cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Modifying Duration-Based Costing to Illustrate the Effect of Fixed Costs

This study introduces Modified Duration-Based Costing (MDBC) as an alternative to Duration-Based Costing (DBC) developed in Lelkes and Deis (2013). Both DBC and ABC have a tendency to treat fixed costs as though they were variable. This study expands on the DBC model by showing an alternative way of dealing with fixed costs instead of treating them as variable costs. This study uses analytical methodology and simulations to analyze MDBC relative to an Activity-Based Costing (ABC) system. The results of this study imply that the proportion of fixed costs will affect how close the MDBC cost assignments are to those of ABC. The lower the proportion of fixed costs, the closer the MDBC cost assignments are to those of ABC. MDBC has the potential to be a feasible alternative of ABC. MDBC is valuable if, for decision-making purposes, management wants to keep the effects of fixed costs separate from variable costs. Moreover, using MDBC is less costly and easier to implement, maintain, and update than ABC.
Toward Fabric: A Middleware Implementing High-level Description Languages on a Fabric-like Network

Many in the networking community believe that Software-Defined Networking, in which entire networks are managed centrally, has the potential to revolutionize the field. However, SDN faces several challenges that have prevented its wide-spread adoption. Current SDN technologies, such as OpenFlow, provide powerful and flexible APIs, but can be unreasonably complex for implementing nontrivial network control logic. The generality offered by these low-level abstractions impose no structure on the network, requiring programmers to herd switches themselves, with little guidance. Many researchers argue that SDNs must adopt more structured models, such as Fabric, with an intelligent edge and a fast but simple label-switched core. Our work draws heavily from these ideas. To that end, we propose ToF, a middleware architecture for implementing policies and behaviors from high-level network descriptions on top of a Fabric-like network. We have implemented a prototype using a combination of widely used technologies, such as MPLS, and our own proposed technologies. Based on our results, we reach near linear scalability with respect to the number of addresses routed over the network, all while introducing minimal performance overhead and requiring no changes to packet structure.
Quantification and modification of worker size variation in the fire antSolenopsis invicta

Solenopsis invicta workers display a slight polymorphism over a size range of head widths from 0.45 mm to 1.50 mm. Those measuring through 0.80 mm were designated small, through 1.00 mm, medium, and through 1.50 mm, large. Mature field colonies have small, medium, and large worker ratios of 45%, 42%, and 16% respectively. Queens founding colonies in the lab produced initial broods of minim workers, the smallest and only individuals a queen rears by herself. As colony populations grew, size classes of larger ants accumulated until after 7 months, ants with head widths ranging in size from 0.50–1.50 mm were produced. Size class distributions were skewed such that small, medium, and large ants made up 88%, 11% and 1% of the population, respectively. Newly mated queens were adopted into small (500 ants), medium (2000 ants), and large (15,000 ants) experimental colonies of field ants of three ranges of worker size variation (9 treatments). No effect of worker size variation on pupal production or pupal size was detected. The mean numbers and mean head width of pupae in their initial broods were: (1) greater than those of newly founded colonies (minims were lacking); and, (2) correlated to experimental colony size. Both pupal numbers and mean pupal size increased throughout the 4-month experiment even though worker number was kept constant.
Paired Cystic Masses Communicating with the Posterior Urethra Producing Urinary Obstruction

AbstractA patient with paired paramedian cystic masses in the area of the posterior urethra is described. He experienced repeated episodes of urinary obstruction resulting from urine filling these structures during voiding. The differential diagnosis and therapeutic alternatives are discussed.
Cultivating Complexity: The Need for a Shift in Cognition

Cities and towns are the result of acts like building, renovating, maintenance and adaptation that continue over time. This makes them behave like living organisms of considerable complexity. Closer examination allows us to distinguish two kinds of complexity. Contemporary construction is about the combination of a large number of subsystems that not only enclose spaces and hold up weights but also, among other things, distribute power, water, and gas; cool, heat up and circulate air; remove waste and serve communication. Each subsystem is available in a variety of alternatives. This technical complexity has produced a professional culture that itself has become increasingly intricate and self-referential. By comparison, historic built environments were the result of much more constrained material conditions that could nevertheless produce very sophisticated solutions. Their complexity was not technical but the result of continuous small scale change over time in direct response to inhabitation. We live in a period of transition in which an entirely new material reality must learn to serve the millennia old ways of human settlement. This chapter argues that this is not a technical problem. It demands a re-examination of our professional culture.
The Physicist’s View of Time

As is readily apparent from chapters 1 and 2, the notion of time per theories of physics, i.e., physical time, seems to lack crucial subjective qualities such as a preferred present and a direction/arrow. The papers in the first part of this chapter do make strides in reconciling psychological and physical time. However, subsequent papers indicate the nature of time per physics differs profoundly from the prima facie subjective experience. Thus, in seeking a theory of quantum gravity, physicists are exploring programs that will render the disparity between physical and psychological time even more pertinacious.
Discovery of true electrochemical reactions for ultrahigh catalyst mass activity in water splitting

