cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Temporal-difference learning for online reachability analysis

Hamilton-Jacobi-Isaacs (HJI) reachability analysis has been employed to guarantee safety in a number of applications including robotics, air traffic control, and control of HVAC systems. The current standard for these methods can result in overly-conservative controllers that degrade system performance with respect to other objectives. There has been interest in incorporating online machine learning techniques to reduce the conservativeness of the controller. However, recent efforts have resulted in methods that are computationally inefficient and scale poorly with the dimension of the state space. We propose a novel online reachability update algorithm based on Temporal-Difference (TD) learning that is computationally more efficient. Our algorithm is demonstrated on a simulation of a quadrotor learning to track a trajectory in a confined space. Our method outperforms standard reachability-based controllers when it comes to other (non-safety) objectives.
Relative intensity calculations for nitrous oxide

A tabulation of calculated rotational line intensities, relative to the integrated intensity of a vibration-rotation band, is given for Sigma-Sigma, Pi-Sigma, Sigma-Pi, Pi-Pi, and Delta-Pi transitions of nitrous oxide. These calculations were made for temperatures of 250 K and 300 K. A summary of band-intensity measurements is also presented.
Density matrix embedding theory for interacting electron-phonon systems

We describe the extension of the density matrix embedding theory framework to coupled interacting fermion-boson systems. This provides a frequency-independent, entanglement embedding formalism to treat bulk fermion-boson problems. We illustrate the concepts within the context of the one-dimensional Hubbard-Holstein model, where the phonon bath states are obtained from the Schmidt decomposition of a self-consistently adjusted coherent state. We benchmark our results against accurate density matrix renormalization group calculations.
Treating Persons With Traumatic Brain Injury History and Updates

The scientific traumatic brain injury (TBI) literature chronicles 50 years of epidemiologic data, neurobehavioral and cognitive symptoms, diagnostic tools for measuring outcomes, and treatments for persons with TBI. In this article, we review the state of our knowledge about TBI causes and symptom complexities, evidence-based treatments, and ongoing treatment needs.
Absorption of Water and Mechanical Stress in Immobilized Poly(vinylbenzyltrialkylammonium chloride) Thin Films

Absorption of water in cationic polyelectrolyte thin films is investigated by measuring mass uptake and mechanical stress using a quartz crystal microbalance and scanning optical laser apparatus, respectively. Thin layers of poly(vinylbenzyl chloride) and diazabicyclo[2.2.2]octane are spin-cast onto quartz crystal sensors or cover glasses. Films are subsequently cured and reacted by nucleophilic substitution with trimethylamine, triethylamine, tripropylamine, or tributylamine to give an immobilized poly(vinylbenzyltrialkylammonium chloride) matrix. Water absorption in these films depends strongly on both the amine modifier and counterion present in the matrix. Mass uptake ranges from 5.7% for a tributylamine-modified film in perchlorate form to 52% for a trimethylamine-modified film in fluoride form. This water uptake results in a maximum relative compressive biaxial stress of −33 and −113 MPa for these two films, respectively. Mass uptake and biaxial stress data give evidence of yielding upon hydration a...
Thyrotropin-Releasing Hormone (TRH) Effects on Bovine Plasma Thyroxine

SummaryThe jugular infusion of synthetic TRH (100 μg) initiated a biphasic response of thyroxine in bovine. The first peak was observed within 30 min followed by a decline at 2 hr. The values then showed a gradual elevation up to 6 hr at the conclusion of the experiment. These data indicate that in bovine the biphasic response of TRH may be due to either the direct action of TRH or TSH in the first phase with the second phase due presumably to TSH.
POST-OPERATIONAL SATELLITES MITIGATE RISKS OF TESTING AND CHECK-OUT OF REMOTE TRACKING STATIONS

Post-operational satellites can be used for cost effective, final-phase testing of ground systems reducing the cost of implementatio n and risk without endangering operational satellites. Two separate projects conducted at the Center For Research Support (CERES) demonstrated the fly-before-you-buy concept in the testing and evaluation of Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) products with post-operational satellites. The first project called the Quick Reaction Demonstrator (QRD), successfully demonstrated the feasibility of using COTS products to upgrade the aging Air Force Satellite Control Network (AFSCN) Remote Tracking Stations (RTS). The second project, called the Commercial Antenna Network Evaluation (CANE), is expected to be completed around August 2001. This project will demonstrate and evaluate the capability of commercially available ground stations to augment (as opposed to upgrading) the functions of the AFSCN. For both projects, real world satellite contacts were conducted to assess the mission effectiveness, availability, compatibility, flexibility, and feasibility of these concepts. The satellite operations were conducted from a fully functional satellite operation control center. The satellites used in these projects required much of the same (or more) operational maintenance as their fully operational counterparts. Using postoperational satellites mitigates the risk to mission capable satellites and reduces cost by using existing operations capabilities.
Applications of Forensic Sociology and Criminology to Civil Litigation

Social scientists play an increasingly important role in the prosecution and defense of both criminal and civil matters before the courts. An expanding area of forensic sociology and criminology in...
Sex and drugs.

