cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Joanne L. Goodwin, Gender and the Politics of Welfare Reform: Mothers' Pensions in Chicago, 1911–1929. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1997. xii + 284 pp. $45.00 cloth; $17.95 paper.

Mothers' pensions were an important chapter in the story of American welfare state development. Thus far scholars have focused their analysis at the national level. However, fiscal and administrative control over pensions typically remained at the local level. Because of this, an understanding of the implementation and consequences of mothers' pensions requires the sort of local-level analysis undertaken by Joanne Goodwin.
The production and metabolism of 3,5,3'-triiodothyronine and 3,3',5-triiodothyronine in normal and fasting subjects.

The deiodinative pathways of T4 and the production of T3 and rT3 were compared in two groups of normal volunteers on physiological T4 replacement. One group was given a normal diet and the second group was fasted up to 15 days. After 1 week of fasting, the mean serum T3 level fell from 140 to 93 ng/dl, and the mean serum rT3 level rose from 51 to 106 ng/dl. No significant change occurred in the group mean serum concentration of TSH or total or free T4. These changes were most marked during the fifth to seventh day of fasting, but recovered partly toward the baseline values during the second week of fasting. The ratio of mean serum T3 to mean serum rT3 was 2.8 before fasting. It diminished to 0.9 after 1 week of fasting and increased to 1.5 after 2 weeks of fasting. In seven control subjects, the MCRs of T4, T3, and rT3 were 1.27 ± 0.24, 24.0 ± 3.6, and 105 ± 13 liters/day · 70 kg, respectively (mean ± sd). The disposal rates of T4, T3, and rT3 were 140 ± 16, 41 ± 5, and 49 ± 12 μg/day·70 kg, respectively....
Analysis and demonstration of MEM-relay power gating

This paper shows that due to their negligibly low leakage, in certain applications, chips utilizing power gates built even with today's relatively large, high-voltage micro-electro-mechanical (MEM) relays can achieve lower total energy than those built with CMOS transistors. A simple analysis provides design guidelines for off-time and savings estimates as a function of technology parameters, and quantifies the further benefits of scaled relay designs. Finally, we demonstrate a relay chip successfully power-gating a CMOS chip, and show a relay-based timer suitable for self-timed operation.
Retention of Passive Integrated Transponder, T-Bar Anchor, and Coded Wire Tags in Lepisosteids

Abstract Increased interest in the management and conservation of gars (family Lepisosteidae) has resulted in the need to identify individual fish in wild and hatchery stocks; however, tagging methods have not been evaluated for these species. We estimated tag retention for passive integrated transponder (PIT) tags, T-bar anchor tags (Floy), and coded wire tags in alligator gar Atractosteus spatula, longnose gar Lepisosteus osseus, and spotted gar L. oculatus. Tag retention up to 876 d was similar across species for all tag types and tagging locations. Retention exceeded 98% for PIT tags injected into the muscle at the base of the dorsal fin and did not decrease with days posttagging. Retention was 97% for coded wire tags injected into the muscle at the base of the pectoral and anal fins. Retention of T-bar anchor tags was ≥ 97% through 500 d posttagging; however, T-bar anchor tag retention declined after 500 d and tags became difficult to read. The high retention of the tags evaluated in this study provi...
Performance analysis of 802.11-based Internet access for highways with multiclass traffic flows

Several vehicular applications rely on vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communications. So far, most existing work focused on analyzing the performance of V2I communications when very few vehicles are involved. However, as the market penetration rate of cars equipped with wireless communication devices increases, it is reasonable to envisage that packet collisions due to multiple contending vehicles can cause significant performance degradation. Thus, in this paper we formulate exact and approximate models to estimate the MAC-layer upload capacity and the total amount of bytes transferred by a vehicle during its sojourn within the coverage area of a roadside AP, taking into account spatial distribution of vehicles, as well as traffic and road characteristics. In particular we consider a multilane freeway with two classes of vehicles with different driving characteristics (e.g., passenger cars and trucks or buses). We validate our proposed models through extensive simulations, which show that there are substantial differences between the total amount of bytes that vehicles of different classes can transfer to the roadside AP. Our results also indicate that a simplified average-value analysis may well approximate the network performance.
Dual-Wavelength Photothermal Refraction Spectrometry for Small-Volume Samples