Better understanding of true electrochemical reaction behaviors in electrochemical energy devices has long been desired. It has been assumed so far that the reactions occur across the entire catalyst layer (CL), which is designed and fabricated uniformly with catalysts, conductors of protons and electrons, and pathways for reactants and products. By introducing a state-of-the-art characterization system, a thin, highly tunable liquid/gas diffusion layer (LGDL), and an innovative design of electrochemical proton exchange membrane electrolyzer cells (PEMECs), the electrochemical reactions on both microspatial and microtemporal scales are revealed for the first time. Surprisingly, reactions occur only on the CL adjacent to good electrical conductors. On the basis of these findings, new CL fabrications on the novel LGDLs exhibit more than 50 times higher mass activity than conventional catalyst-coated membranes in PEMECs. This discovery presents an opportunity to enhance the multiphase interfacial effects, maximizing the use of the catalysts and significantly reducing the cost of these devices.
Student Affairs Professionals at Catholic Colleges and Universities: Honoring Two Philosophies

Student affairs professionals are encouraged by their professional organizations to recognize the responsibility they have to their institutions by “supporting its mission, goals and policies” (American College Personnel Association [ACPA], 2006, p. 6) and by avoiding conflicts of interest between the self and the college or university (national Association of Student Personnel Administrators [NASPA], 1990), others point out that most students affairs professionals are educated at secular universities and experience little preparation regarding the Catholic intellectual tradition (Estanek, 2001). The purpose of this study was to explore the following questions: Are there student affairs professionals at Catholic colleges and universities who are able to bring together a student affairs philosophy with that of catholic colleges and universities? If these professionals do exist, what can we learn from their knowledge and approaches that might help other student affairs professionals at Catholic colleges and universities to honor both philosophies? The results suggest that a great deal can be learned from seasoned professionals in Catholic student affairs, which may well assist new professionals in negotiating these two different philosophies.
Bregman-Legendre Multidistance Projection Algorithms for Convex Feasibility and Optimization

The convex feasibility problem (CFP) is to find a member of the nonempty set C = ∩ i = 1 I C i , where the Ci are closed convex subsets of RJ. The multidistance successive generalized projection (MSGP) algorithm extends Bregman’s successive generalized projection (SGP) algorithm for solving the CFP to permit the use of generalized projections onto the Ci associated with Bregman-Legendre functions fi that may vary with the index i. The MSGP method depends on the selection of a super-coercive Bregman-Legendre function h whose Bregman distance Dh, satisfies the inequality Dh(x, z) ≥ Dfi(x, z) for all x ∈ h ⊆ ∩ i = 1I dom fi all z ϵ int dom h where dom h = {x|h(x) The MSGP method is used to obtain an iterative solution procedure for the split feasibility problem (SFP): given the M by N matrix A and closed convex sets K and Q in RN and RM, respectively, find x in K with Ax in Q. If I = 1 and f := f1 has a unique minimizer x ^ in intdom h, then the MSGP iteration using C 1 = x ^ is ∇ h x k + 1 = ∇ h x k − ∇ f x k . This suggests an interior point algorithm that could be applied more broadly to minimize a convex function f over the closure of dom h.
Effect of Baseline Nutritional Status on Long-term Multivitamin Use and Cardiovascular Disease Risk: A Secondary Analysis of the Physicians’ Health Study II Randomized Clinical Trial

Importance Long-term multivitamin use had no effect on risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in the Physicians’ Health Study II. Baseline nutritional status may have modified the lack of effect. Objective To investigate effect modification by various baseline dietary factors on CVD risk in the Physicians’ Health Study II. Design, Setting, and Participants The Physicians’ Health Study II was a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial testing multivitamin use (multivitamin [Centrum Silver] or placebo daily) among US male physicians. The Physicians’ Health Study II included 14 641 male physicians 50 years or older, 13 316 of whom (91.0%) completed a baseline 116-item semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire and were included in the analyses. This study examined effect modification by baseline intake of key foods, individual nutrients, dietary patterns (Alternate Healthy Eating Index and Alternate Mediterranean Diet Score), and dietary supplement use. The study began in 1997, with continued treatment and follow-up through June 1, 2011. Interventions Multivitamin or placebo daily. Main Outcomes and Measures Major cardiovascular events, including nonfatal myocardial infarction, nonfatal stroke, and CVD mortality. Secondary outcomes included myocardial infarction, total stroke, CVD mortality, and total mortality individually. Results In total, 13 316 male physicians (mean [SD] age at randomization, 64.0 [9.0] years in those receiving the active multivitamin and 64.0 [9.1] years in those receiving the placebo) were observed for a mean (SD) follow-up of 11.4 (2.3) years. There was no consistent evidence of effect modification by various foods, nutrients, dietary patterns, or baseline supplement use on the effect of multivitamin use on CVD end points. Statistically significant interaction effects were observed between multivitamin use and vitamin B 6 intake on myocardial infarction, between multivitamin use and vitamin D intake on CVD mortality, and between multivitamin use and vitamin B 12 intake on CVD mortality and total mortality. However, there were inconsistent patterns in hazard ratios across tertiles of each dietary factor that are likely explained by multiple testing. Conclusions and Relevance The results suggest that baseline nutritional status does not influence the effect of randomized long-term multivitamin use on major CVD events. Future studies are needed to investigate the role of baseline nutritional biomarkers on the effect of multivitamin use on CVD and other outcomes. Trial Registration clinicaltrials.gov Identifier:NCT00270647
Electrical Double Layers near Charged Nanorods in Mixture Electrolytes

