cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Non-pharmacologic interventions improve comfort and experience among older adults in the Emergency Department.

Abstract Objective Determine if a comfort cart would improve older adults' comfort and facilitate communication during Emergency Department (ED) visits. Methods A comfort cart containing low-cost, non-pharmacological interventions to improve patient comfort and ability to communicate (e.g., hearing amplifiers, reading glasses) were made available to patients aged ≥65 years. Patients and clinicians were surveyed to assess effectiveness. We followed the Standards for Quality Improvement Reporting Excellence: SQUIRE 2.0 guidelines. Results Three hundred patients and 100 providers were surveyed. Among patients, 98.0%, 95.1%, and 67.5% somewhat or strongly agreed that the comfort cart improved comfort, overall experience, and independence, respectively. Among providers, 97.0%, 95.0%, 87.0%, and 83% somewhat or strongly agreed that the comfort cart provided comfort, improved patient satisfaction, increased ability to give compassionate care, and increased patient orientation. Conclusion The comfort cart was an affordable and effective intervention that improved patients' comfort by facilitating communication, wellbeing, and compassionate care delivery.
Daily computed tomography image guidance: Dosimetric advantages outweigh low-dose radiation exposure for treatment of mediastinal lymphoma

CT-guided treatment delivery can improve target localization in mediastinal lymphoma patients treated with "butterfly" intensity-modulated radiotherapy and deep-inspiration breath hold. Although daily CT imaging adds additional radiation exposure, its use may be justified given the greater normal tissue sparing enabled by PTV margin reduction.
Factor Xa: Thrombokinase from Paul Morawitz to J Haskell Milstone

In 1904 Paul Morawitz postulated that an enzyme, which he named thrombokinase, would be the primary activator of prothrombin. Fifty years passed before J Haskell Milstone isolated, purified and functionally characterized the enzyme we now call Factor Xa. This essay summarizes Milstone's work on thrombokinase, and finds context for why his efforts succeeded while others struggled.
Repercussions of Poor Broadband Connectivity for Students in Rural and Small Town Michigan

This paper examines the repercussions of discrepancies in Internet connectivity for high school students in rural and small-town locations in Michigan. It provides detailed analyses of the interrelations between broadband connectivity, educational outcomes, digital skills, and broader life outcomes. While the disadvantages of insufficient Internet access are well established, existing research has not fully investigated the extent of student performance gaps resulting from varying levels of home connectivity. Our research uses a granular, yet fully de-identified original data set focused on rural broadband access that allows assessing the effects of discrepancies in connectivity on several measures of educational achievement, including grades, standardized test scores, and educational aspirations. With the help of intermediate school districts and Merit Network, we collected and combined information from three sources: a detailed survey of middle and high school students from 173 classrooms in 15 predominately rural Michigan school districts, SAT/PSAT standardized test scores, and home speed tests. This approach resulted in unique original data set of 3,258 observations. This data includes many households that are either cell phone dependent or cannot get broadband access at home (see Hampton et al., 2020). The paper explores the relations among infrastructure, sociodemographic variables, and student achievement outcomes, using multiple statistical approaches, including hierarchical linear models to address the nested structure of the relationships and path analysis. We find that students who do not have access to the Internet from home or are dependent on a cell phone only for access, perform lower on a range of metrics, including digital skills, homework completion, and grades. Students lacking home Internet, and those dependent on a cell phone, are also less likely to consider post-secondary education. A deficit in digital skills compounds inequalities in access, contributing to lower standardized test scores and less interest in STEM careers. Consequently, lack of broadband access not only impacts school performance, but also has broader repercussions for career choice, life income, and the ability to adapt to emerging demands of the workforce. We believe the findings are generalizable to rural America. Our analysis suggests that infrastructure availability and sociodemographic factors affect outcomes. Unlike most sociodemographic factors, access affects outcomes in indirect paths, particularly through its effects on digital skill. Based on these findings we offer policy considerations and practical recommendations for narrowing and eliminating these digital inequalities. Our analysis suggests a multi-pronged, polycentric policy approach. Whereas it is important to mobilize local creativity and initiatives, effective measures require the collaboration of local, state and federal decision-makers across traditional boundaries and jurisdictions.
Improving the Selectivity of an Osseointegrated Neural Interface: Proof of Concept For Housing Sieve Electrode Arrays in the Medullary Canal of Long Bones.