A novel dual-wavelength photothermal refraction spectrometer that is capable of simultaneously measuring photothermal refraction at two different wavelengths has been developed. In this instrument, the two excitation wavelengths were provided by an argon-ion (488 nm) and a He-Ne (632.8 nm) laser. These two pump beams were sequentially modulated at the same frequency by means of two mechanical choppers. The photothermal refraction signals produced by the sample absorption of these two pump beams were monitored by a probe beam which was derived from the same He-Ne laser by a beamsplitter. Compared to the single-wavelength techniques, this dual-wavelength apparatus has advantages that include its ability to provide fingerprints and identification of the analyte (as the ratio of the two signals at the two different excitation wavelengths) and to simultaneously determine two-component samples. With this apparatus, the detection limit for two-component samples containing oxohydroxy bis-(8-hydroxy quinoline)-vanadium and 1,2-diamino-anthraquinone in methanol with the use of 25-mW excitation beams modulated at 3.4 Hz is estimated to be 10−7 M. This corresponds to the absorbance of 10−6 for a probe volume of 10−11 L.
Can Income Programs Reduce Tropical Forest Pressure? Income Shocks and Forest Use in Malawi

Summary. — Seasonal household data from Malawi are used to study links between income shocks and forest use. A Tobit model is estimated to examine whether household forest use responds to receipt of a positive income shock (delivered as a technology assistance package), and the characteristics of households reliant on forests for shock coping. Results show households experiencing an income boost had lower forest extraction compared to households that did not receive such a shock, ceteris paribus. We find households most dependent on forests for natural insurance are those located near woodlands and headed by an individual who is relatively young and male. 2005 Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Engaging high risk families in community based intervention services

Involving high risk families in community based intervention services constitutes a major challenge facing service delivery in the fields of mental health and substance abuse. Mental health and substance abuse programs typically experience high rates of failure to enroll families in services, as well as high rates of drop-outs from treatment. With family-based intervention programs, those involving all the members of the family or household participation by the entire family is a key to having a successful program. The NIDA funded Youth Support Project tests such a home and family based Family Empowerment Intervention in a randomized field trial which targets families of juvenile offenders. This intervention is delivered three times a week by paraprofessionals who are supervised by a licensed clinician. We discuss the guiding principles and success of our enrollment activities and discuss their implications for other family-based services.
Sleep and hypertension: burning the candle at both ends really is hazardous to your health.

The article by Gangwisch et al1 in this issue of Hypertension identifies another significant health hazard associated with inadequate sleep. The authors document ≈2-fold greater risk for hypertension among adults in their fourth to sixth decades who sleep ≤5 hours each night. Whereas the independent risk of short sleep duration for developing hypertension is attenuated to ≈1.6-fold after adjusting for obesity and diabetes, short sleep duration is a risk factor for obesity and diabetes.2,3 The investigators provide plausible mechanisms linking short sleep duration to hypertension.1 Potential mechanisms include an increased blood pressure (BP) load resulting from prolongation of higher BP while awake and truncation of the BP dip characteristic of sleep. A decrease in sleep duration leads to both greater BP load1 and prolonged exposure to an activated sympathetic nervous system,4 which could accentuate structural remodeling and augment renal sodium retention. Structural changes in key target organs participating in BP regulation including the kidney, heart, and vasculature could serve to perpetuate and accelerate age-related increases in BP, especially in those at risk. In this regard, it is interesting to note a study of rapid eye movement sleep deprivation in spontaneously hypertensive, normotensive Wistar-Kyoto, and borderline hypertensive …
REGULATORY BANKRUPTCY: HOW BANK REGULATION CAUSES FIRESALES

Bankruptcy policy has long been founded upon the assumption that creditors seek to maximize the value of their assets. The radical changes that have swept over the banking sector over the last two decades, however, have rendered this assumption unreliable. Banks, which are responsible for the majority of the outstanding credit in the United States, are no longer necessarily driven by the goal of value-maximization. Instead, their behavior is increasingly influenced by financial regulation and regulatory policy in ways that lead them to drive their own borrowers into liquidation - a phenomenon that richly deserves to be called regulatory bankruptcy.This Article offers the first-ever empirical account of regulatory bankruptcy - the ultimate result of pervasive regulatory pressure on issues of concentration risk and capital adequacy at banks during the recent financial crisis, which in turn induced banks to press excessively for liquidation of commercial real estate in bankruptcy proceedings. The analysis of an original dataset that encompasses bankruptcy filings as well as bank portfolio data confirms the significant relationship between a bank’s concentration risk and its choice to pursue liquidation. This bias toward over-liquidation engendered by micro-prudential financial regulatory policy was a source of unnecessary downward pressure on the value of assets throughout the banking system, leading to potentially catastrophic increases in systemic risk and financial contagion.Proposed and recently instituted legal reforms in the financial regulatory framework such as the Dodd-Frank Act need to recognize the existence of regulatory bankruptcy and its serious externalities. Although this Article also argues that bankruptcy contagion can be contained, specifically in commercial real estate cases, by re-examining provisions relating to Single Asset Real Estate in the Bankruptcy Code, a general response from the direction of systemic risk regulation is required to deal with the source of systemic risk emerging from regulatory bankruptcy.
Detailed parallel simulation of a biological neuronal network

Realistic modeling of the cat's brain advances neurobiology, while also teaching us a lesson on efficient communication among parallel processors. A scheme that can quickly propagate "spikes" of current between connected nerve cells might find use in many cases where a lot of irregular and nonlocal communication is needed. >
Program Instrumentation and Software Testing

The program tester needs to know what goes on inside a program as it executes during a test Instrumentation methods permit collection of testing coverage data without modifying the logical properties of programs being tested.
Synovial joint disease in wild cetaceans.

