cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Design of Optimally Stable Molecular Coatings for Fe-Based Nanoparticles in Aqueous Environments

Magnetic nanoparticles are widely used in biomedical and oil-well applications in aqueous, often harsh environments. The pursuit for high-saturation magnetization together with high stability of the molecular coating that prevents agglomeration and oxidation remains an active research area. Here, we report a detailed analysis of the criteria for the stability of molecular coatings in aqueous environments along with extensive first-principles calculations for magnetite, which has been widely used, and cementite, a promising emerging candidate. A key result is that the simple binding energies of molecules cannot be used as a definitive indicator of relative stability in a liquid environment. Instead, we find that H+ ions and water molecules facilitate the desorption of molecules from the surface. We further find that, because of differences in the geometry of crystal structures, molecules generally form stronger bonds on cementite surfaces than they do on magnetite surfaces. The net result is that molecular...
The residue field as a high syzygy

ABSTRACTIn this paper, we study commutative local rings whose residue field is a high syzygy. We are able to characterize such rings with embedding dimension at most 3 as those that are Artinian an...
Continuous energy coarse mesh transport (COMET) method

Abstract The co arse me sh radiation t ransport method COMET developed for reactor physics calculations originally treated the phase space variable continuously except for the energy variable. In this work, the method is extended to also treat the energy variable continuously. COMET uses incident flux response expansion coefficients that are generated from local (oarse mesh) fixed source calculations for obtaining the transport solution to whole core problems. In the new method, the energy dependence of the angular flux (spectrum) is factorized into a product of two functions: a strongly varying asymptotic function and a slowly varying (smooth) shape function representing the deviation from the asymptotic function. The method uses spectra from a single assembly or color set calculation as the asymptotic functions and the shape function is expanded by the 0th order B-splines in a set of coarse energy bins. This new factorization allows the use of continuous energy stochastic method for generating the incident flux response expansion coefficients for solving whole-core problems. The new COMET method was tested in a PWR benchmark problem in whole core configurations using UO 2 and MOX fuels. It was found that the COMET results agree very well with the corresponding continuous energy Monte Carlo reference solutions. The difference between the COMET and MCNP eigenvalues varied from 29 to 65 pcm, while the mean relative difference in the pin fission density distributions computed by COMET and MCNP was in the range of 0.25%–0.63% for three (namely, controlled, uncontrolled and some-rods-in) core configurations. This difference is less than 2 standard deviations of the MCNP uncertainty. The computational efficiency of the continuous energy COMET was found to be consistent with the multigroup COMET (i.e., more than 4 orders of magnitude faster than MNCP). Based on the benchmark results, it can be concluded that the new continuous energy expansion theory allows COMET to perform high fidelity and highly efficient whole-core transport calculations in heterogeneous reactors.
LHRH Antagonists with Low Histamine Releasing Activity

Many synthetic antagonists of LHRH having pituitary receptor binding affinities of 10 to 20 times that of LHRH itself have been made. Generally, the best antagonists have an ED50 of about one microgram per animal in the rat antiovulatory assay. Most of these highly effective antagonists have a D-arginine residue in position 6 which, with the L-arginine8 of the native molecule and with a hydrophobic cluster of residues in the N-terminal part of the molecule, appears to be a potent canbination for the release of histamine from mast cells.
Construction of Dose—Response Curves: Statistical Considerations

Biological systems demonstrate variability in their responses to drugs. Thus, the same muscle taken from two different animals (of the same species) and studied in vitro under controlled conditions will often give quantitatively different responses to identical doses of the same drug. Such variability is not unexpected since each muscle contains a large number of muscle fibers, and even the most careful surgical preparation of each is not likely to yield identical specimens. In addition to the variability in drug response that is due to slight differences in muscle composition or muscle orientation, there are other (unknown) factors that contribute to the variability. Indeed, there is generally even greater variability in drug responses in the whole animal, regardless of what response is measured. For these reasons we must use mean responses or average responses.
Fabrication of Nano-piezomaterials for Powering Bioelectronics and Interfaced Cellular Biomechanics

Nanostructures of piezoelectric materials are attractive building blocks for useful bioimplant devices such as self-powering nanogenerators and nano-biosensors. Yet, one of the most efficient piezo-nanomaterials - PbZr x Ti1 − x O3 (PZT) nanowires is difficult to synthesize without suffering from polycrystallinity or poor stoichiometric control. Current large-scale nanofabrication methods have been restricted by their complexity and cost, while bottom-up synthesis of nanowires has been limited in methods to assemble these structures at precisely-defined locations. Here, we report a novel fabrication method which requires only low resolution photolithography to generate ultra smooth, high performance PZT nanowires over wafer scales. These fabricated PZT nanomaterials also shows a biocompatible interface with living cells to offer a great potential for its applications in biomedicine such as self-powering implant devices and cellular biomechanical sensors.
Four-Vessel Occlusion Model in Rats

Four-vessel occlusion model in rat induces transient forebrain ischemia that resembles cardiac arrest in clinical situations. In this model, two vertebral arteries are coagulated and two common carotid arteries are reversibly occluded. This model produces reliable outcome with selective, delayed cell death. For example, CA1 pyramidal neurons in the hippocampus die 2–3 days after ischemia whereas CA3 neurons survive the same insult. The complications of this model include mortality and seizure. The methods of quantitative analysis of ischemic outcome are introduced. The advantages and limitations of this model are discussed.
Prevalence of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in pediatric brain tumor survivors.

