cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Decomposition of Three Common Moist-Soil Managed Wetland Plant Species

Abstract Moist-soil wetland management is used to precisely control delivery, duration, and timing of water addition to, and removal from, managed wetlands with targeted responses including germination and growth of desirable moist-soil plant species. Similarly, water delivery and removal drives decomposition of moist-soil plants as well as nutrient cycling within these systems, which is a key driver of productivity in such managed wetlands. Through deployment of litter bags, we examined rate of mass loss and decay coefficients of three locally abundant moist-soil annual species that are potentially valuable wintering-waterfowl food sources (nodding smartweed Persicaria lapathifolia, red-rooted flatnut sedge Cyperus erythrorhizos, and toothcup Ammannia coccinea) within man-made moist-soil managed wetlands on the Richland Creek Wildlife Management Area in East-central Texas. All three species lost nearly 100% of their mass during an 11-mo deployment period, where rate of mass lost and decay coefficient rat...
New Insights into Learning Algorithms and Datasets

We report on three distinct experiments that provide new valuable insights into learning algorithms and datasets. We first describe two effective meta-features that significantly impact the predictive accuracy of a broad range of learning algorithms. We then introduce a new efficient meta-feature that measures the degree of hardness (or difficulty) of datasets and show that it is highly linearly correlated with predictive accuracy. Finally, we use the notion of classifier output difference to cluster learning algorithms and show that learning algorithms from different model classes may demonstrate highly similar behaviors.
A histone protease of rat liver chromatin.

Summary Normal rat liver chromatin contains a protease activity with a marked preference for histone or deoxyribonucleohistone as substrate. This histone protease has been purified 20 to 30 fold from chromatin and has been analyzed for salt and pH dependence as well as for substrate specificity. The isolated enzyme appears to be similar to that responsible for the endogenous degradation of histones in calf thymus chromatin as reported by Bartley and Chalkley (1); however, its presence in adult rat liver, a tissue with very low cell turnover (and therefore low histone turnover), argues against the enzyme having only an autolytic function and suggests that it may play a role in gene derepression, etc.
Quantifying resource homogenization using network flow analysis

Abstract This paper formally introduces the rheomode orientation to network flow analysis and provides a quantitative test for the ecological property of network homogenization. Using network flow analysis, it is possible to identify and quantify the direct, indirect, and integral contributions of flow between any two components in a reticulated system. Inspection of the integral (direct plus indirect) flow matrix reveals many interesting properties not obvious from an empirical investigation of proximate transactions. Using network flow analysis, we observe that the composition of direct flows is comprised of a fairly uniform mixture of resources from all the system components. We call this evening out of flow network homogenization (Patten, B.C., Higashi, M., Burns, T.P., 1990. Ecol. Model. 51, 1–28). Here we introduce a standard statistical technique to provide a quantitative test for network homogenization. This property is the direct result of a flow oriented analysis of ecological systems. This has broader implications for the standard trophic dynamics paradigm currently dominating ecological research. The central results from this approach indicate that networks are holistic entities which must be analyzed as such.
The modeling and numerical analysis of wrinkled membranes

In this paper three fundamental issues regarding modeling and analysis of wrinkled membranes are addressed. First, a new membrane model with viable Young's modulus and Poisson's ratio is proposed, which physically characterizes stress relaxation phenomena in membrane wrinkling, and expresses taut, wrinkled and slack states of a membrane in a systematic manner. Second, a parametric variational principle is developed for the new membrane model. Third, by the variational principle, the original membrane problem is converted to a non-linear complementarity problem in mathematical programming. A parametric finite element discretization and a smoothing Newton method are then used for numerical solution. The proposed membrane model and numerical method are capable of delivering convergent results for membranes with a mixture of wrinkled and slack regions, without iteration of membrane stresses. Three numerical examples are provided.
Firm Size, Insider Ownership, And Accounting-Based Debt Covenants

The objective of this study is to investigate the separate and joint effects of firm size and insider ownership on the types of debt covenants required by creditors. An economic argument is developed to predict the types of covenants that will be required by creditors of firms of different sizes and with differing levels of insider ownership. The main finding is that creditors of small, high-insider-ownership firms demand liquidity covenants as protection against wealth transfers. An additional finding is that creditors of large firms demand covenants based on tangible assets, regardless of the level of insider ownership. The main conclusion is that the specific types of debt covenants required by creditors depend on creditors expectations concerning the effects of size and insider ownership on management actions.
Lynch revisited: New urbanism and theories of good city form

