cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Fast Discovery of Nested Dependencies on JSON Data

Functional and inclusion dependencies are the most widely used classes of data dependencies in data profiling due to their ability to identify relationships in data such as primary and foreign keys. These relationships are equally important when dealing with nested data formats such as JSON. However, the definition of functional and inclusion dependencies makes use of a flat, unnested relational model which misses many useful types of dependencies on data which involve nested data models. In this work, we identify types of dependencies which are not captured by traditional functional and inclusion dependencies but which nevertheless capture meaningful relationships among nested data. We also demonstrate how algorithms for mining these traditional dependencies can be adapted to also mine nested dependencies. The first strategy simply flattens the input data and feeds into unmodified existing algorithms. We present a second strategy which instead adapts the algorithm to efficiently process JSON data as input which in some cases leads to a reduction in runtime by multiple orders of magnitude on real-world datasets. We further show how these algorithms can be adapted to produce useful results in the presence of a percentage of incomplete or invalid data.
Take it or Leave It: A Theory of Strategic Advice

Strategic decisions can be uncertain and intractable, so decision-makers commonly seek advice from peers. Yet finding a skilled advisor is tricky: People are poor judges of skill, even more so in the wicked environments where many strategic decisions happen. Starting from micro-level empirical data, we craft a theoretical model of strategic advice-taking and its consequences. We show that if decision-makers were perfect judges of skill, then advice-taking is always beneficial. But under experimentally validated assumptions of skill misjudgment, peer advice benefits the less-skilled while harms highly skilled decision-makers. As this bifurcation propagates through an organization, it degrades skill and harms performance. Turning to solutions, we propose when limiting advice-taking is beneficial for individuals and organizations.
Component-cost and performance based comparison of flow and static batteries

Abstract Flow batteries are a promising grid-storage technology that is scalable, inherently flexible in power/energy ratio, and potentially low cost in comparison to conventional or “static” battery architectures. Recent advances in flow chemistries are enabling significantly higher energy density flow electrodes. When the same battery chemistry can arguably be used in either a flow or static electrode design, the relative merits of either design choice become of interest. Here, we analyze the costs of the electrochemically active stack for both architectures under the constraint of constant energy efficiency and charge and discharge rates, using as case studies the aqueous vanadium-redox chemistry, widely used in conventional flow batteries, and aqueous lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP)/lithium-titanium-phosphate (LTP) suspensions, an example of a higher energy density suspension-based electrode. It is found that although flow batteries always have a cost advantage ($ kWh−1) at the stack level modeled, the advantage is a strong function of flow electrode energy density. For the LFP/LTP case, the cost advantages decreases from ∼50% to ∼10% over experimentally reasonable ranges of suspension loading. Such results are important input for design choices when both battery architectures are viable options.
Increasing Inequality in Parent Incomes and Children’s Schooling

Income inequality and the achievement test score gap between high- and low-income children increased dramatically in the United States beginning in the 1970s. This article investigates the demographic (family income, mother’s education, family size, two-parent family structure, and age of mother at birth) underpinnings of the growing income-based gap in schooling using data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics. Across 31 cohorts, we find that increases in the income gap between high- and low-income children account for approximately three-quarters of the increasing gap in completed schooling, one-half of the gap in college attendance, and one-fifth of the gap in college graduation. We find no consistent evidence of increases in the estimated associations between parental income and children’s completed schooling. Increasing gaps in the two-parent family structures of high- and low-income families accounted for relatively little of the schooling gap because our estimates of the (regression-adjusted) associations between family structure and schooling were surprisingly small for much of our accounting period. On the other hand, increasing gaps in mother’s age at the time of birth accounts for a substantial portion of the increasing schooling gap: mother’s age is consistently predictive of children’s completed schooling, and the maternal age gap for children born into low- and high-income families increased considerably over the period.
Feature Construction for Concept Learning

Attribute-based learning needs feature construction for “hard” concepts. Hard binary concepts have arbitrary compositions of conjuncts and disjuncts. Hard graded concepts are arbitrary functions that have any composition of disjuncts or “peaks.” Learning hard concepts is difficult for empirical (selective) induction algorithms (such as ID3 and PLS1), which become inaccurate, slow, and verbose. Experiments based on a functional characterization of the problem shows how traditional induction breaks down with respect to speed and accuracy. These observations lead to “peak-merging” constructive induction to create new attributes or features. Such construction may use domain knowledge. Some effects, issues, and approaches are discussed.
Fungal and Mushroom Toxins

