cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Hydrazine degradation and its effect on microbial activity in soil

Considerable information has been accumulated on the toxicity of hydrazine to soil bacterial cultures and on the degradation of hydrazne by soil bacterial cultures. The activities of the autotrophic nitrifiers Nitrosomonas and Nitrobacter and of denitrifying bacteria, and the growth of Enterobacter cloacae, were all inhibited by hydrazine. An enzyme system has been found in heterotrophic N/sub 2/-fixing bacteria capable of degrading hydrazine. Information concerning the effect of hydrazine on microbial activity in soils is not available, however. Accidental spills to soil can occur during transportation and storage. Therefore, this study was initiated to determine degradation rates of hydrazine in soils and its effect on soil microbial activity.
Aerobic walking in slowly progressive neuromuscular disease: effect of a 12-week program

Abstract Objective: Poor cardiorespiratory endurance is a common finding in neuromuscular disease (NMD), and the capacity of such patients to respond to aerobic training is unclear. This study was conducted to determine if a 12-week walking program results is increased aerobic capacity is slowly progressive NMD subjects, whether such a program is safely tolerated, and whether such patients can adhere to a self-monitored, home-based trianing program. Design: Before-after trial. Setting: Subjects' homes. Patients: A cohort of 8 slowly progressive NMD subjects (4 men, 4 women) followed in the neuromuscular disease clinic participated (age, 36.6 ± 8.0yrs; ht, 170 ± 11 cm; wt, 74.3 ± 19.0kg) (Mean ± SD). Intervention: Subjects walked 15 to 30min 3 to 4 days a week at 50% to 60% of their heart rate reserve. Main Outcome Measures: Resting, submaximal, and peak heart rates, systolic and diastolic blood pressures, oxygen uptake, and peak power output. Results: Graded exercise testing to volitional fatigue using a semirecumbent cycle ergometer before and after the training program found significant decreases in submaximal heart rate by 7 ± 3 beats/min (Mean ± SEM) (95% CI=−23 to 9) ( p = .046) and submaximal systolic blood pressure by 11 ± 4mmHg (95% CI=−31 to 9) ( p = .019), and nonsignificant increases in peak power output and VO 2 . Conclusions: These results suggest that moderate-intensity aerobic exercise training is well tolerated and may provide modest improvement in aerobic capacity in slowly progressive NMD subjects.
ACM HotMobile 2013 poster: leveraging imperfections of sensors for fingerprinting smartphones

Device fingerprinting, similar to that of humans, if done well, can provide a convenient form of identification. In this poster, we explore whether constituent hardware sensors like accelerometers and gyroscopes of different smartphones can be exploited to fingerprint a smartphone. We observe that the readings of these sensors exhibit diverse features for different smartphones consistently when subjected to the same action.
Synchronization of diffusively-coupled limit cycle oscillators

We develop analytical and numerical conditions to determine whether limit cycle oscillations synchronize in diffusively coupled systems. We examine two classes of systems: reaction-diffusion PDEs with Neumann boundary conditions, and compartmental ODEs, where compartments are interconnected through diffusion terms with adjacent compartments. In both cases the uncoupled dynamics are governed by a nonlinear system that admits an asymptotically stable limit cycle. We provide two-time scale averaging methods for certifying stability of spatially homogeneous time-periodic trajectories in the presence of sufficiently small or large diffusion and develop methods using the structured singular value for the case of intermediate diffusion. We highlight cases where diffusion stabilizes or destabilizes such trajectories.
Ten-year survival by race/ethnicity and sex among treated, HIV-infected adults in the United States

Documented differences in mortality by race, ethnicity, and sex among people infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) [1] may be attributable to differences in the rates of diagnosis, linkage to care following diagnosis, or initiation of effective combination antiretroviral therapy (henceforth therapy). Once HIV-infected persons initiate therapy, mortality rates are dramatically reduced [2, 3], and we would expect disparities in mortality to be attenuated [1, 4, 5]. However, evidence supporting the existence of disparities in survival following therapy initiation is mixed [6, 7]. In this paper, we describe 10-year all-cause mortality after therapy initiation in the Centers for AIDS Research Network of Integrated Clinical Systems (CNICS) between 1998 and 2011 by race, ethnicity, and sex among a sample of adult patients in the United States. We standardized results to control for differences in pretreatment health status.
Geographies of American Popular Music: Introducing Students to Basic Geographic Concepts

ABSTRACT Popular music can be used to study many subjects and issues related to the social sciences. “Geographies of American Popular Music” was a workshop that not only examined the history and development of select genres of American music, it also introduced students to basic geographic concepts such as the culture hearth and spatial diffusion. Through a series of films, recordings, and readings, country, bluegrass, blues, rock-and-roll, jazz, and hip-hop were geographically studied, dissected, and discussed. Finally, a discography of American popular music was compiled by each student, which attempted to determine how America should be musically represented as a place.
Preparation and Growth Mechanism of Gold Nanorods (NRs) Using Seed-Mediated Growth Method

