cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Hiding Behind the Tax Code, the Dark Election of 2010 and Why Tax-Exempt Entities Should Be Subject to Robust Federal Campaign Finance Disclosure Laws

If the past is prologue, we should anticipate a marked increase in the use of non-profits to mask for-profit money in politics. History shows that for-profit corporations spend through non-profits to enjoy their anonymity while spending without accountability from shareholders or customers. And Citizens United may only expand this corporate habit of spending through intermediaries. If for-profit corporations are purposefully using non-profits to hide the true source of their funds, then it is possible that the degree of disclosure required of non-profits in the future may have an impact on whether for-profits give money to ideological and politically active non-profits. Citizens United changed many aspects of American campaign finance law. The Supreme Court’s decision ended decades-old restrictions on the use of union and corporate treasury funds to pay for independent expenditures and electioneering communications. But the one area where the Citizens United Court increased the ability of Congress to regulate was the disclosure of the sources of money in politics. Indeed, the Supreme Court found that the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002’s (BCRA’s) disclaimer and disclosure provisions could be constitutionally applied to the plaintiff in Citizens United, a 501(c)(4) organization, as well as to its ads and its film entitled “Hillary: The Movie.” As Citizens United reaffirms, in order for voters to make informed choices at the ballot box, they must know who is paying for each side of a political fight. Campaign finance disclosure and disclaimer laws should be adopted at the federal level to achieve this end, regardless of the tax status of the spender. Yet the question remains, how expansive is this governmental right to mandate disclosure? And in particular, what types of disclosure can non-profit social welfare organizations or trade associations be subject to in the future once they purchase political advertisements? These are the questions that this article will endeavor to answer.
Mobile Network Objects

The sections in this article are 1 Basic Infrastructure 2 Programming Language 3 Mobility 4 Agent Interactions 5 Protection and Security 6 Utility and Applications
Biophysical Fitness Landscapes for Transcription Factor Binding Sites

Phenotypic states and evolutionary trajectories available to cell populations are ultimately dictated by complex interactions among DNA, RNA, proteins, and other molecular species. Here we study how evolution of gene regulation in a single-cell eukaryote S. cerevisiae is affected by interactions between transcription factors (TFs) and their cognate DNA sites. Our study is informed by a comprehensive collection of genomic binding sites and high-throughput in vitro measurements of TF-DNA binding interactions. Using an evolutionary model for monomorphic populations evolving on a fitness landscape, we infer fitness as a function of TF-DNA binding to show that the shape of the inferred fitness functions is in broad agreement with a simple functional form inspired by a thermodynamic model of two-state TF-DNA binding. However, the effective parameters of the model are not always consistent with physical values, indicating selection pressures beyond the biophysical constraints imposed by TF-DNA interactions. We find little statistical support for the fitness landscape in which each position in the binding site evolves independently, indicating that epistasis is common in the evolution of gene regulation. Finally, by correlating TF-DNA binding energies with biological properties of the sites or the genes they regulate, we are able to rule out several scenarios of site-specific selection, under which binding sites of the same TF would experience different selection pressures depending on their position in the genome. These findings support the existence of universal fitness landscapes which shape evolution of all sites for a given TF, and whose properties are determined in part by the physics of protein-DNA interactions.
Voting Patterns in a Non-partisan Legislature: A Study of Toronto City Council *

The least systematic level of formalized political decision-making in Canada would unquestionably be found to take place in the municipal branch of government. This statement, although admittedly impressionistic, is made with regard to such criteria as consistency among decisions taken, and the relationship of the decisions made to expertise available on the subjects to be decided. This phenomenon is generally attributable to the absence of a regularized structure of party-based decision-making in most municipalities. In the nation's smaller communities, where budgets are not very substantial, this tendency is neither surprising nor particularly disturbing. However, in the larger urban centres such as Toronto, where the municipal budget exceeds that of most provinces, the problems created by this "parish pump" approach to politics has recently led certain elements to favour the introduction of a more consistent form of partybased decision-making. Party politics at the local level is hardly a new concept. It exists in the majority of American cities, and Jean Drapeau has established its effectiveness as a vehicle for attracting large capital projects with the efficiency of his own civic party in giving order to Montreal politics. In the past, the ccF and N-DP have organized candidate slates in Vancouver, but these have been regularly defeated by "non-partisan" slates which were in fact loose coalitions of supporters of the other parties, but without any significant form of party coherence once elected. It is also common in many centres for slates of candidates to be endorsed by various interest groups, notably labour councils. However, these endorsements are generally of independent candidates who appear to be favourably predisposed towards that interest, and these slates have little in common except this predisposition. The attempt to structure local politics in Toronto was originated by a group of private citizens led by David Crombie, who prior to the 1966 civic election formed a group called Civic Action (Civac), and ran a sprinkling of candidates in various wards but none for city-wide office. They met with little success, but early in the term following the election a number of relatively reformist Council members declared that they were forming a loose alliance on public issues of mutual concern and identified themselves with the Civac label. The opportunity for a test of strength between this so-called Civac group and a gathering of the more established long-term members of Council presented itself when a vacancy
The Interaction of Field Dependence/Independence and the Level of Guidance of Mathematics Instruction.