The electrical double layers (EDLs) in the mixtures of room-temperature ionic liquids and water play an important role in many applications but have only begun to receive widespread attention recently. Here, we report the molecular dynamics simulations of EDLs near rigid polyanion nanorods immersed in electrolytes containing ionic liquids [C2mim][TfO], water, and Na+ ions. When the water content in bulk electrolyte is high, the EDLs near the rods are similar to those in aqueous electrolytes except that TfO– ions accumulate notably near the cation layer adsorbed on the rods. When the water content in the bulk electrolyte becomes very low, even though water is greatly enriched in the interfacial region, the microenvironment in the region offers weak dielectric screening and the EDL exhibits features common to those in neat ionic liquids, e.g., charge overscreening. Na+ ions are readily adsorbed on the sulfonate groups of the polyanion rod in the range of water contents explored here but can experience an en...
Semantic Text Summarization of Long Videos

Long videos captured by consumers are typically tied to some of the most important moments of their lives, yet ironically are often the least frequently watched. The time required to initially retrieve and watch sections can be daunting. In this work we propose novel techniques for summarizing and annotating long videos. Existing video summarization techniques focus exclusively on identifying keyframes and subshots, however evaluating these summarized videos is a challenging task. Our work proposes methods to generate visual summaries of long videos, and in addition proposes techniques to annotate and generate textual summaries of the videos using recurrent networks. Interesting segments of long video are extracted based on image quality as well as cinematographic and consumer preference. Key frames from the most impactful segments are converted to textual annotations using sequential encoding and decoding deep learning models. Our summarization technique is benchmarked on the VideoSet dataset, and evaluated by humans for informative and linguistic content. We believe this to be the first fully automatic method capable of simultaneous visual and textual summarization of long consumer videos.
Attributed Graph Clustering: an Attribute-aware Graph Embedding Approach

Graph clustering is a fundamental problem in social network analysis, the goal of which is to group vertices of a graph into a series of densely knitted clusters with each cluster well separated from all the others. Classical graph clustering methods take advantage of the graph topology to model and quantify vertex proximity. With the proliferation of rich graph contents, such as user profiles in social networks, and gene annotations in protein interaction networks, it is essential to consider both the structure and content information of graphs for high-quality graph clustering. In this paper, we propose a graph embedding approach to clustering content-enriched graphs. The key idea is to embed each vertex of a graph into a continuous vector space where the localized structural and attributive information of vertices can be encoded in a unified, latent representation. Specifically, we quantify vertex-wise attribute proximity into edge weights, and employ truncated, attribute-aware random walks to learn the latent representations for vertices. We evaluate our attribute-aware graph embedding method in real-world attributed graphs, and the results demonstrate its effectiveness in comparison with state-of-the-art algorithms.
Selecting contestants for a rent-seeking contest

In this paper, a contest designer derives profits from aggregate effort exerted by the contestants. I develop a revelation mechanism that enables the contest designer to select a subset of contestants from a pool of candidates in a way that maximizes her profits, even though she is uninformed about the candidates’ valuations for the contest prize. I prove the existence of an incentive compatible and individually rational mechanism. I solve the designer’s problem by using a three-stage game. At Stage 0, the designer designs a mechanism. At Stage 1, candidates participate in the mechanism then a subset of candidates become contestants. Lastly, at Stage 2, information is revealed and the contestants participate in a contest. I show that the optimal size of a contest depends on contestants’ types, the cost of the prize to the designer and on the marginal cost that a contestant imposes on the designer. Contrary to models in which an entry fee s access to the contest, the designer can elicit truthful revelations by imposing revelation costs, and in turn is able to select the optimal subset of contestants.
Spectral Reflectance Measurement of Evaporating Chemical Films: Initial Results and Application to Skin Permeation.

