cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A method for producing gradient density aerogel

The Stardust Mission used gradient density aerogel as the hypervelocity particle capture medium in both the cometary and interstellar collection grids. The development and production of these materials was performed exclusively for this mission as a means of improving the efficiency of the collection process. The density of an aerogel can be dictated by controlling the ratio of the condensable silica to that of the solvent used in the aerogel precursor solution. A density gradient was established by gradually mixing the precursor solution for low density aerogel into the precursor solution for high density aerogel and continuously pumping the resultant mixture into a mold. The aerogel designed for the capture of cometary particles had a density gradient ranging from 10 mg/cm3 to 50 mg/cm3 across the 3 cm profile of each block. Whereas those designed for the capture of interstellar grains had a gradient ranging from 10 mg/cm3 to 20 mg/cm3 across a 1 cm profile. Since various physical properties, e.g., refractive index, thermal conductivity, acoustic impedance, dielectric constant, are correlated to the density, they also vary with the density. This method of establishing a density gradient in aerogel can be used to produce other material gradients, e.g., gradient oxide, gradient dopant, in any sol–gel based material.
Iron Corrosion Scales: Model for Scale Growth, Iron Release, and Colored Water Formation

This paper was presented in part by V. L. Snoeyink as the Simon W. Freese Lecture at the 2002 Canadian Society of Civil Engineers/Environmental and Water Resources Institute of ASCE Environmental Engineering Conference in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada, July 22, 2002. The interactions of corroded iron pipe surfaces with water are of importance because they can lead to serious water quality degradation and material deterioration. A conceptual model has been developed in this paper to describe the formation and growth of iron scales, and their reactions that lead to colored water problems. Most corrosion scales have characteristic structural features, such as a loosely held top surface layer, a shell-like layer ~s!, and a porous core. According to this model corrosion scales are expected to grow from inside the scale via the corrosion reaction, i.e., the conversion of iron metal to ferrous ion. The average oxidation state of iron increases with distance from the pipe wall. The scale structure and scale reactions permit the ferrous iron to be released to the bulk water, where it undergoes conversion to particulate ferric iron, which is the cause of colored water. Scale structure and composition play important roles in the reactions of iron scales that lead to iron release, and water quality control to decrease the porosity of the scale is an important means of reducing iron release. It is anticipated that the conceptual model presented here will be used as a basis for changing water quality to minimize colored water formation, and as a guide for further research.
Abstract 19176: Mapping of Electrogram Morphology Recurrence Patterns during Atrial Fibrillation

Introduction: Electrograms during atrial fibrillation (AF) are complex and seemingly chaotic. It is still unknown how to best analyze and utilize AF electrograms. Hypothesis: We hypothesize that the frequency and patterns of AF electrogram morphology recurrence determined by a modified recurrence plot (RP) analysis will show differences based on region in this pilot study. Methods: AF electrograms (>16 s) recorded from documented left atrial (LA) and right atrial (RA) sites in 13 patients (10 male, 59±10 years old) prior to AF ablation were analyzed. A 100 ms window for each automatically detected activation was extracted and cross-correlated with every other activation in a 30-sec recording. The result was a set of NxN cross-correlation (CC) values, where N is the number of detected activations. These values were displayed in a two-dimensional RP. A recurrence index (RI), the percentage of the most common morphology, was also computed. A high RI likely indicates consistent activation directions at the site of bipolar electrogram recording. Results: Figure A is a RP example. The checker board pattern of alternating high and low CC values indicates periodic recurrences in morphologies (RI=70% for this example). The mean RI for all sites and all patients was 38±25%. The highest RI was found in the left superior LA in all 4 paroxysmal AF patients (85±18%, see Figure B). For 9 persistent AF patients, the highest RI was found in the RA (91±10%) in 5 patients and in the left superior LA (95±6%) in 4 patients. The persistent AF patients had higher maximum RIs in the RA than the paroxysmal AF patients (87±16 vs. 51±15%, p=0.01). Conclusion: Electrogram morphology with highest recurrence rates were most frequently found in the left superior LA, a common location for AF triggers. Further work is needed to determine whether high electrogram repeatability reflects AF driver activity and whether RPs could be used as part of an ablation strategy.
Real-time analytical processing with SQL server

Over the last two releases SQL Server has integrated two specialized engines into the core system: the Apollo column store engine for analytical workloads and the Hekaton in-memory engine for high-performance OLTP workloads. There is an increasing demand for real-time analytics, that is, for running analytical queries and reporting on the same system as transaction processing so as to have access to the freshest data. SQL Server 2016 will include enhancements to column store indexes and in-memory tables that significantly improve performance on such hybrid workloads. This paper describes four such enhancements: column store indexes on in-memory tables, making secondary column store indexes on disk-based tables updatable, allowing B-tree indexes on primary column store indexes, and further speeding up the column store scan oper ator.
Long-term effects of adolescent exposure to bisphenol A on neuron and glia number in the rat prefrontal cortex: Differences between the sexes and cell type