Sieve electrodes stand poised to deliver the selectivity required for driving advanced prosthetics but are considered inherently invasive and lack the stability required for a chronic solution. This proof of concept experiment investigates the potential for the housing and engagement of a sieve electrode within the medullary canal as part of an osseointegrated neural interface (ONI) for greater selectivity towards improving prosthetic control. The working hypotheses are that A) the addition of a sieve interface to a cuff electrode housed within the medullary canal of the femur as part of an ONI would be capable of measuring efferent and afferent compound nerve action potentials through a greater number of channels; B) that signaling improves over time; and C) that stimulation at this interface generates measurable cortical somatosensory evoked potentials through a greater number of channels. The modified ONI was tested in a rabbit (n=1) amputation model over 12 weeks, comparing the sieve component to the cuff, and subsequently compared to historical data. Efferent compound nerve action potentials were successfully recorded from the sieve demonstrating physiological improvements in compound nerve action potentials between weeks 3 and 5, and somatosensory cortical responses recorded at 12 weeks postoperatively. This demonstrates that sieve electrodes can be housed and function within the medullary canal, demonstrated by improved nerve engagement and distinct cortical sensory feedback. This data presents the conceptual framework for housing more sophisticated sieve electrodes in bone as part of an ONI for improving selectivity with percutaneous connectivity towards improved prosthetic control.
Mass spectrometric based detection of protein nucleotidylation in the RNA polymerase of SARS-CoV-2

Coronaviruses, like severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), encode a nucleotidyl transferase in the N-terminal (NiRAN) domain of the nonstructural protein (nsp) 12 protein within the RNA dependent RNA polymerase. Here we show the detection of guanosine monophosphate (GMP) and uridine monophosphate-modified amino acids in nidovirus proteins using heavy isotope-assisted mass spectrometry (MS) and MS/MS peptide sequencing. We identified lysine-143 in the equine arteritis virus (EAV) protein, nsp7, as a primary site of in vitro GMP attachment via a phosphoramide bond. In SARS-CoV-2 replicase proteins, we demonstrate nsp12-mediated nucleotidylation of nsp7 lysine-2. Our results demonstrate new strategies for detecting GMP-peptide linkages that can be adapted for higher throughput screening using mass spectrometric technologies. These data are expected to be important for a rapid and timely characterization of a new enzymatic activity in SARS-CoV-2 that may be an attractive drug target aimed at limiting viral replication in infected patients.
Optically-addressed spatial light modulators

Abstract The performance characteristics of three unique optically-addressed spatial light modulators (SLMs) have been experimentally investigated. The measured parameters include resolution, visibility, imaging response time, and write light sensitivity. The modulators investigated include two relatively new technologies, the ferroelectric liquid crystal (FLC) SLM from the University of Colorado-Boulder and the amorphous silicon photoconductive twisted nematic liquid crystal SLM from GEC-Marconi Research, and a well-established industry benchmark, the Hughes Liquid Crystal Light Valve (LCLV).
A scalable snoopy coherence scheme on distributed shared-memory multiprocessors

The authors present a scalable snoopy scheme based on a single-hop-connected multiple-bus topology. To reduce the hardware complexity, each processor will snoop on a dynamically changing subset of the buses. The physically-distributed-logically-shared memory model is chosen to let processors take advantage of local memory accesses for private data. The proposed scheme can enjoy fast memory access and can also take advantage of greater scalability. At the same time, the number of transceivers can grow naturally with the number of processors in the system. Comparing this solution with the directory schemes and the traditional snoopy coherent schemes indicates that the performance of the scheme is promising.
Self-attending RNN for Speech Enhancement to Improve Cross-corpus Generalization.

Deep neural networks (DNNs) represent the mainstream methodology for supervised speech enhancement, primarily due to their capability to model complex functions using hierarchical representations. However, a recent study revealed that DNNs trained on a single corpus fail to generalize to untrained corpora, especially in low signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) conditions. Developing a noise, speaker, and corpus independent speech enhancement algorithm is essential for real-world applications. In this study, we propose a self-attending recurrent neural network(SARNN) for time-domain speech enhancement to improve cross-corpus generalization. SARNN comprises of recurrent neural networks (RNNs) augmented with self-attention blocks and feedforward blocks. We evaluate SARNN on different corpora with nonstationary noises in low SNR conditions. Experimental results demonstrate that SARNN substantially outperforms competitive approaches to time-domain speech enhancement, such as RNNs and dual-path SARNNs. Additionally, we report an important finding that the two popular approaches to speech enhancement: complex spectral mapping and time-domain enhancement, obtain similar results for RNN and SARNN with large-scale training. We also provide a challenging subset of the test set used in this study for evaluating future algorithms and facilitating direct comparisons.
O16.4 Impact of Defunding Family Planning Health Centers on Gonorrhea and Chlamydia Cases in Iowa: A Longitudinal Spatiotemporal Analysis of 2000–2018