A method is used for preparing gold NRs with aspect ratios ranging from 1.5 to 10 for which the surface plasmon absorption maxima are between 600 and 1300 nm. This method has been adapted from a previously published seed-mediated growth method (Jana et al. Adv. Mater. 2001, 13, 1389). The disadvantages and limitations of the earlier method (i.e., formation of noncylindrical NRs, φ-shaped particles, and formation of a large fraction of spherical particles) have been overcome by use of a hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB)-capped seed instead of a citrate-capped one. In a single-component surfactant system, the silver content of the growth solution was used to grow NRs to a desired length. This results in reproducible formation of NRs with aspect ratios ranging from 1.5 to 4.5. To grow longer NRs with aspect ratios ranging from 4.6 to 10, a binary surfactant mixture composed of benzyldimethylhexadecylammoniumchloride (BDAC) and CTAB was used. NRs are grown in this mixture either by aging or by additio...
The treatment of mild to severe chronic idiopathic urticaria with astemizole: double-blind and open trials.

Abstract Astemizole is a new H 1 histamine-receptor antagonist that has a long elimination half-life and high H 1 -receptor affinity. This double-blind study evaluated the safety and efficacy of astemizole in the treatment of chronic idiopathic urticaria (more than or equal to 3 months). Seventeen male and 34 female adult patients with chronic idiopathic urticaria entered the 2-month study. After a 48- to 72-hour washout, half the subjects were prerandomized to receive astemizole (10 mg), and the other half received placebo. Placebo-treated patients who were unable to complete the full 8 weeks because of uncontrolled chronic urticaria symptoms were entered into a 2-month open astemizole trial. Treatment with astemizole, as measured at the end point of each patient's treatment and compared to placebo, resulted in significant improvement of pruritus, erythema, number of wheals, frequency of urticarial attacks, and control of urticaria ( p ⩽ 0.03). The overall response to astemizole was significantly better than for placebo, according to both the investigator's and the patient's global evaluations ( p p = 0.005). Six of 26 (24%) of the placebo-treated patients in the double-blind study had good to excellent results on the basis of global assessments. Thirteen of 16 patients with placebo-treatment failures who received astemizole in the open trial improved significantly from baseline symptoms of pruritus, erythema, and number of wheals ( p ⩽ 0.05). No significant side effects were reported except mild sedation in three astemizole-treated subjects. Astemizole, a new, potent, long-acting H 1 antihistamine, is a safe, effective, and convenient treatment for chronic idiopathic urticaria.
HL-A ANTIGENS IN MYASTHENIA GRAVIS

Abstract The HL-A types of 56 Caucasian myasthenia-gravis patients were compared to those of 90 controls. Comparisons were also made between HL-A type and sex, age at onset, and thymic morphology among the patients. HL-A8 was increased in females with early age at onset, and in addition significantly correlated with the presence of thymic follicular lymphoid hyperplasia. HL-A3 was increased in males with late age at onset and was common among myasthenics with thymoma. Immune-response genes sharing a chromosomal segment with the gene determining the HL-A8 phenotype might predispose to autoimmune reactivity in myasthenics with thymic hyperplasia and early age at onset. The HL-A type of a myasthenia-gravis patient may be useful when considering the advisability of thymectomy.
Minimum-Energy Feedback Control of Robots

A new optimal nonlinear feedback control law is obtained for the minimum-energy control problem of robots. The result can lead to a better design of robust feedback control when the problem is solved by the nonlinear programming approach. Supporting numerical examples are presented.
Testing the correlation between beta diversity and differences in productivity among global ecoregions, biomes, and biogeographical realms

Abstract Considerable amount of research on the relationships between species diversity and productivity at different spatial, ecological, and taxonomic scales has been conducted. However, the overall trend of the correlation at the global scale still remains sketchy and the causal relationship between species diversity and productivity needs further exploration. This is especially true with beta diversity since most studies carried out use alpha diversity as the general term for species diversity. In this study we use the MODIS NDVI as the surrogate of productivity, and the WWF ecoregion systems and its species distribution information to test correlations between beta diversity and differences in productivity at various taxonomic ranks on a global scale. Matrix correlation is performed between species composition measured as beta diversities using Sorensen similarity index and MODIS NDVI/productivity measured as Bhattacharyya distances through Mantel permutation tests. The correlation coefficients and Mantel test significance levels are reported at the global ecoregion, biogeographical realm, and biome levels respectively. Significant correlations are found at all three taxonomic ranks. Results from realm and biome tests suggest that the highest correlations are reached at the temperate regions when species rank is used. Our findings suggest that species' natural spatial boundaries, such as the biogeographical realms or biogeographic kinship play a critical role in shaping the correlation patterns between beta diversity and productivity differences at the global scale.
Behavior and allelic variations in enzyme activity and coat color at the C locus of the mouse.