Bisphenol A (BPA), an endocrine disruptor used in a variety of consumer products, has been found to alter the number of neurons in multiple brain areas in rats following exposure in perinatal development. Both the number of neurons and glia also change in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) during adolescence, and this process is known to be influenced by gonadal hormones which could be altered by BPA. In the current study, we examined Long-Evans male and female rats that were administered BPA (0, 4, 40, or 400μg/kg/day) during adolescent development (postnatal days 27-46). In adulthood (postnatal day 150), the number of neurons and glia in the mPFC were stereologically assessed in methylene blue/azure II stained sections. There were no changes in the number of neurons, but there was a significant dose by sex interaction in number of glia in the mPFC. Pairwise comparisons between controls and each dose showed a significant increase in the number of glia between 0 and 40μg/kg/day in females, and a significant decrease in the number of glia between 0 and 4μg/kg/day in males. In order to determine the type of glial cells that were changing in these groups in response to adolescent BPA administration, adjacent sections were labelled with S100β (astrocytes) and IBA-1 (microglia) in the mPFC of the groups that differed. The number of microglia was significantly higher in females exposed to 40μg/kg/day than controls and lower in males exposed to 4μg/kg/day than controls. There were no significant effects of adolescent exposure to BPA on the number of astrocytes in male or females. Thus, adolescent exposure to BPA produced long-term alterations in the number of microglia in the mPFC of rats, the functional implications of which need to be explored.
Regression discontinuity designs in healthcare research

Clinical decisions are often driven by decision rules premised around specific thresholds. Specific laboratory measurements, dates, or policy eligibility criteria create cut-offs at which people become eligible for certain treatments or health services. The regression discontinuity design is a statistical approach that utilizes threshold based decision making to derive compelling causal estimates of different interventions. In this review, we argue that regression discontinuity is underutilized in healthcare research despite the ubiquity of threshold based decision making as well as the design’s simplicity and transparency. Moreover, regression discontinuity provides evidence of “real world” therapeutic and policy effects, circumventing a major limitation of randomized controlled trials. We discuss the implementation, strengths, and weaknesses of regression discontinuity and review several examples from clinical medicine, public health, and health policy. We conclude by discussing the wide array of open research questions for which regression discontinuity stands to provide meaningful insights to clinicians and policymakers
NMR studies of the chiral selectivity of self-assembled guanosinemonophosphate.

Among nucleobases in RNA and DNA, only guanine exhibits reversible self-assembly through Hoogsteen hydrogen bonding. Resulting “G-tetrads” are building blocks of higher-order structures of guanosine compounds, including GMP. These can further associate to form chiral, columnar assemblies, stabilized by a centrally located cation such as K+. Here, we detail chiral selectivity of GMP under conditions for assembly, as previously used to separate enantiomeric solutes by capillary electrophoresis (CE). Using 1H NMR, we track multisite chemical-shift responses vs the concentration of various chiral solutes with GMP. Shift changes in both GMP and the solutes are consistent with a structural model in which grooves of transiently assembled GMP are templates for chiral selection. This can also explain a previously noted superiority of selection for solutes with extended ring systems projecting from the chiral center. Here, site-by-site NMR shift changes (and their enantiomeric differential) are strongest at the rin...
Phase stability analysis of the InAs/GaAs (001) wetting layer from first principles

The large atomic-size mismatch between In and Ga and the large lattice-mismatch strain between InAs and GaAs make the InAs/GaAs (001) growth interface a complex alloy system, the understanding of which can enhance control of device synthesis and nanostructure self-assembly. We present a detailed first-principles analysis of the full progression of surface reconstructions observed on the InAs/GaAs(001) wetting layer during early stages of In deposition. We use systematic techniques to identify the most likely surface reconstruction prototypes of the InAs wetting layer on GaAs(001) using density functional theory (DFT) and then develop several cluster expansion Hamiltonians in order to thoroughly explore surface alloy disorder due to species substitution of In, Ga, and As at the surface. We use these results to construct a first principles 0-K surface phase diagram of the InAs wetting layer on GaAs(001) and test the sensitivity of our predicted phase diagram to DFT approximations and convergence errors. We find two alloy configurations of the $(4\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}3)$ structural prototype that are likely ground-state surface reconstructions, and simulated scanning tunneling micrographs (STM) of these reconstructions indicate that they can explain prominent features of experimentally obtained STM of the InAs/GaAs $(4\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}3)$ surface.
New Species and a New Genus of Plectomycetes with Aspergillus States

1. Benjamin, R. K. 1970. Laboulbeniales on semiaquatic Hemiptera. II. Autophagomyces, Dioicomyces, and Prolixandromyces gen. nov. Aliso 7: 165-182. 2. Tavares, I. I. 1970. The appendage of Amorphomyces (Laboulbeniales). Mycologia 62: 741-749. 3. Thaxter, R. 1900. Preliminary diagnoses of new species of LaboulbeniaceaeII. Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts Sci. 35: 407-450. 4. --. 1902. Preliminary diagnoses of new species of Laboulbeniaceae-V. Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts Sci. 38: 7-57. 5. . 1908. Contribution toward a monograph of the Laboulbeniaceae. Part II. Mem. Amer. Acad. Arts Sci. 13: 217-469. 6. --. 1931. Contribution towards a monograph of the Laboulbeniaceae. Part V. Mem. Amer. Acad. Arts Sci. 16: 1-435.
Phase Singularities in Partially Coherent Wavefields

