cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Use of 20% intravenous lipid emulsion for the treatment of loperamide toxicosis in a Collie homozygous for the ABCB1-1∆ mutation.

Objective To describe the successful treatment of loperamide toxicosis in a dog using intravenous lipid emulsion (ILE). Case Summary An 8-month-old male neutered Rough Collie weighing 20.0 kg was given a total dose of 0.75 mg/kg loperamide over 3 days as treatment for diarrhea. The dog was subsequently evaluated for signs of dull mentation, anxiety, ptyalism and ataxia, thought to be a result of loperamide intoxication. The dog was treated with a 1.5 mL/kg IV bolus of 20% ILE solution followed by 0.25 mL/kg/min of the same solution for 2 hours. The dog's mentation improved rapidly following ILE infusion, and he was neurologically normal 3 hours after initiation of ILE treatment. The dog was subsequently found to be homozygous for the ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter gene (ABCB1-1∆) mutation. There were no adverse effects noted during or following ILE infusion. New or Unique Information Provided ILE was successful in the treatment of loperamide toxicosis in a Collie with the ABCB1-1∆ mutation. ILE may be of benefit for treatment of other intoxications in dogs with ABCB1-1Δ mutations.
Estimating Discrete-Time Duration Models with Time-Varying Covariates and Unobserved Heterogeneity in Gauss

Abstract The usual way to deal with time-varying covariates within duration models consists of episode splitting. Each subspell may then be treated as an independent statistical unit as long as unobserved heterogeneity can be ignored. The likelihood function factorizes into likelihood contributions of subspells. If, however, unobserved heterogeneity has to be considered, the statistical independence of subspell records gets lost. The block of subspells belonging to a spell has to be taken as a statistical unit instead. The paper shows an efficient way to overcome the computational problems arising from a varying number of subspells per spell
Regulation of Fluid and Electrolyte Balance

The chapter begins with discussing how regulation of renal blood flow (RBF) or glomerular filtration rate (GFR) contributes to regulation of fluid balance. It introduces tubuloglomerular feedback, in which increased Na in the distal nephron (macula densa) causes constriction of the afferent arteriole of the same nephron. It introduces glomerulotubular balance, in which increased GFR causes and increased reabsorption of nutrients, so that the fraction reabsorbed in the proximal tubule is constant. Overall fluid balance is described. The origin of antidiuretic hormone (ADH) and its stimuli for secretion, plasma hyperosmolarity, and stretch of the great veins and atria, are described. The mechanism of action of ADH on distal tubule and collecting duct cells is shown. The feedback loops involved in ADH secretion and fluid balance are drawn. The role of the kidney in electrolyte balance is also discussed, covering the renin–angiotensin–aldosterone (RAA) system. The stimuli for renin secretion and the consequences of renin’s liberation of angiotensin I are discussed. The function of angiotensin converting enzyme is explained. The effects of angiotensin II and aldosterone are described, and feedback loops in the RAA system are shown.
Collaborating remotely: an evaluation of immersive capabilities on spatial experiences and team membership

Today’s workforce environments are steadily becoming more distributed across the globe, calling for improved ways of facilitating collaborations at a distance, including geo-collaborations or colla...
Recalling a Devastating Tornado: Qualities of Child Recollections and Associations with Mental Health Symptoms.

Trauma recollections often contain trauma-related cognitive and emotional processing. Research examining indicators of such processing in children’s trauma recollections and their association with mental health symptoms is limited. Fifty 8 to 12-year-old children provided two open-ended recollections about (1) challenging/“bad” things and (2) positive/ “good” things that happened to them 1-year post experiencing an EF-5 tornado. Children completed exposure and mental health symptom measures (PTSD, anxiety, depression). Transcripts were coded for indicators of processing: coherence, positive and negative emotion terms, and resolutions. Age, gender, SES, family tornado-related discussion frequency, verbal ability, tornado-specific psychotherapy receipt, and exposure were controlled. Coherence and positive emotion were positively associated and resolutions were negatively associated with mental health symptoms when children discussed the “bad” things. Children’s processing and mental health symptoms were unrelated when children discussed the “good” things. The measured indicators of children’s processing may reflect children’s meaning-making efforts and have implications for adjustment.
The recommender system for a cloud-based electronic medical record system for regional clinics and health centers in China

Electronic medical record (EMR) system has become increasingly more important in developed countries due to its convenience and efficiency in medical information storage, management and analysis. However, one of the main limitations of EMR lies in that the clinical data for patients cannot be exchanged among different medical institutions. Recently, the cloud-based clinic system, featuring in lower cost and stronger functionality in data integration, has gained more and more attention. The cloud-based clinic system fulfills the requirement of “big data”, allowing higher efficiency and accuracy in data mining and analysis which may significantly improve the medical care and management. In this study, we propose a cloud-based EMR system integrated with recommender functionality. The recommender system features in both drug recommendation and decision support in diagnosis. In this paper, experiments to test ranking of recommended drugs and the auxiliary diagnosis support are presented. Results demonstrated good performance for both tests. In the future, the clinical decision support in diagnosis will be further improved with the knowledge from the professional medical providers.
Physiologic and molecular biology of erythropoietin.

