cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Marxism in the Anthropocene: Dialectical Rifts on the Left

ABSTRACTNatural scientists have pointed to the Anthropocene as a new geological epoch, with the precise dating not yet decided, but often traced to the Great Acceleration of the human impact on the environment since 1945. Thus understood, the Anthropocene largely coincides with the rise of the modern environmental movement and corresponds to the age of planetary crisis. This paper looks at the evolution of Marxian and left contributions to environmental thought during this period. Although Marx’s ecological materialism is now widely recognized, with the rediscovery of his theory of metabolic rift, the debate has recently shifted to ecological dialectics, including dualism, monism, totality, and mediation, generating a conflict between ecological Marxism and radical ecological monism. It is argued here that only an ecological Marxism, rooted in a materialist dialectic of nature and society, is able to engage effectively with the Great Climacteric that increasingly governs our times.
Scared Straight or Scared to Death? The Effect of Risk Beliefs on Risky Behaviors

This paper tests a model in which risk compensation can be "fatalistic": higher risks lead to more risk-taking, rather than less. If exposure cannot be perfectly controlled, fatalism arises when risks become sufficiently high. To test the model I randomize the provision of information about HIV transmission rates in Malawi, and use a novel method to decompose the risk elasticity of sexual risk-taking by people's initial risk beliefs. Matching the model's predictions, this elasticity varies from -2.3 for the lowest initial beliefs to 2.9 for the highest beliefs. Fatalistic people, who have a positive elasticity, comprise 14% of the population.
Unusual case of recurrent SMART (stroke-like migraine attacks after radiation therapy) syndrome

Stroke-like migraine attacks after radiation therapy (SMART) syndrome is a rare delayed complication of cerebral radiation therapy. A 53-year-old female initially presented with headache, confusion and left homonymous hemianopia. Her medical history was notable for cerebellar hemangioblastoma, which was treated with radiation in 1987. Her initial brain MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) revealed cortical enhancement in the right temporo-parieto-occipital region. She improved spontaneously in 2 weeks and follow-up scan at 4 weeks revealed no residual enhancement or encephalomalacia. She presented 6 weeks later with aphasia. Her MRI brain revealed similar contrast-enhancing cortical lesion but on the left side. Repeat CSF studies was again negative other than elevated protein. She was treated conservatively and recovered completely within a week. Before diagnosing SMART syndrome, it is important to rule out tumor recurrence, encephalitis, posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome (PRES) and stroke. Typically the condition is self-limiting, and gradually resolves.
Macrophage Inflammatory Protein-3 Alpha (MIP-3α)/CCL20 in HIV-1-Infected Individuals.

Objective: Uncontrolled HIV infection progresses to the depletion of systemic and mucosal CD4 and AIDS. Early HIV infection may be associated with increases in the concentration of MIP-3α in the blood and gut fluids. MIP-3α/ CCL20 is the only chemokine known to interact with CCR6 receptors which are expressed on immature dendritic cells and both effector and memory CD8+ and CD4+ T cells. The role and prognostic value of blood levels of MIP-3α in HIVinfected individuals has yet to be described. Methods: We determined the serum levels of MIP-3α, and IFN-γ, in 167 HIV-1-infected and 27 HIV-1-uninfected men participating in the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study (MACS). The blood biomarkers were measured using enzymelinked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) and the cell phenotypes using flow cytometry. Results: Median serum levels of MIP-3α in HIV-1-infected and uninfected men was significantly different (p<0.0001) and were 21.3 pg/mL and 6.4 pg/mL respectively. The HIV-1-infected men with CD4+ T cell count <200 cells/μL showed the highest median serum MIP-3α (23.1 pg/mL). Serum levels of MIP-3α in HIV-1 infected (n=167) were negatively correlated with absolute number of CD4+ T cell (p=0.01) and were positively correlated with CD38 molecules on CD8+ T cells (p=0.0002) and with serum levels of IFN-γ (0.006). Conclusion: Serum levels of MIP-3α concomitantly increase with plasma levels of IFN-γ, CD38 expression on CD8+ T cells, and decreased of absolute CD4+ T cells in HIV-1-infected men. A higher blood level of MIP-3α may be representation of locally high level of MIP-3α and more recruitment of immature dendritic cell at site of infection. Involvement of CCR6/CCL20 axis and epithelial cells at the recto-colonel level may enhance sexual transmission of HIV-1 in MSM and may be useful as a prognostic marker in HIV-1-infection and AIDS.
The Integrated Tactical Data Network (ITDN): multi-security level tactical/strategic connectivity through existing packet switching technology