During necropsy of cetaceans stranded or accidentally net-captured along the western coast of the Gulf of Mexico from 1991 to 1996, we found 13 of 59 (22%) animals had abnormalities of the atlanto-occipital and/or humeroscapular joints, the synovial joints. A few cases demonstrated mild roughening of the articular cartilage, while the majority exhibited complete erosion with thickened synovium and bony proliferation. The lesions resulted in ankylosis of both joints in one animal. In humans and terrestrial mammals, synovial joint diseases are known to be debilitating. Cetaceans depend on neck and flipper movement for locomotion, feeding, avoiding danger, and reaching the water's surface for breathing. Therefore, synovial joint disease may be a significant mortality factor in these marine animals.
Recombinant DNA approach to X-linked mental retardation.

As early as 1936, Penrose noted a 25% excess of males in the population of retarded individuals80. Family studies in which the males were primarily affected indicated a sex-linked defect59, which later proved to be X-linked17,55,76,84. These heterogeneous forms of X-linked mental retardation have now been classified into 3 basic syndromes: (1) Renpenning syndrome, where males are short in stature, have small heads and normal to small testes23,84; (2) Martin-Bell syndrome, where the males have a long face, prominent forehead and ears, enlarged testes (macro-orchidism) and a fragile site near the terminal region of the long arm of the X-chromosome59,87; and (3) non-specific X-linked mental retardation, where the males have neither physical abnormalities nor fragile sites on the X-chromosome39. For a more detailed description of the history and clinical aspects, see reviews42,99100,102.
Liberal recognition for identity? Only for particularized ones

Communitarian writers argue that social identity is deeply important to individual autonomy and thus liberal societies have an obligation to recognize identity. Any liberal view that attempts to account for this charge must specify a procedure to recognize identity that also ensures that the liberal sense of autonomy is not weakened. In this article, I develop such an account. I argue that liberals must distinguish an identity that belongs to particular persons (particularized identity) from the collective form of that identity. For instance, Naisha will have her own particularized way of being Indian in addition to the collective form of the culture that she shares with others. To determine which acts would be about recognizing the particularized form, I provide a counterfactual test. One major implication of the test is that special collective rights would not be endorsed. At the same time, the test is not equivalent to the liberal positions of insisting either that rights belong to individuals or that ...
Inducible Nitric Oxide Synthase Immunoreactivity in the Granulomatous Intestinal Lesions of Naturally Occurring Bovine Johne's Disease

Inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) is important in the control of a number of intracellular pathogens, including mycobacteria, and is a marker of classic macrophage activation. In human granulomatous diseases such as leprosy, a spectrum of granulomatous lesions is described, ranging from the tuberculoid to lepromatous types. Tuberculoid granulomas are associated with enhanced iNOS production and improved clinical outcomes over the lepromatous types. The aim of this study is to determine whether an association exists between morphology of bovine Johne's disease granulomas and lesion macrophage effector functions. To accomplish this, we retrospectively evaluated 24 cases of bovine Johne's disease. In each case, we recorded the predominant granuloma morphology and evaluated iNOS immunoreactivity and bacterial burden by acid-fast stains and mycobacterial immunolabeling. The results of this study demonstrate that all cases had granulomas with features most similar to the lepromatous type. This morphology correlated with heavy bacterial burdens demonstrated by acid-fast staining and mycobacterial immunoreactivity. None of the cases had high expression of iNOS in mycobacterial-positive granulomas. When iNOS immunoreactivity was identified, it was usually located near the crypts and was distinct from the granulomatous foci.
The art of leveraging: how powerful nonlinear feedback processes can restructure rapidly growing technology and knowledge industries

Analyzes the dynamics of the open-source software (OSS) movement and its impact on the proprietary software world, particularly its dominant player, Microsoft. We contend that OSS is here to stay, and that it has a capacity to outperform (at least in some markets) even the monopolistic market leader on the basis of superior and more numerous resources as well as more effective processes. Accelerated software development processes yield shortened time-to-market/time-to-user cycles. We use system dynamics computer modeling for capturing the feedback mechanisms and nonlinear dynamics inherent in this system of (market and other) forces. We conclude that Internet-based, large-scale intellectual collaborations lead over time to broader, deeper and more rapidly attained results than closed, small-scale and profit-oriented R&D undertakings in some areas of the software sector. We predict that the dominance of the market leader will erode in the not too distant future.
Study of membrane dynamics with biophotonic techniques

