cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Technology, Function, and Human Activity

This chapter combines three major areas of investigation in archaeological chemistry – technology, function, and human activity. Technology refers to the means that humans use to obtain resources and modify the world around them. Function, related to technology, refers to how tools, equipment, and facilities were used by humans in the past. Human activity is a generic term for the study of the function and use of space. What did humans do in the places they lived, gathered food, and worked? What was the function of the spaces that humans utilized in the past? These three related areas of investigation are discussed individually in more detail in the following pages of this chapter.
An Automated Critical Event Screening and Notification System to Facilitate Preanesthesia Record Review.

BACKGROUND Anesthesia information management systems make prior anesthesia records readily available for review when patients return for a subsequent procedure but may create a problem of too much documentation to review in a limited amount of time. We implemented a screening tool to facilitate the identification of critical documentation for review. METHODS An algorithm was developed to electronically search prior anesthesia records for predefined critical events and flag records containing these events. Our web-based daily case schedule was modified to contain a warning message for any patient on the schedule who has a prior record flagged by the system, in addition to a preexisting hyperlink to view the relevant record. A retrospective analysis was performed to determine the impact of the warning messages on the frequency with which the care team reviewed these records before providing anesthesia care. RESULTS The screening algorithm flagged 13% of archived cases as critical. There were 3329 and 3369 cases in the 6 months before and after system implementation, respectively, that had prior critical records available for review at that time. One or more of these critical records were viewed before the subsequent case start in 39% vs 59% (P < .01) of cases in the pre- versus postimplementation periods. Subgroup analysis revealed that the increase was greatest for attending anesthesiologists working alone. CONCLUSIONS We created a system to automatically detect critical events in prior anesthesia records for the purpose of forewarning the anesthesia care team when the same patient returns for another procedure. Inclusion of these warnings on the daily case schedule was associated with an increased frequency of preanesthesia review of old records.
Parathyroid hormone resistance in renal allograft recipients.

Hypophosphatemia is common after renal transplantation and has been variously ascribed to persistent hyperparathyroidism, to tubular damage from rejection, or to the effect of corticosteroid or immunosuppressive therapy (1–3). To learn more about the mechanisms, we measured TmP/GFR, nephrogenous cyclic AMP (NcAMP) and immunoreactive PTH in 25 renal transplant patients with stable renal function (Ccr≥70 ml/min/1.73 m2,≥6 months post-transplant), 21 healthy control subjects and 5 uninephrectomized renal transplant donors. On the basis of the parathyroid function tests, we divided the patients into three groups. In Group 1 (5 patients) serum calcium, NcAMP and PTH were all normal; these patients had resolved hyperparathyroidism. In Group 2 (6 patients) serum calcium, NcAMP and PTH. were all raised; these patients had persistent hypercalcemic hyperparathyroidism. In Group 3 (14 patients) serum calcium was normal but either NcAMP or iPTH or both were raised; these patients had persistent normocalcemic hyperparathyroidism. These three groups did not differ significantly in duration of graft survival, creatinine clearance, type or dose of immunosuppressive therapy, or serum levels of vitamin D metabolites.
Can preoperative nasal cultures of Staphylococcus aureus predict infectious complications or outcomes following repair of fracture nonunion

Abstract Introduction Much has been studied with reference to methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and methicillin sensitive S. aureus (MSSA) colonization and associated outcomes and comorbidities. In the area of Orthopedic surgery, literature predominantly comes from the field of arthroplasty. Little is known about outcomes of fracture and Orthopedic trauma patients in the setting of S. aureus colonization. We believe that MRSA/MSSA colonization in and of itself may be a weak marker for generally poor protoplasm, potentially with complex medical history including previous hospitalization or rehab placement. This milieu of risk factors may or may not contribute to poorer outcomes after fracture and fracture nonunion surgery. The purpose of this study is to determine if nasal swabbing for S. aureus (MRSA or MSSA) carriage can predict operative culture, complications, or outcomes following fracture nonunion surgery. Methods Sixty-two consecutive patients undergoing surgery for fracture nonunion were prospectively followed. Data analyses were performed using grouped MRSA and MSSA carriers ( Staphylococcus carriers: SC). Outcomes analyzed included time to healing, need for additional surgery, and persistent nonunion. Results Twenty-six percent of patients (16/62) were identified as MSSA carriers, an additional 6.5% (4/62) carried MRSA. Follow-up of at least 12-months was obtained on 90% (56/62) of patients. White blood cell counts, erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and C-reactive protein (CRP) values did not differ between SCs and non-carriers pre-operatively. Carriers were just as likely as non-carriers to culture positively for any pathogen at the time of surgery. Although SC’s were three times as likely as non-carriers to grow S. aureus (15% vs. 5%), this difference did not reach statistical significance (p = 0.3). Post-operative wound complications, antibiotic use, pain at follow-up and progression to healing did not differ between groups. Conclusions Ultimately, pre-operative nasal swabbing for S. aureus is a simple and non-invasive diagnostic tool with prognostic implications in patients undergoing fracture nonunion surgery. This study found that MRSA and MSSA colonized patients with fracture nonunion of long bones do not have an increased association with positive cultures or a predisposition towards greater post-operative infectious complications.
An Alaska case study: Energy storage technologies

