cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The Cuisine of the Tundra

AbstractDuring the long decade of the 1960s, Canadian cultural icons were sought as a means of crystallizing a cohesive national identity. At Expo 67, Canada's centenary celebration in Montreal, the Canada Pavilion—the principal display area of the host country—was uniquely positioned to frame the idea of “unity and diversity” among the nation's subcultures, and its two restaurants can be interrogated as displaying what may be described as a national culinary narrative. The goal of this paper is to investigate how this conceptualization of a Canadian cuisine was an inclusive endeavor accommodating dishes and practices derived from the diverse ethnicities of the country; from the incorporation of “modern” practices related to food and eating; and from the legacy of Canadian history. At a regional scale, restaurants in the pavilions of Ontario, the Atlantic Provinces and Quebec, reveal similar themes. In this way, mid-twentieth century Canadian food culture can be demonstrated as resonating with wider manif...
H/sup /spl infin// optimization for stable multivariable infinite-dimensional systems

This paper considers the problem of designing near-optimal finite-dimensional compensators for stable multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) distributed parameter plants. A weighted H/sup /spl infin// mixed-sensitivity measure which penalizes the control is used to define the notion of optimality. Controllers are generated by solving a "natural" finite-dimensional optimization. A priori computable conditions are given on the approximants such that the resulting finite-dimensional controllers stabilize the infinite-dimensional plant and are near-optimal. Moreover, it is shown how the optimal performance may be estimated to any desired degree of accuracy by solving a finite-dimensional problem using a suitable finite-dimensional approximant. A result on "actual" transfer function matrix convergence is also presented. >
Assessment Methods and Procedures in Corporate Health Programs

(1986). Assessment Methods and Procedures in Corporate Health Programs. Health Education: Vol. 17, No. 1, pp. 22-26.
Cellular secretion: Now you see it, now you don't

Trying to look at small, cellular organelles - such as synaptic vesicles - through a microscope is a bit like looking into a bucket of transparent tennis balls. But help may now be at hand with the development of two new techniques to increase resolution. In the first, a few vesicles are selectively stained using a fluorescent dye, then all are illuminated. And in the second, all of the vesicles are stained, but only a few of them are then illuminated.
Language design and analyzability: a retrospective

There is tension between programming language design for modularity and flexibility of programming and the amenability of the resulting programs to static analysis. At the start of Software Practice and Experience in 1971, most languages in commercial use were procedural (e.g., FORTRAN, ALGOL, PL/I) and on the whole were easier to analyze than languages of today such as JavaScript and Python. Modern languages include dynamic features, which enhance prototyping of approaches, often resulting in programs that are difficult for software tools or humans to understand. Starting with this perspective, we explore the relationship between language features and the ability of static analysis to precisely determine control flow and data flow in programs, thus enabling program optimization, transformation and understanding.
Robust handwritten word recognition with fuzzy sets

A hybrid fuzzy neural system is used to improve a handwritten word recognition algorithm. The word recognition algorithm matches digital images of handwritten words to strings in a lexicon. This algorithm requires a module to assign character class membership values to images of segments of handwritten words. Many of these images are not characters. It is shown that a hybrid neural system consisting of a cascade of a Kohonen Self Organizing Feature Map (SOFM) followed by Choquet fuzzy integrals can yield improved performance over a multi-layer feedforward network (MLFN). The hybrid method scored a word recognition rate of 85% compared to 77% for the MLFN method.
The Formation of Moist Vortices and Tropical Cyclones in Idealized Simulations

AbstractThe upscale aggregation of convection is used to understand the emergence of rotating, coherent midtropospheric structures and the subsequent process of tropical cyclone formation. The Cloud Model, version 1 (CM1), is integrated on an f plane with uniform sea surface temperature (SST) and prescribed uniform background flow. Deep convection is maintained by surface fluxes from an ocean with uniform surface temperature. Convection begins to organize simultaneously into moist and dry midtropospheric patches after 10 days. After 20 days, the patches begin to rotate on relatively small scales. Moist cyclonic vortices merge, eventually forming a single dominant vortex that subsequently forms a tropical cyclone on a realistic time scale of about 5 days. Radiation that interacts with clouds and water vapor aids in forming coherent rotating structures. Using the path to genesis provided by the aggregated solution, the relationship between thermodynamic changes within the vortex and changes in the character...
Optical packet buffers with active queue management

Active queue management (AQM) is an important function in today's core routers that will be required in the future optical internet core. A recently reported novel architecture for optical packet buffers is extended by implementing necessary AQM functions. The suggested AQM scheme is validated and explore via simulations.
Late failure of a split‐thickness skin graft in the setting of homozygous factor V Leiden mutation: a case report and correlative animal model from the Wound Etiology and Healing (WE‐HEAL) study