10572Background: Pediatric brain tumor survivors (PBTS) often have neurodevelopmental late effects, including attention and concentration deficits, which may impact cognitive and academic functioni...
Scale-dependent alignment, tumbling and stretching of slender rods in isotropic turbulence

We examine the dynamics of slender, rigid rods in direct numerical simulation of isotropic turbulence. The focus is on the statistics of three quantities and how they vary as rod length increases from the dissipation range to the inertial range. These quantities are (i) the steady-state rod alignment with respect to the perceived velocity gradients in the surrounding flow, (ii) the rate of rod reorientation (tumbling) and (iii) the rate at which the rod end points move apart (stretching). Under the approximations of slender-body theory, the rod inertia is neglected and rods are modelled as passive particles in the flow that do not affect the fluid velocity field. We find that the average rod alignment changes qualitatively as rod length increases from the dissipation range to the inertial range. While rods in the dissipation range align most strongly with fluid vorticity, rods in the inertial range align most strongly with the most extensional eigenvector of the perceived strain-rate tensor. For rods in the inertial range, we find that the variance of rod stretching and the variance of rod tumbling both scale as law. Finally, we examine the power-law scaling exponents of higher-order moments of rod tumbling and rod stretching for rods with lengths in the inertial range and find that they show anomalous scaling. We compare these scaling exponents to predictions from Kolmogorov’s refined similarity hypotheses.
383 RELATION OF OBESITY TO DECREASED SPERM COUNT.

Objectives Obesity is increasingly recognized as a cause of reduced male fertility through multiple mechanisms. The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between body mass index and sperm count. Materials and Methods We reviewed records of male partners of couples seeking treatment at the fertility center over the last 3 years. Data collected included patients9 demographics, past medical and surgical history, and risk factors for male infertility. Body mass index (BMI) (kg/m2) was calculated. Semen analysis was performed within the month, which included semen volume (mL), sperm concentration (sperm count/mL), progressive motility (% progressive motile sperm), and morphology (% normality of different morphologic features of sperm). Chi-square (with Fisher correction if needed) was used to compare frequencies. Pearson correlation was used when appropriate. Results 257 patients were included in this analysis and had a mean age 32.5 ± 0.37 years. The BMI distribution is shown in the table. The mean sperm count was 110.8 ± 2.9 million sperms/mL. A low sperm was defined using the World Health Organization criteria for low sperm count ( There was also a negative correlation between BMI and sperm motility (Pearson r = −.13, p = .04), but no age effect. Conclusion Our findings suggest that obese and overweight men are more likely to have low sperm count and decreased sperm motility, which might reduce fertility.
An empirical analysis of information search and information sharing in crowdsourcing data analytic contests

Abstract Crowdsourcing provides the ability for contest developers to hold data analytics contests, gathering solutions from a set of potential participants typically allowing participants to communicate using social media for information search and sharing. Using a logarithmic model in an empirical analysis of crowdsourcing data, we find that the contest reward and time, is related, but with decreasing returns, to the number of participants and their effort to solve the contest problem. We also find that designers can gain increasing returns if they can engage additional participants to become a part of the crowdsourcing effort. However, the primary purpose of this paper is to analyze the relationship between both the asking of questions (information search) and the answering of questions (information sharing) and the amount of reward associated with the crowdsourcing competition. In particular, we examine the question “does contest reward affect the amount of information search and sharing?” As part of that analysis, this paper empirically investigates the impact of the reward, length of the contest and development of the potential user base on participant behavior of information exchange, using contest theory to frame the analysis, generating a number of different empirical findings. We find that the analysis of the relationship between communication in topics and posts is consistent with building community, rather than self-interest.
Memorializing Violence: Identity, Temporality, and the “Vulnerability” of a Mythical Figure in State Graffiti

This essay analyzes the grammar of military graffiti in Nigeria to uncover the mindless posture with which the military deploys it to assert their power, identity, and temporal orientations in ways...
Introduction: Philosophers Look at Quantum Mechanics

This chapterprovides background to the topics covered in the volume and gives a rough mapping of the papers included. Section 1.1 is on Bell’s Theorem and the debate on realism. Section 1.2 considers non-realist responses to the puzzles of quantum mechanics (QM). Section 1.3 outlines the character of realist projects today. Section 1.4 looks at ongoing ontological explorations of the quantum state. Section 1.5 concentrates on fine-grain realist approaches to the nature of the quantum state. Section 1.6 is on individuals and individualization. Section 1.7 discusses a current revival of interest in Niels Bohr’s insights on QM. Section 1.8 outlines some contemporary calls to reconceptualize QM. Section 1.9 ends the chapter with some personal suggestions regarding the scope and limits of realist interpretation.
Extinguishing cocaine-associated discriminative stimuli attenuates cocaine vs food choice in male rhesus monkeys