Abstract Over the past two decades, there has been increasing controversy about the pros and cons of new urbanist or neo-traditional architecture and planning ideas. Some have argued that standard suburbia has become dull, alienating, and isolating and that a return to the design ideas of the early twentieth century would be a step towards fixing the problem. Others have argued that the new urbanism is just another marketing ploy aimed at segmenting buyers according to aesthetic tastes in order to sell more houses. They argue that new urbanist communities are unauthentic and that we cannot go back to the past. Both sides often take extreme stands and there are few procedures for evaluating neo-traditionalist ideas in a reasonably objective way. I suggest that the ideas of planner Kevin Lynch as published in three books: The Image of the City , What Time is This Place? , and A Theory of Good City Form , can be useful in structuring ways to monitor trends and compare the potentials of both standard and new urbanistic communities.
Cultural Preservation in Pacific Islands: Still a Good Idea - and Constitutional

This article deals with certain legal and policy issues in the non-state insular areas of the United States (American Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands), and less directly with islands in "free association" with the United States (Federated States of Micronesia, Marshall Islands, Palau.) Many, perhaps most, insular areas of the world, due in large part to geographic separation, maintained their traditional cultures well into the 20th Century. With the onslaught of modern communications and transportation, preserving those cultures or even parts of them, now requires conscious effort. The author agrees that cultural preservation is a worthwhile objective, but notes that not everyone does; for example, those who believe that cultural preservation laws (e.g., laws restricting alienation of land) interfere with the "invisible hand" of the market and retard economic progress. The article notes that in U.S. areas there is another potential barrier to cultural preservation, the United States Constitution. Law restricting ownership of land to indigenous people, for example, have been challenged as alleged violations of the equal protection principle. The author argues that well-designed cultural preservation laws, including laws prohibiting or regulating sale of land to outsiders, should pass muster on both legal and policy grounds. The author examines the unique cultures of some of these islands and notes that they have many qualities worth emulating. He also challenges the argument that cultural preservation retards economic progress. On the law side, he examines the historical development of doctrines pertaining the application of the U.S. constitution in non-state areas. The article then focuses on the important Ninth Circuit case of Wabol v. Villacrucis. That case, quoting from an earlier article by this author, fashioned a rule that allows for the application of important constitutional protections in territories, but also permits exceptions when strict application might jeopardize the indigenous culture. The author argues that Wabol was correctly decided, and should remain the controlling precedent in this area of law (despite some current criticism of the case).
Adhesion molecules in tumor metastasis

It is now clear that adhesive interactions play a critical role in the process of metastatic tumor dissemination. Adhesion molecules act as both positive and negative modulators of the metastatic process. Molecules such as E-cadherin that promote homotypic tumor cell adhesion function to maintain intercellular contacts that confine cells to the primary tumor site and are negatively correlated with metastatic potential. Because tumor cells are rapidly eliminated from the circulation, those cells that can quickly arrest in the vasculature at a secondary site and pass through the vessel wall into the surrounding tissue will have a selective advantage toward establishing new metastatic colonies. The first step in this process is specific adhesion to venular endothelial cells in selected organs, a process mediated by tumor cell surface molecules such as Sialyl LewisX or the VLA-4 (alpha 4 beta 1) integrin that mediate binding to endothelial adhesion molecules such as the E-selectin or the vascular cell adhesion molecule, VCAM-1. Site-specific endothelial determinants such as the lung endothelial cell adhesion molecule, LuECAM, may additionally specify particular sites for preferential adhesion and subsequent site-specific metastasis of particular tumor types. After adherence to endothelial cells and subsequent endothelial retraction, metastatic tumor cells must adhere to elements of the subendothelial basement membrane such as laminin and types IV and V collagen, interactions frequently mediated by members of the beta 1 and beta 4 integrin families. Finally, metastatic tumor cell adhesion to connective tissue elements such as fibronectin, type I collagen and hyaluronan, mediated by molecules such as the beta 1 integrins and by the CD44 cell surface adhesion molecule, are required for movement of tumor cells into the subendothelial stroma and subsequent growth at these new sites. Thus, metastatic potential can be influenced both positively and negatively by a variety of cell surface adhesive molecules that act both independently and in concert to direct tumor cells to particular tissues, allowing them to arrest in those tissues, migrate across the vessel wall and grow at the secondary site. In the current review, I discuss the nature of the adhesion molecules that have been implicated in the metastatic process, emphasizing those molecules that have been shown to correlate with metastasis in clinical human tumors or that have been shown to influence metastatic potential in in vivo experimental assays.
Historic Chancery Remedies (Mostly Injunctions and Declarations): Narrated Multi-Media Electronic Lessons

This is part of a series of about 35 narrated, media rich electronic lessons, lessons contained in self-executing “Flash” (swf/exe) files. Each of the lessons is 20-25 minutes in duration. A copy of this electronic lesson can be found online.
A SIMPLE CORTICAL ELECTRODE SYSTEM FOR UNANESTHETIZED SMALL ANIMALS.