Background Family planning health centers (FPHCs) provide low-income individuals in rural areas with essential primary care services, including STD prevention, testing, and treatment. Fifteen states have defunded FPHCs, causing thousands to be left without such services. This has accelerated in the COVID-19 era. We used a longitudinal analysis to examine the impact of FPHC closures in Iowa on gonorrhea and chlamydia incidence at the county level. Methods In 2017, Iowa defunded FPHCs, resulting in four clinic closures. This analysis uses Poisson regression for rates on gonorrhea and chlamydia incidence data from 2000–2018 to investigate if clinic closures were associated with reported gonorrhea and chlamydia cases. Newey-West standard errors are used to adjust for any time-related trends in STI incidence. Given the mid-year policy change, all data from 2017 was removed before running the Poisson regression model. Results We examined 34,479 gonorrhea and 169,660 chlamydia cases. Iowans had 1.99 (95% CI: 1.67, 2.37) times the rate of gonorrhea after clinic closures compared to before closures. In 2018, people in counties with clinic closures were 1.71 (95% CI: 1.01,2.90) times more likely to be diagnosed with gonorrhea than residents in the counties without closures. Iowans had 1.05 (95% CI: 1.03, 1.07) times the rate of chlamydia after clinic closures compared to before closures. People in counties with closures were 1.37 (95% CI: 1.11, 1.69) times more likely to have chlamydia in 2018 as compared to those in counties without closures. Conclusions Despite the fact that many STI diagnoses are made and reported by FPHCs, our data shows that reported gonorrhea and chlamydia cases increased in the year following clinic closures. This is consistent with delayed diagnoses and missed opportunities for providing essential STI services to vulnerable and under-served rural residents. Legislative action is urgently needed to ensure essential STI services for all.
Application of an integrated radio-frequency/shim coil technology for signal recovery in fMRI

PURPOSE Gradient-echo echo-planar imaging (EPI), which is typically used for blood oxygenation level-dependent (BOLD) functional MRI (fMRI), suffers from distortions and signal loss caused by localized B0 inhomogeneities. Such artifacts cannot be effectively corrected for with the low-order spherical harmonic (SH) shim coils available on most scanners. The integrated parallel reception, excitation, and shimming (iPRES) coil technology allows radiofrequency (RF) and direct currents to flow on each coil element, enabling imaging and localized B0 shimming with one coil array. iPRES was previously used to correct for distortions in spin-echo EPI and is further developed here to also recover signal loss in gradient-echo EPI. METHODS The cost function in the shim optimization, which typically uses a single term representing the B0 inhomogeneity, was modified to include a second term representing the signal loss, with an adjustable weight to optimize the trade-off between distortion correction and signal recovery. Simulations and experiments were performed to investigate the shimming performance. RESULTS Slice-optimized shimming with iPRES and the proposed cost function substantially reduced the signal loss in the inferior frontal and temporal brain regions compared to shimming with iPRES and the original cost function or 2nd -order SH shimming with either cost function. In breath-holding fMRI experiments, the ΔB0 and signal loss root-mean-square errors decreased by -34.3% and -56.2%, whereas the EPI signal intensity and number of activated voxels increased by 60.3% and 174.0% in the inferior frontal brain region. CONCLUSION iPRES can recover signal loss in gradient-echo EPI, which is expected to improve BOLD fMRI studies in brain regions suffering from signal loss.
Oxidized potato-starch films as primer coatings of aluminium

Potato-starch (PS) films for use as primer coatings of aluminium substrates were prepared in two steps, chemical-thermal-catalysed oxidation routes. The PS was modified with cerium (IV) ammonium nitrate (CAN) as a chemical oxidizer, followed by thermal oxidation at 150°C in the presence of atmospheric oxygen; this led to the formation of a functional carbonyl derivative caused by cleavage of the glycol C-C bonds in glycosidic rings, thereby resulting in the ring openings. Increasing oxidation by raising the temperature to 200 and 250°C promoted the conversion of carbonyl into carboxylate derivatives, while facilitating the breakage of C-O-C linkages in the open rings. The latter phenomenon reflected the formation of another carboxylate. The intermediate carboxylate derivatives favourably reacted with Ce4+ ions released from CAN to form cerium-bridged carboxylate complexes. Cerium-complexed carboxylate films used as primer coatings not only afforded some protection of aluminium substrates against corrosion, but also displayed excellent adhesion to both the polyurethane (PU) top-coating and aluminium sites. The latter demonstrated that the loss of adhesion at PU/primer/aluminium joints occurs in the PU layers, representing the mode of cohesive failure.
Forensic Computer Crime Investigation

COMPUTER CRIME AND THE ELECTRONIC CRIME SCENE, Thomas A. Johnson THE DIGITAL INVESTIGATIVE UNIT: STAFFING, TRAINING, AND ISSUES, Chris Malinowski CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION ANALYSIS AND BEHAVIOR: CHARACTERISTIC OF COMPUTER CRIMINALS, William L. Tafoya INVESTIGATIVE STRATEGY AND UTILITIES, Deputy Ross E. Mayfield COMPUTER FORENSICS AND INVESTIGATION: THE TRAINING ORGAINIZATION, Fred B. Cotton INTERNET CRIMES AGAINST CHILDREN, Monique Mattei Ferraro, JD, CISSP with Sgt. Joseph Sudol CHALLENGES TO DIGITAL FORENSIC EVIDENCE, Fred Cohen STRATEGIC ASPECTS IN INTERNATIONAL FORENSICS, Dario Forte, CFE, CISM CYBER TERRORISM, Thomas A. Johnson FUTURE PERSPECTIVES, Thomas A. Johnson CONCLUDING REMARKS APPENDICES INDEX
Efficient Solution of Minimum Eigen-Problem of Hankel Systems by Conjugate Gradient Algorithm and FFT

