cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Beethoven reception and the hermeneutic impulse: “poetic ideas” and new forms

In a lecture entitled “Overinterpreting Texts,” Umberto Eco outlines an interpretive phenomenon he designates as “Hermetic semiosis,” in which not only sacred, but also culturally sacralized (secular) texts generate a tradition of highly developed, esoteric exegesis. Eco examines the case of Dante in the hands of a number of more or less obsessively monomaniacal critics going back to Gabriele Rossetti (father of the poet and pre-Raphaelite Dante Gabriel Rossetti), who avidly examined the Divine Comedy for encodings of Masonic and Rosicrucian symbolism. Similar patterns can be cited in the interpretive histories of Virgil, Rabelais, or Shakespeare. It is not surprising to find that Beethoven, among composers, has produced the closest analogue to this phenomenon in the history of music and its criticism. The notion that Beethoven, in composing his larger instrumental works, was guided by a “poetic idea” or object which he strove to represent in music is a kind of idee fixe of the composer's critical reception from the last decade of his life through much of the nineteenth century. Arnold Schering's efforts in the 1920s and 30s to crack the secret code of what he took to be Beethoven's “esoteric” literary programs represent the belated culmination of this tradition, and Schering's zealous conviction that he was bringing to light incontrovertible truths that had hitherto remained concealed within the sounding hieroglyphs of Beethoven's scores closely parallels the tone and methodology of Eco's Dantean hermeneutes.
Management Information System

MIS in an organization can be compared to the role of the heart in the body. The information is the blood and MIS is the heart. In the body, the heart plays the role of supplying pure blood to all the elements of the body including the brain. The heart works faster and supplied more blood when needed. It fulfills the needs of blood supply to human body in normal course and also in crisis.
Demographic and reproductive plasticity across the depth distribution of a coral reef fish.

As humans expand into natural environments, populations of wild organisms may become relegated to marginal habitats at the boundaries of their distributions. In the ocean, mesophotic coral ecosystems (30–150 m) at the depth limit of photosynthetic reefs are hypothesized to act as refuges that are buffered from anthropogenic and natural disturbances, yet the viability and persistence of subpopulations in these peripheral habitats remains poorly understood. To assess the potential for mesophotic reefs to support robust coral reef fish populations, we compared population density and structure, growth, size, and reproductive output of the bicolor damselfish (Stegastes partitus) from shallow (<10 m), deep shelf (20–30 m), and mesophotic reefs (60–70 m) across the Florida Platform. Population densities decreased and size and age distributions shifted toward older and larger individuals in deeper habitats. Otolith-derived ages indicated that S. partitus found on mesophotic reefs reach larger asymptotic sizes and have longer lifespans than fish in shallower habitats. Based on measurements of oocyte area and batch fecundity, mesophotic fish also have higher reproductive investment. These demographic patterns indicate that mesophotic fish populations composed of large, fecund individuals produce high condition larvae and rely on longevity of individuals for population persistence and viability.
Structural verification of a WLAN system using Built-in Self Tests

This paper describes Built-in Self Test (BiST) techniques used to verify the integrity of a RF CMOS WLAN transceiver by Texas Instruments. The set of BiSTs covers the primary blocks in the RF/analog portion of the radio, verifying the system to be free of defects in a high volume production setting with minimal tester resources. This approach promotes a highly parallel testing opportunity, resulting in reduced test time with lower cost.
Exclusion and vulnerability on public transit: experiences of transit dependent riders in Portland, Oregon

In urban areas, the inequitable distribution of transit systems and services has been shown to reproduce safety and environmental risks – potentially exacerbating preexisting inequities. Thus, how ...
Six-Year Follow-Up of Inhibitor Prone Hemophilia B Dogs Treated with Muscle and Liver-Directed AAV2 Mediated Factor IX Gene Therapy.

Hemophilia B, caused by factor IX (FIX) deficiency, is intensively studied as a model for gene therapy. Preclinical studies in mice, dogs and initial clinical trials have documented the feasibility of adeno-associated virus (AAV) mediated gene therapy for hemophilia B. The purpose of this study is to report 6 year follow-up of inhibitor prone hemophilia B dogs treated with muscle or liver directed AAV2 FIX gene therapy. Short term, one year follow-up of these dogs (n=6) has been previously reported. The dogs treated with liver directed AAV2 FIX have not had a single bleed requiring FIX replacement in the 6 years since vector administration. The dogs undergoing muscle directed gene therapy have continued to have a bleed frequency similar to untreated FIX deficient dogs. The whole blood clotting time (WBCT), activated clotting time (ACT), and activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) have remained at the upper limits of the normal ranges for the six year follow-up in the two liver treated dogs. The FIX activity has remained stable between 4–10% in both liver treated dogs but undetectable in the dogs undergoing muscle directed therapy. The vector/FIX sequences have persisted in liver biopsies but were undetectable in WBC and sperm DNA. Administration of purified canine FIX protein resulted in an immune response to FIX in the muscle treated dogs but not the dogs treated with liver directed gene therapy, suggesting FIX tolerance had been established in the hemophilia B dogs with liver directed gene therapy. A complete clinical evaluation of the dogs undergoing liver directed gene therapy including CBC, serum chemistries, bile acid profile, hepatic MRI and CT scans and liver biopsy was normal with no evidence for tumor formation. These results demonstrate that AAV mediated liver directed gene therapy completely corrects the hemophilia phenotype without toxicity or inhibitor development in the inhibitor prone null mutation dogs for more than six years.
Enhanced Degradation of Misfolded Proteins Promotes Tumorigenesis

