cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Using virtualization for high availability and disaster recovery

Traditional high-availability and disaster recovery solutions require proprietary hardware, complex configurations, applicationspecific logic, highly skilled personnel, and a rigorous and lengthy testing process. The resulting high costs have limited their adoption to environments with the most critical applications. However, high availability and disaster recovery are becoming increasingly important in many environments that cannot bear the complexity and the expense involved. In this paper, we show that virtualization can be used to develop solutions that meet this market demand. We describe the recently released Virtual Availability Manager (VAM) product offering, which provides simplified availability solutions using Xent-based virtualization, and which is available as part of the IBM Systems Director product. We present key design principles of VAM, explain its architecture and current capabilities, and describe the way it is being extended to enable recovery in case of disaster.
Hierarchical multigrid strategy for efficiency improvement of the GPST inversion algorithm

Abstract The efficiency of the Generalized Pulse-Spectrum Technique (GPST) inversion algorithm is further improved by the introduction of a hierarchical multigrid strategy in combination with the existing re-structuralization of algorithm. This hierarchical multigrid strategy for solving inverse problems of partial differential equations (PDEs) has nothing in common with the standard multigrid algorithms for solving direct problems of PDEs except that in both cases multiple grids are utilized. Here it is used to solve one-parameter inverse problems of two-dimensional linear evolutional partial differential equations. A simple computational complexity analysis, based upon the floating point arithmetic operation (FLO) count, has been performed. It is found that the FLO count per iteration for this new scheme is of the same order as that for solving the direct problem of the corresponding PDE. Numerical simulations are carried out to test the feasibility and to study the general characteristics of this hierarchical multigrid strategy with algorithm re-structuralization. Indeed, this new computational scheme makes the GPST inversion algorithm much more efficient.
A review of recent research on mechanics of multifunctional composite materials and structures

Abstract In response to the marked increase in research activity and publications in multifunctional materials and structures in the last few years, this article is an attempt to identify the topics that are most relevant to multifunctional composite materials and structures and review representative journal publications that are related to those topics. Articles covering developments in both multiple structural functions and integrated structural and non-structural functions since 2000 are emphasized. Structural functions include mechanical properties like strength, stiffness, fracture toughness, and damping, while non-structural functions include electrical and/or thermal conductivity, sensing and actuation, energy harvesting/storage, self-healing capability, electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding, recyclability and biodegradability. Many of these recent developments are associated with polymeric composite materials and corresponding advances in nanomaterials and nanostructures, as are many of the articles reviewed. The article concludes with a discussion of recent applications of multifunctional materials and structures, such as morphing aircraft wings, structurally integrated electronic components, biomedical nanoparticles for dispensing drugs and diagnostics, and optically transparent impact absorbing structures. Several suggestions regarding future research needs are also presented.
Fluid mechanics of the planar‐flow melt‐spinning process

The planar-flow melt-spinning process which is used to rapidly solidify metals from the molten state is shown to be dominated by the fluid mechanics of the “puddle” region even though heat-transfer limits the overall thickness of the metal ribbon product. The process is modeled to account for the hydrodynamical forces in the molten region with the influence of heat-transfer entering through a parameter measuring solidification rate relative to wheel speed. It is shown that this parameter H controls the deviation of the flow behavior from classical coating flow solutions; these solutions are recovered in a limiting case of low solidification rate. A perturbation solution in H distinguishes the melt spinning from the coating process and yields the ribbon thickness as a function of wheel-speed and the other process parameters for a class of contact-line conditions. Most interesting of these predictions is the result that under certain conditions there is a window of wheel-speeds for which there is no steady solution. The relationship of predictions with the limited available data from experiment is briefly discussed.
Chromatic adaptation in hard copy/soft copy comparisons

The human visual system has evolved with a sophisticated set of mechanisms to produce stable perceptions of object colors across changes in illumination. This phenomenon is typically referred to as chromatic adaptation or color constancy. When viewing scenes or hard-copy reproductions, it is generally assumed that one adapts almost completely to the color and luminance of the prevailing light source. This is likely not the case when soft-copy image displays are viewed. Differences in the degree of chromatic adaptation to hard-copy and soft- copy displays point to two types of chromatic-adaptation mechanisms: sensory and cognitive. Sensory mechanisms are those that act automatically in response to the stimulus, such as retinal gain control. Cognitive mechanisms are those that rely on observers' knowledge of scene content. A series of experiments that measured the spatial, temporal, and chromatic properties of chromatic-adaptation mechanisms are reviewed and a mathematical model for predicting these chromatic adaptation effects is briefly described along with some practical recommendations, based on psychophysical experiments, on how to approach these problems in typical cross-media color reproduction situations.
A Time to Learn: A Comparison of Policies Dealing with Clergy Sexual Misconduct