ABSTRACT Background In drug addiction, relapse can be triggered by cues that function as discriminative stimuli to signal contingencies of drug availability and promote drug-taking behavior. Extinction procedures can weaken the association between drug-associated cues and drug use and may reduce the probability of relapse. This study evaluated effects of a regimen of extinction training on cocaine self-administration maintained in rhesus monkeys under a cocaine-vs.-food choice procedure that has been used previously to evaluate effectiveness of other candidate treatments for cocaine abuse. Methods Behavior was initially maintained under a concurrent schedule of food delivery (1-g food pellets; fixed-ratio 100 schedule) and cocaine injections (0-0.1 mg/kg/injection; fixed-ratio 10 schedule) during daily 2-h choice sessions in male rhesus monkeys (n=4). Subsequently, choice sessions were supplemented by daily 20-h extinction sessions for 14 consecutive days. During extinction sessions, cocaine-associated discriminative stimuli were presented, but responding did not produce cocaine injections. Cocaine continued to be available during choice sessions. Results Prior to extinction, cocaine maintained a dose-dependent increase in cocaine vs. food choice. Responding during extinction sessions declined to low levels by the fifth day. Exposure to extinction sessions produced a more gradual but significant decline in cocaine choice and a complementary increase in food choice during choice sessions. Conclusions These preclinical results support the effectiveness of extinguishing cocaine-associated discriminative stimuli as a non-pharmacological treatment strategy for reducing cocaine choice. Moreover, these results also support the construct validity of preclinical drug vs. food choice procedures as a tool for candidate treatment evaluation for cocaine addiction.
Cerrado—South America

Abstract The Cerrado Biome is considered one of the most important savanna biomes in the world, due to its high species richness, endemism, and source of multiple valuable ecosystem services. The Cerrado landscape is diverse, with a mixture of open grasslands, shrub lands, open woodland, and closed canopy woodlands as the dominant ecosystems. The region also harbors ecologically important habitats more restricted in area, such as gallery forests, tropical dry forests, marshes, palm groves, and high elevation rocky grasslands, all of these important contributors to the overall diversity of the region. Many of Brazil's most important rivers originate in the Cerrado highlands and plateaus. The Cerrado also is home to a diverse and evolutionary distinctive flora and fauna, with multiple major sub-regions each with distinctive plant and animal species. Some of the diversity is evolutionarily quite old. The Cerrado has recently become a focal region for the expansion of Brazilian agriculture, and vast areas have been modified in the past 50 years. In addition, the population in the region has grown dramatically of the past five decades, placing additional demands on water resources. Although there are a number of important protected areas, the region is still under protected and more conservation effort needs to be applied to the protection of the biodiversity of the Cerrado in order to save this unique global resource.
The Transaction Value Approach: A Systematic Method of Defining Economywide Models Based on Social Accounting Matrices

Abstract The Social Accounting Matrix (SAM), a convenient way of giving a comprehensive and consistent picture of an economy, is used as the data base for many models. The paper describes the Transaction Value (TV) Approach, a systematic way of defining, estimating, and solving economy wide multisectoral equilibrium models based on a SAM. SAM-based models define for each period a SAM with the same accounting structure as the base SAM. The behavioral equations of a SAM-based model are derived from independent descriptions of the economic agents, and the model is tied together by the accounting identities of the SAM. The TV approach has four advantages: the models are guaranteed to be consistent, it is easy to experiment with alternative formulations, most parameters can be estimated from the base SAM, and the underlying solution algorithm is guaranteed to converge under very general assumptions.
Anomalous and heterogeneous DNA transport in biomimetic cytoskeleton networks

The cytoskeleton, a complex network of protein filaments and crosslinking proteins, dictates diverse cellular processes ranging from division to cargo transport. Yet, the role the cytoskeleton plays in the intracellular transport of DNA and other macromolecules remains poorly understood. Here, using single-molecule conformational tracking, we measure the transport and conformational dynamics of linear and relaxed circular (ring) DNA in composite networks of actin and microtubules with variable types of crosslinking. While both linear and ring DNA undergo anomalous, non-Gaussian, and non-ergodic subdiffusion, the detailed dynamics are controlled by both DNA topology (linear vs. ring) and crosslinking motif. Ring DNA swells, exhibiting heterogeneous subdiffusion controlled via threading by cytoskeleton filaments, while linear DNA compacts, exhibiting transport via caging and hopping. Importantly, while the crosslinking motif has little effect on ring DNA, linear DNA in networks with actin-microtubule crosslinking is significantly less ergodic and shows more heterogeneous transport than with actin-actin or microtubule-microtubule crosslinking.
Using Acudetox for Stress Reduction in College Students: A Brief Intervention Strategy for College Counselors

This aim of this quantitative study was to explore the effect of a brief intervention of NADA protocol acudetox on perceived symptoms of stress in college students. This was a pretest-posttest, wit...
Trends in the Treatment of Biceps Pathology: An Analysis of the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery Database.