The gene for erythropoietin, the first growth and differentiation factor to be identified, has now been cloned and a recombinant erythropoietin is ready for clinical trials. This molecular achievement has also led to the identification of itsmRNA in liver and especially in kidney tissue and here in the extra glomerular fraction. A radioimmune assay has been developed and its shows, as anticipated, low levels of erythropoietin in patients with kidney disease. However, in all other anemias, including the anemias of cancer, the levels of erythropoietin do not seem to be affected by the kind of disease but only by the degree of anemic hypaxia. The action of recombinent erythropoietin appears to be directed at surface receptors which increase in density on progenitor cells as they mature from early BFU-E to late CFU-E. These findings have led to an updating but not to a radical change in our concept of the feedback circuit which controls red cell production and the size of the red cell mass.
Genetic regulation of bone mineral density in mice

Peak bone mass is a major determinant of risk of osteoporotic fracture. Family and twin studies have found a strong genetic component to the determination of bone mineral density (BMD). However, BMD is a complex trait whose expression is confounded by environmental influences and polygenic inheritance. The number, locations and effects of the individual genes contributing to natural variation in this trait are all unknown. The extreme difficulty of dissecting out environmental factors from genetic ones in humans has motivated the investigation of animal models. Genetically distinct animal strains raised under strict environmental control are critical tools for defining genetic regulation. The availability of inbred strains, combined with its relative fecundity, has established the mouse as the best model system for the study of mammalian genetics and physiology. Importantly, genes identified in murine analyses can usually be readily mapped to particular human chromosomal regions because of the high degree of synteny that exists between the mouse and human genomes. We employed quantitative trait locus (QTL) analysis to examine peak BMD in 24 recombinant inbred (RI) mouse strains, derived from a cross between C57BL/6 (B6) and DBA/2 (D2) progenitors (BXD RI). The distribution of BMD values among these strains clearly indicated the presence of strong genetic influences, with an estimated narrow sense heritability of 35%. The differences in peak whole body BMD in the BXD strains were integrated with a large database of genetic markers previously defined in the RI BXD strains to generate chromosome map sites for QTL locations. This QTL analysis provisionally identified a number of chromosomal sites linked to BMD. In the second phase of our BMD QTL mapping efforts, we used three independent mouse populations (all derived from B6 and D2 progenitor strains) to confirm and narrow the genetic locations of 4 QTLs (on chromosomes 1, 2, 4, and 11) that strongly influence the acquisition of peak BMD in mice. Using a novel, fine-mapping approach (recombinant inbred segregation testing), we have succeeded in narrowing two of the BMD-related chromosomal regions and in the process eliminated a number of candidate genes. The homologous regions in the human genome for each of these murine QTLs have been identified in recent human genetic studies. In light of this, we believe that findings in mice should aid in the identification of specific candidate genes for study in humans.
USE OF NEUROTOXINS FOR BIOCHEMICAL AND GENETIC ANALYSIS OF MEMBRANE PROTEINS INVOLVED IN CELL EXCITABILITY

In recent years the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster has become increasingly popular for use in genetic approaches to problems in neurobiology. As a result, a variety of single gene mutations which affect nervous system function have become available to the investigator. (See other chapters in this volume and the following recent reviews for descriptions of the types of mutants which are available: Pak and Pinto, 1976; Ward, 1977; Kankel and Ferrus, 1979; Pak, 1979). Although electrophysiological studies have been used to provide clues about possible sites of action of these mutations (Ikeda et al., 1976; Siddiqi and Benzer, 1976; Jan et al., 1977; Wu et al., 1978), biochemical experiments will be necessary to identify the molecular site of the mutant defect. Mutations which affect enzymes important to nervous system function such as those involved in neurotransmitter synthesis and degradation are relatively straightforward to identify and analyze since most enzyme activities can be readily monitored in extracts. Thus, mutations affecting the enzymes choline acetyltransferase and acetylcholinesterase have been identified in Drosophila. (See chapter by J.C. Hall et al. in this volume).
Looking at the overlooked hole oxidation: Photocatalytic transformation of organic contaminants on graphitic carbon nitride under visible light irradiation