In the analysis of energy storage systems (ESSs) in Alaska, the most significant trend in the data considered is the increased variance in costs with time. Thus, more options are now available for ESS with “low cost per kW/high cost per kW h” and vice versa, indicating a greater variety of specialized ESS for targeted applications. The data analyzed do not show any difference in the cost of energy storage in Alaska compared to such costs in the rest of the nation or world. Alaska has had relatively few energy storage technology failures, and most that occurred were caused by improper operation. It is often difficult to justify energy storage economically based on fuel savings alone. Significant work remains to quantify other possible cost savings afforded by energy storage, such as reduced fuel consumption and stress on a diesel generator by smoothing out the load. The lack of standardization and quantification of costs and benefits is the main barrier to determining the economic potential for implementat...
Recommendations for the reporting of larynx specimens containing laryngeal neoplasms

The Association of Directors of Anatomic and Surgical Pathology have developed recommendations for the surgical pathology report for common malignant tumors. The recommendations for carcinoma of the larynx are reported herein.
Current best practice management of interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome.

Introduction:Over the last 100 years, the terminology and diagnosis criteria for interstitial cystitis have evolved. Many therapeutic options have changed, but others have endured. This article wil...
Paracanthal "One-Snip" Decompression in a Cadaver Model of Retrobulbar Hemorrhage.

Purpose The authors assess the effectiveness of a modified paracanthal or "one-snip" procedure compared with the traditional lateral canthotomy and inferior cantholysis in the reduction of intraocular pressure (IOP) and proptosis in a human cadaveric model of retrobulbar hemorrhage. Methods This study comprised a comparative interventional study in a cadaveric model of retrobulbar hemorrhage. Six orbits of 3 fresh cadavers were included in the study. Baseline measurements of IOP and proptosis were recorded for all 6 orbits before and after simulation of retrobulbar hemorrhage as previously described. Right orbits (n = 3) underwent traditional lateral canthotomy and inferior cantholysis. Left orbits (n = 3) underwent modified paracanthal or "one-snip" procedure. The primary outcome measures were reduction in IOP and proptosis between the 2 techniques. Results Following lateral canthotomy and inferior cantholysis of each right orbit, the average IOP dropped to 14 mm Hg (range of 11-18 mm Hg), corresponding to a mean decrease of 32 mm Hg. Following the "one-snip" procedure of each left orbit, the average IOP dropped to 19 mm Hg with a range of 16 to 23 mm Hg, corresponding to a mean decrease of 22 mm Hg. There was no statistically significant difference in IOP reduction (p = 0.36) or proptosis reduction (p = 0.23) between the 2 treatment groups. Conclusions Compared with traditional lateral canthotomy xand inferior cantholysis, the modified paracanthal or "one-snip" procedure is effective for IOP reduction and led to mild improvement of proptosis in a cadaveric model of retrobulbar hemorrhage. The authors hope this study helps improve orbital compartment syndrome outcomes by providing an option that more providers will feel comfortable performing and therefore decreasing time to surgical decompression.
Physical Basis and Necessity for Grey-Level Phantom Development

Acoustical phantoms having several layer interfaces in simple geometric configurations and having controlled reflection coefficients at interfaces are proposed as grey-level phantoms. Such phantoms are useful for providing known ultrasonic reflection amplitudes at definite time intervals. These known reflection interfaces can provide an absolute standard to calibrate the instrument settings of conventional B-scanning equipment. Once so calibrated, diagnostic equipment can offer improved differential diagnostic capability to distinguish cystic from solid lesions and to monitor the progress of radiographic tumor treatment. In essence, the primary utility of the grey-level phantom is to provide an absolute gain calibration that includes the effects of the transducer by initializing the instrumentation prior to each examination procedure. Materials selections for the phantoms are shown to have physical properties and interfacial reflection coefficients closely approximating those values already documented for human tissue interfaces.
The Pain Registry for Epidemiological, Clinical, and Interventional Studies and Innovation (PRECISION): registry overview and protocol for a propensity score-matched study of opioid prescribing in patients with low back pain