Attempts to individualize instruction have traditionally involved varying the rate of instruction, and relatively little attention has been given to adapting the method of instruction to student characteristics. Cronbach (1957) recommended that researchers try to find aptitudes that interact with variations in instructional treatments and to design instructional treatments to fit particular aptitudes of groups of students. The search for ways of adapting instructional treatments to individual differences is known as aptitude-treatment-interaction (ATI) research. In general, the results accumulated from ATI studies have been less than satisfactory, and few significant interactions have been found. Cronbach and Snow (1977) state that aptitude-treatment interactions do exist and that whereas no interactions have been confirmed well enough to be used as guides in making decisions about instruction, much has been learned. For reviews of ATI research, see Berliner and Cahen (1973), Cronbach (1975), Cronbach and Snow (1977), and Tobias (1976). In mathematics education, some recent studies successful in finding ATIs have used the cognitive style of field dependence/independence as an aptitude variable. Individual differences in field dependence/independence are identified on a continuum determined by the extent a person perceives analytically. Students who are relatively field dependent find it difficult to restructure a situation in order to solve a problem or to impose structure on material when structure is lacking. On the other hand, field independent students are more capable of taking a critical element out of context and restructuring a problem in order to use that element in a different context. Another aspect of field dependence/independence that may be important in developing instructional materials is that the effect of cue salience is greater for field dependent than for field independent students. Field dependent students also favor a spectator approach to learning, whereas field independent students favor a more active approach. Witkin, Moore, Good-
Treatment of adult rhabdomyosarcoma.

Objectives Rhabdomyosarcoma is an exceedingly rare tumor in adults, and standard chemotherapy used for children is much less effective in adults. This study examines short-term outcomes using doxorubicin, ifosfamide, and vincristine for adult rhabdomyosarcoma. Methods Pathology records were searched for adults (age, >18) with rhabdomyosarcoma treated at our musculoskeletal tumor center. Treatment involved surgical resection, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy with doxorubicin, ifosfamide, and vincristine. Eleven met inclusion criteria. Mean age was 49 (range: 19-72). Tumors sites included upper extremity (4 patients), lower extremity (6), and cervix (1). Subtypes were pleomorphic (7), alveolar (1), embryonal (1), and mixed alveolar/embryonal (2). Results Of the 7 patients with nonmetastatic disease, 6 had no evidence of disease posttreatment, but 1 died of myelodysplastic syndrome after 51 months. Three patients who received neoadjuvant chemotherapy had 100% tumor necrosis. One patient with positive margins scheduled for adjuvant chemotherapy had local recurrence and metastasis within 2 weeks and died 5 months later. Of the 4 patients with metastatic disease on presentation, 1 had complete response, 2 had partial response with later progression and death at 8 and 24 months, and 1 had immediate progression and died at 12 months. Mean overall survival was 24 months with 6 of 11 (55%) alive at last follow-up. Mean disease-free survival was 17 months for all patients and 23 months for the 7 patients who had remission of all disease. Conclusions When combined with surgery and radiation therapy, chemotherapy using doxorubicin, ifosfamide, and vincristine yielded 55% overall and 64% disease-free survival at 2 years.
Hemolytic Transfusion Reactions in a Dog With an Alloantibody to a Common Antigen

Alloantibodies to high-frequency red cell antigens, defined as inherited traits occurring in 92% to 99% or more of the general population, are recognized as a cause of hemolytic transfusion reactions in humans. Here we describe a dog (dog erythrocyte antigen [DEA] 1.2-and DEA 4-positive) sensitized by prior blood transfusion, for which a compatible blood donor could not be found; transfusion of DEA 1.1-negative blood resulted in hemolytic transfusion reactions. Patient serum from days 1 (before first transfusion) and 16 was available for further testing; using 4 dogs with different blood types as potential donors, the major crossmatches were compatible using serum from day 1. However the crossmatches were all incompatible with serum from day 16, indicating that the patient was sensitized to an antigen after the first transfusion. The presence of an alloantibody against DEA 1.1 was not ruled out in this patient, but the incompatibility reactions of patient serum with red cells from donors negative for DEA 1.1 indicated that an alloantibody against a red cell antigen other than DEA 1.1 or any other known DEA for which typing reagents were available (DEA 3, 5, and 7) was present. Subsequently, red cells from 1 of the patient's siblings (DEA 1.2-, 4-, and 7-positive) were found not to agglutinate when incubated with patient's serum from day 16, ruling out the presence of an anti-DEA 7 antibody, and suggesting that an alloantibody against a common red cell antigen missing in the patient and sibling was responsible for the blood incompatibility reactions. Failure to obtain a compatible crossmatch with several universal donors in a dog previously transfused should raise a suspicion that an alloantibody to a common red cell antigen may exist and that a sibling may be a source of compatible blood.
Near-nucleus photometry of comets using archived NEAT data