The present study has 2 aims. First, the method of spectral reflectance was used to measure evaporation rates of thin (∼25-300 μm) films of neat liquid volatile organic chemicals exposed to a well-regulated wind speed u. Gas-phase evaporation mass transfer coefficient (kevap) measurements of 10 chemicals, 9 of which were measured at similar u, are predicted (slope of log-log data = 1.01; intercept = 0.08; R2 = 0.996) by a previously proposed mass transfer correlation. For one chemical, isoamyl alcohol, the dependence of kevap on u0.52 was measured, in support of the predicted exponent value of ½. Second, measured kevap of nicotine was used as an input in analytical models based on diffusion theory to estimate the absorbed fraction (Fabs) of a small dose (5 μL/cm2) applied to human epidermis in vitro. The measured Fabs was 0.062 ± 0.023. Model-estimated values are 0.066 and 0.115. Spectral reflectance is a precise method of measuring kevap of liquid chemicals, and the data are well described by a simple gas-phase mass transfer coefficient. For nicotine under the single exposure condition measured herein, Fabs is well-predicted from a theoretical model that requires knowledge of kevap, maximal dermal flux, and membrane lag time.
Infections of hip prostheses and artificial joints.

SUMMARY Infections following total joint arthroplasty have been dramatically lowered with the administration of prophylactic antibiotics. Anecdotal experience as well as prospective data suggests that ultra-clean operating rooms can further reduce the incidence of postoperative wound sepsis following total joint arthroplasty. Once a deep infection complicates a total joint arthroplasty, resection arthroplasty will usually be necessary. Staphylococci are the most common causal organisms. Four weeks of specific, parenteral therapy should be admin istered at the time of the resection arthroplasty. Reconstruction with another total joint can be performed in a “one-staged” or a delayed fashion. The decision as to which procedure should be performed is made based on the degree of virulence of the infection (microbiology) and the anatomic location. Successful reconstruction can be achieved in 95 per cent of carefully selected patients.
Low-temperature crystal structures and superconductivity of ( Hf 1 − x Zr x ) V 2 alloys

X-ray diffraction patterns of the cubic Laves phases $({\mathrm{Hf}}_{1\ensuremath{-}x}{\mathrm{Zr}}_{x}){\mathrm{V}}_{2}$ have been obtained at 4 K. For $xl0.40$ the low-temperature crystal structure is orthorhombic; for $xg0.45$ the low-temperature structure is rhombohedral. The discontinuity of structure is correlated with that of several superconductive properties of these alloys.
The Chaotic Behavior of a Physically Nonlinear Beam

Considered is the chaotic behavior of a physically weak-nonlinear beam constrained by the unilateral reaction from a rheological foundation. The chaotic oscillation of the beam can be detected in the first mode phase subspace by means of Shilnikov method. Some sufficient conditions for occurrence of the chaotic oscillation are given as subregions in a 2D space spanned by the combinatorial parameters.
Physical properties of secondary photochemical aerosol from OH oxidation of a cyclic siloxane

Abstract. Cyclic volatile methyl siloxanes (cVMS) are high-production chemicals present in many personal care products. They are volatile, hydrophobic, and relatively long-lived due to slow oxidation kinetics. Evidence from chamber and ambient studies indicates that oxidation products may be found in the condensed aerosol phase. In this work, we use an oxidation flow reactor to produce ∼100 µ g m −3 of organosilicon aerosol from OH oxidation of decamethylcyclopentasiloxane ( D5 ) with aerosol mass fractions (i.e., yields) of 0.2–0.5. The aerosols were assessed for concentration, size distribution, morphology, sensitivity to seed aerosol, hygroscopicity, volatility and chemical composition through a combination of aerosol size distribution measurement, tandem differential mobility analysis, and electron microscopy. Similar aerosols were produced when vapor from solid antiperspirant was used as the reaction precursor. Aerosol yield was sensitive to chamber OH and to seed aerosol, suggesting sensitivity of lower-volatility species and recovered yields to oxidation conditions and chamber operation. The D5 oxidation aerosol products were relatively non-hygroscopic, with an average hygroscopicity kappa of ∼0.01 , and nearly non-volatile up to 190 ∘ C temperature. Parameters for exploratory treatment as a semi-volatile organic aerosol in atmospheric models are provided.
Computer-Assisted Appraisal and Selection of Archival Materials

Despite progress on various technologies to support both digital preservation and description of archival materials, we have still seen relatively little progress on software support for the core activities of selection and appraisal. There are two considerations that make selection and appraisal of digital materials substantially different from selection and appraisal of analog materials: that digital materials exist at multiple levels of representation and that they are directly machine readable. There are great opportunities to better assist selection and appraisal of digital materials, including use of digital forensics tools, natural language processing, and machine learning.
Self-management practices associated with quality of life for adults with epilepsy