An adequate cellular capacity to degrade misfolded proteins is critical for cell survival and organismal health. A diminished capacity is associated with aging and neurodegenerative diseases; however, the consequences of an enhanced capacity remain undefined. Here, we report that the ability to clear misfolded proteins is increased during oncogenic transformation and is reduced upon tumor cell differentiation. The augmented capacity mitigates oxidative stress associated with oncogenic growth and is required for both the initiation and maintenance of malignant phenotypes. We show that tripartite motif-containing (TRIM) proteins select misfolded proteins for proteasomal degradation. The higher degradation power in tumor cells is attributed to the upregulation of the proteasome and especially TRIM proteins, both mediated by the antioxidant transcription factor Nrf2. These findings establish a critical role of TRIMs in protein quality control, connect the clearance of misfolded proteins to antioxidant defense, and suggest an intrinsic characteristic of tumor cells.
Qualitative assessment of surface roughness of limestone specimens from the orientation of unwrapped triangulated point clouds

Weathering reduces both the strength and stiffness of rock. Since weathering is a surface phenomenon it can be assessed using surface imaging techniques. The surface roughness of twelve cylindrical limestone specimens from Florida were assessed using analysis of close-range photogrammetry. Dense point clouds produced from the specimens were unwrapped and triangulated using Delaunay triangulation. Outward normal facing vectors were computed for each triangle and the γ-values were assessed. Smooth surfaces had lower average γ-values and lower standard deviations than rough surfaces. Surface roughness could easily be distinguished using lognormal probability density functions based on average and standard deviation of the γ-values. For smooth specimens, histograms of γ-values were similar to the probability density functions. However, for rough specimens the histograms of γ-values were not similar to the probability density functions. The histograms for the roughest specimens showed a bimodal distribution of values with peaks at both the low and high ends of the histograms.
Astrophysics: Multi-molecular views of a stellar nursery.

New detectors for radio telescopes can map emissions from many different molecules simultaneously across interstellar clouds. One such pioneering study has probed a wide area of a star-forming cloud in the Orion constellation.
Surface roughness of Titan's hydrocarbon seas

Abstract We derive fields of solutions for the surface properties (roughness and permittivity) of the liquid hydrocarbon bodies Ligeia, Kraken and Punga Mare on Titan by applying the Radar Statistical Reconnaissance (RSR) technique to the Cassini RADAR observations in altimeter mode during the northern early summer. At the time of observation, Kraken and Ligeia were confined within root-mean-square heights of 1.5–2.5 mm (similar to wave heights of 6–10 mm), correlation lengths of 45–115 mm, and corresponding to effective slopes of 1.1–2.4°. The latter extends up to 3.6–4.9° if the rougher Punga is included. The lower bound of those ranges has to be considered if the composition of the seas is methane-dominant. These are the first measurements to simultaneously constrain both the vertical and horizontal roughness parameters of Titan's seas from the same observations. Our results are representative for the global properties of the sea-scaled portion of the studied tracks and suggest that quiet surfaces are a dominant trend over the seas during the northern early summer. Fields of rougher textures, if existent, might develop mainly over local patches and/or might not be sustained over significant periods of time.
With Great Data Comes Great Responsibility: How Data Science Can Be Applied to Solve Public Interest Problems Without Losing Its Soul

ABSTRACTData science has had a tremendous impact in the private sector and is increasingly being applied in the public sector. The Data for Good Exchange (D4GX) is an annual conference centered on these novel problems and applications. This article describes the history of the conference and introduces a selection of the best papers from the 2017 conference that focus on human services.
Publicly Traded Partnerships, Tax Cost, and Choice of Entity

This study considers the characteristics of the publicly traded partnership (PTP) organizational form and operations that likely influenced firms’ decision to retain or abandon the PTP form based on the proposed corporate taxation of these entities passed in 1987 and the subsequent revision in 1997 when the new tax on gross income was known. Considering not only whether a firm retained or abandoned the PTP form but also what alternative is chosen, we study what factors are important to an entity’s decision. Our results suggest that after controlling for potential tax effects, firms that had lower debt levels, higher dividend levels and higher (or less negative) dividend changes were more likely to continue as flow-through entities, even if it meant giving up public trading.
Quantitative Monitoring of Syndesmophyte Growth in Ankylosing Spondylitis Using Computed Tomography