Quackery has for centuries used aphrodisiacs to exploit vulnerable victims, 30% of whom, through the power of suggestion, have achieved sexual success from potions, powders and genital pomades. In the 1970s we still have no magical alchemy for sexual joy, but we are for the first time becoming aware of the complexity of human sexual functioning.
Effect of Chronic Athletic Activity on Brown Fat in Young Women

Background The effect of chronic exercise activity on brown adipose tissue (BAT) is not clear, with some studies showing positive and others showing negative associations. Chronic exercise is associated with increased resting energy expenditure (REE) secondary to increased lean mass and a probable increase in BAT. Many athletes are in a state of relative energy deficit suggested by lower fat mass and hypothalamic amenorrhea. States of severe energy deficit such as anorexia nervosa are associated with reduced BAT. There are no data regarding the impact of chronic exercise activity on BAT volume or activity in young women and it is unclear whether relative energy deficiency modifies the effects of exercise on BAT.
Phase conjugation in photorefractive materials

An optical wave that has passed through a distorter can be healed by phase conjugating the wave and passing it back through the distorter again. Phase conjugators that respond to weak optical waves (milliwatts) have been realized using a four-wave mixing geometry in photorefractive materials.1 If the material has a sufficiently large coupling strength it can become a self-pumped phase conjugator, and only the input wave is required.2
The etiology of detrusor hyperreflexia in patients with infravesical obstruction.

Abstract Bladder function was studied in 44 patients with bladder outlet obstruction by gas cystometry, integrated sphincter electromyography and uroflowmetry. Of these 44 patients 18 demonstrated detrusor hyperreflexia on cystometry. To identify the prostate as a possible source for triggering sensory stimuli pharmacologic ablation withlidocaine was performed through a perineal approach in 11 patients with hyperreflexia. Prostatic block eliminated hyperreflexia in 10 of 11 patients and had no effect in 4 patients with a normal cystometrogram. We believe that this studylends support to the concept that sensory stimuli from an anatomically altered prostatic urethra induces detrusor hyperreflexia. This suggests that permanent ablation of sensory stimuli from the prostate in patients with outlet obstructionwould be of benefit.
Sunk costs, psychological symptomology, and help seeking

Individuals often allow prior investments of time, money or effort to influence their current behavior. A tendency to allow previous investments to impact further investment, referred to as the sunk-cost fallacy, may be related to adverse psychological health. Unfortunately, little is known about the relation between the sunk-cost fallacy and psychological symptoms or help seeking. The current study used a relatively novel approach (i.e., Amazon.com’s Mechanical Turk crowdsourcing [AMT] service) to examine various aspects of psychological health in internet users (n = 1053) that did and did not commit the sunk-cost fallacy. In this observational study, individuals logged on to AMT, selected the “decision making survey” amongst the array of currently available tasks, and completed the approximately 200-question survey (which included a two-trial sunk cost task, the brief symptom inventory 18, the Binge Eating Scale, portions of the SF-8 health survey, and other questions about treatment utilization). Individuals that committed the fallacy reported a greater number of symptoms related to Binge Eating Disorder and Depression, being bothered more by emotional problems, yet waited longer to seek assistance when feeling ill. The current findings are discussed in relation to promoting help-seeking behavior amongst individuals that commit this logical fallacy.
Stroke in a Multiple Myeloma Cohort.

Background: Neurologic complications of multiple myeloma (MM) are numerous, however little is known about strokes occurring in the course of MM and its treatment. Methods: 2877 MM patients were seen for an initial evaluation at our institution over a 5-year period (1998–2002). Patients were identified using discharge summaries by combining ICD-9 codes for MM and stroke. They were included if they had clinical and radiological features of acute stroke. Ischemic stroke was defined as a new acute neurologic deficit lasting > 24 hours, irrespective of diffusion-weighted MRI results. Diagnosis of hemorrhagic stroke was made in patients with new acute neurologic deficit plus evidence of hemorrhage on CT scan. We retrospectively reviewed medical records for demographics, type of MM and treatment, stroke type, clinical features, relevant imaging and laboratory data, and outcomes. Results: The 11 patients that we identified included eight with ischemic strokes and three with subarachnoid hemorrhages (SAH). There were no patients with intraparenchymal hemorrhage. The overall incidence of stroke in this cohort was 76/100,000 per year, whereas the incidence of ischemic stroke was 56/100,000 per year. The mean age of patients with ischemic stroke was 59 years. Seven had one or more stroke risk factors and an equal number had received thalidomide. The latter were given small doses of coumadin as part of the treatment protocol; at the time of the stroke, INR range was 0.9–1.4. Based on clinical, radiological and other laboratory features, of the eight patients with ischemic strokes, two were presumed cardio-embolic (one had infective endocarditis), five were thrombotic, and one was caused by hypoperfusion. Two patients had findings of severe stenosis/occlusion in vessels corresponding to the infracted brain territory (internal carotid and basilar arteries). Two patients had documented normal plasma viscosity and three had evidence of extra-cranial thrombosis at the time of the stroke. In the three patients with SAH, hemorrhage occurred in the setting of trauma and thrombocytopenia, although one patient had an incidental anterior communicating artery aneurysm. Seven patients were left with minor or no deficits and four died, two in each of the groups. Conclusion: Overall, strokes did not appear to be more common in MM patients than in the general population, and the pathophysiology was likewise, not different than in patients without MM, with the exception of one patient with infective endocarditis, which is probably directly related to MM or its treatment. The highly selected referral population at our myeloma institute, and the retrospective nature of the study probably underestimate the incidence of stroke. The role of thalidomide in stroke remains unknown. Thrombocytopenia and trauma are probable risk factors for subarachnoid hemorrhage in MM patients. Fatal outcomes were frequent, but when death did not occur, the deficits were minor.
Enhancing Graduate Students’ Reflection in E-portfolios Using the TPACK Framework