Although a number of attempts have been made to develop a simple cortical electrode system capable of providing multiple leads for small animals, the solutions, offered to date, involve either considerable time and care in manufacnlre or in implanting the animal. The following system was devised as a means of taking cortical EEGs from a freely moving rat or other small mammal in a small chamber such as those often used for observation or in operant conditioning. The device is inexpensive, very easy to implant, and offers good quality recordings. The basic electrode is made from a stainless steel 2-56 7/16th-in. screw (or a 2-56 threaded stainless steel rod could be used) by removing the head and turning on a lathe a %-in. length of the screw to a diameter of .042 in. (see Fig. 1 for details). This diameter is the size of the Cannon DB series male plug
Electrical coupling and innexin expression in the stomatogastric ganglion of the crab Cancer borealis

Gap junctions are intercellular channels that allow for the movement of small molecules and ions between the cytoplasm of adjacent cells and form electrical synapses between neurons. In invertebrates, the gap junction proteins are coded for by the innexin family of genes. The stomatogastric ganglion (STG) in the crab Cancer borealis contains a small number of identified and electrically coupled neurons. We identified Innexin 1 (Inx1), Innexin 2 (Inx2), Innexin 3 (Inx3), Innexin 4 (Inx4), Innexin 5 (Inx5), and Innexin 6 (Inx6) members of the C. borealis innexin family. We also identified six members of the innexin family from the lobster Homarus americanus transcriptome. These innexins show significant sequence similarity to other arthropod innexins. Using in situ hybridization and reverse transcriptase-quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR), we determined that all the cells in the crab STG express multiple innexin genes. Electrophysiological recordings of coupling coefficients between identified pairs of pyloric dilator (PD) cells and PD-lateral posterior gastric (LPG) neurons show that the PD-PD electrical synapse is nonrectifying while the PD-LPG synapse is apparently strongly rectifying.
Microarcsecond Astrometry with MCAO Using a Diffractive Mask

We present a new ground-based technique to detect or follow-up long-period, potentially habitable exoplanets via precise relative astrometry of host stars using Multi-Conjugate Adaptive Optics (MCAO) on 8 meter telescopes equipped with diffractive masks. MCAO improves relative astrometry both by cancellation of high-altitude atmospheric layers, which induce dynamic focal-plane distortions, and the improvement of centroiding precision with sharper PSFs. However, mass determination of habitable exoplanets requires multi-year reference grid stability of ~1–10 μas or nanometer-level stability on the long-term average of out-of-pupil phase errors, which is difficult to achieve with MCAO (e.g., Meyer et al. 2011). The diffractive pupil technique calibrates dynamic distortion via extended diffraction spikes generated by a dotted primary mirror, which are referenced against a grid of background stars (Guyon et al. 2012). The diffractive grid provides three benefits to relative astrometry: (1) increased dynamic range, permitting observation of V < 10 stars without saturation; (2) calibration of dynamic distortion; and (3) a spectrum of the target star, which can be used to calibrate the magnitude of differential atmospheric refraction to the microarcsecond level. A diffractive 8-meter telescope with diffraction-limited MCAO in K-band reaches < 3–5 μas relative astrometric error per coordinate perpendicular to the zenith vector in one hour on a bright target star in fields of moderate stellar density (~10–40 stars arcmin−2). We present preliminary on-sky results of a test of the diffractive mask on the Nickel telescope at Lick Observatory.
Metabolism: Energy, Heat, Work, and Power of the Body

The study of energy in the body begins with an overview of heat and heat flow. The analysis of the energy content of food is followed by how energy is stored in the body and used in the form of ATP. Energy usage by the body is described in terms of the metabolic rate under passive and active conditions, and how it is related to body weight. The net energetics of the body includes several modes of passive and active heat loss, and this is related to body temperature.
Understanding Railroad Investment Behaviors, Regulatory Processes, and Related Implications for Efficient Industry Oversight

Current Surface Transportation Board methods rely on comparisons between revenue needs and the revenues that are earned by railroads. This paper reconsiders the methods that are used to determine this “revenue adequacy”. Specifically, we consider whether the cost of railroad capital might be better estimated through methods that incorporate a “real-options” perspective. While not definitive, our current work suggests that the irreversible nature of many railroad capital expenditures supports a real-options approach and that such an approach could potentially improve assessments of railroad cost of capital. Further, we conclude that applying a real-options methodology also can measurably improve policy-makers’ broader understanding of when, where, and how railroads choose to create new freight capacity.
Cellular LTB4 production differs in allergic sheep with and without late airway responses.

