cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Folic acid awareness and supplementation among Texas women of childbearing age.

Abstract Objective. Neural tube defects (NTDs) affect about seven of every 10,000 deliveries in Texas. To reduce the risk for NTDs, women are encouraged to supplement with 400 mcg folic acid daily during their reproductive years. This study examines folic acid awareness, knowledge, and supplementation practices among women of childbearing age (WCBA), including residents of Texas–Mexico border as well as women of Hispanic origin/ethnicity, populations that have NTD rates up to three times higher than the national average. Methods. We conducted a statewide multistage sample telephone survey among Texas women of childbearing age in 2001. In total 1,196 women age 18 to 44 were interviewed. Results. About 78% of WCBA knew about folic acid, 28% knew that folic acid prevents birth defects, and 25% knew to take folic acid before pregnancy. The prevalence of daily folic acid supplementation among all women of childbearing age was 33%. Education was the strongest predictor of folic acid awareness followed by race/ethnicity and age. Significant predictors of daily folic acid supplementation were education and ethnicity. Conclusions. Our findings suggest the need for more emphases on strategies to improve the level of folic acid supplementation among low educated women, and race ethnic minority populations.
How people assess cooperatively authored information resources

This work in progress highlights late-breaking results and foreshadows opportunities for designing interfaces that help support credibility assessment of cooperatively authored information resources.
Human impacts on headwater fluvial systems in the northern and central Andes

Abstract South America delivers more freshwater runoff to the ocean per km2 land area than any other continent, and much of that water enters the fluvial system from headwaters in the Andes Mountains. This paper reviews ways in which human occupation of high mountain landscapes in the Andes have affected the delivery of water and sediment to headwater river channels at local to regional scales for millennia, and provides special focus on the vulnerability of paramo soils to human impact. People have intentionally altered the fluvial system by damming rivers at a few strategic locations, and more widely by withdrawing surface water, primarily for irrigation. Unintended changes brought about by human activities are even more widespread and include forest clearance, agriculture, grazing, road construction, and urbanization, which increase rates of rainfall runoff and accelerate processes of water erosion. Some excavations deliver more sediment to river channels by destabilizing slopes and triggering processes of mass-movement. The northern and central Andes are more affected by human activity than most high mountain regions. The wetter northern Andes are also unusual for the very high water retention characteristics of paramo (high elevation grass and shrub) soils, which cover most of the land above 3000 m. Paramo soils are important regulators of headwater hydrology, but human activities that promote vegetation loss and drying cause them to lose water storage capacity. New data from a case study in southern Ecuador show very low bulk densities (median 0.26 g cm− 3), high organic matter contents (median 43%), and high water-holding capacities (12% to 86% volumetrically). These data document wetter soils under grass than under tree cover. Effects of human activity on the fluvial system are evident at local scales, but difficult to discern at broader scales in the regional context of geomorphic adjustment to tectonic and volcanic processes.
Understanding Scale: Powers of Ten

The classic film “Powers of Ten” is often employed to catalyze the building of more accurate conceptions of scale, yet its effectiveness is largely unknown. This study examines the impact of the film on students’ concepts of size and scale. Twenty-two middle school students and six science teachers participated. Students completed pre- and post-intervention interviews and a Scale Card Sorting (SCS) task; all students observed the film “Powers of Ten.” Experienced teachers’ views on the efficacy of the film were assessed through a short written survey. Results showed that viewing the film had a positive influence on students’ understandings of powers of ten and scale. Students reported that they had more difficulty with sizes outside of the human scale and found small scales more difficult to conceptualize than large scales. Students’ concepts of relative size as well as their ability to accurately match metric sizes in scientific notation to metric scale increased from pre- to post-viewing of the film. Experienced teachers reported that the film was a highly effective tool. Teachers reported that the design of the film that allowed students to move slowly from the human scale to the large and small scales and then quickly back again was effective in laying the foundation for understanding the different scales.
Synaptic plasticity: step-wise strengthening.

Recent studies suggest that the strength of synapses in the brain may change in a step-wise manner, rather than continuously.
Analysis of Human Grasping Behavior: Correlating Tasks, Objects and Grasps