The biological kingdom of the fungi contains many toxigenic species. Unlike many of the microorganisms of food safety concern, the fungi can be macroscopic, colorful, and, in this author’s opinion, beautiful and endlessly fascinating to observe. This chapter discusses species that pose the most significant food safety risks. The species include those of the filamentous fungi, also known as molds, which produce mycotoxins. The major mycotoxigenic mold genera of agronomical concern include Aspergillus, Pencillium, and Fusarium. The major food safety concerns with mycotoxins are their stability to food processing techniques and the fact that many can be transmitted through animal tissue, milk, and eggs from animals fed mycotoxin-contaminated feed. Poisonous mushrooms have been employed throughout human history for nefarious purposes. Mushrooms are becoming increasingly more prominent as cultivated foods. Mushroom amatoxins are a family of cyclic octapeptides and are produced by mushroom species including Amanita phalloides, A. virosa, and Galerina autumnalis. The mushroom toxins that cause neurological effects can cause a range of symptoms including sweating, coma, convulsions, hallucinations, excitement, depression, and spastic colon. These include some of the most infamous forms of mushroom intoxication, and cooking does not inactivate these toxins.
Purification and characterization of glutathione S-transferases of human kidney

Several forms of glutathione S-transferase (GST) are present in human kidney, and the overall isoenzyme pattern of kidney differs significantly from those of other human tissues. All the three major classes of GST isoenzymes (alpha, mu and pi) are present in significant amounts in kidney, indicating that GST1, GST2 and GST3 gene loci are expressed in this tissue. More than one form of GST is present in each of these classes of enzymes, and individual variations are observed for these classes. The structural, immunological and functional properties of GST isoenzymes of three classes differ significantly from each other, whereas the isoenzymes belonging to the same class have similar properties. All the cationic GST isoenzymes of human kidney except for GST 9.1 are heterodimers of 26,500-Mr and 24,500-Mr subunits. GST 9.1 is a dimer of 24,500-Mr subunits. All the cationic isoenzymes of kidney GST cross-react with antibodies raised against a mixture of GST alpha, beta, gamma, delta and epsilon isoenzymes of liver. GST 6.6 and GST 5.5 of kidney are dimers of 26,500-Mr subunits and are immunologically similar to GST psi of liver. Unlike other human tissues, kidney has at least two isoenzymes (pI 4.7 and 4.9) associated with the GST3 locus. Both these isoenzymes are dimers of 22,500-Mr subunits and are immunologically similar to GST pi of placenta. Some of the isoenzymes of kidney do not correspond to known GST isoenzymes from other human tissues and may be specific to this tissue.
Supplemental zinc restores antibody formation in cultures of aged spleen cells: III. Impairment of Il-2-mediated responses

The effects of zinc on interleukin-2(IL-2)-dependent T cell responses of lymphocytes from immunodepressed aged mice and from young adult animals were studied. Concentrations of zinc which have been shown to restore antibody formation in cells from aged mice and to increase the production of Il-1 and Il-4 inhibited the production of Il-2. Cells from both young adults and aged mice were inhibited similarly. Zinc also impaired the ability of aged T cells to proliferate in response to concanavalin A and exogenous Il-2, but enhanced the proliferation of similarly activated splenic cultures containing both T and B cells. Cultures of isolated B lymphocytes produced antibody to sheep red blood cells if the cells were provided with supplemental zinc and Il-1. In contrast, recombinant Il-2 with or without zinc did not activate antibody formation. The results support the premise that the restorative effects of zinc are independent of Il-2 and that Il-2 is not a necessary mediator for antibody production in the aged.
Image processing for honey bee hive health monitoring

Honey bees are responsible for more than half of the pollination across the world, hence they have an important role in agriculture. In recent years, the number of honey bees have declined due to the Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), which may be due to possible causes that include climate change and pollution. Since honey bees start from their hives to go for pollination, their activities around the hive are a good indicator of their health. The bee hive's health status and the activities of honey bees can be related to the environment in which they live, thus finding a quantitative measure of the bee activities is very important and can benefit the beekeepers. This paper will present a data acquisition and monitoring system that utilizes image processing techniques for extracting data from the videos of the bee hive's entrance taken at the front or the top of the hive's entrance. The system developed as part of this research utilizes two different approaches based on the Illumination-invariant Change Detection Algorithm and Signal-to-Noise Ratio to estimate the number of bees at the entrance of the hives.
Distribution of insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) and 2 (IGF-2) receptors in the hippocampal formation of rats and mice.

Since the discovery of specific receptors in the brain for insulin-like growth factor-1 and 2 (IGF-1 and IGF-2), there has been an increased interest in the role of these peptides as neurotrophic factors and/or neuromodulators in the central nervous system. Receptors for IGF-1 and IGF-2 have been characterized in brain membrane homogenates1–6 and localized to specific brain regions utilizing in vitro receptor autoradiographic and immunological techniques7–14. Competitive binding and affinity cross-linking studies have demonstrated that IGFs bind to two distinct receptors. The IGF-1 (type 1) receptor is structurally similar to the insulin receptor, consisting of 2 extracellular alpha subunits and 2 transmembranous beta subunits (approximately 130 and 95 kDa respectively)15–17. The IGF-2 (type 2) receptor consists of a single chain glycoprotein of approximately 250 kDa, which also binds mannose-6-phosphate18–22. Radioligand binding studies have demonstrated crossreactivity of the IGFs and insulin at the receptor level. The type I IGF receptor has higher affinity for IGF-1 than IGF-2 and insulin, and the type II IGF receptor binds IGF-2 with considerably higher affinity than IGF-1, and does not recognize insulin2,23.
Asymptotic Behaviors of Type-2 Algorithms and Induced Baire Topologies