Ankylosing Spondylitis, an inflammatory disease affecting mainly the spine, can be characterized by abnormal bone formation (syndesmophytes) along the margins of the intervertebral disk. Monitoring syndesmophytes evolution is challenging because of their slow growth rate, a problem compounded by the use of radiography and qualitative rating systems. To improve sensitivity to change, we designed a computer algorithm that fully quantifies syndesmophyte volume using the 3D imaging capabilities of computed tomography. The reliability of the algorithm was assessed by comparing the results obtained from 2 scans performed on the same day in 9 patients. A longitudinal study on 20 patients suggests that the method will benefit longitudinal clinical studies of syndesmophyte development and growth. After one year, the 3D algorithm showed an increase in syndesmophyte volume in 75 % of patients, while radiography showed an increase in only 15 % of patients.
Leer a Vallejo desde Valle-Inclán

Este trabajo explorara las conexiones entre Cesar Vallejo y Ramon Maria del Valle-Inclan (1866-1936), novelista, dramaturgo y poeta espanol. Ya se ha notado que Vallejo se inspiro en uno de los versos de Valle-Inclan para el titulo de su novela, Fabla salvaje (1923). Sin embargo, la conexion entre estos dos escritores es aun mas profunda. Basandose en el uso del esperpento, expuesto en la obra de teatro Luces de bohemia (publicada por primera vez en 1920, y en version definitiva en 1924), se hara una comparacion con los textos teatrales de Vallejo, en particular con su obra Entre las dos orillas corre el rio (comenzada en 1930 bajo el titulo Moscu contra Moscu) y varias colecciones de tratados sobre el valor y la funcion del teatro. En los dos autores el esperpento, efectivamente, representa la dificultad de evolucionar entre generaciones, de transicionar entre el pasado y el futuro. Mientras en Valle-Inclan los personajes sufren fisicamente para superar el plano etico, en Vallejo vemos que lo fisico y lo etico no se separan, sino que profundizan la complejidad del existir en el tiempo. Tanto en el arte como en la politica, el progreso se ve limitado por las condiciones fisicas que inscriben y demarcan toda experiencia humana. ABSTRACTThis paper explores the connections between Cesar Vallejo and Ramon Maria del Valle-Inclan (1866-1936), Spanish novelist, playwright and poet. So far, we have seen that Vallejo was inspired by one of the verses of Valle-Inclan for the title of his novel, Fabla salvaje (‘Wild Fabla’, 1923); however, the connection between these two writers is even deeper. Based on the use of the esperpento ‘grotesque’, exposed in the work of Luces de bohemia (‘Lights of bohemia’) first published in 1920 and in final version in 1924, there will be a comparison with the theatrical texts of Vallejo, in particular with his work Entre las dos orillas corre el rio (‘Between the Two Shores Run the River’), started in 1931, and several collections of treaties of theater’s value and function. Both authors represent esperpento, as a difficulty of evolving between generations, of transition between the past and the future. While in Valle-Inclan’s characters suffer physically to overcome the ethical plane, in Vallejo, the physical and ethical planes are not separated, but that deepens the complexity of existing in the time. Progress is limited by the physical conditions that register and draw all human experience in art and politics. Keywords: grotesque, distortion, physical body, theater, Valle-Inclan.
High-dose-rate brachytherapy as monotherapy for prostate cancer: The impact of cellular repair and source decay.

Abstract Purpose This work quantifies the influence of intrafraction DNA damage repair and cellular repopulation on biologically effective dose (BED) in Ir-192 high-dose-rate brachytherapy for prostate cancer. In addition, it examines the effect of source-decay–induced BED variation for patients treated at different time points in a source exchange cycle. Materials and Methods Current fractionation schemes are based on simplified-form BED = nd(1 + d/(α/β)), which assumes that intrafraction repair, interfraction repair, and repopulation are negligible. We took accepted radiobiological parameters of Tk, Tp, and α from the recommendations of the AAPM TG-137, and recalculated the full-form BED. Fraction times were normalized to require 15 min for 20 Gy at 10 Ci. Calculations were carried out for both α/β = 1.5 and 3 Gy. Results After accounting for intrafraction repair, interfraction repair, and/or repopulation, full-form BED calculations showed significant values, as compared with simplified-form BED. For 1-fraction 20 Gy fractionation, the full-form BED was only 64–82% of the simplified-form BED. Dose protraction effects were milder for smaller prescriptions (6 Gy/Fx), where full form was 87–94%. With regard to source decay, BED varied >20% for patients treated at the beginning and the end of a source exchange cycle for 20 Gy single-fraction prescription. Conclusions Repair and repopulation can be significant in monotherapy high-dose-rate for prostate cancer. As fractionation schemes are established, the simplified BED calculation may not be appropriate. Investigators should consider evaluating BED as a range rather than a discrete value when presenting results unless source activity is explicitly incorporated as well.
The importance of health insurance claims data in creating learning health systems: evaluating care for high-need high-cost patients using the National Patient-Centered Clinical Research Network (PCORNet).