Membrane dynamics plays an essential role for cellular processes. Here we demonstrate the application of several biophotonic techniques, such as advanced fluorescence microscopy and laser spectroscopy, to study some fundamental membrane biology problems.
Constraint extraction for pseudo-functional scan-based delay testing

Recent research results, have shown that the traditional structural testing for, delay and crosstalk faults may result in over-testing due to the non-trivial number of such faults that are untestable in the functional mode while testable in the test mode. This paper presents a pseudo-functional test methodology that attempts to minimize the over-testing problem of the scan-based circuits for the delay faults. The first pattern of a two-pattern test is still delivered by scan in the test mode but the pattern is generated in such a way that it does not violate the functional constraints extracted from the functional logic. In this paper, we use a SAT solver to extract a set of functional constraints which consists of illegal states and internal signal correlation. Along with the functional justification (also called broad-side) test application scheme, the functional constraints are imposed to a commercial delay-fault ATPG tool to generate pseudo-functional delay tests. The experimental results indicate that the percentage of untestable delay faults is non-trivial for many circuits which support the hypothesis of the over-testing problem in delay testing. The results also indicate the effectiveness of the proposed constraint extraction method.
Seasonal and interannual variability of pigment concentrations across a California Current frontal zone

The seasonal and interannual variability of the latitudinal position of the California Current frontal zone was investigated by examining satellite images of phytoplankton pigment from the coastal-zone color scanner for the periods 1979-1983 and 1986. The pigment concentrations associated with the zonal front were also determined. A general seasonal cycle of pigment concentrations is was established. It was found that variations in the frontal structure are controlled primarily by changes in pigment concentration north of the front. Seasonal variations were found to be minimal south of the front, where pigment concentrations remain low throughout the spring, summer, and fall.
Changes in afferent activity after spinal cord injury.

Aims To summarize the changes that occur in the properties of bladder afferent neurons following spinal cord injury. Methods Literature review of anatomical, immunohistochemical, and pharmacologic studies of normal and dysfunctional bladder afferent pathways. Results Studies in animals indicate that the micturition reflex is mediated by a spinobulbospinal pathway passing through coordination centers (periaqueductal gray and pontine micturition center) located in the rostral brain stem. This reflex pathway, which is activated by small myelinated (Aδ) bladder afferent nerves, is in turn modulated by higher centers in the cerebral cortex involved in the voluntary control of micturition. Spinal cord injury at cervical or thoracic levels disrupts voluntary voiding, as well as the normal reflex pathways that coordinate bladder and sphincter function. Following spinal cord injury, the bladder is initially areflexic but then becomes hyperreflexic due to the emergence of a spinal micturition reflex pathway. The recovery of bladder function after spinal cord injury is dependent in part on the plasticity of bladder afferent pathways and the unmasking of reflexes triggered by unmyelinated, capsaicin-sensitive, C-fiber bladder afferent neurons. Plasticity is associated with morphologic, chemical, and electrical changes in bladder afferent neurons and appears to be mediated in part by neurotrophic factors released in the spinal cord and the peripheral target organs. Conclusions Spinal cord injury at sites remote from the lumbosacral spinal cord can indirectly influence properties of bladder afferent neurons by altering the function and chemical environment in the bladder or the spinal cord. Neurourol. Urodynam. 29: 63–76, 2010. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Stimulus-response learning in long-term cocaine users: acquired equivalence and probabilistic category learning.

Abstract Objective The purpose of this study was to examine stimulus–response (S–R) learning in active cocaine users. Participants and methods Twenty-two cocaine-dependent participants (20 males and 2 females) and 21 non-drug using control participants (19 males and 2 females) who were similar in age and education were administered two computerized learning tasks. The Acquired Equivalence task initially requires learning of simple antecedent–consequent discriminations, but later requires generalization of this learning when the stimuli are presented in novel recombinations. The Weather Prediction task requires the prediction of a dichotomous outcome based on different stimuli combinations when the stimuli predict the outcome only probabilistically. Results On the Acquired Equivalence task, cocaine users made significantly more errors than control participants when required to learn new discriminations while maintaining previously learned discriminations, but performed similarly to controls when required to generalize this learning. No group differences were seen on the Weather Prediction task. Conclusions Cocaine users’ learning of stimulus discriminations under conflicting response demands was impaired, but their ability to generalize this learning once they achieved criterion was intact. This performance pattern is consistent with other laboratory studies of long-term cocaine users that demonstrated that established learning interfered with new learning on incremental learning tasks, relative to healthy controls, and may reflect altered dopamine transmission in the basal ganglia of long-term cocaine users.
Platelet-Derived Growth Factor

Platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) is a ubiquitous mitogen that was originally discovered because it was the principal source of growth factor activity for mesenchymal cells in culture that was present in whole blood serum and missing in cell-free, plasma-derived serum (Kohler and Lipton 1974; Ross et al. 1974). The possibility that platelets might serve as a source for this growth factor activity had been postulated by Balk (1971). However, not until it was demonstrated that platelets could restore all of the growth factor activity missing from plasma did it become clear that these cells were the source of not only PDGF, but of other growth factors also present in whole blood serum. These include an epidermal growth factor-like molecule (Oka and Orth 1983), an angiogenic molecule (Miyazono et al. 1987), and transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β; Assoian et al. 1983; Childs et al. 1982), all of which appear to be sequestered within α-granules (White 1974; Witte et al. 1978; Kaplan et al. 1979 a, b; Gerrard et al. 1980).
Sinusitis and Otitis Media

Sinusitis occurs in both acute and chronic forms. The acute form is usually a result of bacterial complications secondary to a viral upper respiratory tract event. Approximately 1 in 200 viral upper respiratory tract events results in a secondary bacterial infection of the sinuses, with the ethmoids and maxillary deemed the most frequently involved. Chronic sinusitis may be a complication of repeated bacterial infections but more often than not appears to be a disease de novo characterized by an as yet undefined abnormality of the sinus mucosa. This predisposes to chronic infections.
Electrodiagnosis of neck pain

The past 3 decades have witnessed tremendous advances in the field of electrodiagnostic medicine. The high-performance electronics and microprocessors available in contemporary electrodiagnostic instruments have improved the ability to detect, record, measure, and interpret the action potentials arising from the nerves and muscle fibers. With their increased ease of use and effectiveness in both diagnosis and prognosis, electrodiagnostic tests have become valuable tools in evaluation of patients with neck pain. As with any laboratory measure, the utility of electrodiagnostic testing can be increased when it is used in appropriate clinical contexts and when its limitations are understood.
Identifying Physical Interactions from Climate Data: Challenges and Opportunities

Recent research has shown the potential of using structure learning from probabilistic graphical models to identify and visualize interactions in the Earth's climate system by training them on observed climate data. The resulting models indicate pathways of physical interactions occurring within a subsystem of the climate (such as the atmosphere) or between different subsystems (such as from ocean to atmosphere). Studying these pathways is of great interest to climate scientists because it allows them to learn subtle details about the underlying dynamical mechanisms governing our planet's climate. Here, the authors focus on interactions in one specific subsystem, the atmosphere. The details of this research have been discussed previously, so they focus on providing a general overview and discussing challenges and opportunities for this emerging area.
The impact of school-wide positive behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS) on the organizational health of elementary schools.

Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) is a universal, school-wide prevention strategy that is currently implemented in over 7,500 schools across the nation to reduce disruptive behavior problems through the application of behavioral, social learning, and organizational behavioral principles. PBIS aims to alter school environments by creating improved systems and procedures that promote positive change in student behavior by targeting staff behaviors. The present study examined the impact of PBIS on school organizational health using data from a large randomized controlled trial of PBIS conducted in 37 elementary schools. Longitudinal multilevel analyses on data from 2,507 staff revealed a significant effect of PBIS on staff reports of the schools’ overall organizational health, resource influence, and staff affiliation over a 3-year period. This study indicated that changes in school organizational health are important consequences of the PBIS whole-school prevention model, and might in turn be a potential mediator of the effect of PBIS on student performance.
The QT interval and risk of incident atrial fibrillation.

Background Abnormal atrial repolarization is important in the development of atrial fibrillation (AF), but no direct measurement is available in clinical medicine. Objective To determine whether the QT interval, a marker of ventricular repolarization, could be used to predict incident AF. Methods We examined a prolonged QT interval corrected by using the Framingham formula (QT Fram ) as a predictor of incident AF in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) study. The Cardiovascular Health Study (CHS) and Health, Aging, and Body Composition (ABC) study were used for validation. Secondary predictors included QT duration as a continuous variable, a short QT interval, and QT intervals corrected by using other formulas. Results Among 14,538 ARIC study participants, a prolonged QT Fram predicted a roughly 2-fold increased risk of AF (hazard ratio [HR] 2.05; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.42–2.96; P Fram was associated with an increased unadjusted (HR 1.14; 95% CI 1.10–1.17; P P Conclusions A prolonged QT interval is associated with an increased risk of incident AF.
Nebulized bupivacaine attenuates the heart rate response following tracheal intubation

