cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Continuous-time markov decision processes with nonzero terminal reward

In this article we consider a continuous-time Markov decision process with a denumerable state space and nonzero terminal rewards. We first establish the necessary and sufficient optimality condition without any restriction on the cost functions. The necessary condition is derived through the Pontryagin maximum principle and the sufficient condition, by the inherent structure of the problem. We introduce a dynamic programming approximation algorithm for the finite-horizon problem. As the time between discrete points decreases, the optimal policy of the discretized problem converges to that of the continuous-time problem in the sense of weak convergence. For the infinite-horizon problem, a successive approximation method is introduced as an alternative to a policy iteration method.
Iterative convergence acceleration of neutral particle transport methods via adjacent-cell preconditioners

We propose preconditioning as a viable acceleration scheme for the inner iterations of transport calculations in slab geometry. In particular we develop Adjacent-Cell Preconditioners (AP) that have the same coupling stencil as cell-centered diffusion schemes. For lowest order methods, e.g., Diamond Difference, Step, and 0-order Nodal Integral Method (0NIM), cast in a Weighted Diamond Difference (WDD) form, we derive AP for thick (KAP) and thin (NAP) cells that for model problems are unconditionally stable and efficient. For the First-Order Nodal Integral Method (1NIM) we derive a NAP that possesses similarly excellent spectral properties for model problems. Note that the order of NIM refers to the truncated order of the local expansion of the cell and edge fluxes in Legendre series.] The two most attractive features of our new technique are: (1) its cell-centered coupling stencil, which makes it more adequate for extension to multidimensional, higher order situations than the standard edge-centered or point-centered Diffusion Synthetic Acceleration (DSA) methods; and (2) its decreasing spectral radius with increasing cell thickness to the extent that immediate pointwise convergence, i.e., in one iteration, can be achieved for problems with sufficiently thick cells. We implemented these methods, augmented with appropriate boundary conditions and mixing formulas for material heterogeneities, in the test code AP1D that we use to successfully verify the analytical spectral properties for homogeneous problems. Furthermore, we conduct numerical tests to demonstrate the robustness of the KAP and NAP in the presence of sharp mesh or material discontinuities. We show that the AP for WDD is highly resilient to such discontinuities, but for 1NIM a few cases occur in which the scheme does not converge; however, when it converges, AP greatly reduces the number of iterations required to achieve convergence.
Scintillating tile/fiber calorimetry development at FNAL

Abstract The technique of calorimetry using scintillating tiles with waveshifting fibers imbedded in them for readout has been refined for use in SSC test calorimeters and for the CDF Endplug upgrade. The technique offers high light yield, good spatial uniformity, flexible readout mechanics and a very small “readout crack”. Various production techniques have been developed and optimized, including control and correction of scintillator plate uniformity, techniques for splicing plastic fibers with low light losses, and laser-cutting of the groove in which the fiber is placed.
THE INTERACTION OF HUMAN MONOCYTES AND LYMPHOCYTES

Monocytes isolated from the peripheral blood of tuberculin-positive and tuberculin-negative donors were exposed to PPD, extensively washed, and incubated with autologous or homologous lymphocytes. Lymphocyte transformation was measured morphologically and by incorporation of 14 C-labeled thymidine. Monocytes from tuberculin-positive subjects induced transformation of autologous lymphocytes in 19 of 29 experiments. Studies to define the optimal conditions of exposure to monocytes to PPD and to autologous lymphocytes showed that viable, metabolically intact monocytes are required. A ratio of only 1 monocyte to 100 lymphocytes sufficed to induce transformation; neutrophils were inactive. In general, PPD-sensitized monocytes failed to induce transformation of homologous lymphocytes from either tuberculin-positive or tuberculin-negative subjects. Direct contact between monocytes and lymphocytes was required for consistent transformation, and islands of transforming lymphocytes were observed around a central core of monocytes.
Design and some applications of extended bandwidth finite gain amplifiers

Abstract A general theory is developed for extended bandwidth operation of actively compensated finite gain amplifiers. Designs for three new circuits are given which implement the theory. These circuits employ only operational amplifiers and resistors and their gains depend only on their resistor ratios. Thus they are suitable for IC fabrication. Further in IC technology, the characteristics of the operational amplifiers as well as the resistor ratios track closely with each other with reference to temperature and aging. Thus the extended bandwidth operation of the amplifiers will be available over a wide temperature range as well as under varying aging conditions. Their characteristics can be tuned easily by trimming only two resistors. Applications of the new amplifiers have been considered in RC active filters as well as in inductance simulation schemes. Experimental results are given which closely agree with theoretical predictions. The results also indicate that substantial improvement in the usable bandwidth of the circuits employing the new amplifiers may be expected over those using the conventional design of finite gain amplifiers.
The second Born approximation and the Friedel sum rule

Abstract We improve the results of Agarwal and Singh for the screening length of an impurity potential. Following Agarwal and Singh we use the Friedel sum rule and evaluate the phase shift through second order in the Born approximation. The results still distinguish between donor and acceptor scattering centers, but with a different sign than given by Agarwal and Singh.
Characterization of spectral FRET imaging microscopy for monitoring nuclear protein interactions