Though partially coherent wavefields do not possess a deterministic phase, their correlation functions can possess zeros with nontrivial phase structures in their neighborhood. We discuss the optics and possible applications of such singularities.
Should lymphangioleiomyomatosis patients be permitted to donate blood

As a precaution to protect both donor and recipient, LAM patients should not donate blood http://ow.ly/10CM0k
Disparity in Patients' Self-Reported and Charted Medication Allergy Information.

OBJECTIVES The objective of this study was to compare current adverse drug/allergy reaction reporting in patient electronic medical records/charts against information gathered during patient interviews in the emergency department. Our hypothesis was that current methods for allergy reporting results in significant discrepancy between what is documented and the actual allergy history upon interviewing the patient. METHODS The study was conducted between December 2011 and April 2012 in an academic emergency department. This was a convenience sample study comparing a prospective patient interview with previously documented allergy histories. Demographics for sex, age, and race were recorded. Patients to be interviewed were adults with at least one documented allergy in their chart. Descriptive statistics and percentages were used for demographic and prevalence data. Agreement between interviews and charts was assessed for both the reaction type and the reaction descriptor. RESULTS There were 101 patients interviewed during this 4-month period, and a total of 235 adverse drug reactions were recorded. There were 66 women and 35 men included in this study. The mean age was 51 ± 17 years. The median number of allergy instances for women was 2 (interquartile range 1-3) and for men the median number of allergy instances was 1 (interquartile range 1-2). The percentage of agreements for overall allergies was 85% and 50% for the type of reaction. Total profile agreement occurred in nine patients. CONCLUSIONS The percentage of agreement between interviews and charting for reaction type was 50%. Even with the use of electronic medical records, better methods are needed to properly record allergies to ensure patient safety and care.
Role of CNP in human airways : cGMP-mediated stimulation of ciliary beat frequency

Ciliated airway epithelial cells contribute to mucociliary transport systems via ciliary beating and electrolyte transport mechanisms. Both of these activities are regulated by agonists acting thro...
Indications for electrophysiologic studies.

The indications for invasive electrophysiologic evaluation of patients with arrhythmia problems have broadened considerably in the last decade. The major advantage of electrophysiologic studies over other forms of arrhythmia evaluation, particularly passive monitoring techniques, is the ability to detect the arrhythmias by provocative stimulation techniques, eliminating the need for serendipitous recording of a sporadic event. Once the arrhythmia can be reproducibly induced, its electrophysiologic characteristics can be studied and the effect of drugs and/or pacemakers in preventing or terminating the arrhythmia can be determined. Indications for electrophysiologic testing discussed in this article are evaluation of sinus node dysfunction, evaluation of AV conduction system disturbances, evaluation of syncope of undetermined etiology, evaluation and selection oftherapy for recurrent supraventricular tachycardia, evaluation and selection of treatment for patients with recurrent sustained ventricular tachycardia, and evaluation of patients at high risk for suddencardiac death. Risks and complications are also discussed
Risk, Incentives, and Culture

Risk management procedures exist in part to create objective, abstract answers without bias. This is an important objective, but as we have seen it runs up against a number of powerful realities of human organizations, from personalities to cognitive biases. Behavior is a function of many variables; avoiding risk is one, but there are many others that can be equally powerful. In many ways the essential story of the financial crisis can be boiled down to economic agents acting according to perverse incentives. In particular, judgments do not take place in a vacuum; the human factors that influence the perception of risk take root in a social and institutional context. Peoples’ perception of risk is also a function of these broader environmental factors. A critical lesson of the crisis is that different environments can generate different levels of incentive to take risk.
Photon and Pion Induced Reactions

Gamma-rays are another neutral probe which can penetrate easily. However, the \(\mathrm {\gamma }\)-ray energy of radioactive sources is not sufficient to break up a nucleus. Thus, only intense high-energy \(\mathrm {\gamma }\)-ray sources produced in nuclear reactions were used to discover new isotopes. These discoveries as well as the discovery of three isotopes produced by pion reactions are described in the chapter.
Comparison of Video Prompting with and Without Voice-Over Narration: A Replication with Young Children with Autism

We compared the effects of video prompting (VP) with and without voice-over narration on the play skills of two young children with autism spectrum disorder using an adapted alternating treatment design. The results showed increases in play skills when using VP with and without voice-over narration for both participants. These results suggest that the difference in effectiveness between VP with and without voice-over narration may be negligible for some children with autism. Implications for the use of VP without additional teaching strategies and the need for additional component analyses are discussed. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Manufacturing systems: parallel system models and some theoretical results