Background Low back pain is the leading cause of disability worldwide. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are recommended as the first-line pharmacologic therapy for subacute or chronic low back pain, with opioids reserved for patients who fail on NSAIDs. CYP2D6, CYP2C9, and CYP2C19 genes have variants that place patients using analgesics at risk for adverse events. However, precision medicine based on pharmacogenetically informed prescribing is becoming more feasible as genotyping costs decline. This study aims to compare opioids vs NSAIDs in treating adults with subacute or chronic low back pain under the alternative models of usual care and precision medicine. Methods An observational cohort study within the Pain Registry for Epidemiological, Clinical, and Interventional Studies and Innovation (PRECISION) will be used to simulate a randomized controlled trial. Patients using opioids and NSAIDs will be optimally matched at baseline using propensity scores. A saliva sample will also be collected to determine patient genotypes for drug metabolism based on CYP2D6 (single-gene model) and CYP2D6, CYP2C9, and CYP2C19 (multigene model). Prescribing that is concordant with pharmacogenetically informed care under these models will be considered "low risk", whereas discordant prescribing will be considered "high risk". Primary outcomes will be assessed over 6 months using a Numerical Rating Scale for pain, the Roland-Morris Disability Questionnaire, and the Drug Adverse Events Index. Secondary outcomes will be assessed using quality-of-life measures. An estimated 600 patients will be enrolled to acquire at least 400 patients after attrition and allowing for unmatched patients. This will achieve a statistical power of at least 80% in detecting the effect sizes ranging from 0.35 (small-medium effect) to 0.69 (medium-large effect). Discussion This PRECISION Pain Research Registry study builds on the concepts espoused in the Precision Medicine Initiative and addresses long-term goals established by the National Institutes of Health by assessing how precision medicine may prevent and treat chronic pain.
Nonprofit Social Capital as an Indicator of a Healthy Nonprofit Sector

Nonprofit social capital refers to the trust, norms, and networks that can improve organizational performance to fulfill a mission. Research on social capital within organizations, and specifically with nonprofits, is relatively widespread; however, the notion that we can quantify, measure, and incentivize its growth across a sector is novel. Nonprofits actively work to solve some of society’s most complex challenges in diverse areas, such as public health, education, social inequality, and environment. Few would argue against the need for a robust and healthy nonprofit sector. Yet, there is little debate and even less agreement on the definition of “a healthy nonprofit sector” or how to measure it. We offer a policy brief on this topic in the form of an exploratory think piece, rather than a definitive empirical methodology or research paper, that connects nonprofit social capital to a framework of sector health. Solving many of the challenges facing society today will require trust, working together, and networks of resources and reciprocity. Because of this, nonprofit social capital – both cognitive and structural – is an important benchmark of nonprofit sector health and could supplement other metrics of an index offering a signal as to changes occurring in the sector.
An examination of students' perceptions of the Kekulé resonance representation using a perceptual learning theory lens

Students in chemistry often demonstrate difficulty with the principle of resonance. Despite many attempts to mitigate this difficulty, there have been few attempts to examine the root cause of these issues. In this study, students were assessed for their perception of Kekule structures based on perceptual learning theory, which is grounded in cognitive mechanisms of visual perception. The data from this assessment shows that students are perceiving inappropriate clues from this representation, which infers that the image itself might be an impediment to learning about resonance. Employment of a metarepresentational competence approach was used to address these misperceptions.
Factors That Predict Weight Gain among First-Year College Students.

Aim and objectives:In the USA, undergraduate students gain more weight in the first year in college than at any other point in their lives. However, the factors that predict their weight gain are u...
Reply to Friedman and Banich: Right measures for the research question.

In their Letter to the Editor, Friedman and Banich (1) suggest we (2) “overstate” the higher suitability of dependent variables (DVs) derived from surveys for individual difference analyses. We appreciate this opportunity for a continued discussion regarding the measurement of self-regulation. However, their critiques (1) do not provide evidence against the higher reliability of survey DVs, which is central to our conclusions. Instead, they levy criticisms addressed in another of our papers (3). For instance, the authors (1) argue that task DVs could provide value for individual difference analyses via latent variables. Indeed, we confirmed latent variables underlying task DVs are more reliable compared to individual task DVs (2, 3 … [↵][1]1To whom correspondence may be addressed. Email: zenkavi{at}stanford.edu. [1]: #xref-corresp-1-1
Intimate Data: Understanding Wartime Pogroms in Poland’s Eastern Borderlands

Between late June and early August of 1941, a series of bloody pogroms broke out in the eastern borderlands of the former Polish Republic, killing tens of thousands of Jewish residents. Much of thi...
Fast Estimation of Information Theoretic Learning Descriptors using Explicit Inner Product Spaces