This is the first article to compare a variety of religious organizations’ codes of conduct when dealing with clergy sexual misconduct. The comparison of codes from Catholic, Protestant and Jewish institutions provide a valuable indication of how this important and complex set of issues is being approached. Moreover, the sharing of information contained in this article will encourage clergy based organizations to learn from the practices of others in order to improve their regulatory procedures. In addition, it is hoped that as religious institutions learn from each other, stronger and more effective responses will be developed to address clergy boundary violations.
Effects of Diets Containing Fish Oil and Vitamin E on Rheumatoid Arthritis

Animal, tissue culture, and human studies have evaluated the effects of fish oil supplementation in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) over the last two decades. These studies have clearly shown potentially beneficial changes in cytokine and eicosanoid metabolism. The overall clinical improvement, however, has been only moderate. European clinical trials have shown significant pain reduction in patients with RA treated with vitamin E. A recent animal study in RA-prone mice evaluated the effects of vitamin E in addition to omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids on cytokine and eicosanoid production. The authors suggest that vitamin E might have an additional positive effect on autoimmune disease by decreasing proinflammatory cytokines and lipid mediators. Is this information ultimately important in terms of dietary advice for patients with RA? Are further clinical trials indicated? The following article will present a brief critical review.
State greenhouse gas reduction policies: a move in the right direction?

The lack of significant efforts at the national level to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) in the United States has provided the impetus for a number of state programs. This article assesses the efficiency of these programs in making real progress in GHG reductions. It also explores the effect of state programs on the eventual adoption of a strong national GHG mitigation policy. While state programs are likely to demonstrate the viability of new mitigation approaches, they are also likely to create a set of expectations and precedents that will make a strong and coherent national policy more difficult.
Atomistic Simulations of Oleic Imidazolines Bound to Ferric Clusters

The oleic imidazoline (OI) class of molecules is used extensively for corrosion inhibitor oil field pipeline applications. However, there is no model for understanding how they work. As a first step in elucidating this mechanism we carried out quantum mechanical calculations on clusters involving Fe3+, H2O, OH, and OI. These calculations are used to determine the MS force field for molecular dynamics simulations.
Dirofilaria immitis: Parasite-specific humoral and cellular immune responses in experimentally infected dogs

Abstract Humoral and cellular immune responses to adult antigens of Dirofilaria immitis were evaluated in experimentally infected dogs during the chronic phase of infection. All infected dogs had significantly elevated IgG (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay) and IgE (passive cutaneous anaphylaxis) titers against D. immitis adult antigens. However, there was little difference between infected dogs and uninfected controls in cellular-immune responses to D. immitis adult antigen or phytohemagglutinin as assessed by the lymphocyte transformation assay. Although neither cellular nor humoral responses correlated with worm burdens, cellular responses among infected dogs correlated inversely with IgG titers to D. immitis adult antigen. These results are consistent with observations in other nematode and trematode systems which suggest that in chronic tissue helminth infections there is suppression of cellular immune responses to parasite antigens while humoral responses to the same antigens remain relatively preserved.
Reactions of Thiiranes and a Thietane with a High Valent Metal Chloride

Ethylene sulfide and propylene sulfide react with the high valent metal complex Cp‘ReCl4 (Cp‘ = EtMe4C5) in THF solution to form a product with a chloroalkyl disulfide ligand of the formula Cp‘Re(Cl)3−S−S−CH(R)CH2Cl (R = H or Me). In contrast, the thietane S(CH2)3 reacts with Cp‘ReCl4 to form a simple adduct, and no ring-opening reaction has been identified.
Gender Inequality in the Labor Market A Cross-National Perspective

While women earn less, on average, than men in all advanced industrialized countries, countries vary in the size of the gender earnings gap We use data from nine advanced industrialized democracies...
Substituent effects in addition of iodine thiocyanate to alkenes

Abstract The plots of logarithms of relative rates of ISCN addition to alkenes versus alkene IPs and versus alkene HOMO energies reveal that the alkene relative reactivity depends upon both electronic and steric effects of the substituents. Steric effects are related not only to the degree of substitution on the C C bond but also to the relative position, size, and branching of alkyl substituents.
Ethics in Context: the Thessalonians and their neighbours

First Thessalonians was written within a few months, following the conversion of Paul’s Greek readers, and reflects how his ethical teaching was part of his proclamation. Paul’s preaching of the gospel, intimately connected with the kind of person he was, brought about a close personal relationship between him and his converts. Whilst he stood as a moral model for them, he nevertheless spoke for God, and thus, his ethical instruction was grounded theologically. His converts would have understood how moral dicta, with which they were familiar, were derived from philosophy, but not from religion, as Jews and Christians held. In the overtly paraenetic sections of the letter (ch. 4 and 5), Paul was at great pains to underline this connection, which was the main point he was making.
The Fertility Effects of Marriage Patterns in a Frontier American Population

This paper [examines] the marital and fertility experience of women born between 1800 and 1899 who participated in the settlement colonization and development of a region that marked one of the last frontier settlements in [U.S.] history. The focus is on the effects of different marriage patterns particularly polygyny on fertility. "In conclusion cumulative fertility behavior within periods of exposure was found to be similar across substantial variations in both marital histories and arrangements." (EXCERPT)
Utilization approaches and psychodynamic psychotherapy in a case of hospital phobia: an integrated approach.