This paper is the second in a two-part series analyzing human grasping behavior during a wide range of unstructured tasks. It investigates the tasks performed during the daily work of two housekeepers and two machinists and correlates grasp type and object properties with the attributes of the tasks being performed. The task or activity is classified according to the force required, the degrees of freedom, and the functional task type. We found that 46 percent of tasks are constrained, where the manipulated object is not allowed to move in a full six degrees of freedom. Analyzing the interrelationships between the grasp, object, and task data show that the best predictors of the grasp type are object size, task constraints, and object mass. Using these attributes, the grasp type can be predicted with 47 percent accuracy. Those parameters likely make useful heuristics for grasp planning systems. The results further suggest the common sub-categorization of grasps into power, intermediate, and precision categories may not be appropriate, indicating that grasps are generally more multi-functional than previously thought. We find large and heavy objects are grasped with a power grasp, but small and lightweight objects are not necessarily grasped with precision grasps—even with grasped object size less than 2 cm and mass less than 20 g, precision grasps are only used 61 percent of the time. These results have important implications for robotic hand design and grasp planners, since it appears while power grasps are frequently used for heavy objects, they can still be quite practical for small, lightweight objects.
Numerical studies of the fractional quantum Hall effect in systems with tunable interactions

The discovery of the fractional quantum Hall effect in GaAs-based semiconductor devices has lead to new advances in condensed matter physics, in particular the possibility for exotic, topological phases of matter that possess fractional, and even non-Abelian, statistics of quasiparticles. One of the main limitations of the experimental systems based on GaAs has been the lack of tunability of the effective interactions between two-dimensional electrons, which made it difficult to stabilize some of the more fragile states, or induce phase transitions in a controlled manner. Here we review the recent studies that have explored the effects of tunability of the interactions offered by alternative two-dimensional systems, characterized by non-trivial Berry phases and including graphene, bilayer graphene and topological insulators. The tunability in these systems is achieved via external fields that change the mass gap, or by screening via dielectric plate in the vicinity of the device. Our study points to a number of different ways to manipulate the effective interactions, and engineer phase transitions between quantum Hall liquids and compressible states in a controlled manner.
Multiple image processing to enhance stationary target detection

One of the methods that can be used to enhance stationary target detection performance is to combine radar data from several looks at an area that may contain targets. This paper presents a study of several multilook techniques. The data used in the study were collected using the MIT Lincoln Laboratory 33.6 GHz Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) in the spotlight mode; this mode maintains the radar beam on the same area as the aircraft flies by. Consecutive 0.3 m by 0.3 m resolution images were registered to a single coordinate frame, and then combined in various ways. The processing techniques studied included some methods that combine the data prior to detection (such as noncoherent averaging, which reduces speckle), and others- that combine the detections from individual images (such as techniques that require m detections in n images).
Illusion in reality: visual perception in displays

Research into visual perception ultimately affects display design. Advance in display technology affects, in turn, our study of perception. Although this statement is too general to provide controversy, this paper present a real-life example that may prompt display engineers to make greater use of basic knowledge of visual perception, and encourage those who study perception to track more closely leading edge display technology. Our real-life example deals with an ancient problem, the moon illusion: why does the horizon moon appear so large while the elevated moon look so small. This was a puzzle for many centuries. Physical explanations, such as refraction by the atmosphere, are incorrect. The difference in apparent size may be classified as a misperception, so the answer must lie in the general principles of visual perception. The factors underlying the moon illusion must be the same factors as those that enable us to perceive the sizes of ordinary objects in visual space. Progress toward solving the problem has been irregular, since methods for actually measuring the illusion under a wide range of conditions were lacking. An advance in display technology made possible a serious and methodologically controlled study of the illusion. This technology was the first heads-up display. In this paper we will describe how the heads-up display concept made it possible to test several competing theories of the moon illusion, and how it led to an explanation that stood for nearly 40 years. We also consider the criticisms of that explanation and how the optics of the heads-up display also played a role in providing data for the critics. Finally, we will describe our own advance on the original methodology. This advance was motivated by previously unrelated principles of space perception. We used a stereoscopic heads up display to test alternative hypothesis about the illusion and to discrimate between two classes of mutually contradictory theories. At its core, the explanation for the moon illusion has implications for the design of virtual reality displays. Howe do we scale disparity at great distances to reflect depth between points at those distances. We conjecture that one yardstick involved in that scaling is provided by oculomotor cues operating at near distances. Without the presence of such a yardstick it is not possible to account for depth at long distances. As we shall explain, size and depth constancy should both fail in virtual reality display where all of the visual information is optically in one plane. We suggest ways to study this problem, and also means by which displays may be designed to present information at different optical distances.© (2001) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
On roads not taken in the evolution of protein catalysts: Antibody steroid isomerases that use an enamine mechanism

Reactive immunization has emerged as a new tool for the study of biological catalysis. A powerful application resulted in catalytic antibodies that use an enamine mechanism akin to that used by the class I aldolases. With regard to the evolution of enzyme mechanisms, we investigated the utility of an enamine pathway for the allylic rearrangement exemplified by Delta5-3-ketosteroid isomerase (KSI; EC 5.3.3.1). Our aldolase antibodies were found to catalyze the isomerization of both steroid model compounds and steroids. The kinetic and chemical studies showed that the antibodies afforded rate accelerations up to a factor of 10(4) by means of an enamine mechanism in which imine formation was the rate-determining step. In light of our observations and the enzyme studies by other workers, we suggest that an enamine pathway could have been an early, viable KSI mechanism. Although this pathway is amenable to optimization for increased catalytic power, it appears that certain factors precluded its evolution in known KSI enzymes.
Seismic Design of Steel Moment-Resisting Frame Structures Using Multiobjective Optimization

