cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Unwritten Rules: Informal Institutions in Established Democracies

Scholars of the developing world have driven a surge of interest in unwritten or informal institutions as determinants of political outcomes. In advanced industrial democracies, by contrast, informal institutions often remain consigned to the analytic margins. This article makes a case for greater attention to informal political institutions in established democracies, and it introduces a theoretical framework to support such analysis. Informal institutions, understood as the unwritten rules of political life, are seen to perform three functions: they complete or fill gaps in formal institutions, coordinate the operation of overlapping (and perhaps clashing) institutions, and operate parallel to formal institutions in regulating political behavior. These three roles of informal institutions are associated with different characteristic patterns of institutional stability and change. The article illustrates its theoretical framework with case studies from American politics, the subfield in which formal-institutional analysis has flourished most. These cases are the historical norm of a two-term presidency (a completing institution), the unwritten rules of the presidential nomination process (coordinating institutions), the informal practice of obstruction in the Senate (a parallel institution), and the normative expectation that presidents should address the public directly (which performs all three functions).
A study of the surface‐catalyzed polymerization of ethylene on chromic oxide–silica–alumina catalysts

This investigation was an exploratory study of the phenomena associated with the polymerization of ethylene on a chromic oxide–silica–alumina catalyst. The polymerization was carried out in a batch reactor fed on demand at 500 psi gage and at 135°C. The catalyst was 3% chromic oxide on an 87% silica–13% alumina support, activated at 450°C for 5.25 hr in dry air. The catalyst particles were found to reduce in size during the polymerization. The particles decreased in size from 18/20 mesh to an average diameter of 9.6 μ. This reduction in particle size was found to cease at a yield of 40.0 g per gram of catalyst. By determining the monomer reaction rate versus time, the catalyst activity was found to change greatly during the polymerization. The activity increased to a maximum, then decreased. The period of increasing catalyst activity corresponded to the period of catalyst particle size reduction. The period of decreasing activity was considered to be due to the build-up of a polymer film diffusion layer and true catalyst deactivation. The molecular weight distributions for a series of samples from each polymerization test were determined on gel permeation chromatograph. These distributions for each test were characterized by an increase in the high molecular weight tail as the yield increased, while the peak position and low molecular weight end remained essentially constant.
Haptic recognition of dystonia and spasticity in simulated multi-joint hypertonia

This paper investigates the capability of naive individuals to recognize dystonic- or spastic- like conditions through physical manipulation of a virtual arm. Subjects physically interact with a two-joint, six-muscle hypertonic arm model, rendered on a two degrees-of-freedom robotic manipulandum. This paradigm aims to identify the limitation of manual manipulation during diagnosis of hypertonia. Our results indicate that there are difficulties to discriminate between the two conditions at low to medium level of severity. We found that the sample entropy of the executed motion and the force experienced during physical manipulation, tended to be higher during incorrectly identified trials than in those correctly assessed.
Enhancing SAT-based Bounded Model Checking using sequential logic implications

We present a novel technique of improving the SAT-based Bounded Model Checking, by inducing powerful sequential signal correlations (crossing time-frame boundaries) into the original CNF formula of the unrolled circuit. A quick preprocessing on the circuit-under-verification, builds a large set of direct and indirect sequential implications. The non-trivial implications (spanning multiple time-frames) are converted into two-literal clauses. These clauses are quickly replicated throughout the unrolled sequential circuit, and appended to the existing CNF database. The added clauses prune the overall search space of SAT-solver engine and provide correlation among the different variables, which enhances the Boolean Constraint Propagation (BCP). Experimental Results for checking difficult instances of random safety properties on ISCAS'89 benchmark circuits show that more than 148x speedup can be achieved over the conventional approach.
Immediacy and Certainty: Factors in Understanding Future Reference.

Seventy-five children, 3, 4, and 5 years old, were interviewed about: ( a ) toys they had played with just a few minutes earlier, ( b ) toys they had played with on the preceding day, ( c ) toys they would play with in a few minutes, and ( d ) toys reserved for use on the following day. Verb forms indicating past and future time were used as well as the adverbials before and after . The past verb form was understood equally well in reference to the immediate past and the more remote past. However, the future verb form was better understood in reference to the immediate future than in reference to the remote future (the following day). The difference is discussed in terms of the intersection of time and mood in future verb forms. Immediacy of action and certainty of occurrence are suggested as early meaning components of future verb forms.
A Frequency-Domain Median Time Series

Abstract This article discusses the median of a batch of time series. We focus on the frequency-domain median (FDM) series (Zeger 1985), which is calculated from the “mediancenters” (Gower 1974) of the discrete Fourier transforms. Like the univariate median, it has a breakdown value of 50%. Like the mean, the FDM time series of independent realizations from a stationary Gaussian process has a spectrum proportional to that of the component series. Analogs of the univariate median have been described for multivariate (e.g., Brown 1983), survival (Brookmeyer and Crowley 1982), and spherical (Fisher 1985) data. As in the multivariate case, there is not a unique definition of a median time series. One possibility is the median value at each time or time-domain median (TDM). A drawback of the TDM is that it can be qualitatively dissimilar in appearance to its component series because of discontinuities when the median value switches from one realization to another. This is particularly disturbing for smooth tim...
Flint, Michigan: A Century of Environmental Injustice