Milton Erickson's approaches, including utilization techniques, were integrated with psychodynamically oriented psychotherapy in the treatment of a woman with a hospital phobia. The patient was a 28-year-old married woman who met the criteria for both Somatoform Disorder and Dependent Personality Disorder, and who had a variety of obsessive and compulsive personality traits. In trance the patient was given permission to replace many aspects of the hospital setting (e.g., driving to the hospital, checking in, talking with nurses, etc.) with interactions with certain emotionally meaningful people from her past. The outcome was that the hospital experience was quite pleasurable, as have been subsequent hospitalizations. Two years later, the patient discussed her hypnotic experience and reported an increase in positive transference and also an increase in her ability to cope with other difficult aspects of her life.
Ribosomes: Cashing in on crystals

Structures of the ribosome and its two subunits have been determined by X-ray crystallography at resolutions sufficient to reveal interactions between RNA and protein in the subunits and orientations of substrates at the subunit interface in the intact ribosome.
Ethical considerations in the integration of religion and psychotherapy: three perspectives

The authors maintain that the integration of religion in psychotherapy is, at best, problematic and requires a respect for boundaries, but that the integration of a nonreligious but spiritual psychotherapy consisting of the three elements identified above (attention to the person, not the disease, considering one's work as vocation, and the pursuit of empathic understanding) is a therapeutic necessity and an ethical duty. The authors speak with distinct voices in the three major sections of the article but come to remarkably similar conclusions: (1) the ability to inquire into the religious and spiritual life of patients is an important element of psychotherapeutic competency; (2) information about the religious and spiritual lives of patients often reveals extremely important information; (3) the inquiry process must communicate respect and curiosity for this dimension of the patient's life even (and perhaps especially) when the content is at variance from that of the therapist; and (4) there is significant potential for therapeutic abuse when the therapist communicates in a manner reflecting a personal agenda that abandons the principle of psychotherapeutic neutrality. One area of potential disagreement came as the authors considered the possibility of different combinations of faith disciplines and therapy in designated religious settings that all parties recognize as such. One author (G.P.M.) believes that such combinations in these settings may be ethically permissible. The other two authors are concerned about such combinations because of the powerful but covert factor of transference in healing relationships. The authors eventually decided that this question was beyond the scope of the article and limited themselves to discussions about psychotherapy in secular settings. They each advocate the systematic inclusion of spiritual assessment as a core competency for psychotherapy education. In a way similar to the exploration of any deeply personal dimension of human experience, integrating spiritual and religious dimensions of our patients' lives into their treatment requires consummate professionalism, the highest quality of knowledge, skills, and attitudes, and thorough grounding in a sophisticated biopsychosocial model.
Chemical, electrical, and structural properties of Ni/Au contacts on chemical vapor cleaned p-type GaN

Chemical vapor cleaned, Mg-doped, p-type GaN(0001) surfaces and Ni/Au contacts deposited on these surfaces have been studied using several characterization techniques. Stoichiometric surfaces without detectable carbon and an 87% reduction in the surface oxygen to 2±1 at. % were achieved. The binding energies of the Ga 3d and N 1s core level photoelectron peaks were reduced by 0.5±0.1 eV following the chemical vapor clean. The band bending at the clean surface was measured to be 0.8±0.1 eV. As-deposited Ni/Au contacts on chemical vapor cleaned surfaces exhibited significantly less rectification in the low voltage region (<2 V) compared to identical contact structures on conventional HCl treated surfaces. The specific contact resistance of these contacts deposited on chemical vapor cleaned surfaces and subsequently annealed at 450 °C for 30 seconds was 3±2 Ω cm2. Improved ohmic behavior and a specific contact resistance of 4±2 Ω cm2 was obtained for contacts deposited on HCl treated surfaces and annealed us...
Application of shift-invariant wavelet transform to video coding

The standard discrete wavelet transform lacks translation invariance in 1-D signals and 2-D images. The down-sampling at each coarser scale accentuates the undesirable effects of the shift-variance, in particular, on the motion estimation from decomposed subimages in video coding. In this paper, we present a study of applying the Chui-Shi shift-invariant wavelet transform using 'oversampling frames' to video compression. Further, we present an algorithm for approximating the motion fields at different scales and different frequency bands by utilizing the multiresolution structure of wavelet decomposition. Motion vectors at a higher resolution are predicted by the motion vectors at a lower resolution through a proper scaling. Experimental results on a salesman video sequence show that the use of the 2-D oversampling algorithm of a biorthogonal spline wavelet has reduced the required number of motion vectors while maintaining an acceptable prediction error when compared to the classical block matching technique using the standard wavelet transform. The proposed approach will advance the video compression methodology for applications to HDTV and video conferencing.© (1997) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Emergence of a subpopulation in a computational model of tumor growth