Abstract Study Objective: To determine whether nebulized bupivacaine attenuates the acute hemodynamic response to laryngoscopy and intubation. Design: Prospective, randomized, placebo-controlled study. Setting: Operating room at a university medical center. Patients: 40 health ASA physical status I and II patients scheduled for minor surgical procedures. Interventions: Patients were randomized to receive 4 ml of a nebulized solution of either saline (n = 20) or 0.75% bupivacaine (n = 20) 15 minutes before induction of anesthesia. On completion of the aerosol treatment, fentanyl 1.5 μg/kg was given intravenously (IV), and 3 minutes later anesthesia was induced with thiopental sodium 5 mg/kg IV and succinylcholine 1.5 mg/kg IV. Laryngoscopy was begun 60 seconds after induction, and the trachea was intubated at 90 seconds. Anesthesia was maintained with 50% nitrous oxide in oxygen following intubation, and 1% isoflurane was administered at 180 seconds. Measurements and Main Results: Heart rate (HR) and blood pressure were recorded automatically every 30 seconds for 5 minutes. Bupivacaine significantly attenuated HR ( p Conclusion: Nebulized 0.75% bupivacaine was only partially effective in blunting the hemodynamic response to tracheal intubation.
Three variations of a pattern-reconfigurable microstrip parasitic array

This work describes three variations of pattern-reconfigurable microstrip parasitic arrays (RMPAs) and provides measured results for each. Variation 1 uses two switches to reconfigure the radiation pattern into three directions in the H-plane. Variation 2 uses two varactors to scan the radiation pattern between −27° and 27° in the H-plane by controlling the value of the varactors. Variation 3 uses two inductors and varactors in series so that the scannable range of the H-plane pattern is from ±32° to ±54°. Each variation has a common 2:1 VSWR bandwidth throughout the switching and/or scanning of the radiation pattern. Copper strips or capacitors are used instead of switches or varactors for proof of concept. These three variations have potential applications in both mobile-communication devices and multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) systems. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 45: 369–372, 2005; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/mop.20826
Food for Theologians

In this essay, I present eating as a vital theological concern and an integral part of the church’s ministries and mission in the world. I argue that food is not reducible to the status of a commodity but is instead God’s love made delectable. The production and the sharing of good food is a witness to God’s presence among us.
Production of Tobacco Hornworm Moths from Field-Collected Larvae

Large numbers of virgin female moths of Manduca sexta (Johannson) were needed for collection, isolation, and identification of a sex pheromone that attracts the male moth. An outdoor method that was used for producing the moths from larvae collected on growers’ farms or from tobacco grown under shade cloth is described.
A spatial operator algebra for manipulator modeling and control

The spatial operator algebra developed by the authors for modeling control and trajectory design of manipulation is discussed, with emphasis on the analytical formulation of the operator algebra and its simple implementation in the Ada programming language. The elements of this algebra are linear operators whose domain and range spaces consist of forces, moments, velocities, and accelerations. The effect of these operators is equivalent to a spatial recursion along the span of the manipulator. Inversion of operators can be efficiently obtained using techniques of recursive filtering and smoothing. The operator algebra provides a high-level framework for describing the dynamic and kinematic behavior of a manipulator and control and trajectory design algorithms. The interpretation of expressions within the algebraic framework leads to enhanced conceptual and physical understanding of manipulator dynamics and kinematics. Furthermore, implementable recursive algorithms can be immediately derived from the abstract operator expressions by inspection. Thus, the transition from an abstract problem formulation and solution to the detailed mechanization of specific algorithm is greatly simplified. >
Stratified construction of neural network based interatomic models for multicomponent materials

Recent application of neural networks (NNs) to modeling interatomic interactions has shown the learning machines' encouragingly accurate performance for select elemental and multicomponent systems. In this study we explore the possibility of building a library of NN-based models by introducing a hierarchical NN training. In such a stratified procedure NNs for multicomponent systems are obtained by sequential training from the bottom up: first unaries, then binaries, and so on. Advantages of constructing NN sets with shared parameters include acceleration of the training process and intact description of the constituent systems. We use an automated generation of diverse structure sets for NN training on density functional theory-level reference energies. In the test case of Cu, Pd, Ag, Cu-Pd, Cu-Ag, Pd-Ag, and Cu-Pd-Ag systems, NNs trained in the traditional and stratified fashions are found to have essentially identical accuracy for defect energies, phonon dispersions, formation energies, etc. The models' robustness is further illustrated via unconstrained evolutionary structure searches in which the NN is used for the local optimization of crystal unit cells.
Anion Exchange Separation of Trivalent Actinides and Lanthanides

A process for separating americium and curium from rare earths by anion exchange based on selective chloride complexing was developed and tested on a laboratory scale. The separation is accomplished by sorption of americium, curium, and rare earths on Dowex 1-10X resin from a solution of 8 M LiNO/dub 3/ followed by selective elution of rare earths with 10 M LiCl and americium-curium elution with 1 M LiCl. In a laboratory demonstration of this process, greater than 99.5% of americium tracer containing no detectable amounts of rare earths was recovered. (auth)
Clinician competencies: Strengths and limitations for work with transgender and gender non-conforming (TGNC) clients