The advantages of the conjugate gradient (CG) algorithm for the solution of the eigenvector corresponding to the minimum/maximum eigenvalue of a symmetric matrix over conventional methods, such as those found in IMSL, EISPACK or UNPACK library, are its efficiency and flexibility. Preliminary results for the solution of minimum eigen-problem of a Hankel system indicates the efficiency of the CG algorithm. The introduction of the FFT into computation demonstrates the flexibility of the CG algorithm, and further improves the efficiency of the algorithm.
Building workload-independent storage with VT-trees

As the Internet and the amount of data grows, the variability of data sizes grows too--from small MP3 tags to large VM images. With applications using increasingly more complex queries and larger data-sets, data access patterns have become more complex and randomized. Current storage systems focus on optimizing for one band of workloads at the expense of other workloads due to limitations in existing storage system data structures. We designed a novel workload-independent data structure called the VT-tree which extends the LSM-tree to efficiently handle sequential and file-system workloads. We designed a system based solely on VT-trees which offers concurrent access to data via file system and database APIs, transactional guarantees, and consequently provides efficient and scalable access to both large and small data items regardless of the access pattern. Our evaluation shows that our user-level system has 2-6.6× better performance for random-write workloads and only a small average overhead for other workloads.
Integrating a Genetic Algorithm Into a Knowledge-Based System for Ordering Complex Design Processes

The design cycle associated with large engineering systems requires an initial decomposition of the complex system into design processes which are coupled through the transference of output data. Some of these design processes may be grouped into iterative subcycles. In analyzing or optimizing such a coupled system, it is essential to be able to determine the best ordering of the processes within these subcycles to reduce design cycle time and cost. Many decomposition approaches assume the capability is available to determine what design processes and couplings exist and what order of execution will be imposed during the design cycle. Unfortunately, this is often a complex problem and beyond the capabilities of a human design manager. A new feature, a genetic algorithm, has been added to DeMAID (Design Manager’s Aid for Intelligent Decomposition) to allow the design manager to rapidly examine many different combinations of ordering processes in an iterative subcycle and to optimize the ordering based on cost, time, and iteration requirements. Two sample test cases are presented to show the effects of optimizing the ordering with a genetic algorithm.
Street Crimes, Stress, and Suggestion: Helping the Jury See What the Witness Did Not

This article provides practical tips for the criminal defense attorney seeking to effectively deal with eyewitness identification evidence at trial.
Single-molecule studies of the effect of template tension on T7 DNA polymerase activity

T7 DNA polymerase1,2 catalyses DNA replication in vitro at rates of more than 100 bases per second and has a 3′→5′ exonuclease (nucleotide removing) activity at a separate active site. This enzyme possesses a ‘right hand’ shape which is common to most polymerases with fingers, palm and thumb domains3,4. The rate-limiting step for replication is thought to involve a conformational change between an ‘open fingers’ state in which the active site samples nucleotides, and a ‘closed’ state in which nucleotide incorporation occurs3,5. DNA polymerase must function as a molecular motor converting chemical energy into mechanical force as it moves over the template. Here we show, using a single-molecule assay based on the differential elasticity of single-stranded and double-stranded DNA, that mechanical force is generated during the rate-limiting step and that the motor can work against a maximum template tension of ∼34 pN. Estimates of the mechanical and entropic work done by the enzyme show that T7 DNA polymerase organizes two template bases in the polymerization site during each catalytic cycle. We also find a force-induced 100-fold increase in exonucleolysis above 40 pN.
Neuropeptide S: A Neuropeptide Promoting Arousal and Anxiolytic-like Effects

Arousal and anxiety are behavioral responses that involve complex neurocircuitries and multiple neurochemical components. Here, we report that a neuropeptide, neuropeptide S (NPS), potently modulates wakefulness and could also regulate anxiety. NPS acts by activating its cognate receptor (NPSR) and inducing mobilization of intracellular Ca2+. The NPSR mRNA is widely distributed in the brain, including the amygdala and the midline thalamic nuclei. Central administration of NPS increases locomotor activity in mice and decreases paradoxical (REM) sleep and slow wave sleep in rats. NPS was further shown to produce anxiolytic-like effects in mice exposed to four different stressful paradigms. Interestingly, NPS is expressed in a previously undefined cluster of cells located between the locus coeruleus (LC) and Barrington's nucleus. These results indicate that NPS could be a new modulator of arousal and anxiety. They also show that the LC region encompasses distinct nuclei expressing different arousal-promoting neurotransmitters.
A simple PCR procedure for discovering microsatellites from small insert libraries