We propose an alternative notion of asymptotic behaviors for the study of type-2 computational complexity. Since the classical asymptotic notion (for all but finitely many) is not acceptable in type-2 context, we alter the notion of “small sets” from “finiteness” to topological “compactness” for type-2 complexity theory. A natural reference for type-2 computations is the standard Baire topology. However, we point out some serious drawbacks of this and introduce an alternative topology for describing compact sets. Following our notion explicit type-2 complexity classes can be defined in terms of resource bounds. We show that such complexity classes are recursively representable; namely, every complexity class has a programming system. We also prove type-2 analogs of Rabin’s Theorem, Recursive Relatedness Theorem, and Gap Theorem to provide evidence that our notion of type-2 asymptotic is workable. We speculate that our investigation will give rise to a possible approach in examining the complexity structure at type-2 along the line of the classical complexity theory.
Deterministic dynamic monitors for linear-time assertions

We describe a framework for dynamic verification of temporal assertions based on assertion compilation into deterministic automata. The novelty of our approach is that it allows efficient dynamic verification of general linear temporal formulas written in formal property specification languages such as LTL, ForSpec, PSL, and SVA, while the existing approaches are applicable to limited subsets only. We also show an advantage of the described framework over industrial simulators, which typically use transaction-based verification. Another advantage of our approach is its ability to use deterministic checkers directly for hardware emulation. Finally, we compare the deterministic compilation with the OBDD-based on-the-fly simulation of deterministic automata. We show that although the OBDD-based simulation method is much slower, the two methods may be efficiently combined for hybrid simulation, when the RTL signals in assertions are mixed with symbolic variables.
How Do Public Announcements Afiect the Frequency of Trading in U.S. Airline Stocks

This paper examines how news releases, key microstructure features of market activities and crude oil futures returns afiect trading frequency in U.S. airline stocks. Using the autoregressive conditional hazard framework of Hamilton and Jordµa (2002), we show that on average, trading intensity spikes prior and consequent to macroeconomic announcements, but decreases around flrmspeciflc releases. We flnd that market microstructure variables have a small yet signiflcant efiect on trading frequency, with high trade volume and narrow bid/ask spread inducing higher trading intensity. Strong evidence is provided to indicate that the intraday crude oil futures returns are relevant for modelling the probability of a trade in airline stocks within the next time period.
Perspectives of Health Promotion and Primary Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease: Revisiting the Social-Ecological Model

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) continues to be among the leading causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. The prevalence of CVD is strongly related to lifestyle risk behaviors. Behavioral modification of these lifestyle behaviors through a healthy lifestyle continues to be a significant factor in reducing and preventing CVD risk. On-going development of behavior health interventions have been identified as an effective response to CVD risk. This position paper investigates theoretical frameworks and models of behavioral health that integrate socio-ecological perspectives and constructs that address CVD at the community and population levels. The purpose of this paper is to examine the implementation and performance of recent ecologic intervention-based behavior change programs that address CVD.
Linear Inflation in Curvature-Quadratic Gravity

We continue our study of gravity described by the action density (-g)^(1/2)(R_ik^2+bR^2); and look for cosmological solutions of gravity coupled to dust, for the closed isotropic model. There is a solution that at t approaches zero has for the radius, a(t)=t/3^(1/2); in the absence of dust this solution holds for all time.
Use of the impedance method for ICNIRP-related compliance testing of electronic article surveillance devices

Electronic article surveillance (EAS) systems based on the use of alternating magnetic fields at frequencies up to 10-20 MHz are being rapidly introduced into society to prevent unauthorized removal of items from stores, libraries, and hospitals. The EAS systems may take the form of one or two-sided panels of current-carrying loops or pillars at or near the exit door, and loops hidden in the ceiling and/or the mat on the floor. Another manifestation is the magnetic tag deactivation systems that are mounted as checkout counter top devices. The net result is that an individual passing through or standing close to these devices is exposed to nonuniform vector magnetic fields emanating from these EAS systems. Limits of induced current densities in the human body have been prescribed in the IEEE and ICINIRP standards that may not be exceeded for exposure of the general public or for occupational situations. Computational methods using heterogeneous anatomically-based models of the human body are acceptable to show compliance of new EAS devices. For the present paper, we have used the widely accepted 3-D impedance method to calculate the currents induced in the human body for some representative EAS devices. Since the purpose of the paper is to illustrate the approach and the kind of results that one may expect, the geometrical configurations, the ampere turns and the frequencies have been altered from those used in commercial devices.
163: The feasibility of diaphragmatic transplantation in a canine model: Novel potential therapy for treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy-associated respiratory failure