A suitable model of the manufacturing environment must incorporate constructs to represent and manipulate information about concurrency, physical change, and time. The actor model of the manufacturing system is one such model, based on the actor model of computation and the transformation model of production processes. This paper formalises the basic elements of the actor model, which is then used to study the behaviour and capabilities of autonomous production systems. The new approach also offers some interesting insights into the design of completely autonomous production environments. Theoretical results, such as the partial decidability of a general process planning problem, can be derived using the actor model.
Cervical Spine Trauma

Comprehensive workup of the cervical spine trauma patient includes thorough evaluation of the neurologic status, anatomic region (occiput, C1, C2, or subaxial spine), associated injuries, displacement/listhesis, any previous spine fusion, and fracture pattern (such as compression or burst fracture).
Hardware and Software Implementation of an Artificial Pancreas System on a Mobile Device

In this work, an artificial pancreas AP system, implemented on a mobile device is described. The proposed AP platform integrates hardware insulin pump, glucose monitor, various sensors for vital signs and physical activities and software closed-loop control algorithm, sensor fusion, data storage and remote server access components via smartphone that is running a dedicated Operating System designed for AP systems. Interfacing with this OS and custom application development steps are presented. Closed loop operation is demonstrated with case studies.
Peering Inside: How do Peer Effects Impact Entrepreneurial Outcomes In Accelerators?

In this paper, we examine the influence of peer effects in entrepreneurial accelerators on performance outcomes of new ventures. Accelerators have been found to impact the trajectories of new ventu...
Middle to late Eocene invertebrate fauna from the San Julian Formation at Punta Casamayor, Santa Cruz Province, southern Argentina

The marine Tertiary faunas of the Patagonian region of Argentina are exceptionally diverse and contain a number of endemic taxa of biogeographic interest. These faunas have received little attention since the turn of the century and are in need of rigorous systematic revision. A number of problems concerning the age and stratigraphic succession of the "Patagonian" marine sequence still exists. The purpose of this paper is to describe the invertebrate fauna collected by the First Marshall Field Expedition to Patagonia during 1921-1924 from the upper Eocene to lower Oligocene San Julian Formation from Punta Casamayor. An historical account of the bitter controversy between J. B. Hatcher and A. T. Ortmann of Princeton University and Florentino Ameghino and Herman von Ihering of the National Museum of Buenos Aires (now Museo de Ciencias Naturales "Bernardino Rivadavia") is included to give a persepective to the causes for the problems that still exist concerning the stratigraphy and age of the Middle Tertiary of Patagonia. A summary of the recent stratigraphic and paleontologic work on the Patagonian sequence previously available only in Latin American literature is also included.
Interferon-stimulated genes are transcriptionally repressed by PR in breast cancer

The progesterone receptor (PR) regulates transcriptional programs that drive proliferation, survival, and stem cell phenotypes. Although the role of native progesterone in the development of breast cancer remains controversial, PR clearly alters the transcriptome in breast tumors. This study identifies a class of genes, Interferon (IFN)-stimulated genes (ISGs), potently downregulated by ligand-activated PR which have not been previously shown to be regulated by PR. Progestin-dependent transcriptional repression of ISGs was observed in breast cancer cell line models and human breast tumors. Ligand-independent regulation of ISGs was also observed, as basal transcript levels were markedly higher in cells with PR knockdown. PR repressed ISG transcription in response to IFN treatment, the canonical mechanism through which these genes are activated. Liganded PR is robustly recruited to enhancer regions of ISGs, and ISG transcriptional repression is dependent upon PR's ability to bind DNA. In response to PR activation, key regulatory transcription factors that are required for IFN-activated ISG transcription, STAT2 and IRF9, exhibit impaired recruitment to ISG promoter regions, correlating with PR/ligand-dependent ISG transcriptional repression. IFN activation is a critical early step in nascent tumor recognition and destruction through immunosurveillance. As the large majority of breast tumors are PR positive at the time of diagnosis, PR-dependent downregulation of IFN signaling may be a mechanism through which early PR-positive breast tumors evade the immune system and develop into clinically relevant tumors.Implications: This study highlights a novel transcriptional mechanism through which PR drives breast cancer development and potentially evades the immune system. Mol Cancer Res; 15(10); 1331-40. ©2017 AACR.
Abstract 349: Regulation Of Key Metabolic Enzymes By Tristetraprolin

