cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Assessing satellite-derived start-of-season measures in the conterminous USA

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)-series satellites, carrying advanced very high-resolution radiometer (AVHRR) sensors, have allowed moderate resolution (1 km) measurements of the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) to be collected from the Earth's land surfaces for over 20 years. Across the conterminous USA, a readily accessible and decade-long data set is now available to study many aspects of vegetation activity in this region. One feature, the onset of deciduous plant growth at the start of the spring season (SOS) is of special interest, as it appears to be crucial for accurate computation of several important biospheric processes, and a sensitive measure of the impacts of global change. In this study, satellite-derived SOS dates produced by the delayed moving average (DMA) and seasonal midpoint NDVI (SMN) methods, and modelled surface phenology (spring indices, SI) were compared at widespread deciduous forest and mixed woodland sites during 1990-93 and 1995-99, and these three measures were also matched to native species bud-break data collected at the Harvard Forest (Massachusetts) over the same time period. The results show that both SOS methods are doing a modestly accurate job of tracking the general pattern of surface phenology, but highlight the temporal limitations of biweekly satellite data. Specifically, at deciduous forest sites: (1) SMN SOS dates are close in time to SI first bloom dates (average bias of +0.74 days), whereas DMA SOS dates are considerably earlier (average bias of -41.24 days) and also systematically earlier in late spring than in early spring; (2) SMN SOS tracks overall yearly trends in deciduous forests somewhat better than DMA SOS, but with larger average error (MAEs 8.64 days and 7.37 days respectively); and (3) error in both SOS techniques varies considerably by year.
Usefulness and validity of diagnostic nasogastric aspiration in patients without hematemesis

Abstract Study objective We estimate the test characteristics of nasogastric aspiration to diagnose upper gastrointestinal tract hemorrhage in patients without hematemesis. Methods In this retrospective cohort study, medical records from patients admitted to 2 urban hospitals between 1997 and 2002 for gastrointestinal tract bleeding without hematemesis were reviewed. Positive nasogastric aspiration results were classified by the severity of hemorrhage, and negative results were classified by the presence or absence of bile. The reference standard for nasogastric aspiration was the source of bleeding—upper versus non–upper gastrointestinal tract—from the hospital discharge summary. Confidence intervals (CIs) for proportions and likelihood ratios (LRs) were calculated. Results Of 333 eligible patients, 235 were offered nasogastric aspiration, and 220 accepted the test. Results of 220 attempts were distributed as follows: negative, 158 (72%), including 9 (4%) with bile; nasogastric aspiration aborted, 13 (6%); and positive, 49 (23%), including 4 (2%) that were strongly positive (≥450 mL red blood). Test characteristics of nasogastric aspiration to detect upper gastrointestinal tract bleeding in 213 patients with a reference standard diagnosis were as follows: sensitivity 42% (95% CI 32% to 51%), specificity 91% (95% CI 83% to 95%), negative predictive value 64% (95% CI 56% to 71%), and positive predictive value 92% (95% CI 79% to 97%). The nasogastric aspiration accurately predicted the source of bleeding in 66% of patients (95% CI 59% to 72%). The likelihood ratio of a positive nasogastric aspiration was 11 (95% CI 4 to 30), and the likelihood ratio of a negative nasogastric aspiration was 0.6 (95% CI 0.5 to 0.7). Conclusion In patients without hematemesis, a positive nasogastric aspiration, seen in 23%, indicates probable upper gastrointestinal tract bleeding (LR+ 11), but a negative nasogastric aspiration, seen in 72%, provides little information (LR– 0.6).
Assessment of the standardized reporting guidelines ECG classification system: the presenting ECG predicts 30-day outcomes ☆ ☆☆ ★

Abstract Study objective Standardized reporting criteria for risk stratification studies of patients with potential acute coronary syndromes have been proposed. We sought to determine whether the categories in the recommended 6-item ECG classification system predict rates of 30-day death, myocardial infarction, and revascularization. Methods We conducted a prospective cohort study of emergency department (ED) chest pain patients who presented to a tertiary care center during a 32-month period. The treating physician classified all ECGs into defined categories. Patients were followed up for 30 days to determine death, myocardial infarction, and revascularization. Our main outcome was the rate of triple composite endpoint of death, myocardial infarction, or revascularization at 30 days from ED presentation in relation to the ECG classification category. Results There were 3,814 patients who presented to the ED a total of 4,487 times during the study period. Patients had a mean (±SD) age of 51.8±15.9 years, were more likely to be women (59%) than men, and were most commonly black (68%). The relationship between initial ECG classification and 30-day outcome was highly significant ( P Conclusion The ECG classification system that is being recommended in the standardized guidelines predicts 30-day composite rates of death, acute myocardial infarction, and revascularization.
A Novel Noise Filtering Algorithm for Imbalanced Data