We present the case of a 53-year-old Caucasian male smoker with remote history of left lower extremity deep venous thrombosis (DVT) and a strong family history of thrombosis, who presented to the Center for Wound Healing at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital with spontaneous left leg ulceration. Prothrombotic evaluation showed homozygosity for the factor V Leiden (FVL) mutation. Therapeutic anticoagulation was commenced with warfarin (Coumadin®) and the patient underwent successful debridement and Apligraf® followed by split-thickness skin graft (STSG) of two wounds. He had an uneventful postoperative course and on the 27th postoperative day the grafts were 95% intact. However, by postoperative day 41 there was 10% graft loss, and over the subsequent 2 weeks both grafts necrosed. On further questioning, it transpired that the patient had discontinued his warfarin on postoperative day 37 because he thought that it was no longer necessary. The patient is enrolled in the Wound Etiology and Healing (WE-HEAL) study, and at the time of the original graft, residual skin fragments from the STSG were transplanted onto a nude mouse for development of an animal model of wound healing. The mouse graft was successful and was harvested at postoperative day 87 for pathological examination. We review the mechanisms by which prothrombotic states, particularly FVL mutation, can contribute to skin graft failure and delayed wound healing. This case highlights the importance of considering prothrombotic conditions in patients with spontaneous leg ulcerations and the impact of therapeutic anticoagulation on healing. It further allows us to demonstrate the efficacy of the animal model in which residual fragments of STSG tissue are utilised for transplant onto nude mice for manipulation in the laboratory.
Negative Regulation of Memory Phenotype CD8 T Cell Conversion by Adhesion and Degranulation–Promoting Adapter Protein

The maintenance of T cell repertoire diversity involves the entry of newly developed T cells, as well as the maintenance of memory T cells generated from previous infections. This balance depends on competition for a limited amount of homeostatic cytokines and interaction with self-peptide MHC class I. In the absence of prior infection, memory-like or memory phenotype (MP) CD8 T cells can arise from homeostatic cytokine exposure during neonatal lymphopenia. Aside from downstream cytokine signaling, little is known about the regulation of the conversion of naive CD8 T cells to MP CD8 T cells during acute lymphopenia. We have identified a novel negative regulatory role for adhesion and degranulation-promoting adapter protein (ADAP) in CD8 T cell function. We show that in the absence of ADAP, naive CD8 T cells exhibit a diminished response to stimulatory Ag, but an enhanced response to weak agonist-altered peptide ligands. ADAP-deficient mice exhibit more MP CD8 T cells that occur following thymic emigration and are largely T cell intrinsic. Naive ADAP-deficient CD8 T cells are hyperresponsive to lymphopenia in vivo and exhibit enhanced activation of STAT5 and homeostatic Ag-independent proliferation in response to IL-15. Our results indicate that ADAP dampens naive CD8 T cell responses to lymphopenia and IL-15, and they demonstrate a novel Ag-independent function for ADAP in the suppression of MP CD8 T cell generation.
A Thermometer for Nonspinning Solid-State NMR Spectroscopy

Abstract We discuss a method to determine temperature in a static NMR experiment from the temperature variation of the lead nitrate peak shift.
A Review of “A Concise History of Spain”

This much-needed and highly readable new book will prove useful in the classroom and beyond. Aimed, in the authors’ words, at “serious students and casual travelers”(xi), its eight chapters cover I...
The Benjamin-Ono equation: A remarkable dynamical system

Abstract The non-linear partial differential integral Benjamin-Ono equation is shown to have almost all the properties of completely integrable non-linear partial differential equations epitomized by the Korteweg-de Vries equations.
A Micro-Sized Ornithopter Wing Design

and land without a runway, and can be made to hover more easily than conventional aircraft. Because small ornithopters can be designed to look like birds, they could also be more stealthy than conventional vehicles. These qualities make ornithopter propulsion particularly well-suited to the micro air vehicles (MAVs) being funded by DARPA for reconnaissance, surveillance, urban operations support, targeting, and biological and chemical agent detection. 4 Unfortunately, the mechanical and aerodynamic complexities inherent in ornithopter design have limited the success of most man-made ornithopters. Recent research, however, has solved some of the aerodynamic diculties, 3,5 and new applications, like MAVs, warrant another look at ornithopter propulsion.
Tip-enhanced near-field Raman spectroscopy using a scanning tunneling microscope with side illumination optics

Raman spectroscopy (RS) is a key tool to characterize residual stress in silicon devices because the vibrational frequencies of a silicon substrate change with its stress. However, due to the intrinsic optical diffraction limit, conventional micro-Raman spectroscopy can only have a probe resolution of around 1 μm 2 , which is not sufficient for nanotechnology-oriented electronic industry. Low sensitivity is another problem to be solved to maximize the potential of this technique. In this study, a novel Raman spectrometer, which can overcome the optical diffraction limit, was built with the attempt to improve the resolution as well as the detection sensitivity. This approach instrument, which is based upon tip-enhanced near-field effects, has a nanoscale resolution by deploying a silver-coated tungsten tip mounted on a scanning tunneling microscope (STM) with side illumination optics. It features fast and reliable optical alignment, versatile sample adaptability and effective far-field signal suppression. The performance was evaluated by observing the enhancement effects on silicon substrates and single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs). It was found that apparent enhancement as high as 120% on silicon substrates could be achieved using the depolarization technique. It is believed that this technique is promising for future diagnosis of semiconductor materials and devices at nanoscales, especially for stress mapping of semiconductor devices.
Exploiting POSS–Sorbitol Interactions: Issues of Reinforcement of Isotactic Polypropylene Spun Fibers