Abstract Solar-energy-enabled photocatalysis is a sustainable process to destruct persistent environmental pollutants via the attack of photogenerated reactive species (e.g., holes, reactive oxygen species such as OH, O2− /HO2 , H2O2, and 1O2). Graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) has emerged as a promising polymeric photocatalyst, and its highly tunable properties allow the material with an enhanced photocatalytic activity for environmental remediation. In this study, by taking advantage of simulation and experimental tools, we systematically evaluated the production of reactive species of undoped and carbon (C)-doped g-C3N4 samples, and identify the role of these species in contaminant oxidation under simulated visible sunlight irradiation (xenon lamp, λ > 400 nm). Both g-C3N4 samples produced negligible OH or triplet-excited states (3g-C3N4*), but the C-doped g-C3N4 sample generated more 1O2, O2− , and H2O2 compared to the undoped counterpart. Surprisingly, all these oxidative species did not contribute substantially for the degradation kinetics of contaminant phenol and atrazine, at least for the initial oxidation of the parent compounds; and the results otherwise highlighted the important role of the holes for contaminant transformation. The surface-mediated hole oxidation of the contaminants, including the adsorption of the contaminants on the photocatalyst surface (quantified by the binding free energy) and electron transfer kinetics from the contaminants to the excited photocatalysts (quantified by the concerted proton-coupled electron transfer (CPCET) rate) were investigated by molecular dynamics (MD) and density functional theory (DFT) simulations. The simulation results indicated that C-doping could favor the binding of atrazine but not of phenol on g-C3N4. The C-doping also significantly decreased the CPCET rate of phenol on g-C3N4 but could have little to no adverse impact for the CPCET rate of atrazine. These simulation and experimental results could explain the selective oxidation of phenol and atrazine on undoped and C-doped g-C3N4 in our previous study, and the results also highlight the dominant role of the holes for contaminant transformation that was largely overlooked before. This study generates mechanistic insights of photocatalytic oxidation, and will provide guidelines for the rational design of g-C3N4 as an effective visible-light-responsive photocatalyst for many applications, including contaminant degradation, chemical synthesis, and beyond.
Comparative Analysis of Power Loss Associated with Topology of Bi-Directional Z-Source Circuit Breakers

Due to the lack of a zero-crossing point in direct current (DC) unlike alternative current (AC), most of commercial AC circuit breakers cannot be applied into DC power systems directly. A couple of Z-Source circuit breaker topologies have been introduced with capabilities of bidirectional power flow and automatic/controllable turnoff. Each of these topologies has its own notable features of advantages and drawbacks. In this paper, the power loss analyses of three bi-directional Z-Source circuit breaker topologies during normal steady-state operation have been performed. The power loss during steady state is a major consideration in breaker selection. We identified the current flow path in these topologies during normal operation and calculated the losses of associated components in the circuits respectively, and finally compared their overall power losses in system level. From the comparative study, we found that the inter-cross connected bi-directional Z-source breaker has the minimum loss during steady-state operation among the three candidates, which makes it a good protection for DC microgrids and nanogrids.
in vitro Reactive-Accelerated-Aging (RAA) Assessment of Tissue-Engineered Electronic Nerve Interfaces (TEENI)

A reactive-accelerated-aging (RAA) soak-test has been employed to challenge microfabricated neural interface devices against an aggressive environment that mimics worstcase chronic physiological inflammation. The RAA tests were able to determine the ability of different materials to increase the adhesive strength of the polyimide and platinum-goldplatinum metallization thin-film interface. It was found that a 3-day RAA soak-test at 87 °C in phosphate buffered saline with 10 to 20 mM hydrogen peroxide resulted in adhesive failure of the metal-polyimide interface when titanium was used as the primary adhesion promotor. The addition of hydrogenated amorphous silicon carbide was able to eliminate the onset of adhesive failure of the metal-polyimide interface during 7-day RAA soak tests. However, sporadic cracking of the silicon carbide layer resulted in a minority of broken metal interconnects that resulted in failed electrodes. These tests have demonstrated the ability of RAA soak tests to provide rapid in vitro assessment of microfabricated neural interfaces and thereby reduce the time needed to develop synthetic methods to fabricate chronically reliable devices.
Abstract WP428: Inter-professional Process Improvement Initiative to Enhance In-hospital Stroke Alerts

Background: Annually, 17% of all strokes occur during hospitalization. Compared to individuals with stroke who present to the emergency department, the prognosis for individuals with an in-hospital...
Benefits of either operative or non-operative treatment for perilunate dislocation and fracture dislocations.