Epilepsy self-management practices enhance a patient’s competence and confidence in managing their chronic condition, which is assumed to lead to an improved quality of life (QoL). We analyzed the relationship between the Epilepsy Self-Management Scale (ESMS) responses and the Quality of Life in Epilepsy (QOLIE-31) scores. Baseline questionnaires from HOBSCOTCH, a self-management program for cognitive problems, were administered in four New England epilepsy centers on adults (n = 100) with epilepsy and subjective memory complaints. There was no correlation between overall self-management scores and overall quality-of-life scores; however, subscale analyses indicated that certain self-management practices were strongly correlated with the overall QOLIE-31 score. Specifically, improved ESMS lifestyle management was associated with an increased quality-of-life score (adjusted p < 0.01), while enhanced ESMS safety management practices were associated with a decreased overall quality-of-life score (adjusted p < 0.01). Our item-level analysis highlighted specific items within the ESMS safety management, ESMS lifestyle management, and ESMS information management subdomains that were significant predictors for QoL. Depression was also shown to be significantly correlated with the QOLIE-31 (p < 0.01). Our study suggests that an overemphasis on safety practices may negatively affect quality of life, while enhanced lifestyle management has positive effects. Furthermore, our finding that quality of life is greatly dependent on depressive symptoms underscores the importance of treating depression in epilepsy.
Answering the Clinical Research Challenge in a Growing Health System

A sharp decline in clinical trials has occurred, whether measured as number of trials performed, number of participants enrolled, or number of investigators. This commentary discusses factors contr...
A Compact, High-Gain, High-Power, Ultrawideband Microwave Pulse Compressor Using Time-Reversal Techniques

Generation of high-peak-power, microwave ultrashort pulses (USPs) is desirable for ultrawideband communications and radar/remote sensing. A variety of microwave USP generators exist today, or are described in the literature, and have benefits and limitations depending on the application. A new class of pulse compressors for generating USPs using electromagnetic time-reversal (TR) techniques has been developed in the last decade and is the topic of this article. This article presents a compact TR microwave pulse-compression cavity that has ultrawide bandwidth (BW) (5–18 GHz) and employs waveguide feeds for high-peak-power output over the entire band. The system uses a time-reversal-based pulse compression scheme with one-bit processing (OBTR) to achieve high-peak power. We present results from full-wave simulations and measurements showing compression gain exceeding 21.2 dB, 22% efficiency, and measured instantaneous peak output powers reaching 39.2 kW. These are all record results for this type of pulse compressor. In addition, we present a new analysis of variation in compression gain due to impulse response recording time and BW variation, new experimental work on the effect of mode stirrer position on compression gain, and a novel RF switch-based technique for reducing time-sidelobes while using OBTR.
Noncontrast CT markers of intracerebral hemorrhage expansion and poor outcome: A meta-analysis.

Objective To provide precise estimates of the association between noncontrast CT (NCCT) markers, hematoma expansion (HE), and functional outcome in patients presenting with intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) through a systematic review and meta-analysis. Methods We searched PubMed for English-written observational studies or randomized controlled trials reporting data on NCCT markers of HE and outcome in spontaneous ICH including at least 50 subjects. The outcomes of interest were HE (hematoma growth >33%, >33% and/or >6 mL, >33% and/or >12.5 mL), poor functional outcome (modified Rankin Scale 3–6 or 4–6) at discharge or at 90 days, and mortality. We pooled data in random-effects models and extracted cumulative odds ratio (OR) for each NCCT marker. Results We included 25 eligible studies (n = 10,650). The following markers were associated with increased risk of HE and poor outcome, respectively: black hole sign (OR = 3.70, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.42–9.64 and OR = 5.26, 95% CI = 1.75–15.76), swirl sign (OR = 3.33, 95% CI = 2.42–4.60 and OR = 3.70; 95% CI = 2.47–5.55), heterogeneous density (OR = 2.74; 95% CI = 1.71–4.39 and OR = 2.80; 95% CI = 1.78–4.39), blend sign (OR = 3.49; 95% CI = 2.20–5.55 and OR = 2.21; 95% CI 1.16–4.18), hypodensities (OR = 3.47; 95% CI = 2.18–5.50 and OR = 2.94; 95% CI = 2.28–3.78), irregular shape (OR = 2.01, 95% CI = 1.27–3.19 and OR = 3.43; 95% CI = 2.33–5.03), and island sign (OR = 7.87, 95% CI = 2.17–28.47 and OR = 6.05, 95% CI = 4.44–8.24). Conclusion Our results suggest that multiple NCCT ICH shape and density features, with different effect size, are important markers for HE and clinical outcome and may provide useful information for future randomized controlled trials.
Particle-resolved simulation of freely evolving particle suspensions: Flow physics and modeling

Abstract The objective of this study is to understand the dynamics of freely evolving particle suspensions over a wide range of particle-to-fluid density ratios. The dynamics of particle suspensions are characterized by the average momentum equation, where the dominant contribution to the average momentum transfer between particles and fluid is the average drag force. In this study, the average drag force is quantified using particle-resolved direct numerical simulation in a canonical problem: a statistically homogeneous suspension where an imposed mean pressure gradient establishes a steady mean slip velocity between the phases. The effects of particle velocity fluctuations, particle clustering, and mobility of particles are studied separately. It is shown that the competing effects of these factors could decrease, increase, or keep constant the drag of freely evolving suspensions in comparison to fixed beds at different flow conditions. It is also shown that the effects of particle clustering and particle velocity fluctuations are not independent. Finally, a correlation for interphase drag force in terms of volume fraction, Reynolds number, and density ratio is proposed. Two different approaches (symbolic regression and predefined functional forms) are used to develop the drag correlation. Since this drag correlation has been inferred from simulations of particle suspensions, it includes the effect of the motion of the particles. This drag correlation can be used in computational fluid dynamics simulations of particle-laden flows that solve the average two-fluid equations where the accuracy of the drag law affects the prediction of overall flow behavior.
Establishing Your Fundamental Self