This study investigates the issues involving reinforcement of isotactic polypropylene (iPP) spun fibers by molecular adducts originating from the synergistic interactions of polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS) containing silanol functionalities (silanol–POSS) and di(benzylidene)sorbitol (DBS). The molecular adducts of silanol–POSS and DBS were low viscosity liquids at fiber spinning temperature, turned into cylindrical domains during fiber spinning, and remained as nanoparticles in the fibers. The fibers were analyzed by differential scanning calorimetry, wide-angle X-ray diffraction , scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. It was observed that iPP compounds with 2–5 wt % silanol–POSS and 1 wt % DBS could be spun into fibers with close to 40% reduction in diameter compared to unfilled iPP. These fibers offered 60–80% increase in tensile modulus, 50–60% increase in tensile strength, and 100% increase in yield strength compared to unfilled iPP. The silanol–POSS particles...
Predictors of large esophageal varices in patients with cirrhosis.

Abstract OBJECTIVE: Recent guidelines recommend that all cirrhotics undergo screening upper endoscopy to identify those patients at risk for bleeding from varices. However, this practice may not be cost effective as large esophageal varices are seen only in 9–36% of these patients. The aim of this study was to determine whether clinical variables were predictive of the presence of large esophageal varices. METHODS: This is a retrospective analysis of cirrhotics who had a screening upper endoscopy during an evaluation for liver transplantation at three different centers and who had not previously bled from varices. A multivariate model was derived on the combined cohort using logistic regression. Three hundred forty-six patients were eligible for the study. RESULTS: The prevalence of large esophageal varices was 20%. On multivariate analysis, splenomegaly detected by computed tomographic scan (odds ratio: 4.3; 95% confidence interval: 1.6–11.5) or by physical examination (odds ratio: 2.0; 95% confidence interval: 1.1–3.8), and low platelet count were independent predictors of large esophageal varices. On the basis of these variables, cirrhotics were stratified into high- and low-risk groups for the presence of large esophageal varices. Patients with a platelet count of ≥88,000/mm3 (median value) and no splenomegaly by physical examination had a risk of large esophageal varices of 7.2%. Those with splenomegaly or platelet count CONCLUSIONS: Our data show that clinical predictors could be used to stratify cirrhotic patients for the risk of large esophageal varices and such stratification could be used to improve the cost effectiveness of screening endoscopy.
Effect of fasting on uteroplacental amino acid metabolism in the pregnant sheep.

In the fed state, the net utilization of most amino acids by the ovine uteroplacental unit (defined as uterine uptake minus umbilical uptake) is zero. This study was to determine if this is true for t
Cross-border restaurant price and exchange rate interactions

Abstract Purchasing power parity suggests that international price ratios for identical goods should approximate nominal exchange rates for the currencies in which the prices are denominated. Deviations of the price ratios from exchange rates can occur for a number of reasons and mixed evidence has been recorded for how long those deviations last. Empirical evidence for international restaurant prices in El Paso, Texas and Ciudad Juarez, Mexico confirms that menu item price ratios are strongly correlated with the peso/dollar exchange rate. An earlier exploratory study of eight individual products also indicated that half-life deviations in this market are very short. This study utilizes additional data from a larger and more extensive sample to examine if the prior results are confirmed.
A fast multipole algorithm for the efficient treatment of the Coulomb problem in electronic structure calculations of periodic systems with Gaussian orbitals

Abstract An efficient implementation of the Gaussian very fast multipole method (GvFMM) for periodic systems (pGvFMM) is presented. Relevant details of our algorithm are discussed and linear scaling properties with unit cell size demonstrated on benchmarks using minimum and double-zeta bases on solid NaCl, (5,5) and (10,10) carbon nanotubes containing up to 960 atoms in the unit cell.
Life-table evaluation of sediment-associated chlorpyrifos chronic toxicity to the benthic copepod, Amphiascus tenuiremis