Abstract Though optimized to discover and track fast moving Near-Earth Objects (NEOs), the Near-Earth Asteroid Tracking (NEAT) survey dataset can be mined to obtain information on the comet population observed serendipitously during the asteroid survey. We have completed analysis of over 400 CCD images of comets obtained during the autonomous operations of two 1.2-m telescopes: the first on the summit of Haleakala on the Hawaiian island of Maui and the second on Palomar Mountain in southern California. Photometric calibrations of each frame were derived using background catalog stars and the near-nucleus comet photometry measured. We measured dust production and normalized magnitudes for the coma and nucleus in order to explore cometary activity and comet size–frequency distributions. Our data over an approximately two-year time frame (2001 August–2003 February) include 52 comets: 12 periodic, 19 numbered, and 21 non-periodic, obtained over a wide range of viewing geometries and helio/geocentric distances. Nuclear magnitudes were estimated for a subset of comets observed. We found that for low-activity comets ( A f ρ 100 cm ) our model gave reasonable estimates for nuclear size and magnitude. The slope of the cumulative luminosity function of our sample of low-activity comets was 0.33 ± 0.04, consistent with the slope we measured for the Jupiter-family cometary nuclei collected by Fernandez et al. [Fernandez, J.A., Tancredi, G., Rickman, H., Licandro, J., 1999. Astron. Astrophys. 392, 327–340] of 0.38 ± 0.02. Our slopes of the cumulative size distribution α = 1.50 ± 0.08 agree well with the slopes measured by Whitman et al. [Whitman, K., Morbidelli, A., Jedicke, R., 2006. Icarus 183, 101–114], Meech et al. [Meech, K.J., Hainaut, O.R., Marsden, B.G., 2004. Icarus 170, 463–491], Lowry et al. [Lowry, S.C., Fitzsimmons, A., Collander-Brown, S., 2003. Astron. Astrophys. 397, 329–343], and Weissman and Lowry [Weissman, P.R., Lowry, S.C., 2003. Lunar Planet. Sci. 34. Abstract 34].
Direct in vivo observations of embolic events in the microcirculation distal to a small-vessel anastomosis

This study was done to determine whether microemboli are produced by an arterial anastomosis. Direct in vivo observations were made in an isolated microcirculatory bed lying directly downstream from a newly made anastomosis. The tissue used was the isolated rat cremaster muscle, a new experimental model. The vessel anastomosed was the external iliac artery. Following anastomosis, microemboli were clearly observed in eight of eight animals during the first 30 minutes after clamp release. Embolic events were sometimes of impressive magnitude and in one case were associated with cessation of blood flow throughout the preparation. No microemboli were observed in eight of eight animals subjected only to dissection of the cremaster, nor were any observed in eight of eight animals in which the isolated cremaster was subjected only to 2 hours of clamp ischemia. These findings may be significant in explaining perturbations to blood flow following free-tissue transfer and instances of partial tissue necrosis following apparently successful arterial repair. These findings also identify an important factor (microemboli) to be considered in research on reperfusion injury.
Increases in CNS excitability during negative cortical slow potentials in man.

Resume Les latences des composantes du potentiel evoque somato-sensitif survenant entre 200 et 400 msec sont plus courtes si le stimulus somato-sensitif est applique pendant la variation lente de pontentiels connue sous le terme de “variation contigente negative”, que si le stimulus est applique pendant un etat stable. Ceci est interprete compme un element important en faveur de l'hypothese suivant laquelle la variation contigente negative est accompagnee d'une excitabilite accrue du systeme nerveux central.
UNIFIED DYNAMIC SHEAR MODULI AND DAMPING RATIOS OF SAND AND CLAY

ABSTRACT Available experimental data on dynamic shear moduli and damping ratios of various soils including non-plastic sands to highly plastic clays are collected. Those are reanalyzed and brought into simple unified formulas. The unified formulas express the dynamic shear moduli and the damping ratios in terms of maximum dynamic shear modulus, cyclic shear strain amplitude, mean effective confining pressure and soil’s plasticity index. Although the availability of experimental data on clay is still limited at this time, the formulas fit those data reasonably well and could be conveniently utilized in dynamic analyses such as seismic ground response and soil-structure interaction problems.
Quaternion-Based Coordinates for Nonsingular Modeling of High-Inclination Orbital Transfer

c = characteristic constant for satellite propulsion system, m∕s F1, F2, F3 = thrust components in reference frame (b1, b2, er), N Isp = specific impulse of the thruster, s m = mass of the spacecraft, kg q = quaternion vector of components q1 t , q2 t , q3 t , and q4 t r = radial position, km T = thrust magnitude, N Tmax = maximum thrust, N t = time variable, s tf = final time, s u = control vector u, v, w = velocity vector components, m∕s x = state vector α, β = thrust direction angles in reference frame (eφ, eθ, er), rad θ, φ, ψ = Euler angles, rad ω1, ω2, ω3 = angular velocity vector components, rad∕s
Are CAFAS Subscales and Item Weights Valid? A Preliminary Investigation of the Child and Adolescent Functional Assessment Scale