A personal mission statement defines who you are: it identifies your purpose, explains why it matters, and describes how you intend to pursue it. This precis reproduces one such statement. Anchored in positive psychology and positive leadership, the precis references Quinn’s (2005) fundamental state of leadership and leverages its four questions for positive change to retrospectively cast light on my past and present disposition and investigate where and how Quinn’s (2005) fundamental state of leadership might serve in future.
Using the potential outcome framework to estimate optimal sample size for cluster randomized trials: a simulation-based algorithm.

In cluster randomized trials (CRTs) groups rather than individuals are randomized to different interventions. Individuals’ responses within clusters are commonly more similar than those across clus...
Police use of force at street segments: Do street-level characteristics matter?

Abstract Purpose Research examining police use of force at micro places appears scant and largely absent from past studies is the consideration of the contextual and ecological dynamics at street segments. Context is a key factor in understanding use of force, but far less is known about whether micro-level attributes contribute to the frequency of force incidents. The purpose of this study is to investigate the potential effects of street-, and neighborhood-level characteristics on the Prevalence of force incidents. Methods The current study draws on police use of force reports data and employs multilevel negative binomial regression equations to examine the impact of place dynamics on force frequency at street segments and census tracts. Results The analyses show that calls for service, crime incidents, and nonresidential land uses are more significantly likely to drive variation in force frequency at street segments. The results at the level-two unit of analysis (census tracts) demonstrate that the odds of using force become significantly higher in commercial, concentrated disadvantage, and violent crime tracts. Conclusions Findings emphasize the need for using street segments as a theoretical-based unit of analysis and separating which specific types of calls for service, crime, and land uses affect police use of force.
Holidays Frightened My Father

holidays frightened my father. They were invitations to enjoyment, when the mind lets down its guard and happiness is allowed to creep into the heart. On Christmas, on Thanksgiving, on the Fourth of July, he was driven to undertake any available and unappealing chore. As we opened our presents, or lingered over dinner, or played checkers, he would go off, in his work shoes and his oldest sweater, to move heaps of furniture in the attic or to worry at a year's accumulation of junk in the cellar. My mother never protested, but sometimes I would say, "Why do you have to do it today, Dad?" Hurt would come into his voice. "It's got to be done," he would say. "Who's going to do it?" And no logic could answer him. Hating him, despising myself, I would follow him and offer to help. True to the holiday spirit, he worked happily at such times, relaxed as he seldom relaxed, as though we two now understood one another and, in spite of myself, I felt a kind of peace. The lessons my father learned were few, but he returned to them doggedly. Like some humble, bewildered traveler, eyeing the ticket collector who seems to control his fate, my father repeated over and over that he had paid his passage, held his receipt, and could not in fairness be asked to pay again. Hard work, for twelve or fourteen hours a day, was his religion?almost a ritual by which he hoped, perhaps, to appeal to some terrible celestial taskmas ter, watching the human race, irritated if he glimpsed an arrogant mortal enjoying himself. My father lived as though watched. He came from a poor, first-generation Polish family that lived in New Bedford during his boyhood. His father worked in the flour mills and his mother in the textile mills for most of their lives: his father lugging the fat, dead sacks of flour, his mother tending the looms. Only late in life did his father save enough money to buy a little, hilly farm, too raw and rocky for most gardening, but suitable for raising temperamental and astonishingly disease-prone turkeys that lived, it seemed, on a strict diet of human devotion and corn.
Propulsion Systems for Hybrid Vehicles

The automotive industry is waking up to the fact that hybrid electric vehicles could provide an answer to the ever-increasing need for lower-polluting and more fuel-efficient forms of personal transport. This is the first book to give comprehensive coverage of all aspects of the hybrid vehicle design, from its power plant and energy storage systems, to supporting chassis subsystems necessary for realising hybrid modes of operation. Key topics covered include hybrid propulsion system architectures, propulsion system sizing, electric traction system sizing and design, loss mechanisms, system simulation and vehicle certification.
A Review of “Hazards, Vulnerability, and Environmental Justice”

Hazards, Vulnerability, and Environmental Justice provides numerous examples of the role that socioeconomics, gender, and race have played in relation to hazards ranging from hurricanes to the loca...
Abiotic Attributes Surrounding Alluvial Islands Generate Critical Fish Habitat