Noise filtering is a commonly-used methodology to improve the performance of learners built using low-quality data. A common type of noise filtering is a data preprocessing technique called classification filtering. In classification filtering, a classifier is built and evaluated on the training dataset (typically using cross-validation) and any misclassified instances are considered noisy. The strategies employed with classification filters are not ideal, particularly when learning from class-imbalanced data. To address this deficiency, we propose an alternative method for classification filtering called the threshold-adjusted classification filter. This methodology is compared with the standard classification filter, and the results clearly demonstrate the efficacy of our technique.
Theory of Piezo-Phototronics

Devices fabricated by using the inner-crystal piezopotential as a “gate” voltage to tune/control the carrier generation, transport, and recombination processes at the vicinity of a p–n junction are named piezo-phototronics. The presence of piezoelectric charges at the interface/junction can significantly affect the charge carrier separation and transport. This chapter focuses on the basic theory for the piezo-phototronic effect on LED, photon detector, and solar cell. Both analytical equations and numerical simulations are given to present the basic physics for understanding the general phenomena.
Arab Economies at a Tipping Point

The Arab world is experiencing an economic boom of historic proportions. The tiny Persian Gulf emirate of Dubai is emblematic. Boasting the world’s only 7-star hotel, its massive land reclamation project, allegedly the only manmade structure visible from the moon, is whimsically creating parcels shaped like continents and palm trees. With oil hovering around $90 a barrel and the Egyptian stock market up 1,800 percent in the last five years, one might ask what problems does World Bank President Robert Zoellick perceive that would justify making the economic revitalization of the Arab world one of the cornerstones of his new administration. 1 Look beneath the surface, however, and Zoellick’s judgment might not seem so misplaced. 2 The boom is being felt unevenly across the region. Two-thirds of Arabs do not live in major oil producing countries. Looking forward, the key issue over the next decade is the ability of these economies to generate jobs and rising living standards for the millions of young people joining the economy. Today the region has the world’s lowest employment rate—less than half of adults are formally employed. Yet throughout the region, labor forces are growing at a rate of 3.5–4.0 percent annually, posing a significant challenge for job creation. The World Bank estimates that the Arab world will have to create something on the order of 55–70 million jobs over between now and 2020 to keep pace and bring the rate of unemployment down to the global norm. 3
The Binding and Degradation of Insulin by Rat Liver Membranes: Demonstration of Three Distinct Insulin-Binding Components in Detergent-Solubilized Material from Liver Plasma Membrane*

The components responsible for insulin-binding and insulin degradation were solubilized from purified liver plasma membranes by treatment with the nonionic detergent Triton X-100. The characteristics of specific insulin binding and insulin degradation were similar to those found with the intact membranes. Polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of the detergent extract separated the insulin-binding activity into three peaks, designated peaks I, II, and D. The majority of the insulindegrading activity was located in peak D; peak I failed to degrade insulin, while only a small amount of degradation was associated with peak II. Scatchard analysis of the insulin-binding data for peak I showed a curvilinear plot, with the initial high affinity portion of the curve having a Kd of 2 × 10−10 m. The Scatchard plot for peak II was linear, with a Kd of 8 × 10−9 m. Both peaks bound 125I-labeled insulin with high specificity, as determined by competition studies using desoctapeptide insulin, proinsulin, and glucagon. Insul...
Regularization of the p representation

A representation is introduced for the density operator of the electromagnetic field that is suitable for all density operators and that reduces to the coherent-state $P$ representation when the latter exists. It expresses the density operator $\ensuremath{\rho}$ as the sum of four terms, each of which is a two-dimensional weighted integral over outer products of coherent states. The first integral has the form of the $P$ representation, i.e., the outer products are projection operators. The absence of singularities in this term is achieved by the presence of the three supplementary integrals which vanish when the density operator possesses the $P$ representation. In general, for stationary density operators, only the first two terms of the regularized $P$ representation are necessary. A simple prescription is given for obtaining the four weight functions of this representation from the function $〈\ensuremath{\alpha}|\ensuremath{\rho}|\ensuremath{\alpha}〉$, where $|\ensuremath{\alpha}〉$ is a coherent state and $\ensuremath{\rho}$ is the density operator. According to this prescription, the $P$ representation does not exist and one or more of the supplementary, regularizing terms is necessary when the function $〈\ensuremath{\alpha}|\ensuremath{\rho}|\ensuremath{\alpha}〉$ contains a term that decreases more rapidly than $\mathrm{exp}(\ensuremath{-}{|\ensuremath{\alpha}|}^{2})$ as $|\ensuremath{\alpha}|\ensuremath{\rightarrow}\ensuremath{\infty}$. The regularized $P$ representation affords nonsingular integral expressions for all density operators and for most expectation values, including, when they are finite, those of the normally ordered products of the creation and annihilation operators, ${a}^{\ifmmode\dagger\else\textdagger\fi{}}$ and $a$. The construction and use of this representation is illustrated with the aid of simple examples in which the density operator does not possess the $P$ representation.
Effect of phenylalanine and p-chlorophenylalanine administration on the development of rat brain 2',3'-cyclic nucleotide 3'-phosphohydrolase.