Microsatellite discovery from genomic libraries is tedious because of the low number of clones that contain inserts and costly because of screening methodologies. A new procedure for screening clones for microsatellite DNA is described herein. Instead of colony hybridization, a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) with two vector standard primers and one synthesized repeat primer was used to directly screen colonies. PCR of colonies that produced a strong smear in gels contained the desired motif, whereas a single strong band indicated the lack of the desired motif. This simple screening method is a cost-effective way to identify microsatellite-containing colonies.
Upstairs/Downstairs, Fashionwise: A View of Design Protection from Lower Down the Food Chain

Although fashion design protection now exists in many countries, debate continues over whether or not such protection is really needed. Usually, the dispute is framed as a conflict between the original designer and the “pirates” who seek where they have sewn , but certainly not created. The voice that is virtually never heard in the debate is that of the consumer of these knock-offs (as distinguished from forgeries, another topic altogether). Why is the market for these copies so robust? While some may posit that purchasers who could buy the originals are simply choosing to save money, this article suggests a much more complex social story. An examination of the vast nonlegal literature on fashion and its consumers shows that people are judged and measured by others to a significant degree by what they wear, and that access to clothing that blurs lines of wealth and social class may well turn out to have significant democratizing effects in a society. This element has been overlooked in the legal debates, the article posits, in part because apparent interest in clothes is largely viewed through a significantly gender-biased lens that leads the topic to be treated (incorrectly) as something too trivial to be deserving of the notice of legislators and legal scholars.
Afrohybanthus (Violaceae), a new genus for a distinctive and widely distributed Old World hybanthoid lineage

Recent traditional and molecular systematic studies of the violet family, Violaceae, have confirmed extensive polyphyly of the genus Hybanthus and substantial polyphyly in Rinorea as well. Phylogenetic analyses have proposed up to nine distinct hybanthoid clades. Broad studies of representative taxa within each clade have revealed coherent suites of macromorphological traits in foliage, flowers, fruits and seeds that easily discriminate the nine hybanthoid lineages from each other and from currently recognized genera in the family. Base chromosome numbers and biogeography also provide additional support for recognition of the hybanthoid clades as distinct segregate genera. Some hybanthoid clades have available older generic names, but one of the two Old World lineages, namely the Hybanthus enneaspermus group, is presently nameless. This clade, distinctive in its ellipsoid, pale yellow, often foveolate seeds, is the most diverse in the Paleotropics, with approximately 25 species distributed across Africa, Madagascar, southern Asia, northern Australia and the southwestern Pacific. The group is segregated here as Afrohybanthus gen. nov. , with new combinations provided for existing names, all of which have thus far proven morphologically distinct and worthy of recognition at the rank of species. Imminent future studies will describe additional taxa in the new genus.
Integration of sperm and egg plasma membrane components at fertilization.

Studies examining the integration of the sperm and egg plasma membranes, subsequent to gamete fusion in the surf clam, Spisula solidissima, were carried out employing the concanavalin A-horseradish peroxidase-diaminobenzidine procedure (Con A-HRP-DAB). When unfertilized Spisula eggs were incubated in Con A, either prior to or after aldehyde fixation and reacted with HRP-DAB, enzymatic precipitate was found associated with the vitelline layer and plasmalemma. The plasma membranes of sperm treated in a similar manner failed to stain. The plasma membranes of fertilized eggs reacted with Con A-HRP-DAB and examined by 1 min postinsemination were associated uniformly with enzymatic precipitate except at sites of sperm incorporation. These portions of unstained plasma membrane were derived from the spermatozoon and delimited the contents of the fertilization cone. From 2 to 4 min postinsemination, HRP-DAB reaction product became associated with the plasma membrane delimiting the fertilization cone. By 4 min postinsemination no difference in staining of the plasma membranes derived from the egg or the sperm (plasmalemma delimiting the fertilization cone) was detected. Evidence is presented suggesting that the acquisition of HRP-DAB reaction product by the former sperm plasmalemma is due to the movement of Con A binding sites from the egg plasma membrane.
Local density total energy description of ground and excited state properties of the rare earth metals

Abstract Ground and excited state properties of rare-earth metals are investigated by means of total energy calculations in the local density approximation using the linearized muffin-tin orbital band structure method. Equilibrium lattice constants, bulk moduli and cohesive energies obtained for the rare-earth series are found to be in good agreement with experimental trends. The localization of the 4f electrons in the rare-earths is discussed and compared with that of the 5f electrons in the actinides. The relation between the structural sequence observed in the rare-earths and d-band occupancy is examined. The 4f excitation energies and intra-atomic Coulomb correlations—obtained by taking the difference in total energy of the appropriate final states—are compared with the results of photoemission and inverse photoemission experiments. A comparison of the localization of the 4f electrons in the rare-earths with that of the 5f electrons in the actinides is presented using additional results obtained for the actinide metals with the same approach.
Web based tool for subjective observer ranking of compressed medical images