Abstract Malignant brain tumors consist of a number of distinct subclonal populations. Each of these subpopulations may be characterized by its own behaviors and properties. These subpopulations arise from the constant genetic and epigenetic alteration of existing cells in the rapidly growing tumor. However, since each single-cell mutation only leads to a small number of offspring initially, very few newly arisen subpopulations survive more than a short time. The present work quantifies “emergence”, i.e. the likelihood of an isolated subpopulation surviving for an extended period of time. Only competition between clones is considered; there are no cooperative effects included. The probability that a subpopulation emerges under these conditions is found to be a sigmoidal function of the degree of change in cell division rates. This function has a non-zero value for mutations which confer no advantage in growth rate, which represents the emergence of a distinct subpopulation with an advantage that has yet to be selected for, such as hypoxia tolerance or treatment resistance. A logarithmic dependence on the size of the mutated population is also observed. A significant probability of emergence is observed for subpopulations with any growth advantage that comprise even 0.1% of the proliferative cells in a tumor. The impact of even two clonal populations within a tumor is shown to be sufficient such that a prognosis based on the assumption of a monoclonal tumor can be markedly inaccurate.
THE SYNTHESES OF DEOXYRIBONUCLEIC ACID AND HISTONE IN THE ONION ROOT MERISTEM

A comparison of the times necessary to incorporate tritium-labeled lysine and arginine into histones and tritium-labeled thymidine into DNA indicates that the periods of DNA and histone synthesis prior to division closely coincide. (The comparison was made by determining the times necessary, after pulse labeling, for cells with marked chromosomes to enter and then leave the division stages.) An additional period of chromosomal protein synthesis, of short duration, occurs late in interphase. Most of the chromosomal proteins appear either to be synthesized in the nucleus or to migrate there shortly after synthesis. Much of this protein is conserved from one division to the next. Studies of the effects of puromycin and fluorodeoxyuridine on the syntheses of DNA and histone suggest that continuation of DNA synthesis is dependent on a concurrent protein synthesis. Histone synthesis, on the other hand, can proceed at a normal rate under conditions in which DNA synthesis is inhibited.
An effect of pactamycin on the initiation of protein synthesis in reticulocytes.

Low levels of pactamycin (about 10−6 M) stop polypeptide synthesis by intact reticulocytes and their lysates after a lag of about two minutes. This effect which is similar to that of poly A, an inhibitor of polypeptide chain initiation, is not additive to that of poly A. Cells which have been pretreated with NaF and must form new polypeptide chains are more sensitive to pactamycin than cells which are able to complete pre-existing chains. High levels of pactamycin (⩾10−5 M) inhibit elongation in addition to initiation. 3H-pactamycin binds to 80S ribosomes and the 40S subunits at 0°. Monosomes produced by NaF treatment of reticulocytes bind 3H-pactamycin very effectively, whereas those produced by RNase treatment of polyribosomes do not.
Transmission disequilibrium mapping at the serotonin transporter gene ( SLC6A4 ) region in autistic disorder

The serotonin transporter gene (SLC6A4, MIM 182138) is a candidate gene in autistic disorder based on neurochemical, neuroendocrine studies and the efficacy of potent serotonin transporter inhibitors in reducing ritualistic behaviors and related aggression. An insertion/deletion polymorphism (5-HTTLPR) in the promoter region and a variable number of tandem repeat polymorphism (VNTR) in the second intron, were previously identified and suggested to modulate transcription. Six previous family-based association studies of SLC6A4 in autistic disorder have been conducted, with four studies showing nominally significant transmission disequilibrium and two studies with no evidence of nominally significant transmission disequilibrium. In the present study, TDT was conducted in 81 new trios. A previous finding of transmission disequilibrium between a haplotype consisting of the 5-HTTLPR and intron 2 VNTR was replicated in this study, but not preferential transmission of 5-HTTLPR as an independent marker. Because of inconsistent transmission of 5-HTTLPR across studies, SLC6A4 and its flanking regions were sequenced in 10 probands, followed by typing of 20 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and seven simple sequence repeat (SSR) polymorphisms in 115 autism trios. When individual markers were analyzed by TDT, seven SNP markers and four SSR markers (six SNPs, 5-HTTLPR and the second intron VNTR from promoter 1A through intron 2 of SLC6A4, one SSR from intron 7 of SLC6A4, one SNP from the bleomycin hydrolase gene (BLMH, MIM 602403) and one SSR telomeric to BLMH) showed nominally significant evidence of transmission disequilibrium. Four markers showed stronger evidence of transmission disequilibrium (TDT(max) P = 0.0005) than 5-HTTLPR.
A Practical Approach to Identifying Mortality-Related Factors in Established Long-Term Care Residents