We tested the hypothesis that allergic sheep that develop both early and late airway responses to inhaled Ascaris suum antigen (late responders) have an increased capacity to generate leukotrienes (LTs) compared with allergic sheep that show only early responses to inhaled antigen (acute responders). To test this hypothesis, we measured LTB4 production, in vitro, by granulocytes isolated from peripheral blood and by macrophages isolated from bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) from both groups of sheep greater than or equal to 2 wk after the animal9s last antigen challenge; LTB4 production by granulocytes isolated from BAL from both groups of sheep 6 and 48 h after local airway challenge with A. suum antigen was also measured. LTB4 production was induced by incubating cells (i.e., either granulocytes or macrophages) with calcium ionophore (A23187, 2 microM) and arachidonic acid (30 microM). LTB4 production was quantitated by high-performance liquid chromatography and verified by radioimmunoassay (RIA). On stimulation peripheral blood granulocytes from late responders (n = 7) produced (means +/- SD/10(6) cells) 13.3 +/- 5.2 ng LTB4 compared with 5.3 +/- 1.5 ng LTB4 (P less than 0.05) for acute responders (n = 7). This increased LTB4 production did not result from variations in granulocyte differential or cyclooxygenase activity (as indicated by RIA measurements of prostaglandin E2 production).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin induction of aryl hydrocarbon hydroxylase in female rat liver. Evidence for de novo synthesis of cytochrome P-448.

The effects of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo- p -dioxin (TCDD) on heme synthesis and the synthesis of cytochrome P-448, as reflected in aryl hydrocarbon hydroxylase activity, were determined in female rat liver. TCDD treatment did not increase the activity of δ-aminolevulinic acid synthetase, the rate limiting enzyme in heme biosynthesis. In contrast, a 23-fold increase in the level of cytochrome P-448-mediated aryl hydrocarbon hydroxylase was observed 24 hours after TCDD treatment. Actinomycin D and cycloheximide, but not CoCl 2 , completely prevented the induction of new cytochrome P-448 and increased aryl hydrocarbon hydroxylase activity by TCDD. In vitro reconstitution of cytochrome P-450 and increases in enzymatically active aryl hydrocarbon hydroxylase levels were achieved by adding hemin to whole liver homogenates from rats given TCDD (a hemoprotein inducer) and CoCl 2 (a heme depleter). These results suggest that TCDD induces de novo protein synthesis of apocytochrome P-448, which combines with heme to yield new cytochrome P-448 and a concomitant increase in aryl hydrocarbon hydroxylase activity. Therefore it is concluded that TCDD selectively induces the formation of cytochrome P-448 leading to increased aryl hydrocarbon hydroxylase activity, and that protein synthesis, rather than heme synthesis, is the rate-limiting event in this process.
The mainstream-grassroots divide in the environmental movement : Environmental groups in Washington State

Objective. Observers of environmental politics have noted a division between mainstream national and grassroots environmental groups. This study attempts to determine whether a similar split in the movement can be observed at the state level. Methods. Data from a 1989 survey of 73 environmental groups in Washington State are analyzed. A distinction is made between institutionalized groups that regularly testify at the state legislature and grassroots groups that do not. Analysis focuses on environmental groups' structural characteristics, use of political resources, and choice of political activities. Results. Difference of means tests indicate that there are systematic differences between institutionalized and grassroots groups. The former have more members and larger paid staffs, derive more of their funding from other organizations, and are more bureaucratized. Second, principal components factor analysis reveals three kinds of political resources: mobilization resources, expertise, and organizational assets. Environmental groups rely on the first two more than on the last; grassroots groups are especially reliant on mobilization resources. Finally, logit analyses indicate that mobilization resources are positively related to the use of public outreach activities while expertise and organizational assets tend to be positively related to conventional political activities. Conclusions. These findings suggest that the division within the environmental movement exists within Washington State and structures the course of environmental politics within the state
Vulnerability assessment of a food supply chain to an intentional attack

Our objective is to develop an approach for quantifying the vulnerability of a food product supply chain that may be used by an intelligent adversary to deliver a chemical or biological agent. The approach is intended to create control strategies that seek to ensure a high level of system productivity while mitigating risk. We have developed a supply chain process model that determines the consequence of a given attack, in terms of the number of contaminated containers exiting the production system. An attacker-defender sequential game model is also developed to determine the likelihood that the system is successfully attacked as a function of how the targets are protected in the presence of an intelligent attacker. The combined model determines the expected impact of a successful attack and provides near optimal control strategies. A case study is built for the liquid egg production industry, which compares the productivity and vulnerability of two alternative supply chain designs.
Color and local phase based descriptor for human detection

In this paper we present a new descriptor based on phase congruency concept and LUV color space features. Since the phase of the signal conveys more information regarding signal structure than the magnitude and the indispensable quality of the color in describing the world around us, the proposed descriptor can precisely identify and localize image features over the gradient based techniques, especially in the regions affected by illumination changes. The proposed features can be formed by extracting the phase congruency information for each pixel in the three color image channels. The maximum phase congruency values are selected from the corresponding color channels. Histograms of the phase congruency values of the local regions in the image are computed with respect to its orientation. These histograms are concatenated to construct the proposed descriptor; called Color Histogram of Oriented Phase (CHOP). Several experiments were performed to evaluate the performance of the CHOP descriptor. The experimental results show that the proposed descriptor has better detection performance and lower error rates than a set of the state of the art feature extraction methodologies.
Positive current collector for Li||Sb-Pb liquid metal battery

