotherapy. Prostate, bladder, and rectum were contoured on 34 image-sets for three patients by the same physician. The planning CT was deformably-registered to daily CT using three variants of the Small deformation Inverse Consistent Linear Elastic (SICLE) algorithm: Grayscale-driven (G), Contour-driven (C, which utilizes segmented structures to drive DIR), combined (G+C); and also grayscale ITK demons (Gd). The accuracy of G, C, G+C SICLE and Gd registrations were evaluated using a new metric Edge Gradient Distance to Agreement (EGDTA) and other commonly-used metrics such as Pearson Correlation Coefficient (PCC), Dice Similarity Index (DSI) and Hausdorff Distance (HD). Results: C and G+C demonstrated much better performance at organ boundaries, revealing the lowest HD and highest DSI, in prostate, bladder and rectum. G+C demonstrated the lowest mean EGDTA (1.14 mm), which corresponds to highest registration quality, compared to G and C DVFs (1.16 and 2.34 mm). However, demons DIR showed the best overall performance, revealing lowest EGDTA (0.73 mm) and highest PCC (0.85). Conclusion: As expected, both C- and C+G SICLE more accurately reproduce manually-contoured target datasets than G-SICLE or Gd using HD and DSI metrics. In general, the Gd appears to have difficulty reproducing large daily position and shape changes in the rectum and bladder. However, Gd outperforms SICLE in terms of EGDTA and PCC metrics, possibly at the expense of topological quality of the estimated DVFs.
Cognitive Function During Oxcarbazepine Treatment for Partial Seizures

The effect of oxcarbazepine compared to standard antiepileptic drug therapy (carbamazepine and valproate) on cognitive function in 112 children and adolescents (ages 6 to 16 years) with newly diagnosed partial seizures was investigated in a multicenter, open-label, randomized, active-control group study at University Hospital, Bern, Switzerland; University of Maastricht, The Netherlands; and other European centers.
Predictive modeling of low solubility semiconductor alloys

GaAsBi is of great interest for applications in high efficiency optoelectronic devices due to its highly tunable bandgap. However, the experimental growth of high Bi content films has proven difficult. Here, we model GaAsBi film growth using a kinetic Monte Carlo simulation that explicitly takes cation and anion reactions into account. The unique behavior of Bi droplets is explored, and a sharp decrease in Bi content upon Bi droplet formation is demonstrated. The high mobility of simulated Bi droplets on GaAsBi surfaces is shown to produce phase separated Ga-Bi droplets as well as depressions on the film surface. A phase diagram for a range of growth rates that predicts both Bi content and droplet formation is presented to guide the experimental growth of high Bi content GaAsBi films.
A reporter model to visualize imprinting stability at the Dlk1 locus during mouse development and in pluripotent cells.

Genomic imprinting results in the monoallelic expression of genes that encode important regulators of growth and proliferation. Dysregulation of imprinted genes, such as those within the Dlk1-Dio3 locus, is associated with developmental syndromes and specific diseases. Our ability to interrogate causes of imprinting instability has been hindered by the absence of suitable model systems. Here, we describe a Dlk1 knock-in reporter mouse that enables single-cell visualization of allele-specific expression and prospective isolation of cells, simultaneously. We show that this ‘imprinting reporter mouse’ can be used to detect tissue-specific Dlk1 expression patterns in developing embryos. We also apply this system to pluripotent cell culture and demonstrate that it faithfully indicates DNA methylation changes induced upon cellular reprogramming. Finally, the reporter system reveals the role of elevated oxygen levels in eroding imprinted Dlk1 expression during prolonged culture and in vitro differentiation. The possibility to study allele-specific expression in different contexts makes our reporter system a useful tool to dissect the regulation of genomic imprinting in normal development and disease.
Zinc Intake and Risk of Prostate Cancer: Case-Control Study and Meta-Analysis.