Summary The spectral processed Forster resonance energy transfer (psFRET) imaging method provides an effective and fast method for measuring protein–protein interactions in living specimens. The commercially available linear unmixing algorithms efficiently remove the contribution of donor spectral bleedthrough to the FRET signal. However, the acceptor contribution to spectral bleedthrough in the FRET image cannot be similarly removed, since the acceptor spectrum is identical to the FRET spectrum. Here, we describe the development of a computer algorithm that measures and removes the contaminating ASBT signal in the sFRET image. The new method is characterized in living cells that expressed FRET standards in which the donor and acceptor fluorescent proteins are tethered by amino acid linkers of specific lengths. The method is then used to detect the homo-dimerization of a transcription factor in the nucleus of living cells, and then to measure the interactions of that protein with a second transcription factor.
Evaluation of ASME code flaw analysis procedure using the influence function method for application to PWR primary piping

Abstract This paper discusses stress intensity factor calculations and fatigue analysis for a PWR primary coolant piping system. The influence function method is applied to evaluate ASME Code Section XI Appendix A “analysis of flaw indication” for the application to a PWR primary piping. Results of the analysis are discussed in detail.
Asymmetric division of spindle microtubules and microfilaments during bovine meiosis from metaphase I to metaphase III.

The kinetics of spindle and chromosomes during bovine oocyte meiosis from meiosis I to meiosis III is described. The results of this study showed that (1) oocytes began to extrude the first polar body (Pb1) at the early anaphase I stage and the Pb1 totally separated from the mother cell only when oocytes reach the MII stage; (2) the morphology of the spindle changed from barrel-shaped at the metaphase stage to cylinder-shaped at early anaphase, and then to a thin, long triangle-shaped cone at late anaphase and telophase stages; (3) chromosome morphology went from an individual visible stage at metaphase to a less defined chromatin state during anaphase and telophase stages, and then back to visible individual chromosomes at the next metaphase; (4) chromatin that connected with the floor of the cone became the polar bodies and expelled, and almost all of the microtubules (MTs) and microfilaments (MFs) composing the spindles moved towards and contributed to the polar bodies; and (5) the size of the metaphase I (MI) spindle was larger than the metaphase II (MII) and metaphase III (MIII) spindles. The MII spindle, however, is more barrel-shaped than the MI spindle. This study suggests that spindle MTs and MFs during bovine oocyte meiosis are asymmetrically divided into the polar bodies. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 71: 220–226, 2005. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Environmental Esthetics and Interpersonal Attraction.

(1977). Environmental esthetics and interpersonal attraction. Western Journal of Speech Communication: Vol. 41, No. 2, pp. 126-130.
Energy, configurational forces and characteristic lengths associated with the continuum description of geometrically necessary dislocations

Abstract The objectives of this study are: (i) to define the portion of work on plastic deformation of crystals associated with the existence of geometrically necessary (GN) dislocations – on the basis of the mechanics of dislocations, (ii) to express this microstructural work in terms of the continuum representation of GN dislocations – the Nye’s dislocation density tensor – and thus establish a firm connection between the mechanics of dislocations and a continuum theory, and (iii) to explain the nature of resulting characteristic lengths. (i) Analysis of elementary energy sinks in dislocation mechanics leads to the conclusion that (a) the interaction energies amongst GN dislocation segments, and (b) the interaction energies between the GN segments and the boundaries must be identified with the microstructural work. (ii) After establishing a connection between the discrete and the continuum descriptions of the state of dislocations in a solid, the interaction energies – both, amongst the GN segments and between the GN segments and the boundaries – are expressed as functions of Nye’s dislocation densities. Configurational forces are defined as work-conjugates to Nye’s densities. The resulting microstructural work density and the microstructural constitutive relations are nonlocal. The microstructural constitutive law takes the form of a convolution integral over the domains with non-vanishing Nye’s densities. This is a direct consequence of the long-range interactions in dislocation mechanics. (iii) Continuum characteristic lengths are intimately connected with the nonlocal nature of the microstructural work density. They represent the dimensions of domains of integration in the convolution integrals associated with the nonlocal configurational forces. No characteristic length can be described as a material length. Dislocation mechanics lengths are absorbed into continuum fields. The continuum lengths are identified as problem-dependent (dimensions of obstacles to dislocation motion) and solution-dependent (the widths of boundary layers associated with each slip system).
Depressed Older Patients With the Atypical Features of Interpersonal Rejection Sensitivity and Reversed-Vegetative Symptoms are Similar to Younger Atypical Patients