Kernel methods form a theoretically-grounded, powerful and versatile framework to solve nonlinear problems in signal processing and machine learning. The standard approach relies on the \emph{kernel trick} to perform pairwise evaluations of a kernel function, leading to scalability issues for large datasets due to its linear and superlinear growth with respect to the training data. Recently, we proposed \emph{no-trick} (NT) kernel adaptive filtering (KAF) that leverages explicit feature space mappings using data-independent basis with constant complexity. The inner product defined by the feature mapping corresponds to a positive-definite finite-rank kernel that induces a finite-dimensional reproducing kernel Hilbert space (RKHS). Information theoretic learning (ITL) is a framework where information theory descriptors based on non-parametric estimator of Renyi entropy replace conventional second-order statistics for the design of adaptive systems. An RKHS for ITL defined on a space of probability density functions simplifies statistical inference for supervised or unsupervised learning. ITL criteria take into account the higher-order statistical behavior of the systems and signals as desired. However, this comes at a cost of increased computational complexity. In this paper, we extend the NT kernel concept to ITL for improved information extraction from the signal without compromising scalability. Specifically, we focus on a family of fast, scalable, and accurate estimators for ITL using explicit inner product space (EIPS) kernels. We demonstrate the superior performance of EIPS-ITL estimators and combined NT-KAF using EIPS-ITL cost functions through experiments.
Diagnostic differences in respiratory breathing patterns and work of breathing indices in children with Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

Rationale Pulmonary function testing (PFT) provides diagnostic information regarding respiratory physiology. However, many forms of PFT are time-intensive and require patient cooperation. Respiratory inductance plethysmography (RIP) provides thoracoabdominal asynchrony (TAA) and work of breathing (WOB) data. pneuRIPTM is a noninvasive, wireless analyzer that provides real-time assessment of RIP via an iPad. In this study, we show that pneuRIPTM can be used in a hospital clinic setting to differentiate WOB indices and breathing patterns in children with DMD as compared to age-matched healthy subjects. Methods RIP using the pneuRIPTM was conducted on 9 healthy volunteers and 7 DMD participants (ages 5–18) recruited from the neuromuscular clinic, under normal resting conditions over 3–5 min during routine outpatient visits. The tests were completed in less than 10 minutes and did not add excessive time to the clinic visit. Variables recorded included labored-breathing index (LBI), phase angle (Φ) between abdomen and rib cage, respiratory rate (RR), percentage of rib cage input (RC%), and heart rate (HR). The data were displayed in histogram plots to identify distribution patterns within the normal ranges. The percentages of data within the ranges (0≤ Φ ≤30 deg.; median RC %±10%; median RR±5%; 1≤LBI≤1.1) were compared. Unpaired t-tests determined significance of the data between groups. Results 100% patient compliance demonstrates the feasibility of such testing in clinical settings. DMD patients showed a significant elevation in Φ, LBI, and HR averages (P<0.006, P<0.002, P<0.046, respectively). Healthy subjects and DMD patients had similar BPM and RC% averages. All DMD data distributions were statistically different from healthy subjects based on analysis of histograms. The DMD patients showed significantly less data within the normal ranges, with only 49.7% Φ, 48.0% RC%, 69.2% RR, and 50.7% LBI. Conclusion In this study, noninvasive pneuRIPTM testing provided instantaneous PFT diagnostic results. As compared to healthy subjects, patients with DMD showed abnormal results with increased markers of TAA, WOB indices, and different breathing patterns. These results are similar to previous studies evaluating RIP in preterm infants. Further studies are needed to compare these results to other pulmonary testing methods. The pneuRIPTM testing approach provides immediate diagnostic information in outpatient settings.
Behavioral health and refugee youth in primary care: An ecological systems perspective of the complexities of care

Abstract Upon U.S. resettlement, refugee youth may present various behavioral health needs in primary health care settings unique to their displacement and relocation experiences. Primary health care presents the opportunity to assess and treat behavioral health needs and is one of the most frequently attended medical settings. Primary health care providers are instrumental in identifying behavioral health needs and connecting youth with appropriate resources and referrals. A study, grounded in Urie Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory, was created to assess the behavioral health of refugee youth specifically through the perspectives of the primary health care providers who treat them. Clark Moustkas’ phenomenological approach was utilized for the qualitative analysis. After recruitment and voluntary consent, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 participants. Inclusion criteria required that the primary care provider had direct experience treating refugee youth. Data collection took approximately nine months and Colaizzi’s method of phenomenological analysis was utilized. From the data, 11 thematic clusters were uncovered under three overarching categories, experiences of resettled refugees, care & assistance for refugee families, behavioral health support. Implications included incorporating a strength-based, resilience focused approach in treatment, resources for screeners, assessment and diagnosis, and discussion of physician burn-out and implicit bias. Directions for future research include validation of assessment and diagnostic tools for this population as well as treatment options focused of displaced youth in primary health care settings.
Designing single-cell experiments to harvest fluctuation noise while rejecting measurement noise