Objective Case management programs for high-need high-cost patients are spreading rapidly among health systems. PCORNet has substantial potential to support learning health systems in rapidly evaluating these programs, but access to complete patient data on health care utilization is limited as PCORNet is based on electronic health records not health insurance claims data. Because matching cases to comparison patients on baseline utilization is often a critical component of high-quality observational comparative effectiveness research for high-need high-cost patients, limited access to claims may negatively affect the quality of the matching process. We sought to determine whether the evaluation of programs for high-need high-cost patients required claims data to match cases to comparison patients. Materials and methods A retrospective cohort study design with multiple measures of before-and-after health care utilization for 1935 case management patients and 3833 matched comparison patients aged 18 years and older from 2011 to 2015. EHR and claims data were extracted from 3 health systems participating in PCORNet. Results Without matching on claims-based health care utilization, the case management programs at 2 of 3 health systems were associated with fewer hospital admissions and emergency visits over the subsequent 12 months. With matching on claims-based health care utilization, case management was no longer associated with admissions and emergency visits at those 2 programs. Discussion The results of a PCORNet-facilitated evaluation of 3 programs for high-need high-cost patients differed substantially depending on whether claims data were available for matching cases to comparison patients. Conclusions Partnering with learning health systems to rapidly evaluate programs for high-need high-cost patients will require that PCORNet facilitates comprehensive and timely access to both electronic health records and health insurance claims data.
Violence in Predominantly White Institutions of Higher Education: Tenure and Victim Blaming

This chapter examines the patterns of violence associated with the tenure process for the African American professor in traditionally white higher education institutions. In this article, violence is examined in the context of its psychological and demeaning effects. The following dimensions are reviewed: recruitment of African American faculty; the review process for tenure; the politics of tenure; socialization and orientation of faculty; junior faculty as victims and tenure denial. Intervention strategies for addressing the problems of violence are recommended.
Differential Expression of VGLUT2 in Mouse Mesopontine Cholinergic Neurons

Vesicular glutamate transporters (VGLUTs) mediate the synaptic uptake of glutamate from the cytosol into synaptic vesicles and are considered unambiguous neurochemical markers of glutamate neurons. However, many neurons not classically thought of as glutamatergic also express a VGLUT and co-release glutamate. Using a genetic fate-mapping strategy we found that most cholinergic neurons in the mouse mesopontine tegmentum express VGLUT2 at some point during development, including the pedunculopontine tegmental nucleus (PPTg), laterodorsal tegmental nucleus, and parabigeminal nucleus (PBG), but not the oculomotor nucleus. In contrast, very few of these cholinergic neurons displayed evidence of vesicular GABA transporter expression. Using multiplex fluorescent in situ hybridization, we determined that only PBG cholinergic neurons are also predominantly positive for VGLUT2 mRNA in the adult, with only small numbers of PPTg cholinergic neurons overlapping with VGLUT2 mRNA. Using Cre-dependent viral vectors we confirm these in situ hybridization data, and demonstrate projection patterns of cholinergic and glutamatergic populations. These results demonstrate that most mesopontine cholinergic neurons may transiently express VGLUT2, but that a large majority of PBG neurons retain VGLUT2 expression throughout adulthood, and support a growing body of literature indicating that distinct cholinergic populations have differing potential for GABA or glutamate co-release.
Enhanced nutrient uptake is sufficient to drive emergent cross-feeding between bacteria

Interactive microbial communities are ubiquitous, influencing biogeochemical cycles and host health. One widespread interaction is nutrient exchange, or cross-feeding, wherein metabolites are transferred between microbes. Some cross-fed metabolites, such as vitamins, amino acids, and ammonium (NH4+), are communally valuable and impose a cost on the producer. The mechanisms that enforce cross-feeding of communally valuable metabolites are not fully understood. Previously we engineered mutualistic cross-feeding between N2-fixing Rhodopseudomonas palustris and fermentative Escherichia coli. Engineered R. palustris excreted essential nitrogen as NH4+ to E. coli while E. coli excreted essential carbon as fermentation products to R. palustris. Here, we enriched for nascent cross-feeding in cocultures with wild-type R. palustris, not known to excrete NH4+. Emergent NH4+ cross-feeding was driven by adaptation of E. coli alone. A missense mutation in E. coli NtrC, a regulator of nitrogen scavenging, resulted in constitutive activation of an NH4+ transporter. This activity likely allowed E. coli to subsist on the small amount of leaked NH4+ and better reciprocate through elevated excretion of organic acids from a larger E. coli population. Our results indicate that enhanced nutrient uptake by recipients, rather than increased excretion by producers, is an underappreciated yet possibly prevalent mechanism by which cross-feeding can emerge.
Temporal condition pattern mining in large, sparse electronic health record data: A case study in characterizing pediatric asthma.