Dear Editor We read the article by Bagheri et al with great interest (1). We found the study interesting and comprehensive as four groups of patients, including operative and nonoperative in either pure dislocation or fracture dislocation, were compared in terms of Mayo wrist score, Grip strength, range of motion and radiographic parameters. It seems that the results were comparable to studies by Capo, Chou, Laporte, Malovic, Kremer, Forli and Lutz (Table 1) (2-8). In the studies listed above, all the patients were treated by operative fixation and none of them reported any experience with non-operative treatment (2-8). Their operative results are almost similar to Bagheri’s operative results in which they demonstrated better outcomes in terms of motion and Mayo score than the non-operative counterpart. In the current study by Bagheri et al, non-operative treatment is also discussed, which has little literature support so far (1). We wonder what the indications were leading the patient and the surgeon electing nonoperative treatment versus operative intervention. Since the outcomes of non-operative care were comparable to the operative outcomes, weighing the benefits of non surgical management may be an area of further investigation.The authors didn’t describe the operative intervention in detail making comparisons with outer studies difficult. Therefore, we note the need to compare different operative techniques in the literature to figure out which provide the most optimal outcomes and expedite patients’ rehabilitation.
Specific Versus Scaled Estimates: A Comparison of Two Approaches to Measuring Retrospective Nightmare Frequency

Previous research has retrospectively assessed nightmare frequency using either specific estimates of the number of nightmares experienced in a given time period (i.e., 0, 1, 2…) or rating scale responses about the frequency of nightmares (i.e., not often, often). However, research comparing the two approaches has been lacking. This study compared correlations of specific and rating scale estimates of nightmare frequency with neuroticism, general psychological distress, nightmare distress, and self-related variables among a sample of 117 university students. The results indicated that both measures of nightmare frequency demonstrated correlations of similar strengths with other variables, though scaled estimates had a slightly stronger validity coefficient. Nightmare distress similarly mediated the relationships, including the relationship between the two nightmare measures. The results and suggestions for future research were discussed.
Reactivity of Hydroxyl Species from Coadsorption of Oxygen and Water on Ni(110) Single-Crystal Surfaces

The formation and reactivity of hydroxyl species originating from coadsorption of water and oxygen on Ni(110) single-crystal surfaces have been studied by using temperature-programmed desorption (TPD) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The resulting surface population of hydroxyl intermediates at a given water–oxygen coverage combination was found to be temperature-dependent. This was demonstrated by the differences in hydroxyl coverages determined by TPD and XPS: while the TPD data were determined to mostly reflect the maximum coverages that can be reached for a given set of gas exposures at low temperatures, the XPS results measure the OH coverages formed at the temperature of dosing. Our results indicate that, besides the stoichiometric and reversible H2O(ads) + O(ads) = 2OH(ads) step, a second water-decomposition reaction on the oxygen-precovered surface deposits additional hydroxyl adsorbates. Depletion of surface oxygen can be induced by thermal reaction with coadsorbed ammonia as well, a result that provides direct evidence for the OH(ads) disproportionation reaction.
Ion-Induced Electron Excitation at Magnetic Surfaces

Using spin-polarized electron emission spectroscopy (SPEES), we have studied electronic excitations at clean and oxygen-covered Fe surfaces. Employing small angle (α=1°) surface interaction of 7–28 keV Ne+ ions, we investigated the spin-polarized, angle-resolved energy distribution (ARED) of electrons emitted from these surfaces. For small α, the ARED is significantly different from electron- or ion-induced secondary electron spectra obtained at larger α. We note that 25 keV Ne+ ions incident at α=1° are specularly reflected and probe the topmost surface layer whereas for αr>2°, the ions penetrate the surface thereby probing bulk layers. At clean Fe surfaces, we find for α-1° and 45° average values of the electron spin polarization (ESP) of (33±2)% and (25±2)%. These values show that the surface magnetization (33%) is enhanced by approximately 30% compared to the bulk value (25%). These findings give clear evidence that SPEES is a powerful technique to study layer-dependent magnetic properties.
Magneto-luminescent zinc/iron oxide core-shell nanoparticles with tunable magnetic properties

Abstract Core-shell nanospheres with tailorable magnetic properties and strong luminescence promise versatile and efficient biomedical and electronic applications. We report a low-cost sonochemical synthesis of ZnO/iron oxide core-shell nanostructures with tunable magnetic properties. The high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) illustrates the distinguished dispersity of the oxide nanoparticles, whereas elemental profiling using line scan data confirm the formation of the distinguished core and shell phases. Annealing in N2–H2 and Ar–H2 ambient alters the magnetic properties such as coercive field, saturation magnetization, and remnant magnetization within the inverse spinel iron oxide with space group Fd3m. Subtle structural changes between maghemite (γ-Fe2O3) and its reduced form, magnetite (Fe3O4), have been identified in the thin (0.5–3 nm) shell region of atomic dimensions. Structural composition including phase transitions and defect states are investigated using XRD, XPS, and Raman measurements. Coexistence of ferromagnetism (from the shell and characterized by magnetic measurements) and strong luminescence (from ZnO core and obtained from photoluminescence spectroscopy) at room temperature indicates exotic magneto-optical coupling, which is supported by the blue-shifted luminescence spectra. Our approach combining nanotechnology and solid-state chemistry opens a new frontier to the building of innovative nanomaterials for integration, especially multifunctional core-shell oxide nanomaterials.
Outcomes of infants and children undergoing surgical repair of ventricular septal defect: a review of the literature and implications for research with an emphasis on pulmonary artery hypertension.