ABSTRACTIndividuals who identify as transgender or gender nonconforming (TGNC) face a number of health disparities compared to individuals who identify as cisgender (those who self-identify with the sex they were assigned at birth). For example, TGNC individuals experience heightened rates of clinical depression, anxiety, general psychological distress, suicidal ideation, and suicide attempts. Despite these troubling disparities, many TGNC individuals report hesitance to seek mental health services due to concerns regarding culturally insensitive or even overtly discriminatory services from providers. In addition to decreasing service utilization among TGNC populations, discriminatory services impair intervention effectiveness even when TGNC individuals persist in seeking mental health services. The American Psychological Association (APA) and the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) provide guidelines for culturally competent work with TGNC clients; however, research indicates a ...
Virology: Ins and outs of picornaviruses

Competition between the phospholipase enzyme PLA2G16 and the protein galectin-8 determines whether the RNA-based genomes of picornaviruses can be effectively delivered into host cells. See Letter p.412 Thijn Brummelkamp and colleagues use a genome-wide haploid genetic screen to identify the host factors required for the replication of picornaviruses. They identify the small phospholipase PLA2G16 as being required for the cytoplasmic delivery of the viral genome. In a second screen to find mutants that restored virus susceptibility to PLA2G16-deficient cells, the authors identify galectin-8, a sensor previously implicated in the autophagic clearance of intracellular bacteria. The precise function of PLA2G16 remains unclear, but the authors suggest that it facilitates the displacement of the viral genome from galactin-8-positive vesicles.
Collective Bargaining and Technological Investment: The Case of Nurses’ Unions and the Transition from Paper‐Based to Electronic Health Records

Does the presence of a unionized nursing workforce retard US hospitals’ transition from paper-based to electronic health records (EHRs)? After tying archival data on hospitals’ structural features and health information technology (IT) investment patterns to self-gathered data on unionism, I find that hospitals that bargain collectively with their registered nurses (RNs) appear to delay or forego the transition away from paper, consistent with existing theory and research in industrial relations and institutional economics. However, this relationship is fully mediated by a hospital's payer mix: those serving a larger share of less lucrative, elderly, disabled and indigent patients are more likely to adopt EHRs if they are unionized than if they are not, a result that holds even at the median payer mix. Indeed, this accords with research on the interplay of labour and technology as the aforementioned dynamics are driven entirely by RN-exclusive bargaining units for whom the new IT serves as a complement rather than as a substitute in production. Given the outsized role that unions play in the US healthcare sector, the overall sluggish performance of the sector, and the expectations that policymakers have for EHRs, evidence that these unions are welfare-enhancing should be welcome news.
Supporting free walking in a large virtual environment: imperceptible redirected walking with an immersive distractor

Redirected walking, a technique in which the user's orientation in the physical space is constantly and imperceptibly changed from their orientation in the virtual world, has been shown to be an effective technique when only a limited physical space is available. Unfortunately, previous efforts have restricted redirected walking applications to operate under the constant supervision of researchers to prevent the users from leaving the tracked area. In addition, Virtual Environments (VE) used in these applications were often limited to narrow hallways, mazes or predefined waypoints, while the performance of redirected walking in a large, open VE is not well explored. In this paper, we introduce the idea and implementation for an imperceptible redirected walking system that supports the illusion of free walking in a large, open virtual environment with minimal amount of physical interventions, by integrating the distractor into the user's main immersive activity in the VE. We demonstrate this new approach with two user studies of an immersive interactive game. Our study indicates that for the majority of the subjects, the illusion is maintained of unconstrained walking in a very large area (a full-size basketball court, 50 feet × 95 feet), even while they were limited to a physical area of a mere 6% of the size of the basketball court (16 feet × 16 feet tracked area). Our result demonstrates that the illusion of free walking is created, since a majority of them was not interrupted by the researchers and did not realize they were redirected, and the 34 subjects took vastly different routes to reach the distant goal (See Figure 2). We believe that this technique demonstrates a more immersive way of designing redirected walking application and shows possibility of bringing redirected walking applications out of the monitored lab environments. Our result may provide insights for the designers of immersive experiences to create other redirected walking applications for consumer VR systems with room-size tracking.
Comparative studies on the therapeutic benefit of targeted α-particle radiation therapy for the treatment of disseminated intraperitoneal disease