This article presents an editorial in which the author discusses the history of environmental pollution from the manufacturing industries in Flint, Michigan. He comments on the dozens of factory worker strikes in the city dating from the late 1930s. An examination of the industrial waste and other environmentally harmful by-products throughout the 20th century is also provided.
113 V(D)J recombination targeted in cis by transcription induced DNA supercoiling

Somatic recombination assembles and diversifies the antigen receptor genes, of B and T cells. RAG recombinase binds two specific DNA sites (RSSs) to initiate recombination, a process called paired ...
The Neglected Benefits of the Corporate Form: Entity Status and the Separation of Asset Ownership from Control

This essay reconsiders the role played by entity status and the separation of asset ownership from control in the corporate form, drawing on the experience of business people in the early 19th century U.S. for insights into the problems facing entrepreneurs and investors today in emerging market and transition economy countries. The essay argues that the unique contribution of the corporate legal form in the 19th century was that it allowed business people to create separate legal entities with potentially unlimited life to own the assets used in production. Since the legal entity owns the productive assets once the corporate form is used, ownership is necessarily separated from control. But this feature enabled business organizers to commit capital almost irrevocably to an enterprise, and helped to make the enterprises more financially stable. Using the corporate form, rather than partnership or so-called joint-stock companies (which were a type of partnership), business organizers could more easily accumulate organizational and other intangible capital, along with the specialized physical capital necessary to carry out complex business activities over an extended period of time. Scholars who have studied the problems of creating effective corporate law and governance institutions in developing and transition countries have emphasized the importance of protections for minority shareholders. But the need for legal and organizational mechanisms for locking capital into the enterprise, for preventing investors from stripping assets or otherwise pulling them out prematurely, is even more basic, yet it has largely been neglected in the literature so far. An appreciation for our own history of how businesspeople tried to find organizational forms that would enable them to build substantial and lasting business enterprises in the absence of strong legal, cultural and institutional supports sheds light on the important role played in this country of entity status and separation of control from financial contribution.
Development of edge-activated liposomes for siRNA delivery to human basal epidermis for melanoma therapy

Delivery of macromolecules such as siRNA into cells that reside in the basal epidermis of the skin is a major challenge due to the transport barriers that need to be overcome. siRNAs have potential therapeutic applications in various dermatological diseases such as psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, and cancer. Unfortunately, a low permeability of siRNA through the stratum corneum and epidermis has significantly limited its use for topical application. The objective of this study was to develop a topical siRNA delivery system that can permeate through the stratum corneum and viable epidermis and efficiently deposit therapeutic levels of siRNA to the basal epidermis/upper dermis where melanoma cells reside. To achieve this objective, a series of liposome compositions that contained various concentrations of edge activator in their structures were prepared and then complexed with siRNA at different ratios to generate a small library of liposome-siRNA complexes (lipoplexes) with different physicochemical properties. In this study we used melanoma as a disease model. Through use of quantitative imaging analysis, we identified the necessary design parameters for effective permeation of lipoplexes through the skin layers and deposition at the upper dermis. The ability of the formulated lipoplexes to internalize into melanoma cells, knockdown the expression of the BRAF protein and induce cell death in melanoma cells was studied by fluorescent microscopy, in-cell immunofluorescence assay and WST-1 cell proliferation assay. By providing direct quantitative and qualitative microscopy evidence, the results of this study demonstrate for the first time that the passive delivery of an edge-activated liposomal formulation can effectively carry siRNA through the stratum corneum and deposit it at the lower epidermis/upper dermis.
A course module on clickjacking

Clickjacking is a form of UI-Redress where a victim thinks they are browsing the webpage they see, but click actions are actually on a hidden webpage. Methods for detecting and preventing clickjacking attacks are available, however. One of these methods should be included to let the website recognize it is in an iFrame, and then "break" out of the frame, i.e. refresh the page directly to its URL, or not load the page in the first place. Currently it is important to increase the implementation rate of these methods in websites. This paper introduces a clickjacking course module which includes a tutorial of clickjacking, and a hands-on lab. Our teaching experience with this course module is discussed. This course module can be adopted in web security or network security courses introducing how clickjacking works.
1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D in male, nonspawning female, and spawning female trout.