When electronic portfolios (e-portfolios) are employed as summative assessments for degree granting programs, it is imperative that students demonstrate their knowledge in the field to showcase learning growth and achievement of the program learning outcomes. This study examined the extent graduate students in the field of educational technology demonstrated their technology, pedagogy, and content knowledge (TPACK) related elements in their e-portfolio reflection, when they were guided by the TPACK framework grounded instruction. Using content analysis technique and open-ended survey responses, the findings showed that students were able to demonstrate their interconnected technological pedagogical knowledge in their reflection to justify their competencies. In addition, students had positive reactions to the opportunity to reflect through writing the reflection paper. This study contributes to the e-portfolio literature by signifying the importance of providing a discipline-specific framework to guide students’ reflection of learning. The TPACK grounded instruction helped students stay focused on their reflection. This study also contributes to the teacher education and the TPACK literature by exploring the extent to which students present their integrated knowledge of TPACK at the end of a program driven to developing students’ technology integration expertise.
Fiber-based modulated optical reflectance configuration allowing for offset pump and probe beams

A new fiber-based modulated optical reflectance configuration is developed in this work. The technique maintains the fiber-based heating laser (pump) and detection laser (probe) in close proximity at a fixed separation distance in a ceramic ferrule. The pump beam periodically heats the sample inducing thermal waves into the sample. The probe beam measures the temperature response at a known distance from the pump beam over a range of heating modulation frequencies. The thermal diffusivity of the sample may be calculated from the phase response between the input heat flux and the temperature response of a sample having a reflective surface. The unique measurement configuration is ideal for in situ measurements and has many advantages for laboratory-based systems. The design and development of the system are reported along with theoretical justification for the experimental design. The thermal diffusivities of Ge and SiC are measured and found to be within 10% of reported literature values. The diffusivity for SiO2 is measured with a relative difference of approximately 100% from the literature value when the ferrule is in contact with the sample. An additional measurement was made on the SiO2 sample with the ferrule not in contact resulting in a difference of less than 2% from the literature value. The difference in the SiO2 measurement when the ferrule is in contact with the sample is likely due to a parallel heat transfer path through the dual-fiber ferrule assembly.
Delayed detached Eddy simulation of wing flutter boundary using high order schemes

Abstract This paper conducts Delayed Detached Eddy Simulation (DDES) of a 3D transonic wing flutter using a fully coupled fluid/structure interaction (FSI) with high order shock capturing schemes. Unsteady 3D compressible Navier–Stokes equations are solved with a system of 5 decoupled structure modal equations in a fully coupled manner. The low diffusion E-CUSP scheme with a 5th order WENO reconstruction for the inviscid flux and a set of 2nd order central differencing for the viscous terms are used to accurately capture the shock wave/turbulent boundary layer interaction of the vibrating wing. The predicted flutter boundary at different free stream Mach numbers achieves very good agreement with experiment, including the supersonic flutter boundary point, which is often substantially over-predicted by most of the other simulations based on RANS models. Some new observations and explanation are given for the sonic dip mechanism. The transonic dip phenomenon is related to the anticlimax contribution of the second mode, which is caused by the complicated shock oscillation that decreases the wing pitching moment sharply. At the flutter boundary including the sonic dip, no flow separation due to shock/boundary layer interaction is observed.
Big Data and Genome Editing Technology: A New Paradigm of Cardiovascular Genomics

