cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Bermudagrass management in the southern Piedmont USA. X: Coastal productivity and persistence in response to fertilization and defoliation regimes

Productivity, quality, and persistence of 'Coastal' bermudagrass [Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pers.] pastures are affected by fertilization, but possible interactions with defoliation regime including animal grazing are not fully known. We evaluated three sources of fertilization with equivalent N rates [inorganic, crimson clover (Trifolium incarnatum L.) cover crop plus inorganic, and chicken (Gallus gallus) broiler litter] factorially arranged with four defoliation regimes [unharvested, cattle (Bos taurus) grazing to maintain high (4.5 ± 1.6 Mg ha -1 ) and low (2.5 ± 1.1 Mg ha -1 ) forage mass, and hayed monthly] on estimated forage dry matter production, forage and surface residue C/N ratio, and ground cover of pastures on a Typic Kanhapludult in Georgia during 5 yr. Mean annual forage dry matter production was 7.5 ± 0.7 Mg ha -1 with hay harvest but declined (1.3 Mg ha -1 yr -1 ) significantly with time as a result of lower precipitation. With grazing, estimated production was 8.3 ± 1.0 Mg ha -1 and did not change with time, suggesting that grazing cattle sustained forage productivity by recycling nutrients and creating better surface soil conditions. Coastal bermudagrass as a percentage of ground cover (initially 81%) declined 5 ± 2% yr -1 with unharvested and grazing to maintain low forage mass, declined 3 ± 1% yr -1 with haying, and remained unchanged (-1 ± 1% yr -1 ) with grazing to maintain high forage mass. Pastures with high forage mass were more productive than with low forage mass (9.2 ± 1.6 vs. 7.5 ± 1.1 Mg ha -1 ) from a forage sustainability perspective, primarily by avoiding encroachment of undesirable plant species.
Enhancement of Ocular In Situ Gelling Properties of Low Acyl Gellan Gum by Use of Ion Exchange

Abstract Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine if the addition of calcium gluconate to gellan solution results in a stronger gel structure on initial exposure to tear fluid due to the displacement of calcium from the gluconate ion by tear monovalent cations (Na+, K+). Methods: Test solutions of gellan and gellan-calcium gluconate were mixed thoroughly with simulated tear fluid (STF) at a 5:1 ratio. The resulting gel was measured for viscosity at 32°C–36°C. Results: The addition of optimized amounts of calcium gluconate to gellan formulations resulted in gellan-calcium gluconate-STF gels of higher strength (statistically significant) than when gellan alone was mixed with STF. Gellan experimental preparations demonstrated thixotropic behavior both before and after addition of STF. Conclusions: It appears possible to enhance the initial in situ gel-forming properties of gellan by adding a divalent cation bound to an ion exchange molecule or resin. Optimal amounts of polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) a...
Dataflow Mini-Graphs: Amplifying Superscalar Capacity and Bandwidth

A mini-graph is a dataflow graph that has an arbitrary internal size and shape but the interface of a singleton instruction: two register inputs, one register output, a maximum of one memory operation, and a maximum of one (terminal) control transfer. Previous work has exploited dataflow sub-graphs whose execution latency can be reduced via programmable FPGA-style hardware. In this paper we show that mini-graphs can improve performance by amplifying the bandwidths of a superscalar processor's stages and the capacities of many of its structures without custom latency-reduction hardware. Amplification is achieved because the processor deals with a complete mini-graph via a single quasi-instruction, the handle. By constraining mini-graph structure and forcing handles to behave as much like singleton instructions as possible, the number and scope of the modifications over a conventional superscalar microarchitecture is kept to a minimum. This paper describes mini-graphs, a simple algorithm for extracting them from basic block frequency profiles, and a microarchitecture for exploiting them. Cycle-level simulation of several benchmark suites shows that mini-graphs can provide average performance gains of 2-12% over an aggressive baseline, with peak gains exceeding 40%. Alternatively, they can compensate for substantial reductions in register file and scheduler size, and in pipeline bandwidth.
A Macro and Micro-Level Evaluation of Stakeholders’ Collaboration for Sustainable City Logistics Operations

City logistics involves movement of city goods in urban areas respecting the municipal and administrative guidelines. The key goals of city logistics planning are maximizing vehicle movement and utilization, while minimising vehicle emissions and traffic congestion. Collaboration is vital to managing city logistics operations efficiently. Collaboration can take place in the form of goods consolidation, sharing of resources, information sharing, and so on. Two categories of models are proposed to evaluate these collaboration strategies. At the macro level, we present the collaboration matrix model; and at the micro level, we present the operational level model. The macro-level model focuses on the strategic decision making process necessary for stakeholders’ collaboration given the socio-cultural characteristics, economic, and environmental constraint factors, while the micro-level model applies the collaboration decision-making criteria derived from the macro-level analytic result to improve the activities of the city logistics operators. Results of the computational testing of our methodology on vehicle selection, goods to vehicle assignment, goods distribution and environmental impact assessment are discussed, showing that the collaboration strategies of stakeholders, if optimized, can improve city logistics operations. The proposed work is novel and has strong practical applicability for logistics planners and decision makers in planning right collaboration strategies for sustainable city logistics operations.
Bookshelf and Bird: Enabling real walking in large VR spaces