Identifying the appropriate scale at which habitat is biologically relevant to riverine fishes in large, sand-dominated rivers is a challenge. Alluvial islands are important to several of these fishes throughout the central USA, but there is a paucity of information on island habitat features that restoration efforts should try to replicate. We determined the physical characteristics of two island complexes in the middle Mississippi River that facilitate the settlement and survival of age-0 shovelnose sturgeon Scaphirhynchus platorynchus at relatively large (mean 39,000 m2) and small (mean 320 m2) scales. Depth (m), flow rate (m s−1), substrate (sand, rock, silt) and vegetation were quantified at these two scales using hydroacoustic techniques (split-beam sonar and acoustic Doppler current profiler). Abiotic attributes in the surrounding littoral zone of the island complexes were highly correlated but differed depending on location. At the coarse spatial scale, vegetation was positively related to shovelnose sturgeon abundance. At the fine spatial scale, age-0 shovelnose sturgeon were restricted to flow rates < 0.89 m s−1, with abundance peaking at about 0.40 m s−1. However, heterogeneity in depth and flow was important, and sturgeon abundance peaked at intermediate variability in these two abiotic attributes. A computer-generated model of the habitat surrounding islands suggests that these habitats are diverse and may provide flow refugia and foraging patches for shovelnose sturgeon. We submit the results presented here that can contribute to a hierarchical model for island restoration in large rivers. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Uneasy promises: sexuality, health, and human rights

Although attention to the links between health and human rights is growing globally, the full potential of a progressive human rights approach to health has not yet been explored, and it is even more faintly understood in the United States than in the rest of the world. At the same time, global claims for sexual rights, particularly for those identifying as gay, lesbian, transsexual, or bisexual, are increasingly being made as human rights claims. All of these approaches to rights advocacy risk limiting their own transformative impact unless advocates critique their own strategies. Paradoxically, using health as a way to bring attention to nonheteronormative sexualities can be both helpful and potentially dangerous, especially when coupled with human rights. Recognizing sexuality as a critical element of humanity, and establishing a fundamental human right to health, can play a role in broader social justice claims, but the tendency of both public health and human rights advocacy to "normalize" and regulate must be scrutinized and challenged.
Dielectric anomalies in zero-gap semiconductors

A review is given of the dielectric constant in symmetry-induced zero-gap semiconductors. Based on the random phase approximation we show that the dielectric constant contains an anomalous term which diverges in the infinite wavelength and zero frequency limit. The connection of this anomaly with the degenerate band edge structure is discussed in detail. Experimental verification of the dielectric anomaly is also discussed.
Strand breakage of coliphage λ DNA supercoils in infected lysogens: I. Genetic and biochemical evidence for two types of nicking processes

Abstract After thermal induction of Escherichia coli lysogens infected with radioactive λ phage, nicks controlled by two processes appear in λ DNA supercoils within 5 min. One process is solely under control of λ gene N ; the other is under control of λ genes N , O , and P . N -controlled nicks are not detected if NaCl is omitted from the postinduction wash medium at 4°, whereas OP -controlled nicks are. Moreover, N -controlled nicks are repaired in vivo , whereas OP -controlled nicks are not. OP -controlled nicks appear in λc 17 DNA supercoils under conditions where they are replicating and being transcribed independently of c I repressor and N -mediated transcription. Thus, OP -controlled nicks are probably created by the replication process. N -controlled nicks appear to require N -mediated transcription, but the activity responsible for N -controlled nicking is not the product of an N -activated gene in the b 2 region or from the region extending from att λ to gene N , since N -controlled nicking is normal for a deletion-addition mutant lacking these genes. The properties of N -controlled nicking suggest that the formation of N -type nicks is associated with the attachment of the phage chromosome to the bacterial membrane. Both nicking activities can be elicited in trans by heteroimmune phage, require inactivation of c I repressor, and are sensitive to rifampicin.
Electron Spin Resonance (ESR) Dating in Karst Environments

Electron spin resonance (ESR) dating has been developed for many materials, including hydroxyapatite in enamel, bone, and some fish scales, aragonite and calcite in travertine, molluscs, and calcrete, and quartz from ash, which have many potential applications in karst settings. Although the complexity of the signals in some materials has hampered routine application, research is solving these problems to make the method even more widely applicable. When tested against other dating tech­niques, age agreement has usually been excellent. Generally, the most reliable applications seem to be tooth enamel, some mol­lusc species, calcite deposits, and quartz minerals. ESR dating uses signals resulting from trapped charges created by radia­tion in crystalline solids. Ages are calculated by comparing the accumulated dose in the dating sample with the internal and external radiation dose rates produced by natural radiation in and around the sample. For fossils and authigenic minerals, no zeroing is necessary to obtain accurate ages. In sediment which contains reworked mineral clasts, ESR can be used to date the age of the mineral grain itself if it was not zeroed during ero­sion. For dating the sedimentation age, however, ESR signals must have been zeroed in order to give the correct age. High pressure, heating, and in some minerals, light exposure and grinding can zero an ESR signal, but some like hydroxyapatite have very high stability at surface temperatures. For materi­als that absorb uranium (U) during their burial history, such as teeth, bones, or mollusc shells, the age calculation considers their U uptake by cross calibrating with U series or U/Pb dat­ing or by assuming different uptake models. Some difficulties in calculating the external dose rate can be overcome by ap­plying the ESR isochron method, in which the sample acts as its own dosimeter. In open-air karst environments, changes in the external dose rate due to altered sediment cover, and hence, changing cosmic dose rates, need to be modelled. For all karst environments, sedimentary water concentration and mineralogical variations with time also need to be considered. Many ESR applications are currently used in karst settings, but several more are also possible.
Defect dynamics in superionic PbF2:Eu3+