Abstract Corrosion in grid-scale energy storage devices adversely affects service lifetime and thus has a significant economic impact on their deployment. In this work, we investigate the corrosion of steel and stainless steels (SSs) as positive current collectors in the Li||Sb-Pb liquid metal battery. The erosion and formation of new phases on low-carbon steel, SS301, and SS430 were evaluated both in static conditions and under cell operating conditions. The cell performance is not adversely affected by the dissolution of iron or chromium but rather nickel. Furthermore, the in situ formation of a Fe-Cr-Sb layer helps mitigate the recession of SS430.
Electrical Stimulation of Fabric Filtration: Part II: Mechanism of Particle Capture and Trials with a Laboratory Baghouse

Calculations have been made of the efficiencies with which single fibers should capture aerosol particles when the fibers are placed in an electric field. A field oriented either parallel or perpen...
Die Segmentverschiebung bei der posttraumatischen Osteitis

Die posttraumatische Osteitis stellt eine der schwerwiegendsten Komplikationen der operativen Frakturbehandlung dar. Sie ist das zentrale Problem bei der Versorgung offener Frakturen. Die haufig im Vordergrund des chirurgischen Interesses stehende Fraktur degradiert nicht selten den begleitenden Weichteilschaden zum zweitgradigen Problem, dessen eigentliche Wertigkeit erst beim Versuch des Weichteilverschlusses oder in den ersten postoperativen Tagen erkannt wird.
Healing of Preterm Ruptured Fetal Membranes

Preterm premature rupture of membrane (pPROM) is associated with 30–40% of preterm births. Infection is considered a leading cause of pPROM due to increased levels of proinflammatory cytokines in amniotic fluid. Only 30%, however, are positive for microbial organisms by amniotic fluid culture. Interestingly, in some pregnancies complicated by preterm premature rupture of membranes (pPROM), membranes heal spontaneously and pregnancy continues until term. Here, we investigated mechanisms of amnion healing. Using a preclinical mouse model, we found that small ruptures of the fetal membrane closed within 72 h whereas healing of large ruptures was only 40%. Small rupture induced transient upregulation of cytokines whereas large ruptures elicited sustained upregulation of proinflammatory cytokines in the fetal membranes. Fetal macrophages from amniotic fluid were recruited to the wounded amnion where macrophage adhesion molecules were highly expressed. Recruited macrophages released limited and well-localized amounts of IL-1β and TNF which facilitated epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and epithelial cell migration. Arg1 + macrophages dominated within 24 h. Migration and healing of the amnion mesenchymal compartment, however, remained compromised. These findings provide novel insights regarding unique healing mechanisms of amnion.
A Qualitative Investigation of Preteen Girls' Experiences in a Mindfulness-Based Eating Disorder Prevention Program

Concerns with body image and disordered eating behaviors are pervasive in today's society, with recent cohorts of preteen girls experiencing an increased risk of developing an eating disorder. This...
Generation of High-Titer Defective HSV-1 Vectors Using an IE 2 Deletion Mutant and Quantitative Study of Expression in Cultured Cortical Cells

Vectors based on herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) show promise for gene transfer into mammalian cells because of their wide host range, efficient infection and ability to deliver genes to nondividing cells. Defective HSV-1 vectors, or amplicons, are plasmid vectors which are unable to propagate on their own but contain specific HSV-1 sequences that, in the presence of helper virus, support DNA replication and subsequent packaging into virus particles. We compared three replication-incompetent HSV-1 mutants (KOS strain 5dl1.2, strain 17 D30EBA, KOS strain d120) as the helper virus for packaging the prototype defective HSV-1 vector, pHSVlac, which uses the HSV-1 immediate-early (1E) 4/5 promoter to regulate expression of the Escherichia coli lacZ gene. Use of 5dl1.2, which contains a deletion in the IE 2 gene, consistently produced virus stocks that contained a high level of vector, undetectable levels of wild-type HSV-1 and a ratio of vector to helper greater than 1. Virus stocks prepared using 5dl1.2 were superior to those prepared using helper viruses that harbor a deletion in the IE 3 gene, either D30EBA or dl20, and supported more efficient gene transfer than possible with previously published procedures. Lactate dehydrogenase efflux assays in rat cortical cultures showed that 5dl1.2 was no more cytotoxic than either D30EBA or dl20, despite the expression of more viral genes. Rat cortical cultures infected with pHSVlac packaged with either 5dl1.2 or D30EBA were used to quantify the stability of vector expression. Our results show a decrease in the number of cells with detectable levels of beta-galactosidase to 30% of peak levels after one week, irrespective of the helper virus used. However, simultaneous superinfection with 5dl1.2, but not with either D30EBA or dl20, produced a transient increase in the number of cells expressing beta-galactosidase. Superinfection with 5dl1.2 at 9 days after gene transfer increased the number of cells expressing detectable beta-galactosidase back to peak levels, most probably because of reactivation of the IE 4/5 promoter in pHSVlac. These results thus provide the first quantitative demonstration of long-term persistence of defective HSV-1 vectors in neurons.
CHAPTER III – SEMICONDUCTORS