The following alleles at theC (albino) locus of mice were studied on eight sensory-motor tasks: agouti (C), chinchilla (c ch ), himalayan (c h ), extreme dilution (c e ), and albino (c). Numerous variations appeared which can be categorized as those related to absence of visual pigment and those independent of visual pigment. The latter variations may more directly relate to tyrosinase activity for which this locus is responsible.
Improved Census Transforms for Resource-Optimized Stereo Vision

Real-time stereo vision has proven to be a useful technology with many applications. However, the computationally intensive nature of stereo vision algorithms makes real-time implementation difficult in resource-limited systems. The field-programmable gate array (FPGA) has proven to be very useful in the implementation of local stereo methods, yet the resource requirements can still be a significant challenge. This paper proposes a variety of sparse census transforms that dramatically reduce the resource requirements of census-based stereo systems while maintaining stereo correlation accuracy. This paper also proposes and analyzes a new class of census-like transforms, called the generalized census transforms. This new transform allows a variety of very sparse census-like stereo correlation algorithms to be implemented while demonstrating increased robustness and flexibility. The resource savings and performance of these transforms is demonstrated by the design and implementation of a parameterizable stereo system that can implement stereo correlation using any census transform. Several optimizations for typical FPGA-based correlation systems are also proposed. The resulting system is capable of running at over 500 MHz on a modern FPGA, resulting in a throughput of over 500 million input pixel pairs per second.
Comparison of alternative modulation techniques for microwave optical links

Directly- and externally-modulated fiber optic links have been compared in terms of gain, noise, and dynamic range. Data obtained indicate that direct modulation has gain and noise figures relatively insensitive to the optical bias level, provided the increased dynamic range at the higher laser bias level; excess optical noise caused by relaxation oscillation in the semiconductor laser limited the noise figure and dynamic range. For the externally-modulated link, gain and noise figures appeared to significantly depend on the optical input power and RF switching power, but the dynamic range is primarily determined by the optical input power. Photodetector linearity is a significant factor limiting the dynamic range of both of these links, especially at lower microwave frequencies.
Effect of potential fluctuations on photoluminescence in Mg-doped GaN

A model is proposed to explain dependencies of the defect-related photoluminescence (PL) intensities on temperature and excitation intensity in Mg-doped p-type GaN layers. Typical PL spectrum in Mg-doped GaN is dominated by a blue luminescence (BL) band with a maximum at about 2.8–2.9 eV and an ultraviolet luminescence (UVL) band with a maximum at about 3.1–3.2 eV. The BL intensity increases linearly while the UVL band intensity increases with a square power with excitation intensity in selected samples. In the proposed model, which is based on the concept of giant long-range potential fluctuations in Mg-doped GaN, the UVL band dominates in the potential valleys where electrons bound to shallow donors tend to accumulate. In contrast, the BL band dominates in the potential hills where the equilibrium concentration of holes bound to the shallow acceptor is much higher. The effect of potential fluctuations explains also pequliarities of quenching of the UVL and BL bands with temperature. (© 2005 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Effects of Dichloroacetate on Brain Tissue Pyruvate Dehydrogenase

The activation of the pyruvate dehydrogenase complex (PDHC) by dichloroacetate (DCA) was studied in brain tissue. Chronic administration of DCA to rats caused no significant change of PDHC activation in brain. DCA brain concentrations were comparable to those of other tissues in which activation is known to occur. No effect of DCA on PDHC could be demonstrated from isolated brain mitochondria, whereas DCA reversed the deactivation of PDHC by ATP, alpha-ketoglutarate plus malate, and succinate in liver mitochondria. This study suggests that the regulation of PDHC activation in neural tissue differs from that in other tissues.
Alkalinity Export and Carbon Balance

P. A. Raymond and J. J. Cole report on increased alkalinity export from the Mississippi River (“Increase in the export of alkalinity from North America's largest river,” Reports, 4 July, p. [88][1]). This finding has implications for carbon sequestration in the United States, but the relevance
The approximate solution of Wiener-Hopf integral equations

Abstract This paper develops an explicit approximate method of solving the integral equation (∗) f(x) = ∫0∞ h1(x − t)f(t) dt + g(x), x > 0, where g(x), h1(x) ϵ L1(R) ∩ L2(R),f(x) = g(x) = 0 if x 0 and k ϵ (0, 1). It is shown that if (∗) has a unique solution, then as h → 0+, and k → 1−, the approximate solution converges to the unique solution whenever a unique solution f ϵ L1(R) ∩ L2(R) exists for every given g ϵ L1(R) ∩ L2(R), provided that h ∑ i |H(ih + 1 2h )z.sfnc; 2 → ∫ R | H(x)| 2 dx as h → 0+, where H(x) is the Fourier transform of h1(t). An example is given which illustrates the application of the method.
Electron spin–lattice relaxation in radicals containing two methyl groups, generated by γ-irradiation of polycrystalline solids