OBJECTIVE: Determining prognosis is an important part of medical planning for long-term care residents. Clarifying the resident characteristics associated with increased mortality has received little attention from investigators, and many approaches that have been suggested are unsuitable for widespread use. Using a readily available database, we sought to determine factors associated with 1-year mortality in established long-term care residents. DESIGN: A retrospective cohort study. SETTING: A 725-bed long-term care facility. MEASUREMENTS: We examined Minimum Data Set (MDS) information on 780 residents from April 1994 through August 1997. The association between death and 65 resident factors, covering a broad array of physical, functional, medical, and psychosocial measures, was examined initially in bivariate proportional hazards models. Putative factors with P values <.10 in bivariate analysis were considered in the multivariate analysis. Using these factors, we employed a forward step-wise multivariate proportional hazards regression method to select the set of factors associated independently with mortality at a P value <.05. A mortality score was developed by assigning points to each factor based on the risk ratio in the multivariate proportional hazards model. The performance characteristics of the model were examined using logistic regression. RESULTS: Forty-four of the 65 factors examined were associated with 1-year mortality in bivariate proportional hazards analysis. Eight of these 44 factors were associated with 1-year mortality in the multivariate proportional hazards regression. These factors were functional impairment, weight loss, shortness of breath, male gender, low body mass index, swallowing problems, congestive heart failure, and advanced age. A higher mortality score was associated with a higher death rate in the subsequent year. The model demonstrated good performance with an area under the ROC curve of 0.77. CONCLUSIONS: Using a widely available database that requires no additional medical testing or staff training, a useful model for identifying factors associated with 1-year mortality in established long-term care residents can be developed. Widespread use of such a practical approach to assess mortality risk could be of benefit to patients, their families, and physicians for informing care plan decisions. J Am Geriatr Soc 46:1012–1015, 1998.
Operative management of Marfan syndrome: the Johns Hopkins experience

Abstract Background . Doctor Antoine Marfan described the first case of Marfan syndrome in 1896. It was over 50 years later that the development of aortic aneurysms and subsequent rupture was appreciated as the most life-threatening component of the syndrome. Methods . Doctor Vincent Gott, at our institution, performed the first Bentall procedure for an aneurysm of the ascending aorta in 1976. Since that time, the aortic root has been replaced in 231 Marfan patients. Of this group, 218 patients had a composite graft repair, 11 had an aortic root replacement with a homograft, and 2 patients had valve sparing procedures. There were 168 males and 63 females. Of the total 231 patients, 150 were operated on by Dr Gott. The remaining 81 patients were operated on by 10 other Hopkins surgeons. The average diameter of the ascending aorta was 6.8 cm, with a range from 4.5 to 10. The average aortic diameter of 43 patients who had an ascending aortic dissection was 7.3 cm. Fourteen of these patients had dissection with an aortic diameter of 6.5 cm or less. Results . Among the 198 patients who underwent elective repair, there was no 30-day mortality. Thirty-three patients underwent urgent repair with 2 deaths, yielding a 30-day mortality of 6.1%. The mortality for the entire group of patients was 0.9%. Complications associated with this series of patients included 8 with endocarditis, 7 with thromboembolism, and 4 late coronary dehiscences. Actuarial survival was 88% at 5 years, 81% at 10 years, and 75% at 20 years. Multivariate analysis revealed New York Heart Association classification, male gender and urgent surgery as independent risk factors for mortality. Conclusion . Marfan patients with aortic aneurysms can undergo elective surgery with a low operative risk and excellent long-term survival with low morbidity. We feel that elective resection of an aneurysm in a Marfan patient should occur when it approaches a diameter of 5.5 cm. It is essential that a timely diagnosis be made in this group of young patients.
Cell migration: Going my way?

That ratchet-shaped structures patterned on a surface can direct the otherwise random motion of living cells across it is perhaps unsurprising. But that the direction of this motion depends on the type of cell is remarkable and potentially useful.
The Priority of Racial Constituency over Descriptive Representation

Several normative political theorists argue for racially descriptive representation, or for blacks to represent blacks. I contend that if theorists believe that blacks deserve additional measures to improve their substantive political representation, then they should prioritize the creation of racial constituencies independently of whether such constituencies elect black representatives. Prioritizing racial constituency circumvents essentialism within descriptive representation and better reflects the role of electoral authorization and accountability in generating trust between representatives and constituents. As a result, descriptive representation becomes one of several criteria (along with other identity markers, ideological proximity, and general competence and trustworthiness) to be applied by a racial constituency in selecting a preferable representative. Ultimately, prioritizing racial constituency allows normative theorists to affirm, without philosophical contradiction, the existence of black d...
Molecular phylogenetic information on the identity of the closest living relative(s) of land vertebrates.