Opinion Statements: Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) encompass a range of conditions extending from congenital heart disease to acute coronary syndrome most of which are heterogenous in nature and some of them are multiple genetic loci. However, the pathogenesis of most CVDs remains incompletely understood. The advance in genome-editing technologies, an engineering process of DNA sequences at precise genomic locations, has enabled a new paradigm that human genome can be precisely modified to achieve a therapeutic effect. Genome-editing includes the correction of genetic variants that cause disease, the addition of therapeutic genes to specific sites in the genomic locations, and the removal of deleterious genes or genome sequences. Site-specific genome engineering can be used as nucleases (known as molecular scissors) including zinc finger nucleases (ZFNs), transcription activator-like effector nucleases (TALENs), and the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated 9 (Cas9) systems to provide remarkable opportunities for developing novel therapies in cardiovascular clinical care. Here we discuss genetic polymorphisms and mechanistic insights in CVDs with an emphasis on the impact of genome-editing technologies. The current challenges and future prospects for genomeediting technologies in cardiovascular medicine are also discussed.
Sleep Disturbances and Sleep Assessment Methods in PTSD

Sleep is a universal, biologically driven, and multifaceted state of behavioral quiescence that supports mental and physiological health and well-being. Different observable dimensions of sleep, however, are direct expressions of the complex, recurrent, and reversible neurobiological processes that support the experience of sleep. Dimensions such as sleep duration, consolidation, timing, and sleep quality have been proposed as related yet distinct dimensions that contribute to the overall experience of sleep (Buysse, Sleep 37:9–17, 2014). Healthy sleep, thus, can be defined by regular, predictable, sufficient, and restorative or non-fragmented sleep episodes. All of these dimensions are disrupted in combat-exposed service members and veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Discrete Modules and Mesoscale Functional Circuits for Thermal Nociception within Primate S1 Cortex

This study addresses one long-standing question of whether functional separations are preserved for somatosensory modalities of touch, heat, and cold nociception within primate primary somatosensory (S1) cortex. This information is critical for understanding how the nature of pain is represented in the primate brain. Using a combination of submillimeter-resolution fMRI and microelectrode local field potential (LFP) and spike recordings, we identified spatially segregated cortical zones for processing touch and nociceptive heat and cold stimuli in somatotopically appropriate areas 3a, 3b, 1, and 2 of S1 in male monkeys. The distances between zones were comparable (∼3.4 mm) across stimulus modalities (heat, cold, and tactile), indicating the existence of uniform, modality-specific modules. Stimulus-evoked LFP maps validated the fMRI maps in areas 3b and 1. Isolation of heat and cold nociceptive neurons from the fMRI zones confirmed the validity of using fMRI to probe nociceptive regions and circuits. Resting-state fMRI analysis revealed distinct intrinsic functional circuits among functionally related zones. We discovered distinct modular structures and networks for thermal nociception within S1 cortex, a finding that has significant implications for studying chronic pain syndromes and guiding the selection of neuromodulation targets for chronic pain management.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Primate S1 subregions contain discrete heat and cold nociceptive modules. Modules with the same properties exhibit strong functional connection. Nociceptive fMRI response coincides with LFP and spike activities of nociceptive neurons. Functional separation of heat and cold pain is retained within primate S1 cortex.
The Existence of π

In our treatment of the structure and stability concepts for irreducible chains we have to this point considered only the dichotomy between transient and recurrent chains.
The Querist’s Solution

Berkeley’s negative, defetishizing program was at best a Prolegomenon to the Querist’s conception of money. Philosophically, the major prob¬lem Berkeley faced in his confrontation with the cynically content Irish cottiers (and the libertine graziers) on returning to Ireland as a bishop was the excitation (and taming) of their spirits, respectively. Could some form of money excite the cynically content Irish into industry and tame the besotted Anglo-Irish graziers into frugality? As we have seen, these were vital questions for Berkeley and his Church, but his early philosophy was not able answer them.
Drug Induced Discriminable Stimuli: Past Research and Future Perspectives

Stimuli are conventionally defined as environmental events that reliably control behaviors. The rate of behavioral emission is different in the presence of certain stimuli than in their absence. The experimental characterization of a stimulus is exclusively based upon the behaviors that are either emitted or elicited in the presence of the stimulus. The type of functional relationship between a stimulus and a response determines a stimulus category. At present many stimulus categories are recognized (for discussion see Thompson and Pickens, 1971).
TECHNIQUES FOR HISTOLOGICAL STUDIES OF HYBRID ARTIFICIAL ORGANS

Publisher Summary This chapter highlights techniques for histological studies of hybrid artificial organs. Implantable hybrid artificial organs incorporate characteristics of both prostheses and transplants. Specialized living cells are obtained from a donor animal and cultured in vitro in prosthetic devices. The chapter describes a cell culture chamber that has been developed to facilitate both direct observation of the cell culture while it is active and intact removal for histologic study after fixation. A microporous polyacrylic tube was used for the membrane, Amicon XM-50, which has a smooth luminal surface laced with mocropores and a thin inner membrane wall surrounded by a labyrinthine honeycomb that provides most of the wall thickness of the tube. To avoid kinking yet keep the compartments small, this tubing was coiled in a spiral in a shallow cup with a central solid button. Ports were drilled through the walls to allow tube entry and exit, and to allow seeding and perfusion of the space around the tubing. The whole assembly has a size and shape like that of a poker chip, except for the protruding ports. When the biological experiment with the cell culture is completed, the blood path of the device is flushed first with saline and then with a 10% formalin solution for a period longs enough to allow effective diffusion into the cell-bearing compartment.
ADP phosphorylation and glutamate oxidation in mitochondria isolated from Dictyostelium discoideum amoebae.