Abstract The effects of methyl rotation on electron spin–lattice relaxation times were examined by pulsed electron paramagnetic resonance for the major radicals in γ-irradiated polycrystalline α-amino isobutyric acid, dimethyl-malonic acid, and l -valine. The dominant radical is the same in irradiated dimethyl-malonic acid and α-amino isobutyric acid. Continuous wave saturation recovery was measured between 10 and 295 K at S-band and X-band. Inversion recovery, echo-detected saturation recovery, and pulsed electron–electron double resonance (ELDOR) data were obtained between 77 and 295 K. For the radicals in the three solids, recovery time constants measured by the various techniques were not the same, because spectral diffusion processes contribute differently for each measurement. Hyperfine splitting due to the protons of two methyl groups is resolved in the EPR spectra for each of the samples. Pulsed ELDOR data were obtained to characterize the spectral diffusion processes that transfer magnetization between hyperfine lines. Time constants were obtained for electron spin–lattice relaxation ( T 1e ), nuclear spin relaxation ( T 1n ), cross-relaxation ( T x1 ), and spin diffusion ( T s ). Between 77 and 295 K rapid cross-relaxation (Δ M s =±1, Δ M I =∓1) was observed for each sample, which is attributed to methyl rotation at a rate that is approximately equal to the electron Larmor frequency. The large temperature range over which cross-relaxation was observed suggests that methyl groups in the radical and in the lattice, with different activation energies for rotation, contribute to the rapid cross-relaxation. Activation energies for methyl and amino group rotation between 160 and 1900 K (1.3–16 kJ/mol) were obtained by analysis of the temperature dependence of 1/ T 1e at S-band and X-band in the temperature intervals where the dynamic process dominates T 1e .
Peraluminous xenoliths in kimberlite: Metamorphosed restites produced by partial melting of pelites

Abstract Three new varieties of aluminous assemblages from the Jagersfontein kimberlite are recognized as xenoliths consisting of garnet + spinel (alkremite), corundum + garnet (corganite) and corundum + garnet + spinel (corgaspinite). Accessory minerals include phlogopite, K-pargasite, fassaitic pyroxene and secondary spinel. Bulk-rock major elements are depleted in SiO2 and enriched in Al2O3 and MgO relative to basalt. The compatible trace elements Ni, Cr, Zn, Ga and V reflect the modal mineralogy, and the incompatible trace elements K, Rb and Ba vary as a function of metasomatism. Chondrite normalized REE patterns are characterized by fanning light and heavy REE variations. Calculations show that the patterns are consistent with partial melting of pelitic rocks from which a granitic low temperature portion has been removed by anatexis to produce a restite containing the observed geochemical variations. Sr isotopic ratios of garnet separates are high (0.780-0.804) and also indicate a sedimentary origin for the assemblages. A two-stage process involving partial melting of Archean sediments followed by prograde metamorphism of the residual restite is tentatively proposed, initiated by exotic terrain accretion or subduction at the edge of the Kaapvaal craton.
Necrotizing enterocolitis and hyperviscosity in the newborn infant.

During a one-year prospective survey to determine the incidence of hyperviscosity in small-for-gestational age infants, we found a significant increase in the incidence of necrotizing enterocolitis in SGA infants with HV. Of the 14 SGA infants with HV, five developed NEC, and of 65 SGA infants with normal blood viscosity, one had NEC (p
Physical and Formal Presentations of Dual Theory of Electromagnetic Currents

We propose a dynamical Lagrangian theory for the hadron with strong and electromagnetic interactions. We give a simple physical interpretation of our Lagrangian in the parton picture and show explicitly its equivalence with the formal string formulation of the hadron for both the free and interacting Lagrangians. The theory is gauge-invariant with a well-defined conserved current. (The low-energy theorem for currents holds.) The elastic and transition form factors are non-Gaussian and analytic with an infinite series of vector-meson poles. In the two-current channel the electromagnetic amplitude has fixed poles with the imaginary part satisfying rigorously the Dashen-Gell-Mann-Fubini sum rule. In the Bjorken limit our $\ensuremath{\nu}{W}_{2}$ scales and is saturated by narrow resonances. A dispersion relation for ${T}_{2}$ continues to hold in the scaling limit and the Gottfried sum rule for $\ensuremath{\nu}{W}_{2}(\ensuremath{\omega})$ is exactly satisfied with the fixed-pole contribution. The hadronic amplitude obtained from the off-shell Compton amplitude is equal to a beta function. In the crossed channel our theory generates Regge poles with quantized intercepts which are degenerate with the vector-meson poles in the off-shell photon line which phenomenologically implies the $\ensuremath{\rho}\ensuremath{-}f\ensuremath{-}{A}_{2}$ degeneracy. More generally, we project explicitly hadronic vertices out of our electromagnetic vertex through vector-meson poles and find that these vertices are dual and factorizable.
Security and Interoperable-Medical-Device Systems, Part 1

Interoperable medical devices (IMDs) face threats due to the increased attack surface presented by interoperability and the corresponding infrastructure. Introducing networking and coordination functionalities fundamentally alters medical systems' security properties. Understanding the threats is an important first step in eventually designing security solutions for such systems. Part 1 of this two-part article provides an overview of the IMD environment and the attacks that can be mounted on it.
Pituitary-specific Gata2 knockout : Effects on gonadotrope and thyrotrope function