The authors discuss the ITDN demonstration, a cooperative effort of the US Dept. of Defense command, control, communications, and intelligence (C/sup 3/I) community to achieve a data communications architecture capable of supporting data information transfer requirements at many security levels. The initial assessment drawn from the demonstration is that nondevelopmental packet switching technology can be used to interconnect strategic data communications networks and tactical networks. Tactical-to-strategic interoperability via use of the X.25 protocol was demonstrated by several user systems. The BLACKER COMSEC system was used to integrate users operating at different security levels so that they could use a common area communications network for transmission, yet still maintain isolation of user communities of interest (operating at the same security level) for those not authorized to operate at that specific security level. >
Study of Crystal Formation and Nitric Oxide (NO) Release Mechanism from S-Nitroso-N-acetylpenicillamine (SNAP)-Doped CarboSil Polymer Composites for Potential Antimicrobial Applications.

Abstract Stable and long-term nitric oxide (NO) releasing polymeric materials have many potential biomedical applications. Herein, we report the real-time observation of the crystallization process of the NO donor, S-nitroso-N-acetylpenicillamine (SNAP), within a thermoplastic silicone-polycarbonate-urethane biomedical polymer, CarboSil 20 80A. It is demonstrated that the NO release rate from this composite material is directly correlated with the surface area that the CarboSil polymer film is exposed to when in contact with aqueous solution. The decomposition of SNAP in solution (e.g. PBS, ethanol, THF, etc.) is an apparent first-order reaction proportional to the SNAP concentration. Further, catheters fabricated with this novel NO releasing composite material are shown to exhibit significant effects on preventing biofilm formation on catheter surface by Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Proteus mirabilis grown in CDC bioreactor over 14 days, with a 2 and 3 log-unit reduction in the number of live bacteria on their surfaces, respectively. Therefore, the SNAP-CarboSil composite is a promising new material for antimicrobial catheters, as well as other biomedical devices.
N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide: a risk predictor for all.

“Superior doctors prevent the disease; mediocre doctors treat the disease before evident; inferior doctors treat the full-blown disease.” —Huang Dee: Nai-Ching [(1)][1] The most common cause of death in the United States for more than a century, cardiovascular disease (CVD), is now the most
A Case Integrating Financial and Tax Accounting Using the Balance Sheet Approach to Account for Income Taxes

ABSTRACT: This case guides students through the process of reconciling financial (book) income to its taxable income, calculating the tax provision, preparing the income tax footnote disclosure, and completing Form 1120, Schedule M-1 for a fictitious publicly traded client. In the case, students are presented with the company's financial statements, including supporting schedules, and a tax basis balance sheet. Students are asked to calculate the tax provision and construct the income tax footnote as a pre-class assignment. In class, students debrief the tax provision calculation and income tax footnote and use information contained in the income tax footnote to reconcile the company's book to taxable income. Students completing this case should be able to (1) interpret the differences between a book basis balance sheet and a tax basis balance sheet, (2) create the income tax footnote disclosure using the ASC 740 balance sheet approach to accounting for income taxes, and (3) use information in the financi...
Atomic Electronic Structure Computations With Hylleraas-CI Wave Functions