Introduction: Heart disease and stroke are the primary causes of death in adults with type-2 diabetes thus strict metabolic control is essential in these patients. Here, we show that tristetraprolin (TTP), a protein involved in regulation of inflammation and iron homeostasis via mRNA degradation, may alleviate diabetic phenotype through modulation of key enzymes involved in gluconeogenesis and fatty acid (FA) metabolism in insulin-sensitive tissues. Results: TTP protein content was significantly reduced in livers of diabetic mice fed high-fat diet compared to control, suggesting that mRNA targets of TTP may be stabilized in diabetes. We then assessed the effects of TTP knockdown using siRNA in HepG2 liver cells on the expression of enzymes in four major metabolic pathways: glycolysis, gluconeogenesis, FA oxidation and synthesis. Consistent with reduced TTP, we found increased expression of a key gluconeogenic regulator - pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 4 (PDK4). In silico analysis of the 3’ untranslated region (UTR) of PDK4 revealed five putative TTP binding sites. Importantly, elevated PDK4 levels were previously reported in diabetic patients, and are thought to exacerbate the disease by increasing hepatic glucose output. Assessment of FA metabolism revealed increased levels of PPARα and two of its targets, carnitine palmitoyltransferase I (CPT1) and fatty acid translocase (FAT). Consistent with increased FA flux, triglyceride levels were elevated with TTP siRNA in hepatocytes. In silico analysis revealed multiple well-conserved putative TTP-binding sites in the 3’UTR of PPARα, consistent with regulation by TTP. We also observed significant upregulation of PPARα and its targets in HL-1 cardiac cell line, indicating an overlapping function for TTP in insulin-sensitive tissues. Notably, cardiac-specific overexpression of PPARα was previously shown to cause a phenotype resembling diabetic cardiomyopathy, further suggesting that reduction of TTP in diabetes may exacerbate this disease. Conclusions: Our studies show that TTP is downregulated in diabetic mouse livers, and knockdown of this protein in hepatic and cardiac cells increases the levels of key metabolic enzymes, PDK4 and PPARα, both of which are implicated in diabetes and heart disease.
The Roles of IT Education in IoT and Data Analytics

The recent growth of the Internet of Things (IoT) and the expanding use of Data Analytics have both had a tremendous impact on information technology companies. A combination of IoT and Data Analytics have been used to monitor physical infrastructures, manage performance evaluation of networks and systems, integrated into personalized healthcare systems, and many more. Many information technology related companies already have embraced the technology. This panel discusses how IT education should embrace and approach teaching IoT and data analytics to undergraduate and graduate students. The panel will also discuss how educators should prepare students to be ready to adapt to the IoT and data analytics workforce in the industry.
Factors influencing the accuracy of the photogrammetry-based deformation measurement method

Triaxial test has been widely used to investigate the stress–strain relationship of unsaturated soils. During triaxial testing, soil volume is an essential parameter to be measured. For an unsaturated soil, due to the presence of air phase, accurate volume/deformation measurement during triaxial testing was a great challenge for researchers. Recently, a photogrammetry-based method has been developed to measure the soil volume/deformation during triaxial testing. Preliminary triaxial test results indicate the new method is simple, accurate, and cost- and time-effective. However, some concerns regarding its measurement accuracy and applicability, which are critical for the dissemination of the photogrammetry-based method, have been raised by other researchers. These concerns were addressed in details in this study. The factors concerning the deformation measurement accuracy were systematically evaluated through a series of triaxial tests on an aluminum cylinder with different confining media and chamber pressures. A sensitivity analysis was carried out to investigate the impact of the system parameters on the volume measurement accuracy of the photogrammetry-based method. In addition, a triaxial test on a saturated sand specimen was conducted to evaluate the influences of mesh density, mesh pattern, and interpolation technique on the volume change measurement accuracy. Finally, some suggestions were provided to improve the accuracy of the photogrammetry-based measurement method.
Thoracic outlet syndrome. Neurosurgical perspective.

This article advocates the analysis of patients with thoracic outlet syndrome from a neurologic perspective. Neurosurgical approaches to the management of affected patients are proposed, and specific techniques for the surgical management of the various syndromes are explained.
Different biological effects of c-myc and H-ras oncogene expression in EBV-infected human lymphoblasts.

The effects of various oncogenes in the multistep transformation process have been relatively well studied in fibroblasts, while much less is known in other tissues (1,2). The hematopoietic system, and the B-lymphoid lineage in particular, affords an excellent opportunity for analysing the effects of different oncogenes. This system is extensively defined in terms of differentiation, growth and function, and a vast array of reagents is available for the precise dissection of each of these aspects.
Phylogenetic relationships in the Campanulales based on rbcL sequences

Phylogenetic relationships within the angiosperm orderCampanulales were investigated by comparative sequencing of the chloroplast generbcL. CompleterbcL sequences were obtained for ten species in six families within the order. These data were analyzed along with previously publishedrbcL sequences from other taxa (for a total of 117 species) within the subclassAsteridae and outgroups, producing 32 equally parsimonious trees. A subset consisting of 44 of these taxa was then chosen and more rigorous analyses performed, resulting in four equally parsimonious trees. Results indicate that two major clades roughly corresponding to traditionally circumscribedAsterales andCampanulales exist as sister taxa. In particular, therbcL trees indicate thatSphenoclea is not a member ofCampanulales orAsterales, thatPentaphragma is more closely allied toAsterales thanCampanulales, that theCyphiaceae are not monophyletic, thatCampanulaceae andLobeliaceae are not sister taxa, and thatStylidiaceae are correctly placed withinCampanulales.
HSP110 and MYD88: blame the chaperone