We present two novel redirection techniques to enable real walking in large virtual environments (VEs) using only “room-scale” tracked spaces. The techniques, called Bookshelf and Bird, provide narrative-consistent redirection to keep the user inside the physical space, and require the user to walk to explore the VE. The underlying concept, called cell-based redirection, is to divide the virtual world into discrete cells that have the same size as the physical tracking space. The techniques then can redirect the users without altering the relationship between the user, the physical space, and the virtual cell. In this way, users can always access the entire cell using real walking.
A MEMS scanner with lateral and axial scanning capability for dual axes confocal endomicroscopic in-vivo imaging (Conference Presentation)

Aimed to build a dual-axes confocal endomicroscope with an outer diameter of 5.5mm for in-vivo imaging applications, an electrostatic MEMS scanner has been developed to enable two dimensional (2D) light scanning in either horizontal plane or vertical cross-sectional plane. The device has a compact structure design to match the dual axes confocal architecture in the probe without blocking the collimated light beams of excitation and collection, and a cutting-free silicon-on-insulator(SOI) micromachining process is used for the fabrication. A novel lever-based gimbal-like mechanism is employed to enable three degrees of freedom motions for lateral and axial light scanning, and its geometry is optimized for achieving large deflection with high scanning speed. Based on parametric excitation, the device can work in resonant modes. Testing result shows that, up to ±27° optical deflection angle for inner axis torsion motion with a frequency of ~4.9kHz, up to ±28.5° optical deflection angle for outer axis torsion motion with a frequency of~0.65kHz and ~360μm stroke for out-of-plane translation motion with a frequency of ~0.53kHz are achieved with <60V driving voltage. Based on these results, 2D imaging with frame rate of 5~10Hz and large field of view (1000μm x 1000μm in horizontal plane and 1000μm x 400μm in vertical plane) can be enabled by this scanner.
Prenatal Nicotine Exposure Disrupts Infant Neural Markers of Orienting.

Introduction Prenatal nicotine exposure (PNE) from maternal cigarette smoking is linked to developmental deficits, including impaired auditory processing, language, generalized intelligence, attention, and sleep. Fetal brain undergoes massive growth, organization, and connectivity during gestation, making it particularly vulnerable to neurotoxic insult. Nicotine binds to nicotinic acetylcholine receptors, which are extensively involved in growth, connectivity, and function of developing neural circuitry and neurotransmitter systems. Thus, PNE may have long-term impact on neurobehavioral development. The purpose of this study was to compare the auditory K-complex, an event-related potential reflective of auditory gating, sleep preservation and memory consolidation during sleep, in infants with and without PNE and to relate these neural correlates to neurobehavioral development. Methods We compared brain responses to an auditory paired-click paradigm in 3- to 5-month-old infants during Stage 2 sleep, when the K-complex is best observed. We measured component amplitude and delta activity during the K-complex. Results Infants with PNE demonstrated significantly smaller amplitude of the N550 component and reduced delta-band power within elicited K-complexes compared to nonexposed infants and also were less likely to orient with a head turn to a novel auditory stimulus (bell ring) when awake. Conclusions PNE may impair auditory sensory gating, which may contribute to disrupted sleep and to reduced auditory discrimination and learning, attention re-orienting, and/or arousal during wakefulness reported in other studies. Implications Links between PNE and reduced K-complex amplitude and delta power may represent altered cholinergic and GABAergic synaptic programming and possibly reflect early neural bases for PNE-linked disruptions in sleep quality and auditory processing. These may pose significant disadvantage for language acquisition, attention, and social interaction necessary for academic and social success.
Does Task-Specific Knowledge Improve Audit Quality: Evidence from Audits of Income Tax Accounts

Two forms of expertise can influence audit quality: industry and task-specific expertise. If tax knowledge is task-specific rather than industry-specific, audit offices with increased exposure to complex tax issues will develop this task-specific expertise. Using outcomes related to income tax account audits, we examine whether tax task-specific knowledge (TSK) accumulates at the audit office level and affects the income tax accounts’ audit quality. We find that tax TSK increases the income tax accounts' audit quality, suggesting individual tax TSK accumulates at the office level. Additionally, semi-structured interviews of partners/senior managers at a Big 4 audit firms validate group processing theory as an explanation for TSK developing at the office level. We contribute to and extend the literature examining audit office expertise by providing evidence that exposure to complex tax issues develop TSK. That TSK accumulates at the office level and enhances audit quality. These findings provide archival and qualitative evidence of how TSK develops at the office level.
Virus infection of polarized epithelial cells.