Objective This study introduces a temporal condition pattern mining methodology to address the sparse nature of coded condition concept utilization in electronic health record data. As a validation study, we applied this method to reveal condition patterns surrounding an initial diagnosis of pediatric asthma. Materials and methods The SPADE (Sequential PAttern Discovery using Equivalence classes) algorithm was used to identify common temporal condition patterns surrounding the initial diagnosis of pediatric asthma in a study population of 71 824 patients from the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. SPADE was applied to a dataset with diagnoses coded using International Classification of Diseases (ICD) concepts and separately to a dataset with the ICD codes mapped to their corresponding expanded diagnostic clusters (EDCs). Common temporal condition patterns surrounding the initial diagnosis of pediatric asthma ascertained by SPADE from both the ICD and EDC datasets were compared. Results SPADE identified 36 unique diagnoses in the mapped EDC dataset, whereas only 19 were recognized in the ICD dataset. Temporal trends in condition diagnoses ascertained from the EDC data were not discoverable in the ICD dataset. Discussion Mining frequent temporal condition patterns from large electronic health record datasets may reveal previously unknown associations between diagnoses that could inform future research into causation or other relationships. Mapping sparsely coded medical concepts into homogenous groups was essential to discovering potentially useful information from our dataset. Conclusions We expect that the presented methodology is applicable to the study of diagnostic trajectories for other clinical conditions and can be extended to study temporal patterns of other coded medical concepts such as medications and procedures.
Cohesiveness of Farmers’ Groups in Delta State Nigeria: Its Implication for Agricultural Development

This study which covered Delta State, Nigeria was embarked on to ascertain the cohesiveness of farmers' groups and fathom the implications for agricultural development. At the first stage, 18 farmers associations were randomly selected from the list of farmers? groups at the zonal headquarters of DTADP. Ten percent often membership strength of each selected association was randomly selected to form the study sample and this resulted to selection of 156 farmers. Farmers subscribed to the various groups for the purpose of accessing extension services/information and credit facilities. They also had the purpose of benefiting from government farmers` empowerment schemes and exchange ideas, knowledge and information with other members of their respective groups. Most of the groups were found to be highly cohesive and members were also highly cohesiveness of the groups was influenced by members of satisfaction with the groups satisfied with their various groups. This implies that agricultural development and revival of the economy can be achieved. It is recommended that sustained cohesion of the groups should be encouraged through agricultural extension agents and other farmers should be encouraged for their specialized groups in other to reap benefits of self-help farmers` groups.?
Low Anterior Resection Syndrome

Low anterior resection syndrome is a highly prevalent condition that can develop after anal sphincter-sparing surgery for rectal cancer and impair quality of life. In this review, we summarize the major features and pathophysiology of this syndrome and discuss treatment approaches. Quality of life correlates significantly with severity of low anterior resection syndrome. Prompt assessment and initiation of therapy are essential to rehabilitating damaged mechanical and neural structures. Anorectal manometry demonstrates a global decrease in sphincteric function postoperatively, though in many patients, function does recover. Transanal irrigation, pelvic floor rehabilitation, and biofeedback are the mainstays of the treatment of major LARS. Definitive stoma can be considered in therapy refractory LARS > 2 years. The development of low anterior resection syndrome likely involves an interplay between mechanical and neural pathways. Clinically, patients present at varying levels of severity, and scoring systems are available to help assess patient symptoms and guide therapy. Treatment approaches range from conservative therapies to biofeedback and sacral nerve stimulation. Future randomized controlled trials aimed at risk stratification of patients and development of severity-based treatment algorithms are warranted.
Band Structure and Effective Properties of One-Dimensional Thermoacoustic Bloch Waves

We investigate the dispersion characteristics and the effective properties of acoustic waves propagating in a one-dimensional duct equipped with periodic thermoacoustic coupling elements. Each coupling element consists in a classical thermoacoustic regenerator subject to a spatial temperature gradient. When acoustic waves pass through the regenerator, thermal-to-acoustic energy conversion takes place and can either amplify or attenuate the wave, depending on the direction of propagation of the wave. The presence of the spatial gradient naturally induces a loss of reciprocity. This study provides a comprehensive theoretical model as well as an in-depth numerical analysis of the band structure and of the propagation properties of this thermoacoustically-coupled, tunable, one-dimensional metamaterial. Among the most significant findings, it is shown that the acoustic metamaterial is capable of supporting non-reciprocal thermoacoustic Bloch waves that are associated with a particular form of unidirectional energy transport. Remarkably, the thermoacoustic coupling also allows achieving effective zero compressibility and zero refractive index that ultimately lead to the phase invariance of the propagating sound waves. This single zero effective property is also shown to have very interesting implications in the attainment of acoustic cloaking.
Perceptions of Diabetes Technology Use in Cystic Fibrosis-Related Diabetes Management

Background: Diabetes technologies are associated with improvements in glycemic control and health-related quality of life among people with type 1 diabetes (T1D). Use and perceptions of continuous ...
Prenatal care demand and birthweight production of black mothers.