In this issue of Blood, Boudesco et al show that heat shock protein HSP110 (HSPH1) stabilizes wild-type and mutant MYD88, facilitating NF-κB activation in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL).1
Resolving the Unique Invariant Slip-Direction in Rigid Three-Dimensional Multi-Point Impacts at Stick-Slip Transitions

This work presents a new approach for resolving the unique invariant slip direction at Stick-Slip Transition during impact. The solution method presented in this work is applicable to both single-point and multi-point impact problems. The proposed method utilizes rigid body constraints to resolve the impact forces at all collision points in terms of a single independent impact forces parameter. This work also uses an energetic coefficient of restitution to terminate impact events, thereby yielding energetically consistent post-impact behavior.Copyright © 2018 by ASME
Composite social actions: The case of factual declaratives in everyday interaction

ABSTRACTWhen taking a turn at talk, a speaker normally accomplishes a sequential action such as a question, answer, complaint, or request. Sometimes, however, a turn at talk may accomplish not a si...
Progress in quantitative inorganic analysis: 1958

Abstract Progress in micromethods for the quantitative determination of inorganic ions will be discussed under the following headings: (a) comprehensive treatises published during the period covered by this report, (b) gravimetric micromethods, (c) titrimetric micromethods, and (d) instrumental methods.
Can Stroboscopic Training Improve Judgments of Time-to-Collision?:

Objective:The aim of this study was to determine whether training with stroboscopic viewing could improve time-to-collision (TTC) judgments, which have importance in real-world tasks such as drivin...
FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT AND EXCHANGE RATE IN NIGERIA

The study evaluates Foreign Direct Investment and exchange rate fluctuation in Nigeria. The objective of this study was to examine the effect of exchange rate fluctuation, interest rate, inflation, Gross fixed capital formation and Gross domestic product on Foreign Direct Investment in Nigeria. In this study, secondary data were collected from the CBN statistical bulletin for the period of 1980-2016 and was analyzed using the ordinary least square (OLS) method and E-View computer software. The results indicated Exchange rate fluctuation has a positive relationship with foreign direct investment. The result also showed that interest rate and inflation contributed positively to the inflow of foreign direct investment in Nigeria while variables such as Gross fixed capital formation and Gross domestic product has a negative relationship with the inflow of Foreign Direct Investment in Nigeria. It was recommended that government monopoly on key sectors should be removed. Also, the government should provide enabling infrastructural and financial development that will not only encourage greater financial inclusion in rural area but also attract the inflow of agricultural sector, solid mineral sector and agro allied industry
Laboratory Testing of Invert-cut Corrugated Metal Pipes Renewed with Polymeric Spray Applied Pipe Lining

Abstract Buried culverts are important components of highway infrastructure. Most large culverts are built decades ago from corrugated metal or reinforced concrete materials and now have reached their design life. A variety of renewal techniques can be utilized to enhance load carrying capacity of the existing deteriorated culverts and extend their design life. Spray applied pipe lining (SAPL) is a trenchless renewal methodology that applies layers of liner on the interior surface of the deteriorated host culvert. The SAPL’s substances generally fall into two categories: cementitious and polymeric materials. Currently, there is no standard method available for structural design of SAPLs that resulting in various methods being applied by SAPL vendors. To provide the essentials for development of a design methodology for SAPLs, the objective of this paper is to examine the structural performance of full scale soil box testing of 60 in. (1.5 m) diameter circular invert deteriorated (invert-cut) corrugated metal pipes (CMPs) renewed with three different thicknesses of polymeric SAPL. The inverts of the CMPs were cut to simulate an invert deteriorated culvert in service condition and maximize the applied static load on the SAPL. The pipe samples were backfilled with loose SP soil and buried under two feet (0.6 m) of soil cover. The performances of SAPL renewed CMPs were compared with a same size invert-cut bare CMP under the same testing configuration. The results indicated that depending on thickness of the polymeric SAPL, application of this method could improve the structural capacity of a fully deteriorated invert CMP culverts up to 80%.
Cell Capacitor Voltage Switching-cycle Balancing Control for Modular Multilevel Converters

Modular multilevel converters (MMC) with the conventional control are subjected to large capacitor voltage ripples, especially at low-line-frequencies. The existing attenuation approaches such as the second order or high-frequency harmonic injections are designed based on average models limiting the achievable performance. This letter aims to greatly increase the control time resolution, investigating the possibility to form the control in the timescale of a switching-cycle. The circulating current is allowed to have multiple changes in one switching period. This critical alternation equips the MMC with the capability to achieve voltage balancing in a single switching-cycle, shifting the MMC from a long-deemed line-cycle balancing converter to a switching-cycle balancing converter. The proposed approach is experimentally verified under dc-dc operation which is the most challenging scenario for conventional controls. Test results under 6 kV dc-link voltage are provided performed with the custom-build 10 kV SiC MOSFET based MMC prototype.
Association of race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, acculturation, and environmental factors with risk of overweight among adolescents in California, 2003