AbstractThe concentration of circulating 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D was measured by means of a specific radioreceptor assay in male, nonspawning female, and spawning female trout. Male trout showed serum levels of 1,25(OH)2D which were comparable to those of weanling rats and infant children and higher than levels found in female trout, 1,25-dihycrosyvitamin D levels in nonspawning and spawning female trout were comparable, despite significant higher levels of circulating calcium and phosphate in the spawning trout. The study documents the existence of 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D in the blood of teleost fish for the first time.
The Great Da abhūmi-vyākhyāna Monk Elucidators:the Birth of South and North Schools

This paper sorts out the process of Bodhiruci and Ratnamati's translation of Da  abhūmi-vyākhyāna and their followers of Daochong and Huiguang,and thinks that in the Southern and Northern Dynasties Da abhūmi- vyākhyāna elucidators were divided into two schools of the North with the follower Daochong of Bodhiruci and the South with the follower Huiguang of Huiguang according to their locations in the city of Yecheng. When Daochong explained Da abhūmi- vyākhyāna,he and Huiguang had different opinions,and thus the two schools came into being.
Progress on the quantitative modulation of intracellular calcium signals induced by shear flow

The intracellular calcium signaling,which is modulated by the microenvironment of cells,is closely related to the cell's self-renewal,differentiation,proliferation,and its apoptosis.The study on the quantitative modulation of the intracellular calcium signals could not only help to understand the dynamic behavior of such kind of signaling,but also play a significant role in the control of cell fate,simulation of cell behavior and bionics of cellular biological systems.This paper briefly reviewed the progress on the quantitative modulation of intracellular calcium signals induced by shear flow,including(1) experimental phenomena and the associated mechanisms of shear-flow-activated intracellular calcium response;(2) mathematical modeling and simulation of the intracellular calcium response induced by shear flow;(3) feedback control of the intracellular calcium signals by shear flow.
Adsorption of Recombinant Human Granulocyte Colony Stimulating Factor (rhG-CSF) to Polyvinyl Chloride, Polypropylene, and Glass: Effect of Solvent Additives

The adsorption of recombinant-derived proteins to glass and polymeric materials used in their packaging and delivery remains a problem. Loss of these very expensive proteins to surface adsorption not only results in reduced yields during purification and scale-up, but also to decreased therapeutic efficacy. The purpose of the present investigation was to inhibit/minimize adsorption of a model protein, namely, recombinant human granulocyte colony stimulating factor (rhG-CSF) to glass, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), and polypropylene by inclusion of select solvent additives. Solvent additives used to inhibit/minimize surface adsorption included glycerin, U.S.P. (0.5%, 1%, 5%, and 25% v/v), Pluronic® F-127 (0.005%, 0.05%, and 0.5% w/w), Pluronic® F-68 (0.005%, 0.05%, and 0.5% w/w), Tween® 80 (0.005% and 0.05% w/w) and Tween® 20 (0.005%, 0.05%, and 0.5% w/w). Over the rhG-CSF concentration range of 0.0 ng/ml to 300 ng/ml, the amount of rhG-CSF bound per cm2 of PVC increased with an increase in the rhG-CSF concentration tested. At rhG-CSF equilibrium concentrations of 262 ±3.7 ng/ml and 136 ± 1.9 ng/ml, the rhG-CSF bound/cm2 of PVC at 22°C and 45°C reached a maximum of 37.6 ±9.8 ng/cm2 and 165.2 ±11.7 ng/cm2, respectively. The adsorption isotherms determined at each temperature were described by the classic Freundlich equation. Moreover, the rate of adsorption of rhG-CSF to PVC was extremely rapid. The mean values of the percent of rhG-CSF bound to PVC after only 10 minutes of equilibration at 22°C and 45°C were 92.8 ± 9.2 percent and 97.3 ± 17.9 percent, respectively. The mean values of the percent of rhG-CSF bound to PVC at 22°C and 45°C after 24 hours were 52.4 ± 10.9% and 70.0 ± 9.7%, respectively, indicating that some desorption of rhG-CSF does occur during 24 hr. However, surface adsorption of rhG-CSF to PVC was shown to be irreversible over a 1 hr time period. Using viscometry, an estimate of the thickness of the adsorbed layer of rhG-CSF to glass was determined to be approximately 1 µm. The overall rank order of the solvent additives for minimizing adsorption of rhG-CSF to PVC was Tween 20 > Tween 80 > Pluronic F-127 > Pluronic F-68. Tween 20 was the most effective solvent additive for inhibiting surface adsorption of rhG-CSF to parenteral vials made of either glass or polypropylene.
Soviet Presence in the Far East

For much of its post-war history, the United States had little to fear from Soviet military forces in the Asian-Pacific region. Huge US Pacific fleets, combined with an extensive set of basing and alliance agreements, vastly outclassed the token Soviet air and naval forces in the region. Certainly, the perceived Sino—Soviet Communist monolith threatened the East as well as Europe, but this danger manifested itself more in a theoretical and political than a military sense. As far as America’s Pacific planners were concerned, nations such as Korea and Vietnam were vulnerable to attack, but the Chinese and Soviets possessed little aside from huge land armies. Expansion out into the Pacific, in a manner that would seriously threaten American economic and political interests, was, for a time, out of the question.
Stereospecific Synthesis of Alkenes by Eliminative Cross-Coupling of Enantioenriched sp3 -Hybridized Carbenoids