Measurement error is a complicating factor that could reduce or distort the information contained in an experiment. This problem becomes even more serious in the context of experiments to measure single-cell gene expression heterogeneity, in which important quantities such as RNA and protein copy numbers are themselves subjected to the inherent randomness of biochemical reactions. Yet, it is not clear how measurement noise should be managed, in addition to other experiment design variables such as sampling size and frequency, in order to ensure that the collected data provides useful insights on the gene expression mechanism of interest. To address these experiment design challenges, we propose a model-centric framework that makes explicit use of measurement error modeling and Fisher Information Matrix-based criteria to decide between experimental methods. This unified approach not only allows us to see how different noise characteristics affect uncertainty in parameter estimation, but also enables a systematic approach to designing hybrid experiments that combine different measurement methods.
Chapter 1.3 Antarctic volcanism: petrology and tectonomagmatic overview

Abstract Petrological investigations over the past 30 years have significantly advanced our knowledge of the origin and evolution of magmas emplaced within and erupted on top of the Antarctic Plate. Over the last 200 myr Antarctica has experienced: (1) several episodes of rifting, leading to the fragmentation of Gondwana and the formation by c. 83 Ma of the current Antarctica Plate; (2) long-lived subduction that shut down progressively eastwards along the Gondwana margin in the Late Cretaceous and is still active at the northernmost tip of the Antarctic Peninsula; and (3) broad extension across West Antarctica that produced one of the Earth9s major continental rift systems. The dynamic tectonic history of Antarctica since the Triassic has led to a diversity of volcano types and igneous rock compositions with correspondingly diverse origins. Many intriguing questions remain about the petrology of mantle sources and the mechanisms for melting during each tectonomagmatic phase. For intraplate magmatism, the upwelling of deep mantle plumes is often evoked. Alternatively, subduction-related metasomatized mantle sources and melting by more passive means (e.g. edge-driven flow, translithospheric faulting, slab windows) are proposed. A brief review of these often competing models is provided in this chapter along with recommendations for ongoing petrological research in Antarctica.
Lymph node involvement in gastric adenocarcinoma

Endoscopic management of early gastric cancer is limited by the risk of lymph node metastasis. We aimed to examine the incidence and predictors of nodal metastasis in early gastric adenocarcinoma in a large national US cohort. Cases were abstracted from the National Cancer Database from 2004 to 2016. The incidence and predictors of lymph node involvement for patients with Tis, T1a, and T1b tumors were examined. A total of 202,216 cases of gastric adenocarcinoma were identified in the NCDB. Cases with unknown patient or tumor characteristics, presence of other cancers, and prior neoadjuvant chemotherapy or radiotherapy were excluded. 1839 cases of Tis, T1a, and T1b tumors were identified. Lymph node metastases were present in 18.1% of patients. Lymphovascular invasion (LVI), high-grade histology, stage T1b, and larger size (> 3 cm) were independently associated with an increased risk of nodal metastasis on multivariate analysis (P < 0.05). The presence of LVI was the strongest predictor of nodal metastasis with an OR (95% CI) of 5.7 (4.3–7.6), P < 0.001. No lymph node metastasis was found in any Tis tumors. Small T1a low-grade tumors with no LVI had a low risk of nodal metastasis (0.6% < 2 cm and 0.9% < 3 cm). In this large national cohort, size, lymphovascular invasion, higher grade histology, and T stage were independently associated with lymph node metastasis. For patients with low-grade tumors, < 3 cm, without lymphovascular invasion, the risk of nodal involvement was very low, suggesting that this Western cohort could be considered for endoscopic resection.
Does it matter when I quit? Could I just cut down some? Links between trimester-specific smoking amount, preterm birth, and low birth weight.

BACKGROUND Substantial evidence demonstrates the harms of pregnancy smoking. Due to the need for very large data sets, less data exist to inform decisions about when quitting should occur, or whether a certain amount of reduction is beneficial. OBJECTIVES Our goal was to examine the effect of timing and amount of pregnancy smoking on low birth weight (LBW) and preterm birth (PTB). METHODS Data for 3 years of registered births in Tennessee were available and included standard birth certificate information. RESULTS Of 241,616 women, 15.7% smoked at conception, and those who quit as early as the first trimester had significantly increased adjusted odds of LBW (27%) and PTB (14%) compared to nonsmokers, with this effect largely driven by smoking 10+ cigarettes per day. Smoking into the second trimester but quitting prior to the third also predicted increases in LBW and PTB compared to both not smoking at all and smoking only in the first trimester. Smoking to delivery predicted a 2.8-fold increased likelihood of LBW, and a 2.1-fold increased rate of PTB. Any level of smoking after the first trimester substantially increased the odds of poor outcomes compared to both nonsmoking and smoking only in the first trimester. CONCLUSIONS Findings suggest that to avoid LBW or PTB, pregnant smokers should be advised that quitting completely by the end of the first trimester is important, and that continuing to smoke even <5 cigarettes per day after that point substantially increases the potential for of adverse outcomes.
Modulation and demodulation of particle beams at optical frequencies