Background:Pulmonary vascular disease resulting from CHDs may be the most preventable cause of pulmonary artery hypertension worldwide. Many children in developing countries still do not have access to early closure of clinically significant defects, and the long-term outcomes after corrective surgery remain unclear. Focused on long-term results after isolated ventricular septal defect repair, our review sought to determine the most effective medical therapy for the pre-operative management of elevated left-to-right shunts in patients with an isolated ventricular septal defect.Methods:We identified articles specific to the surgical repair of isolated ventricular septal defects. Specific parameters included the pathophysiology and pre-operative medical management of pulmonary over-circulation and outcomes.Results:Studies most commonly focused on histologic changes to the pulmonary vasculature and levels of thromboxanes, prostaglandins, nitric oxide, endothelin, and matrix metalloproteinases. Only 2/44 studies mentioned targeted pharmacologic management to any of these systems related to ventricular septal defect repair; no study offered evidence-based guidelines to manage pulmonary over-circulation with ventricular septal defects. Most studies with long-term data indicated a measurable frequency of pulmonary artery hypertension or diminished exercise capacity late after ventricular septal defect repair.Conclusion:Long-term pulmonary vascular and respiratory changes can occur in children after ventricular septal defect repair. Research should be directed at providing an evidenced-based approach to the medical management of infants and children with ventricular septal defects (and naturally all CHDs) to minimise consequences of pulmonary artery hypertension, particularly as defect repair may occur late in underprivileged societies.
Impact of acute cardiovascular collapse on cerebral electrical activity: importance of heart-brain interaction

A preterm infant experienced pericardial tamponade due to a deep central line. During the event the patient was on neurological monitoring, ampli­tude integrated electroencephalogram (aEEG), which demonstrated abnormal baseline activity during the point of cardiovascular collapse with improvement once intervention occurred with pericardiocentesis. The case highlights the value of neurological monitoring in acute hemodynamic instability.
Weak binding to the A2RE RNA rigidifies hnRNPA2 RRMs and reduces liquid–liquid phase separation and aggregation

hnRNPA2 is a major component of mRNA transport granules in oligodendrocytes and neurons. However, the structural details of how hnRNPA2 binds the A2 recognition element (A2RE) and if this sequence stimulates granule formation by enhancing phase separation of hnRNPA2 has not yet been studied. Using solution NMR and biophysical studies, we find that each of the two individual RRMs retain the domain structure observed in complex with RNA but are not rigidly confined (i.e. they move independently) in solution in the absence of RNA. hnRNPA2 RRMs bind the minimal rA2RE11 weakly but at least, and most likely, two hnRNPA2 molecules are able to simultaneously bind the longer 21mer myelin basic protein A2RE. Upon binding of the RNA, NMR chemical shift deviations are observed in both RRMs, suggesting both play a role in binding the A2RE11. Interestingly, addition of short A2RE RNAs or longer RNAs containing this sequence completely prevents in vitro phase separation of full-length hnRNPA2 and aggregation of the disease-associated mutants. These findings suggest that RRM interactions with specific recognition sequences alone do not account for nucleating granule formation, consistent with models where multivalent protein:RNA and protein:protein contacts form across many sites in granule proteins and long RNA transcripts.
Earthquake Soil Structure Interaction Analysis of a Gravity Dam

This paper presents numerical modeling and simulation issues seen in static and dynamic analysis of dam-foundation systems. Domain reduction method (DRM) is chosen as the preferred approach for seismic motion input. Proper modeling of inelastic material behavior and seismic energy dissipation is discussed. Verification and validation are essential to ensure reliability of numerical results. Numerical modeling and simulation of a soil/rock—concrete dam system subjected to static and dynamic earthquake loading are presented. It is shown that, in order to make safe and economical design decisions, engineers should have complete understanding and control of the numerical analysis process.
CRYSTALLOGROPHIC POSITION OF FLUORINE IN FLUORINE-DOPED BISMUTH SYSTEM SUPERCONDUCTOR

According to the changes of XPS, IR and lattice constants in bismuth (lead) system superconductor, the location of F substitution in O(2) has been determined. The Tc0 in fluorme doped bismuth (lead) system superconductor can be inproved greatly with the formation of Pb-F and Cu-F, the strengthening of coherence between Cu-O and Bi-O plane, and the increasing of chemical pressure and the density of electronic states.
Basis Learning as an Algorithmic Primitive