Abstract Design of seismic-resistant civil structural systems necessitates a balanced minimization of two general conflicting objective functions: the short-term construction investment and the long-term seismic risk. Many of the existing seismic design optimization procedures use single objectives of either the traditional minimum material usage (weight or cost) or the recent minimum expected life-cycle cost, while imposing constraints from relevant code specifications as well as additional seismic performance requirements. The resulting single optimized structural design may not always perform satisfactorily in terms of other important but competing merit objectives; the designer’s individual risk-taking preference is not explicitly integrated into the design process. This paper presents a practical and general framework for design optimization of code-compliant seismic-resistant structures. Multiple objective functions, which reflect material usage, initial construction expenses, degree of design compl...
Relationship Between Plant Phenolic Acids Released during Soil Mineralization and Aggregate Stabilization

Phenolic acids (PAs) from plant and microbial sources have been implicated as important components in a variety of soil processes, but little information is available on the decomposition rates of plant-derived PAs, synthesis of soil microbial PAs, incorporation of PAs into humic substances and stabilization of soil aggregate fractions. To obtain this information, a Webster soil (fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, mesic Typic Endoaquoll) was amended with seven plant residues (2% wlw) and incubated at 22 ± 2°C. Duplicate samples were extracted after incubation for 9, 29, and 84 d and analyzed for PA composition. The plant residues contained large amounts of ferulic [3-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-2-propenoic add] and coumaric adds [3-(4-hydroxyphenyl)-2-propenoic acid] (both C 6 -C 3 , phenylpropyl type), which decomposed according to pseudo first-order kinetics. Most of the remaining PAs showed little change in concentration after 9 d and only microbial synthesis of 4-hydroxybenzoic acid was noted during the study. Analysis of six purified soil microbial polymers isolated from pure culture confirmed that the tested microbial extracellular polymers contained benzoic and benzaldehyde PAs (C 6 -C 1 , phenylmethyl type). Evaluation of humic acids isolated from different residue-amended soil showed the majority of humic-PAs were C 6 -C 3 PAs of plant origin. Increased mean weight diameter of soil aggregates was closely related to the increase in soil PA concentration and organic C content in the amended soil during incubation. The results suggest that plant PAs are extremely important in the soil C cycle, soil aggregation and in the formation of stable C, and measurement of soil ester-linked PA composition can provide an index of plant-derived C in soil.
Physics of grain boundaries in polycrystalline photovoltaic semiconductors

Thin-film solar cells based on polycrystalline Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS) and CdTe photovoltaic semiconductors have reached remarkable laboratory efficiencies. It is surprising that these thin-film polycrystalline solar cells can reach such high efficiencies despite containing a high density of grain boundaries (GBs), which would seem likely to be nonradiative recombination centers for photo-generated carriers. In this paper, we review our atomistic theoretical understanding of the physics of grain boundaries in CIGS and CdTe absorbers. We show that intrinsic GBs with dislocation cores exhibit deep gap states in both CIGS and CdTe. However, in each solar cell device, the GBs can be chemically modified to improve their photovoltaic properties. In CIGS cells, GBs are found to be Cu-rich and contain O impurities. Density-functional theory calculations reveal that such chemical changes within GBs can remove most of the unwanted gap states. In CdTe cells, GBs are found to contain a high concentration of Cl atoms. Cl atoms donate electrons, creating n-type GBs between p-type CdTe grains, forming local p-n-p junctions along GBs. This leads to enhanced current collections. Therefore, chemical modification of GBs allows for high efficiency polycrystalline CIGS and CdTe thin-film solar cells.
Focal motor seizure in a wrestler with a sport-related concussion.