Abstract Mitochondria have been isolated from D. discoideum amoebae in which respiration is coupled to ADP phosphorylation. P:O ratios and respiratory control ratios have been obtained for a number of metabolites. In rat liver mitochondria, glutamate is oxidized almost exclusively by a respiration-dependent cyclic transamination pathway, in which glutamate is converted to aspartate. When D. discoideum amoebae are incubated with glutamate alone, aspartate does not accumulate appreciably. Furthermore, when the mitochondria are incubated with glutamate plus malonate at a concentration sufficient to inhibit respiration, their utilization of glutamate is depressed only slightly. Thus, it appears that glutamate oxidation within the mitochondria of D. discoideum amoebae does not, for the most part, proceed by the cyclic transamination pathway.
A Logically Primitive and Empirically Verifiable Ontology

Why has it been assumed historically that while epistemology may be empirical, ontology cannot be ? Or that an ontology could never be discovered with the aid of elements selected from the data of experience ? All the apparatus exists for the development of a logically primitive ontology compatible with empirical evidence. Here we shall do little more than lay bare the framework of a procedure which can be employed in beginning the construction of an ontology with logically primitive relations and empirically verifiable elements. In other words, the prospects for a logically primitive and empirically verifiable ontology are suggested. We shall find when we have done this that we have employed, to use the language of Pepper, the root metaphor of science represented by its procedures. Our point of departure is simple observation, but we get away from it very quickly and we are not concerned with its bearing on knowledge theory. We are going to suppose with Locke that all knowledge is derived from experience and reflection but not with Descartes that there are innate ideas. Notice that we are talking here not about sensations themselves but rather about experiences: the data hypostatized into elements. The nominalist is not permitted by his own principles to break up his experience into elements; or perhaps it would be better to say that his refusal to break up his experience in this way permits him no principles. Certainly he seems to want it both ways, as he invariably does when he breaks up his experience into elements and then asserts that the kind of principle which made this possible is unreal. For the break up of experience can only be accomplished by means of principles of classification, which are after all universals; and whether the principles of classification emerge from experience or become adopted a priori makes no difference: in either case he needs to take them seriously and is not permitted to regard them as the creatures of an illusion, or even as articles of mere convenience, since it is in terms of them and of their reality that he gets the division he wants and does take seriously.
Gastropoetics in the Jian’an Period: Food and Memory in Early Medieval China

The importance of the feast in the Jian’an period was already mentioned by Jian’an literary figures themselves, and the role of such feasts in the creation of poetical works and epistolary writing is well known. It has even been noted that the memory of such feasts is largely responsible for the very notion of a Jian’an literary period. In this article, an examination of works in various genres shows that Jian’an writing on food and the transitory act of eating contributes to a gastropoetics, a term used here as a shorthand for the complex of relationships involving food, cultural practice and cultural memory, poetic inheritance and poetic production, social bonds and social identity— a way of looking at poetry that encompasses both aesthetic singularity and social implications. A stage in the development of poetry involving food imagery is elucidated and works that have sometimes been disparaged as trivial are shown to have had immediate social value and to have embodied old and enduring elements of cult...
Optimization of Fly-Ash to Soil Mix Ratio and Curing Period for Subgrade Use

A laboratory study was conducted to determine the optimum fly-ash to soil ratio that can be used as a road subgrade to improve strength and compactability. Proctor compaction, grain size distribution, Atterberg limits, and unconfined compression tests were conducted. Proctor compaction test was conducted to determine the optimum moisture content and maximum dry density of soil samples with 0%, 40%, 50%, and 60% fly-ash content. Atterberg limits and grain size distribution tests were conducted to classify the soil. Unconfined compression test was conducted with air-dry curing periods of 0, 2, 8, and 28 days to determine the strength. Curing periods help understand the strength gained with time. It is obvious from the study that the optimum soil to fly-ash mixture was a mixture of soil and 50% fly-ash which is expected to perform better as subgrade materials for a curing period of 8 days; however, a mixture of soil with 40% fly-ash content could also be used as a viable alternative for the same curing period.
I Poems on Abortion: Women’s Experiences With Terminating Their Pregnancies for Medical Reasons

The purpose of the present study was to highlight the individual voices of women who terminated their pregnancies for medical reasons (TFMR). The literature points to difficult emotional experience...
Space weather: Big & small – A continuous risk