INTRODUCTION Little has been published about racial/ethnic differences in the prevalence of overweight among adolescents that accounts in detail for socioeconomic status, acculturation, and behavioral and environmental factors. Increased understanding of factors associated with overweight can provide a rational basis for developing interventions to address the obesity epidemic in the United States. METHODS Using a cross-sectional analysis of data from adolescents who participated in the California Health Interview Survey 2003, we estimated the prevalence of overweight and at risk of overweight, combined as a single measure (AROW, body mass index > or =85th percentile). We used logistic regression models to examine associations between AROW and risk factors. RESULTS Twenty-nine percent of California adolescents were AROW. The prevalence of AROW differed significantly by sex and race. Boys were more likely than girls to be AROW (33% vs 25%). American Indians/Pacific Islanders/others (39%) were at highest risk, followed by Hispanics (37%), blacks (35%), whites (23%), and Asians (15%). For boys, older age, Hispanic or American Indian/Pacific Islander/other race/ethnicity, lower education of parents, and longer residence in the United States were significantly associated with AROW. For girls, Hispanic or black race/ethnicity, lower education of parents, and poor dietary habits were significantly associated with AROW. CONCLUSION The high prevalence of AROW among California adolescents in most racial/ethnic groups indicates the need for culturally specific and appropriate interventions to prevent and treat overweight.
Disruption Management for the Vehicle Routing Problem with Time Windows

This paper presents a rescheduling model of a vehicle routing problem when a disruption occurs at a particular time and lasts for a period of time after a subset of the customers has been visited. In such cases, continuing with the original schedule is likely to be infeasible. The rescheduling model taken here is significantly different from the original one due to the fact that the objective is to find a new schedule that minimizes total distance and deviations from the original plan, and that the different neighborhood size and several new constraints must be considered during the recovery procedure. A hybrid algorithm, which is to hybridize ant colony optimization (ACO) with scatter search, is adopted to determine good approximate solutions. Computational experiments were also tested to determine the effects of factors affect the recovery procedure, and our studies will be helpful to disruption management for the vehicle routing problem.
Lyophilization for water recovery II, model validation

This paper presents results of research on a solid waste dryer, based of the process of lyophilization, which recovers water and stabilizes solid waste. A lyophilizer has been developed and tested that uses thermoelectric heat pumps (TECs) to recycle heat during drying. The properties of TECs facilitate direct measurement of heat flow rates, and heat flow data are used to evaluate a heat and mass transfer model of the thermoelectric lyophilizer. Data are consistent with the theoretical model in most respects. Practical problems such as insulation and vacuum maintenance are minor in this system. However, the model's assumption of a uniformly retreating ice layer during drying is valid only for the first 30% of water removed. Beyond this point, a shrinking core or lens model is more appropriate. Heat transfer to the shrinking core surrounded by dried material is slow. Additional experiments show that heat transfer to the core, and thus drying rate, can be improved dramatically by compressing the sample during drying.
A comparative evaluation of Sraffa's ‘The laws of returns under competitive conditions’ and its Italian precursor

In his classic paper 'The laws of returns under competitive conditions', Piero Sraffa (1926, p. 535) noted that 'the opening pages of this article contain a summary of the con clusions' of a paper which he wrote in Italian with the title 'Sulle relazioni fra costo e quantite prodotta' (Sraffa, 1925). It is my purpose here to compare the relative contri butions found in these two papers, the first of which, to the best of my knowledge, has not appeared in English translation.1 Sraffa's thesis that the Marshallian partial equi librium analysis of prices and quantities is inadequate in the case of industries subject to variable costs acquires added stature from the clear and detailed exposition it received in his 1925 paper, which also contains a critique of the analyses of variable returns of Turgot, J. S. Mill, Cairnes, Edgeworth, Wicksteed, Pigou, Pantaleoni, Barone, J. N. Keynes and particularly Marshall, among others. It is worthy of note that one of the major students and popularisers of Sraffa's work, A. Roncaglia, holds the view that 'the 1925 article is today of greater interest for it concen trates on criticism of Marshallian theory, as well as providing diverse hints of great interest (such as the analysis of'spurious margins' to which Sraffa refers in the preface to Production of Commodities [by Means of Commodities] ...)' (Roncaglia, 1978, p. 19).2 Roncaglia adds that 'the [1925] article greatly impressed the ageing Edgeworth who as a co-editor decided to invite Sraffa to write a second article in the same vein for the
Spin gap systems: What can be measured by muon spin relaxation?

Muon spin relaxation (μSR) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) are powerful probes of magnetism, which have been extensively applied to studies of spin gap systems. Comparison of results obtained with the two techniques gives complementary results, as each is sensitive to different aspects of spin gap magnetism. We discuss recent μSR measurements of the spin ladder compounds Sr n−1Cu n+1O2n , pure and doped Haldane materials (Y2−x Ca x )Ba(Ni1−y Mg y )O5, and doped spin Peierls compounds (Cu1−x Zn x )(Ge1−y Si y )O3.
What the allergist should know about hypersensitivity pneumonitis.