Objectives The atypical depression (AD) subtype has rarely been examined in older patients. However, younger AD patients have been characterized as having more severe and chronic symptoms of depression compared with non-AD patients. Design Secondary data analysis by using analyses of variance and Growth Curve Modeling. Setting Clinical Research Center for the study of depression in later life. Participants Depressed older patients (N = 248) followed over 2 years. Method In a longitudinal study, we examined depression severity and chronicity in patients with major depression with some features of AD, specifically rejection sensitivity and reversed-vegetative symptoms (e.g., hyperphagia and hypersomnia), or leaden paralysis, and compared them to non-AD patients. The Diagnostic Interview Schedule (DIS) was used to assess depressive symptoms and history. Depression severity and chronicity were assessed every 3 months by using the Montgomery Asberg Depression Rating Scale. Results The AD symptom group reported more DIS depressive symptoms, more thoughts about wanting to die, earlier age of onset, poorer social support, and double the number of lifetime episodes than non-AD patients. Growth curve analyses revealed that, compared with non-AD patients, the AD symptom group had more residual symptoms of depression during the first year of follow-up but not during the second year. Conclusion Characteristics of older patients with features of AD are similar to younger patients. Assessment of atypical symptoms, in particular, rejection sensitivity and reversed-vegetative symptoms, is essential and should be considered in treatment plans.
“Don't Ask, Don't Tell”: The Influence of Stigma Concealing and Perceived Threat on Perceivers' Reactions to a Gay Target

This research examined reactions to a gay target who was either concealing or not concealing his sexual orientation under conditions of threat (HIV-positive) or no threat (healthy). When the target concealed his sexual orientation, participants were more willing to interact socially with him, but rated him as having more negative characteristics than when he was open about his sexual orientation. Participants rated a threatening target more negatively on a thermometer evaluation, perceived him to be more immoral, had more negative affective reactions, and desired more social distance than when the target was nonthreatening. The results are integrated with previous theoretical discussions and are considered in terms of the conflicting motivations of perceivers and targets.
Freezing of a two-dimensional binary hard-disk liquid: A density-functional approach.

The freezing of a two-dimensional binary hard-disk (BHD) liquid is investigated using an alternative density-functional approach. Our calculation indicates that within disk diameter ratios 0.81, a BHD liquid freezes into a substitutionally disordered triangular lattice via a weak first-order transition, in contrast to the hexatic phase (for 0.80.9) predicted from a computer-generated random-packing model. the BHD liquid also does not show the eutectic phase diagram found for binary hard spheres in three dimensions, but only spindle or azeotrope phase diagrams.
The propensity of alkoxide and aryloxide derivatives of tungsten carbonyls to aggregate in solution. Synthesis and X-ray structures of dinuclear, trinuclear and tetranuclear complexes derived from the MeOW(CO) 5 − anion

Abstract The complex [Et4N][W(CO)5OMe] (1) has been prepared from the reaction of the photochemically generated W(CO)5THF adduct and [Et4N][OH] in methanol. Complex 1 was shown to undergo rapid CO dissociation in THF to quantitatively provide the dimeric dianion, [W(CO)4OMe]22−. The resulting THF insoluble salt [Et4N]2[W(CO)4OMe]2 (2) has been structurally characterized by X-ray crystallography, with the doubly bridging methoxide ligands being in an anti configuration. Complex 2 was found to subsequently react with excess methoxide ligand in a THF slurry to afford the face-sharing octahedron complex [Et4N]3[W2(CO)6(OMe)3] (3) which contains three doubly bridging methoxide groups. In the absence of excess methoxide ligand complex 2 cleanly yields the tetrameric complex [Et4N]4[W(CO)3OMe]4 (4) which has been structurally characterized as a cubane-like arrangement with triply bridging μ3-methoxide groups and W(CO)3 units. Although complex 3 was not characterized in the solid state, the closely related glycolate derivative [Et4N]3[W2(CO)6(OCH2CH2OH)3] (5) was synthesized and its structure determined by X-ray crystallography. The trianions of complex 5 are linked in the crystal lattice by strong intermolecular hydrogen bonds. Crystal data for 2: space group P21/n, a = 7.696(2), b = 22.019(4), c = 9.714(2) A, β = 92.22(3)°, Z = 4, R = 6.43%. Crystal data for 4: space group Fddd, a = 12.433(9), b = 24.01(2), c = 39.29(3) A, Z = 8, R = 8.13%. Crystal data for 5: space group P212121, a = 11.43(2), b = 12.91(1), c = 29.85(6) A, Z = 8, R = 8.29%. Finally, the rate of CO ligand dissociation in the closely related aryloxide derivatives [Et4N][W(CO)5OR] (R = C6H5 and 3,5-F2C6H3) were measured to be 2.15 × 10−2 and 1.31 × 10−3 s−1, respectively, in THF solution at 5°C. Hence, the value of the rate constant of 2.15 × 10−2 s−1 establishes a lower limit for the first-order rate constant for CO loss in the W(CO)5OMe− anion, since the methoxide ligand is a better π-donating group than phenoxide.
Can biological calcification occur in the presence of pyrophosphate