etiologies of respiratory failure. Charts of patients with emphysema were reviewed for NETT criteria that suggest favorable prognosis with LVRS including PFTs, CT scan, and comorbid conditions. Active tobacco use resulted in exclusion. Results: 162 patients were referred for lung transplant evaluation, 69 patients were listed. 93 patients deferred or denied, 56 carried the diagnosis of emphysema. 16 (29%) met NETT criteria for LVRS. 4 patients had ongoing tobacco use. 9 patients had cardiac contraindications, 6 other comorbid conditions. 17 patients had PFTs outside the strict NETT criteria. One patient had a previous talc pleurodesis. One patient had prior LVRS. Conclusions: LVRS has been shown to be beneficial in select patients with emphysema yet appears underutilized in the VA population. Almost 30% of deferred patients were potential candidates for volume reduction. LVRS as a bridge to transplant has been used minimally in the VA. This unique population with referral from throughout the United States gives insight into national trends in medical care . Our data suggests that changes in reimbursment coverage after NETT recommendations have not increased numbers of LVRS or its acceptance as alternative to transplantation in select patients.
A very‐low‐profile broadband planar antenna for DCS‐1800 and IMT‐2000 applications

A very-low-profile (VLP) broadband planar antenna is developed for DCS-1800 and IMT-2000 handsets. The VLP planar antenna consists of an S-strip and a T-strip, which are separately printed on the two sides of a thin substrate. The antenna height is only 4.8 mm which is much lower than previously published antenna configurations. The VLP planar antenna can achieve a bandwidth of ∼30% for return loss < - 10 dB. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 49: 1679–1681, 2007; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/mop.22529
Totally ordered gigabit multicasting

Totally ordered multicast protocols are important in distributed system design, because totally ordered multicasts provide a considerably simpler programming paradigm than causally or unordered multicasts. These protocols convert the underlying unreliable and unordered message delivery provided by the network into high-quality reliable totally ordered message delivery. The emerging gigabit networks provide both ultra-high data rates and extremely low error rates. These characteristics strongly challenge the basic assumptions made for existing totally ordered multicast protocols. In this paper, we present the QuickRing multicast protocol, which provides totally ordered multicasting for the ring-based gigabit network QuickRing. The protocol is based on a buffer reservation strategy and uses timestamps both for buffer reservations and for total ordering of messages. Totally ordered multicasting implemented in hardware achieves low overhead, low latency, high throughput and low cost.
Drug Truths: Dispelling the Myths About Pharma R&D

By John L. LaMattina Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, NJ 07030. 2008. 152 p. Price $25.00. In reading this book by John LaMattina (a previous head of Pfizer Research and Development), I was reminded of a quote attributed to Samuel Johnson: “Dictionaries are like watches: the worst
Cell Adhesion in Zebrafish Embryos Is Modulated by March8

March8 is a member of a family of transmembrane E3 ubiquitin ligases that have been studied mostly for their role in the immune system. We find that March8 is expressed in the zebrafish egg and early embryo, suggesting a role in development. Both knock-down and overexpression of March8 leads to abnormal development. The phenotype of zebrafish embryos and Xenopus animal explants overexpressing March8 implicates impairment of cell adhesion as a cause of the effect. In zebrafish embryos and in cultured cells, overexpression of March8 leads to a reduction in the surface levels of E-cadherin, a major cell-cell adhesion molecule. Experiments in cell culture further show that E-cadherin can be ubiquitinated by March8. On the basis of these observations we suggest that March8 functions in the embryo to modulate the strength of cell adhesion by regulating the localization of E-cadherin.
Translating Neurodevelopment to Practice: How to Go From fMRI to a Home Visit

Bruce Perry's “Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics” (NMT) has great potential for enriching how children are cared for in families and in the social institutions charged with treating emerging disorders in young children. The NMT also suggests that many, if not most, currently used interventions seem pale and destined to have little or no effect on maturational outcomes because of their ignorance of target areas in the brain. Clinicians and child protective service practitioners need to have a clear understanding of how the brain and environment interact to produce thinking, feeling and behaving. Clinicians must learn how to think neurodevelopmentally throughout assessment and treatment. This is different from seeing evidence-based practices as manualizable stepwise components that can be blindly followed in the clinical setting. NMT requires a far more sophisticated education of clinical professionals during their graduate exposure instead of depending on episodic training on packaged evidence-based pr...
Scalable, optimal flow routing in datacenters via local link balancing