Hypersensitivity pneumonitis (HP) appears to be an underdiagnosed condition. It may masquerade as recurrent pneumonia, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, Haman-Rich disease, or interstitial pneumonitis. The nature of the disease depends on the immunologic reactivity of the host and the intensity and chronicity of exposure. Causative agents include thermophilic organisms, mold, animals, and chemicals. Typical symptoms of cough, shortness of breath, chills, and fever typically begin four to six hours after exposure with a remittance on avoidance. Chest x-ray demonstrates interstitial pneumonitis, and pulmonary function testing shows a restrictive component. A precipitating IgG antibody is the immunologic hallmark. The immuno-pathogenesis appears to represent a combination of type III and IV immune responses. Identifying the offending antigen is vital so that appropriate environmental precautions can be carried out.
Landmine detection using forward-looking ground penetrating radar

Landmine detection using radar is a very challenging problem due to weak signal returns of landmines and extremely complicated surveying environments. In this paper, we present a new landmine detection system using forward-looking ground penetrating radar (FLGPR), which has shown a promising result in a recently conducted blind test. The system uses wavelet packet transform and the sequential feature selection algorithm to extract the most discriminant information distributed in the joint time-frequency domain for detecting landmines. We also propose a cascade training method that allows a WPT based detector to continue learning from the errors made on the unseen environment to improve its detection performance. The effectiveness of the proposed detector is demonstrated through a blind test based on the measured FLGPR data collected over an area of 14400 square meters.
Comparison of Software Quality Under Perpetual Licensing and Software as a Service

Software is available through a number of different licensing models such as the commonly used perpetual licensing model and a relatively new licensing model called software as a service (SaaS). There are several differences between SaaS and perpetual licensing. SaaS licensing offers software using a subscription model, whereas perpetual licensing involves a one-time payment for a perpetual use license and optional additional payments for future upgrades. Prior literature has not considered the impact of these licensing schemes on the publisher's incentive to invest in software quality. We model differences in how new software features are disseminated in SaaS and perpetual licensing. We show that these differences affect the publisher's incentive to invest in product development. We find that the SaaS licensing model leads to greater investment in product development under most conditions. This increased investment leads to higher software quality in equilibrium under SaaS as compared to perpetual licensing. The software publisher earns greater profits and social welfare is higher under SaaS under these conditions.
TU-D-224A-05: Dose-Guided Particle Therapy with PET Imaging

Positron emission tomography(PET) is increasingly considered a promising technique for in‐vivo, non invasive verification of the actual treatment delivery in ion therapy. Positron‐emitting isotopes such as 11C (half‐life T1/2=20.4 min) and 15O (T1/2=2 min) are produced in tissue along the ion beam penetration as a by‐product of irradiation and can be potentially visualised by PET as a spatial marker of radiationdose deposition. PETimage guidance can contribute to a better clinical exploitation of the physical advantages of ion beams. It may improve confidence in the planning and delivery of more conformal treatments or allow for adaptive strategies in case of detected disagreements between the intended and actually delivered fields during fractionated radiotherapy. As opposed to heavier ions like carbon, the positron activation induced by proton beams is limited to target (no projectile) fragments of the irradiatedtissue. This results in a weak spatial correlation between PETimages and dose. Nevertheless, previous phantom studies of several groups indicated feasibility and usefulness of the method for proton therapy. Information on the dosedelivery and the beam range in the patient can be gained by comparing the measured activity with a model prediction, as already clinically implemented for therapy with stable carbon ion beams elsewhere in Germany. Issues related to the possible on‐line (i.e. during treatment) or off‐line (i.e. after treatment) imaging strategies will be briefly addressed. The presentation will focus on the first clinical pilot study recently concluded at Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston. Nine patients with a variety of tumour types and anatomical sites were imaged at a commercial, LSO‐based PET/CT scanner for 30 min starting within 20 min after single or multi‐field protonirradiation. Measured PET/CT images are compared to predictions based on Monte Carlo techniques combined with functional information taken from the literature and from the measured activity decay curves. The same Monte Carlo methods were also used to calculate the pattern of dose deposition for an additional direct comparison with the treatment plan, to enforce the clinical value of the comparison between measured and calculated PETimages. First conclusions on clinical feasibility, potential and limitations of off‐line PET/CT imaging of proton therapy will be discussed. This lecture will provide an overview on the physical principles and issues of the unconventional application of PET to treatment verification in ion therapy, with a more detailed insight on the role of PET/CT image guidance after proton treatment. Educational Objectives: 1. Understand the physical principles of positron activation induced by therapeutic ion irradiation. 2. Understand the issues related to ion treatment verification by means of PETimaging, including the strategies for data acquisition and analysis. 3. Understand the issues related to clinical application of PET/CT imaging after proton therapy.