It was shown that it is apparently impossible for any calcification to occur in a system which contains a constant, physiological concentration of inorganic pyrophosphate. These results give further support to the earlier suggestion that inhibitors of calcium phosphate crystal growth must be removed from or denied access to the site of calcification to allow for the normal formation of the mineral phase. This study also suggests that the means of assessing the relative importance of a calcification inhibitor should be altered, since it is the equilibrium concentration of an inhibitor, and not its initial concentration in an assay system, which has physiological relevance.
Normal and pathologic anatomy of the corpus Callosum by computed tomography

Abstract Computed tomography (CT) is capable of showing a variety of abnormalities of the corpus callosum, many of which are difficult to diagnose by cerebral angiography and pneumoencephalography. Coronal sections, provide important information as a supplement to standard axial scans. Corenal images are especially helpful in differentiating between intraventricular and paraventricular lesions. A spectrum of cases demonstrating the value of CT in assessing lesions of the corpus callosum is presented.
AN UNCOMMON ANOMALY OF POSITION OF THE PENIS 1

SUMMARY An uncommon anomaly of position of the penis is described. The anatomical features are similar to those associated with exstrophy of the urinary bladder. In this patient the genitourinary system was intact except for the strange position of the penis. The penis pointed upward toward the patient's head and was held in that position by a fibrous band of tissue between the widely separated pubic bones. There was also a spread of the rectus muscles with a ventral hernia between them. The condition was corrected surgically, and the technique is described. Probably the cause of this condition is partial persistence of a cloacal membrane which existed to a lesser degree than in patients who have exstrophy of the urinary bladder with associated epispadias.
ON THE STOCHASTIC INTERPRETATION OF A PATHOLOGICAL CELL RENEWAL SYSTEM. I. THEORETICAL BASIS.

The population constituted by parenchymal liver cells is normally a static or slowly expanding one. This is in contrast with “renewal systems,” or cell populations which turn over more or less rapidly. In experimental situations tending to produce cirrhosis of the liver the rate of cell renewal is appreciable. The situation then corresponds to the definition of a “renewal system.”
Comparison of Quality of Life Between Alcoholic and Nonalcoholic Patients After Liver Transplantation

Alcoholic (n = 18) and nonalcoholic (n = 85) recipients of a liver transplant were compared 1-3 years post-surgery on the Quality of Life Inventory. No differences between groups were observed on any of the 26 domains of health, behavior, and psychosocial functioning. These results indicate that quality of life is similar for alcoholic and nonalcoholic patients after liver transplantation surgery.
Heliox Therapy in Acute Severe Asthma

Study objective To assess how patients with respiratory acidosis from acute severe asthma respond to helium-oxygen (heliox) mixtures. Design Consecutive case series. Setting Urban community teaching hospital. Patients Over a 2-year period, 12 asthmatics (mean age, 33.8 ± 11.3 years) presented to the emergency department with acute respiratory acidosis (pH 2 ≥45 mm Hg). All 12 patients were treated with heliox (60 to 70% helium/30 to 40% oxygen). Five patients received heliox through a ventilator and seven received heliox via face mask. Results Arterial blood gases (ABGs) were drawn immediately before and at a mean of 49.2 ± 25.2 min after beginning heliox therapy. No therapeutic interventions were made between ABGs. For the entire group, the mean PaCO 2 decreased from 57.9 to 47.5 mm Hg (p 2 (to normal or by ≥15%) coupled with a rise in pH by ≥0.05. Using this definition, there were eight responders (67%) and four nonresponders (33%). The responders had a shorter duration of symptoms (17.8 vs 78.0 h, p Conclusion Heliox can rapidly improve ventilation in patients presenting to an emergency department with acute severe asthma with respiratory acidosis and a short duration of symptoms.
Fault Location in Distribution Networks by Compressive Sensing

This paper proposes a novel method for fault location in distribution networks using compressive sensing. During fault and prefault voltages are measured by smart meters along the feeders. The voltage sag vector and impedance matrix produce a current vector that is sparse enough with one nonzero element. This element corresponds to the bus at which a fault occurs. Due to the limited number of smart meters installed at primary feeders, our system equation is underdetermined. Therefore, the $\ell ^{1}$ -norm minimization method is used to calculate the current vector. Primal-dual interior point (PDIP) and the log barrier algorithm (LBA) are utilized to solve the optimization problem with and without measurement noises, respectively. Our proposed method is implemented on a real 13.8-kV, 134-bus distribution network when single-phase, three-phase, double-phase, and double-phase-to-ground short circuits occur. Simulation results show the robustness of the proposed method in noisy environments and satisfactory performance for various faults with different resistances.
Prevalence of missing posterior teeth and intraarticular temporomandibular disorders.