AbstractAlthough sport-related concussion is a common injury, it is infrequently associated with seizure. While concussive convulsions, consisting of brief, generalized myoclonic activity while an athlete is unconscious have been described, the authors are aware of no published cases of concussion complicated by focal motor seizures. The authors describe the case of a 16-year-old male wrestler who sustained a sport-related concussion complicated by a focal motor seizure. The acute assessment and management of his injury, as well as follow-up until resolution of his symptoms, is presented. A brief review of the association between convulsive activity and mild traumatic brain injury follows.
Unified computation scheme of low-energy electron diffraction—the combined-space method

A new microscopic method for the evaluation of reflected elastic intensities of low-energy electron diffraction from crystal surfaces is developed. This method divides layers of a crystal into subgroups. Layers having small interlayer separations with their neighbors form a subgroup and are solved in the $L$-space representation using iterations, matrix inversions, or a combination of both. Results of each subgroup are transformed to the $K$-space representation. Multiple scattering between subgroups and other crystal layers separated by larger interlayer spacings are solved in $K$ space. The scheme is particularly useful in analyzing surface structures where coplanar or near coplanar layers are mixed together with other layers having larger separation distances. Some examples of these are the chemisorption of hydrogen and small gas atoms on open crystal faces, the surface structures of reconstructed and unreconstructed semiconductors and layer compounds, and the reconstructed faces of some transition metals, etc.
Case Study: Is Selective Mutism a Manifestation of Dissociative Identity Disorder?

Selective mutism is a rare psychiatric disorder that usually has its onset in early childhood. This case study describes a patient in whom selective mutism developed in adolescence. It was later discovered that he had dissociative identity disorder. The study documents his history, which included violence, abuse, and threats to keep silent. The study suggests that in cases presenting with significant trauma or abuse, selective mutism may be a manifestation of dissociative identity disorder.
Statistical Evaluation of Background and Laser Energy Corrections of Spectral Line Signal in Laser Microprobe Analysis

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of background and laser energy corrections of spectral line signals on the precision of estimates of elemental concentration obtained by laser microprobe analysis. By stepwise multiple regression, it was found that corrections for background, or laser energy output in the 12 to 17 mJ range used, were not necessary in analysis of calcium, iron, or zinc.
SOD2 as a potential modifier of X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy clinical phenotypes

X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy (XALD), a neurological disorder caused by mutations in the peroxisomal membrane protein gene ABCD1, presents as a rapidly progressing, inflammatory cerebral demyelination (cerebral cases) or a slowly progressing, distal axonopathy (non-cerebral cases). Specific ABCD1 defects do not explain this significant phenotypic variation. Patients have increased plasma and tissue very long chain fatty acid levels and increased cellular oxidative stress and oxidative damage. Superoxide dismutase 2 (SOD2), at candidate modifier locus 6q25.3, detoxifies superoxide radicals protecting against oxidative stress and damage. We tested an SOD2 variant C47T (Ala16Val) associated with reduced enzymatic activity as a potential modifier gene of cerebral demyelinating disease by comparing 117 cerebral XALD cases with 105 non-cerebral XALD cases. The hypoactive valine allele of the variant was associated with cerebral disease under a dominant model in the full data set (p = 0.04; ORT* = 1.90, 95% CI 1.01–3.56) and the non-childhood cerebral disease subset (p = 0.03; ORT* = 2.47, 95% CI 1.08–5.61). Three tag SNPs were genotyped to test for additional SNP or haplotype associations. A common haplotype, GTAC, which included the SOD2 valine allele, was associated with cerebral disease in the full data set (p = 0.03; OR = 1.75, 95% CI 1.11–2.75) and the non-childhood cerebral disease subset (p = 0.008; OR = 2.20, 95% CI 1.27–3.83). There was no association between childhood cerebral XALD and the C47T variant or the GTAC haplotype. Thus, reduced SOD2 activity may contribute to the development of cerebral demyelination in adolescent and adult XALD patients.
Plain-film assessment of the neonate with D-transposition of the great vessels.

The presenting chest radiographs of 27 newborn patients with D-transposition of the great vessels (D-TGV) were evaluated for the degree of pulmonary flow as well as other findings classically described in D-TGV (narrow superior mediastinum, radiographically absent thymus, inapparent main pulmonary artery, nonvisualization of the malpositioned aortic arch, asymmetric pulmonary blood flow, and cardiomegaly). Of the 27 patients, 22 (82%) demonstrated normal or decreased flow. The majority of the D-TGV patients also failed to demonstrate any of the other classically described radiographic findings. A normal chest radiograph is the most common presenting scenario in the neonate with D-TGV.
Spectroscopic and electrical imaging of disordered polymeric solar cells: understanding aggregation effects on material performance

The manner in which polymer chains pack and organize in thin film structures is crucial to maximizing the efficiency of charge and energy transport processes in solar cell devices. We use new spectroscopic and electrical imaging tools to spatially map and correlate local structure (chain conformation, packing, morphology) to local photocurrent generation efficiency. Both Raman and photoluminescence approaches are used that provide unique insights into important structural attributes and how they vary with film morphology. Simultaneous electrical measurements are then used to establish the roles of specific structural features to photocurrent production.
Formation of Singularities in Compressible Euler-Poisson Fluids with Heat Diffusion and Damping Relaxation