SummarySubcutaneous injections of L-phenylalanine and DL-p-chlorophenylalanine in developing rats resulted in reduced body weight, brain weight, and concentration of 2′,3′-cyclic nucleotide 3′-phosphohydrolase—a myelin-enriched protein. These reductions were less marked when injections were reduced by half; when pups were allowed to recover after age 13 days, no differences were observed at 40 days of age. Brain hexokinase and cytochrome c oxidase development was not affected by the injection treatments.
Methods of Apportionment in Congress

Introduction . The apportionment for this decade has now been made by Congress, and a bill has been passed which will automatically provide for reapportionment in all subsequent decades. Under this law, the size of the House will remain 435, and the method of computation will remain the method of major fractions as used in 1911 unless Congress takes the initiative in making a change. It may, however, be a matter of interest to put on record a brief description of the principal “methods” which were under discussion in the recent congressional debates. No knowledge of mathematics is required in order to understand the purpose and result of each of these methods. The constitutional requirement . The constitutional requirement reads as follows: “Representatives shall be apportioned among the several states according to their respective numbers, counting the whole number of persons in each state, excluding Indians not taxed; …. but each state shall have at least one representative.” Hence, in a theoretically perfect apportionment, the ratio of representation in any state would be exactly equal to the ratio of representation in every other state. In practice, however, perfect equality cannot be secured, on account of fractions. Hence, in the practical problem of apportioning any given number of representatives among the several states, the only way in which the constitutional requirement can be met is by making the unavoidable inequalities between the states as small as possible.
Fluctuating Ophthalmoplegia Presenting as a Treatable Manifestation of Myotonia Congenita (P02.263)

Objective: To present a case of myotonia congenita presenting with fluctuating ophthalmoplegia that responded to treatment with mexiletine. Background Myotonia congenita is a disorder of prolonged muscle stiffness and myotonia following voluntary muscle contraction due to a mutation in the CLCN1 gene encoding a skeletal muscle voltage-gated chloride channel. The disease involves striated muscles, and extraocular muscle involvement has been demonstrated in reports. Such patients may manifest with lid lag, blepharospasm, and impaired saccades, but there have been no reported attempts to treat the disabling extraocular manifestations with medical therapy. Design/Methods: Case report. Outcome measures were based on patient9s report of symptom control as well as serial neurological examinations. Results: A 68 year old woman presented with 2 years of intermittent, fluctuating, binocular oblique diplopia and occasional stiffness in her arms and legs. Her examination was notable initially for an intermittent right hypertropia, esophoria, and ptosis, and later for a transient right exophoria and mild proximal weakness. Unexpectedly, her EMG demonstrated profound myotonia. Genetic testing revealed a mutation in the CLCN1 gene as is seen in myotonia congenita; genetic testing was negative for myotonic dystrophy types 1 and 2, and there was no evidence of myasthenia gravis on single fiber EMG or acetylcholine receptor antibody testing. She failed an initial trial of pyridostigmine, but her symptoms responded to mexiletine. Conclusions: This is the first reported case of a patient with genetically confirmed CLCN1 gene mutation presenting with fluctuating diplopia as an initial symptom of myotonia congenita. Her symptoms likely reflected involvement of extraocular muscles and responded to mexiletine, suggesting an underlying mechanism of myotonia involving extraocular muscles. Myotonia congenita should be considered in the differential diagnosis of fluctuating ophthalmoplegia, particularly in patients with electrophysiological myotonia. The symptoms may be underrecognized, can mimic other disease processes, and are potentially responsive to medical treatment with mexiletine. Disclosure: Dr. Odrzywolski has nothing to disclose. Dr. Johnson has nothing to disclose. Dr. Twydell has received personal compensation for activities with Allergen, Inc. as a speaker. Dr. Twydell has received personal compensation in an editorial capacity for UpToDate.
Chinese Women and Gender Studies in the West: Retrospect and Prospect

Western scholars began to study Chinese women since the 1970s.During the 1980s,gender studies replaced women studies as the mainstream in academy.Historians and anthropologists shared their theories,methodologies, and materials to achieve significant breakthroughs.Researchers have altered the victim image of Chinese women,and restored their position and roles of historical agents.Meanwhile,they examined the construction and transformation of gender,sex,and gender relations through social and cultural perspectives,and attempted to reveal the origins of oppression and discrimination of Chinese women under particular circumstances.The new tendency today is that scholars tend to abandon the ethno-centric opinion and universal theory of women's liberation and look for special elements responsible for the subjugation of women and construction of unequal gender relations within the Third World countries.
Carbon Emissions Transparency and Firm Behavior as a Response to the Carbon Disclosure Project

The Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) is a nonprofit organization based out of London, England that partners with over 550 investors with assets of over $71 trillion to encourage major companies to voluntarily disclose greenhouse gas emissions in an annual survey. In this study, we answer the question: Can the CDP be used to differentiate more concerned sectors from less concerned sectors when it comes to climate change? We used data from CDP surveys for the years 2008, 2009, and 2010. Through a quantitative analysis of survey responses across ten industrial sectors, we compared the percent of firms in each sector that perceive climate change as a risk to the percent who developed emission reduction plans (labeled as action taken). We found that, while some sectors exhibit a high percentage of concerned firms with a low percentage of firms participating in emissions reduction plans, some sectors were exactly the opposite. We attribute this to differences across sectors in terms of feasibility and affordability of participating in an emissions reduction plan. However, it does suggest that the CDP may be a useful tool in gauging firms’ reactions to climate change.
THE COMPETITIVENESS OF AGRICULTURAL PRODUCT AND INPUT MARKETS: A REVIEW AND SYNTHESIS OF RECENT RESEARCH

This article reviews literature on competitiveness of agricultural product and input markets. Although researchers in the United States and Europe emphasize different stages of the agricultural and food marketing system, their focus is similar: extent of buyer power, although both have largely ignored the sector supplying inputs to agriculture. The key conclusion is that there is little robust empirical evidence for food processing firms exerting buyer power, and there are limited data concerning vertical contracts between food processing and agriculture, but there is a small body of evidence concerning food retailer behavior and vertical coordination between food retailing and processing.
How Location Efficient Is LIHTC? Measuring and Explaining State-Level Achievement

AbstractA growing recognition that the cost of transportation should be included in calculations of housing affordability has led to efforts to promote location efficiency (LE) in affordable housing policy. Because the program is responsible for most new affordable housing in the United States, the Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program has the potential to be a link between housing affordability and LE. This research analyzes the extent to which LIHTC units built between 2007 and 2011 were in location-efficient places. Ordinary least squares regression analysis was used to test the role of market, policy, developer, and urban form factors in determining state-level LIHTC LE. We find that for the nation as a whole, from a quarter to half of LIHTC units added during this period were in location-efficient places, depending on the LE criteria applied. State-by-state comparisons showed wide variation in both our absolute measures of LIHTC LE and our relative measures of LIHTC LE compared with overall h...
Leveraging access port positions to accelerate page table walk in DWM-based main memory

Domain Wall Memory (DWM) with ultra-high density and comparable read/write latency to DRAM is an attractive replacement for CMOS-based devices. Unlike DRAM, DWM has non-uniform data access latency that is proportional to the number of shift operations. While previous works have demonstrated the feasibility of using DWM as main memory and have proposed different ways to alleviate the impact of shift operations, none of them have addressed the performance-critical metadata accesses, in particular page table accesses. To bridge this gap, this paper aims at accelerating page table walk in DWM-based main memory from two innovative aspects. First of all, we propose a new page table layout and leverage the positions of access ports in DWM to differentiate the state of page table entries. In addition, we propose a technique to pre-align the access ports to the positions to be accessed in the near future, thus hiding shift latency to the maximum extent. Since both address translation and context switching are affected by page table access latency, the proposed technique can effectively improve system performance and user experience.
Expanding Axonal Transcriptome Brings New Functions for Axonally Synthesized Proteins in Health and Disease

Intra-axonal protein synthesis has been shown to play critical roles in both development and repair of axons. Axons provide long-range connectivity in the nervous system, and disruption of their function and/or structure is seen in several neurological diseases and disorders. Axonally synthesized proteins or losses in axonally synthesized proteins contribute to neurodegenerative diseases, neuropathic pain, viral transport, and survival of axons. Increasing sensitivity of RNA detection and quantitation coupled with methods to isolate axons to purity has shown that a surprisingly complex transcriptome exists in axons. This extends across different species, neuronal populations, and physiological conditions. These studies have helped define the repertoire of neuronal mRNAs that can localize into axons and imply previously unrecognized functions for local translation in neurons. Here, we review the current state of transcriptomics studies of isolated axons, contrast axonal mRNA profiles between different neur...
Containment Analysis Capability of UNF-ST&DARDS

The Used Nuclear Fuel-Storage, Transportation & Disposal Analysis Resource and Data System (UNF-ST&DARDS) methodology to perform automated containment analyses for potential transportation packages...
Measuring Imagination in New Venture Ideation

Imagination is at the core of entrepreneurship. Yet past research has been hindered by a lack of theoretical understanding of what imagination is and is not as well as a lack of validated instrumen...
Association between diverticular disease requiring surgical intervention and mortality in the postlung transplant population - a retrospective cohort study.