A partial life-cycle experiment was conducted to assess chronic effects of sediment-associated chlorpyrifos, an organophosphate pesticide, on a marine, benthic copepod population. The static-renewal experiment was initiated with 4 treatments including control, 13 replicates per treatment with one female (bearing first clutch of eggs) per replicate. No males were added because one fertilization is sufficient for several clutches. Once weekly, all replicate chamber contents (10-ml culture tubes with 1.5 ml of sediment and 5 ml of seawater) were sieved and enumerated to determine survival and fecundity. Surviving adult females were placed back into chambers with newly spiked sediments. This process was repeated for 7 weeks until all initial females were dead or reproduction had ceased for at least two weeks. Survival and fecundity data were then used to determine population dynamic parameters such as r (intrinsic rate of natural increase) for each treatment. Results revealed a chronic toxicity response with significant population effects (p<0.05) in all pesticide treatments versus the control; concentrations that represent 7–32% of the 96-hr LC50. The control treatment had an r value 26–52% higher than the pesticide treatments. This translated into a control population rate increase of up to twice that of pesticide treatments. In addition, significant reductions in weekly and total fecundity were found in all chlorpyrifos treatments. Based on these results, usage of population parameters with benthic copepods allows for an integrative measurement of population effects from chronic exposure to sediment-associated contaminants.
Stimulation of cAMP Synthesis by Glucose in a Mutant of E. coli B/r

CATABOLITE repression is known to involve the inhibition of enzyme induction by glucose and/or glucose metabolites such as glucose-6-phosphate and gluconate-6-phosphate1. Enzymes known to be sensitive to catabolite repression include those of the lactose Operon, L-arabinose operon, as well as the histidase and tryptophanase enzymes2–4. An important step in the elucidation of the nature of the glucose effect in catabolite repression was the discovery that 3′,5′-cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) is able to relieve catabolite repression5. It is now known that glucose and/or glucose metabolites lower the endogenous levels of cAMP. In glucose-grown cultures of Escherichia coli, irrespective of the glucose concentration used, cAMP synthesis only starts after complete depletion of glucose in the culture medium6.
A stable elemental decomposition for dynamic process optimization

In Cervantes and Biegler (A.I.Ch.E.J. 44 (1998) 1038), we presented a simultaneous nonlinear programming problem (NLP) formulation for the solution of DAE optimization problems. Here, by applying collocation on finite elements, the DAE system is transformed into a nonlinear system. The resulting optimization problem, in which the element placement is fixed, is solved using a reduced space successive quadratic programming (rSQP) algorithm. The space is partitioned into range and null spaces. This partitioning is performed by choosing a pivot sequence for an LU factorization with partial pivoting which allows us to detect unstable modes in the DAE system. The system is stabilized without imposing new boundary conditions. The decomposition of the range space can be performed in a single step by exploiting the overall sparsity of the collocation matrix but not its almost block diagonal structure. In order to solve larger problems a new decomposition approach and a new method for constructing the quadratic programming (QP) subproblem are presented in this work. The decomposition of the collocation matrix is now performed element by element, thus reducing the storage requirements and the computational effort. Under this scheme, the unstable modes are considered in each element and a range-space move is constructed sequentially based on decomposition in each element. This new decomposition improves the efficiency of our previous approach and at the same time preserves its stability. The performance of the algorithm is tested on several examples. Finally, some future directions for research are discussed.
An Approach to Quantifying Various Types of Spontaneous Activity

The output of an activity-measuring device is fed into low- and high-gain cumulative recorder channels which are reset to zero after different time periods. The records, inscribed at various paper speeds, are easily quantified. The tracing patterns can be identified with specific activities of undisturbed animals. The activities are monitored by means of closed-circuit television.
Concerning circles in taxicab geometry

In Euclidean geometry, the following are well known. (1) Through any two distinct points in R2, infinitely many circles can be constructed. (2) No circle can be constructed through three distinct collinear points in R2. (3) Through any three distinct non‐collinear points in R2, one and only one circle can be constructed. In this paper, we discuss the validity of these statements in taxicab geometry.
Multiband frequency selective surface

This paper addresses the similarity of microwave/millimeter wave frequency selective surfaces (FSS) to optical filters. Specifically, the design approaches of the 4-band FSSs developed for NASA's CASSINI high gain antenna are described in detail. Representative RF test results are given to demonstrate the validity of these designs. These design approaches are very general and can be applied to multiband optical filters.© (1998) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
SU‐E‐T‐400: Optimized 2D Motion Tracking Using Dynamic Multi‐Leaf Collimator (DMLC) for a Clinical Volumetric Modulated Arc Therapy (VMAT) Plan