Abstract We are concerned with a coupling effect of heat diffusion, damping relaxation, and electric potential on the large-time behavior of solutions of the compressible Euler–Poisson fluids starting with smooth initial data. In this paper we prove that, for smooth initial data with large C 1 norm, the corresponding solution will develop singularities in finite time. This fact indicates that this coupling effect is not strong enough to prevent the formation of singularities and the development of shock waves in compressible Euler–Poisson fluids as time evolves.
Output feedback stabilization of inverted pendulum on a cart in the presence of uncertainties

An output feedback controller is proposed for stabilization of the inverted pendulum on a cart in the presence of uncertainties. The output feedback controller has a multi-time-scale structure in which Extended High-Gain Observers are used to estimate system states and uncertainties in the first and fastest time scale; dynamic inversion is used to deal with uncertain input coefficients in the second time scale; the pendulum converges to a reference trajectory in the third time scale; and finally, the reference trajectory is designed such that both the pendulum and the cart converge to the desired equilibrium in the fourth and slowest time scale. The multi-time-scale structure allows independent analysis of the dynamics in each time scale and singular perturbation methods are effectively utilized to establish exponential stability of the equilibrium. Simulation results indicate that the output feedback controller provides a large region of attraction and experimental results establish the feasibility of practical implementation.
Short interfering RNA strand selection is independent of dsRNA processing polarity during RNAi in Drosophila.

Summary Short interfering RNAs (siRNAs) guide mRNA cleavage during RNA interference (RNAi) [1–3]. Only one siRNA strand assembles into the RNA-induced silencing complex (RISC) [4], with preference given to the strand whose 5′ terminus has lower base-pairing stability [5, 6]. In Drosophila , Dcr-2/R2D2 processes siRNAs from longer double-stranded RNAs (dsRNAs) [7, 8] and also nucleates RISC assembly [7, 9, 10], suggesting that nascent siRNAs could remain bound to Dcr-2/R2D2. In vitro, Dcr-2/R2D2 senses base-pairing asymmetry of synthetic siRNAs and dictates strand selection by asymmetric binding to the duplex ends [11]. During dsRNA processing, Dicer (Dcr) liberates siRNAs from dsRNA ends [1, 12] in a manner dictated by asymmetric enzyme-substrate interactions [13]. Because Dcr-2/R2D2 is unlikely to sense base-pairing asymmetry of an siRNA that is embedded within a precursor, it is not clear whether processed siRNAs strictly follow the thermodynamic asymmetry rules [5, 6] or whether processing polarity can affect strand selection [1]. We use a Drosophila in vitro system in which defined siRNAs with known asymmetry can be generated from longer dsRNA precursors. These dsRNAs permit processing specifically from either the 5′ or the 3′ end of the thermodynamically favored strand of the incipient siRNA. Combined dsRNA-processing/mRNA-cleavage assays indicate that siRNA strand selection is independent of dsRNA processing polarity during Drosophila RISC assembly in vitro.
A non-premixed combustion model based on flame structure analysis at supercritical pressures

This work presents a study of non-premixed flames at supercritical-pressure conditions. Emphasis is placed on flame stability in liquid rocket engines fueled with liquid oxygen and gaseous hydrogen. The flame structure sensitivity to strain, pressure, temperature and real-fluid effects was investigated in detailed opposed-jet flames calculations. It is shown that the flame is very robust to strain, that the flamelet assumption is valid for the conditions of interest, and that real-fluid phenomena can have a significant impact on flame topology. At high-pressure supercritical conditions, small pressure or temperature variations can induce strong changes of thermodynamic properties across the flame. A substantial finding was also that the presence of water from combustion significantly increases the critical pressure of the mixture, but this does not lead to a saturated state where two-phase flow may be observed. The present study then shows that a single-phase real-fluid approach is relevant for supercritical hydrogen–oxygen combustion. Resultant observations are used to develop a flamelet model framework that combines detailed real-fluid thermodynamics with a tabulated chemistry approach. The governing equation for energy contains a compressible source term that models the flame. Through this approach, the solver is capable of capturing compressibility and strain-rate effects. Good agreements have been obtained with respect to detailed computations. Heat release sensitivity to strain and pressure variations is also recovered. Consequently, this approach can be used to study combustion stability in actual burners. The approach preserves the density gradient in the high-shear region between the liquid-oxygen jet and product rich flame region. The latter is a key requirement to properly simulate dense-fluid jet destabilization and mixing in practical devices.
A factor analysis of the socio-economic structure of riot and crime prone cities