Abstract Statement of Problem. The association between missing mandibular posterior teeth and the development of intraarticular temporomandibular disorders (TMDs) remains unclear. Purpose. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of missing mandibular posterior teeth and intraarticular TMDs in a mixed population of asymptomatic subjects and symptomatic TMD patients. Material and Methods. Eighty-two asymptomatic volunteers and 263 symptomatic TMD patients were included in this study. Asymptomatic volunteers completed a subjective questionnaire and underwent clinical examination to document the absence of TMD signs and symptoms. All symptomatic subjects had localized jaw joint pain and pain on movement or when eating. The number of missing mandibular bicuspid and molar teeth (excluding third molars) in each subject was recorded, and magnetic resonance images were made to document the presence or absence of disk displacement in the temporomandibular joints. Subjects were divided into 4 groups: group 1=asymptomatic, normal magnetic resonance imaging result; group 2=asymptomatic, disk displacement; group 3=symptomatic, normal magnetic resonance imaging result; and group 4=symptomatic, disk displacement. Collected data were analyzed with chi-square tests ( P Results. A positive association between missing mandibular posterior teeth and the presence of disk displacement was found. Conclusion. The literature does not suggest that replacement of missing posterior teeth prevents the development of TMDs. However, missing mandibular posterior teeth may accelerate the development of degenerative joint disease. (J Prosthet Dent 2002;87:45-50.)
Modeling precipitation from concentrated solutions with the EQ3/6 chemical speciation codes

Abstract Four simple precipitation problems are solved to examine use of numerical equilibrium codes. The study emphasizes concentrated solutions, assumes both ideal and non-ideal solutions, and employs different databases and different activity-coefficient relationships. The study uses the EQ3/6 numerical speciation codes. Results show satisfactory agreement between solubility products calculated from free-energy relationships and those calculated from concentrations and activity coefficients. Most material balances are also satisfactory, but the modeling of an evaporation campaign exhibits serious deficiencies in the balances. Precipitates show slightly higher solubilities when solutions are regarded as non-ideal than when considered ideal, agreeing with theory. A code may or may not predict precipitation from a solution dilute in the precipitating species, depending on the database or activity-coefficient relationship used. In solutes remaining after precipitations there is little consistency in calculated concentrations and activity coefficients. They do not appear to depend on the database or activity-coefficient relationship used. These results reinforce warnings in the literature about perfunctory or mechanical use of numerical speciation codes.
From Functionalism to Cultural Studies: Manifest Ruptures and Latent Continuities

Functionalism practically disappeared as an explicit tradition in communications due to the radical theoretical realignments of the 1980s. Three criticisms proved decisive to this undoing; political conservatism; problems of logic, mainly tautology and an inappropriate appeal to teleological explanations; and a tendency to impose psychological and sociological analyses on specifically cultural materials. Formulated in reference to systemic Parsonian functionalism, which dominated the broader social sciences, these criticisms are relatively easy to reconcile within the contextual, actionist Mertonian tradition, which took root in the communications context, but only through a constructive dialogue with the cultural studies and cultural indicators approaches, both of which have spent the last decade investigating a traditionally functionalist concern – the hypothesis of cultural systems integration. If functionalism offers to this cross-fertilization a focus on the normative orders of society, the cultural indicators approach provides a rigorous methodology and cultural studies cautions a greater sensitivity to social hierarchies.
The Politics of Environmental Risk: Perceptions of Risk Assessment in the State Legislatures

As state governments increasingly turn to the process of quantitative risk assessment to set environmental policy, the question of what state lawmakers know and believe about risk and the risk assessment process has become critical. The perceptions of state legislators may affect their decisions about a wide range of environmental conflicts, from funding water treatment facilities to siting hazardous waste incinerators. This article reports the results of a nationwide survey of state legislators and their staff that explored their intuitive understanding of environmental risk and risk assessment. The survey revealed strong support for the use of risk assessment by most state lawmakers, but significant differences, by gender and political affiliation, in perceptions of the risks from chemicals, the value of risk assessment for setting environmental policies, and the environmental risks faced by racial minorities.
Integrating heterogeneous databases in clustered medic care environments using object-oriented technology

The organization of modern medical care environments into disease-related clusters, such as a cancer center, a diabetes clinic, etc., has the side-effect of introducing multiple heterogeneous databases, often containing similar information, within the same organization. This heterogeneity fosters incompatibility and prevents the effective sharing of data amongst applications at different sites. Although integration of heterogeneous databases is now feasible, in the medical arena this is often an ad hoc process, not founded on proven database technology or formal methods. In this paper we illustrate the use of a high-level object- oriented semantic association method to model information found in different databases into an integrated conceptual global model that integrates the databases. We provide examples from the medical domain to illustrate an integration approach resulting in a consistent global view, without attacking the autonomy of the underlying databases.© (1994) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Psychosocial stress is associated with obesity and diet quality in Hispanic/Latino adults.