This paper presents a convenient formulation for the discussion of experiments that are designed to modulate particle beams, such as an electron beam, and to demodulate this beam at optical frequencies. Such experiments have recently received considerable interest, and controversy, since the initial paper by Schwarz and Hora in 1969 which reported to have achieved such effects with light at 4880 A. The formalism is fully relativistic and yields conclusions that both differ from and are more general than other attempts at relativistic formulations. The formulation utilizes the concept of a density matrix to describe the particle beam, and so one may determine the effects of poor beam collimation and of nonmonoenergetic distributions without resorting to the artifice of assuming some particular wave packet. The formalism displays the beneficial effects of collimation and energy selection and, in particular, the optimum design of a « polychromator » with regard to both energy and transverse-momentum selection. The formalism for the demodulation is used to calculate directly the radiation intensity rather than the mean amplitude of the modes of the radiation field. Thus one obtains expressions for the incoherent background that is also radiated during the demodulation process and may lead experimentally to poor signal-to-noise ratios. It is shown that this background is slightly different for boson and for fermion beams. It is found, in a model-independent way, that the maximum possible signal-to-noise ratio is much poorer than that indicated by Schwarz and Hora. The recent suggestion by Schmieder of detection of modulation by the presence of a second modulator is also considered in this paper. Additional complications relating to this type of experiment are found.
Exploitation or choice? Exploring the relative attractiveness of employment in the maquiladoras

This study investigates the relative attractiveness of production level jobs provided by multinational firms in Mexico's maquiladora industry. We take the position that workers themselves are an important and often overlooked source of information relevant to the controversy focusing on the responsibilities of multinational companies to their employees in the developing world. We conducted interviews with 59 maquila production level workers in the Mexican cities of Cd. Juarez and Chihuahua. Using a relative attractiveness framework that compared maquila jobs to other employment available in the local economy, maquila line and technical workers responded to questions addressing why they were working at a maquila, their work history, the attractiveness of maquila jobs compared to both their prior jobs and the jobs held by friends and family, and whether they planned to continue working in the maquilas. While the responses from maquila workers are diverse, they suggest that maquila jobs provide attractive employment for the economically disadvantaged in Northern Mexico.
Impedance control with energy regeneration in advanced exercise machines

This paper shows how a controls-oriented approach can be used to improve the functionality, energy efficiency and bulk/weight requirements of advanced exercise machinery. Exercise devices for the space environment are the motivation for this research, but other applications are certainly possible. The paper introduces a design concept involving a user force/velocity port, a mechanical transmission, a DC motor/generator a regenerative servo amplifier and an ultracapacitor as the sole electric energy storage device. The intrinsic capability of the design concept to realize any desired force/velocity relationship at the user port (controllability of port impedance) is verified first using an inverse model approach. As an example, design parameters are selected to match the force/velocity characteristic of a typical gym rower. A feedback implementation is then developed based on the author's semiactive virtual control strategy. The validity of the approach is demonstrated with a laboratory prototype of a scaled rowing machine. The results show that the system can be operated entirely on human power, while simultaneously attaining the impedance control objective.
Atomic Data from the Opacity Project

The “Opacity Project” is an international collaboration dedicated to the calculation of stellar envelope opacities and the accurate atomic data that are required. The volume and accuracy of the atomic database generated in the project are evaluated by making comparisons with the best available experimental and theoretical datasets. We also describe the main features of a database management system, referred to as TOPBASE, that has been developed for efficient use of the Opacity Project atomic data.
Properties of Commercial Electron-sensitive Plates for Astronomical Electronography

Publisher Summary This chapter elaborates the properties of commercial electron-sensitive plates for astronomical electronography. The advantages of electronography over classical photography are well known, especially the higher quantum efficiency, almost zero threshold density, and greater information storage capacity. Although several successful electronographic cameras are in routine use, relatively little information has been available to help in the choice of design and operating parameters, such as image size, accelerating voltage, and type of plate. Accordingly, this study was undertaken to investigate the characteristic curves and detective quantum efficiency of plates useful for astronomical electronography, under an appropriate range of variables. After a preliminary investigation, this study was restricted to four types of emulsion used in astronomical work—namely, Kodak NTB 2, Ilford G5, K5, and L4, all 10 μm thick. This study forms two separate parts: (a) the determination of the characteristic curves and absolute sensitivities for which fairly consistent results have been obtained, and (b) the measurement of noise and resolution, the difficulties of which are pointed out and some significant results are given.
Response frequency problems in the rorschach: clinical and research implications with suggestions for the future.