GATA2 is expressed in the pituitary during development and in adult gonadotropes and thyrotropes. It is proposed to be important for gonadotrope and thyrotrope cell fate choice and for TSH production. To test this idea, we produced a pituitary-specific knockout of Gata2, designed so that the DNA-binding zinc-finger region is deleted in the presence of a pituitary-specific recombinase transgene. These mice have reduced secretion of gonadotropins basally and in response to castration challenge, although the mice are fertile. GATA2 deficiency also compromises thyrotrope function. Mutants have fewer thyrotrope cells at birth, male Gata2-deficient mice exhibit growth delay from 3–9 wk of age, and adult mutants produce less TSH in response to severe hypothyroidism after radiothyroidectomy. Therefore, Gata2 appears to be dispensable for gonadotrope and thyrotrope cell fate and maintenance, but important for optimal gonadotrope and thyrotrope function. Gata2-deficient mice exhibit elevated levels of Gata3 transcr...
Clinical Geropsychology: Treatment and Research Approaches With Rural Older Adults

The proportion of older adults in rural settings continues to increase, with the proportion of older adults greater in rural versus urban areas. Rural elders often have greater mental health needs but live in areas with the greatest shortages of mental and behavioral health services. Furthermore, cultural barriers to treatment exist with a lack of understanding of rural older adults' cultural context contributing to a hesitation to seek help by rural elders. The current article will explore characteristics, need for treatment and research, barriers to delivering treatment and conducting research, public policy, and clinical implications related to the mental health needs of rural older adults.
Spectroscopy and photophysics of indoline and indoline-2-carboxylic acid

This paper presents a detailed description of the fluorescence and photophysical behavior of indoline and indoline-2-carboxylic acid (I2CA). Indoline is an analogue of indole lacking the C2C3 double bond, but unlike indole, indoline possesses well-separated 1La and 1Lb states. I2CA, which displays similar fluorescence properties, is an amino acid and can be regarded as a fluorescent analogue of proline. In view of the potential for indoline and I2CA as fluorescent probes in peptides and proteins, we have undertaken an in-depth study of the spectroscopic and photophysical properties of these molecules. A companion paper (Slaughter, B.D.; Allen, M. W.; Lushington, G. H.; Johnson, C. K. J. Phys. Chem. A 2003, 107, 5670) presents a theoretical treatment of the spectroscopic transitions of indoline and I2CA. The pH-dependent absorption and fluorescence characteristics are investigated for both indoline and I2CA. Ground- and excited-state dissociation constants are determined spectroscopically. Quantum yields a...
Serum amino acid levels in leukemic mice after l-asparaginase treatment

A rapid, reproducible HPLC method based on dansyl chloride derivatization has been developed for the determination of L-asparagine, L-aspartate, L-glutamine, and L-glutamate in mouse and human serum samples. This improved procedure has been designed for automation with an autoinjector system. Studies with mice bearing the sensitive and the asparaginase-resistant L5178Y leukemia show that this analytical method can be employed to monitor the effect of L-asparaginase on serum levels of these four amino acids. The method can be used to monitor serum amino acid levels in patients undergoing therapy with L-asparaginase.
Endothelium-dependent vasorelaxation is impaired in cocaine arteriopathy.

Objectives. This study sought to assess endothelium-dependent vasorelaxation in long-term users of cocaine. Background. Cocaine use has been associated with myocardial infarction, stroke and intestinal infarction. Previously demonstrated effects of the drug, including increased heart rate and blood pressure and increased vascular tone, do not explain the sporadic nature of these vascular events or the occurrence of ischemia remote from acute administration. Abnormal endothelial function could contribute to focal vasospasm and thrombosis and predispose to premature atherosclerosis, all of which have been demonstrated in cocaine users with myocardial infarction. Methods. Using plethysmography, we studied the change in forearm blood flow in response to intraarterial acetylcholine and nitroprusside in 10 long-term cocaine users and 13 control subjects of similar age who had not used cocaine; sample size was based on a 70% power to detect a 20% reduction in flow with acetylcholine between subjects and control subjects. Using graded doses of intracoronary acetylcholine (from 10−9 to 10−6 mol/liter), we studied a second group of 10 cocaine users with angiographically normal or near-normal arteries. Results. Mean forearm blood flow during acetylcholine infusion was significantly lower in cocaine users than in control subjects (p = 0.02). During nitroprusside infusion, there was no difference (p = 0.2) between cocaine users and control subjects. Cigarette smoking did not explain the differences between cocaine users and control subjects. Acetylcholine elicited coronary vasoconstriction in 8 of 10 subjects. Conclusions. We conclude that endothelium-dependent vasorelaxation is impaired in long-term users of cocaine.
Reinventing Entrepreneurial Inventing for the 21st Century

What's the difference between ignorance and indifference? If you are one the rare few who don't know and don't care, then you have the kind of open-mindedness that may allow you to rethink entrepreneurial inventing for the 21st century.
PRODUCTION OF SOLDER AND FLUX WITH LOW RADIOACTIVITY

Abstract The problem of radioactivity in solder has been studied. A low-radioactive rosin-core solder has been produced. Low-radioactive alternatives for rosin-based flux have also been considered.
Impact of Compressed Sensing With Quantization on UWB Receivers With Multipath Channel Estimation