1-Aryl-1,2-dialkylethenes were generated by a sequence of electrophilic substitution, 1,2-metalate rearrangement, and β-elimination initiated by the addition of enantioenriched α-(carbamoyloxy)alkylboronates to enantioenriched lithiated carbamates. The carbenoid stereochemical pairing [i.e., “like”=(S)+(S) or “unlike”=(S)+(R)] and the elimination mechanism (syn or anti), not substituent effects, determined the configuration of the trisubstituted alkene target. For example, (Z)-2,5-diphenyl-2-pentene was produced in 70 % yield with E/Z=5:95 by a like combination of Li and B carbenoids and syn (thermal) elimination whereas the E isomer was obtained in the same yield with E/Z>98:2 by an otherwise identical process involving an unlike stereochemical pairing. The concept elaborated overcomes an intrinsic limitation of traditional strategies for direct connective alkene synthesis, which cannot realize meaningful stereochemical bias unless the alkene substituents are strongly differentiated.
THE SYNTHESIS OF TEICHOIC ACIDS. 3. GLUCOSYLATION OF POLYGLYCEROPHOSPHATE.

In the two preceding papers, evidence has been presented for the enzymatic synthesis of polyglycerophosphate (1) and polyribitol phosphate (2) from cytidine diphosphate glycerol and cytidine diphosphate ribitol, respectively. In this paper, we describe the glycosyl transfer from uridine diphosphate glucose to polyglycerophosphate by an enzyme from Bacillus subtilis. Teichoic acids differ in the nature and number of the glycosyl residues attached to the polyol phosphate backbone (3). The glucosyl transfer described in this paper gives rise to one of the simplest teichoic acid structures, in which every glycerol residue in the polyglycerophosphate backbone has attached to the hydroxyl at carbon 2 an ol-glucopyranosyl residue. A similar reaction, the transfer of N-acetylglucosamine residues to polyribitol phosphate from UDP-N-acetylglucosamine has been described by Nathenson and Strominger (4). A second glucosylating system for glycerol teichoic acid has been described in a preliminary communication (5). This system isolated from BaciUus Zicheniformis is more complex and will be reported in detail later.
On stability and Max-Min-Max

We have described in Chapter I a problem in which one side buys a mixture of weapons systems, his opponent discovers what he has done and buys a countering mixture, and finally the original side allocates his residuum to the opponent’s target complex. There are three stages: Max-Min-Max, in which the original side has the two outside Max moves and his opponent the middle Min move.
Exploring collaboratively written L2 texts among first-year learners of German in Google Docs

Grounded in research on collaborative writing and computer-mediated writing the present study examines the computer-mediated collaborative writing process among first-year learners of German as a s...
Effects of dam prepartum supplement level on performance and reproduction of heifer progeny

AbstractObjectives were to determine the effect of dam prepartum supplement level on growth performance, feed efficiency and reproductive performance of female progeny (127 heifers in year 1, 138 heifers in year 2). Mature, multiparous, fall-calving, Angus × Simmental cows (initial age = 5.6 ± 1.9 years, BW = 623 ± 70 kg, BCS = 5.7 ± 0.7) were used in a completely randomised design that included three supplement levels: no supplement (NS), low supplement, 2.16 kg·cow−1·d−1 (LS), or high supplement, 8.61 kg·cow−1·d−1 (HS). Cows grazed endophyte-infected tall fescue/red clover pastures and were bunk-fed supplement (70% dried distiller’s grains plus solubles [DDGS] and 30% soybean hulls) 103 ± 11 d prepartum to 2 ± 11 d postpartum. Dam prepartum supplementation did not affect (p ≥ .60) heifer progeny BW at weaning, breeding, nor at pregnancy verification. Dam prepartum supplementation did not affect (p ≥ .18) heifer progeny AI conception rate, overall pregnancy rate, nor calving rate. Calving date, calf birt...
Bluestocking Studies 2011–2017: The Transnational Turn

As international trade, exploration, and communication proliferated in the 18th and early 19th centuries, a significant group of British intellectual women, the Bluestockings, came to recognize themselves as part of a transnational network. They were attentive especially to intellectual pursuits, women's cultural, sociopolitical, and economic interests, and various forms of social progress, and some of these preoccupations developed over the period and fed into first-wave feminist programs later in the 19th century. I consider the extensive Bluestocking scholarship concentrating on transnationalism as well as recent research that has incorporated international themes. The field of bluestocking studies at this juncture forcefully extends the feminist recovery project and, because of its international interest, might help to counter nationalist and anti-feminist pressures currently challenging the academy.
Cognitive Dysfunction Contributes to Mobility Impairments in Huntington's Disease.