The major purpose of this paper is to investigate whether individual attacks against property and the recent urban riots, which researchers also agree were property oriented, arise out of a similar set of socio-economic conditions. The paper proceeds by first briefly reviewing the theoretical and empirical literature on the causes of crime and collective violence. This literature is then drawn upon to construct 24 independent variables which are measures of income, employment and educational opportunities, population characteristics and socio-political conditions. The statistical analysis in the second part of the paper employed a sample of 129 large Standard Metropolitan Statistical Areas, 64 of which experienced one or more incidents of racial violence between 1965 and 1968 and 65 of which were nonriot SMSA's. From the 24 variables, seven factors were extracted by the minimum residual method and orthogonally rotated by the Kaiser varimax technique. These seven factors were then used as independent variables in both regression and discriminate analysis in which riot intensity (measured by property and economic loss) and property crime rates were used as independent variables. The paper concludes that criminal behavior derives from fundamentally different causes than does riot activity.
Effective action for brane localized gauge fields

The low energy effective action including gauge field degrees of freedom on a non-BPS p=2 brane embedded in a N=1, D=4 target superspace is obtained through the method of nonlinear realizations of the associated super-Poincare symmetries. The invariant interactions of the gauge fields and the brane excitation modes corresponding to the Nambu-Goldstone degrees of freedom resulting from the broken space translational symmetry and the target space supersymmetries are determined. Brane localized matter field interactions with the gauge fields are obtained through the construction of the combined gauge and super-Poincare covariant derivatives for the matter fields.
Rule generation from neural networks

The neural network approach has proven useful for the development of artificial intelligence systems. However, a disadvantage with this approach is that the knowledge embedded in the neural network is opaque. In this paper, we show how to interpret neural network knowledge in symbolic form. We lay dawn required definitions for this treatment, formulate the interpretation algorithm, and formally verify its soundness. The main result is a formalized relationship between a neural network and a rule-based system. In addition, it has been demonstrated that the neural network generates rules of better performance than the decision tree approach in noisy conditions. >
Voices from different places: but why a medical school faculty?

Summary. Interdisciplinary collaboration between nursing and medicine is a valued goal, but one which is difficult to achieve. Two nurses who are faculty members in medical schools reflect on their unique roles and how these encompass interdisciplinary research, teaching, and practice.
Direct infusion electrospray ionization-ion mobility high resolution mass spectrometry (DIESI-IM-HRMS) for rapid characterization of potential bioprocess streams.

Direct infusion electrospray ionization – ion mobility – high resolution mass spectrometry (DIESI-IM-HRMS) has been utilized as a rapid technique for the characterization of total molecular composition in “whole-sample” biomass hydrolysates and extracts. IM-HRMS data reveal a broad molecular weight distribution of sample components (up to 1100 m/z) and provide trendline isolation of feedstock components from those introduced “in process.” Chemical formulas were obtained from HRMS exact mass measurements (with typical mass error less than 5 ppm) and were consistent with structural carbohydrates and other lignocellulosic degradation products. Analyte assignments are supported via IM-MS collision-cross-section measurements and trendline analysis (e.g., all carbohydrate oligomers identified in a corn stover hydrolysate were found to fall within 6 % of an average trendline). These data represent the first report of collision cross sections for several negatively charged carbohydrates and other acidic species occurring natively in biomass hydrolysates.
On Viterbi detector path metric differences

This letter continues the investigation of methods for computing exact bounds on the path metric differences in maximum-likelihood sequence detectors based upon the Viterbi algorithm. New upper and lower estimates for these bounds are presented and recast in terms of a collection of linear programming problems. These estimates improve upon previously proposed linear programming bounds. The estimates are applied to derive exact bounds or provably close to exact bounds for several Viterbi detectors corresponding to coded and uncoded partial-response channels of practical interest in digital magnetic and optical recording.
Effects of membership function parameters on the performance of a fuzzy signal detector

This paper describes a signal-detection algorithm based on fuzzy logic. The detector combines evidence provided by two waveform features and explicitly considers uncertainty in the detection decision. The detector classifies waveforms including a signal, not including a signal, or being uncertain, in which case no conclusion regarding presence or absence of a signal is drawn. Piecewise linear membership functions are used, and a method to describe the membership functions in terms of two parameters is developed. The performance of the detector is compared to a Bayesian maximum likelihood detector, using brainstem auditory evoked potential signals in simulated noise, and the effects of the steepness (slope) and overlap of the membership functions on detector performance are evaluated. By varying the membership function steepness and overlap, the fuzzy detector can almost completely eliminate classification errors at the cost of a large number of uncertain classifications or it can be made to perform similarly to the Bayesian detector.
An Optimal Control Interpretation of Path Dependent Energy Integrals in Power System Stability Analysis