Lung Transplant recipients are at increased risk of complicated diverticular disease. We aim to assess the rate of diverticular surgery in a postlung transplantation population and identify risk factors for surgery. We performed a retrospective cohort study of lung transplant recipients from 2007 to 2011. Demographic variables were evaluated with the Mann-Whitney U and chi-squared tests. Cox regression was performed to evaluate 1- and 2-year landmark survival, assess predictor variables of diverticular surgery and evaluate impact of surgery on CLAD development. Of 17 of 158 patients (10.7%) underwent diverticular-related surgery. Surgical patients had significantly worse survival than nonsurgical patients at 1 year [aHR 2.93 (1.05-8.21), P = 0.041] and 2 year [aHR 4.17 (1.26-13.84), P = 0.020] landmark analyses. Transplant indication of alpha-1 antitrypsin disease and cystic fibrosis were significantly associated with the need for diverticular surgery. Emergent surgery was associated with poorer survival [aHR 5.12(1.00-26.27), P = 0.050]. Lung transplant patients requiring surgery for complicated diverticular disease have significantly poorer survival than those who do not require surgery. Surgery was more common in patients transplanted for A1AT and CF. Optimal assessment and risk stratification of diverticular disease is necessary to prevent excessive morbidity and mortality following transplantation.
Complete Genome Sequence of Klebsiella pneumoniae Myophage Magnus.

Klebsiella pneumoniae is an important human pathogen due to the wide range of infections it can cause and its emerging drug resistance. Isolation and characterization of phage infecting K. pneumoniae could be important for future therapeutic applications. Here, we report the complete genome sequence of the T4-like Klebisella pneumoniae myophage Mineola.
“The persistent myth of lost hegemony,” revisited: structural power as a complex network phenomenon:

This article resuscitates the idea of structural power in world politics by linking it to modern complex network science, presents a theoretical framework for understanding how global structures de...
Ablation of Fat Cells in Adult Mice Induces Massive Bone Gain

Summary Adipocytes control bone mass, but the mechanism is unclear. To explore the effect of postnatal adipocyte elimination on bone cells, we mated mice expressing an inducible primate diphtheria toxin receptor (DTR) to those bearing adiponectin (ADQ)-Cre. DTR activation eliminates peripheral and marrow adipocytes in these DTRADQ mice. Within 4 days of DTR activation, the systemic bone mass of DTRADQ mice began to increase due to stimulated osteogenesis, with a 1,000% expansion by 10–14 days post-DTR treatment. This adipocyte ablation-mediated enhancement of skeletal mass reflected bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) receptor activation following the elimination of its inhibitors, associated with simultaneous epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor signaling. DTRADQ-induced osteosclerosis is not due to ablation of peripheral adipocytes but likely reflects the elimination of marrow ADQ-expressing cells. Thus, anabolic drugs targeting BMP receptor inhibitors with short-term EGF receptor activation may be a means of profoundly increasing skeletal mass to prevent or reverse pathological bone loss.
The Burden of Alleviating the Burden During a Pandemic: Emotional literacy as a tool for online course design, adaptation, and evaluation

During the COVID-19 pandemic, most, if not all, courses were shifted to online learning formats. In this article, we share our experiences related to teaching and learning in a completely online, condensed (seven-week) graduate-level course during the fall 2020 semester. More specifically, we discuss the important role of emotional literacy as a mechanism for framing online course design, adaptation, and evaluation. We explore emotional literacy in terms of its necessity in teaching and learning in online contexts during a pandemic, beyond the scope of other obviously important non-traditional literacies, such as technological and informational literacies. To conclude, we offer practical suggestions for online course design, adaptation, and evaluation using emotional literacy as a framework and provide considerations for future research.
A Bi-Axial Quantum State That Controls Molecular Collisions Like a Double-Slit Interferometer

To control molecular scattering, we consider hydrogen molecules prepared in a coherent superposition of m states within a single rovibrational (v, j) energy eigenstate using Stark-induced adiabatic Raman passage (SARP). Specifically, SARP can prepare a bi-axial state of the HD molecule in which the HD bond axis exists simultaneously in two possible alignments at right angles to one another with a well-defined relative phase. We show that scattering from this biaxial state will interfere, resulting in a -dependent scattering intensity distribution, where is the azimuthal angle about the collision velocity direction. Using the scattering matrix extracted from our experiments on the rotationally inelastic collisions of quantum state prepared HD at low temperatures, we calculate the differential scattering cross-section , which shows an interference pattern as function of θ and in the image plane perpendicular to the collision velocity. The calculated scattering image shows that scattering from the bi-axial state directs molecules along well-defined angles, corresponding to interference maxima. Thus, the bi-axial state behaves like a double slit for molecular scattering. Moreover, by rotating the polarizations of the SARP preparation lasers, we can control the interference thereby altering the scattering angular distribution. This molecular interferometer, which experimentally measures the relative phases of the scattering matrix elements, allows a direct test of theoretical calculations on important, fundamental collision processes.
Synopsis of Barrier Function of Skin and Oral Mucosa-Volume 1.