Publisher Summary This chapter focuses on the interaction of viruses with epithelial cells. The role of specific pathways of virus entry and release in the pathogenesis of viral infection is examined together with the mechanisms utilized by viruses to circumvent the epithelial barrier. Polarized epithelial cells in culture, which can be grown on permeable supports, provide excellent systems for investigating the events in virus entry and release at the cellular level, and much information is being obtained using such systems. Much remains to be learned about the precise routes by which many viruses traverse the epithelial barrier to initiate their natural infection processes, although important information has been obtained in some systems. Another area of great interest for future investigation is the process of virus entry and release from other polarized cell types, including neuronal cells.
Consistent-labeling problems and their algorithms

Two new classes of theories have been developed giving the expected complexities of three Consistent-Labeling Problem (CLP), or Constraint-Satisfaction, algorithms: Backtracking, Forward Checking and Word-wise Forward Checking. Apart from giving the exact expected complexity for these algorithms for the underlying CLP distribution and domain, these theories provide useful approximations for the complexity of solving essentially any individual CLP. Given this, and the fact that the theories can reflect changes in complexity due to changes in the ordering of variables used in the search, these theories have the potential to afford significant savings for any individual CLP, by predicting, prior to search, good orderings for use in solving that CLP. We are concurrently developing improved CLP algorithms based on this and similar ordering effects.
Methodological Issues in Rural Health Research and Care

Numerous calls have been made to increase the quantity and the quality of research on rural health and rural health care (Cohen, Braden, & Ward, 1993). A cogent response to this plea necessarily mandates greater attention to various methodological issues and objectives. We examine three general issues. The first is the estimation of disease parameters, such as disease frequency or exposure effects in rural populations—that is, focusing attention on people who live in rural areas and on the important health problems of these populations.
Biosynthesis of Peptidoglycan in Gaffkya Homari: Regulation of Transpeptidation by Acceptor Peptide

Gaffkya homari (Aerococcus viridans) contains a system for the biosynthesis of peptidoglycan(PG) that utilizes penicillin-sensitive targets which are not N ∊-(dAla) acceptor transpeptidases. In contrast to cross-linking enzymes from other bacteria, the transpeptidase from this gram-positive organism is essentially insensitive to inhibition by penicillin (Hammes, 1976). Thus, the target of penicillin in G. homari is different from that identified by Tipper and Strominger (1965) for Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli. Because of this difference, an understanding of β-lactam action in this unique organism is of primary interest.
Employing Perceptual-Learning Research in Journalism and Communication: Immediate and delayed effects of a perceptual-learning module on AP editing accuracy

Perceptual-learning methods teach concepts and skills using numerous, rapid-fire questions and immediate visual feedback. A quasi-experiment compared a digital perceptual-learning module (PLM) of 2...
Chapter 9 – Troubleshooting

This chapter gives practical advice on how to troubleshoot common setbacks in feeding treatment. The author once again reminds the reader that certain problems, medical in nature, are not addressed in the text. Some problematic behaviors are listed, including expelling or packing food; however, the distinction is made between discontinuation of intervention for certain behaviors, and discontinuation for reasons shown to be unsafe for the client. Such reasons include self-injurious behavior (SIB), allergic reactions, digestive or other deleterious problems. There are situations where treatment time for other behaviors would take precedence, at least temporarily, over the feeding intervention.
Hemiarthroplasty or Total Hip Arthroplasty: Is There a Racial Bias in Treatment Selection for Femoral Neck Fractures?

Introduction:Hip fractures in the elderly individuals are associated with significant morbidity and mortality, and outcomes are directly related to prompt surgical intervention with either total hi...
Does Pre-Culture Antibiotic Administration Lead to Non-Diagnostic Bone and Joint Culture Results in Pediatric Osteomyelitis and Septic Arthritis: A 12-Year Retrospective Review

1) Purpose: Pediatric musculoskeletal infections can be devastating, with ramifications that can cause lasting morbidity. Children often receive antibiotics in various clinical settings prior to having cultures obtained. A commonly held notion is that administration of antibiotics prior to obtaining samples from the involved musculoskeletal site will result in negative cultures. The purpose of our study was to evaluate whether …
Context-Dependent Responses of Aquatic Insects to Metals and Metal Mixtures: A Quantitative Analysis Summarizing 24 Yr of Stream Mesocosm Experiments.

Modernizing water quality criteria to predict how contaminants affect natural aquatic communities requires that we utilize data obtained across multiple lines of evidence, including laboratory, mesocosm, and field studies. We report the results of 29 mesocosm experiments conducted from 1994 to 2017 at the Colorado State University Stream Research Laboratory (Fort Collins, CO, USA). The primary goal of the present study was to quantify responses of aquatic insect communities collected from 8 different locations to different combinations of cadmium (Cd), copper (Cu), iron (Fe), and zinc (Zn). Treatments that included Cu or Fe, either alone or in combination with other metals, were especially toxic to aquatic insects. The results showed that effects of metals were context dependent and varied significantly among the 8 sites where communities were collected. In particular, effects on communities from smaller streams were significantly greater than those from larger streams. Our analyses also showed that several morphological (body size, shape, gills, degree of sclerotization) and life history (voltinism) traits were significantly correlated with sensitivity to metals. Across all taxa and experiments, aquatic insects broadly classified as small (maximum body length <8 mm) were significantly more sensitive to metals than medium or large individuals. These findings demonstrate the advantages of integrating results of mesocosm experiments with species traits to develop a mechanistic understanding of biotic and abiotic factors that influence community responses to contaminants. Environ Toxicol Chem 2019;38:2486-2496. © 2019 SETAC.
Symmetry-preserving WENO limiters