Background:Long head of biceps tendon pathology is a well-described source of pain in the anterior adult shoulder. Shoulder arthroscopic surgeons face this condition on a frequent basis because of ...
A machine learning approach to estimating the error in satellite sea surface temperature retrievals

Abstract Global, repeated, and accurate measurements of Sea Surface Temperature (SST) are critical for weather and climate projections. While thermometers on buoys measure SST relatively accurately, only sensors aboard satellites give global and repeated SST measurements necessary for many applications, including climate modeling. For satellite-based thermal infrared sensors, an atmospheric correction converts calibrated brightness temperatures measured at orbital height into an SST estimate, but imperfect assumptions in the correction algorithm coupled with variability in atmospheric conditions and viewing geometries can lead to a wide range of errors and uncertainties in the satellite-derived SST retrievals. Estimates of the resulting errors are imperative for satellite-derived SST assimilation into climate models. This paper evaluates the use of machine learning Decision Tree algorithms to predict the central tendency and dispersion of errors in satellite-derived SST retrievals. First, using records from the NASA R2014.1 MODIS Aqua SST Matchup Database, which includes matched-up satellite and in situ SST measurements, a set of seven variables was derived that addresses the assumptions and known issues in the satellite SST retrieval process. Then, both Random Forest and Cubist Decision Trees were used to predict the SST residual (satellite SST minus skin-corrected buoy SST) for each matchup. While both Decision Tree methods performed similarly well, the Cubist model is more easily interpreted and yields better predictions of errors for relatively infrequent conditions. Various characteristics of the groups of matchups identified by Cubist were explored, and uncertainty values for the error estimates were derived for each group. Overall, the Cubist model predicted the skin SST residual with a root-mean-squared-error of 0.380 °C across nighttime cloud-filtered domains, demonstrating that a Cubist model is viable for quantitatively and accurately predicting Single Sensor Error Statistics per pixel as required by the Group for High Resolution SST. In this paper, we present the training and testing of both Decision Tree models. Because of its interpretability, we explore in detail the characteristics of the Cubist-derived groups to gain new geophysical insight into the satellite-derived SST retrieval error across different measurement conditions.
Stereotactic Electroencephalography Is Associated With Reduced Pain and Opioid Use When Compared with Subdural Grids: A Case Series.

BACKGROUND Minimally invasive surgery (MIS) has been shown to decrease length of hospital stay and opioid use. OBJECTIVE To identify whether surgery for epilepsy mapping via MIS stereotactically placed electroencephalography (SEEG) electrodes decreased overall opioid use when compared with craniotomy for EEG grid placement (ECoG). METHODS Patients who underwent surgery for epilepsy mapping, either SEEG or ECoG, were identified through retrospective chart review from 2015 through 2018. The hospital stay was separated into specific time periods to distinguish opioid use immediately postoperatively, throughout the rest of the stay and at discharge. The total amount of opioids consumed during each period was calculated by transforming all types of opioids into their morphine equivalents (ME). Pain scores were also collected using a modification of the Clinically Aligned Pain Assessment (CAPA) scale. The 2 surgical groups were compared using appropriate statistical tests. RESULTS The study identified 43 patients who met the inclusion criteria: 36 underwent SEEG placement and 17 underwent craniotomy grid placement. There was a statistically significant difference in median opioid consumption per hospital stay between the ECoG and the SEEG placement groups, 307.8 vs 71.5 ME, respectively (P = .0011). There was also a significant difference in CAPA scales between the 2 groups (P = .0117). CONCLUSION Opioid use is significantly lower in patients who undergo MIS epilepsy mapping via SEEG compared with those who undergo the more invasive ECoG procedure. As part of efforts to decrease the overall opioid burden, these results should be considered by patients and surgeons when deciding on surgical methods.
SALIVARY GLAND PATHOLOGY IN CHILDREN

SUMMARY Salivary gland diseases in children represent an uncommon disease entity. When viral sialadenitis is excluded these disorders are quite rare. Inflammatory disorders and viral and bacterial sialadenitis occur most commonly in the pediatric population. Salivary gland neoplasms in children are very uncommon and account for less than 5% of all salivary gland neoplasms. Pediatric salivary gland neoplasms occur most often in the parotid gland. Hemangiomas, lymphangiomas, and pleomorphic adenomas are the most common neoplasms, with malignant neoplasms following in frequency. The presentation and management of salivary gland diseases generally parallel those found in adults. However, the incidence of diseases varies greatly.
Calcaneal Reconstruction With Femoral Head Allograft Vascularized by an Osteocutaneous Medial Femoral Condyle Flap: A Case Report.