Infant mortality in the United States has declined by one-half in the past 20 years for both blacks and whites, though the black infant mortality rate has steadily remained twice the white rate, (Helen Wallace, 1994). The incidence of low birthweight, unfortunately, has remained almost unchanged over the same time period, again with the black rate being twice the white rate, (Wallace, 1994). These two trends taken together suggest that the reduced mortality rate is due entirely to medical advances which allow more small, weak, and sick newborns to survive. This paper investigates the health of newborns, using the approach of Mark Rosenzweig and Paul Schultz, (1982, 1983) (see also Eugene Lewit, 1983). Their work is extended by incorporating the number of visits and a visitsXdelay interaction term into prenatal care demand. The goal is to obtain consistent estimates of the impact of prenatal care on infant birthweight. These estimates can then be used to design interventions aimed at reducing the incidence of low birthweight.
Dimensions of Culture (Geert H. Hofstede) – Uncertainty Avoidance

In A Behavioral Theory of the Firm, first introduced the term Uncertainty Avoidance (UA) to describe how organizations avoid uncertainty in their environments by solving immediate problems rather than developing long-term strategies and by imposing plans and structure. Between 1967 and 1973, IBM administered a multinational survey to its employees to assess employee attitudes and morale. Researcher Geert Hofstede analyzed the data following the survey, and he noticed that people endorsed some items differently based on their nationality. had an interest in work stress and found that stress seemed to correlate strongly with national anxiety factor scores cited by. Additionally, employee stress seemed to be related to how organizations structured their activities. determined that three items on IBM's employee survey, “discussing stress, a need for fixed company rules, and the intent to continue with the company” contributed to a factor he called the Uncertainty Avoidance Index (UAI). Keywords: cross-cultural psychology; Geert Hofstede
Regulation of the immune response by carbohydrates (469.2)

Over the past several decades, Western society has witnessed a marked increase in allergy and autoimmune diseases. This trend has been thought to be caused by a greater number of vaccines coupled with increasingly sterile environments. The hygiene hypothesis posits that these changes limit microbial exposure to a degree that is ultimately pathologic in terms of the development and regulation of the immune system. Within that context, our research has focused on the commensal bacterium Bacteroides fragilis and its capsular polysaccharide PSA. This and other “glycoantigens” are gaining recognition as potent immunomodulatory factors that help to not only direct the maturation of the immune system, but also to limit pathologic inflammation associated with disease. Our findings demonstrate that these molecules stimulate a protective T cell-dependent response in the gut that can influence peripheral tissues, and that the ability to activate these protective T cells depends upon the regulation of host glycosylat...
Malate thiokinase. The reaction mechanism as determined by initial rate studies.

Initial velocity studies of the malate thiokinase reaction were conducted in the direction of malyl-CoA synthesis. At a fixed concentration of the third substrate, all substrate pairs showed an intersecting kinetic pattern. These results, along with the results of inhibition studies utilizing succinylCoA and phosphate as product inhibitors and chromiumATP as a dead-end inhibitor, indicate that the reaction involves the random addition of substrates to the enzyme. Initial velocity studies were also conducted on the enzyme-catalyzed arsenolysis of succinyl-CoA. By utilizing ATP and sulfate as inhibitors, this reaction was shown to be sequentially ordered, with succinyl-CoA binding prior to arsenate. The enzyme catalyzes a slow ATP-ADP exchange reaction, which is stimulated by coenzyme A or succinyl-CoA, and a slow succinate-succinyl-CoA exchange reaction, which appears to require phosphate. Incubation of enzyme with [γ-32P]ATP leads to the incorporation of 0.5 mole of phosphate per mole of enzyme. These results suggest the existence of phosphorylated enzyme and succinyl phosphate as reaction intermediates.
D-HOTM: distributed higher order text mining

Modern data mining algorithms primarily leverage first-order relations, aiming to discover patterns such as association or classification rules only within records. This paper leverages higher order associations - associations between records as well as entities - in both classification and association rule mining algorithms to generate more accurate models. Our preliminary results suggest that by employing higher order paths, we can exploit valuable latent information for both association rule mining and classification.
RAPID, EFFICIENT CHARGING OF LEAD-ACID AND NICKEL-ZINC TRACTION CELLS

Lead-acid and nickel-zinc traction cells were rapidly and efficiently charged using a high rate tapered direct current (HRTDC) charge method which could possibly be used for on-the-road service recharge of electric vehicles. The HRTDC method takes advantage of initial high cell charge acceptance and uses cell gassing rate and temperature as an indicator of charging efficiency. On the average, in these preliminary tests, 300 amp-hour nickel-zinc traction cells were given a HRTDC (initial current 500 amps, final current 100 amps) to 78 percent of rated amp-hour capacity within 53 minutes at an amp-hour efficiency of 92 percent and an energy efficiency of 52 percent. Three hundred amp-hour lead-acid traction cells were charged to 69 percent of rated amp-hour capacity within 46 minutes at an amp-hour efficiency of 91 percent with an energy efficiency of 64 percent. In order to find ways to further decrease the recharge times, the effect of periodically (0 to 400 Hz) pulse discharging cells during a constant current charging process (94% duty cycle) was investigated. Preliminary data indicate no significant effect of this type of pulse discharging during charge on charge acceptance of lead-acid or nickel-zinc cells.
Sex-dependent inhibition by retinoic acid of thyroid-hormone action on rabbit reticulocyte Ca2+-ATPase activity