A number of important problems in theoretical computer science and machine learning can be interpreted as recovering a certain basis. These include symmetric matrix eigendecomposition, certain tensor decompositions, Independent Component Analysis (ICA), spectral clustering and Gaussian mixture learning. Each of these problems reduces to an instance of our general model, which we call a "Basis Encoding Function" (BEF). We show that learning a basis within this model can then be provably and efficiently achieved using a first order iteration algorithm (gradient iteration). Our algorithm goes beyond tensor methods while generalizing a number of existing algorithms---e.g., the power method for symmetric matrices, the tensor power iteration for orthogonal decomposable tensors, and cumulant-based FastICA---all within a broader function-based dynamical systems framework. Our framework also unifies the unusual phenomenon observed in these domains that they can be solved using efficient non-convex optimization. Specifically, we describe a class of BEFs such that their local maxima on the unit sphere are in one-to-one correspondence with the basis elements. This description relies on a certain "hidden convexity" property of these functions. We provide a complete theoretical analysis of the gradient iteration even when the BEF is perturbed. We show convergence and complexity bounds polynomial in dimension and other relevant parameters, such as perturbation size. Our perturbation results can be considered as a non-linear version of the classical Davis-Kahan theorem for perturbations of eigenvectors of symmetric matrices. In addition we show that our algorithm exhibits fast (superlinear) convergence and relate the speed of convergence to the properties of the BEF. Moreover, the gradient iteration algorithm can be easily and efficiently implemented in practice.
The asymptotic collapsed fraction in an eternal universe

We calculate the maximum fraction of matter which is able to condense out of the expanding background universe by gravitational instability – the asymptotic collapsed fraction – for any universe which is unbound and, hence, will expand forever. We solve this problem by application of a simple, pressure-free, spherically symmetric, nonlinear model for the growth of density fluctuations in the universe. This model includes general kinds of Friedmann universes, such as the open, matter-dominated universe and those in which there is an extra, uniform background component of energy-density (e.g. the cosmological constant or so-called “quintessence”), perturbed by Gaussian random noise matter-density fluctuations. These background universes all have the property that matter-domination eventually gives way either to curvature-domination or domination by the positive energy density of the additional background component. When this happens, gravitational instability is suppressed and, with it, so is the growth of the collapsed fraction. Our results serve to identify a limitation of the well-knownPress-Schechter approximation for the time-dependent mass function of cosmological structure formation. In the latter approximation, the mass function determined from the predicted collapse of positive density fluctuations is multiplied by an ad hoc correction factor of 2 based upon an assumption that every positive density fluctuation which is fated to collapse will simultaneously accrete an equal share of additional matter from nearby regions of compensating negative density fluctuation. The model presented here explicitly determines the actual value of the factor by which any positive density fluctuation which ever collapses will asymptotically increase its mass by accreting from a compensat
Detecting vortices in superconductors: Extracting one-dimensional topological singularities from a discretized complex scalar field

Materials Science Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, IL 60439, USA(Dated: January 15, 2015)In type-II superconductors, the dynamics of superconducting vortices determine their transport properties.In the Ginzburg-Landau theory, vortices correspond to topological defects in the complex order parameter.Extracting their precise positions and motion from discretized numerical simulation data is an important, butchallenging task. In the past, vortices have mostly been detected by analyzing the magnitude of the complexscalar ﬁeld representing the order parameter and visualized by corresponding contour plots and isosurfaces.However, these methods, primarily used for small-scale simulations, blur the ﬁne details of the vortices, scalepoorly to large-scale simulations, and do not easily enable isolating and tracking individual vortices. Herewe present a method for exactly ﬁnding the vortex core lines from a complex order parameter ﬁeld. With thismethod, vortices can be easily described at a resolution even ﬁner than the mesh itself. The precise determinationof the vortex cores allows the interplay of the vortices inside a model superconductor to be visualized in higherresolution than has previously been possible. By representing the ﬁeld as the set of vortices, this method alsomassively reduces the data footprint of the simulations and provides the data structures for further analysis andfeature tracking.I. INTRODUCTION
Skirting the Issue: How International Law Fails to Protect Traditional Cultural Marks from IP Theft