This is an attempt to make readers of the second edition of International Journal of Molecular Sciences Special Issue on the Barrier Function of Skin and Oral Mucosa aware of the content of the first edition on this same topic [...]
On the Design of Pattern Reconfigurable Alford Loop Antennas

We present a step-by-step approach for designing a recofigurable Alford loop antenna (RALA). The design of an 3.5 GHz RALA is shown. The antenna is fabricated using a 1.6 mm thick double-sided FR4 substrate. We sweep antenna geometrical parameters and show the effect on antenna input impedance, reflection coefficient (S 11 ), and radiation patterns. The final antenna structure resonates at 3.5 GHz with eight directional and one omnidirectional radiation patterns. We also present a simplistic control circuit responsible for activating the antenna elements. Tri-state impedance matching- a major challenge in the design of RALA is also discussed and analyzed along with a proposed method for mitigation. 3D radiation patterns of the RALA was measured using an EMScan and a maximum gain of 4.5 dBi is found.
Influence of interactions between multiple point defects on wave scattering in granular media

The wave dynamics of 2D finite granular crystals with point defects subjected to impact loading are investigated. The full-field kinematic and strain measurements are analyzed to decipher the influence of point defects on the wave dynamics of finite granular crystals. Impact experiments were performed for a defect-free polyurethane cubic granular crystal to establish a baseline for comparison. Subsequently, granular crystals with a single polycarbonate point defect were subjected to low-velocity impact. These experiments provided a quantification of the wave scattering effects around a single point defect in finite granular crystals. To gain further insight into the interaction of multiple point defects, a set of 8 impact experiments were conducted on granular crystals with three point defects. The location of the first point defect was the same as a single defect experiment while the other two defects in any experiments were placed at locations symmetric about the middle column. The changes in the strain energy distribution in the different regions of the granular crystals were used to assess the influence of the defects on the wave propagation process. These results revealed that a single defect acts as a scattering point for stress waves and alters the wave dynamics. The introduction of additional pair of defects has a significant influence on the wave propagation process. Based on the distance and the angle between the defects, these defects could act in tandem and have a total effect if the defects are close enough or could act independently if they are further away.
Equality of the Bulk and Edge Hall Conductances in 2D

Von Klitzing [15] observed that a two dimensional electron gas at very low temperatures and strong magnetic field displays a quantization of the Hall conductance, that is the conductance measured in the direction transversal to the applied current. Specifically, the conductance plotted as a function of the magnetic field shows extremely flat plateaux at integer multiples of e/h (e is a charge of electron and h is Planck’s constant). Two pictures were introduced for a description of the Quantum Hall Effect: “Edge currents picture” and “Bulk currents picture”. The edge current picture suggests that the Hall current flows in the narrow regions along the sample boundaries (we will denote the corresponding conductance by σE), so that the Hall voltage drops entirely in these regions. On the other hand, the description in terms of bulk currents suggests that the Hall voltage drops gradually across the sample (and let σB denote the Hall conductance associated with this regime). It was proposed by Halperin [13] that in reality one should expect an intermix of these two pictures, and that σE = σB. In [14], σE,B were linked for a Harper’s model with rational flux. In more general setup, the equality of the edge and the bulk conductances was recently rigorously established [10,16,18], provided that there is a spectral gap ∆ at Fermi energy of the single-particle (bulk) Hamiltonian HB . The aim of this article is to report on a recent joint result with G. M. Graf and J. H. Schenker [11], and to expose some of the ideas involved. There we proved this equality in the more general setting in which HB exhibits Anderson localization in ∆ – more precisely, strong dynamical localization (see (2) below). The result applies to Schrodinger operators which are random, but does not depend on that property. We therefore formulate the result for deterministic operators. A full account of this work with detailed proofs of all the results stated below is provided in [11]. The bulk system is described by the lattice Z x = (x1, x2) with Hamiltonian HB = H∗ B on (Z). We assume its matrix elements HB(x, x′), x, x′ ∈ Z, to be of short range, namely
Molecular biology of adrenergic receptors: model systems for the study of G-protein-mediated signal transduction.

Elucidation of the gene structure of several receptors known to mediate the signal of hormone or transmitter binding to intracellular effector systems through guanine-nucleotide-binding proteins (G pr
Evidence-based asthma education for parents.

Purpose. The purpose of this project was to develop and implement an evidence-based asthma education brochure for parents of pediatric asthma patients. Design and Methods. The asthma patients were 4–12 years old. The number of office sick visits, emergency room visits, and hospitalizations related to asthma were evaluated post-education, and then compared with the previous months. Results. Although there were no statistically significant results, there were notable trends that apply to asthma practice. Practice Implications. As a result of the project, there were positive changes noted within the pediatric clinic related to asthma education, and additional suggestions for future opportunities were made.
Twenty-four-hour intravenous and oral tracer studies with L-[1-13C]phenylalanine and L-[3,3-2H2]tyrosine at a tyrosine-free, generous phenylalanine intake in adults.