Datacenter networks should support high network utilization. Yet today's routing is typically load agnostic, so large flows can starve other flows if routed through overutilized links. Even recent proposals like centralized scheduling or end-host multi-pathing give suboptimal throughput, and they suffer from poor scalability and other limitations. We present a simple, switch-local algorithm called LocalFlow that is optimal (under standard assumptions), scalable, and practical. Although LocalFlow may split an individual flow (this is necessary for optimality), it does so infrequently by considering the aggregate flow per destination and allowing slack in distributing this flow. We use an optimization decomposition to prove LocalFlow's optimality when combined with unmodified end hosts' TCP. Splitting flows presents several new technical challenges that must be overcome in order to interact efficiently with TCP and work on emerging standards for programmable, commodity switches. Since LocalFlow acts independently on each switch, it is highly scalable, adapts quickly to dynamic workloads, and admits flexible deployment strategies. We present detailed packet-level simulations comparing LocalFlow to a variety of alternative schemes, on real datacenter workloads.
Maturational and functional related differences in rat craniofacial growth

Abstract Background Whilst decreases in masticatory muscle function have been linked with increased prevalences of craniofacial dysmorphology and malocclusion in humans, the relative susceptibility of the different craniofacial components remains poorly understood. Methods Thirty-two wild-type male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly assigned to two groups ( n = 16 each), one raised on a soft diet (SD) and the other on a hard diet (HD). Body weights and three radiographs (lateral, dorso-ventral, and tibial X-rays) were taken at baseline (T1 = 23 days old) and every 2 weeks thereafter for 8 weeks (T5 = 79 days old). The X-ray images were scanned, standardised points were digitised, and linear measurements were calculated. Multilevel statistical models were used to describe longitudinal absolute growth changes and statistically evaluate group differences. Relative maturity curves were generated for each measurement based on the animals’ T5 status. The experimental effect was calculated as the absolute and relative growth differences between the HD and SD groups. Results The HD group was significantly heavier than the SD group at T5, but no differences in tibial length were observed. Eight of the 20 craniofacial measurements (40%) showed significant size differences at the end of the experiment, with the SD group showing deficiencies in each instance. All of the vertical measurements, as well as most of the mandibular (67%) and transverse (67%) measures, showed absolute growth deficits in the SD group. Relative maturity curves demonstrated considerable variation among craniofacial structures (ranging from 42 to 98%). The neurocranial measures were the most mature; the mandibular measures were the least mature; the viscerocranial measures, which were most variable, tended to be intermediate. Whilst unrelated to the absolute experimental effect, the structures’ relative maturity explained almost 70% ( r = −0.82) of the relative experimental effect. Conclusion The results of this study support the notion that masticatory function is a key determinant of the craniofacial growth pattern and that its effects are modulated by the relative growth potential of the different craniofacial components.
L'Alternativa liberale: Malagodi e l'opposizione al centrosinistra

Giovanni Orsina (2010) L'Alternativa liberale: Malagodi e l'opposizione al centrosinistra (Venice: Marsilio Editore), 222 pp., ISBN-10 8831706780/ISBN, ISBN-13 9788831706780, €22, soft cover This b...
NFBD1, a Novel Nuclear Protein with Signature Motifs of FHA and BRCT, and an Internal 41-Amino Acid Repeat Sequence, Is an Early Participant in DNA Damage Response

Efficient repair of DNA double-strand breaks depends on the intact signaling cascade, comprising molecules involved in DNA damage signal pathways and checkpoints. Budding yeast Rad9 (scRad9) is required for activation of scRad53 (mammalian homolog Chk2) and transduction of the signal further downstream in this pathway. In the search for a mammalian homolog, three proteins in the human data base, including BRCA1, 53BP1, and nuclear factor with BRCT domains protein 1 (NFBD1), were found to share significant homology with the BRCT motifs of scRad9. Because BRCA1 and 53BP1 are involved in DNA damage responses, a similar role for NFBD1 was tested. We show that NFBD1 is a 250-kDa nuclear protein containing a forkhead-associated motif at its N terminus, two BRCT motifs at its C terminus, and 13 internal repetitions of a 41-amino acid sequence. Five minutes after γ-irradiation, NFBD1 formed nuclear foci that colocalized with the phosphorylated form of H2AX and Chk2, two phosphorylation events known to be involved in early DNA damage response. NFBD1 foci are also detected in response to camptothecin, etoposide, and methylmethanesulfonate treatments. Deletion of the forkhead-associated motif or the internal repeats of NFBD1 has no effect on DNA damage-induced NFBD1 foci formation. Conversely, deletion of the BRCT motifs abrogates damage-induced NFBD1 foci. Ectopic expression of the BRCT motifs reduced damage-induced NFBD1 foci and compromised phosphorylated Chk2- and phosphorylated H2AX-containing foci. These results suggest that NFBD1, like BRCA1 and 53BP1, participates in the early response to DNA damage.
A stochastic programming framework for optimal storage bidding in energy and reserve markets