Purpose: This study is to develop a 2D motion tracking algorithm combined with controlled shallow breathing and collimator angle optimization to improve MLC tracking accuracy. Method and Materials: One SBRT VMAT plan for lung cancer (2 Arcs; 8 Gy/fx in 4 fx) was selected. A non-motion 3D VMAT plan was generated based on GTV from one single selected phase of the 4DCT. A motion tracking algorithm using MATLAB was developed to modify MLC positions of the 3D VMAT DICOM file based on an ideal breathing motion model. We derived the correlations between gantry angle, collimator angle and motion amplitudes in SI and AP directions that projected onto MLC aperture. All delivery constraints followed mechanical limits of Varian TrueBeam. To avoid large time interval between adjacent control points, motion amplitudes restriction and collimator angle optimization were incorporated into the algorithm. Each arc was then divided into 6 sub-arcs corresponding to the 6 breathing phases. Sub-arc doses were individually calculated and merged to acquire the 4D dose distribution. DVH comparison and 3D gamma were used for dosimetric evaluation. Results: Total delivery time of static 3D VMAT plan (collimator=45°), plan with MLC tracking under free breathing (collimator=45°, SI=10mm and AP=8mm), plan with collimator angle optimized only (collimator=77.8°, SI=10mm and AP=8mm) and collimator angle optimized under shallow breathing (collimator=80.1°, SI=8.3mm, AP=6.6mm) were 135.7s, 235.3s, 213.9s and 188.5s, respectively. Compared with the non-motion 3D VMAT, optimized MLC tracking demonstrated small changes in target dose (%ΔD90=1%, 3D gamma passing rate=97.5%). Conclusions: Total delivery time of VMAT with tracking tends to decrease as collimator angle approaches to 90°. At selected angle, plan with shorter breathing cycle period has longer delivery time when using MLC for motion compensation. MLC tracking combined with shallow breathing and optimized collimator angle cannot only reduce delivery time but increase the tracking accuracy.
Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Eutrophication in the Coastal Marine Environment

The distribution of inorganic nitrogen and phosphorus and bioassay experiments both show that nitrogen is the critical limiting factor to algal growth and eutrophication in coastal marine waters. About twice the amount of phosphate as can be used by the algae is normally present. This surplus results from the low nitrogen to phosphorus ratio in terrigenous contributions, including human waste, and from the fact that phosphorus regenerates more quickly than ammonia from decomposing organic matter. Removal of phosphate from detergents is therefore not likely to slow the eutrophication of coastal marine waters, and its replacement with nitrogen-containing nitrilotriacetic acid may worsen the situation.
Defect reduction in GaN epilayers grown by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition with in situ SiNx nanonetwork

Line and point defect reductions in thin GaN epilayers with single and double in situ SiNx nanonetworks on sapphire substrates grown by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition were studied by deep-level transient spectroscopy (DLTS), augmented by x-ray diffraction (XRD), and low temperature photoluminescence (PL). All samples measured by DLTS in the temperature range from 80to400K exhibited trap A (peak at ∼325K) with an activation energy of 0.55–0.58eV, and trap B (peak at ∼155K) with an activation energy of 0.21–0.28eV. The concentrations of both traps were much lower for layers with SiNx nanonetwork compared to the reference sample. The lowest concentration was achieved for the sample with 6min deposition SiNx nanonetwork, which was also lower than that for a sample prepared by conventional epitaxial lateral overgrowth. In concert with the DLTS results, PL and XRD linewidths were reduced for the samples with SiNx network indicating improved material quality. Consistent trend among optical, structural, ...
Geologic storage of hydrogen: Scaling up to meet city transportation demands

Abstract Over the last decade, there has been a growing interest in large-scale use of hydrogen in the transportation and renewable energy sectors. Relatively cost-effective storage options at scale are essential to realize the full potential of hydrogen as an energy carrier. Underground geologic storage of hydrogen could offer substantial storage cost reductions as well as buffer capacity to meet possible disruptions in supply or changing seasonal demands. Several geologic storage site options are being considered including salt caverns, depleted oil and/or gas reservoirs, aquifers, and hard rock caverns. This paper describes an economic analysis that addresses the costs entailed in developing and operating a geologic storage facility. The analysis focuses on salt caverns to illustrate potential city demand for hydrogen using geostorage options because (1) salt caverns are known to successfully contain hydrogen, and (2) there is more geotechnical certainty involved with salt storage as compared to the other three storage options. The main findings illustrate that geologic limitations rather than city demand cause a larger disparity between costs from one city to the next. For example Detroit hydrogen storage within salt caverns will cost approximately three times more than Los Angeles with its larger population. Detroit is located near thinly bedded salt formations, whereas Los Angeles has access to more massive salt formations. Los Angeles requires the development of larger and fewer caverns and therefore has lower costs.
Acute appendicitis: CT and US correlation in 100 patients

PURPOSE: To compare the accuracy of computed tomography (CT) and ultrasonography (US) in the diagnosis of acute appendicitis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: One hundred consecutive patients were examined with US and CT, and the results, independently reported, were correlated with surgical and histopathologic findings (69 patients) and data from other laboratory and clinical follow-up (31 patients). RESULTS: Fifty-four patients had acute appendicitis; 46 patients did not. Analysis of the data for CT and US, respectively, revealed sensitivity, 96% versus 76%; specificity, 89% versus 91%; accuracy, 94% versus 83%; positive predictive value, 96% versus 95%; and negative predictive value, 95% versus 76%. In the 46 patients without appendicitis, an alternative diagnosis was made with CT in 22 patients and with US in 15. CT scans showed abscesses and/or phlegmons in 28% of patients with appendicitis versus 17% at US. Results of CT and US were discordant in 20 patients; CT findings were correct in 17 and US findings in ...
Challenges in developing novel therapies for peripheral neuropathies: a summary of The Foundation for Peripheral Neuropathy Scientific Symposium 2012.