Site selective spectroscopy is used to probe the nature of the superionic phase that can be frozen into the ${\mathrm{PbF}}_{2}$ lattice. The spectra show that there is a significant increase in the dissociation of defect pairs ${\mathrm{Eu}}^{3+}$:${\mathrm{F}}_{\mathit{i}}$ at the transition temperature that results from lattice changes caused by the superionic transition. The nature of these changes is identified by measuring the defect dynamics of all the defect centers associated with the return of the lattice to the low-temperature structure. The results show that the cation sublattice structure provides the framework which controls the dissociation, not the anion sublattice. The experiments cannot distinguish whether the lattice changes cause strain interactions that decrease the formation energies for Frenkel defects and for the dopant-compensation pairing or whether there are Schottky defects; they do show that neither the anion sublattice nor the fluoride interstitial concentration are responsible for the high-temperature structure.
Analysis of outcomes of percutaneous coronary intervention in metastatic cancer patients with acute coronary syndrome over a 10-year period.

Early medical palliative care has been shown to improve overall survival of patients with metastatic cancer, but the role of cardiac surgical interventions in such patients is not clear. The limited life expectancy of these patients often poses a dilemma to clinicians and involves a detailed analysis of the risks and benefits of such interventions. This study examines the outcomes of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in patients with metastatic cancer. The National Inpatient Database of USA was used to identify patients aged ≥18 years who had a diagnosis of metastatic cancer and acute coronary syndrome (ACS) between 2000 and 2009 using ICD-9-CM codes. These were categorized into ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and non-ST elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI). The utilization of PCI was also identified using ICD-9-CM codes. The outcomes studied were in-hospital mortality, length of hospital stay and discharge disposition. The association between various outcomes and use of cardiac catheterization was assessed using multivariate regression models. There were 49,515 patients with metastatic disease who were discharged with a diagnosis of ACS. Of these, 15,964 had STEMI and 33,551 had NSTEMI. 3981 patients (24.9 %) with STEMI and 3209 patients (9.6 %) with NSTEMI received percutaneous coronary intervention. Caucasian male patients under age 65 years were more likely to receive PCI in the setting of an ACS. The hospital characteristics associated with higher use of PCI included academic affiliation, large bedsize, private for-profit hospitals and Midwestern and Western regions of USA. The adjusted odds of receiving PCI in this group of patient have gradually increased by 1.14 every year in last decade (95 % CI 1.11–1.16). The beneficial effect of PCI on in-hospital mortality has declined in NSTEMI such that by 2009, there was no significant difference between patients who received PCI and those who did not receive PCI. This has remained unchanged for STEMI patients. In metastatic cancer patients with ACS, the rate of PCI has increased over the last decade. In the current era, metastatic cancer patients with NSTEMI may perform equally well without PCI in terms of in-hospital mortality. The decision to provide such care may be considered on an individual basis based on the extent of their medical comorbidity and tumor burden.
Designing technology to empower children to communicate with non-residential parents

Abstract This paper considers the role of technology in supporting parent–child communication in divorced families. Through formative interviews, we identified specific challenges to engaging the child in remote communication and managing the tension inherent in the communication practices of divorced households. To address some of these challenges, we designed the ShareTable system, a synchronous communication appliance that combines easy-to-use videochat with a shared projector–camera tabletop surface. We observed the use of this system in the field through a multi-case design case study where each case consisted of two divorced households and the ShareTable as a mediating technology. The two families had very different experiences with the system, which we interpret through the lens of empowerment theory. This paper makes two major contributions to Child–Computer Interaction. First, it contributes a presentation of the formative interviews and field deployment of the ShareTable focused specifically on the role and perspective of the child. Second, it contributes a discussion of empowerment theory as a potential interpretive lens for Child–Computer Interaction and applies it to understanding the findings and providing implications for design in the context of communication technologies for children.
“I don't care if you are 65, you are still my baby!”;: Examining parents’ communication motives throughout the life‐span

This study explored the interpersonal communication motives of parents throughout the life‐span. Parents (N = 342) ranging in age from 20 to 78 completed questionnaires assessing certain demographic information and their motives for communicating interpersonally (ICM) with a target child. Parents reported talking with their children primarily for relationally oriented reasons—to show affection, for pleasure, or to relax. However, differences were found among the various parental age groups on the use of 3 of the 6 communication motives. Implications for supporting a life‐span approach to studying communication and aging are discussed.