This paper explores the application of compressive sensing (CS) for ultra wide band (UWB) communication. Channel estimation is an important aspect for any communication system and especially for UWB systems in order to appropriately collect the energy from the multipath channel. UWB generally requires a high sampling rate since the bandwidth is large. Channel estimation using CS is studied along with its impact on reducing the sampling rate for an ADC to reduce power. Practical issues regarding the effect of quantization on channel estimation are addressed and a hardware implementation for CS based on the Walsh-Hadamard transform (WHT) allowing sub-Nyquist sampling is proposed. To separate the effect of channel estimation with CS, the performance of the sub-Nyquist ADC is studied in a noiseless and multipath free channel and design decisions are discussed. Comparison with the Nyquist ADC shows that using the sub-Nyquist ADC reduce power by a factor of about 6×. For the proposed hardware, two receiver architectures based on matched filtering and filtering in the compressed domain (so-called “smashed filtering”) are studied. It is found that with a perfect channel smashed filtering performs better than matched filtering. Finally the effect of channel estimation on the proposed hardware is studied along with two different recovery algorithms namely basis pursuit and matching pursuit.
Simulation of tides with a spectral mesosphere/lower thermosphere model

The spectral mesosphere/lower thermosphere model (SMLTM) is an extension into the thermosphere (up to ∼220 km) of the three-dimensional middle atmospheric (∼15–120 km) model developed by Akmaev et al. [1992]. The model incorporates realistic parameterizations of radiative transfer and dissipation processes including eddy and molecular viscosity and thermal conductivity and ion drag. A discrete multi-component gravity wave parameterization is optimized with respect to the zonal mean temperature distribution as represented in the CIRA-1986 empirical model. The diurnal tide is generated by forcing specified at the model lower boundary and by in situ absorption of solar radiation. The semi-diurnal tide is primarily generated by ozone absorption of solar UV radiation in the stratosphere. First results of tidal simulations indicate that even without any additional tuning the simulations compare well with recent observations from the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS). This means that the background temperature and wind distributions, gravity wave momentum deposition, turbulent diffusion, and tidal forcing all interact self-consistently and are in agreement with observational data. It is noted that simultaneous UARS wind and temperature measurements, if they become available, will provide key information needed to distinguish the primary mechanism for damping the diurnal tide.
Gemstones Formed from Surface Water: The Opals of Australia

Water at or near the earth’s surface plays an important role in the formation of some gem minerals. Surface water is capable of dissolving many minerals, particularly when provided a great deal of time to do so. As a result, it carries away components in solution that remain dissolved until, under appropriate conditions, new minerals are deposited. Precious opal and other gemstones form from surface water under special conditions that may include chemical reactions, cooling of waters previously heated by nearby molten rock, and evaporation. Rainwater, for example, combines with atmospheric carbon dioxide to produce carbonic acid, a weak natural acid. If such water seeps into the earth and encounters sulfides (such as pyrite, FeS2), sulfuric acid, a much stronger acid, is produced, which dissolves minerals, transports their chemical elements, and permeates other rocks to form new minerals.
Making ParaView Easier for the Customer: A Guide to Implementers

ParaView has become a very useful tool in the Department of Defense high performance computing (HPC) community. As data sizes increase, access to the HPC resources to drive ParaView and other visualization packages (including EnSight and VisIt) is essential to many HPC customers. Unfortunately, these packages are not aware of the configurations required, or the security policies enacted, for each computing resource that a user may want to access. Individual customization is usually required, which can be a frustrating and time- consuming process. This paper documents our experiences with ParaView connection definition (.pvsc) files as implemented within the Computational Sciences Environment (CSE). ParaView connection definition files provide a method for automatically performing any number of complex operations required to connect to an HPC resource and start the processes required to interactively interrogate an HPC-sized dataset. The ultimate goal is to provide a mechanism that allows users to more easily utilize the computational resources available to them.
Do Low Rate DoS Attacks Affect QoS Sensitive VoIP Traffic

The low rate TCP DoS (Shrew) and the reduction of quality (RoQ) attacks have been proved to be detrimental to the TCP traffic in the Internet. In this paper, we investigate the effect of these attacks on the QoS sensitive real time UDP traffic like VoIP. The stealthy RoQ attacks in particular are hard to detect as its periodicity is not well defined as compared to the shrew attack, and they can be launched even with the destination IP address spoofed! The attack potency formula is tailored for our work to observe the detrimental effect of the attack on the VoIP traffic. We study the effect of the attack flow on three QoS parameters of a VoIP flow, namely, the delay, the jitter, and the packet loss. We have performed extensive ns2 simulations under realistic scenarios to validate the effect of these attacks on the real time UDP traffic. Our results indicate that both these attacks are capable of driving a VoIP call from good to acceptable quality, i.e., reduction of quality, and from acceptable quality to complete denial of service. We believe that it is critical to investigate the characteristics of any attack in order to develop sound mitigation mechanisms; this work highlights one such characteristic of the low rate DoS attack.
Smoothed jackknife empirical likelihood method for tail copulas

In this paper we propose a smoothed jackknife empirical likelihood method to construct confidence intervals for tail copulas or tail dependence functions for bivariate extremes. By applying the standard empirical likelihood method for a mean to the smoothed jackknife sample, the empirical likelihood ratio statistic can be calculated by simply solving a single equation. Therefore, this procedure is easy to implement. The Wilks’ theorem for the empirical likelihood ratio statistic is proved, and a simulation study prefers the proposed method to the bootstrap method.
Quantitative comparison in vitro of mutational antibiotic resistance of Enterobacter spp. using a spiral plater