BACKGROUND Huntington's disease (HD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder that results in a gradual decline in mobility and balance. Increasing evidence has documented an important role of executive function in the safe ambulation of the elderly and people with a variety of neurological disorders. Little is known about the contribution of cognitive deficits to decline in mobility over time in HD. OBJECTIVE This study examined the relationships of mobility, motor and cognitive function measures at baseline, and of mobility and cognitive measures over four years. METHODS A retrospective chart review was performed on 70 patients with genetically confirmed HD (age 20-75 years old) across 121 HD clinic visits. Correlations between Unified Huntington's Disease Rating Scale - Total Motor, Tinetti Mobility Test (TMT), and cognitive measures (Letter Verbal Fluency, Symbol Digit Modalities Test (SDMT), and Stroop Test) were analyzed. Longitudinal relationships between TMT and cognitive measures were examined using mixed effect regression models. RESULTS Gait and balance measures representing domains of mobility (TMT scores) were significantly correlated with each of the cognitive measures with the exception of the Verbal Fluency score. Mixed effects regression modeling showed that the Stroop Interference sub-test and SDMT were significant predictors (p-values <0.01) of TMT total scores. CONCLUSIONS Impairments in executive function measures correlate highly with measures of gait, balance and mobility in individuals with HD. Interventions designed to improve mobility and decrease fall risk should also address issues of cognitive impairments with particular consideration given to interventions that may focus on motor-cognitive dual task training.
An Element of Life

While it has been known for decades that the essential function of selenium was in the form of its incorporation as selenocysteine into selenoproteins—including the enzyme glutathione peroxidase-4—now, Ingold et al. (2018) reveal the precise role of selenolate-based catalysis by this enzyme.
On a certain functional identity involving inverses

ABSTRACTLet R be a simple artinian ring with characteristic different from 2 and 3. The purpose of this paper is to describe additive maps f,g satisfying the identity f(x)x−1+xg(x−1)=0 for every in...
The isolation, structure determination, and synthesis of pluridone, a novel insecticide from aloe pluridens

The isolation, structural elucidation, and total synthesis of pluridone (1, the novel insecticidal principal from Aloe pluridens, are described.
The role of union and management in public psychiatric hospitals

Management, seeing the areas now subject to collective bargaining, views with alarm what it considers an increasing encroachment on its rights to manage the hospital effectively and efficiently.
Recoupment, Market Power, and Predatory Pricing

Recoupment inquiries play an important role in predatory pricing cases. Nevertheless, their place in antitrust analysis is unclear and potentially problematic in ways that are not fully appreciated. Does a recoupment requirement define, augment, or replace the preexisting monopoly power requirement that involves similar analysis? How can a recoupment test be inserted in sequential assessments of alleged predatory pricing when all of the steps are intertwined with the others, including those deemed to come later? Why is a plaintiff permitted to show either that recoupment was ex ante plausible or that sufficient ex post profit recovery occurred, rather than requiring one in particular, or both? This article addresses these questions by examining the underlying purposes of recoupment assessments and predatory pricing inquiries more broadly. As will become evident, much of the analysis is relevant not just to predatory pricing but to other forms of anticompetitive conduct as well.
Weighting effective number of species measures by abundance weakens detection of diversity responses

The effective number of species (ENS) has been proposed as a robust measure of species diversity that overcomes several limitations in terms of both diversity indices and species richness (SR). However, it is not yet clear if ENS improves interpretation and comparison of biodiversity monitoring data, and ultimately resource management decisions. We used simulations of five stream macroinvertebrate assemblages and spatially extensive field data of stream fishes and mussels to show (a) how different ENS formulations respond to stress and (b) how diversity–environment relationships change with values of q, which weight ENS measures by species abundances. Values of ENS derived from whole simulated assemblages with all species weighted equally (true SR) steadily decreased as stress increased, and ENS‐stress relationships became weaker and more different among assemblages with increased weighting. The amount of variation in ENS across the fish and mussel assemblages that was associated with environmental gradients decreased with increasing q. Synthesis and applications. Species diversity is valued by many human societies, which often have policies designed to protect and restore it. Natural resources managers and policy makers may use species richness and diversity indices to describe the status of ecological communities. However, these traditional diversity measures are known subject to limitations that hinder their interpretation and comparability. The effective number of species (ENS) was proposed to overcome the limitations. Unfortunately, our analyses show that ENS does not improve interpretability of how species diversity responds to either stress or natural environmental gradients. Moreover, incorporating the relative abundance of individuals in different species (evenness) into diversity measures as implemented in ENS can actually weaken detection of diversity responses. Natural resources managers and policy makers therefore need to be cautious when interpreting diversity measures, including ENS, whose values are jointly influenced by richness and evenness. We suggest that both researchers and practitioners measure and report three aspects of diversity (species richness, evenness, and composition) separately when assessing and monitoring the diversity of ecological communities.
Prophylactic epinephrine for the prevention of transbronchial lung biopsy-related bleeding in lung transplant recipients (PROPHET) study: a protocol for a multicentre randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