Weighted essentially non-oscillatory (WENO) reconstruction schemes are presented that preserve cylindrical symmetry for radial flows on an equal-angle polar mesh. These new WENO schemes are used with a Lagrangian discontinuous Galerkin (DG) hydrodynamic method. The solution polynomials are reconstructed using the WENO schemes where the DG solution is the central stencil. A suite of challenging test problems are calculated to demonstrate the accuracy and robustness of the new WENO schemes.
Interleukin 21 (IL-21) regulates chronic allograft vasculopathy (CAV) in murine heart allograft rejection

IL-21 is the most recently discovered common gamma-chain cytokine that promotes persistent T-cell responses in chronic infections, autoimmunity and cancer. However, the therapeutic potential of inhibiting the IL-21-BATF signaling axis, particularly in transplant rejection, remains unclear. We used heart transplant models to examine the effects of IL-21 blockade in prevention of chronic cardiac allograft vasculopathy (CAV) using genetic knock-out and therapeutic approaches. Both wild-type C57BL/6 and IL-21-/- strains acutely rejected Balb/c skin grafts and once immunized with this skin graft, rejected Balb/c heart allografts in an accelerated fashion. However, when transplanted with heart grafts from the class-II major histocompatibility complex mutant, B6bm12 mice; wild-type recipients developed CAV, while IL-21-/- recipients were protected, even at day 100 post-transplant. Similarly, BATF-/- recipients, lacking the transcription factor BATF responsible for IL-21 production, did not develop CAV in B6-bm12 heart allografts. Strikingly, in a transient treatment protocol, the development of CAV in wild-type recipients of B6-bm12 hearts allografts was blocked by the administration of IL-21 receptor fusion protein (R-Fc). Thus, we demonstrate that CAV is regulated at least in part by IL-21 signaling and its blockade by genetic approaches or therapy with IL-21R-Fc prevents CAV in mice.
On-chip debugging resources

Abstract This chapter looks at the history and background for on-chip debugging resources. It examines the current protocols, such as background debug mode, or BDM, JTAG, Extended JTAG, and the IEEE 5001 Nexus standard.
Interpolation of sparse high-dimensional data

Increases in the quantity of available data have allowed all fields of science to generate more accurate models of multivariate phenomena. Regression and interpolation become challenging when the dimension of data is large, especially while maintaining tractable computational complexity. Regression is a popular approach to solving approximation problems with high dimension; however, there are often advantages to interpolation. This paper presents a novel and insightful error bound for (piecewise) linear interpolation in arbitrary dimension and contrasts the performance of some interpolation techniques with popular regression techniques. Empirical results demonstrate the viability of interpolation for moderately high-dimensional approximation problems, and encourage broader application of interpolants to multivariate approximation in science.
Transforming the Language of Life: Transformer Neural Networks for Protein Prediction Tasks

The scientific community is rapidly generating protein sequence information, but only a fraction of these proteins can be experimentally characterized. While promising deep learning approaches for protein prediction tasks have emerged, they have computational limitations or are designed to solve a specific task. We present a Transformer neural network that pre-trains task-agnostic sequence representations. This model is fine-tuned to solve two different protein prediction tasks: protein family classification and protein interaction prediction. Our method is comparable to existing state-of-the-art approaches for protein family classification while being much more general than other architectures. Further, our method outperforms all other approaches for protein interaction prediction. These results offer a promising framework for fine-tuning the pre-trained sequence representations for other protein prediction tasks.
You Can't Save Alone: Commitment and Rotating Savings and Credit Associations in Kenya

This paper examines one reason why individuals develop and maintain local-level financial savings organizations known as rotating savings and credit organizations, or roscas. Economic theories suggest that individuals form roscas to finance the purchase of a lumpy durable good, in response to intrahousehold conflict over savings, or to provide themselves with insurance. The paper proposes an additional hypothesis for rosca participation: saving requires discipline and some roscas may be formed to provide a collective mechanism for commitment in the presence of time-inconsistent preferences. Data from 70 roscas located in western Kenya indicate that the commitment hypothesis is plausible and broadly consistent with the design and patterns of participation in these roscas. As many rosca participants put it: “you can’t save alone”.
Effect of Feed Water pH on the Partitioning of Alkali Metal Salts from Aqueous Phase into the Polyamide Active Layers of Reverse Osmosis Membranes

The partitioning of solutes into the polyamide active layers of reverse osmosis (RO) membranes is a key membrane property determining solute permeation. Quantification of partition coefficients and...
Techniques and tools for visually introducing freshmen to object-based thread abstractions