On March 14–16, 2012, The Foundation for Peripheral Neuropathy organized a scientific meeting that brought together basic and clinical scientists studying peripheral neuropathies and mechanisms of axonal degeneration and representatives from the drug industry, National Institutes of Health, and Federal Drug Administration. This meeting summary covers the main discussion points laid out by the participants that hamper development of novel therapies for peripheral neuropathies and neuropathic pain. In each section of the meeting, the discussion was led by a keynote talk and was followed by a panel of discussants that were asked to bring two key questions in their areas of research. With audience participation, this format led to a lively discussion that pointed out the deficiencies in both animal modeling of human diseases and issues in clinical trial design unique to the peripheral neuropathies and neuropathic pain.
Strikes and labor organization in hybrid regimes

Existing theories of labor protest depend on independent organizations representing workers. However, in many countries most workers are either not organized at all or are in labor unions intended for control, not representation. This is particularly the case in partially liberalized or hybrid regimes where, despite the introduction of electoral competition, autonomous, democratic organizations representing labor are not well developed. Yet such workers do protest. Drawing on an original new dataset from one hybrid regime, post-Communist Russia, I develop a theory of labor protest and of the institutional mechanisms used by elites to influence it. Instead of being a function of union membership or characteristics of the information environment, as the existing literature would have it, protest occurs when it is in the interest of powerful elements of the elite, or when economic conditions are truly desperate.
An O(N s N t log 2 N t ) TDIE solver for scattering from periodic quasiplanar domains

Transient analysis of periodic structures finds application in a number of areas in applied electromagnetics. The cost of these analyses scales as O(N s 2N t 2), where N s and N t are the number of spatial and temporal degrees of freedom. In this paper, we (1) present a method that reduces the cost of this evaluation to O(N s N t log2 N t ) for quasiplanar structures and (2) integrate this into a late time stable TDIE solver. The method is based on an expansion of the Time Domain Floquet Wave Green's Function in which the number of contributing Floquet modes is limited through the use of a band limited temporal basis function. Spatial acceleration is achieved using the method of Accelerated Cartesian Expansion and temporal acceleration using a block FFT scheme. Results are presented that validate the accuracy and scalability of the method.
Global change effects on Bromus tectorum L. (Poaceae) at its high-elevation range margin.

Global change is likely to affect invasive species distribution, especially at range margins. In the eastern Sierra Nevada, California, USA, the invasive annual grass, Bromus tectorum, is patchily distributed and its impacts have been minimal compared with other areas of the Intermountain West. We used a series of in situ field manipulations to determine how B. tectorum might respond to changing climatic conditions and increased nitrogen deposition at the high-elevation edge of its invaded range. Over 3 years, we used snow fences to simulate changes in snowpack, irrigation to simulate increased frequency and magnitude of springtime precipitation, and added nitrogen (N) at three levels (0, 5, and 10 g m(-2) ) to natural patches of B. tectorum growing under the two dominant shrubs, Artemisia tridentata and Purshia tridentata, and in intershrub spaces (INTR). We found that B. tectorum seedling density in April was lower following deeper snowpack possibly due to delayed emergence, yet there was no change in spikelet production or biomass accumulation at the time of harvest. Additional spring rain events increased B. tectorum biomass and spikelet production in INTR plots only. Plants were primarily limited by water in 2009, but colimited by N and water in 2011, possibly due to differences in antecedent moisture conditions at the time of treatments. The threshold at which N had an effect varied with magnitude of water additions. Frequency of rain events was more influential than magnitude in driving B. tectorum growth and fecundity responses. Our results suggest that predicted shifts from snow to rain could facilitate expansion of B. tectorum at high elevation depending on timing of rain events and level of N deposition. We found evidence for P-limitation at this site and an increase in P-availability with N additions, suggesting that stoichiometric relationships may also influence B. tectorum spread.
Influence of catalyst, sample weight, and digestion conditions on Kjeldahl nitrogen

Abstract The influence of catalyst (containing K2SO4/Cu/Ti, K2SO4/Se or Se alone), sample weight (0.2 or 0.4 g), and digestion blocks (Tecator DS 1015–20 or Tecator DS 1016‐ 40) on the Kjeldahl‐nitrogen (N) determination in pecan, corn, and turnip leaves was evaluated. Mean Kjeldahl‐N values were 1.84, 2.43, and 3.72 % for the pecan, corn, and turnip samples, respectively, which were significantly higher ( = 0.05) using K2SO4/Se as a catalyst, a 0.4 g aliquot of the sample, and a DS 1015–20 digestion block. The magnitude of the differences due to catalyst, sample weight, or digestion conditions did not affect the N diagnosis status when applying interpretative data for the selected crops. The higher standard deviation (SD) for the turnip leaves compared to the pecan or corn leaves may be due to a higher nitrate (NO3) level in the turnip leaves. Selected catalyst, sample weight, and digestion conditions did not affect the SD, and therefore any combination of these factors could be used to determine Kjeldah...
Spin-label study of the iodine-lecithin interaction.