This article focuses on clinical and research problems associated with response frequency (R) being a variable in the Rorschach. Despite the fact that variations in R directly contribute to 50% of the explainable variance among Rorschach raw scores, there is a dearth of empirical evidence to document what R actually measures. Furthermore, in the practical use of the Rorschach's structural data, R is considered to be a nuisance variable that is controlled and not deemed interpretively significant. Given this information, two research agendas are proposed. The first is to more thoroughly determine whether R measures anything of substantial clinical importance. The second is to evaluate systematically the relative merits of making R a constant rather than a variable through use of an R-controlled method of Rorschach administration. This strategy would resolve many of the psychometric problems related to R. Introducing greater structure and clearer expectations to the task may also sharpen the Rorschach's abi...
Applying mixed methods to leadership research: A review of current practices

Abstract Leadership research has a long history of a quantitative approach, and it remains the most commonly used approach among leadership researchers. Researchers in a variety of fields have been applying mixed methods designs to their research as a way to advance theory. Mixed methods designs are used for collecting, analyzing, and mixing both quantitative and qualitative data in a single study or series of studies to both explain and explore specific research questions. This article provides a review of the basic characteristics of mixed methods designs. A broad series of leadership approaches is offered to help emphasize how the application of mixed methods designs have already been applied and where they might be directed in future research. Our review of articles published in the Leadership Quarterly between 1990 and June 2012 revealed a slight occurrence of existing application of mixed methods designs to leadership research. Of the articles reviewed, only 15 studies were found to represent mixed methods research, according to our conceptual framework. The overall intent of this article is to highlight the value of purposeful application of mixed methods designs toward advancing leadership theory and/or theoretical thinking about leadership phenomena.
Classical management of refractory adult immune (idiopathic) thrombocytopenic purpura.

Treatment of chronic immune (idiopathic) thrombocytopenic purpura with corticosteroids and/or splenectomy results in safe platelet counts in over 70% of patients without additional treatment. Therapy of patients who are refractory to these two treatments may be difficult. The treatment approach to refractory ITP patients, described in this report, is arbitrarily divided into four levels: levels 1 through 3 represent treatments with increasing side effects; level 4 therapy may be tried when the others have failed. Patients undergoing these treatments may require concomitant intravenous gammaglobulin, high-dose corticosteroids or platelets, to maintain the platelet count in the setting of mucosal bleeding or severe thrombocytopenia.
LATTICE GAUGE THEORIES

Recent research on lattice gauge theories is reviewed, with particular emphasis being placed on numerical results from Monte Carlo simulations.
A Linear Programming and Least Squares Computer Method for Solving Petrologic Mixing Problems

Problems of petrologic mixing have been solved using a two-stage computer-based calculation. First, linear programming is used to obtain an approximate solution and to identify non-negative solution values. Then a conventional least squares calculation is performed using the analyses represented by non-negative solution values as input to yield an optimum set of solution values. The error attached to each solution value is estimated by an empirical procedure. Petrologic application of the program has been demonstrated with three types of calculations: chemical mode, magma mixing, and liquid line of descent.
Can green fatigue hamper sustainability communication efforts

Because of the tremendous increase in the amount of information about sustainability and environmental issues in general, there is risk of information overload. This specialized kind of information overload, green fatigue, could harm efforts to communicate about sustainability issues. The public is also somewhat cynical about much of the green marketing that is pervasive. A survey of 213 students was conducted at Florida Institute of Technology to analyze their perceptions of the amount of information about green issues and the potential impact on conservation behaviors. While most students felt that there is currently not too much conservation information, they acknowledged that people are often frustrated when they feel overloaded with information. Organizations must be diligent about incorporating sustainability messages throughout their structure and be transparent about their environmental efforts.
A response-modeling approach to global optimization and OUU

The general problem considered is an optimization problem involving selecting design parameters that yield an optimal response. We assume some initial response data are available and further experimentation (physical experiments and/or computer simulations) are to be used to obtain more information. We assume further that resources and system complexity together restrict the number of experiments or simulations that can be performed. Consequently, levels of the design parameters used in the simulations must be selected in a way that will efficiently approximate the optimal design ‘location’ and the optimal value. This paper describes an algorithmic ‘response-modeling’ approach for performing this selection. The algorithm is demonstrated using a simple analytical surface and is applied to two additional problems that have been addressed in the literature for comparison with other approaches.
Muscle Fiber Necrosis Associated With Human Marathon Runners

This study describes the events occurring in exercise-induced muscular necrosis. Biopsies of the gastrocnemius muscles of volunteer human marathon runners were extracted prior to and at intervals for 7 days following a marathon, and investigated ultrastructurally. Most of the preparations, including the pre-marathon samples, showed evidence of muscle fiber necrosis and inflammation. These preparations had many mitochondria, erythrocytes, leukocytes and other phagocytic cells within the extracellular and extravascular spaces. Less frequently observed were Z-line streaming and degeneration, contracture knots, disrupted sarcolemma, presence of erythrocytes within the muscle fibers, and empty basal lamina tubes in which the contents of the fibers and the sarcolemma had broken down to leave only the basal lamina outlining the former fiber. These abnormal conditions were most prevalent at 1 and 3 days after the marathon. These ultrastructural changes are compared and correlated with the reports of clinical manifestations of rhabdomyolysis and myoglobinuria. Because the abnormalities persist for the 7 day duration of these observations, and because many of these were observed in the pre-marathon biopsies, we conclude that both the intensive training for, and the marathon itself, induce inflammation and fiber necrosis which are manifested in the clinical symptoms for rhabdomyolysis and myoglobinuria. The inflammatory reaction that accompanies these activities may be a major factor in post-exercise soreness. The combined influences of training and necrosis are discussed in relation to muscle fiber type compositions of endurance athletes.
Did the Greeks really worship Zeus