Abstract An approach to adding concurrency to an existing undergraduate course should integrate driving problems used in analogies, worked examples, and assignments; amplify the subject/topics of the existing course; and ensure that the addition does not have a negative impact on (a) conceptual focus, and (b) student learning, struggle, and engagement. When concurrency is added to a course covering object-based programming, five related design principles for meeting these, sometimes conflicting, requirements are: (a) analogies, worked examples, and assignments are all implementations of simulations of moving physical objects, (b) the user-interface components of the simulations are created automatically or implemented manually using the MVC design pattern, (c) assignment implementations are layered to follow the logical dependence among concepts, (d) the concurrency aspects of the functional components of the simulations are implemented using reusable loop and design patterns, and (e) students can experiment with concurrency extensions to implementations of worked examples and assignments. We followed these principles in multiple course offerings that added concurrency to two different courses on object-based programming. Our data-based evaluation of these offerings, using new inferencing algorithms, analyzed the number of posts and contributions to class discussion forums; the number of entries in class participation diaries; the number of times an automated test is run before it passes; and the percentage of attempts to implement different aspects of concurrency that yield no success. The results show that adding thread execution and creation, synchronization, and coordination has little or no significant effect on measures of engagement, learning, and struggle.
The dynamic threshold model of bandwagon innovations: Role of organizational attention and legitimacy:

Innovations are not always adopted due to their expected economic impact but often due to bandwagon pressure. Fueled by economic uncertainty, these “bandwagon innovations” are adopted once the band...
Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Review

Juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA) is a disease of varying clinical manifestations, although all patients share the common property of arthritis. In following 124 children with JRA at a children9s arthritis clinic (mean disease duration, 7.5 years), it was apparent that there were three distinct subgroups of disease distinguished by their clinical manifestations, prognosis for joint disability, types of extra-articular complications, and serologic findings. Systemic disease, characterized by high intermittent fevers and rheumatoid rash as well as other systemic manifestations, occurred in 32 of 124 patients (26%). All patients also had polyarthritis, generally beginning during the first six months of disease. More boys (18) than girls (14) were affected. No patient had iridocyclitis or positive tests for antinuclear antibodies or rheumatoid factor. Systemic symptoms alone were not a cause of permanent morbidity, but eight of 32 patients have incurred severe joint disability. Polyarticular disease unassociated with prominent systemic disease occurred in 46 of 124 patients (37%), predominantly girls (38 girls, eight boys). Multiple joints were involved, characteristically including small hand joints. Ten patients had antinuclear antibodies; six had positive latex agglutination tests for rheumatoid factor. Eight of 46 had severe joint disability. Persistent pauciarticular disease, characterized by arthritis limited to five or fewer joints, occurred in 46 of 124 patients (37%), predominantly girls (34 girls, 12 boys). Large joints were chiefly affected (knees, ankles, elbows); small hand joints were spared. Nine of 46 patients had antinuclear antibodies. No patient has had severe joint disability, but 12 of 46 have had iridocyclitis and ten have suffered some degree of permanent visual damage. Recognition of these disease patterns is useful in the diagnosis and care of children with JRA. Furthermore, these observations suggest that what we now call JRA may in fact be more than a single disease.
Mechanical Behavior: Load Transfer; Monotonic, Cyclic, and Creep Behavior

In this chapter, we discuss various aspects of mechanical behavior of ceramic matrix composites: mechanics of load transfer from the matrix to the fiber, behavior of CMCs under monotonic and cyclic (fatigue) loading, and creep conditions.
Pathophysiology of gastrointestinal circulation

The sections in this article are: 1 Pathophysiology of Ischemic Injury 1.1 Nonocclusive Intestinal Ischemia 1.2 Occlusive Disease 2 Shock and Intestinal Circulation 3 Portal Hypertension 4 Inflammatory Bowel Disease 5 Ulcers 6 Other Diseases 6.1 Hypertension 6.2 Diabetes Mellitus 6.3 Arteriovenous Malformations 6.4 Dumping Syndrome and Secretory Disorders 6.5 Miscellaneous Disorders
Ratio of Lymph Node to Primary Tumor SUV on PET/CT Accurately Predicts Nodal Malignancy in Non–Small-Cell Lung Cancer

Abstract Introduction/Background Among non–small-cell lung cancers with appreciable functional activity, positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) is the most accurate imaging modality for clinical staging. However, lymph nodes (LN) with marginally elevated standardized uptake value (SUV) present a diagnostic challenge. In this retrospective study, we hypothesized that normalizing the LN SUV by using the ratio of the LN to primary tumor SUV max (SUV N/T ) may be a better predictor of nodal malignancy than using SUV max alone for nodes with low to intermediate SUV. Patients and Methods We identified 172 patients with newly diagnosed non–small-cell lung cancer who underwent pathologic LN staging and PET/CT within 31 days before biopsy. Receiver operating characteristic curves with area under the curve (AUC) calculations were used to evaluate SUV max and SUV N/T for their ability to predict nodal malignancy for both the entire cohort of 504 LNs and a subset of 132 LNs from 85 patients who had both primary tumor SUV max > 2.5 and LN SUV max 2.0 to 6.0. Results In patients with primary tumor SUV max > 2.5 and LN SUV max 2.0 to 6.0, SUV N/T was significantly more accurate in predicting nodal malignancy (AUC, 0.846; 95% confidence interval, 0.775-0.917) than SUV max (AUC, 0.653; 95% confidence interval, 0.548-0.759). The optimal cutoff value of SUV N/T to predict nodal malignancy was 0.28 (90% sensitivity, 68% specificity). Sensitivity was > 95% for SUV N/T 95% for SUV N/T > 0.50. Conclusion The ratio of LN SUV to primary tumor SUV on PET/CT is more accurate than SUV max when assessing nodes of low to intermediate SUV.
Approximate inverse preconditioner for near resonant scattering problems