This paper focuses on a scenario where a group of independently-operated investor-owned storage units seek to offer both energy and reserve in the day-ahead as well as the hour-ahead markets. We are particularly interested in the case when a significant portion of the power generated in the grid is from wind and other intermittent renewable energy sources. In this regard, we formulate a stochastic programming framework to choose optimal energy and reserve bids for the storage units. Our design takes into account the fluctuating nature of the market prices due to the randomness in the renewable power generation availability. We show that the formulated stochastic program can be converted into a convex optimization problem and therefore it can be solved efficiently. Our simulation results show that our design can assure profitability of the private investment on storage units. In particular, our design results in much higher profit compared to a similar but deterministic design that simply uses the expected values of the price parameters.
“On Optimal Dividend Strategies in the Compound Poisson Model”, by Hans U. Gerber and Elias S. W. Shiu, April 2006

(2006). “On Optimal Dividend Strategies in the Compound Poisson Model”, by Hans U. Gerber and Elias S. W. Shiu, April 2006. North American Actuarial Journal: Vol. 10, No. 3, pp. 71-75.
Deception in communication research

(1991). Deception in communication research. Communication Reports: Vol. 4, No. 1, pp. 51-54.
Vulvar disorders in adolescents.

Vulvar disorders are uncommon findings in adolescents. Anatomic, dermatologic, and systemic diseases that may occur in this age group are reviewed.
Osteoporosis associated with mastocytosis confined to bone: report of two cases.

Abstract Two women, ages 53 and 46, presented with multiple spontaneous vertebral fractures. Serum calcium, 25OHD, 1,25-(OH) 2 D, PTH, and 24-h urinary calcium were all normal. Bone mineral analysis (BMA) was performed at the junction of the distal third of the radius by single photon absorptiometry. BMA on Patient 1 was 0.68 g/cm 2 and on Patient 2 was 0.58 g/cm 2 , with the normal being 0.70 g/cm 2 and 0.77 g/cm 2 , respectively. In addition to vertebral fractures, x rays of Patient 2 revealed lytic lesions of the tibia and ulna. Bone biopsies revealed osteopenia associated with generalized eosinophilic fibromastocytosis and increased resorption without evidence of increased numbers of osteoclasts. There was no evidence of extraskeletal mast cell involvement. Our observations contribute to the increasing evidence that mast cells play a direct role in the etiology of osteoporosis in certain patients. Possible pathophysiologic mechanisms include mast cell release of heparin, histamine, prostaglandin D 2 or other osteolytic substances.
Talking About Science in Museums

Abstract— New research in museums offers a unique vantage point for observing how parent–child conversational interactions may help children learn science in everyday settings. Recent studies in this area pinpoint the role of elaborative conversation—including open-ended Wh- questions and explanatory comments—in children’s understanding of scientific concepts, and more generalized effects on children’s attitudes and ways of making meaning may exist as well. This review places this work in its theoretical context and discusses its potential to illuminate social mediators underlying children’s learning processes and outcomes.
Involucrin-Positive Keratinocytes Demonstrate Decreased Migration Speed but Sustained Directional Migration in a DC Electric Field

When skin is wounded, keratinocytes from the cut edges of the epidermis migrate over the wounded area to re-epithelialize the wound. It is not clear which cells of the epidermis have the capacity to migrate and contribute to this re-epithelialization: the less differentiated cells of the basal layer, or the more differentiated, involucrin-positive suprabasilar cells. Here we demonstrate that both involucrin-negative and involucrin-positive cells are able to respond to a directional cue for migration with sustained directional migration. When cultured keratinocytes are exposed to a physiologic DC electric field of 100 mV per mm as a cue to guide migration (galvanotaxis) they migrate toward the cathode with equivalent directionality. The involucrin-positive cells, however, display mean migration speeds approximately one half (23.6 μm per h) of the mean rate achieved by involucrin-negative cells (46.5 μm per h). Despite their decreased migration rates, involucrin-positive cells appear to possess an intact mechanism for sensing a directional signal, transducing that signal, and responding with sustained directional migration. Because electric fields are endogenous in skin wounds, it is likely that both the basal, involucrin-negative cells and the involucrin-positive suprabasilar cells respond to this cue with directional migration. The new observation that involucrin-positive cells can indeed migrate suggests that these cells may also contribute to wound re-epithelialization in vivo .
EHD-Enhanced Drying with Multiple-Wire Electrode

Abstract The enhancement of drying rate by corona discharge from multiple wire electrodes has been experimentally evaluated in this study. The corona wind produced by an array of three wire electrodes, which resembles a series of slot jets, impinges, and removes moisture from the surface of 6 mm glass beads saturated with water. Corona discharges with positive and negative polarities have been considered. Two sets of experiments have been conducted (one with the cross-flow of air and the other without), at 1 kV increment from the corona threshold voltage to a maximum voltage of 25 kV. To evaluate the drying enhancement, a companion experiment was carried out simultaneously for each case under the same ambient conditions but without the application of electric field. Each experiment lasted for at least 5 h. The weight loss of water as well as the ambient temperature and humidity were measured. The results are compared with those obtained with a single wire electrode to evaluate the effectiveness of a multi...
Growth and morphology of InBi whisker crystals