Presents a psychometric analysis of the Child and Adolescent Functional Assessment Scale (CAFAS), one of the most commonly used measures of functional impairment in youths with emotional and behavioral disorders. Specific aims of the current investigation were to (a) examine the conceptual organization of the CAFAS items, (b) explore its scaling properties, and (c) investigate its construct validity. In Phase 1, a group of advanced graduate students and clinicians rated CAFAS items with respect to the degree that they reflect the originally assigned subscales. In Phase 2, additional raters assigned severity values to the subset of CAFAS items selected from Phase 1. Items were then scaled using simplified successive intervals scaling techniques. Results show differences between new empirically derived item weights and the original scoring method. This investigation highlights the benefits of continued examination and critique of level-of-functioning scaling for diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis in children and adolescents.
Gender-based schematic processing of self-descriptive information

Abstract This study tested Bem's hypothesis that assimilation of self-referent information is organized and guided by gender-based schemata for sex-typed persons, but not for those who are non-sex-typed. Introductory psychology students (109 females, 66 males) were categorized as sex-typed, cross-sex-typed, androgynous, or undifferentiated. Each subject was presented 144 trait descriptors via computer monitor and asked to indicate whether each was “like me”, or “not like me”. An equal number of the descriptors were masculine, feminine, and gender neutral in connotation, with half of each group positively and half negatively valenced. The prediction from gender schema theory was that sex-typed persons would process gender consistent information faster (shorter reaction time to say “me” or “not me”) than gender inconsistent information, the reverse would hold for the cross-sex-typed group, and that no differences would obtain for androgynous or undifferentiated subjects. Two methods for operationalizing a gender consistent versus a gender inconsistent response were tested with each offering support for sex-typed and andogynous subjects, and mixed support depending on subject's sex for cross-sex-typed persons. These results held across stimulus valence (positive and negative), suggesting that both socially desirable and undesirable characteristics are salient in processing gender information. Implications for possible structural organization of gender schemata are discussed.
Optical Mixing in Stimulated Brillouin Spectra

Optical mixing in 23 liquids and 2 glasses is reported. Observations with a high-resolution grating spectrograph of the light from a giant-pulse ruby laser transmitted through the materials reveal the presence of more Stokes-shifted components than can be accounted for on the basis of amplification by the laser of Brillouin-shifted frequencies. In addition, anti-Stokes-shifted components are observed. The frequency shifts are shown to correspond to those expected for 180° Brillouin scattering. Sound speeds calculated agree in general with those from stimulated and spontaneous scattering experiments. Sound-speed measurements at different temperatures and for two-component liquids give results predictable from bulk properties of the liquids. A number of experiments showing the conditions and the parameters which affect the optical mixing are described.
Variability in pheromone composition and periodicity of pheromone titer in potato tuberworm moth,Phthorimaea operculella (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae).

The ratios and quantities of the pheromone components, (E,Z)-4,7-tridecadien-1-yl acetate (diene) and (E,Z,Z)-4,7.10-tridecatrien-1-yl acetate (triene), in the glands of individual female potato tuberworm moths (Phthorimaea operculella) originating from the United States (California) and Japan (Nagoya) were analyzed by gas chromatography. Quantities of glandextracted pheromone components of Nagoya females fluctuated in a periodic fashion during the photoperiod. Maximal titers coincided with the onset of scotophase (and calling), then gradually declined to minimal levels soon after lights-on. The average daily pheromone quantities decreased significantly as females aged. Both populations exhibited considerable variation in the ratio of the two components. The proportions of triene in the blend ranged from 27% to 88% (triene −X = 56 ± 13% SD; CV = 23%) for California females and from 16% to 71% (42 ± 13%; CV = 31%) for Nagoya females. Nagoya females also stored significantly higher amounts of pheromone in their glands (8.6 ± 3.9 ng) than did California females (2.7 ± 1.4). The differences between the populations, while substantial, would probably not be sufficient to impart a barrier to panmixis, given the wide range of component ratios favored by the males.
T2-weighted three-dimensional MP-RAGE MR imaging

The application of three-dimensional (3D) magnetization-prepared rapid-gradient-echo (MP-RAGE) imaging to the acquisition of T2-weighted 3D data sets has been investigated, with a 90 degrees x-180 degrees y-90 degrees-x pulse set (driven equilibrium) for the T2 contrast preparation. A theoretical model was used to study the contrast behavior of brain tissue. The effects of radio-frequency and static-field inhomogeneities and eddy currents on the T2 contrast preparation and the effects of eddy currents on the gradient-echo acquisition resulted in blurring and intensity banding artifacts. With a multistep gradient preparation, these artifacts could be suppressed. With further development, this technique may yield a clinically practical method for obtaining T2-weighted 3D data sets of relatively large volumes (eg, the whole head) suitable for multiplanar reformatting.
Tracing the footsteps of glomerular insulin signaling in diabetic kidney disease