To solve the method of moments (MoM) matrix calculation, iterative methods are becoming popular as a solution technique for such problems. These methods require one or two matrix-vector multiplications per iteration. To speed up the matrix-vector multiplications in the iterative solvers, the fast multipole method (FMM) and its multilevel extension, multilevel fast multipole algorithm (MLFMA) are developed to obtain fast solution for scattering problems. But they are more advantageous if the number of iterations for convergence is much smaller than the number of unknowns. However, for strongly resonant problems and/or strong multiple reflection problems, these methods require a very large number of iterations for convergence. In this paper, to account for these near interactions, the approximate inverse of the block banded coefficient matrix is introduced as a preconditioner. By means of the matrix partitioning method, the computing time required to set up this preconditioner is O(N), which is indispensable for applying to O(Nlog N) fast algorithms.
Practical considerations for increasing radiated power from an electrically small antenna by application of a double negative metamaterial

We have seen that the approach to improving the amount of radiated power from an electrically short antenna can be implemented with a physically realizable antenna geometry, in this case a short monopole over an infinite groundplane. It has also been demonstrated by simulation that the increase in radiated power is not a narrowband phenomenon, though in practice it will likely end up being limited by an overall matching network.
Early diagnostic value of survivin and its alternative splice variants in breast cancer

The inhibitor of apoptosis (IAP) protein Survivin and its splice variants are differentially expressed in breast cancer tissues. Our previous work showed Survivin is released from tumor cells via small membrane-bound vesicles called exosomes. We, therefore, hypothesize that analysis of serum exosomal Survivin and its splice variants may provide a novel biomarker for early diagnosis of breast cancer. We collected sera from forty breast cancer patients and ten control patients who were disease free for 5 years after treatment. In addition, twenty-three paired breast cancer tumor tissues from those same 40 patients were analyzed for splice variants. Serum levels of Survivin were analyzed using ELISA and exosomes were isolated from this serum using the commercially available ExoQuick kit, with subsequent Western blots and immunohistochemistry performed. Survivin levels were significantly higher in all the breast cancer samples compared to controls (p < 0.05) with exosome amounts significantly higher in cancer patient sera compared to controls (p < 0.01). While Survivin and Survivin-∆Ex3 splice variant expression and localization was identical in serum exosomes, differential expression of Survivin-2B protein existed in the exosomes. Similarly, Survivin and Survivin-∆Ex3 proteins were the predominant forms detected in all of the breast cancer tissues evaluated in this study, whereas a more variable expression of Survivin-2B level was found at different cancer stages. In this study we show for the first time that like Survivin, the Survivin splice variants are also exosomally packaged in the breast cancer patients’ sera, mimicking the survivin splice variant pattern that we also report in breast cancer tissues. Differential expression of exosomal-Survivin, particularly Survivin-2B, may serve as a diagnostic and/or prognostic marker, a “liquid biopsy” if you will, in early breast cancer patients. Furthermore, a more thorough understanding of the role of this prominent antiapoptotic pathway could lead to the development of potential therapeutics for breast cancer patients.
Extending the convergence domain of the Newton-Raphson method in structural analysis

Abstract This paper contains a procedure for continuing the solution of nonlinear structural analysis problems past limit and branch points when using the Newlon-Raphson or the modified Newton-Raphson methods in conjunction with incremental loading. The singular or ill conditioned Jacobian which arises at or in the vicinity of critical load points is eliminated by adding positive values to select diagonal elements of the Jacobian. A technique for determining which elements to modify together with a method for efficiently determining the optimum magnitude of the modification for minimum solution error are developed. The effectiveness of the procedure is illustrated by a number of example problems of hyperelastic bodies at finite strain which experience either snap-buckling, bifurcation, or a soft load-displacement response followed by stiffening. In addition a few cases are presented to illustrate the sensitivity of the particular problems to imperfections.
Multivaritate two stage test based on ranks

A distribution free two stage test based on ranks for the multivariate two sample location problem is presented. The asymptotic distribution of the first and second stage test statistics is derived. Results of a Monte Carlo power study are used to compare the two stage test with the usual one stage test. A brief table of critical values is also presented. The test is illustrated by using data from an exercise study conducted by the Multipurpose Arthritis center.
Immunoglobulin Secretion in the Airways