Abstract The growth of whiskers of compound InBi by the “squeeze technique” is reported. Rotating crystal X-ray analysis and melting point measurements confirmed that the whiskers were InBi. The whisker axis coincided with the direction for all three whiskers. Scanning electron microscope photographs indicate that the whiskers share the irregular cross section and ribbonlike morphology of other “squeeze-grown” metal whiskers.
NMR Study of the Synthesis of Alkyl-Terminated Silicon Nanoparticles from the Reaction of SiCl4 with the Zintl Salt, NaSi

The synthesis of silicon nanoclusters and their characterization by multinuclear solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) is presented. A combination of 23Na, 29Si, and 13C magic angle spinning with and without cross polarization to 1H nuclei have been used to investigate the reaction of sodium silicide (NaSi) with silicon tetrachloride (SiCl4) followed by varying degrees of surface passivation. The 23Na and 29Si NMR spectra of NaSi distinguish the two crystallographically inequivalent sites for each, consistent with the crystal structure. This compound exhibits extreme diamagnetic chemical shifts for 29Si of −361 and −366 ppm. NaSi is reacted with SiCl4 in refluxing ethylene glycol dimethyl ether to produce both amorphous and crystalline Si nanoparticles with surfaces capped by chlorine. This reaction produces new 29Si resonances that survive subsequent capping and oxidation reactions. The 29Si NMR spectrum shows that the product is incompletely passivated with butyl groups and gives several peaks ly...
Social rank and body size as determinants of positional behavior inPan troglodytes

A yearlong study of the positional behavior ofPan troglodytes at the Mahale Mountains National Park yielded 571 hr of observation.Cant (1987) articulated four predictions concerning the relationship between body weight/branch diameter and positional behavior based on the classic suspensory-ape paradigm. He noted that only two were supported by orangutan data. Three of these four hypothesis were not supported by chimpanzee data, as follows: there was no significant difference between the three largest males and the four smallest males in (1) branch diameters (5.8 cm vs 5.2 cm) nor (2) in the percentage of arm-hanging (13.6% vs 12.1%); and (3) large males did not arm-hang significantly more often than small males in any of three support diameter categories. The fourth hypothesis, that arm-hanging should be more common among smaller branches, was supported: arm-hanging as a percentage of all posture rose from 2.5% to 8.3% to 24% as stratum size decreased from >10 cm to <3 cm. The possibility that the first three hypotheses failed because of confounding effects of a correlation between body size and social rank was examined. Multiple regressions were done on 6600 2-min instantaneous observations on focal individuals. With social rank effects factored out, larger individuals preferentially utilized smaller, rather than larger supports. When positional mode frequencies were compared between large and small males matched for social rank, large males exhibited a lower frequency of arm-hanging than small males. An unexpected result was that social rank more consistently predicted branch diameter choice than body size. The most profound trend was for high ranking males to use larger supports, even though they spent more time in the terminal branches. These results suggest that (1) suspensory behavior is functionally related to small branch diameters; (2) chimpanzees do not prefer smaller branches, rather they are forced into them by food choice limitations; and (3) social rank more profoundly affects chimpanzee behavior than body weight.
Dissociations and dependencies between speed and accuracy: Evidence for a two-component theory of divided attention in simple tasks ☆

Abstract Previous work has amply demonstrated divided attention “costs” both in single-task multistimulus visual processing and in performance of multiple simple tasks; however, the relationship between the two has not been clarified. This article postulates two distinct causes: (1) visual processes that commence without delays and proceed simultaneously, but show lingering mutual interference dependent upon complexity, and (2) discrete queueing of the response selection stage. The first has resource-like properties, while the second has bottleneck-like properties. Either or both can generate performance costs observed in any particular situation, accounting for a variety of previous results. To test this theory, the effects of stimulus onset asynchrony (SOA) on accuracy and speed in performing dual choice tasks were examined. The first two experiments involved a choice response to a tone as a first task, and a second task requiring complex perceptual decisions (digit identification or conjunction search) with masked displays and unspeeded second responses. Reducing the SOA had negligible effects upon second-task accuracy, and performance in the two tasks was virtually independent. However, when speeded manual (Exp. 3) or vocal (Exp. 4) responses were required on the same second task, dramatic interference was observed, with strong positive dependencies between reaction times (RTs) on the two tasks. When both tasks involved complex visual displays, SOA reductions produced dramatic interference, but no dependencies between performance, whether the first task involved a speeded (Exp. 5) or unspeeded (Exp. 6) response. The results reject pure late-selection accounts and general capacity sharing models, and support the two-component theory. They also suggest that standard use of the term “attention,” suggesting a single resource or mechanism, is highly misleading.
Hemodynamic importance of systolic ventricular interaction, augmented right atrial contractility and atrioventricular synchorny in acute right ventricular dysfunction