CASE A 25-year-old man presented with a closed calcaneal fracture after a 6-storey fall, complicated by osteomyelitis from fixation attempts necessitating near-complete debridement of his calcaneal tuberosity. He underwent a successful single-stage calcaneal and soft-tissue reconstruction using a femoral head structural allograft vascularized with an osteocutaneous medial femoral condyle flap. At the 18-month follow-up, his limb is largely pain-free and functional, allowing ambulation and his combined allograft-vascularized bone reconstruction shows radiographic evidence of incorporation. CONCLUSION Calcaneal tuberosity reconstruction with a femoral head structural allograft and vascularized bone flap is a viable option for calcaneal tuberosity bone loss because of injury/infection.
Preliminary radiation dosimetry estimates for 18F-rhodamine 6G, a potential PET myocardial perfusion agent

1033 Objectives In nuclear cardiology, myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI) is routinely performed for detection of coronary artery disease, risk stratification and therapeutic interventions. Recently we evaluated cationic 18F-rhodmaine 6G (18F-R6G) as a PET MPI agent. In this study, we calculated preliminary radiation dosimetry estimates for 18F-R6G prior to first-in-human studies. Methods A biodistribution study of 18F-R6G (0.4 -0.8MBq/100μL, IV injection) was performed in Sprague Dawley rats (n=3-5). Animals were euthanized at 4 different time points (15, 30, 60 and 120 min post-injection). The radioactivity in 13 organs was measured and expressed as a percentage of the injected dose per organ/tissue. The resulting data were processed with a bi-exponential fit and extrapolated to 70 kg adult male using OLINDA/EXM 1.1 software. Results The dose to most organs was between 0.0002 and 0.114 mSv/MBq. The kidneys, spleen and thyroid received the highest doses, 0.114, 0.015 and 0.014 mSv/MBq, respectively. The effective dose (ED) is estimated to be 0.0028 mSv/MBq (10 mrem/mCi). Conclusions This study provides a prelimenary human dosimetry estimate for 18F-R6G. The critical organ is the kidneys (0.114 mSv/MBq) followed by the spleen. The estimated ED (0.0028 mSv/MBq) is some what lower than that from other perfusion agents such as Flurpiridaz (0.019 mSv/MBq)1 and 99mTc-MIBI (0.0090 mSv/MBq) and lower to that from clinically used 18F radiopharmaceuticals such as 18[F]-FDG (0.019 mSv/MBq).2 Additional studies are currently underway to better refine these dose estimates. Research Support 5R01HL108107, Children’s Hospital Radiology Foundation
Home care practices for preterm and term infants after hospital discharge in Massachusetts, 2007 to 2010.

Home care practices for preterm and term infants after hospital discharge in Massachusetts, 2007 to 2010
An Expert System and Tutor for Maritime Navigation Rules

Abstract : The Navigation Rules Expert System (NRES) is a CLIPS-based implementation of the International and Inland Maritime Navigation Rules (COMDTINST M16672.2C) to assist manners. NRES functionality is divided into two components, the Mariner-Assistance Module and the Student-Tutor Module. The Manner-Assistance Module (MAM) is designed for use in real-time operations to assist manners in correctly determining both the maritime situation and the necessary action(s) to be taken in accordance with the International and Inland Maritime Navigation Rules. In practice, NRES could double-check navigation decisions and issue warnings when the possibility of accidents arises; while some human judgment will always be necessary in this task, it could well be useful on the bridge to have a different and dispassionate point of view. The Student-Tutor Module (STM) is designed to train students in the understanding and application of the International and Inland Maritime Navigation Rules in order to strengthen maritime navigation situational decision-making. The STM utilizes the NRES CLIPS rules database as the source from which the tutor questions are drawn and employs audio and visual cueing information derived from the navigation rules to enhance the student learning process.
Glomerular filtration and renal blood flow in “normal” patients following toxemias of pregnancy

Abstract Renal blood flow and glomerular filtration have been determined on 6 pregnant and 10 nonpregnant women who have had a toxemia of pregnancy from one to twelve years previously and who have been considered normal by both clinical and laboratory methods since. Reduction of the renal blood flow and glomerular filtration is noted on most patients and is generally correlated with the length of time since the toxemic pregnancy. The presence of a pregnancy usually is associated with higher values than are noted post partum, but the findings in these patients are not unlike those in the posttoxemic hypertensives who have a recurrent toxemia.
Mental Illness as Psychiatric Disorder

To the sociologist, perhaps the single most important characteristic of the psychiatric perspective is that psychiatry views mental illness as a real illness, as distinct from being a socially constructed myth. Whereas some social perspectives might argue that “mental illness” is a label applied by society or social groups to subsets of unusual, unappealing, or disruptive behaviors and feelings, the psychiatric perspective would argue that these behaviors and feelings are themselves the signs and symptoms of true underlying disease or disorder states. Psychiatry uses the term mental illness for a spectrum of syndromes that are classified by clusters of symptoms and behaviors considered clinically meaningful in terms of course, outcome, and response to treatment. The purpose of this chapter is to describe how psychiatry defines and organizes these syndromes and to identify the kinds of clinical features associated with the syndromes most relevant to sociological inquiry. The overall goal is to show how the psychiatric perspective of mental illness encompasses more than a single dichotomous category—indeed, even more than a series of dichotomous diagnoses—for use as outcome variables. Rather, psychiatric notions of heterogeneity along a number of clinical axes within and among psychiatric disorders offer considerable richness to a sociological understanding of the risks and outcomes of mental illness.
Realizable paths and the nl vs l problem