Abstract Countries have different levels of intellectual property (IP) protections. While developed countries tend to prefer more stringent IP laws, developing countries prefer weaker ones. With the enactment of the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), which established minimum standards of intellectual property rights (IPRs) for states party, the level of IPRs became much higher globally. However, despite affording strong protection to many types of IP, this Comment argues that TRIPS fails to provide adequate protection for traditional cultural marks (TCMs), particularly those used in developing countries. As a result, companies in developed countries have been able to steal TCMs from developing countries without violating TRIPS or other international law. This Comment uses as an example the attempted registration by a UK company of the word kikoi, the term for a traditional East African skirt, to demonstrate that TRIPS fails to protect this type of IP. With a focus on trademarks and geographical indications, this Comment analyzes TRIPS and other laws in the context of traditional marks and argues that current international law is inadequate for the protection of traditional marks. It then discusses proposals to protect traditional IP and introduces a simple solution to the IP theft of traditional cultural marks. Table of Contents I. Introduction 240 II. Why Give Traditional Cultural Marks IP Protection? 242 A. The Economic Argument 243 B. The Humanitarian Argument 245 III. Analysis of Current Law 246 A. History of International IP Law 246 B. TRIPS 248 1. Article 15: Trademarks 248 2. Artide 22: Geographical Indications 249 C. Related International IP Laws 255 D. Other Multilateral and Bilateral IP Agreements 256 E. Domestic Laws Protecting Indigenous Traditional Knowledge 257 IV. Solutions 259 A. Extension of Geographical Indications Protection in TRIPS 259 B. Public Domain 260 C. Paying Public Domain.... 261 D. Generic In Any Language Exception 262 V. Conclusion 263 I. INTRODUCTION In 2006, the Kikoy UK Company applied for a trademark for the term kikey (also spelled ktkoi),1 a SwahiK word for a skirt commonly worn by men in East Africa. The more was notorious in Kenya, whose economy relies on the production and export of small-scale consumer goods,3 and for whom the kthoi is a traditional cultural item. …
An Analysis Of The Interaction Between A Submerged Jet And A Receiver-Diffuser In A Reverse Flow Diverter

Two mathematical models of the interaction between a submerged jet emanating from the nozzle of a reverse flow diverter (RFD) and a receiver-diffuscr of a venturi-like reverse flow diverter are pre...
Optimization of micropillar sequences for fluid flow sculpting

Inertial fluid flow deformation around pillars in a microchannel is a new method for controlling fluid flow. Sequences of pillars have been shown to produce a rich phase space with a wide variety of flow transformations. Previous work has successfully demonstrated manual design of pillar sequences to achieve desired transformations of the flow cross section, with experimental validation. However, such a method is not ideal for seeking out complex sculpted shapes as the search space quickly becomes too large for efficient manual discovery. We explore fast, automated optimization methods to solve this problem. We formulate the inertial flow physics in microchannels with different micropillar configurations as a set of state transition matrix operations. These state transition matrices are constructed from experimentally validated streamtraces for a fixed channel length per pillar. This facilitates modeling the effect of a sequence of micropillars as nested matrix-matrix products, which have very efficient numerical implementations. With this new forward model, arbitrary micropillar sequences can be rapidly simulated with various inlet configurations, allowing optimization routines quick access to a large search space. We integrate this framework with the genetic algorithm and showcase its applicability by designing micropillar sequences for various useful transformations. We computationally discover micropillar sequences for complex transformations that are substantially shorter than manually designed sequences. We also determine sequences for novel transformations that were difficult to manually design. Finally, we experimentally validate these computational designs by fabricating devices and comparing predictions with the results from confocal microscopy.
Non-convergence to Rational Expectations and Optimal Monetary Policy in Models with Learning

Abstract A principal argument in the rational expectations literature is the optimality of predictable policy. This paper illustrates that this claim does not hold in a world of parametric uncertainty for two reasons: (1) completely noiseless policy may lead to non-convergence to the true model parameters; (2) highly predictable policy is not very informative about the structure of the model. A series of examples illustrate the ramifications for macroeconomic policy.
Black Girl in Paris: Shay Youngblood's Escape from "The Last Plantation"

crimination was their goal, black expatriate American writers have been more sensitive to European prejudices against people of color than their white expatriate counterparts. Earlier American white writ ers sometimes employed these very stereotypes, using their travel writ ing to differentiate the world's people into distinctive racial and ethnic groups, or national groups as Edith Wharton did in French Ways and Their Meaning (1919). Some African-American expatriates like Langston Hughes negotiated these stereotypes and lived out "the myth of being poor, American, and happy in Paris" by joining a pan-African expatriate community. Others, like James Baldwin, were "skeptical of the pan-African bond assumed by Du Bois, Hughes, and Wright." Baldwin pointed to the difference between African colonials and African-Americans 300 years removed from their African homeland, with the result that he felt more isolated in Paris than earlier African
A Case Study for Small Manufacturing in the Globalized Economy Using the Principles of Bolman and Deal

In any organization, proper management is the key to success. This concept is critical from the largest multi-national corporation to the smallest family-owned business. Understanding the principles and elements of management is necessary for any organization to survive a globalized economy. This understanding means appreciating the complexities of human interactions, information technology, and business systems. In their work Reframing Organizations, Bolman and Deal describe these issues as a series of mental models or “frames”; the structural, human resources, political, and symbolic. This paper demonstrates that even for a small U.S. manufacturing company, the ideas laid out by Bolman and Deal are relevant. This work attempts to use their “frames” model to analyze the management decisions of the small company as it attempts to merge its work forces to better serve its customer base both in the U.S. and globally. This case study takes the ideas of Bolman and Deal further in depth, demonstrating them not at a macroscopic level of the entire company, but by dissecting an event within the company, showing that even microscopically, the Bolman and Deal frames model holds validity.
Exploring the impact of shared autonomous vehicles on urban parking demand: An agent-based simulation approach