The daily rates of whole-body phenylalanine oxidation and hydroxylation were determined in young men receiving [1- 13 C]phenylalanine and [ 2 H 2 ]tyrosine via primed, constant intravenous (n = 3) or oral (n = 5) infusion for 24 consecutive hours (12-h fast followed by 12-h fed period), and given a generous phenylalanine (100 mg.kg -1 .d -1 ), tyrosine-free, but otherwise adequate L-amino acid-based diet for 6 d before the tracer study. Our hypothesis was that subjects would be in whole-body phenylalanine equilibrium. Estimates of the daily rates of phenylalanine oxidation (phe-ox) and hydroxylation (phe-OH) were significantly higher for the subjects receiving the oral compared with intravenous tracer (P < 0.01 for both comparisons), with the estimates of phe-ox obtained with oral tracer during the 12-h fast period being close to those predicted from similar 24-h leucine kinetic studies (Am J Clin Nutr 1994 ;59 :1000-11). The precision of the agreement between the measured 24-h rates of phe-ox and phe-OH compared with the predicted daily rates by extrapolation from the last hour of the 12-h fast and fifth hour of the fed period was poor. From the 24-h data, daily phenylalanine balances were estimated to be positive for both the intravenous and oral tracer protocols, although it was less positive for the oral tracer group. These results imply that the [ 13 C]phenylalanine probe underestimated whole-body irreversible loss of phenylalanine, and suggest that daily phenylalanine balance in earlier 24-h phenylalanine-tyrosine tracer studies (Am J Clin Nutr 1995 ;61 :555-70) at low phenylalanine intakes may have been overestimated. Studies involving [ 13 C]tyrosine as tracer will be required to further assess whole-body aromatic amino acid balance.
DAG-consistent distributed shared memory

Introduces DAG (directed acyclic graph) consistency, a relaxed consistency model for distributed shared memory which is suitable for multithreaded programming. We have implemented DAG consistency in software for the Cilk multithreaded runtime system running on a CM5 Connection Machine. Our implementation includes a DAG-consistent distributed cactus stack for storage allocation. We provide empirical evidence of the flexibility and efficiency of DAG consistency for applications that include blocked matrix multiplication, Strassen's (1969) matrix multiplication algorithm and a Barnes-Hut code. Although Cilk schedules the executions of these programs dynamically, their performances are competitive with statically scheduled implementations in the literature. We also prove that the number F/sub P/ of page faults incurred by a user program running an P processors can be related to the number F/sub 1/ of page faults running serially by the formula F/sub P//spl les/F/sub 1/+2Cs, where C is the cache size and s is the number of thread migrations executed by Cilk's scheduler.
Generation and Characterization of Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer Cell Lines and Clones for Use in the Study of Immunotherapy

The in vitro study of cancer has been made easier by the use of stable tumor cell (TC) lines derived from patients to study antigen expression, immunogenicity, and response to both experimental and conventional therapeutic agents. However, the routine generation of these cell lines in some tumor histologies such as non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is difficult. In many cases, colonies of TCs do not survive, most likely due to a lack of critical growth factors in cell culture medium. Other times, TC colonies are overgrown by fibroblasts, which appear to have less stringent growth requirements. In some cases, cultures are overgrown by bacteria or mold contained in the biopsy arriving from the surgical or pathology suite. This study presents the characteristics of three new NSCLC cell lines and associated autologous clones generated from both adenocarcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma tissue. Different culture media and variable techniques were used to generate these stable TC lines. Limiting dilution analysis resulted in numerous clones, some of which displayed heterogeneity in terms of growth, antigen expression, and the ability to release cytokines. The successes and failures associated with generating TC lines are discussed in this article. Both parental cultures and related clones serve as critical reagents for the continued study of the cellular immune response to NSCLC.
Bcl-x Pre-mRNA Splicing Regulates Brain Injury after Neonatal Hypoxia-Ischemia

The bcl-x gene appears to play a critical role in regulating apoptosis in the developing and mature CNS and following CNS injury. Two isoforms of Bcl-x are produced as a result of alternative pre-mRNA splicing: Bcl-xL (the long form) is anti-apoptotic, while Bcl-xS (short form) is pro-apoptotic. Despite the antagonistic activities of these two isoforms, little is known about how regulation of alternative splicing of bcl-x may mediate neural cell apoptosis. Here, we report that apoptotic stimuli (staurosporine or C2-ceramide) reciprocally altered Bcl-x splicing in neural cells, decreasing Bcl-xL while increasing Bcl-xS. Specific knockdown of Bcl-xS attenuated apoptosis. To further define regulatory elements that influenced Bcl-x splicing, a Bcl-x minigene was constructed. Deletional analysis revealed several consensus sequences within intron 2 that altered splicing. We found that the splicing factor, CUG-binding-protein-1 (CUGBP1), bound to a consensus sequence close to the Bcl-xL 5′ splice site, altering the Bcl-xL/Bcl-xS ratio and influencing cell death. In vivo , neonatal hypoxia–ischemia reciprocally altered Bcl-x pre-mRNA splicing, similar to the in vitro studies. Manipulation of the splice isoforms using viral gene transfer of Bcl-xS shRNA into the hippocampus of rats before neonatal hypoxia–ischemia decreased vulnerability to injury. Moreover, alterations in nuclear CUGBP1 preceded Bcl-x splicing changes. These results suggest that alternative pre-mRNA splicing may be an important regulatory mechanism for cell death after acute neurological injury and may potentially provide novel targets for intervention.
Experimental and calculated solubilities of magnesium sulfate monohydrate in aqueous nitric acid and related solubilities, 200–350°C; ionization constants of nitric acid at 300–370°C☆