In the course of evaluating various compression schemes for ultrasound teleradiology applications, itbecame obvious that paper based methods of data collection were ume consuming and error prone. Amethod was sought which allowed participating radiologists to view the ultrasound video clips(compressed to varying degree) at their desks. Furthermore, the method should allow observers to entertheir evaluations and when finished, automatically submit the data to our statistical analysis engine. Wehave found the World Wide Web offered a ready solution. A web page was constructed that contains 18embedded AVI video clips. The 18 clips represent 6 distinct anatomical areas, compressed by variousmethods and amounts, and then randomly distributed through the web page. To the right of each video, aseries of questions are presented which ask the observer to rank (1-5) his/her ability to answerdiagnostically relevant questions. When completed, the observer presses "Submit" and a file of tabdelimited text is created which can then be imported to an Excel workbook. Kappa analysis is thenperformed and the resulting plots demonstrate observer preferences.Keywords: ROC, World Wide Web, Image Analysis
Three Conundrums of Language Lateralization

The lateralization of language to the left hemisphere of the brain in most right-handed individuals is well established; however, this arrangement has no widely accepted theoretical explanation. The distribution of language across the cerebral hemispheres raises issues and contradictions that are difficult for any theory to accommodate. In this article, we review three puzzles about the lateralization of language: (1) the clinical literature reveals profound deficits in language only after left-hemisphere damage, but the brain imaging literature shows bilateral activation in most language tasks; (2) language is left-hemisphere dominant in most individuals yet deviation from this pattern does not result in language dysfunction; and (3) lateralization and handedness are related, but the factors that underlie this relation are unknown. We also briefly discuss evolutionary and genetic theories that have been advanced to explain lateralization.
Monolithic IPMC fins for propulsion and maneuvering in bioinspired underwater robotics

Emerging bioinspired underwater systems, such as autonomous ocean mapping and surveillance vehicles, that maneuver through their environment by mimicking the swimming motion of aquatic animals, can benefit from soft monolithic actuators and control surfaces capable of undergoing complex deformations. Herein, an electrically driven ionic polymer-metal composite (IPMC) artificial muscle with uniquely patterned electrodes for creating complex deformations is presented. The surface electrode pattern on the IPMC is created using a simple surface machining process. By selectively activating specific regions of the IPMC, bending, twisting, flapping, and other bioinspired locomotive behavior can be achieved. For instance, the bending and twisting response of an example 50 mm × 25 mm × 0.5 mm patterned IPMC actuator is characterized to determine its range of motion, output force and torque, as well as its effectiveness as a fish-fin-like propulsor. The experimental results show that the twisting angle exceeds 8 °; the blocking tip force and torque can be as high as 16.5 mN (at 3 V) and 0.83 N·mm (at 4 V), respectively (driven at 0.05 Hz); and an average thrust force of approximately 0.4 mN (driven by 4-V sinusoidal input at 1 Hz) can be generated. These newly developed IPMC fins can be exploited to create novel and efficient propulsors for next-generation underwater robotic vehicles. An example bioinspired robotic fish is presented which exploits the capabilities of the patterned IPMCs for propulsion and maneuvering, where an average maximum swimming speed of approximately 28 mm/s is reported.
DNA topoisomerases: A new twist for antiparasitic chemotherapy?

The parasitic protozoa are notorious for their bizarre cellular structures and metabolic pathways, a characteristic also true for their nucleic acids. Despite these florid differences from mammalian cells, however, it has proven surprisingly difficult to devise novel chemotherapy against these pathogens. In recent years, the DNA topoisomerases from parasites have been the focus of considerable study, not only because they are intrinsically interesting, but also because they may provide a target for much-needed new antiparasitic chemotherapy.
System response to partially known input

Abstract The available information on the random parameters in the definition of a variety of engineering, physics, biological, and other stochastic problems is usually insufficient for specifying the probability law of these parameters. Generally, there is a collection of probabilistic models consistent with the available information, referred to as the class of competing models. The paper examines the output of perfectly known deterministic systems subjected to partially specified input processes. It is shown that the class C in of competing models for input can have many members and that the output properties may depend strongly on the particular member in C in used to represent the input. Since the available information on the input is usually incomplete, it is rarely possible to find uniquely the output properties relevant for a stochastic problem. Simple linear and non-linear systems with quasi-static and dynamic output are used to illustrate the flow of information from input to output and assess the sensitivity of some output properties to the input model. The examples in the paper also show that estimates of a system performance can be inaccurate if based on input models selected by heuristic considerations.
The sequence of the human phosducin gene (PDC) and its 5'-flanking region.