A celebrated theorem of Savitch [63] states that NSPACE( S) ⊆ DSPACE(S2). In particular, Savitch gave a deterministic algorithm to solve ST-Connectivity (an NL-complete problem) using O(log 2n) space, implying NL ⊆ DSPACE(log2n). While Savitch's theorem itself has not been improved in the last four decades, several graph connectivity problems are shown to lie between L and NL, providing new insights into the space-bounded complexity classes. All the connectivity problems considered in the literature so far are essentially special cases of ST-Connectivity. In the first half of this thesis, we initiate the study of auxiliary PDAs as graph connectivity problems and define sixteen different graph realizability problems and study their relationships. The complexity of these connectivity problems lie between L and P. ST-Realizability, the most general graph realizability problem is P-complete. 1DSTREAL(poly), the most specific graph realizability problem is L-complete. As special cases of our graph realizability problems we define two natural problems, Balanced ST-Connectivity and Positive Balanced ST-Connectivity , that lie between L and NL. In the second half of this thesis, we study the space complexity of SGSLogCFL, a graph realizability problem lying between L and LogCFL. We define generalizations of graph squaring and transitive closure, present efficient parallel algorithms for SGSLogCFL and use the techniques of Trifonov [70] to show that SGSLogCFL is contained in DSPACE(lognloglog n). This implies that Balanced ST-Connectivity is contained in DSPACE(lognloglogn ). We conclude with several interesting new research directions.
Carcinoma of extrahepatic biliary system in an adult with cystic fibrosis

Abstract A 27-yr-old woman with cystic fibrosis developed obstructive jaundice and was found to have adenocarcinoma of the extrahepatic biliary tree including the neck of the gallbladder. The remainder of the gallbladder showed severe atypical hyperplasia and carcinoma in situ. This is the first reported biliary tract malignancy in a patient with cystic fibrosis.
Escape from Darfur: Why Israel Needs to Adopt a Comprehensive Domestic Refugee Law

INTRODUCTION 602 I. A BRIEF HISTORY OF SUDAN‘S DOMESTIC CONFLICTS LEADING TO A MASSIVE INCREASE OF SUDANESE ASYLUM SEEKERS 605 A. A Brief History of Sudan‘s Internal Violence 605 1. Sudan‘s North-South Civil War 605 2. The Current Conflict in Darfur: Additional Refugees in Desperate Need of Asylum 607 B. Israel‘s Relationship to Asylum Seekers from Darfur ....... 609 II. APPLICABLE INTERNATIONAL LAW AND ISRAELI LAWS AND POLICIES RELATING TO THE RIGHTS OF REFUGEES 611 A. International Law Relating to the Refugees‘ Rights 611 1. Relevant Principles of the 1951 Convention and 1967 Protocol 612 2. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees 613 B. Israel‘s Laws and Policies Affecting Refugees and Asylum Seekers 614 1. The Prevention of Infiltration Law 616 2. The Regulations Regarding the Treatment of Asylum Seekers in Israel: Israel‘s Insufficient Attempt at a Comprehensive Refugee Policy 616 3. Israel‘s New ―Hot Return‖ Policy 617 III. ISRAEL‘S RESPONSES TO THE INCREASE OF SUDANESE ASYLUM SEEKERS ARE IN BREACH OF INTERNATIONAL LAW 618 A. Israel‘s Imprisonment of Sudanese Asylum Seekers ......... 619 B. Israel‘s ―Hot Return‖ Policy Violates the Principle of
Familial Fanconi syndrome with malabsorption and galactose intolerance, normal kinase and transferase activity. A report on two siblings.

. Aperia, A., Bcrgqvist, G., Linne, T. and Zetterstrom, R. (Department of Paediatrics, Karolinska Institute, St. Goran's Children's Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden). Familial Fanconi syndrome with malabsorption and galactose intolerance, normal kinase and transferase activity. A report on two siblings. Acta Paediatr Scand, 70:527,.–Two siblings of Turkish-Assyrian extraction, whose parents were first cousins, had poor appetite, slow weight gain and retarded psychomotor development. When given milk the galactose concentration in blood increased. An oral galactose load showed a markedly reduced capacity to metabolize galactose. Fanconi syndrome was present as in classical galactosemia. A galactose-free diet reduced the aminoaciduria but did not normalize the renal tubular function nor the children's general condition. Galactokinase and galactose-1-phosphate uri-dyltransferase activities in red blood cells were normal. The physical appearance of the children (sparse subcutaneous fat, thin extremities and distended abdomen) and the results of vitamin A and xylose absorption tests, were in accordance with a malabsorption condition. Glucose, however, seemed to be absorbed normally from the gut. There was no evidence of significant primary liver disease. Since the condition did not normalize with a galactose-free diet, an enzyme defect of galactose metabolism is unlikely. Instead, a more general transport defect with autosomal recessive inheritance is proposed.
High sensitivity mapping of Ti distributions in Hadean zircons