A long standing challenge in applying Lyapunov or energy function methods in power system stability studies arises when key components of the nonlinear state space model do not form an exact function. This is typical when the model includes realistic effects such as transmission line losses or voltage dependent active loads. When the function in question is exact, its associated potential function yields a natural choice for a system Lyapunov function. When this condition does not hold, a pragmatic approach in the literature has been to simply pick a particular path (often the state trajectory of the "faulted" power system), and integrate along this path. The "transient energy function" thus obtained is not a Lyapunov function, but has been successfully used to predict the boundary of the region of attraction in practical problems. This paper will show that the function obtained is closely related to the cost of control in an optimal control problem derived from the power system dynamics. This leads to the papers key observation: there exists a path of integration, uniquely defined by the endpoint, such that the resulting function of state does yield a true Lyapunov function.
A Remarkable New Species of Megaceras from Peru (Scarabaeidae: Dynastinae: Oryctini). The “Dim Effect”: Nature Mimicking Art

Megaceras briansaltini Ratcliffe, new species, is described from Peru. A description, diagnosis, and illustrations are provided, and the new species is compared with M. morpheus Burmeister, with which it shares similarities.
Bodegas or Bagel Shops? Neighborhood Differences in Retail and Household Services:

Social scientists studying the disadvantages of poor urban neighborhoods have focused on the quality of publicly provided amenities. However, the quantity and quality of local private amenities, su...
Rapid Assessment of Cement and Fiber-Stabilized Soil Using Roller-Integrated Compaction Monitoring

Test sections of high-early strength (Type III) portland cement and polypropylene monofilament fibers were constructed at the Bradshaw Field Training Area in the Northern Territory (NT), Australia as part of a Joint Rapid Airfield Construction (JRAC) project. Aprons, taxiways, and a helipad were stabilized using these materials in combination with screened native soil. The purpose of the test sections was to (a) evaluate the resulting properties for different stabilization dosage rates; (b) develop construction methods, criteria (including limits), and quality control guidelines; and (c) provide a hands-on training opportunity for the joint United States and Australia military construction team. Testing and monitoring consisted of roller-integrated compaction monitoring (global position systems monitoring pass coverages and compaction machine values) and in situ testing, which included dynamic cone penetration tests, Clegg impact tests, and light-weight deflectometer tests. After the test sections, constr...
Rules of Grammar in Beginners German Books

Two rules of German grammar that were given more accurate formulation in earlier issues of the Modern Language Journal are discussed and attention is called to their slight effect upon subsequent beginners' books. Other grammatical topics requiring more careful statement are also suggested
Robust MIMO control of a parallel kinematics nano-positioner for high resolution high bandwidth tracking and repetitive tasks

This paper presents the design and implementation of robust control schemes for two applications of a nanopositioning stage (1) reference trajectory tracking with high resolution over a given bandwidth (2) control design for repetitive motions. The stage has a low degree of freedom monolithic parallel kinematic mechanism using flexure hinges. It is driven by piezoelectric actuators and its displacement is detected by capacitance gauges. The design has strongly coupled dynamics with each actuator input producing in multi- axis motions. The nano-positioner is modeled as a multiple input and multiple output (MIMO) system, and the MIMO plant model is identified by time-domain identification methods. The design of the nano-positioner relies heavily on the control design to account for the high coupling in the system. The proposed Hinfin MIMO controller achieves a good performance in terms of resolution, bandwidth and robustness to the modeling uncertainty. In the second part of the paper, we present control design for tasks that require repetitive motion of nano positioning system. These tasks are quite common in micro/nano manipulation and manufacturing. This paper presents a robust control design that gives a significant (over thirty fold) improvement in tracking of repetitive motions on a prespecified frequency band. This design, unlike other schemes, is robust to modeling uncertainties that arise in flexure based mechanisms, and does not require any learning steps during its real time implementation. This design scheme is implemented on a parallel-kinematics XYZ nano positioning stage for repetitive nano-manipulation and nano-manufacturing applications.
Review on magnesium alloys as biodegradable implant materials

Biomaterials have been used for more than a century in the human body to improve body functions and replace damaged tissues. Some biomaterials remain as permanent fixtures, whereas others such as plates, screws and pins used to secure serious fractures are removed by a second surgical procedure after the tissue has healed sufficiently. However, repeat surgical procedures increase the cost of healthcare and the possibility of patient morbidity. The major advantage of dissolvable implants is that no surgery is required once implanted. This paper will be of interest to researchers engaged in the development of biodegradable alloys for cardiovascular and orthopaedic applications. The paper reviews the development of degradable magnesium (Mg) based implant materials and the effect of potential alloying elements on their mechanical and biocompatibility properties.
Incremental risk of prior coronary arterial stents for pulmonary resection.