This chapter introduces a number of concepts and terms that are most useful in considering aspects of the design, construction, and operation of solar (photovoltaic) cells. Theoretically, solar cells are constructed of various semiconductors and their performance is dependent upon the properties of these materials. These properties are best understood within the framework of quantum mechanics and solid state physics. Electrically, all materials can be divided into three classes, relating to the ability of a specific material to carry electrical current: (1) Conductors that contain many free electrons, which are not bound to specific sites within the material, hence, are free to move and generate current; (2) insulators that have no mobile electrons and, therefore, are unable to sustain an electrical current; and (3) semiconductors who have the ability to carry an electrical current lying between these two extremes. Semiconductors exhibit all three forms of crystal arrangement: crystalline, polycrystalline, and amorphous. Many of the properties that are found to be useful in semiconductors and solar cells arise from the basic crystal structure of the semiconductor and are dependent on the direction in the crystal toward , which the observer is facing. There are a number of methods for introducing impurities into any particular semiconductor. We can insert the impurities into the crystal when the crystal is initially formed. This initial construction is normally performed by pulling the semiconductor crystal from a molten bath, using a seed crystal to define the nature and orientation of the lattice.
The Cellular Function of Stearoyl-CoA Desaturase-2 in Development and Differentiation

Stearoyl-CoA desaturase 2 (SCD2) is one of four highly similar mouse Δ9 desaturases with close identity to the human Δ9 desaturase, hSCD1. SCD2 functions in skin to maintain palmitoleate and oleate in complex lipids and linoleic acid in acylceramide, a key component in protecting the epidermal barrier. Thus, SCD2 null mice exhibit high lethality, likely due to severe dehydration and skin permeability barrier defects. SCD2 also plays a major role in hepatic lipogenesis in embryonic and newborn mice. However, the decreased hepatic triglyceride and VLDL production observed in newborn SCD2 null mice is rescued by rising levels of SCD1 in adult animals. Interestingly, SCD2 function may be distinct from SCD1 in cultured adipocytes since its depletion by siRNA in preadipocytes uniquely disrupts the differentiation process. This effect is associated with reduced translation of selective proteins, including PPARγ. Here we examine the regulation, and physiological roles in adipose tissue, B and T cells, liver, skin, reproduction, and during development.
Ethiopian Unfair Competition Law

This article shall attempt to analyze the general rules and principles governing unfair commercial competition in Ethiopia. The elucidations shall be made against a modest background of legal as well as economic doctrinal analysis. In so doing, attempt shall be made to analyse the concept of unfair competition, situations of unfair competition, remedies available to victims of unfair competition, and other issues arising thereof. As a caveat, it should be borne in mind that although unfair commercial competition falls within the proper province of unfair trade practices, which also includes anti-competitive agreements, abuse of dominance, and other miscellaneous conducts, this article does not deal with all aspects of unfair trade practices and as such shall be limited to a critical examination of unfair competition.
Optimal learning and surface identification for terrestrial soft robots

Soft material robots have potential for deployment in dynamic environments, e.g. search and rescue operations, owing to their impact resistance and adaptability. However, these advantages are accompanied by challenges of robot control and surface identification. The continuum, soft material robot body interacts uniquely with different environments e.g. a smooth table or a rough carpet. These interactions with the surface can be discretized and modeled using graph theory. This representation allows the robot to learn from its surroundings and generate environment-specific locomotion control sequences. Here, simple cycles of individual graphs are analogous to periodic locomotion gaits of the soft robot. Inversely, provided the knowledge of different environments (captured in the individual graphs), the robot has ability to optimally identify the environment through experimentation and interaction. This paper presents a method for soft robots to a) optimally learn the environment and b) determine optimized movements for identifying the surface of locomotion by utilizing the information from previously experienced environments. The optimized movements are identified as arcs, paths and simple cycles that yield the most contrasting costs. The surface identification is performed by analyzing the locomotion cost differential between the experienced surface interaction and that of a previously known environment. The learning and control algorithms (Eulerian path, simple cycles) are ‘arc-centric’ i.e. focus on traversing arcs. Whereas surface identification algorithms are ‘node-centric’ i.e. focus on traversing nodes (simple paths).
A Genomic Approach to Yeast Chronological Aging

Yeast is a useful model organism to study the genetic and biochemical mechanisms of aging. Genomic studies of aging in yeast have been limited, however, by traditional methodologies that require a large investment of labor and resources. In this chapter, we describe a newly-developed method for quantitatively measuring the chronological life span of each strain contained in the yeast ORF deletion collection. Our approach involves determining population survival by monitoring outgrowth kinetics using a Bioscreen C MBR shaker/incubator/plate reader. This method has accuracy comparable to traditional assays, while allowing for higher throughput and decreased variability in measurement.
Microbial formation of environmental pollutants.