Abstract “Space Weather” is the term used to describe the relentless barrage of particles that bathe the Earth and other planetary bodies of the solar system that originate in the steady evolution, and catastrophic breakdown, of magnetic structures on the Sun. The Sun literally generates the weather that populates and pervades the solar system. In our society, growing in technical dependence, the constant drip of space weather can impact ground-based infrastructure, drains satellite systems in space, presents a radiation hazard to robotic and human explorers while also protecting us from relativistic cosmic rays that penetrate from deep space, that beyond our solar system.
The CLBT9680 an Automatic Transmission for Off-highway Vehicles

The transmission design and test development programs are described for the CLBT9680, an automatic transmission developed by Detroit Diesel Allison to match the larger engines and rear axles of recent mechanical drive trucks. Performance and reliability goals for the transmission are indicated. The planned applications for the CLBT9680 include: rear-dump trucks up to 140-ton capacity, bottom or side-dump trucks up to 170-ton capacity, and special-purpose installations. For the truck applications, the transmission has a power rating up to 1007 kW. (1350 ghp), and for special-purpose uses such as oil field service equipment, 1093 kW. (1465 ghp).
Cholo aesthetics and mestizaje: architecture in El Alto, Bolivia

ABSTRACTIn this paper, I consider Bolivian architect Freddy Mamani Silvestre and his cholets that pepper the visual landscape of El Alto, Bolivia. I argue that his buildings represent a new aesthet...
The Extremum Condition of the Local Volumetric Flux for Compositional Displacements

Compositional displacements in porous media, where chemical components partition between phases during a displacement, occur in flow processes such as surfactant flooding and gas injection. We develop a new approach to solving compositional displacements with volume change on mixing. The result is a new condition on the local volumetric flux that is equivalent to the tangent construction (condition). We demonstrate how this works by solving for the shocks for the simplest case of a two-component, two-phase system. We discuss the use of this procedure for the more general case of arbitrary volume change on mixing and arbitrary number of components.
Group feature screening via the F statistic

AbstractFeature screening is crucial in the analysis of ultrahigh dimensional data, where the number of variables (features) is in an exponential order of the number of observations. In various ult...
Statewide Prehabilitation Program and Episode Payment in Medicare Beneficiaries.

Background Prehabilitation has been shown to improve postoperative outcomes in a variety of patient populations undergoing major operations. The feasibility, generalizability, and value of broad implementation of prehabilitation outside the research environment are unknown. Methods Medicare claims data from 2014 to 2017 were used to conduct a multicenter (21 Michigan hospitals) pragmatic cohort study. Patients and controls were followed for the duration of their index surgical hospitalization and for 90 days postoperatively. Medicare beneficiaries older than 18 years who underwent inpatient surgical procedures at a participating hospital during the study time period were eligible for inclusion. The prehabilitation program involved a home-based walking program with supplementary education on nutrition, smoking cessation, and psychological preparation for surgical procedure. Data were analyzed with an intention-to-treat approach using t-tests and Wilcoxon rank sum tests. Propensity score matching used comorbidities and demographic factors to match controls to patients in a 2:1 manner with an exact match required for operation type. Results Patients (n = 523) and controls (n = 1,046) had no significant differences in demographic factors or comorbidities. Patients had significantly shorter median hospital length of stay (6 vs 7 days; p Conclusions Participation in a prehabilitation program in Michigan was associated with shorter length of stay and lower total episode payments after operation. Payers and hospitals should invest in the implementation of simple home-based prehabilitation programs.
Why we sleep: A hypothesis for an ultimate or evolutionary origin for sleep and other physiological rhythms

Although sleep is ubiquitous, its evolutionary purpose remains elusive. Though every species of animal, as well as many plants sleep, theories of its origin are purely physiological, e.g. to conserve energy, make repairs or to consolidate learning. An evolutionary reason for sleep would answer one of biology's fundamental unanswered questions. When environmental conditions change on a periodic basis (winter/summer, day/night) organisms must somehow confront the change or else be less able to compete in either niche. Seasonal adaptation includes the migration of birds, changes in honeybee physiology and winter abscission in plants. Diurnal adaptation must be more rapid, forcing changes in behavior in addition to physiology. Since organisms must exist in both environments, evolution has created a way to force a change in behavior, in effect creating "different" organisms (one awake, one asleep) adapted separately to two distinct niches. We sleep to allow evolving into two competing niches. The physiology of sleep forces a change to a different state for the second niche. The physiological needs for sleep are mechanisms that have evolved to achieve this goal.
Privacy and Activism in the Transgender Community

Transgender people are marginalized, facing specific privacy concerns and high risk of online and offline harassment, discrimination, and violence. They also benefit tremendously from technology. We conducted semi-structured interviews with 18 transgender people from 3 U.S. cities about their computer security and privacy experiences broadly construed. Participants frequently returned to themes of activism and prosocial behavior, such as protest organization, political speech, and role-modeling transgender identities, so we focus our analysis on these themes. We identify several prominent risk models related to visibility, luck, and identity that participants used to analyze their own risk profiles, often as distinct or extreme. These risk perceptions may heavily influence transgender people's defensive behaviors and self-efficacy, jeopardizing their ability to defend themselves or gain technology's benefits. We articulate design lessons emerging from these ideas, contrasting and relating them to lessons about other marginalized groups whenever possible.
Improving Spanish classroom assessment via logistic regression: lessons from the Rasch model