The interaction was examined in vitro of retinoic acid and thyroid hormone with rabbit reticulocyte Ca2(+)-ATPase. L-Thyroxine (T4) (0.1 nM) stimulated female-source Ca2(+)-ATPase activity (+21%; P less than 0.03) and inhibited male-source enzyme (-20%; P less than 0.05). Addition of retinoic acid (10 nM-1 microM) did not influence T4-inhibitable male-source Ca2(+)-ATPase, but caused a 52% loss of T4 effect on the female-source enzyme. Incubation of female-source membranes with testosterone caused the enzyme response to T4 and retinoic acid to become that of male-source membranes, and the male-source enzyme response was converted into the 'female' pattern by exposure to 17 beta-oestradiol. We postulate that a membrane-associated sex-steroid-dependent factor imparts a gender-specific interaction of thyroid hormone and retinoic acid on Ca2(+)-ATPase, and that ultimately the factor is shed during erythrocyte maturation.
Residual strength prediction of impact-damaged composite structures by optical and acoustical computer sensing with neural network techniques

The proliferation of composites as a structural material has increased the necessity for detection and characterization of impact damage. Impact damage, due either to mishandling or in-service environment, in the form of delaminations, matrix cracking, and fiber chopping, may be sufficient to reduce the load-bearing ability of the structure below safety limits and may still not be visible to the unaided observer. Such damage may exist on the surface of an internal cavity, which may prevent it from being viewed, or it may exist within the thickness of the structure and not be visible from either side of the laminate. Impact damage that is partially visible often extends further along and through the material than that which can be seen. Computerized methods for damage detection offer greater assessment capabilities than visual inspections and are capable of detecting subsurface or internal flaws. For these reasons, as well as the declining cost of more powerful hardware, computer sensing methods for nondestructive evaluation (NDE) have grown increasingly popular in recent years. A disadvantage of some computerized NDE methods is that vast amounts of data are generally obtained from any given test, and often it is up to the inspection conductor to interpret these results subjectively based upon prior experience. An alternative is to train the computer sensing system to analyze the huge data arrays, which it can digest more easily than can its human counterpart, and to provide objective interpretations. This paper presents the results of an experimental study in which two computer sensing techniques were used to monitor filament-wound pressure vessels during pressurization. Acoustic emission registers the sound generated by microscopic damage propagation. Video image correlation is a noncontact computer vision technique that simultaneously measures full-field in-plane surface displacements and strains, both linear and angular, with subpixel accuracy. Neural networks were used to predict the burst pressures of impacted pressure vessels based upon data obtained at less than approximately one third of the expected burst pressure for an undamaged specimen.
Characterization and in-situ monitoring of sub-stoichiometric adjustable superconducting critical temperature titanium nitride growth

The structural and electrical properties of Ti-N films deposited by reactive sputtering depend on their growth parameters, in particular the Ar:N2 gas ratio. We show that the nitrogen percentage changes the crystallographic phase of the film progressively from pure α-Ti, through an α-Ti phase with interstitial nitrogen, to stoichiometric Ti2N, and through a substoichiometric TiNX to stoichiometric TiN. These changes also affect the superconducting transition temperature, TC, allowing, the superconducting properties to be tailored for specific applications. After decreasing from a TC of 0.4 K for pure Ti down to below 50 mK at the Ti2N point, the TC then increases rapidly up to nearly 5 K over a narrow range of nitrogen incorporation. This very sharp increase of TC makes it difficult to control the properties of the film from wafer-to-wafer as well as across a given wafer to within acceptable margins for device fabrication. Here we show that the nitrogen composition and hence the superconductive properties are related to, and can be determined by, spectroscopic ellipsometry. Therefore, this technique may be used for process control and wafer screening prior to investing time in processing devices. Contribution of U.S. government, not subject to copyright.
Pulmonary disorders: ventilation-perfusion MR imaging with animal models.

PURPOSE: To demonstrate the capability of magnetic resonance (MR) imaging to assess alteration in regional pulmonary ventilation and perfusion with animal models of airway obstruction and pulmonary embolism. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Airway obstruction was created by inflating a 5-F balloon catheter into a secondary bronchus. Pulmonary emboli were created by injecting thrombi into the inferior vena cava. Regional pulmonary ventilation was assessed with 100% oxygen as a T1 contrast agent. Regional pulmonary perfusion was assessed with a two-dimensional fast low-angle shot, or FLASH, sequence with short repetition and echo times after intravenous administration of gadopentetate dimeglumine. RESULTS: Matched ventilation and perfusion abnormalities were identified in all animals with airway obstruction. MR perfusion defects without ventilation abnormalities were seen in all animals with pulmonary emboli. CONCLUSION: Ventilation and perfusion MR imaging are able to provide regional pulmonary functional informatio...
Optimization of Magnetite Carrier Precipitation Process for Plutonium Waste Reduction