The phylogenetic position of tetrapods relative to the other two living sarcopterygian lineages (lungfishes and the coelacanth) has been subject to debate for many decades, yet remains unresolved. There are three possible alternatives for the phylogenetic relationships among these three living lineages of sarcopterygians, i.e., lungfish as living sister group of tetrapods, the coelacanth as closest living relative of tetrapods, and lungfish and coelacanth equally closely related to tetrapods. To resolve this important evolutionary question several molecular data sets have been collected in recent years, the largest being the almost complete 28S rRNA gene sequences (about 3500 bp) and the complete mitochondrial genomes of the coelacanth and a lungfish (about 16,500 bp each). Phylogenetic analyses of several molecular data sets had not provided unequivocal support for any of the three hypotheses. However, a lungfish + tetrapod or a lungfish + coelacanth clade were predominantly favored over a coelacanth + tetrapod grouping when the entire mitochondrial genomes alone or in combination with the nuclear 28S rRNA gene data were analyzed with maximum parsimony, neighbor-joining, and maximum likelihood phylogenetic methods. Also, current paleontological and morphological data seem to concur with these molecular results. Therefore the currently available molecular data seems to rule out a coelacanth + tetrapod relationship, the traditional textbook hypothesis. These tentative molecular phylogenetic results point to the inherent difficulty in resolving relationships among lineages which apparently originated in rapid succession during the Devonian.
Verification and validation of language processing systems: is it evaluation?

If Natural Language Processing (NLP) systems are viewed as intelligent systems then we should be able to make use of verification and validation (V&V) approaches and methods that have been developed in the intelligent systems community. This paper addresses language engineering infrastructure issues by considering whether standard V&V methods are fundamentally different than the evaluation practices commonly used for NLP systems, and proposes practical approaches for applying V&V in the context of language processing systems. We argue that evaluation, as it is performed in the NL community, can be improved by supplementing it with methods from the V&V community.
Physical activity-related experiences, counseling expectations, personal responsibility, and altruism among urban African American women with type 2 diabetes.

PurposeThe purpose of this study was to explore physical activity-related experiences, perceptions, and counseling expectations among urban, underactive, African American women with type 2 diabetes...
Direct speciation of chromium in coal combustion by-products by X-ray absorption fine-structure spectroscopy

Abstract Chromium X-ray absorption fine-structure (XAFS) spectroscopy has been used to determine the relative amounts of Cr(VI) and Cr(III) in coal combustion by-products, principally fly-ash and bottom ash. The method, which is based on the relative heights of the pre-edge peaks for the different Cr oxidation states in X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) spectra, can be used to speciate as little as 50 ppm of chromium in ash. The results indicate that the fraction of Cr(VI) oxidation state present in combustion ash samples from most commercial combustion plants is typically below or close to the detection limit (approximately 3–5% of the total chromium). There are exceptions, however, that have been found to reach as high as 20%. Such findings provide justification for a reappraisal of whether or not chromium should be considered a significant hazardous air pollutant in coal combustion.
A system analysis of a GNSS augmentation data link

The advent of the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) is having a profound impact on surveying, mapping, and navigation. Nowhere is this more evident than in civil aviation. In addition to the capability for cost effective precise positioning and navigation there is now the possibility to conceive systems based on this technology that for the first time can provide automatic dependent surveillance (ADS), cockpit display of traffic information (CDTI), and collision avoidance (CA) functions. To accomplish these functions a complementary data link is needed. Preferably this data link can enable the needed functionality without the need for the creation of an extensive ground infrastructure on behalf of the government and yet provide aircraft operators with a system with which they voluntarily desire to equip without the need for mandatory and artificially expensive equipage. This paper addresses a concept to accomplish these desired aviation functions which will be referred to here as the GNSS augmentation data link (GADL). >
VerSum: Verifiable Computations over Large Public Logs

VerSum allows lightweight clients to outsource expensive computations over large and frequently changing data structures, such as the Bitcoin or Namecoin blockchains, or a Certificate Transparency log. VerSum clients ensure that the output is correct by comparing the outputs from multiple servers. VerSum assumes that at least one server is honest, and crucially, when servers disagree, VerSum uses an efficient conflict resolution protocol to determine which server(s) made a mistake and thus obtain the correct output. VerSum's contribution lies in achieving low server-side overhead for both incremental re-computation and conflict resolution, using three key ideas: (1) representing the computation as a functional program, which allows memoization of previous results; (2) recording the evaluation trace of the functional program in a carefully designed computation history to help clients determine which server made a mistake; and (3) introducing a new authenticated data structure for sequences, called SeqHash, that makes it efficient for servers to construct summaries of computation histories in the presence of incremental re-computation. Experimental results with an implementation of VerSum show that VerSum can be used for a variety of computations, that it can support many clients, and that it can easily keep up with Bitcoin's rate of new blocks with transactions.
Insulin stimulates protein synthesis and phospholipid signaling systems but does not regulate glucose uptake in the inner ear