Insufficient insulin secretion and insulin resistance are hallmarks of diabetes. Recent studies indicate that insulin plays an important role in maintaining the glomerular filtration barrier. Mima et al. report that glomeruli of diabetic and obese rats suffer from insulin resistance and altered insulin signaling. Protein kinase C inhibitors are able to overcome insulin resistance, offering new hopes for the treatment of the condition.
Experiments on quantum chaos using microwave cavities: Results for the pseudo-integrable L-billiard

We describe microwave experiments used to study billiard geometries as model problems of non-integrability in quantum or wave mechanics. The experiments can study arbitrary 2-D geometries, including chaotic and even disordered billiards. Detailed results on an L-shaped pseudo-integrable billiard are discussed as an example. The eigenvalue statistics are well-described by empirical formulae incorporating the fraction of phase space that is non-integrable. The eigenfunctions are directly measured, and their statistical properties are shown to be influenced by non-isolated periodic orbits, similar to that for the chaotic Sinai billiard. These periodic orbits are directly observed in the Fourier transform of the eigenvalue spectrum.
Designing for designers: an analysis of design practice in the real world

Twenty-two designers were interviewed about their design of interactive systems. They were asked to select a recent project having a significant user interface component, and were probed about the general design process involved, how the design of the user interface fit into that process, and their personal strategies for exploring ideas. Analysis of their responses pointed to two models of the design process. The relationship of these models to the type of user testing done and the strategies used for generating ideas is discussed, especially with respect to the implications for developing tools to support design.
Age-related changes in human macular Bruch's membrane as seen by quick-freeze/deep-etch

Lipid-containing inclusions have been observed in human Bruch's membrane (BrM) and are postulated to be associated with age-related maculopathy (ARM), a major cause of legal blindness in developed countries. The dehydration associated with specimen preparation for thin-section transmission electron microscopy causes loss of these inclusions. Better preservation of the ultrastructure of the inclusions and tissue is achieved by using a quick-freeze/deep-etch preparation. We use this technique to examine normal human macular BrM in order to characterize the deposition of the lipid-rich inclusions and their age-related accumulation within different layers of the tissue. We find that various inclusions mentioned in other studies can be formed by combinations of three basic structures: lipoprotein-like particles (LLPs), small granules (SGs) and membrane-like structures. These inclusions are associated with collagen and elastic fibrils by fine filaments. In younger eyes, these inclusions are found mostly in the elastic (EL) and outer collageneous layer (OCL) and occupy a small fraction of the interfibrillar spacing. As age increases, LLPs and SGs gradually fill the interfibrillar spacing of the EL and inner collageneous layer (ICL) of the tissue, and later form a new sublayer, the lipid wall, within the boundary region between the basal lamina of retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) and ICL. Because the formation of the lipid wall only occurs after these inclusions fill the ICL, and it seems unlikely that the LLPs can pass through the packed layer, this result suggests a possible RPE origin of the LLPs that make up the lipid wall.
Race, Class, Anomie, and Academic Achievement: A Study at the High School Level.

In the Berkeley public schools, pupil achievement is explained in part by the interaction of race, socioeconomic status, and "counterculture" alienation.
Cross-tolerance between muscarinic agonists: role of muscarinic receptors.

Abstract In order to explore the relationship between response to muscarinic agonists and brain muscarinic receptors, two mouse strains that differ in acute sensitivity (DBA and C3H) were injected chronically with DFP or infused with oxotremorine. Chronic DFP-treated DBA mice were not tolerant to DFP's effects on any measure, but they were cross-tolerant to the effects of oxotremorine on heart rate and body temperature. DFP-treated C3H mice were not tolerant to DFP or cross-tolerant to oxotremorine on any measure. Oxotremorine infusion resulted in tolerance to oxotremorine in both mouse strains, and chronically infused DBA mice were cross-tolerant to DFP on five of the six measures. Oxotremorine-infused C3H mice were cross-tolerant to DFP on two of the measures. These results suggest that genetic factors influence the development of tolerance or cross-tolerance. These genetic factors do not seem to be related to changes in brain QNB binding. Both mouse strains showed comparable changes in QNB binding following chronic DFP and oxotremorine with DFP eliciting reductions in QNB binding in striatum and hippocampus and oxotermorine eliciting reductions in nearly every brain region. However, tolerance and cross-tolerance did not seem to correlate with changes in binding which suggests that the relationship between receptor changes and responses to muscarinic agonists must be examined further.
A new intermolecular potential for liquid oxygen

Abstract We develop a new two-site Lennard-Jones intermolecular potential model for liquid oxygen where the two sites are centered on the nuclear positions. The Lennard-Jones ϵ and σ parameters are determined by fitting experimental thermodynamic data in the liquid region of the phase diagram to results from molecular dynamics simulations. This procedure yields ϵ / k =48 K, and σ =3.006 A. Using this potential we then calculate, again from molecular dynamics simulations, the static structure factor (or site–site radial distribution function) and the second-rank rotational time-correlation function. In both cases our results are in excellent agreement with experiment (from X-ray scattering and depolarized Raman spectroscopy, respectively).
Faculty evaluations of resident medical knowledge: can they be used to predict American Board of Surgery In-Training Examination performance?