Besides the gastrointestinal tract, the epithelial surface of the lung constitutes the next largest area that must be protected from invasion by microbes and toxic agents in the environment. Two principal mechanisms have evolved for the surveillance and protection of this epithelial boundary: One is relatively nonspecific and involves the mucociliary apparatus, which mechanically clears particles from the airways. The second is a more adaptive mechanism and involves the secretory immune system, which often operates in concert with the mucociliary escalator. Well before the recognition of the structure and function of antibodies, it was appreciated that specific neutralizing substances could be found in the secretions of the upper and lower respiratory tract that protected the host from a variety of infectious agents (e.g. influenza virus) (24, 66). Furthermore, these humoral responses to locally applied antigens could occur independently and often in the absence of systemic immunity. The next major advance was the recognition that the antibody responsible for this specific protection along the mucosal barrier was immunoglobulin A, 19A (61).
Classification of multicolor fluorescence in-situ hybridization (M-FISH) image using structure based sparse representation model

We developed a structure based sparse representation model for classifying chromosomes in M-FISH images. The sparse representation based classification model used in our previous work only considered one pixel without incorporating any structural information. The new proposed model extends the previous one to multiple pixels case, where each target pixel together with its neighboring pixels will be used simultaneously for classification. We also extend Orthogonal Matching Pursuit (OMP) algorithm to the multiple pixels case, named simultaneous OMP algorithm (SOMP), to solve the structure based sparse representation model. The classification results show that our new model outperforms the previous sparse representation model with the p-value less than le-6. We also discussed the effects of several parameters (neighborhood size, sparsity level, and training sample size) on the accuracy of the classification. Our proposed method can be affected by the sparsity level and the neighborhood size but is insensitive to the training sample size. Therefore, the comparison indicates that the structure based sparse representation model can significantly improve the accuracy of the chromosome classification, leading to improved diagnosis of genetic diseases and cancers.
Limb Movements in a Monotreme (Tachyglossus aculeatus): A Cineradiographic Analysis

In a walking echidna the principal movement of the humerus is long-axis rotation. The humerus remains approximately perpendicular to the sagittal plane, but the femur is directed anterolaterally at angles from 35° to 50°. In addition to long-axis rotation, the femur elevates and depresses in an arc which usually varies between 40° and 90°. The femoral angle, the femoral elevation and depression, and the plantar contact of the manus beneath the glenoid are features found also in generalized therians.
An anisotropic rotary diffusion model for fiber orientation in short- and long-fiber thermoplastics

Abstract The Folgar–Tucker model, which is widely-used to predict fiber orientation in injection-molded composites, accounts for fiber–fiber interactions using isotropic rotary diffusion. However, this model does not match all aspects of experimental fiber orientation data, especially for composites with long discontinuous fibers. This paper develops a fiber orientation model that incorporates anisotropic rotary diffusion. From kinetic theory we derive the evolution equation for the second-order orientation tensor, correcting some errors in earlier treatments. The diffusivity is assumed to depend on a second-order space tensor, which is taken to be a function of the orientation state and the rate of deformation. Model parameters are selected by matching the experimental steady-state orientation in simple shear flow, and by requiring stable steady states and physically realizable solutions. Also, concentrated fiber suspensions align more slowly with respect to strain than models based on Jeffery's equation, and we incorporate this behavior in an objective way. The final model is suitable for use in mold filling and other flow simulations, and it gives improved predictions of fiber orientation for injection molded long-fiber composites.
The heterogeneous motility of the Lyme disease spirochete in gelatin mimics dissemination through tissue

The Lyme disease spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi exists in nature in an enzootic cycle that involves the arthropod vector Ixodes scapularis and mammalian reservoirs. To disseminate within and between these hosts, spirochetes must migrate through complex, polymeric environments such as the basement membrane of the tick midgut and the dermis of the mammal. To date, most research on the motility of B. burgdorferi has been done in media that do not resemble the tissue milieus that B. burgdorferi encounter in vivo. Here we show that the motility of Borrelia in gelatin matrices in vitro resembles the pathogen's movements in the chronically infected mouse dermis imaged by intravital microscopy. More specifically, B. burgdorferi motility in mouse dermis and gelatin is heterogeneous, with the bacteria transitioning between at least three different motility states that depend on transient adhesions to the matrix. We also show that B. burgdorferi is able to penetrate matrices with pore sizes much smaller than the diameter of the bacterium. We find a complex relationship between the swimming behavior of B. burgdorferi and the rheological properties of the gelatin, which cannot be accounted for by recent theoretical predictions for microorganism swimming in gels. Our results also emphasize the importance of considering borrelial adhesion as a dynamic rather than a static process.
Conformational studies of sequential polypeptides containing lysine and tyrosine