High-affinity insulin receptors exist in the organ of Corti (Kd = 1.1 +/- 0.5 nM) and in the lateral wall (stria vascularis and ligamentum spirale; Kd = 1.1 +/- 0.4 nM) of the inner ear of the guinea pig as determined by the binding of radiolabeled porcine or bovine insulin in vitro. Carrier-mediated transport of glucose (defined as the cytochalasin B-sensitive part of total uptake) was measured in vitro with 2-deoxy-D-glucose as the substrate. Its Km was 188 microM in the lateral wall (r = 0.99 and 0.94, respectively). Neither the Km nor the rates of transport (0.20 +/- 0.10 pmol/micrograms protein/hr in the organ of Corti, and 0.56 +/- 0.34 pmol/micrograms protein/hr in the lateral was) were affected by insulin. In contrast, 0.1 mM ouabain decreased deoxyglucose uptake in the organ or Corti by 37% and in the lateral wall tissues by 45% indicating the presence of an active, Na(+)-dependent transporter in these tissues. Insulin influenced both protein and lipid metabolism in the inner ear. Proteins and lipids were labeled in situ by perfusion of the perilymphatic space of the cochlea with [3]-leucine or [32P]-orthophosphate and [3H]-glycerol, respectively. Thirty nM insulin stimulated the incorporation of [3H]-leucine into protein of the organ of Corti from 39 to 56 pmol/mg protein but was ineffective in the tissues of the lateral wall. In the organ of Corti, [32P]-orthophosphate was incorporated into the phosphoinositides and phosphatidate, and 30 nM insulin increased this incorporation by 101 to 149%.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Carbonic Anhydrase IX Expression Predicts Outcome of Interleukin 2 Therapy for Renal Cancer

Purpose: Renal cancer response to interleukin 2 (IL-2) therapy and patient survival has been correlated with tumor histology and carbonic anhydrase IX (CAIX) expression. In an effort to confirm and expand these observations, we examined CAIX expression in pathology specimens from renal cancer patients who had previously received IL-2 therapy. Experimental Design: Paraffin-embedded tissue sections of renal cancer were immunostained with the MN-75 monoclonal antibody to CAIX and expression levels were correlated with histologic findings and clinical outcome. Results: Tissue specimens were obtained from 66 patients; 27 of whom (41%) had responded to IL-2–based therapy. Fifty-eight specimens were assessed as clear cell, with 56, 33, and 4 having alveolar, granular, and papillary features, respectively. Twenty-four (36%), 31 (47%), and 11 (17%) were classified into good, intermediate, and poor prognosis groups according to the Upton pathology model. Forty-one specimens (62%) had high CAIX expression. Twenty-one of 27 (78%) responding patients had high CAIX expressing tumors compared with 20 of 39 (51%) nonresponders (odds ratio, 3.3; P = 0.04). Median survival was prolonged ( P = 0.04) and survival >5 years was only seen in high CAIX expressers. In patients with intermediate pathologic prognosis, all nine responders had high CAIX expression versus 11 of 22 nonresponders. A resultant group with good pathologic prognosis alone or with intermediate pathologic prognosis and high CAIX contained 26 of 27 (96%) responders compared with 18 of 39 (46%) nonresponders (odds ratio, 30; P P Conclusions: CAIX expression seems to be an important predictor of outcome in renal cell carcinoma patients receiving IL-2–based therapy and may enhance prognostic information obtained from pathology specimens.
Social Determinants of Black-White Disparities in Breast Cancer Mortality: A Review

Despite the recent decline in breast cancer mortality, African American women continue to die from breast cancer at higher rates than do White women. Beyond the fact that breast cancer tends to be a more biologically aggressive disease in African American than in White women, this disparity in breast cancer mortality also reflects social barriers that disproportionately affect African American women. These barriers hinder cancer prevention and control efforts and modify the biological expression of disease. The present review focuses on delineating social, economic, and cultural factors that are potentially responsible for Black-White disparities in breast cancer mortality. This review was guided by the social determinants of health disparities model, a model that identifies barriers associated with poverty, culture, and social injustice as major causes of health disparities. These barriers, in concert with genetic, biological, and environmental factors, can promote differential outcomes for African American and White women along the entire breast cancer continuum, from screening and early detection to treatment and survival. Barriers related to poverty include lack of a primary care physician, inadequate health insurance, and poor access to health care. Barriers related to culture include perceived invulnerability, folk beliefs, and a general mistrust of the health care system. Barriers related to social injustice include racial profiling and discrimination. Many of these barriers are potentially modifiable. Thus, in addition to biomedical advancements, future efforts to reduce disparities in breast cancer mortality should address social barriers that perpetuate disparities among African American and White women in the United States.
Key to Freshwater Algae: A Web-based Tool to Enhance Understanding of Microscopic Biodiversity