Abstract Transuranic (TRU) waste that is being generated at Argonne National Laboratory has a TRU activity ranging from 102 to 107 nCi/g with a wide variety of chemical compositions. Currently, the waste is stored in highly acidic solutions that must be neutralized for intermediate storage. A magnetite carrier precipitation process has been adapted to concentrate TRU isotopes in a noncorrosive solid phase. In this paper, we report the results of a series of laboratory tests done to optimize the process. The parameters we optimized included (1) magnetite concentration used to precipitate plutonium from solution, (2) formation of magnetite (in situ or ex situ), (3) processing pH, and (4) temperature and mixing time of the carrier precipitation. We also studied the effects of anions, cations, and complexing agents in the waste solutions on the carrier precipitation and the effect of magnetite solids loading on the filtration equipment. An overview is given of the planned full-scale process, which will be ope...
Processing Narratives for Verbatim and Gist Information by Adults with Language Learning Disabilities: A Functional Neuroimaging Study

How verbal information is processed and recalled appears to be influenced by the structure of the information presented (e.g., unrelated sentences vs. narratives) and the processes the listener uses to encode the information (e.g., verbatim encoding vs. gist extraction). Twenty adults, half with a history of learning disabilities (HLD) and half without (control group) received functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans. Participants were instructed to listen to narrative passages for either the exact wording or the general meaning of the narratives and respond to questions about the narratives. These conditions were contrasted with listening to randomly arranged sentences. Adults in the HLD group responded to test questions less accurately than the control group. Likewise, the HLD group showed physiological differences during both narrative and sentence processing in comparison to the control group. Both groups showed differences in processing narratives for gist versus verbatim information, which involved activation centered over the right precentral sulcus. The results support the notion that distinct aspects of verbal processing draw differentially on a distributed physiological network and that adults selected for HLD show both behavioral and physiological differences on narrative processing tasks. However, these differences are not necessarily qualitative in nature.
Touria Khannous. African Pasts, Presents, and Futures. Generational Shifts in African Women’s Literature, Film, and Internet Discourse. Lanham: Lexington, 2013. xxv + 203 pp.

Review of Touria Khannous. African Pasts, Presents, and Futures. Generational Shifts in African Women’s Literature, Film, and Internet Discourse. Lanham: Lexington, 2013. xxv + 203 pp.
Graviton mass from close white dwarf binaries detectable with LISA

The arrival times of gravitational waves and optical light from orbiting binaries provide a mechanism to understand the propagation speed of gravity when compared to that of light or electromagnetic radiation. This is achieved with a measurement of any offset between the optically derived orbital phase and that derived from gravitational wave data, at a specified location of one binary component with respect to the other. Using a sample of close white dwarf binaries (CWDBs) detectable with the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna and optical light curve data related to binary eclipses from meter-class telescopes for the same sample, we determine the accuracy to which orbital phase differences can be extracted. We consider an application of these measurements involving a variation of the speed of gravity, when compared to the speed of light, due to a massive graviton. For a subsample of ∼400 CWDBs with high signal-to-noise ratio gravitational wave and optical data with magnitudes brighter than 25, the combined upper limit on the graviton mass is at the level of ∼6×10^-24 eV. This limit is two orders of magnitude better than the present limit derived by Yukawa-correction arguments related to the Newtonian potential and applied to the Solar System.
Use of alkali metal poisons in the elucidation of cracking catalyzed by silica-alumina

Information concerning the silica-alumina sites active in cumene cracking has been obtained from an analysis of results of cumene cracking using catalysts with and without alkali metal poison. A combination of kinetic studies with absolute rate theory suggests there are 107 – 108 sites cm−2 in a commercial co-gelled silica-alumina catalyst, several orders of magnitude less than is usually supposed. The data are consistent with the assumption that active sites are associated with a very small fraction of the surface aluminum which exchanges with alkali metal ion. Different alkali metal salts vary in their ion-exchanging ability, but for the same amount of removed aluminum these salts poison the catalyst to the same extent. KAKI, where KA and KI are the equilibrium quotients for ion exchange with active and inactive aluminum, respectively, is greater than unity, is approximately constant over the whole concentration range, and is approximately independent of salt. KI decreases with increasing amounts of exchange. These results suggest that under cracking conditions the active sites are a very narrow band of the most energetic sites in a spectrum of sites (all associated with aluminum) of varying energies, and that this situation is parallel to the ion exchange reaction. Acid both removes aluminum and activates some of the remaining aluminum. The catalytic properties of several silica-alumina catalysts impregnated by other methods or compounds confirm this model. To validate further the kinetic scheme used to count active sites, studies on the effect of temperature and poison in the reactor charge are reported. It is shown that there cannot be a temperature of maximum rate in catalyzed unimolecular decomposition unless the heat of desorption from active sites is greater than the cracking-step heat of activation of the adsorbed molecule. This condition is not met in the cumene-silica-alumina system.