Introduction Transbronchial lung biopsy (TBLB) is frequently performed in single-lung and double-lung transplant recipients for evaluation of clinical and radiological findings as well as routine surveillance for acute cellular rejection. While rates of clinically significant TBLB-related haemorrhage are Methods and analysis In this randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled multicentre trial (PROPHET Study), single-lung and double-lung transplant adult recipients from participating institutions who are scheduled for bronchoscopy with TBLB for clinical indications will be identified. Potential participants who meet inclusion and exclusion criteria and sign an informed consent will be randomised to receive either diluted epinephrine or placebo prior to performance of TBLB. The degree of TBLB-related haemorrhage will be graded by the performing bronchoscopist as well as independent observers. The primary analysis will compare the rates of severe and very severe bleeding in participants treated with epinephrine or placebo. The study will also evaluate the safety profile of prophylactic topical epinephrine including the occurrence of serious cardiovascular and haemodynamic adverse events. Additional secondary outcomes to be explored include rates of non-severe TBLB-related haemorrhage, overall yield of the bronchoscopic procedure and non-serious cardiovascular and haemodynamic adverse effects. Ethics and dissemination The study procedures were reviewed and approved by institutional review boards in participating institutions. This study is being externally monitored, and a data and safety monitoring committee has been assembled to monitor patient safety and to evaluate the efficacy of the intervention. The results of this study will be published in peer-reviewed scientific journals and presented at relevant academic conferences. Trial registration number NCT03126968; Pre-results.
Identification of Burned Areas and Severity Using SAR Sentinel-1

In this letter, we performed investigations on the potentiality of the Sentinel-1, C-band synthetic-aperture radar (SAR), for the characterization and mapping of burned areas and fire severity. To this aim, we focused on fire occurred on July 13, 2017, in Metaponto (South of Italy). Both VH and VV polarizations were considered. Radar Burn Difference (RBD) and radar burn ratio (RBR) were computed between Sentinel-1 data acquired before and after the fire using both single- and time-averaged scenes (to reduce speckle noise effects). The most marked differences between burned and unburned areas were observed in the VH polarization of both RBD and RBR. The novelty of our approach is based on the use of three steps data processing devised to identify different levels of fire severity without using fixed thresholds. The burned areas are first: 1) highlighted using the ratio between multitemporal data set acquired before and after the fire occurrence; 2) further enhanced by Getis–Ord spatial statistic; and 3) finally, categorized using ISODATA unsupervised classification. The approach herein proposed pointed out that: 1) the time-averaged ratio of VH polarization of Sentinel-1 well perform in mapping burned area and 2) the use of Getis–Ord spatial statistic coupled with ISODATA unsupervised classification suitably captures the diverse levels of burned severity as confirmed by in situ assessment.
High-Early Strength Concrete with Polypropylene Fibers as Cost-Effective Alternative for Field-Cast Connections of Precast Elements in Accelerated Bridge Construction

AbstractAccelerated bridge construction (ABC) technologies are being adopted by state departments of transportation. ABC requires that bridge precast concrete components be effectively connected to...
Resolving micron-scale heterogeneity in porewater δ34SH2S by combining films for in-situ sulfide capture and secondary ion mass spectrometry

Abstract Sulfur cycling is ubiquitous in marine sedimentary environments and is influenced by microbial and abiotic processes that alter both the abundance and isotopic composition of sulfur species that can ultimately be captured as sedimentary minerals. Microbial metabolisms that generate sulfur isotopic (δ34S) signatures in hydrogen sulfide have a spatial distribution that varies on the micron scale, yet porewater hydrogen sulfide is most often measured in bulk samples representing much larger volumes. This mismatch of scales can lead to erroneous or non-unique interpretations of biogeochemical processes and environmental conditions. Recently, an in-situ film-based technique was described that captures dissolved sulfide (H2S) in porewaters and which can be subsectioned to reconstruct the δ34SH2S profiles on the sub-cm scale within sediments. Here, we investigate the use of a Cameca 7f-GEO secondary ion mass spectrometer (SIMS) to analyze the δ34SH2S captured from porewaters on these films on even smaller spatial scales and particularly in films with low sulfide abundance that could not otherwise be processed with bulk extraction techniques. We present a best-practice method for film analysis that minimizes analytical artifacts from varying sulfide abundance and interactions with silver halide nanocrystals imbedded in the organic-based film amalgam. This method was tested on several films from field deployments, including examples with heterogeneities on small (~100 μm) scales, steep isotopic gradients, and very low sulfide abundance across the sediment-water interface. The results demonstrate that analysis using SIMS can accurately measure δ34S of in-situ sulfide captured by film with high precision (1σ ~ 0.3‰) in both spot and image modes and that the film itself can accurately record δ34S variability down to 25 μm spatial resolution, below which physical limitations of the film can create artifacts.
African indigenous knowledge, african state formation, and education