The Freshwater Ecology Laboratory at Connecticut College has developed an interactive, Web-based identification key to freshwater algal genera using the Lucid Professional and Lucid 3 software developed by the Centre for Biological Information Technology at the University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia. The Key to Freshwater Algae was funded by the National Science Foundation (Award #CCLI-0229531) to encourage awareness of microscopic diversity through a creative, investigative approach to learning. Users may answer questions in any order to quickly and efficiently narrow down the list of taxa to only those that match the characteristics they have chosen. All characters and terms are clearly explained for ease of use by those unfamiliar with the algae. This non-hierarchical, user-friendly key is linked to Web pages containing a wealth of resources, including images, movies, and information about the morphology, ecology, and reproduction of each organism. These materials are especially well suited for classroom use in conjunction with cultures purchased from the Carolina Biological Supply Company, a popular distributor of biological materials. Cultures from the Carolina Biological Supply Company representing nearly 75 freshwater genera from a variety of algal groups were observed and photographed using high resolution digital imaging to fully document cellular structure and highlight distinguishing features. High quality video footage of each taxon incorporating titles, diagrams, and structural terminology was outputted as QuickTime movies, on DVD, and on VHS cassettes. The Key to Freshwater Algae and supplemental materials are available online at http://silicasecchidisk.conncoll.edu to provide an innovative alternative to traditional dichotomous keys that is particularly appropriate for introducing students in undergraduate life science courses to the algal groups and genera.
Dinuclear first-row transition metal complexes with a naphthyridine-based dinucleating ligand

A series of dinuclear and tetranuclear first-row transition metal complexes were synthesized with the dinucleating ligand 2,7-bis(di(2-pyridyl)fluoromethyl)-1,8-naphthyridine (DPFN). The coordination pocket and rigidity of the DPFN ligand enforces pseudo-octahedral geometries about the metal centers that contain chloro, hydroxo, and aqua bridging ligands forming a “diamond” shaped configuration with metal–metal distances varying from 2.7826(5) to 3.2410(11) A. Each metal center in the dinuclear complexes has an additional open coordination site that accommodates terminal ligands in a syn geometry of particular interest in catalyst design. The complexes are characterized by electronic spectroscopy, electrochemistry and potentiometric titration methods.
Stark Effect in Color Centers of Alkali Halides

The stark effect of the $F$ center in NaCl, NaBr, KCl, KBr, KI, and RbCl, the $M$ center in KCl, and the ${Z}_{1}$ center in KCl: Sr was measured using an ac electric field. The fractional change of the absorption coefficient, $\frac{\ensuremath{\Delta}\ensuremath{\alpha}}{\ensuremath{\alpha}}$, at the peak of the $F$ band, normalized to a Lorentz local field of 200 kV/cm, was found to be approximately 2\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{\ensuremath{-}5}$ for NaCl and NaBr, 11\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{\ensuremath{-}5}$ for RbCl, and 17\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{\ensuremath{-}5}$ for KCl, KBr, and KI. The value of $\frac{\ensuremath{\Delta}\ensuremath{\alpha}}{\ensuremath{\alpha}}$ at the peak of the $M$ band in KCl was (3.9\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.4)\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{\ensuremath{-}5}$ for an applied electric field of 97 kV/cm. A measurement of the change in the absorption coefficient, $\ensuremath{\Delta}\ensuremath{\alpha}$, versus photon energy produced a nonsymmetrical curve. This indicates that the effect observed was not the linear Stark effect, and thus provides additional evidence that Seitz's model is incorrect. The absorption coefficient increased at energies lower than the $M$ band, corresponding to a decrease in the absorption coefficient of the $M$ band. The effect is attributed to the mixing of two nondegenerate energy levels of opposite parity. The optical transition to the level of lower energy is normally forbidden. The ${Z}_{1}$ center in KCl: Sr did not exhibit a detectable Stark effect. It was determined, however, that $\frac{\ensuremath{\Delta}\ensuremath{\alpha}}{\ensuremath{\alpha}}l8\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{\ensuremath{-}6}$ for an applied electric field of 97 kV/cm. If the ${Z}_{1}$ possesses a permanent dipole moment, the difference between the expectation values of dipole moment in the ground state and excited state is less than 1.0\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{\ensuremath{-}20}$ cgs unit.
Mesoproterozoic Fraser Complex: Geochemical evidence for multiple subduction‐related sources of lower crustal rocks in the Albany‐Fraser Orogen, Western Australia

The 1300 Ma Fraser Complex in the Albany‐Fraser Orogen of Western Australia is a thrust stack of mainly gabbroic rocks metamorphosed to granulite facies. This package of fault‐bounded units was elevated from a deep crustal level onto the margin of the Yilgarn Craton during continental collision between the Mawson and Yilgarn Cratons. Incompatible trace‐element distributions demand at least three mantle sources. Primitive‐mantle‐normalised incompatible‐element distributions show strong negative Ta–Nb anomalies, typical of subduction‐derived magmas. Three lines of evidence indicate that the mafic magmas did not acquire these anomalies by assimilation of crustal rocks: (i) major‐element compositions do not allow appreciable contamination with felsic material; (ii) Ni contents of many mafic rocks are too high for a significant contribution from a felsic assimilant; and (iii) Sr and Nd isotopic data support a largely juvenile source for the magmas that produced the Fraser Complex. Hence, the Ta–Nb anomalies ar...