Abstract Although recent studies of Shared Autonomous Vehicles (SAVs) have explored the economic costs and environmental impacts of this technology, little is known about how SAVs can change urban forms, especially by reducing the demand for parking. This study estimates the potential impact of SAV system on urban parking demand under different system operation scenarios with the help of an agent-based simulation model. The simulation results indicate that we may be able to eliminate up to 90% of parking demand for clients who adopt the system, at a low market penetration rate of 2%. The results also suggest that different SAV operation strategies and client's preferences may lead to different spatial distribution of urban parking demand.
Massively parallel high-order combinatorial genetics in human cells

Massively parallel genetic screening reveals synergies between miRNAs regulating cancer cell proliferation and drug resistance.
When Was Judicial Self-Restraint

This Essay responds to Judge Posner’s Jorde Symposium Essay The Rise and Fall of Judicial Restraint by analyzing the question of when, if ever, has judicial self-restraint thrived in the federal courts. Its central aim is to shed historicizing light on the trajectory of judicial activism by imaginatively rifling through an array of canonical and somewhat-less-than-canonical empirical identification strategies. Two conclusions follow from the inquiry. First, I find that the available data on the historical trajectory of judicial restraint are surprisingly poor, and it is necessary to offer any judgment about the historical path of judicial activism with great caution. Second, although the empirical record is fragmentary, some common points emerge from the use of divergent methodologies. Specifically, I suggest that the temporal domain of judicial activism should be expanded further back into American history than generally assumed. It was in the immediate aftermath of the Civil War that judicial behavior changed in a consequential way. That postbellum period has largely dropped out of the study of judicial activism, but should receive more attention than it currently does.
Quantum Weak Measurements and Cosmology

The indeterminism of quantum mechanics generally permits the independent specification of both an initial and a final condition on the state. Quantum pre- and post-selection of states opens up a new, experimentally testable, sector of quantum mechanics, when combined with statistical averages of identical weak measurements. In this paper I apply the theory of weak quantum measurements combined with pre- and post-selection to cosmology. Here, pre-selection means specifying the wave function of the universe or, in a popular semi-classical approximation, the initial quantum state of a subset of quantum fields propagating in a classical background spacetime. The novel feature is post-selection: the additional specification of a condition on the quantum state in the far future. I discuss “natural” final conditions, and show how they may lead to potentially large and observable effects at the present cosmological epoch. I also discuss how pre- and post-selected quantum fields couple to gravity via the DeWitt-Schwinger effective action prescription, in contrast to the expectation value of the stress-energy-momentum tensor, resolving a vigorous debate from the 1970s. The paper thus provides a framework for computing large-scale cosmological effects arising from this new sector of quantum mechanics. A simple experimental test is proposed. [Editors note: for a video of the talk given by Prof. Davies at the Aharonov-80 conference in 2012 at Chapman University, see quantum.chapman.edu/talk-13.]
Purity and side effect analysis for java programs

We present a new purity and side effect analysis for Java programs. A method is pure if it does not mutate any location that exists in the program state right before the invocation of the method. Our analysis is built on top of a combined pointer and escape analysis, and is able to determine that methods are pure even when the methods mutate the heap, provided they mutate only new objects.Our analysis provides useful information even for impure methods. In particular, it can recognize read-only parameters (a parameter is read-only if the method does not mutate any objects transitively reachable from the parameter) and safe parameters (a parameter is safe if it is read-only and the method does not create any new externally visible heap paths to objects transitively reachable from the parameter). The analysis can also generate regular expressions that characterize the externally visible heap locations that the method mutates.We have implemented our analysis and used it to analyze several applications. Our results show that our analysis effectively recognizes a variety of pure methods, including pure methods that allocate and mutate complex auxiliary data structures.
Political Economy of Agricultural Commodity Market Intervention

Commodity markets are characterized by trade in standardized, undifferentiated commodities and numerous traders. Consequently, such markets are highly competitive and trade is carried out in concentrated, low transaction cost exchanges. In this sense, commodity markets are the closest approximations to ideal neoclassical competitive markets. As commodity markets area also free of externalities, the resulting market equilibria are economically efficient. Nevertheless, owing to imperfect foresight and random shocks, the dynamic performance of commodity markets, may be suboptimal. Also, commodity markets' actual performance as exchange institutions may at times fall short of the theoretical ideal. Hence, some room ordinarily exists for efficiency enhancing intervention in the form of setting commodity quality standards, disseminating relevant trade information and establishing appropriate transaction procedures. In addition, commodity markets' stabilization programs offer a wide scope for improving the dynamic market performance; indeed, market stabilization objectives are often invoked as political justification of redistributive policies.