ESR spin labelling techniques have been used to study phospholipid dispersions in water1. We have used these techniques to determine the location of I3− in egg phosphatidylcholine (PC) dispersed in water. I3 has been shown to increase greatly the electrical conductivity2 of lipid bilayer membranes; some people have speculated that I3− may dissolve in the hydrophobic interior of the bilayers and act as a charge carrier across the bilayer3,4.
An evaluation of negative selection algorithm with constraint-based detectors

The Negative Selection Algorithm is an immunology-inspired algorithm for anomaly detection application. This algorithm has been implemented with different pattern representations and various matching rules and successfully applied to a broad range of problems. Recent research shows serious problems with this algorithm in terms of both efficiency and effectiveness. In this paper we evaluated the performance of the algorithm constraint-based representation. We argue that the algorithm and problem representations should be considered separately, and that best performance of the algorithm may be obtained by choosing a proper representation.
Protein synthesis during germination of heterothallic yeast ascospores.

Protein synthesis during ascospore germination of the heterothallicSaccharomyces cerevisiae strain AP-3 was investigated. Protein synthesis in the germinating ascospores appeared to begin approximately 20 min following glucose initiation. Since RNA synthesis did not start until approximately 70 min after the onset of germination, strain AP-3 ascospores must contain RNA which is ready for immediate translation. Both trehalase and glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase activities were found to be affected by the onset of germination. Trehalase activity was found to increase severalfold following 60 min of spore germination but remained relatively constant over the subsequent 120 min examined. Dehydrogenase activity was not detectable in AP-3 ascospores but was measurable in germinating ascospores.
A Delay-based PUF Design Using Multiplexers on FPGA

Summary form only given. Physically unclonable functions (PUFs) have been a hot research topic in hardware-oriented security for many years. Given a challenge as an input to the PUF, it generates a corresponding response, which can be treated as a unique fingerprint or signature for authentication purpose. In this paper, a delay-based PUF design involving multiplexers on FPGA is presented. Due to the intrinsic difference of the switching latencies of two chained multiplexers, a positive pulse may be produced at the output of the downstream multiplexer. This pulse can be used to set the output of a D flip-flop to `1'. The proposed design improves the randomness of the outputs of the PUF.
SCIENTIFIC PROGRESS AND PEIRCEAN UTOPIAN REALISM

I argue that (1) if scientific progress, construed in revolutionary terms, were to continue indefinitely long, then any non-trivial question answerable by the use of the scientific method would in fact be answered in a way that would allow for further refinement without undermining the essential correctness of the answer; and (2) it is reasonable to believe that scientific progress will continue indefinitely long. The establishment of (1) and (2) entails that any non-trivial empirically answerable question will be answered in a way that allows for further indefinite refinement. Moreover, inasmuch as the establishment of (1) and (2) undermines the ontological relativity inherent in the commonly held view that unto eternity there will be competing alternative scientific theories of differing ontological commitment, it provides for the ontologically and epistemologically privileged position of science.
Intramolecular electron transfer, with bridge assistance and without, in molecules and models

Current experimental efforts, both with isolated binuclear metal complexes and with modified proteins, are focusing on the role of distance and of bridging groups in intramolecular electron transfer. After a brief overview both of standard and nonadiabatic electron transfer rates (in Hopfield's formulation) and of the current experiments. We consider the possiblility of bridge-assisted intramolecular electron transfer in three specific situations. For the bridged binuclear transition-metal complexes studied by Taube and his students, the tunneling integral T can be deduced by study of the optical intervalence transfer band. Here we discuss semiempirical calculations which suggest that bridge assistance occurs, and determine the size of T. The assistance is via a superexchange-type mechanism, and we suggest that hole-type or electron-type superexchange should dominate in saturated or unsaturated bridges, respectively. For the very strongly coupled Creutz–Taube ion, involving a pyrazine bridge, the electronic structure study of Ondrechen et al. requires the invoking of a three-site model to understand the optical and EPR data; this involves bridge-assisted transfer with a vengeance. Finally, for an oxide-bridged phthalocyanine dimer, the transfer takes place via ring π-π overlap, and no bridge assistance occurs. Thus bridge assistance in T will depend on the geometry and energetics of the specific case under study. One generally suspects, however, that bridge assistance will be found in very long-range (>6 A) transfer.
Effects of oral ursodeoxycholic acid in healthy cats on clinicopathological parameters, serum bile acids and light microscopic and ultrastructural features of the liver.