Publisher Summary This chapter highlights some of the metabolites involved in the microbial formation of environmental pollutants. Pesticides are essential to protect from certain communicable diseases, and to provide food and clothing. In the technologically advanced countries, the pest-control agents often make the difference between success and failure in food and fiber production and between making a profit and incurring a financial loss. The chapter emphasizes on the role that terrestrial and marine populations play in determining the composition of the atmosphere. Various inorganic nitrogen compounds, such as ammonia, nitrate, nitrite, hydroxylamine, and nitrogen oxides adversely affect the environment. Ethylene has achieved considerable prominence as an atmospheric pollutant. This gas at remarkably low concentrations may cause abscission of leaves, flowers, and fruits, accelerate plant senescence, enhance the degradation of chlorophyll, make certain flowers droop, increase respiration rate and sugar content of plants, stimulate sprouting of bulbs and roots, inhibit growth of shoots and leaves, and hasten the ripening of unripe fruits.
Formation of Urogenital System

The primary source of the urogenital system is intermediate mesoderm. It first appears, you will recall, in the presomite embryo, during the third week of human development (Fig. 4.2, p. 25). Embryonic mesoderm simultaneously gives rise also to paraxial and lateral plate mesoderm. In the early embryo, intermediate mesoderm is located, bilaterally, between the other two forms of embryonic mesoderm; and, like paraxial mesoderm, it becomes transversely segmented without, however, differentiating into somite-like blocks of tissue.
Effect of premorbid body mass index on mortality in patients with lung cancer: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

8523Background: Obesity is associated with reduced risk of developing lung cancer (LC), but its effect on LC mortality remains unclear. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis to assess ...
Problem-oriented policing: matching the science to the art

This paper is an edited version of the Jerry Lee Lecture delivered at the Stockholm Criminology Symposium in 2018, the year in which Professor Herman Goldstein was awarded the Stockholm Prize in Criminology in recognition of his contribution to public safety through the development of problem-oriented policing. This paper examines the significance of a problem-oriented approach and seeks to establish the right balance among, and appropriate role for, a broad range of diverse contributions that scholars and analysts can make to support effective problem-solving. It explores the distinctive contributions of experimental criminology and program evaluation to problem-oriented work, and contrasts the inquiry techniques typically employed by social scientists and by natural scientists. The goal of this paper is to usefully “round out” the role that scholars are prepared to play in advancing effective problem-solving practice.
Premature Closure: Anchoring Bias, Occam’s Error, Availability Bias, Search Satisficing, Yin-Yang Error, Diagnosis Momentum, Triage Cueing, and Unpacking Failure

Premature closure is the mistake of accepting a diagnosis before it has been fully verified. Its consequences are reflected in the maxim: “When the diagnosis is made, the thinking stops.” It is a powerful factor accounting for a high proportion of missed diagnoses. Several specific errors are discussed here. There are; the anchoring bias, a form of the anchoring bias called Occam’s error, the availability bias, search satisficing, the ying-yang error, diagnosis momentum, triage cueing, and unpacking failure. The last section in this chapter chapter will discuss the inverse of premature closure, the failure-to-close error.
Evaluation of CMIP5 ability to reproduce twentieth century regional trends in surface air temperature and precipitation over CONUS

The ability of the 5th phase of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP5) to reproduce twentieth-century climate trends over the seven CONUS regions of the National Climate Assessment is evaluated. This evaluation is carried out for summer and winter for three time periods, 1895–1939, 1940–1979, and 1980–2005. The evaluation includes all 206 CMIP5 historical simulations from 48 unique models and their multi-model ensemble (MME), as well as a gridded in situ dataset of surface air temperature and precipitation. Analysis is performed on both individual members and the MME, and considers reproducing the correct sign of the trends by the members as well as reproducing the trend values. While the MME exhibits some trend bias in most cases, it reproduces historical temperature trends with reasonable fidelity for summer for all time periods and all regions, including at the CONUS scale, except the Northern Great Plains from 1895 to 1939 and Southeast during 1980–2005. Likewise, for DJF, the MME reproduces historical temperature trends across all time periods over all regions, including at the CONUS scale, except the Southeast from 1895 to 1939 and the Midwest during 1940–1979. Model skill was highest across all of the seven regions during JJA and DJF for the 1980–2005 period. The quantitatively best result is seen during DJF in the Southwest region with at least 74% of the ensemble members correctly reproducing the observed trend across all of the time periods. No clear trends in MME precipitation were identified at these scales due to high model precipitation variability.
Online Static Load Model Estimation in Distribution Systems