Purpose To examine the association of psychosocial stress with obesity, adiposity, and dietary intake in a diverse sample of Hispanic/Latino adults.
A fuzzy approach towards inferential data mining

Abstract Data mining can benefit from fuzzy techniques to order an otherwise intractable search. This paper develops a fuzzy logic for rule discovery and inference with application to decision support systems. Data mining traditionally addresses the randomization of numerical data. It is not only clear that such mining operations can be readily extended to symbolic data, but that this then implies that two other results will follow. First, symbolic data can take the form of natural language in supervised or unsupervised learning; and second, randomization can take the form of rules for use in an expert system. It will be argued that the knowledge acquisition bottleneck can only be cracked if expert systems are bootstrapped using natural language.
SATPOLY: a self-aligned tungsten on polysilicon process for CMOS VLSI applications

The use of complementarily doped n/sup +/ and p/sup +/ polysilicon has been proposed for future generations of CMOS technology. The implementation of this technology requires low-resistance shunts both to reduce the overall resistance of the gate level interconnections and to short out the polysilicon p-n junctions. A process in which tungsten is chosen to provide the low-resistance shunts, with the necessary gate sidewall spacers formed before the selective deposition of tungsten, is described. A nonselective tungsten deposition process, originally developed explicitly for the implementation of direct tungsten gate MOS technology, is a key step in the formation of the spacers in the SATPOLY (self-aligned tungsten on polysilicon) process. The work function stability and the adhesion of the tungsten-polysilicon double-layer structure as a function of the polysilicon glue layer thickness have also been investigated. >
AN AUTOMATIC MODELING APPROACH TO THE STRATEGIC ANALYSIS OF SEMICONDUCTOR FABRICATION FACILITIES

We developed a framework for analyzing semiconductor fabrication facilities where each processing step of each product can use a collection of resources. The interaction of these resources is not prespecified by the analysis system but is described by the modeler. Our framework includes three types of modeling approaches: analytic approximation, simulation, and a hybrid analytic/simulation technique. All models are automatically generated from a data description of the facility and the products produced, along with the resource interaction models provided by the user. The novel feature of our approach is that the data description language includes a simple but quite flexible simulation-like modeling language for expressing resource interactions. Our analytic modeling approach is an extension of the standard decomposition method used for studying networks of queues. In our hybrid analytic/simulation technique we use simulation to estimate processing step flow times to improve the performance of the analytic model.
Applications of the liquid core optical ring resonator platform

ABSTRACT The liquid core optical ring resonator (LCORR) integrates an array of optical ring resonators into a microfluidics channel. The LCORR is made of a micro-sized glass capillary; the circular cross-section of the capillary acts as an optical ring resonator while the resonating light interacts with the fluid sample passing through the core. Q-factors larger than 10 7 have been achieved in LCORRs on the order of 100 micrometers in diameter. This implies an effective interaction length between the evanes cent field of the resonator and the fluidic core of over 10 cm. The novel integrated architecture and excellent photonic performance lead to a number of applications in sensing, analytical chemistry, and photonics. For the last decade, optical ring resonators have been explored for label-free bio/chemical detection. The LCORR architecture possesses the same capabilities as other optical ring resonator bio/chemical sensors while also integrating micro-capillary-based fluidics with the sensor head. The integrated fluidics design in combination with the micro-sized sensor head and pico-liter sample volume lead to a lab-on-a-chip sensor for biomolecules, such as biomarkers and specific DNA sequences. Also, because the ring resonator creates a high-intensity field inside the microfluidic channel, the LCORR is an excellent micr ofluidic platform for surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) detection in silver colloids. Fina lly, the high quality factor of the capillary-based resonator enables novel opto-fluidic devices, such as dye lasers. We will discuss the details of these concepts and present our research results in each of these applications. Keywords: Ring resonator, whispering gallery modes, label-free detection, microfluidic laser, SERS.
Frictional Voltammetry with Copper

This paper presents an experimental study correlating frictional behavior with in situ voltammetry for a unidirectional sliding contact between a hemispherical tipped alumina probe and a flat rotating copper counterface (maximum Hertzian contact pressure of 68 MPa and sliding speed of 10 mm/s). The contact was immersed in an aqueous 0.1 M Na2CO3 solution (pH ∼11) where the copper counterface acted as the working electrode in a potentiostat controlled three-electrode cell; a coiled Pt wire was used as the counter electrode and a saturated calomel electrode (SCE) as the reference. Clear and reproducible trends were found between friction coefficient and published data suggesting the onset of particular redox reactions, graphically presented in a frictional voltammetry plot. At anodic potentials primarily associated with the formation of copper(I) oxide (Cu2O) (V vs SCE ∼−0.25), the measured friction coefficient was in the range μ ∼0.4–0.5. At cathodic potentials primarily associated with the formation of CuO, Cu(OH)2, and CuCO3 (V vs SCE ∼−0.10), the friction coefficient transitions to the range μ ∼0.7–1.0. At sustained cathodic potentials associated with reduction of the native copper oxide, Cu2O, (V vs SCE ∼−0.65), the friction coefficient is observed to fluctuate between μ ∼0.2 and 0.5, arguably a result of exposure of bare copper due to non-uniform reduction (fractional coverage) of Cu2O.
High dimethylsulfide photolysis rates in nitrate-rich Antarctic waters