Abstract Detrital zircons as old as nearly 4.4 Ga from the Jack Hills, Western Australia, offer possible insights into a phase of Earth history for which there exists no known rock record. Ti concentrations of Hadean zircons indicate a spectrum of crystallization temperatures that range from a cluster at ca. 680 °C to apparent values exceeding 1200 °C. The low temperature peak has been interpreted to indicate the existence of ‘wet’ melting conditions during the Hadean, but alternate views have been advanced. We have developed methods for quantitative ion imaging of titanium in zircons using positive and negative secondary ions, produced respectively under bombardment of O − and Cs + , that permit detailed insights regarding Ti concentration distributions. Each approach has particular advantages that tradeoff in terms of sensitivity, ultimate lateral resolution, and reproducibility. Coupled with high resolution spot analyses, these ion images show that Ti contents greater than about 20 ppm in the Jack Hills zircons are associated with cracks or other crystal imperfections and that virtually all of the high apparent temperatures (i.e., > 800 °C) yet obtained are suspect for contamination by Ti extraneous to the zircon. Removing these from consideration strengthens the previous conclusion that the Hadean Jack Hills population is dominated by zircons crystallized at 680–720 °C.
Increased macrophyte nitrate reductase activity as a consequence of groundwater input of nitrate through sandy beaches

While most marine macrophytes preferentially assimilate ammonium to meet growth demand for nitrogen, some also utilize nitrate and exhibit high nitrate reductase activity (NRA). Although nitrate concentrations are often low in coastal waters during the summer and sandy beaches are generally considered to be low nutrient-input habitats, we have observed elevated NRA in leaves of some eelgrass (Zostera marina L.) plants growing immediately adjacent to the shoreline. We postulated that nitrate may become available to eelgrass and macroalgae via groundwater inputs that enter the nearshore water column. To address this possibility, we investigated the availability of groundwater nitrate for the induction of NRA in the leaves of eelgrass and in the macroalgaeSargassum filipendula C. Agardh (Phaeophyceae) andEnteromorpha intestinalis L. Link (Chlorophyceae) collected adjacent to two sandy beaches in the vicinity of Woods Hole, Massachusetts, USA. Induction of NRA was determined in the laboratory for eelgrass collected from one of the beach sites and from an offshore site, Lackey's Bay, which is isolated from groundwater input. At the two beach locations, pore water nitrate concentrations were 100 to 400µM within a few meters inland from the waterline. Nitrate efflux into the nearshore water column was quite high and variable (2160±660µmol m−2 h−1) when associated with rapid percolation (37±11 1 m−2 h−1) of nitrate-enriched pore water. Turbulent wave mixing rapidly diluted the nitrate. Macroalgae and eelgrass growing adjacent to a beach with high nitrate efflux had NR activities three- to sevenfold higher than those of algae and eelgrass growing along a beach section with low nitrate efflux. NRA of eelgrass plants from Lackey's Bay and Great Harbor increased in response to low daily nitrate additions (10 to 25µM) in the laboratory, with higher nitrate additions (50 to 200µM) yielding less dramatic responses. The increase in NRA was roughly three times higher for Great Harbor than for Lackey's Bay eelgrass. It appears that groundwater input of nitrate is sufficient to induce NRA in marine macrophytes growing near some beaches, including those with turbulent wave mixing.
High-contrast grating MEMS optical phase-shifters for two-dimensional free-space beam steering

We report an optical phased array (OPA) for two-dimensional free-space beam steering. The array is composed of tunable MEMS all-pass filters (APFs) based on polysilicon high contrast grating (HCG) mirrors. The cavity length of each APF is voltage controlled via an electrostatically-actuated HCG top mirror and a fixed DBR bottom mirror. The HCG mirrors are composed of only a single layer of polysilicon, achieving >99% reflectivity through the use of a subwavelength grating patterned into the polysilicon surface. Conventional metal-coated MEMS mirrors must be thick (1-50 μm) to prevent warpage arising from thermal and residual stress. The single material construction used here results in a high degree of flatness even in a thin 350 nm HCG mirror. Relative to beamsteering systems based on a single rotating MEMS mirror, which are typically limited to bandwidths below 50 kHz, the MEMS OPA described here has the advantage of greatly reduced mass and therefore achieves a bandwidth over 500 kHz. The APF structure affords large (~2π) phase shift at a small displacement (< 50 nm), an order-of-magnitude smaller than the displacement required in a single-mirror phase-shifter design. Precise control of each all-pass-filter is achieved through an interferometric phase measurement system, and beam steering is demonstrated using binary phase patterns.
The fuzzy mathematics of finance

This paper develops fuzzy analogues of the elementary compound interest problems in the mathematics of finance. We find the fuzzy present value and fuzzy future value of fuzzy cash amounts, using fuzzy interest rates, over n periods where n may be crisp or fuzzy. This paper also develops a method of comparing fuzzy net cash flows in order to rank fuzzy investment alternatives from best to worst.
Crossbreeding Institutions, Breeding Struggle: Women's Empowerment, Neoliberal Governmentality, and State (Re)Formation in India