Abstract Background The American Board of Surgery In-Training Examination (ABSITE) offers annual assessment of resident medical knowledge. We sought to determine if ongoing end-of-rotation evaluations by faculty of residents' medical knowledge correlate with ABSITE performance. Methods Retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted over 3 years at 2 institutions. Faculty rated residents' clinical knowledge as part of a global summative evaluation. The intraclass correlation coefficient and convergent validity between faculty evaluations and ABSITE performance were assessed. Results A total of 1,562 faculty evaluations were completed for about 147 residents. There was poor agreement among faculty for each resident, with intraclass correlation coefficients of less than 0.2. Spearman's correlation coefficient was calculated for evaluations and ABSITE scores and were found to be weakly correlative at one institution and not correlated at all at the other. Finally, evaluations across quartiles of resident ABSITE scores were examined and show no correlation. Conclusion Faculty evaluations of resident medical knowledge correlate poorly with resident ABSITE performance, and should not be used as an ongoing predictive tool.
Extracardiac abnormalities on rubidium-82 cardiac positron emission tomography/computed tomography.

Background The role of rubidium-82 (82Rb) in recognizing extracardiac diseases is minimally investigated. The aim of this study was to evaluate the frequency and incremental added value of extracardiac findings on 82Rb cardiac positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) studies. Method The study included all consecutive patients who were referred from July 2008 to June 2010 for 82Rb cardiac PET/CT to our institution. A blinded reader reviewed the images retrospectively to assess abnormal extracardiac PET findings. Results Images of 406 patients (142 men; 264 women) with a mean age±standard deviation of 59.72±12.93 years (range: 18–91 years) were reviewed. Incidental extracardiac abnormalities were found in 67 of 406 patients (16.5%). Among them, eight patients had malignant etiologies (1.9%). Conclusion Incidental extracardiac findings were present in a significant portion of patients undergoing 82Rb cardiac PET/CT studies. Although most of the extracardiac findings on 82Rb cardiac PET/CT studies represented clinically known pathologies, these incidental findings on routine 82Rb cardiac PET/CT scans may have a significant clinical impact on a small number of patients, and offer the referring physician the chance to obtain additional clinically relevant information.
Use of an Electronic Medical Record to Facilitate Screening for Depression in Primary Care.

Background: Screening programs for depression often fail to improve care because of lack of adequate communication and follow-up. The purpose of this study was to examine a primary care depression screening program that utilized an electronic medical record (EMR) to improve communication and follow-up. Method: All adult patients in a family practice office were screened for depression using the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) during the period March 2000 through March 2001. Screening results were communicated to the primary physician via the EMR, and the physician communicated his or her plan back to the nurse via the EMR. In this retrospective cohort study, we included all persons who screened positive on the CES-D and examined their rate of new psychiatric diagnoses, new psychotropic medications, and change in CES-D scores 3 months after the initial screening. Results: Of 1092 patients who completed the CES-D, 247 (22.6%) screened positive for depression. Among these, 35% had a new psychiatric diagnosis, 31% were prescribed new psychotropic medications, and 46% had a change in psychotropic medications. The vast majority of these were depression diagnoses and antidepressant medications. For the 94 persons who completed the CES-D at 3-month follow-up, there was a mean decrease in CES-D scores of 2.87 (p < .05). Conclusion: This study demonstrates a positive impact of a depression screening program that utilized an EMR to facilitate communication and follow-up. Such programs could help to improve detection and treatment of depression in other primary care settings.
Self-assembling mobile linkages

Self-reconfiguring robots are modular robot systems that are physically connected and capable of making different geometric structures. Most current research in this field is focused on homogeneous systems in which all the modules are identical. This article explores the concept of self-assembling robot systems consisting of passive structural modules plus active robotic modules.
Waveguide Photodetectors For Coherent Optical Communications

One of the major problems which has been encountered in the renewed field of coherent optical communications is one of polarization control in conventional low-birefringence optical fiber. In standard coherent communications systems it is always necessary that the received signal be linearly polarized and aligned with the polarization axis of the local oscillator (LO). If this condition is not maintained, the performance of the coherent receiver rapidly decreases. This situation can rarely be maintained because fiber deformations cause random fluctuations in the received signal polarization state [1]. Methods of solving the polarization state problem include polarization maintaining fiber, polarization compensation of the LO using a number of electro-optic, magneto-optic, and mechanical techniques, or polarization diversity techniques [1,2]. Polarization maintaining fiber is still in an early stage of development and is likely to be an expensive alternative since existing fiber facilities will need to be completely replaced if coherent systems are to be implemented. Polarization compensation relies on electromechanical or electrooptical feedback which may not be desirable in communication systems due to added hardware and cost [1].
Forskolin effect on the lineage specification of trunk neural crest cells in vitro