The presence of spontaneous mutational antibiotic resistance among 18 bacteremic isolates of Enterobacter spp. to cefotaxime, ceftazidime, gentamicin, amikacin, ciprofloxacin, and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole was determined quantitatively in vitro using a spiral plater. Each drug was delivered using the device and the agar plates were inoculated in radial streaks. The degree of resistance was estimated by dividing the antimicrobial concentration required to inhibit 90% of the colonies growing in the area beyond the MIC by the MIC itself. The degree of resistance to third-generation cephalosporins and aztreonam was statistically significantly greater than that to co-trimoxazole, imipenem, and ciprofloxacin (P < 0.01); the latter three antibiotics showed virtually no mutational resistance. An intermediate level of resistance was induced by aminoglycosides, and mutational resistance to piperacillin varied between this and the higher levels observed for the cephalosporins. By providing a simple and efficient means of detecting spontaneous mutational resistance, the spiral plater may prove useful in identifying those antimicrobial agents which induce few or no mutants and therefore may be more likely to be successful in treating infections due to Enterobacter spp.
Mechanically induced changes in trabecular bone architecture

Bone adapts its structure to accommodate altered mechanical environments. We have previously demonstrated that adult female BALB/cByJ mice subjected to hindlimb suspension lost 58% of the fractional trabecular bone volume (BV/TV) in the distal femur. To determine sex-related differences in bone's response to the loss of mechanical stimuli, we tested the effects of hindlimb suspension on male BALB/cByJ mice. Sixteen-week old male BALB/cByJ mice were randomly assigned to age matched control and disuse groups (n=10 each). After 3 weeks, micro-computed tomography (/spl mu/CT) scanning determined indices of trabecular bone quantity and architecture in the metaphyseal and subchondral regions. Hindlimb suspension significantly decreased BV/TV in the subchondral region (-23%) and showed a trend towards decreases BV/TV in the metaphyseal region (-2%). Each region showed trends towards decreased trabecular number and connectivity density and increased trabecular spacing. These results showed that though hindlimb suspension reduced trabecular bone in both regions, only the subchondral region was affected significantly. Preliminary comparisons between male and female BALB/cByJ mice suggested that hindlimb suspension had a greater effect on trabecular bone volume in female than in male mice. Future work will determine if sex-linked characteristics influence the adaptation of bone to altered mechanical loading environments.
Adaptive scenario-based object-oriented test frameworks for testing embedded systems

This paper presents a process to develop adaptive object-oriented scenario-based test frameworks for testing embedded systems. Embedded systems often require rigorous testing due to the mission-critical nature of their applications, and they are often developed as a family of products. The process uses techniques such as design-for-change, design patterns, scenarios, ripple effect analysis, and regression testing. This paper then uses an example to illustrate this process by applying it to test a mobile phone system, and the framework constructed can facilitate generation of numerous test cases quickly with minimum effort, and it can also accommodate many changes suggested by another party without changing the overall structure of the framework.
Share portfolios in the early years of financial capitalism: London, 1690–1730†

The dramatic expansion of public and private financial markets in the aftermath of the Glorious Revolution has received extensive attention. Despite this, little is known about how ordinary individual investors managed risk within this framework. Using a newly constructed dataset of share ownership for those joint-stock companies listed in the financial press of the day, we reconstruct individual portfolio holdings for investors in these companies. We examine individual portfolio holdings first for the decade after the Glorious Revolution and then for the years around the South Sea Bubble. Despite a fivefold increase in the number of unique individuals in the market between the 1690s and the 1720s, we find that in each period roughly 80 per cent of those active in the equity market held shares in only one company, even though many shareholders had the capacity or wealth to diversify share portfolios. These outcomes suggest diversification against idiosyncratic liquidity risk. Overall, however, there is limited evidence that individuals were using their financial portfolios to protect against diversifiable shocks. For many, we argue, company-specific voting and firm governance rules drove market activity.
‘Collaboration Strategy’ and the French Pacification of Tonkin, 1885–1897

Decolonization has had a significant impact upon the way that historians explain the process of Europe’s late nineteenth-century imperial expansion. Assumptions about superior technology now appear insufficient in themselves to account for the ability of relatively small armies to gain control over sizeable territory and populations in Africa and Asia. Although, as has recently been argued, advances in weaponry and medicine enabled Europeans to operate in tropical climates against less sophisticated opposition with devastating effect, differences in technology cannot explain the ability of less well-endowed national resistance movements to defeat colonial armies in the mid-twentieth century.1 Since 1945 various wars of national liberation have demonstrated that advanced technology, an impressive commitment of manpower, and an enormous expenditure of money cannot guarantee military success against a nationalist resistance in a colonial setting. If anything, this discrepancy in technological advantage between colonialist powers and anti-western resistance movements was as great or greater in the post-World War II era than in the late nineteenth century. Historians thus must seek additional explanations for the rapid advance of European conquest during the heyday of imperialism.
Laser Pumping by Intense Discharges in z-Pinch Geometry