This article explores the politics and practices of a state-initiated, feminist-conceived empowerment program for rural women in India through the lens of neoliberal governmentality. Structured as a government-organized nongovernmental organization (GONGO), the Mahila Samakhya (MS) program seeks to empower and mobilize marginalized women for self-development and social change. The program's GONGO form and empowerment goals articulate with neoliberal logics of self-care and destatized rule to reshape the postcolonial liberalizing state and governance in India. Neoliberalism and the everyday practices of the MS program construct the Indian state as a distinct and vertically encompassing, if ambiguously gendered, entity. The organization's hybrid form and its employment arrangements and work practices end up reinforcing some of the very social inequalities and welfare-based ideologies that its empowerment focus seeks to challenge. Nonetheless, collaborative governmental projects for subaltern women's empowerment, which involve feminist, activist, and state actors, offer spaces of political possibility as well as risks in a neoliberal context.
Influence of selected organic compounds on the response of a calcium ion-selective electrode

Abstract The influence of some naturally occurring organic compounds on the response of a calcium ion-selective electrode has been investigated. Phenol, resorcinol, phthalate, salicylate and humic acid cause significant interference when their concentrations are greater than 10 mg 1−1 .
Diazotrophic bacterioplankton in a coral reef lagoon: phylogeny, diel nitrogenase expression and response to phosphate enrichment.

We investigated diazotrophic bacterioplankton assemblage composition in the Heron Reef lagoon (Great Barrier Reef, Australia) using culture-independent techniques targeting the nifH fragment of the nitrogenase gene. Seawater was collected at 3 h intervals over a period of 72 h (i.e. over diel as well as tidal cycles). An incubation experiment was also conducted to assess the impact of phosphate (PO43−) availability on nifH expression patterns. DNA-based nifH libraries contained primarily sequences that were most similar to nifH from sediment, microbial mat and surface-associated microorganisms, with a few sequences that clustered with typical open ocean phylotypes. In contrast to genomic DNA sequences, libraries prepared from gene transcripts (mRNA amplified by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction) were entirely cyanobacterial and contained phylotypes similar to those observed in open ocean plankton. The abundance of Trichodesmium and two uncultured cyanobacterial phylotypes from previous studies (group A and group B) were studied by quantitative-polymerase chain reaction in the lagoon samples. These were detected as transcripts, but were not detected in genomic DNA. The gene transcript abundance of these phylotypes demonstrated variability over several diel cycles. The PO43− enrichment experiment had a clearer pattern of gene expression over diel cycles than the lagoon sampling, however PO43− additions did not result in enhanced transcript abundance relative to control incubations. The results suggest that a number of diazotrophs in bacterioplankton of the reef lagoon may originate from sediment, coral or beachrock surfaces, sloughing into plankton with the flooding tide. The presence of typical open ocean phylotype transcripts in lagoon bacterioplankton may indicate that they are an important component of the N cycle of the coral reef.
Microphone Sensitivity as a Source of Variation in Nasalance Scores

A two-part study was conducted to determine the sources of variation in nasalance scores derived from the Nasometer. In Study #1, a function generator was used as a signal source to calibrate and i...
Making quantum wires and boxes for optoelectronic devices

Abstract This paper will review current techniques used to fabricate low dimensional quantum structures for optoelectronic applications. Work has included the fabrication of quantum wire structures using molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) growth of tilted superlattices on vicinal substrates, observation and modeling of self-ordering effects that occur during this process, extension to antimony-containing III–V compounds, and quantum wire formation in “serpentine superlattices”. In addition, we will discuss results obtained using focused ion beam implantation techniques to “write” quantum wires and boxes. Direct growth by both MBE and metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) on lithographically patterned substrates, presently underway at Bellcore, will also be described, along with the electron-beam patterning and MOCVD regrowth of phosphide-based quantum wire and box configurations carried out at the Tokyo Institute of Technology. Application of these various fabrication techniques to semiconductor lasers and high-speed photodetectors will be discussed.
Rethinking Language Learning: Virtual Worlds as a Catalyst for Change

Research on educationally designed game-based virtual learning environments and virtual worlds has begun to explore the affordances of 3D metaverses for engaging learners in ways that contrast with formal schooling. Applying constructs from ecological psychology, distributed cognition, and sociocultural perspectives, design-based longitudinal studies have shown the quality of learning taking place in technology-supported collaborative environments. But what are the affordances of virtual environments for second language learning? How can we design for a nonlinear experience of action and interaction that exploits these affordances? We explored current language teaching practices in Second Life and found that many educators simply apply their classroom approaches in the virtual space, treating the environment merely as input. Designing for optimal learning opportunities in virtual worlds requires that we rethink second language acquisition by grounding it in the ecological psychology concepts of perception...
The evolution of IS-LM models: empirical evidence and theoretical presuppositions

This paper offers an explanation of the resilience of IS-LM models, which are still alive more than sixty years after the birth of the first prototype despite growing criticism within the profession. To this end two significant episodes of their evolution are examined in some detail: the genesis of the prototype of the ‘first generation’ of IS-LM models (Hicks 1937), and a recent example of what is here called the ‘second generation’ of IS-LM models (McCallum and Nelson 1997). The resilience of IS-LM models is mainly related to their adaptability to a changing perception of the economic environment within which they are applied. This depends on the evolution of the relevant stylized facts and of the salient policy problems as well as on the evolution of the prevailing theoretical assumptions and methodological approaches. The stock of cumulated empirical evidence and the flow of new additions to it have both played a role in this process, though they have done so mainly indirectly by affecting the percept...