Nationalist movements often draw on Indigenous forms of knowledge to create a sense of national identity, and national schooling systems become a key site for promoting Indigenous knowledge. Interventions to include Indigenous knowledge in education occurred due to, on the one hand, views of young people (that they were significant for future of the nation and more malleable than adults) and, on the other hand, views of schooling (that they valued alien forms of knowledge and could be changed because they were directly under state control). Many African anticolonial struggles and postcolonial states similarly made use of “tradition.” This chapter explores the case of Ghana to promote the teaching of “Ghanaian culture” in schools as a way of understanding the role of Indigenous knowledge in African nation-state formation. It assesses the goals of these actors, as well as what actually happened in schools, as students and teachers responded to these programs. It explores the ways that Indigenous knowledge became systematized and simplified in certain ways as it became incorporated into school curricula and pedagogy, as well as the possibilities it created for new pedagogical practices. Although relegated to the margins of the school curriculum, I argue that the teaching of Indigenous knowledge through the lens of national culture helped create a sense of national identity in Ghana.
Aerothermodynamic Ground Tests in Support of the Boundary Layer Transition Flight Experiment

The U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory/U.S. Air Force Office of Scientific Research has sponsored the Boundary Layer Transition (BOLT) experiment to investigate hypersonic boundary-layer transition...
Enhanced Pu emission with solution-loaded laser ablation modified sources (SLLAMS) for thermal ionization mass spectrometry

Abstract This study presents a new approach to filament modification by laser ablation for analysis of femtograms of plutonium (Pu) by thermal ionization mass spectrometry (TIMS). This method simplifies the often rigorous and labor-intensive sample loading necessary for low-level analyses by TIMS with solution-loaded laser ablation modified sources (SLLAMS). By applying a Parafilm™ coating to the surface of the filament and then ablating through the film to reveal metal beneath, a point source is created at the optical center of the filament. A solution containing ppt-levels of Pu can then be applied over the ablated region, dried slowly into the crater, and then carburized. All analyses were made by multiple ion counting system on a Nu Instruments TIMS. We report uncertainties of 10% 2σ for 240Pu/239Pu of CRM-137 samples totaling 5–7 fg (fg; 1E-15 g) with an average sample utilization efficiency of 1.3%.
Engaging Marginalized Youth in Positive Development: The Changing Lives Program

Building effective Positive Youth Development (PYD) interventions for marginalized youth requires understanding what actions, experiences, and relationships—that is, what group processes—during the intervention promote positive outcomes in this population. This chapter examines group processes in the Changing Lives Program, a group-based PYD intervention designed to empower adolescents growing up in disempowering community contexts in Miami, Florida, USA. After describing the social and historical context for the program’s development, we outline the Changing Lives Program’s participatory transformative intervention model. We present narrative case histories to illustrate the group process issues involved in PYD group work with marginalized adolescents, and we examine adolescents’ session-by-session assessment of PYD group processes as a mediator of pre-to-posttest changes in positive development and mental health. Finally, we use these findings to discuss the importance of connecting group process with outcome in PYD intervention research.
Global Gene Expression Changes in Liver Following Hepatocyte Nuclear Factor 4 alpha deletion in Adult Mice.

Hepatocyte nuclear factor 4 alpha (HNF4α) is known as the master regulator of hepatic differentiation, which regulates over 60% of the hepatocyte specific genes. Recent studies including this (Walesky et al. Am J Physiol Gastrointest Liver Physiol. 304:G26-37, 2013) demonstrated that HNF4α also inhibits hepatocyte proliferation via repression of pro-mitogenic genes. In this study hepatocyte specific HNF4α knockout mice were generated using 2–3 month old HNF4α-floxed mice treated with Cre recombinase under Major Urinary Protein promoter delivered in AAV8 vector (MUP-iCre-AAV8). Control mice were treated with MUP-EGFP-AAV8. Livers were isolated from control and KO mice one week after AAV8 administration and used for gene array analysis. These data revealed several new negative target genes of HNF4α, majority of which are pro-mitogeneic genes inhibited by HNF4α in adult hepatocytes.
Genetic dissection of complex traits: an overview.

Abstract Genetic dissection of even simple Mendelian traits has been sufficiently challenging. Complex traits are proving to be much more challenging and frustrating than previously thought. The concepts, methods, and strategies discussed in this volume emphasize the critical importance of study design, appropriate methods of analysis, including relatively newer and emerging methods, and issues relating to the interpretation of results from genome scans; some thoughts on the future the new millennium holds are offered, as well. This chapter overviews the key steps involved in the study of complex traits, which are discussed in detail in subsequent chapters. It is suggested that a combination of lumping and splitting strategies is more appropriate for the analysis of complex traits, and large-scale collaborations should make this possible. For example, by pooling data and/or results from multiple studies on a given disease/trait, one may attain a sample size large enough to permit the division of the data into multiple relatively more homogeneous subgroups. The sample size of the subgroups may still be sufficiently large sample, but the genetic dissection within each subgroups should be much less daunting. The expectation is that analyses within subgroups will enhance gene finding, especially when any interacting determinants are taken into account at the time of dividing the data into subgroups. Perhaps the methods are not yet optimum, but the future holds much promise. In the meantime, the cutting-edge methods discussed in this volume by leading expert should help. There is an increasing healthy tendency for investigators to collaborate by pooling materials and results across studies, with the goal of increasing the sample size and thus power. We believe that such efforts are essential for the genetic dissection of complex traits and should contribute to greater success, especially if there is a real commitment to meaningful collaboration. After all, for most complex traits, the question is not whether there are genes, only when and how they might be found.
The comparative biochemistry of developing Ascaris eggs: V. Changes in catalase activity during embryonation