[1] The photochemistry of dimethylsulfide (DMS) was examined in the Southern Ocean to assess its impact on the biogeochemical dynamics of DMS in Antarctic waters. Very high DMS photolysis rate constants (0.16–0.23 h−1) were observed in surface waters exposed to full sunlight. DMS photolysis rates increased linearly with added nitrate concentrations, and 35% of the DMS loss in unamended samples was attributed to the photochemistry of ambient nitrate (29 μM). Experiments with optical filters showed that the UV-A band of sunlight (320–400 nm) accounted for ∼65% of DMS photolysis suggesting that dissolved organic matter was the main photosensitizer for DMS photolysis. During the austral spring, DMS photolysis was the dominant loss mechanism under non-bloom and non-ice cover conditions owing to the high doses and deep penetration of UV radiation in the water column, low observed microbial consumption rates, and high in situ nitrate concentrations.
Autoreduction of Pd−Co and Pt−Co Cyanogels: Exploration of Cyanometalate Coordination Chemistry at Elevated Temperatures

Cyanogels are coordination polymers made from the reaction of a chlorometalate and a cyanometalate in aqueous solution, which undergo a sol–gel transition to form stable gels. At temperatures above 240 °C, the cyanide ligand acts as a reducing agent and reduces the metal centers to lower oxidation states. To understand the mechanism of the autoreduction, the thermal reduction of the Pd−Co cyanogel system formed by the reaction of PdCl42− and Co(CN)63− was studied in an inert atmosphere. It was found that the reduction proceeds through two polymeric cyanide-containing intermediates, CoPd(CN)4 and Pd(CN)2, that form upon reduction of Co3+ to Co2+ and involves a significant rearrangement of the coordination structure. The two intermediates upon further heating reduce to metallic products, which by solid-state diffusion form a single Pd/Co alloy product. CoPd(CN)4 was found to have a hydrated form Co(H2O)2Pd(CN)4·4H2O with a layered structure crystallizing in an orthorhombic Pnma space group. The Pt−Co cyanog...
An evaluation of selected herbal reference texts and comparison to published reports of adverse herbal events.

There has been a recent proliferation of medical reference texts intended to guide practitioners whose patients use herbal therapies. We systematically assessed six herbal reference texts to evaluate the information they contain on herbal toxicity. We selected six major herbal references published from 1996 to 2000 to evaluate the adequacy of their toxicological information in light of published adverse events. To identify herbs most relevant to toxicology, we reviewed herbal-related calls to our regional California Poison Control System, San Francisco division (CPCS-SF) in 1998 and identified the 12 herbs (defined as botanical dietary supplements) most frequently involved in these CPCS-SF referrals. We searched Medline (1966 to 2000) to identify published reports of adverse effects potentially related to these same 12 herbs. We scored each herbal reference text on the basis of information inclusiveness for the target 12 herbs, with a maximal overall score of 3. The herbs, identified on the basis of CPCS-SF call frequency were: St John’s wort, ma huang, echinacea, guarana, ginkgo, ginseng, valerian, tea tree oil, goldenseal, arnica, yohimbe and kava kava. The overall herbal reference scores ranged from 2.2 to 0.4 (median 1.1). The Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database received the highest overall score and was the most complete and useful reference source. All of the references, however, lacked sufficient information on management of herbal medicine overdose, and several had incorrect overdose management guidelines that could negatively impact patient care. Current herbal reference texts do not contain sufficient information for the assessment and management of adverse health effects of botanical therapies.
Particle-Stabilized Defect Gel in Cholesteric Liquid Crystals

Dispersions of colloidal particles in cholesteric liquid crystals form an unusual solid by stabilizing a network of linear defects under tension in the ideal layered structure of the cholesteric. The large length scales of the cholesteric liquid crystals allowed direct observation of the network structure, and its properties were correlated with rheological measurements of elasticity. This system serves as a model for a class of solids formed when particles are mixed with layered materials such as thermotropic and lyotropic smectic liquid crystals and block copolymers.
Hippocampal lesions and learned taste aversion

Rats with hippocampal lesions were compared with neocortical and sham-operated controls on a taste aversion learning task using an 8% sucrose solution (CS) and 2% body weight IP injection of.15 M lithium chloride (UCS). Hippocampally ablated animals acquired the taste aversion as rapidly as controls after a single CS-UCS pairing. No differences were found among the groups in terms of either the magnitude or extinction of the aversion. The results do not support a general loss of response inhibition interpretation of hippocampal function. Rather, the results confirm and extend a number of previous findings indicating that the enhanced perseverative tendencies frequently observed in rats with hippocampal lesions are absent in consummatory-type tasks.
Use of the boundary element method for biological morphometrics.