The conformation of three sequential copolypeptides, poly(L-tyrosyl-L-lysine), poly(L-tyrosyl-L-lysyl-L-lysine), and poly[L-tyrosyl-(L-lysyl)2-L-lysine] have been studied by a variety of techniques, including CD, ir spectroscopy, analytical ultracentrifugation, and x-ray diffraction. Depending upon the pH and sovent composition, poly(L-tyrosyl-Llysyl-L-lysine) and poly [L-tyrosyl-(Llysyl)2-L-lysine] can adopt either the α-helical or random-coil conformation, while poly(L-tyrosyl-L-lysine) forms either inter- or intramolecular β-structures.
We Are Family: Melville's Pierre

espite the fact that, today, Melville’s reputation and readership is greater than those of Caroline Lee Hentz’s or Mary Jane Holmes’s, two D very popular antebellum writers, and despite Pierre’s harangues against “the countless tribes of common novels,” Pierre was (and is) desperate to be one of them.’ On the most practical level, Melville wanted to write a popular novel that would make money. On a more theoretical level, “common novels” begin with absent parents who leave their children alone, a condition to which Pierre aspires. Although the separation between parents and children is painful and often inexplicable why can’t Ellen Montgomery in Susan Warner’s The Wide, Wide World go with her mother and father? what takes Gerty’s father in Maria Susanna Cummins’s The Lamplighter so long to find her? these young girls become women. They develop precisely because they have been freed from their biological parents. Gerty and Ellen grow, they learn, they live. If we can use Pierre as counter-factual evidence, we find that Pierre shrivels up, deludes himself into thinking he’s learned something about “the all-comprehending round of things” (NN Pierre lll), and dies. Why the difference? One decisive reason is that the plots of many sentimental novels depend upon their protagonists’ ability to create new affections based on choice, allowing the scope of the novel to extend beyond the limitations of consanguinity. By contrast, Pierre tries and fails to generate voluntary relations, painfully constricting the novel to a world of “blood relation” (NN Pierre 218). For some critics, Pierre’s inability to be a sentimental novel registers Melville’s own success as an author of novels not plagued by the ideological and characterological problems of sentimental fictions, undoubtedly a conclusion Melville would have been happy to embrace. But Melville’s relation to sentimental novels is more complicated than this scenario suggests. One look at the novel and its critical reception reveals that there is enough evidence to prove that Pierre is as much a sentimental novel as it is not, and both positions are, paradoxically, correct. Because Pierre is neither a sentimental novel nor an anti-sentimental
The Effect of MTI Filter and Number of Unique Staggers on First-Null Depth and Clutter Attenuation

A recent series of papers have provided a model for a staggered-PRF radar which can be used to estimate both the depth of the first null (which is dependent upon the ratio of some function fM(?) of the set of M sampling deviations {?m} to the average sampling interval) and the clutter attenuation (as a function of the product of fM(?) and clutter standard deviation ?c). Some inconsistencies in the aforementioned papers are discussed and it is shown that realistic filters and typical stagger-ratio sets produce results which differ significantly from the idealized-filter predictions. Furthermore, even after filtering the residual clutter power at dc is shown to be more significant than the power in all the displaced clutter spectra postulated by the aforementioned model.
A Theoretical and Practical Framework for Service-Learning in Marketing: Kolb’s Experiential Learning Cycle

The purpose of this article is to provide a framework for the design and implementation of service-learning courses in marketing. First, this article describes an experiential learning framework to be used as a guide for planning, designing, implementing, and evaluating a service-learning course. Second, this article specifies in detail service-learning implementation strategies for particular marketing courses. Third, this article describes actual methodology and outcomes of a service-learning case history for a consumer behavior course.
Crustal thickness estimate at AAE (Addis-Ababa, Ethiopia) and Nai (Nairobi, Kenya) using teleseismic P-wave conversions

Abstract Long-period teleseismic P waves recorded at AAE (Addis Ababa, Ethiopia) and NAI (Nairobi, Kenya) show comparable P s conversions on the radial component of ground motion. The timing and amplitude of the P s conversions are modeled with synthetic seismograms to get an estimate of crustal thickness under both stations. Instrument response and effective source time function are removed from the data using a P-wave equalization procedure. The timing of the P s conversions, relative to direct P, suggests that both stations have similar crustal thickness. Using constraints on crustal velocities determined by previous surface wave dispersion and travel-time studies, the P s -P timing suggests a crust of 41 km thickness. This agrees reasonably well with previous crustal estimates. Tangential wave forms exhibit large amplitudes and are consistent at most backazimuths. However, these wave forms could not be explained with models containing simple planar dipping interfaces. The crustal thickness of 41 km taken in conjunction with the close proximity of the stations to the rift zone suggests that crustal thinning is localized to the rift itself.
Moderator Variables in Leadership Research

Much recent research on leadership has concerned moderator (contingency) variables. This research has yielded equivocal and/or conflicting results. Conceptually distinct variables have been treated as if they operate in the same fashion. This paper suggests a typology of moderators based on the mechanisms by which moderators operate. Moderators are classified as neutralizers/enhancers, substitutes/supplements, or mediators depending on how they affect leader behavior-criterion relationships. The typology is applied to several contingency theories of leadership and implications for future leadership research and practice are discussed.