Each year in the United States, hundreds of thousands of undergraduate students enroll in introductory Spanish courses. For many students, passing these classes is a prerequisite for graduation. Co...
Why Nirvana? The Manut and the Language of Solitude

There is a second way of narrating reality, one described by the Buddha. The narratives that reflect otherworldly Buddhist doctrine emphasize the ideas that desires are defiling and that, until people become enlightened, they must suffer alone. For decades, anthropologists of Southeast Asia, starting with Tambiah (1968a; 1976) and Spiro (1970) and continuing to the present, have explored the reasons that Thai Buddhists would practice a religion that offers them such a negative outlook on human existence. This chapter argues that it is not the Dhamma itself that matters here. Instead, it is because living an interdependent, obligated, relational life creates problems that the framework of obligation cannot resolve on its own. Thinking and feeling in the terms of the stories of the Buddhist “solitary sufferer,” then, provides a way to conceptualize, and find an outlet for, emotions that the obligated offspring must experience but cannot deal with.
BCMA-targeted immunotherapy for multiple myeloma

B cell maturation antigen (BCMA) is a novel treatment target for multiple myeloma (MM) due to its highly selective expression in malignant plasma cells (PCs). Multiple BCMA-targeted therapeutics, including antibody-drug conjugates (ADC), chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cells, and bispecific T cell engagers (BiTE), have achieved remarkable clinical response in patients with relapsed and refractory MM. Belantamab mafodotin-blmf (GSK2857916), a BCMA-targeted ADC, has just been approved for highly refractory MM. In this article, we summarized the molecular and physiological properties of BCMA as well as BCMA-targeted immunotherapeutic agents in different stages of clinical development.
The Role of Instructional Design in Supporting the Transfer of Mathematical Knowledge and Skills

Teaching and learning for the transfer of mathematical skills and knowledge is a challenge. The large classroom sizes, unique learning needs and agenda of individuals, and the overall negative attitudes toward mathematics make this issue even more challenging. With this chapter, our goal is to review the instructional design and technology research focusing on the transfer of mathematical knowledge and skills.
Terahertz waves transmission in 3D printed photonic crystals

Three-dimensional printing technologies are attracting more attentions to develop devices for effective control and manipulation of electromagnetic waves. Due to the limitation of resolution of apparatus, 3D printing technologies were originally applied to the radio-frequency. Thanks to the continuous innovation of hardware, materials and processes in the 3D printing, structures with smaller minimum features can be fabricated, opening up the possibilities of creating 3D-printed components for the THz ranges [1] .
Thucydides as a Prospect Theorist

Opposing the tendency to read Thucydides as a strong realist, committed to a theory of behaviour that assumes rationality as expected utility maximization, Ned Lebow and Clifford Orwin (among others) emphasize Thucydides’ attentiveness to deviations from rationality by individuals and states. This paper argues that Thucydides grasped the principles underlying contemporary prospect theory, which explains why people over-weight small probabilities and under-weight near certain ones. Thucydides offers salient examples of excessive risk-aversion in the face of probable gains and excessive risk-seeking by decision-makers faced with high probability losses. Thucydides suggests that in a democracy, leaders’ rhetoric can limit or exacerbate the political effects of bias in risk assessment.
The Interpretation of Middle Paleolithic Scraper Morphology

In Bordes's typology for the Lower and Middle Paleolithic, he defines four major classes of side scrapers: single, double, convergent, and transverse forms. Data from three Middle Paleolithic assemblages, one from Iran and two from France, suggest that these scraper classes may be interpreted as representing stages in reduction of flake blanks through continued reuse and remodification.
High strain-rate compressive deformation behavior of the Al0.1CrFeCoNi high entropy alloy

Abstract High entropy alloy is a new class of structural metallic materials. No work, so far, has been carried-out to understand high strain-rate plastic deformation behavior and resulting microstructure. This work focuses on understanding the deformation behavior of an Al0.1CrFeCoNi HEA at high strain-rate (HSR). HSR plastic deformation in compression mode was carried out using split-Hopkinson pressure bar. The pre- and post-deformation microstructures were studied using electron microscopes. A high strain-rate sensitivity of yield strength, significant work hardening, and profuse twinning are main characteristics observed during deformation of the alloy at HSR. Overall, the deformation behavior of the alloy was consistent with low stacking fault energy materials.
Stochastic iterative modal identification algorithm and application in wireless sensor networks