Identification of the appropriate combination of radionuclide, target and targeting vehicle is critical for successful radioimmunotherapy. For the treatment of disseminated peritoneal diseases such as pancreatic or ovarian cancer, α-emitting radionuclides have been proposed for targeted radiation therapy. This laboratory has taken a systematic approach investigating targeted α-radiation therapy, allowing comparisons to now be made between 211At, 227Th, 213Bi and 212Pb. Herein, trastuzumab radiolabeled with 211At and 227Th was evaluated for therapeutic efficacy in the LS-174T i.p. tumor model. A dose escalation study was conducted with each radioimmunoconjugate (RIC). Therapeutic benefit was realized with 211At-trastuzumab with doses of 20, 30 and 40 μCi. At doses >40 μCi, toxicity was observed with greater weight loss and 2-fold higher decrease in the platelet counts. Following a second study comparing the effect of 20, 30 and 40 μCi of 211At-trastuzumab, 30 μCi was selected as the dose for future studies. A parallel study was performed evaluating 0.25, 0.5, 1.0, 2.0 and 5.0 μCi of 227Th-trastuzumab. The 0.5 and 1.0 μCi injected dose resulted in a therapeutic response; a lower degree of weight loss was experienced by the mice in the 0.5 μCi cohort. When the data is normalized for comparing 211At, 227Th, 213Bi and 212Pb, the choice of radionuclide for RIT is perhaps not entirely based on simple therapeutic efficacy, other factors may play a role in choosing the "right" radionuclide.
How do we perform and bill for blood bank physician consultative services

Transfusion medicine (TM) physicians provide medical services that benefit all patients such as providing 24-hour laboratory coverage, advising health care providers on test interpretation and selection, validating new methods, and supervising technical personnel. These services ensure delivery of accurate, reliable, and timely laboratory test results and blood products. TM physicians also provide consultations to individual patients by 1) interpreting and determining the clinical significance of test results (e.g., alloantibodies, direct antiglobulin tests), 2) recommending appropriate component therapy and approving deviations from laboratory policy, and 3) evaluating and recommending treatment of suspected transfusion reactions. The potential benefits of consultations are improved quality and cost of health care, enhanced provider education, and decreased inappropriate testing and product utilization. When physician services are delivered to individual patients, are appropriately requested, provide a diagnosis or recommendation, and are properly documented, TM physicians can receive professional reimbursement. While many TM physicians provide medical direction and oversight of apheresis procedures, billing in this area is sufficiently complex to be reviewed elsewhere. The objective of this article is for educational purposes to describe the 1) benefits of a consultative TM service, 2) development of reimbursement systems in the United States for professional component services and the current regulatory requirements, 3) current procedural terminology codes commonly used for TM physician services, and 4) examples of consultation documentation and daily workflow at tertiary care teaching hospitals. The information provided should help guide physicians to deliver and bill for these services.
A first look at performance of TV streaming sticks

Recent measurements show that more than half of the peak time Internet traffic is due to video streaming. Recent trends also suggest that consumers are increasingly receiving their TV content over the Internet via streaming appliances that are connected to the TV. We present the first systematic measurement study of a popular class of such devices that have the ‘stick’ form factor. The study covers streaming and network related performance using a widely used content server on the Internet (Netflix) and a local instrumented media server. On the user-end, we use three widely available mediasticks in the US – Chromecast , Amazon Fire and Roku . We observe that there are significant performance differentials across the streaming sticks. Our experiments show that Amazon Fire and Chromecast provide better user experience in the presence of varying network conditions, whereas Roku performs best at high stable bandwidth.
Artificial Intelligence Techniques in Smart Grid and Renewable Energy Systems—Some Example Applications

Artificial intelligence (AI) techniques, such as expert systems (ESs), fuzzy logic (FL), and artificial neural networks (ANNs or NNWs) have brought an advancing frontier in power electronics and power engineering. These techniques provide powerful tools for design, simulation, control, estimation, fault diagnostics, and fault-tolerant control in modern smart grid (SG) and renewable energy systems (RESs). The AI technology has gone through fast evolution during last several decades, and their applications have increased rapidly in modern industrial systems. This special issue will remain incomplete without some discussion on AI applications in SG and RESs. The paper will discuss some novel application examples of AI in these areas. These applications are automated design of modern wind generation system and its health monitoring in the operating condition, fault pattern identification of an SG subsystem, and control of SG based on real-time simulator. The concepts of these application examples can be expanded to formulate many other applications. In the beginning of the paper, the basic features of AI that are relevant to these applications have been briefly reviewed.
The weathering hypothesis and stillbirth: racial disparities across the life span.

Objective: Given that studies have consistently demonstrated increased risk of stillbirth with increasing maternal age as well as race-ethnic disparities in stillbirth, the primary research questio...
Editors’ introduction: Latino youth and struggles for inclusion in the 21st century:

This special issue features carefully selected case studies that document and analyze the experiences of Latino youth and young adults as they struggle for inclusion in the United States. Articles draw from qualitative research with Latinos/as who reside in different regions of the United States, hail from or trace their origins to various countries, and embody distinct experiences of incorporation and inclusion. Special emphasis is placed on the 1.5 generation, young people who immigrated to the US as young children but have spent the majority of their lives there—some of whom hold temporary protection under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. This introduction presents a conceptual framework for analyzing the experiences of Latino youth and young adults. We argue for an approach that centers intersecting social locations of youth and the specificity of place for understanding the dynamics and implications of Latino youth’s struggles for inclusion in the 21st century.