The week before final exams is a very busy time. Some student or other is always waiting to see me. One day during this hectic period, after an hour of seeing students, I mused, nodding toward the door, "This one probably wants an incomplete" (taking for granted that the individual in question was a graduate student). I was mistaken, however, for there was no student outside my door. Does the expression 'this one' refer in such a case? It is surely plausible to suppose that it does not. Who but a Meinongian would suppose otherwise? Terence Parsons has urged that not even a Meinongian need argue that I did refer.1 Parsons, a defender of nonexistent objects, maintains that since my intention was to speak about a real thing, a flesh-and-blood student, and since there was no such object present, I simply failed to refer. Similarly, the faithful ancient Greek, when he tells his children, "Zeus sits on Mt. Olympus", fails to refer, for he intends to speak of an existing deity. Nonexistent objects, at least on Parson's version of Meinongianism, are not the booby prizes for intended but failed references to real things. Unsuccessful attempts to refer to real things, argues Parsons, should be sharply distinguished from attempts to refer to nonexistent objects. While the ancient Greek's utterance of "Zeus sits on Mt. Olympus" was false or lacking in truth-value, since his 'Zeus' failed to refer, the contemporary historian appears to express a truth when he teaches that "Zeus sat on Mt. Olympus". His use of 'Zeus' thus appears to be quite different from that of the ancient Greek. Parsons explains this difference in terms of the respective speaker's referential intentions and the distinction between unsuccessful attempts to refer and reference to the nonexistent. The historian, as opposed to the ancient Greek, intends to refer to a nonexistent object, the mythological Zeus, and in this he succeeds. His remark is true in the straightforward sense that the object to which he refers possesses the property he predicates of it.2
Population divergence in plasticity of the AVT system and its association with aggressive behaviors in a Death Valley pupfish

Behavioral differences can evolve rapidly in allopatry, but little is known about the neural bases of such changes. Allopatric populations of Amargosa pupfish (Cyprinodon nevadensis) vary in aggression and courtship behaviors in the wild. Two of these wild populations were recently found to differ in brain expression of arginine vasotocin (AVT)—a peptide hormone shown previously to modulate aggression in pupfish. These populations have been isolated for less than 4000 years, so it remained unclear whether the differences in behavior and neural AVT phenotype were evolved changes or plastic responses to ecologically dissimilar habitats. Here, I tested whether these population differences have a genetic basis by examining how aggressive behavior and neural AVT phenotype responded to ecologically relevant variation in salinity (0.4 ppt or 3 ppt) and temperature (stable or daily fluctuating). Pupfish from Big Spring were more aggressive than pupfish from the Amargosa River when bred and reared under common laboratory conditions. Morphometric analysis of preoptic AVT immunoreactivity showed that the populations differed in how the AVT system responded to salinity and temperature conditions, and revealed that this plasticity differed between parvocellular and magnocellular AVT neuron groups. Both populations also showed relationships between neural AVT phenotype and aggression in the rearing environment, although populations differed in how aggression related to variation in magnocellular AVT neuron size. Together, these results demonstrate that the pupfish populations have diverged in how physical and social conditions affect the AVT system, and provide evidence that the AVT system can evolve quickly to ecologically dissimilar environments.
Macroeconomic Management with Informal Financial Markets

Informal credit and foreign currency markets are a widespread phenomenon in developing countries. This paper begins by reviewing the scope and nature of these markets, and the channels through which they operate. It then examines their implications for macroeconomic management, particularly in the areas of monetary and exchange rate policies, interest rate liberalization, and foreign exchange market unification. The analysis emphasizes the importance of accounting for the presence of informal markets in the design of macroeconomic reform programmes.
Nuala O'Faolain: new departures in textual and genetic criticism

This paper examines the implications for genetic criticism of contemporary authors composing in digital environments. Using the memoirs of Nuala O'Faolain and theoretical models concerning media-specific analysis from N. Katherine Hayles, the article establishes some questions and possible practices for genetic analysis of O'Faolain's digital manuscripts, if the laptops and other devices on which they are stored become available. I extend the questions and predictions to the work of other writers in this transitional group, who compose in digital environments despite being new to and aware of the technological tools and environments that became available and the differences in their compositional methods as a result.