SUMMARY Computational capability of wireless sensor network (WSN) significantly facilitates application of dense sensory arrays, which is increasingly important in health monitoring of large-scale structural systems. As the wireless sensor technology improves, more complicated tasks can be assigned to sensing units, and the communication between sensing nodes and their base station can be minimized, utilizing in-network processing. This strategy should be used to address WSN challenges, such as limited communication bandwidth and prohibitive power consumption, associated with wireless communication and battery power. An iterative modal identification algorithm is proposed in this paper, which uses the on-board processors for estimation of system parameters through iteration cycles. The iterative algorithm was originally developed such that each individual sensor, having an initial estimate of the system parameters, its local measurement, and the excitation signal, updates the estimated model and passes it through the network until convergence. This study further improves the algorithm to eliminate its limitations in need for availability of excitation load and initial estimate of the system parameters. As a result, the algorithm is applicable for modal identification of structural systems under ambient loading without need for prior information about the system parameters. The development of the algorithm is presented in this paper and validated through implementation on a numerically simulated example and a laboratory experiment. Furthermore, its performance is evaluated using data from an ambient vibration test of the Golden Gate Bridge using a WSN. Results of these implementations verify the functionality of the algorithm in monitoring of real-life structural systems. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Received 10 May 2012; Revised 27 August 2012; Accepted 31 August 2012
Occult radiopaque jaw lesions in familial adenomatous polyposis coli and hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer

Abstract The purposes of this study were to determine the association, in 10 pedigrees, between adenomatous polyposis coli, hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer, and occult radiopaque jaw lesions, and to assess whether these radiodensities are predictors for adenomatous polyposis. In seven kindreds with adenomatous polyposis, all patients with polyps had jaw lesions; in one kindred, no jaw lesions were found. In one of two kindreds with hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer, no affected individuals had jaw lesions. In the other, the 1 affected patient with dental radiographs had generalized jaw lesions. Twelve children
Some Grammatical Correlates of Felicity Conditions and Presuppositions

Dissertation presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University, 1971.
Biopolymer synthesis on polypropylene supports. I: Oligonucleotides

We have modified polypropylene to serve as a new solid-phase support for oligonucleotide synthesis. The plastic is first surface aminated by exposure to an ammonia plasma generated by radiofrequency plasma discharge. The aminated polypropylene has been found to be useful as a support for the in situ synthesis of oligonucleotides from monomers. Furthermore, oligonucleotides synthesized on the surface of the plastic remain attached following deprotection and can be used directly for hybridization.
Humanism in Search of a Framework

Alfred McClung Lee. Sociology for Whom? Syracuse, NY: Syracuse University Press, 1986 (2d edition). $12.95 (paper).
Acetylcholinesterase inhibitor, pyridostigmine bromide, reduces skin blood flow in humans

Five subjects exercised on a cycle ergometer for 30 min at 55% peak oxygen consumption on two occasions in an environmental test chamber (ambient temperature = 29 degrees C; dew point temperature = 10 degrees C). Pyridostigmine bromide (PYR), an acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibitor, was ingested (30 mg) approximately 150 min before one experiment, and no drug was administered during the other experiment (control). Red blood cell AChE inhibition averaged 40 (+/- 7)% during PYR treatment. Esophageal temperature (Tes), an eight site-derived mean skin temperature, forearm blood flow (FBF; venous occlusion plethysmography), skin blood flow (SkBF; laser-Doppler velocimetry), and metabolic rate (indirect calorimetry) were measured. SkBF decreased 37% after PYR treatment compared with control (P less than or equal to 0.05). The Tes threshold for initiation of cutaneous vasodilation was 36.8 (+/- 0.3) degrees C for the control treatment and 37.0 (+/- 0.3) degrees C for the PYR treatment (P less than or equal to 0.01). FBF was not significantly different between treatments, whereas heart rate was reduced by 7 and 9 beats/min during rest and exercise, respectively (P less than or equal to 0.01). The increased threshold for initiation of cutaneous vasodilation with AChE inhibition by PYR is compatible with nonthermal modulation of the control of thermoregulation through increased acetylcholine (ACh) accumulation. This could potentiate preganglionic transmission to enhance adrenergic vasoconstrictor tone. One suggested mechanism possible at the neuroeffector junction of the sweat gland may be that accumulated ACh diffusion across the adventitia of adjacent arterioles to muscarinic receptors initiates contraction of the smooth muscle.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
A Microscopic View of Dinosaurs

Summary form only given, as follows. Most people can stand comfortably under the jawline of a mounted Tyrannosaurus rex or walk under the rib cage of a Brachiosaurus without bumping their heads. T. rex is as big as the largest known African elephant, and Brachiosaurus, like other great sauropods, was much larger than any land animal alive today. We are so used to the enormous size of dinosaurs that we almost forget to think about how they grew to be so large. How long did it take them, and how long did they live? And does the way they grew tell us about the way their bodies worked? Until recently, we had no way to measure age in a dinosaur. Paleontologists had generally assumed that because dinosaurs were reptiles, they probably grew much as reptiles do today-that is, rather slowly. This presentation will discuss how growth rates and physiology is determined, and the latest results from soft tissue finds in T. rex fossils.