This paper focuses on parameter identification for time-varying voltage-dependent polynomial load models in distribution systems—namely, the constant impedance (Z), constant current (I), and constant power (P). The paper assumes the presence of measurements at the distribution nodes from various sources, each at varying temporal resolutions. The least-squares estimation method with bounded variables is used to convert the measurements into ZIP parameter estimations for loads at various locations on the feeder. The results and discussions focus on some of the estimation issues faced in a distribution system caused by varying voltage sensitivities of loads along a feeder, measurement resolution, impact of window size and sampling rate of measurement data. Finally, the paper uses dynamic simulations data (synthetic high-resolution measurements) to further improve the estimation results.
Newstead’s Mayer–Vietoris argument in characteristic 2

Consider the moduli space of framed flat U(2) connections with fixed odd determinant over a surface. Newstead combined some fundamental facts about this moduli space with the Mayer–Vietoris sequenc...
Underwater Navigation using Geomagnetic Field Variations

Underwater positioning and navigation for autonomous vehicles is challenging because of the GPS-denied environments. We present a novel positioning and navigation method for underwater vehicles using the Earth’s magnetic field properties including field intensity, declination, and inclination. In other words, we assume that the underwater vehicle is equipped with magnetometers that can sense the magnetic field properties at the sampling location. Based on the sensor readings, we estimate the geographical location of the vehicle. Specifically, we develop a feed-forward neural network model to estimate the geographical location of the vehicle by mapping magnetometer sensor readings to a unique location on the Earth’s surface. To train the neural network, we generate data using the International Geomagnetic Reference Field (IGRF) model.
TCT-703 Outcomes Following Aortic Valve Replacement for Cardiogenic Shock: Transcatheter Versus Surgical Approaches

Cardiogenic shock in the setting of decompensated aortic stenosis is associated with high mortality and poor surgical outcomes. TAVR may be a viable alternative to open cardiac surgery. This is a retrospective cohort study of patients at Emory Healthcare from January 2012 to December 2018. The
Dataset for comparison between single and double pilot injection in diesel-natural gas dual fuel engine

The present data article is based on the research work which investigates the low-temperature combustion (LTC) in a dual fuel light duty engine. The LTC mode was activated by means of double pilot injection to control the energy release rate in the first combustion stage, thereby minimizing the increase of the rate of pressure and allowing the operation under LTC. This data article presents all the data which supports the choice for double pilot injection vs single pilot injection for that research. In this experimental work the engine was fueled with diesel, in full-diesel (FD) mode, and in dual fuel (DF) mode with natural gas and natural gas - hydrogen mixtures as main fuel. In DF mode the pilot diesel fuel was injected both with a single and a double injection at the same engine speed and torque. The pressure cycle in one of the four cylinders, the intake manifold pressure and the injector current signal were acquired on a crank angle basis for 100 consecutive engine cycles. Analysis of combustion rate, maximum pressure rise and fuel/air flow rate were performed. The data set, which also includes some engine control parameters, the combustion chamber geometry and some injector features, can potentially be reused to numerically model the combustion phenomena and, in particular, to investigate the effect on the ignition phase of combustion in LTC, also considering the variability from cycle to cycle.
Influenza Vaccine Requirements in United States Child Care Centers.

Background Influenza vaccine is the most effective means to prevent influenza for the high-risk population of child care attendees. This national survey assessed child care center directors' reports of seasonal influenza vaccine requirements for children and adult caregivers. Methods This was a 2016 telephone-based survey of child care center directors randomly selected from a national database of licensed United States child care centers and queried about influenza vaccine requirements. Conceptually related items were grouped into 4 indexes: general infection control, use of health consultants, quality of child care, and pandemic influenza preparedness. These indexes, along with other center and director characteristics, were used to predict director-reported influenza vaccine requirements. Results Of 518 child care center directors, only 24.5% and 13.1% reported an influenza vaccine requirement for children and adult caregivers, respectively. Center and director characteristics and the indexes were not associated with a director-reported influenza vaccine requirement. After adjusting for covariates, only having a state influenza vaccine law for children and an adult influenza vaccine requirement predicted having a child influenza vaccine requirement. Only having a child influenza vaccine requirement predicted having an adult vaccine requirement. Conclusions Director-reported influenza vaccine requirements for children and adult caregivers were influenced primarily by state influenza vaccine laws. Given the high risk of children in child care and low director-reported influenza vaccine requirements, more states should pass laws requiring influenza vaccine for children and adult caregivers at child care programs.
Chapter 67 – Alzheimer Disease

The remarkable rise in life expectancy during the twentieth century has made Alzheimer disease (AD) among the most common disorders of late life. An insidious loss of memory, cognition, reasoning, and behavioral stability leads inexorably to global dementia and premature death of the patient. At autopsy, one finds myriad amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles in the limbic and association cortices and regions that project to them. These lesions have served as the starting point for an intensive biochemical and molecular genetic attack on the disorder. In particular, progress in unraveling the genotype–phenotype relationships of inherited forms of AD has provided substantial support for the hypothesis that cerebral accumulation of the amyloid-β protein (Aβ) is an early, invariant and necessary step in the development of the disease.