AbstractTo delineate the determinants of right ventricular performance with acute right ventricular dysfunction, surgical electrical isolation of the right ventricular free wall was produced in 13 ...
The Official (and Unofficial) Rules for Norming Rubrics Successfully

Academic libraries provide value to their institutions in a variety of ways. Perhaps the most important, and most pervasive, is the contribution libraries make to student success. To demonstrate their impact on student success, academic librarians must assess the results of student interactions with the library. Among the most important student library interactions is information literacy instruction; therefore, it makes sense for librarians to examine students’ information literacy learning. Whether information literacy instruction is course-integrated, offered through credit-bearing courses, or provided via optional workshops, assessment of student learning is vital. Thus, librarians who seek to connect libraries to student success must provide evidence of student learning by regularly and systematically assessing information literacy skills demonstrated through student academic work.
Antigen-Decorated Shell Cross-Linked Nanoparticles: Synthesis, Characterization, and Antibody Interactions

Antigen-decorated shell cross-linked knedel-like nanoparticles (SCKs) were synthesized and studied as multivalent nanoscale surfaces from which antibody-binding units were presented in a manner that was designed to approach virus particle surfaces. The SCK nanostructures were fabricated with control over the number of antigenic groups, from mixed micellization of amphiphilic diblock copolymer building blocks that contained either an antigen (2,4-dinitrophenyl) or an ethylpropionate group at the hydrophilic α-chain terminus. Amphiphilic diblock copolymers were synthesized by atom transfer radical polymerization of tert-butyl acrylate and methyl acrylate sequentially from either a 2,4-dinitrophenyl-functionalized initiator or ethyl 2-bromopropionate, followed by selective removal of the tert-butyl groups to afford 2,4-dinitrophenyl-poly(acrylic acid)60-b-poly(methyl acrylate)60 (DNP-PAA60-b-PMA60) and poly(acrylic acid)70-b-poly(methyl acrylate) (PAA70-b-PMA70). Micelles were assembled via addition of water...
Photoconductive probing of acoustoelectric domains with application to optical image scanning

A simple new method is described for probing acoustoelectric domains in n‐GaAs through their strong photoconductive response to a focused light beam. This permits a scan of the spatial distribution and propagation of the amplified acoustic flux in the sample. As a further application of the photoconductive response, a narrow propagating domain can be used to reveal an optical image projected onto the sample. The techniques are illustrated here primarily for extrinsic photoexcitation with Nd:YAG laser light.
Radioactivity: Detection of Gamma-Ray Emission in Sediments in situ

A probe for measuring emission of gamma-rays in sediments in situ in water depths to about 35 meters was used to measure radioactivity in the Columbia River estuary and Oregon coastal areas. This technique offers some advantage over methods in which sediment samples are collected at sea and returned to the laboratory for radioanalysis.
Pile capacity in a softening soil

A method for determining the load–deformation response of a pile in a softening soil is presented. The results demonstrate the degree to which the flexibility of the pile can affect its ultimate capacity.
ON THE RESPONSE OF HEPATIC GLUCOSE-6-PHOSPHATE DEHYDROGENASE ACTIVITY TO CHANGES IN DIET COMPOSITION AND FOOD INTAKE PATTERN.

1. 1.|Ethionine inhibition experiments suggest that the hepatic glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase increase seen on refeeding and after fructose feeding probably represents de novo protein synthesis. Some difficulties in interpreting experiments done with protein synthesis inhibiting maneuvers in whole animals are discussed. 2. 2.|No increase in glucose-6-phosphate concentration of liver is detectable before or during periods of rapid dehydrogenase activity increase. 3. 3.|Inhibition of lipogenesis by the isocaloric substitution of fat for protein in a high glucose diet is accompanied by failure of enhancement of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase activity. When the enzyme level has been elevated as a result of carbohydrate feeding the addition of fat to the diet results in a lowering of enzyme activity but only after a 2 day latent period. 4. 4.|The administration of 2 ml of corn oil by stomach tube to carbohydrate diet adapted rats has the following effects within 2 hr (a) decreased lipogenesis from glucose and acetate and (b) decreased appearance of glucose carbon 1 in CO2. These findings suggest that inhibition of lipogenesis results in a dimunition of glucose-6-phosphate oxidation by way of the pentose pathway. 5. 5.|A number of treatments (methylene blue, menadione and phenobarbital administration) designed to increase cellular demand for NADPH2 were without effect on glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase activity. An attempt to increase tissue NADP concentration by nicotinamide feeding was similarly without effect.
Epidemiology of hypertension and chronic kidney disease in China.

Purpose of reviewHypertension and chronic kidney disease have become major public health challenges in China.Recent findingsIt is estimated that approximately 153 million Chinese adults had hypertension in 2002. It is also estimated that 2.33 million total cardiovascular deaths and 1.27 million prem