Abstract Of interest in predicting high temperature phase equilibria for geothermal power, desalination, general hydrothermal and other evaluations, solubilities of magnesium sulfate monohydrate have been determined in 0–1 m aqueous nitric acid solutions at 200–350°C. These solubilities also have been calculated independently, with good agreement to 300°C, by applying earlier published values of solubility product constants (Ksp) of the salt, second ionization constants (K2) of sulfuric acid, and ionization constants (Kn) of nitric acid. The experimental solubilities, when treated by iterative equations and the resulting values of solubility products (Qsp) extrapolated to zero ionic strength, yielded values of Ksp essentially identical with those obtained from earlier solubility studies in aqueous sulfuric acid. From the experimental results at 350°C, a value of Kn was obtained that resolved its earlier uncertainty at this temperature and allowed revised thermodynamic functions to be presented at 300–370°C. Comparative solubilities of magnesium sulfate monohydrate in aqueous sodium nitrate solutions and of magnesium and calcium hydroxides in nitric acid are included.
Remediating number combination and word problem deficits among students with mathematics difficulties: A randomized control trial

The purposes of this study were to assess the efficacy of remedial tutoring for 3rd graders with mathematics difficulty, to investigate whether tutoring is differentially efficacious depending on students’ math difficulty status (mathematics difficulty alone vs. mathematics plus reading difficulty), to explore transfer from number combination (NC) remediation, and to examine the transportability of the tutoring protocols. At 2 sites, 133 students were stratified on mathematics difficulty status and site and then randomly assigned to 3 conditions: control (no tutoring), tutoring on automatic retrieval of NCs (i.e., Math Flash), or tutoring on word problems with attention to the foundational skills of NCs, procedural calculations, and algebra (i.e., Pirate Math). Tutoring occurred for 16 weeks, 3 sessions per week and 20–30 min per session. Math Flash enhanced fluency with NCs with transfer to procedural computation but without transfer to algebra or word problems. Pirate Math enhanced word problem skill as well as fluency with NCs, procedural computation, and algebra. Tutoring was not differentially efficacious as a function of students’ mathematics difficulty status. The tutoring protocols proved transportable across sites.
Chemisorption of carbon monoxide on reduced molybdena

Surface coverage of reduced molybdena by chemisorbed CO is substantially lower than the surface coverage by chemisorbed O/sub 2/. The surface coverage by chemisorbed CO decreases as the temperature of chemisorption is increased from -195 to 0/sup 0/C. Chemisorption of O/sub 2/ at low temperatures is to be preferred to that of CO as a possible means of measuring the dispersion of reduced molybdena on an alumina support.
The emergence of probabilistic reasoning in very young infants: Evidence from 4.5- and 6-month-olds.

How do people make rich inferences from such sparse data? Recent research has explored this inferential ability by investigating probabilistic reasoning in infancy. For example, 8- and 11-month-old infants can make inferences from samples to populations and vice versa (Denison & Xu, 2010a; Xu & Denison, 2009; Xu & Garcia, 2008a). The current experiment investigates the developmental origins of this probabilistic inference mechanism with 4.5- and 6-month-old infants. Infants were shown 2 large boxes, 1 containing a ratio of 4 pink to 1 yellow balls, the other containing the opposite ratio. The experimenter sampled from, for example, the mostly pink box and removed a sample of either 4 pink and 1 yellow balls or 4 yellow and 1 pink balls on alternating trials. Six-month-olds but not 4.5-month-olds looked longer at the 4 yellow and 1 pink sample (the improbable outcome) than at the 4 pink and 1 yellow sample (the probable outcome).
Physiological Significance of Maximal Oxygen Intake in "Pure" Mitral Stenosis

Acute circulatory and respiratory adjustments to mild through maximal upright exercise were studied in seven patients with "pure" mitral stenosis. Maximal oxygen uptake was determined objectively by demonstrating a plateau of oxygen uptake with increasing workloads. Time to reach a plateau of oxygen uptake was normal (2 to 3 minutes) at all workloads. At any given oxygen uptake, cardiac output and hepatic clearance of indocyanine green (ICG) were abnormally low while total arteriovenous (A-V) oxygen difference, heart rate, blood lactate, and ventilation were abnormally high. However, with respect to relative oxygen uptake (per cent of maximal oxygen uptake), the reduction in cardiac output was exaggerated, but A-V oxygen difference, heart rate, blood lactate, and hepatic clearance of ICG were essentially normal. RQ and VE/VOO2 were quantitatively abnormal even with respect to relative oxygen uptake, but the pattern of changes from mild to maximal exercise was normal. Low maximal oxygen uptake defined the ...