National Institutes of Health [5U54CA91431-01]; Egyptian Ministry of Higher Education [GM842]
Liberalism, Post-liberalism and the Fact-Value Divide

Jewish and Christian thought of the modern and contemporary period is frequently described as either liberal or post-liberal. In lieu of this widely accepted categorization, this essay narrates developments in modern and contemporary Jewish and Christian thought in wake of the impact of the fact-value dichotomy on theological and ethical discourse. This essay demonstrates the negative ramifications of this logical distinction on Jewish and Christian thought and shows how these negative repercussions can stimulate an immanent critique of this logic and a new paradigm in Jewish and Christian thinking.
Impact of Incentive Based Demand Response on large scale renewable integration

The large scale deployment of renewable generation is generally seen as the most promising option for displacing fossil fuel generators, especially coal-fired power plants. A key challenge in integrating Renewable Energy Resources (RERs) is to find approaches that ensure long term sustainability and economic profit. One approach for mitigating the variability issue of integrating RERs is Demand Response (DR). The majority of current research is focuses on the role of DR for reliability support while economic concerns of RERs are barely addressed. In this paper, we investigate how DR can provide a potential solution to improve economic integration of RERs. More specifically, we propose Incentive Based DR (IBDR) programs, which is generally more attractive than real-time pricing programs for small customers. The proposed optimization framework in this paper finds an adequate amount of load change and incentive payments at each hour using a behavior model of customers. For this case study, the retirement of seven coal-fired power plants and expansion of RERs from less than 5% to 30%, is simulated for one year using data in the reduced WECC 240-bus system. Results show although renewable expansion could lead to benefit loss for utilities and sharp changes in market price, the proposed IBDR program could minimize these impacts.
Accelerator test blasts open the past

Many important scientific advancements can be directly related to developments or significant improvements in scientific instrumentation, measurement techniques, or analytical strategies. Accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) a method of achieving ultrasensitive detection of long-lived radioactive isotopes is an excellent example of this process. What is unique in this case is the great diversity of disciplines and interdisciplinary research areas that have, over the last two decades, significantly benefited from the development of AMS technology These fields include everything from archaeology atmospheric science, biomedicine, climate history, geoscience and geochemistry to glaciology, hydrology nuclear physics, oceanography and palacontology.
Non-invasive, model-based measures of ventricular electrical dyssynchrony for predicting CRT outcomes.

Aims Left ventricular activation delay due to left bundle branch block (LBBB) is an important determinant of the severity of dyssynchronous heart failure (DHF). We investigated whether patient-specific computational models constructed from non-invasive measurements can provide measures of baseline dyssynchrony and its reduction after CRT that may explain the degree of long-term reverse ventricular remodelling. Methods and results LV end-systolic volume reduction (ΔESVLV) measured by 2D trans-thoracic echocardiography in eight patients following 6 months of CRT was significantly ( P < 0.05) greater in responders (26 ± 20%, n = 4) than non-responders (11 ± 16%, n = 4). LV reverse remodelling did not correlate with baseline QRS duration or its change after biventricular pacing, but did correlate with baseline LV endocardial activation measured by electroanatomic mapping ( R 2 = 0.71, P < 0.01). Patient-specific models of LBBB ventricular activation with parameters obtained by matching model-computed vectorcardiograms (VCG) to those derived from standard patient ECGs yielded LV endocardial activation times that correlated well with those measured from endocardial maps ( R 2 = 0.90). Model-computed 3D LV activation times correlated strongly with the reduction in LVESV ( R 2 = 0.93, P < 0.001). Computed decreases due to simulated CRT in the time delay between LV septal and lateral activation correlated strongly with ΔESVLV ( R 2 = 0.92, P < 0.001). Models also suggested that optimizing VV delays may improve resynchronization by this measure of activation delay. Conclusions Patient-specific computational models constructed from non-invasive measurements can compute estimates of LV dyssynchrony and their changes after CRT that may be as good as or better than electroanatomic mapping for predicting long-term reverse remodelling.
Culture and Motivation in Online Learning Environments.