Background Many patients requiring lung cancer resection have concomitant coronary artery disease. Preoperative coronary artery stenting has been associated with increased risk of cardiac events after noncardiac surgery. Our aim was to determine the incidence of major adverse cardiac events (MACE) in patients undergoing pulmonary resection for lung cancer after percutaneous coronary stenting. Methods This study uses Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results-Medicare data (1998 to 2005). Patients undergoing lung cancer resection within 1 year after coronary stenting were compared with patients without preoperative coronary intervention. The incidence and predictors of MACE within 30 days after surgery were determined. Results Five hundred nineteen patients underwent lung cancer resection after coronary stenting (stent), and 21,892 patients underwent lung cancer resection without a preceding coronary intervention (no stent). The stent group had higher comorbidity scores ( p p p > 0.05). Thirty-day MACE and mortality rates were 9.3% and 7.7% in the stent group and 4.9% and 4.6% in the no-stent group (both p Conclusions Patients undergoing lung cancer surgery within 1 year of coronary stenting are at high risk for perioperative MACE. The presence of a coronary stent should be an important component of risk assessment before resection for lung cancer.
Model for JPALS/SRGPS Flexure and Attitude Error Allocation

This paper develops a linearized parametric error model for assessing the effects of structural flexure and attitude uncertainties on the shipboard variant of the joint precision approach and landing system (JPALS). The outputs of the error model are position domain error bounds on the estimate of the ship reference point (SRP) coordinates. The model is parameterized in terms of GPS antenna installation geometry and the covariance matrices capturing the statistics of GPS measurement, ship structural flexure, and ship attitude estimation uncertainty. The performance of the model is evaluated via a set of simulation studies. It is shown that when the attitude errors are small and the flexure statistics well characterized, the error model provides an accurate and convenient way of mapping attitude and flexure uncertainties into SRP position uncertainties. Estimation of SRP position errors is a nonlinear problem and when ship attitude uncertainties are large, the nonlinearities can be important. However, the bounds calculated by the error model developed can be inflated to deal with these nonlinearities. Finally, by analyzing data collected from ship trials, it is shown that perhaps a more challenging issue may be the potential for highly correlated, bias-like structural flexure uncertainties.
Generation of chaos by dynamical systems defined in ordered banach spaces

We investigate the existence of solutions with “complicated” dynamics in continuous non-smooth many (finite or infinite) - dimensional models with non-negative variables. We assume that a discrete-time dynamical system is defined in a closed solid normal cone K of a Banach space. This cone induces an ordering on K. The dynamical system is defined by the superposition of continous functions F: k × K→k and in: x e k→(x,x) as follows F(.)=F(in(.)). The mapping F(.,.) is a monotone increasing positively homogeneous function in the first variable and a monotone decreasing function in the second variable. We prove the existence of chaos under the following main assumptions: (i) the origin is an ejecting fixed point of the mapping F(.,0), (ii) there exist x eK-{0} such that F n x)=0 for some n, and (iii) the mapping F(.) is locally monotone at the origin. The effectiveness of the method is demonostrated on the model of population dynamics with age structure and non-overlapping generations and the model of an eco...
Evaluating Interconnect and Virtualization Performance forHigh Performance Computing

Scientists are increasingly considering cloud computing platforms to satisfy their computational needs. Previous work has shown that virtualized cloud environments can have significant performance impact. However there is still a limited understanding of the nature of overheads and the type of applications that might do well in these environments. In this paper we detail benchmarking results that characterize the virtualization overhead and its impact on performance. We also examine the performance of various interconnect technologies with a view to understanding the performance impacts of various choices. Our results show that virtualization can have a significant impact upon performance, with at least a 60% performance penalty. We also show that less capable interconnect technologies can have a significant impact upon performance of typical HPC applications. We also evaluate the performance of the Amazon Cluster compute instance and show that it performs approximately equivalently to a 10G Ethernet cluster at low core counts.
Using Semantic Web in ICD-11: Three Years Down the Road

The World Health Organization is using Semantic Web technologies in the development of the 11 th revision of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11). Health officials use ICD in all United Nations member countries to compile basic health statistics, to monitor health-related spending, and to inform policy makers. In 2010, we published a paper in the ISWC In Use track reporting on our experience in the first six months with building and deploying iCAT, a Semantic Web platform to support the collaborative authoring of ICD-11. Three years since our original publication, 270 domain experts around the world have used iCAT to author more than 45,000 classes, to perform more than 260,000 changes, and to create more than 17,000 links to external medical terminologies. During the last three years, the collaboration processes, modeling and tooling have evolved significantly, and we have learned important lessons, which we will report in this paper. We describe the benefits of using semantic technologies as an infrastructure, which proved to be critical in making support for this rapid evolution possible. To our knowledge, this effort is the only real-world project supporting the collaborative authoring of ontologies at this scale, and which, at the same time, has a high visibility and impact for the health care around the world. We believe that the insights that we gained and the lessons that we learned after four years into this large-scale project will be useful to others who need to support similar collaborative projects.