Abstract A blind, placebo-controlled study evaluated the effects of ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) given orally, at a dose of 15 mg kg −1 per day for eight weeks, on the physical condition, haematological and serum biochemical profiles, urinalysis, total serum bile acids ( TSBA ) and hepatic histology of four healthy cats. There were no clinically important significant differences between the groups or within the treatment groups in clinicopathological parameters, TSBA concentrations or histology. A significant lower concentration/proportion of taurochenodeoxycholic acid was observed in the treated cats (P=0·05). Only one treated cat accumulated measurable quantities of UDCA , and the compound appeared to be non-toxic. It did not, increase the concentration of TSBA , and accumulated minimally in the serum. It should be investigated for therapeutic use in cats with hepatobiliary disease.
Effects of an injury prevention program on injury rates in american youth football

The purpose of this study was to determine if the time-loss (TLIR) and non-time-loss injury rates (NTLIR) in youth football were decreased by the implementation of the P.R.E.P.A.R.E injury prevention program. This study consisted of two groups: coaches and players. Some coaches took the program and select elements of the program were instituted. The injury rates (IR) in the players were compared pre and post. There was a reduction of some of the IRs during the intervention season. This reduction may be due in part to some of the coaches completing the entire program and all of the coaches instituting six elements of the program. Continued research is needed to determine if the IRs, in youth football, are consistently reduced by implementation of the program. Further research is needed to examine the impact of coaches taking and implementing the program on the reduction of injuries in other youth sports.
Evidence for a Second F 35 Pion-Nucleon Resonance near 2000 MeV

A recent isobar-model, partial-wave analysis of ..pi..N..--> pi pi..N finds strong indications of the F/sub 35/ pion-nucleon resonance belonging to the (70, L = 2/sup +/) baryon multiplet. This conclusion is drawn from recent predictions of baryon decays obtained with baryon compositions determined by the Isgur-Karl quark model. The highly inelastic F/sub 35/ resonance is observed through its dominant p-wave decay to rhoN. .AE
Amplification and detection of a Y-chromosome DNA sequence by fluorescence in situ polymerase chain reaction and flow cytometry using cells in suspension.

A procedure for amplifying and detecting nucleic acid sequences in situ using cells in suspension and flow cytometry has been developed. The process involves the use of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and a fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) protocol developed in our laboratory to detect the amplified PCR product. For these studies, a Y-chromosome specific repeat DNA sequence was amplified. Daudi cells, a B-cell lymphoma culture line established from a male, was used as a positive control and HL-60, a promyelocytic leukemia culture line established from a female, was used as a negative control. During the in situ PCR process cellular autofluorescence (noise) increases causing markedly reduced detection sensitivity of the probe (signal) bound to the amplified product within the positive cells. An autofluorescence reduction circuit was applied which was integrated into a standard bench top flow cytometer to reduce this noise, thereby producing a 10-fold increase in detection sensitivity of the signal. Without the application of the autofluorescence reduction circuit, the positive control histogram distribution was virtually indistinguishable from the negative control sample distributions. After autofluorescence reduction, the data showed that the Y-chromosome DNA was only amplified in the Daudi cells subjected to the complete in situ PCR protocol. This increased sensitivity also provided direct detection of the Y-chromosome repeat sequence, albeit exhibiting less signal compared to the amplified target after the in situ PCR. © 1995 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
The Relationship between Non-verbal Awareness of Self and Teaching Competence in Student Teachers.

Abstract College of Education students were assessed for their beliefs about the use of nonverbal activity in the classroom and for their awareness of their own non‐verbal classroom behaviours. Both measures were found to be related positively to the judged teaching competence of the students. It is suggested that these two aspects of non‐verbal behaviour, knowledge about non‐verbal possibilities and awareness of own non‐verbal activity, are not related and that training in both might have positive effects on the overall teaching competence of student teachers.
Computing the Rate Distortion Region for the CEO Problem With Independent Sources

A method for numerically calculating the rate distortion region for the central estimation officer (CEO) problem when the sources are independent is derived by generalizing the Blahut–Arimoto algorithm. Unlike the traditional rate distortion function computation problem, the Lagrangian for the CEO rate distortion region can be nonconvex. When the Lagrangian is convex, the presented algorithm is converged from every initialization to the global optimum under some additional uniqueness conditions. When the Lagrangian is nonconvex, the convergent value obtained by the algorithm can be initialization dependent. To handle these nonconvex cases, an explicit nonrandom initialization that is in the region of attraction of the global optimum for low distortions is provided. Some example problems motivated by remote lossy function computation in sensor networks and wireless resource controllers highlight that both the convex and nonconvex cases occur in practice and the utility of the algorithm in computing their rate distortion regions.
The nature of scandol

Scandol, C 30 H 50 O, from Celastrus scandens Line has been shown to be a mixture containing lupeol, C 30 H 50 O, and β-myrin,C 30 H 50 O, as the major constituents.