Optical properties of high-current, low-pressure, noble-gas discharges in z-pinch geometry are studied and compared with theta-pinch discharges and standard commercial light sources. Results indicate possible usefulness in systems where high peak power, high repetition rates or high uv content are demanded.
MONTE CARLO SHIELDING ANALYSIS CAPABILITIES WITH MAVRIC

Monte Carlo shielding analysis capabilities in SCALE 6 are centered on the CADIS methodology Consistent Adjoint Driven Importance Sampling. CADIS is used to create an importance map for space/energy weight windows as well as a biased source distribution. New to SCALE 6 are the Monaco functional module, a multi-group fixed-source Monte Carlo transport code, and the MAVRIC sequence (Monaco with Automated Variance Reduction Using Importance Calculations). MAVRIC uses the Denovo code (also new to SCALE 6) to compute coarse-mesh discrete ordinates solutions which are used by CADIS to form an importance map and biased source distribution for the Monaco Monte Carlo code. MAVRIC allows the user to optimize the Monaco calculation for a specify tally using the CADIS method with little extra input compared to a standard Monte Carlo calculation. When computing several tallies at once or a mesh tally over a large volume of space, an extension of the CADIS method called FW-CADIS can be used to help the Monte Carlo simulation spread particles over phase space to get more uniform relative uncertainties.
Recent Advances on the Control of Partially-Observed Discrete-Event Systems

This paper reviews and discusses some recent results on the control of partially observed discrete-event systems. Several results related to the synthesis of safe solutions in decentralized control architectures are described and illustrated with examples.
Electronic transport properties of silicon clusters

Abstract The electronic transport properties of silicon clusters were examined via theoretical calculations using the first-principles method. Additionally, p-type doping and n-type doping were analyzed by calculating conductance and current of boron- and phosphorus-doped silicon clusters. The p-type doping and n-type doping provided a new transmission peak at an energy level around the Fermi level to increase conductance. Furthermore, simultaneous boron and phosphorus doping resulted in noticeable rectifying characteristics, with the current drive in forward bias being three times higher than that in the reverse bias. A p–n junction was achieved even on a molecular scale.
Effeminate Speech on New Media: @HillaryClinton's Public Intimacy through Relational Labor

New media platforms enable new forms of the feminine style. For political candidates, these media may be used strategically to enact unique forms of public intimacy influenced by the norms of relational labor and self-disclosure that govern social media. These arguments are illustrated through a case study of Hillary Clinton’s Twitter account, which shows that she is able to use the political feminine style to great effect by softening her image through digital intimacy and interactivity while still preserving elements of her traditional forensic style. In this way, Clinton enacts a second-wave feminist persona that is substantively political without being seen as extreme or strident. This case study informs how female political candidates can strategically enact femininity.
Application of Six Sigma Statistical Quality Control to Monitoring the Deposition of Contaminating Particles

The goal of this work was to help in the control of particle deposition in manufacturing cleanrooms by the application of statistical quality control methods, specifically for the Class 1 cleanroom at the Semiconductor Research and Development Center at IBM East Fishkill. Each week a set of silicon wafers was inspected and the number of particles present were recorded ("precount"). The wafers were then put in various locations throughout the cleanroom. The wafers were left exposed to cleanroom air for one week, and then the number of particles were determined again. The quality control approach was the "Six Sigma" system developed originally by Motorola, Inc. In another paper, we described how these measurements were put into a Six Sigma framework: upper specification limit, target level, and estimates of the standard deviations.1 Here, we present results from 30 weeks of measurements and discuss the choice of assumed measurement distribution function (for example, the normal versus the lognormal distribu...
Analyzing the complexity of cone production in longleaf pine by multiscale entropy

The longleaf pine (Pinus palustris Mill.) forests are important ecosystems in the southeastern USA because of their ecological and economic value. Since European settlement, longleaf pine ecosystems have dramatically declined in extent, to the degree that they are now listed as endangered ecosystems. Its sporadic seed production, which limits the frequency of natural regeneration, is identified as a significant factor in this decline. Previous studies did not characterize the complexity in cone production. Here a method of multiscale entropy is used to analyze long-term data for cone production in longleaf pine forests at six sites across its native range. Our results indicate that there exists a regime shift for cone production at each site. The corresponding time scales of the regime shift are generally 1–9, 10–12, 13–16, and 17–24 yr. Overall patterns for the complexity of cone production with the change of time scale are similar among sites, with exception of the Red Hills (FL). There are high correlations between entropy of cone production and entropy of annual mean air temperature and annual total precipitation at all sites. These results provide new insight into the complexity of cone production of longleaf pine forests with significant management implications.
Detail and Implementation: The Example of Employee Trip Reduction

In 1990, Congress passed the employee trip reduction, which mandated that employers reduce the use of single-occupancy vehicles by their employees. In this piece, I show how the details of the scheme, and its implementation by EPA, helped lead it to fail. Thus the piece constitutes more evidence that Congress ought to avoid micro-managing administrative agencies