Phosducin, a principal protein of retinal photoreceptor cells, modulates the phototransduction cascade by interacting with transducin. Recently, it has been reported that phosducin is a protein virtually identical to the G-protein inhibitor protein (GIP) in brain. Here, the authors have sequenced the complete human gene (PDC) and 2215 bp of its 5[prime]-flanking region. The gene is 18 kb in length and has four exons and three introns. The splicing sites for donor and acceptor are in good agreement with the GT/AG rule. Comparative studies of human and mouse phosducin revealed highly homologous sequences. Both the human phosducin gene and a mutant gene locus for Usher syndrome type II have been assigned to chromosome 1q25-q32. The association of this gene with a human disease locus suggests that phosducin may be a potential candidate gene for this disorder. 24 refs., 3 figs.
Direct measurement of electron drift parameters of wide band gap semiconductors

Abstract This paper describes a novel technique developed for directly measuring the electron mean free drift time τ e in wide band gap semiconductors. This method is based on a newly developed digital data analysis system, in conjunction with single polarity charge sensing, depth sensing and radial sensing techniques. Compared with conventional methods, the new technique does not involve curve fitting, allows the use of high-energy γ-rays, and is not sensitive to ballistic deficit nor the non-uniform electric field within semiconductors.
The ac conductivity of the Fermi glass: A model for glassy conduction

Abstract Analytical expressions for the ac conductivity of the Fermi glass are discussed. At high frequencies an appropriate formulation of the pair approximation in which the conductivity is optimized as a function of the energy range of contributing sites, demonstrates that the loss peak occurs at a frequency, ωc for which the individual pairs form a percolating network. The “percolation” of carriers is associated with the zero frequency limit, as the relaxation times of clusters of impedances are enhanced by factors proportional to the square of their lengths. Critical exponents of percolation theory are relevant in the zero frequency limit, but not above ωc. Above ωc, the small deviation from linearity in the frequency dependence is related to the exact form of the (wide) distribution of individual relaxation times. The theory is in quantitative agreement with experiment in several systems, and describes all general characteristics of the conduction of glasses. Theories which place carrier percolation at ωc, assert either that the critical exponents of percolation theory play no role in the frequency dependence of σ(ω), or that the effects of percolation are felt both above and below the loss peak, and are in error.
Nonlinear amplitude approximation for bilinear systems

Abstract An efficient method to predict vibration amplitudes at the resonant frequencies of dynamical systems with piecewise-linear nonlinearity is developed. This technique is referred to as bilinear amplitude approximation (BAA). BAA constructs a single vibration cycle at each resonant frequency to approximate the periodic steady-state response of the system. It is postulated that the steady-state response is piece-wise linear and can be approximated by analyzing the response over two time intervals during which the system behaves linearly. Overall the dynamics is nonlinear, but the system is in a distinct linear state during each of the two time intervals. Thus, the approximated vibration cycle is constructed using linear analyses. The equation of motion for analyzing the vibration of each state is projected along the overlapping space spanned by the linear mode shapes active in each of the states. This overlapping space is where the vibratory energy is transferred from one state to the other when the system switches from one state to the other. The overlapping space can be obtained using singular value decomposition. The space where the energy is transferred is used together with transition conditions of displacement and velocity compatibility to construct a single vibration cycle and to compute the amplitude of the dynamics. Since the BAA method does not require numerical integration of nonlinear models, computational costs are very low. In this paper, the BAA method is first applied to a single-degree-of-freedom system. Then, a three-degree-of-freedom system is introduced to demonstrate a more general application of BAA. Finally, the BAA method is applied to a full bladed disk with a crack. Results comparing numerical solutions from full-order nonlinear analysis and results obtained using BAA are presented for all systems.
A neural mechanism for discrimination IV: Monocular depth perception

The mechanism for discrimination described by A. S. Householder is applied to the problem of monocular depth perception and the Weber ratio is determined. The ratio obtained varies as a small positive power of the distance for nearby objects, while for distant objects it is indicated that discrimination is relatively impossible.
Javier Auyero, Poor People's Politics: Peronist Survival Networks and the Legacy of Evita . Durham: Duke University Press, 2001. 296 pp. $64.95 cloth; $19.95 paper

During the early 1990s, Argentina's Peronist Party accomplished a political magic trick: under the leadership of President Carlos Menem, Peronism turned away from its traditional commitment to social justice and an activist state, embraced the free market and neoliberal reform, and yet maintained the electoral support of the majority of the poor. For many Argentine intellectuals, this trick was easy enough to explain. According to the conventional wisdom, poor people remained loyal to Peronism, despite their rapidly declining standard of living, either because they remained under the hypnotic spell of Juan and Evita or because they were bought off by clientelist politicians offering handouts. Javier Auyero's ethnography of Peronist politics in an impoverished shantytown on the outskirts of Buenos Aires challenges these simplistic explanations. This timely and important book reconceptualizes political clientelism, a crucial phenomenon within scholarship on Latin America and beyond, while making visible and intelligible a population that has been relegated to marginality both by socioeconomic realities and by academic discourse.
Relationship between Human Luteinizing Hormone and Human Chorionic Gonadotropin