Recent evidence has suggested that trunk neural crest cell generally assumed to have equivalent differentiation potentials, demonstrate differentiation bias along the anterior/posterior axis. In amphibian and fish, neural crest cells give rise to three chromatophore types, melanophores, xanthophores, and iridophores. Each pigment cell type has distinct characteristics but there is speculation about the cellular plasticity that exists among them. Neural crest cells migrate along specific routes, ventromedially and dorsolaterally. Neural crest cells that travel dorsolaterally are the first cells to begin migration in the axolotl and are the major contributors to the visible pigment pattern. Many factors and mechanisms that are responsible for guiding migratory neural crest cells along potential pathways or determining their fate remain unknown. A single lineage of the crest, which becomes restricted to one of the three pigment cell types, gives us the opportunity to examine the existence of neural crest ste...
Spectral identity mapping for enhanced chemical image analysis

Advances in spectral imaging instrumentation during the last two decades has lead to higher image fidelity, tighter spatial resolution, narrower spectral resolution, and improved signal to noise ratios. An important sub-classification of spectral imaging is chemical imaging, in which the sought-after information from the sample is its chemical composition. Consequently, chemical imaging can be thought of as a two-step process, spectral image acquisition and the subsequent processing of the spectral image data to generate chemically relevant image contrast. While chemical imaging systems that provide turnkey data acquisition are increasingly widespread, better strategies to analyze the vast datasets they produce are needed. The Generation of chemically relevant image contrast from spectral image data requires multivariate processing algorithms that can categorize spectra according to shape. Conventional chemometric techniques like inverse least squares, classical least squares, multiple linear regression, principle component regression, and multivariate curve resolution are effective for predicting the chemical composition of samples having known constituents, but are less effective when a priori information about the sample is unavailable. To address these problems, we have developed a fully automated non-parametric technique called spectral identity mapping (SIMS) that reduces the dependence of spectral image analysis on training datasets. The qualitative SIMS method provides enhanced spectral shape specificity and improved chemical image contrast. We present SIMS results of infrared spectral image data acquired from polymer coated paper substrates used in the manufacture of pressure sensitive adhesive tapes. In addition, we compare the SIMS results to results from spectral angle mapping (SAM) and cosine correlation analysis (CCA), two closely related techniques.
Diode laser bars deliver > 400-W peak CW power from 800-nm to 980-nm enabling wide range of applications

Peak optical power from single 1-cm diode laser bars is advancing rapidly across all commercial wavelengths. Progress to date has allowed us to demonstrate > 400-W peak output from single 1-cm diode laser bars at emission wavelengths from 800-nm to 980-nm. The available range of emission wavelengths has also been increased, with 90-W bars shown at 660-nm, 37W at 1910-nm and 25W at 2070-nm, complementing the 100-W bar previously demonstrated at 1470-nm. Peak power is seen to correlate closely peak power conversion efficiency. Further advances in diode laser efficiency and low thermal resistance packaging technology continue to drive these powers higher. The most critical improvements have been the reduction in the diode laser operating voltage through optimization of hetero-barriers (leading to 74% efficient 100-W bars on micro-channel at 975-nm) and a reduction in packaging thermal resistance by optimizing microchannel performance (leading to < 0.2-°C/W thermal resistance). We have also recently extended our high efficiency designs to shorter wavelengths, now delivering over 70% efficiency at 790-nm. Ever-increasing power levels (projected to eventually exceed 1-kW per bar) reduce the cost in Euro per W of diode laser systems, enabling broader application in military, industrial and medical markets. In addition, increasing availability of high powers at new wavelengths is enabling many new applications.
MS-DOS Prolog implementations revisited

In an earlier article [11] we proposed a taxonomy for classification of PROLOG implementations. This analysis has been used by ourselves [1], [3], [11] and others [6] in evaluation of current microcomputer-based products. However, it has become out of date for several reasons. First, PROLOG has matured to the point where the language kernels have become comparable in functionality. Thus, many of the features which distinguished products a few years ago no longer do so. Conversely, increasing attention is being paid to extra-and metalogical support, so that there are now features which are distinguishing which were not, only a few years back. It is now quite reasonable to expect a PROLOG implementation to support graphics, virtual memory, modularization, and so forth. Thus, we offer a revision which is more in keeping with the current PROLOG offerings.
Curve Fitting and Linearity: Data Processing in Raman Spectroscopy