Abstract Tensorial morphometric assessments of form difference can aid in the understanding of the cause of the form difference by providing reference frame independent, anisotropic, non-homogenous descriptions. The majority of biological and prosthetic structures cannot be adequately analyzed by current methods due to the paucity of anatomical landmarks and methodological requirements of subdivision through the domain. Internal subdivisions can be eliminated with the boundary element method (BEM). A non-landmark (NL) method can be developed by the combination of elliptical Fourier analysis (EFA) and BEM. The appropriateness of NL and BEM was investigated. The growth of the female rat neural skull from 7 to 14 postnatal days was calculated with respect to increase in area. Linear and quadratic BEM landmark analysis were made using 10 and 5 elements, respectively. Five hundred linear BEM elements were constructed from the EFA equations for NL. The form change tensors were obtained by the solution of the Laplace equation using boundary displacements as the essential boundary conditions. For comparison, simplex triangular finite element analysis (FEA), quadrilateral FEA and macroelement analysis were made on the same structure. Results correspond well to the two major growth process in this time period; (1) high cerebellar growth, and (2) relatively higher facial versus neural growth. The results in other regions are close to the biologically observed 36% increase in area. The average difference between BEM, NL versus FEA is 1.9 and 2.8%. Trends in results with position are almost identical for BEM, NL, MEM and quadrilateral FEA. The morphometric landmark BEM technique requires an additional numerical scheme to eliminate the singularities near the boundary. NL may prove to be a morphometric tool capable of analyzing form change in structures which do not possess anatomical landmarks and had therefore previously eluded tensorial analysis.
Mimicking lip features in free-flap reconstruction of lip defects.

This paper introduces a technique of lip reconstruction using free flaps in which recognisable landmarks are mimicked by strategic placement of flap junctions. The technique was applied in 15 patients undergoing reconstruction of combined cheek and lip defects using single (n= 9) or double (n= 6) free flaps. Attention to flap design and strategic placement of flap junctions successfully created the vermilion-cutaneous junction, oral commissure and labiomental groove. The presence of these distinguishing features improved the appearance of the reconstructed lip.
Efficacy and Safety of Total Parenteral Nutrition in Pediatric Patients

Pediatric patients differ from adult patients because of active musculoskeletal growth and development of visceral organs and because they have a proportionately smaller nutritional reserve, especially premature infants. Measures of outcome of effective nutritional support in pediatric patients who have experienced trauma or medical disease or who have undergone surgical procedures include weight gain, increased height and circumference of the head, increased hepatic synthesis of plasma proteins, immunocompetence, decreased morbidity, improved survival, and fast recovery. If a pediatric patient cannot eat or be tube-fed enterally after 3 days of recovery and support with fluids, parenteral nutrition is indicated. Examples in which this treatment has dramatically decreased morbidity include gastroschisis, short-bowel syndrome, necrotizing enterocolitis, and Hirschsprung's disease. Contraindications to its use include severe congenital (usually genetic) defects and terminal cancer, conditions in which life expectancy and quality of life are severely decreased. The team approach to parenteral and enteral nutrition in pediatric patients is preferred, and stable patients receiving long-term nutritional support, including infants, should be considered for home parenteral nutrition. When administered by protocol, parenteral nutrition is safe in pediatric patients. In properly selected pediatric patients, direct and indirect costs for such therapy may be significantly less than those in adults, and the cost-to-benefit ratio is appreciably higher when life expectancy, parental pleasure, and potential work productivity are considered. Ethical and social issues in initiating and discontinuing parenteral nutrition are best decided during thorough empathic discussions between physicians and parents
A Study of the Manifestations of Rheumatic Fever Following Cessation of Therapy

Following cessation of therapy for acute rheumatic fever manifestations of rheumatic activity frequently reappear. The incidence of these manifestations and their severity were studied during the 3-week observational period in 257 patients treated as part of the Cooperative Clinical Trial on the treatment of rheumatic fever. From the analysis of these manifestations certain concepts may be derived concerning diagnostic and therapeutic criteria.
Parental anxiety and child symptomatology: An examinzation of additive and interactive effects of parent psychopathology

The current study examined relations between parent anxiety and child anxiety, depression, and externalizing symptoms. In addition, the study tested the additive and interactive effects of parent anxiety with parent depression and externalizing symptoms in relation to child symptoms. Forty-eight parents with anxiety disorders and 49 parents without any psychiatric disorder participated with one of their children (ages 6 to 14 years; 46.4% male; 75.8% Caucasian). Parent anxiety was related to both child anxiety and depression, but not child externalizing symptoms. Hierarchical regression analyses showed that only parent externalizing symptoms had additive effects, beyond parent anxiety symptoms, in relation to child anxiety symptoms. Further, parent anxiety symptoms moderated the relationship between parent and child externalizing symptoms, such that the strength of this relationship was reduced in the presence of high levels of parent anxiety symptoms. Results of this study illuminate the role of parent comorbidity in understanding relations between parent and child symptoms.
Corrections for correlation during homogeneous void nucleation

Abstract The standard kinetic equations for modeling homogeneous nucleation contain an inconsistency because the terms representing agglomeration are valid only for random distributions of particles, while the building up and breaking down of clusters upsets this randomness. During the nucleation stage proper, agglomeration has only minimal impact on the presumed random distribution of particles. Thus, for low-density systems in the nucleation regime, this inconsistency may be corrected by replacing the atomistically-based dissociation rate constants with net dissociation rates. A Monte Carlo simulation of cluster break-up in a face-centered-cubic metal has been used to estimate these net rates to be some 30% of the atomistic dissociation rates. Numerical integration of the governing rate equations with and without corrections for correlation indicates that correlation effects increase steady state cluster concentrations, and the nucleation rate, by about an order of magnitude.