PREVIOUS analysis of a rabbit hyperimmune serum to sheep luteinizing hormone (LH) showed seven components which cross-reacted with sheep LH and follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), bovine thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH), as well as pregnant mare's serum (PMS) and human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG)1. The hormone was injected subcutaneously in Freund's complete adjuvant in weekly doses of 1 mg for 6 weeks, and, after a 10 mg booster dose in the seventh week, the animal was rested and bled for the first time in the tenth week. Thereafter, with insignificant variations, the animal was given 1 mg of hormone every other week and bled in the weekly interval between injections. Certain samples from between the twenty-eighth and fifty-second bleedings were pooled and used in the experiments. At the beginning of this period a total dose of 51 mg LH had been given over a period of 14 months. This communication is concerned especially with the cross-reaction of this antiserum with HCG and HLH and the relationship which this shows between the two hormone preparations.
Inhibition of endogenous TSH in the rat by graded doses of TSH-antiplasma

Abstract Anti-TSH plasma was produced in rabbits by the administration of bovine TSH. ∗ Its biological effect upon the endogenous TSR of rats was shown by its ability to depress the I131 uptake at a level of 2.5 ml. by 65 per cent and to block the release rate of thyroidal I131 for a period of 5 days. Lower levels of anti-TSH plasma showed a graded effect upon the release rate.
Scandal, Elites, and Presidential Popularity: Considering the Importance of Cues in Public Support of the President

Previous research on presidential job approval has neglected to consider how elites influence public assessments of the executive, particularly as it applies to potentially private misconduct. This article suggests that, in the aftermath of a major political event (such as a scandal), citizens look to elite rhetoric as a barometer of issue importance. Utilizing two distinct experimental designs, I show that, in the wake of a personal scandal, subjects rely upon elite cues to place the events in some political perspective. The first study focuses on evaluations of a fictional Alaskan governor. Responding to what they believe was an unfolding personal scandal, subjects assess executive performance based on the account of a randomly assigned counterfeit newspaper article. An analysis of subject evaluations indicates that cues provided by the political opposition were the most important factor in predicting assessments of executive job performance. The second study reexamines the importance of elite cues by testing whether or not a slight change in a political frame (regarding the Lewinsky scandal) can influence subjects’ evaluations of President Clinton. Consistent with the theory, the findings indicate that subtle changes in elite cues (framed by the language of the political debate) were a key predictor of the subjects’ evaluations of the president. While the findings do not directly contradict the traditional “peace and prosperity” models, they do suggest that a further consideration of elite messages is warranted.
Design Ground Snow Loads for Ohio

Abstract The weight of snow with a mean recurrence interval of 50 years, called the design ground snow load, is used by engineers and planners to estimate the weight of snow that roofs must be designed to support National maps of ground snow load have small scales, showing little detail at the state level, and present data with apparent inconsistencies. Snow water equivalent data at ten National Weather Service officer in Ohio and adjacent states were examined to obtain a typical density of 0.15 g cm−3 for the snowpacks with the greatest snow loads. After critical review of 1948–90 daily snow-depth data, 50-yr return-period snow depths were determined for 55 site in Ohio. Design ground snow loads were calculated for these sites by applying the density of 0.15 g cm−3 to the 50-yr return-period snow depths. Several differences were noted between these result and previous maps. Minimum design ground snow loads specified in Ohio building codes are 5–10 lb ft−2 greater than reported here for western Ohio and t...
A Hierarchical Framework for Accent Based Writer Identification

Writer identification is the process of determining the author of a handwritten specimen by utilizing characteristics inherent in the sample. In this work, we apply the concept of accents in handwriting to introduce a novel perspective for writer identification. Analogous to speech, accents in handwriting can be defined as distinctive writing quirks that are unique to a group of people sharing a common native script. Specifically, we postulate that a group of people with a common native script will share certain traits in their handwriting style that are exposed when they write in a different script. We propose a hierarchical framework for the writer identification task, wherein, we first identify the accent of the writer. In the next step, we perform writer identification based on the selected accent. This framework reduces the complexity of the classification task by reducing the number of classes at the prediction stage. Experiments are performed on the UNIPEN dataset and the results lend credibility to our model.
Dynamics at Infinite Momentum

Old-fashioned perturbation theory is applied to a relativistic theory in a reference frame with infinite total momentum. It is found that many undesirable diagrams disappear. The contribution of the remaining diagrams is described by a new set of rules with properties intermediate between those of Feynman diagrams and old-fashioned diagrams, e.g., energy denominators become covariant, and Feynman parameters appear naturally. The new rules are used to derive some integral equations.
Myocardial infarction in young patients

Myocardial infarction in persons under the age of 45 years accounts for 6% to 10% of all myocardial infarctions in the United States. In this age group, it is predominantly a disease of men. Important risk factors include a family history of myocardial infarction before age 55 years, hyperlipidemia, smoking, and obesity. Unlike older patients, approximately half of young patients have single-vessel coronary disease, and in up to 20%, the cause is not related to atherosclerosis. Coronary angiography may be warranted in young patients with myocardial infarction to define the anatomy of the disease and to permit optimal management.