A study has been made of the use of polynomial curve fitting for removal of nonlinear background and high-spatial-frequency noise components from Raman spectra. Two variations on polynomial curve fitting through a least-squares calculation are used. One, involving fitting data x values to corresponding y values, was used to approximate background functions, which are subtracted from the original data. For smoothing, a reference matrix of six vectors that contains a unity d.c. level, a ramp made up of x values, a quadratic made up of x2 values, etc., is fitted to a section of data. The reference vectors are scaled by the fit values and added to give the smoothed estimate of a spectral peak. It is demonstrated, with factor analysis as a test procedure, that the background removal procedure does remove nonlinearities that were present in the original data. The smoothing procedure rejects high-spatial-frequency noise without introducing detectable nonlinearities.
Magnetic field models from energetic particle data at Neptune

The locations of features in the Voyager 2 energetic particle data from Neptune are combined with uncertainties in the multipole expansion of the planetary magnetic field to derive new magnetic field models that are consistent both with various interpretations of the particle features and with the magnetic field data. While assumptions as to the origin of the features must be made, they do not provide sufficient constraints to obtain significant new information on any of the unknown multipole coefficients. However, the magnetic L shell positions of the particle features, which are interpreted primarily as absorption signatures of Neptune's satellites, can, in general, be brought into agreement with expected values.
Introduction to the Special Section on the IEEE Radio Frequency Integrated Circuits (RFIC) Symposium

This Special Section of the IEEE JOURNAL OF SOLID-STATE CIRCUITS includes a selection of papers presented at the 2013 IEEE Radio Frequency Integrated Circuits (RFIC) Symposium, held June 2-4, 2013 in Seattle,WA, USA. The symposium is co-located with the IEEE MTT-S International Microwave Symposium (IMS). This annual meeting covers all aspects of RF and microwave circuits and systems. The 2013 RFIC Symposium received 202 submissions from across the world, covering a broad range of topics including transceiver SoCs and associated blocks such as power amplifier/tunable front-ends, frequency synthesis circuits, baseband circuits, and high-speed I/O circuits, as well as papers covering low-power/wireless sensor transceivers and mm-wave/THz circuits. This issue of the Journal presents four papers selected from a total of 103 presented at the Symposium. An overview of the technical articles is presented.
Bone bonding strength of calcium phosphate ceramic coated strain gauges.

Although strain transfer from bone to gauge has been used as an indication of the extent of bone bonding to calcium phosphate ceramic (CPC) coated strain gauges, interface strength measurements have not been reported. In order to develop bone-bonded gauges that remain attached to bone surfaces for long periods, the strength of the CPC–bone interface must be optimized. A shear test to assess the interface strength of the CPC–bone interface was developed using the femora of 120-day-old male rats. The mean interface strength of a blended CPC coating bonded to the femora of the rats for 6 weeks in vivo was 4.8 ± 2.4 MPa, and one specimen achieved a strength of nearly 10 MPa. This mean strength value is higher then the CPC–gauge interface strength reported in early studies, but it is lower than recently developed heat treated CPC–gauge interfaces that have average strengths of approximately 7.0 ± 2.0 MPa. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res (Appl Biomater) 48: 32–35, 1999
Significant improvements in stability of amorphous silicon solar cells by using ECR deposition

Abstract The fabrication and stability of p-i-n amorphous Si(a-Si:H) solar cells using low pressure electron-cyclotron-resonance (ECR) discharge are reported. The cells are fabricated at high temperatures (325 to 375°C) on tin oxide substrates using a Hydrogen-ECR discharge. Problems relating to diffusion of B from the p-layer at these temperatures are solved using unique diffusion barriers. High fill factors (68%) have been achieved in these cells using 350 nm thick i-layers in a p-i-n structure. Quantum efficiency (QE) measurements show that the i-layers in these cells have low defect densities and Urbach energies. The ECR cells and companion glow discharge cells with similar initial device parameters were subjected to 200 mW/cm 2 of xenon illumination for 160 h. The tests show that the ECR cells degrade significantly less than comparable glow discharge cells. Detailed measurements of quantum efficiency before and after light soaking show that the improved stability of the ECR cells is due to the more stable i-layer in these cells.
Nesting Behavior of Chlorion aerarium

Information is presented on the nesting behavior of Chlorion aerarium Patton, obtained from 10 multicellular nests in central New York and 1 nest in West Haven, Connecticut. Except for the W. Haven nest, nests were constructed only from burrows previously constructed and often occupied by Sphecius speciosus (Drury). The pear-shaped cells of C. aerarium were constructed in tandem and separated by sand plugs. Each cell was mass provisioned with several nymphal or adult Gryllus pennsylvanicus Burmeister. A provisioning female usually transported her prey on the ground and held the paralyzed cricket with her mandibles and forelegs. The prey, most of which were placed in the cell head inward and venter up, remained quiescent unless distrubed. The C. aerarium burrow and the S. speciosus nest entrance were thoroughly plugged when finished. Notes on prey capture and a comparison of nesting behavior components of the other known generic members are presented and discussed. Hypotheses are presented for some of the unusual behavior exhibited by C. aerarium.