Abstract Catalase activity was identified in homogenates of eggs of Ascaris lumbricoides var. suum . The specific activity of catalase (μmoles H 2 O 2 decomposed per minute per milligram protein) was 30, 16, and 54 in the 1-cell, 1st stage larval, and 2nd stage larval eggs, respectively. The initial catalase activity observed in fertilized unembryonated eggs (1-cell) remained constant through cleavage and gastrulation until development of the 1st stage larvae, at which time activity markedly decreased (50%). When 1st stage larvae molted to 2nd stage larvae, an immediate and marked increase (over 300%) in activity resulted. The relationship of catalase, cytochrome oxidase, and respiration in embryonating eggs is discussed. Catalase activity through all stages of embryonation was in great excess of theoretically formed H 2 O 2 , apparently serving as a protective mechanism against peroxide toxicity.
Ice Sheet Margins and Ice Shelves

The effect of climate warming on the size of ice sheet margins in polar regions is considered. Particular attention is given to the possibility of a rapid response to warming on the order of tens to hundreds of years. It is found that the early response of the polar regions to climate warming would be an increase in the area of summer melt on the ice sheets and ice shelves. For sufficiently large warming (5-10C) the delayed effects would include the breakup of the ice shelves by an increase in ice drainage rates, particularly from the ice sheets. On the basis of published data for periodic changes in the thickness and melting rates of the marine ice sheets and fjord glaciers in Greenland and Antarctica, it is shown that the rate of retreat (or advance) of an ice sheet is primarily determined by: bedrock topography; the basal conditions of the grounded ice sheet; and the ice shelf condition downstream of the grounding line. A program of satellite and ground measurements to monitor the state of ice sheet equilibrium is recommended.
Typewriting: Teach English Speech Sounds.

(1973). Typewriting: Teach English Speech Sounds. The Journal of Business Education: Vol. 49, No. 1, pp. 27-29.
An Information Theoretic Approach to Estimation in the Case ofMulticollinearity

We propose a data-based extremum formulation that extends the empirical-likelihood and information-theoretic methods of estimation and inference. It is demonstrated how this method may be used in a general linear model context to mitigate the problem of an ill-conditioned design matrix. A dual loss criterion function, which can be biased in finite samples, produces an estimator that is consistent and asymptotically normal. Limiting chi-square distributions are obtained that may be used for hypothesis testing and confidence intervals. Empirical-risk sampling experiments suggest the estimator has excellent finite-sample properties under a squared error loss measure.
Exascale computing technology challenges

High Performance Computing architectures are expected to change dramatically in the next decade as power and cooling constraints limit increases in microprocessor clock speeds. Consequently computer companies are dramatically increasing on-chip parallelism to improve performance. The traditional doubling of clock speeds every 18-24 months is being replaced by a doubling of cores or other parallelism mechanisms. During the next decade the amount of parallelism on a single microprocessor will rival the number of nodes in early massively parallel supercomputers that were built in the 1980s. Applications and algorithms will need to change and adapt as node architectures evolve. In particular, they will need to manage locality to achieve performance. A key element of the strategy as we move forward is the co-design of applications, architectures and programming environments. There is an unprecedented opportunity for application and algorithm developers to influence the direction of future architectures so that they meet DOE mission needs. This article will describe the technology challenges on the road to exascale, their underlying causes, and their effect on the future of HPC system design.
Approaches to Synthesis and Characterization of Spherical and Anisotropic Palladium Nanomaterials

Palladium's role in the catalysis of various chemical reactions has resulted in a strong interest towards the development of straightforward synthetic methods for its preparation on the nanoscale. In this chapter we review some of the most significant advances that have been made in the synthesis of palladium particles with nanoscale dimensions. Approaches to control the morphology are described, with an emphasis on reactions that have produced uniform particles with well-defined sizes and shapes in high yields. In addition, several characterization techniques that have been employed to elucidate the morphology of the particles are illustrated. Finally, we briefly outline the applications of palladium nanoparticles as they relate to the life sciences. Keywords: palladium; nanoparticles; synthesis; size-control; shape-control; isotropic nanoparticles; anisotropic nanoparticles; stabilizers