Online learning has been hailed as a huge step forward for education. Academia is increasingly offering Internet-based distance courses because they allow “anywhere, anytime” learning and access to a wider pool of students. Firms and organizations like it for training employees because it permits consistency and repeatability in training delivery. K-12 educators endorse it because it teaches children important technology skills that they will need in their advanced education process and in their careers. Online learning has been imp licitly considered the lingua franca of education in terms of its functioning and graphic content (Gunawardena & McIsaac, 2004, p.363). For the most part, instructional design of online learning has largely ignored culture in the creation of online learning environments (Thomas, 2002). By not taking learners’ culture into consideration, it is possible that online learning environments have been designed in such a way as to negatively impact learners’ motivation and persistence levels. For example, Merryfield (2001) found unexpected challenges in transferring a course on diversity in education to the Internet. She observed that many of the behavioral aspects that differentiated students were broken along cultural lines, and noted that this may have implications for equity of access. In the European Union, where issues of cultural diversity loom even larger than they do in American classrooms, there have already been some efforts to find an acceptable middle ground in educational software and to make it more portable across political and ethnic borders (Collis & Remmers, 1997). Suggestions offered by the Commission of the European Communities are pragmatic and aim at making educational software equally usable by all, but they do not address issues of learner motivation except by inference. The fact that online learning and distance education can impose its authors’ goals, perspectives, and standards on a receiving culture (Gunawardena & McIsaac, 2004, p. 388) is very rarely cited in the literature. Understanding whether and how learners’ cultural characteristics may interact with a major delivery method such as online learning makes possible the exploration and creation of alternative means of supporting learners in the construction of knowledge. Not doing so may well condemn groups other than the course implementer’s or author’s to decreased motivation and thus higher attrition, reducing some learners’ chances of benefiting equally from a digital learning environment.
Crossing Parochial Boundaries: Interracialism in Chicago's Catholic Youth Organization, 1930-1954

Most scholarship addressing interactions between Roman Catholics and African Americans in the urban North concentrates on white resistance to neighborhood change. This article complicates this interpretation by examining the interracial efforts of Chicago's Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) between the Great Depression and the onset of the modern civil rights movement. From its inceptionin 1930, the CYO, under the progressive leadership of Bishop Bernard J. Sheil,actively sought the participation of African Americans. The vast athletic league encompassed the entire city, including three black parishes on the racially segregated South Side. Within the context of New Deal pluralism and Catholic Americanization, African-American athletes enjoyed numerous successes in the CYO. The large migration of blacks to Chicago during World War II, however,altered racial dynamics in the organization. Sheil's increasing awareness of American racism informed the creation of a wide array of CYO social programs addressing poverty, including summer day camps modeled after Protestant bible schools. The liberal churchman ultimately embraced the fight for racial justice,supporting the "Double V" campaign during World War II. The Sheil School of Social Studies, a 1940s labor school, embodied his vision for egalitarian participatory democracy. The CYO experiment in Catholic interracialism ended in1954 as a conservative Cold War tenor permeated church and society. Nevertheless, the CYO exposed a generation of Chicagoans to Catholic-sponsored interracialism.
"I am not dead yet!" - The Item responds to Hulleman & Olivers.

The item can only be dispensed within artificial tasks that, although useful in the lab, do not reflect the real world. There, the attended item is the goal of search. Hulleman & Olivers' (H&O's) model can ignore the item only by reducing search to the question of whether a patch of 0s (distractors) contains a 1 (target).
Characterization of Triangulation-Based 3D Imaging Systems Using Certified Artifacts

A set of test procedures and certified artifacts to characterize the capability of short-range triangulation-based three-dimensional (3D) imaging systems are presented. The approach consists of sca...
Method validation parameters for drugs and explosives in ambient pressure ion mobility spectrometry

An approach using method validation (MV) parameters, otherwise known as analytical figures of merit was combined with electrospray ionization high performance ion mobility spectrometry (ESI-HPIMS) to describe an approach for evaluating drugs and explosives analysis in the field. MV parameters such as reduced mobility (K o ), conditional reduced mobility (K c ), resolving power (R p ), theoretical plates (N), linearity, accuracy, precision, limit of detection (LOD), limit of quantitation (LOQ), repeatability, range, and reporting limit were investigated and developed for eleven drugs and six explosives. Our investigation estimated resolving power at 66 ± 0.64 for the ESI-HPIMS used. The LOD’s calculated ranged from 0.45–2.97 ng of material electrosprayed into the ESI-HPIMS. The LOQ’s calculated falls in the range 4.11–8.63 ng of material electrosprayed into the ESI-HPIMS. The key findings from this investigation were the following: K c proves to be a measure of the identity of an explosive or drug ion; a parameter that may be applied to help aid IMS devices when detecting drugs and explosives. MV parameters, especially, K c , introduced in this study is an effective parameter for establishing a unique identity of a drug or explosive. A control chart is an effective way to monitor the performance of an instrument and may be a useful tool for establishing reliability of confirmatory data in forensic investigations. MV parameters may be a reliable, accurate and unique identification marker for target drugs and explosives capable of differentiating these substances from false positive responses.