Abstract The Hylleraas-CI (Hy-CI) method is conventionally defined as based on superposition-of-configurations (also called configuration interaction) wave functions in which each term (configuration) is built from an orbital product to which is appended at most one linear factor r ij , where r ij is the distance between particles i and j . The functions comprising an orbital product are usually chosen to be Slater-type orbitals that include spherical-harmonic angular dependence. We consider here both the conventional definition and its generalization (called extended Hy-CI or E-Hy-CI) in which the correlation factor r ij is replaced by a more general function f ( r ij ). The present communication reviews the mathematical methods presently available for the fully analytical treatment of the integrals arising when these types of explicitly correlated wave functions are used within the framework of both the usual and extended Hylleraas-CI to study atomic and more general single-center systems. The analysis includes novel elements that may improve the efficiency of computations; the chapter also calls attention to new formulas for treating kinetic-energy integrals in Hy-CI methods.
The Impact of Training Regimen on the Inflammatory Response to Exercise in 2-Year-Old Thoroughbreds

Abstract Previous work has demonstrated that 2-year-old horses in race training experience a decrease in inflammatory cytokine production as work at higher speeds progresses. The goal of this study was to determine whether training methods influence inflammatory gene production in 2-year-old horses; as such, two groups of horses trained using different high-speed training regimens (traditional, twice weekly, flat-track training on an all-weather surface vs. once weekly training on a grass track and regular work over undulating hills) were enrolled in this study. Peripheral blood samples were obtained on a weekly basis to measure the in vivo inflammatory mRNA expression of 10 different markers. Relationships between the markers were analyzed, and an Inflammation Score (IS) created from the average of all 10 markers for comparison between the two different training groups. Overall, while there were multiple marker relationships between the groups that were expected based on established inflammatory pathways, there were also relationships seen only in one group instead of the other, including a novel, positively correlated relationship between IL-17 and VEGFA in the traditional training group. Additionally, over time, the traditionally-trained group experienced a significantly increased IS compared with the grass-trained group, demonstrating that some training regimens may induce more inflammation in horses than others.
Cosmology: Early Universe

In Chap. 18 we saw how Cepheid stars and type Ia supernovae have been used to measure the expansion of the universe. If we run the clock backward, we deduce that in the past the universe was smaller, denser, and hotter than it is today. In this chapter we use gas physics and particle physics to understand the early, hot phase of the universe, and we discuss observations that probe this phase directly (through the cosmic microwave background radiation) and indirectly (through the abundances of elements created in the first few minutes after the big bang).
Ultrastructural lesions of the myocardial cell in Coxsackie B4 virus infected mice.

This study describes aspects of the specific changes which occur in the myocardial cells of Coxsackie B4 virus infected suckling mice. These changes consisted of cellular shedding, membrane-vesicle complex formation, disappearance of Golgi body, nuclear shrinkage and densification of chromatin and an increase in ribosomal population. These changes are in addition to the nonspecific changes which probably result as a nonspecific cellular response to injury.
The Exeter Book and the Idea of a Poem

This essay draws on codicological, metrical, and stylistic evidence to argue that three sequences of poetic texts in the Old English Exeter Book were understood by the compiler and early readers as...
First-principles study of the electronic structure and magnetic properties of 3 d single or multilayers on a Cu(001) substrate: Ni 1 ( or Ni 4 ) / Cu ( 001 ) , Cu 2 / Ni 4 / Cu ( 001 ) , and Co / Cu 2 / Ni 4 / Cu ( 001 )

Electronic structures and magnetic properties of ultrathin Ni films $({\mathrm{Ni}}_{n},n=1,4)$ with Cu and Co coverlayers $({\mathrm{Cu}}_{2}/{\mathrm{Ni}}_{4},\mathrm{Co}/{\mathrm{Cu}}_{2}/{\mathrm{Ni}}_{4})$ on the Cu(001) substrate are studied by using the full potential linearized augmented plane wave method with the generalized-gradient approximation for the exchange correlation interactions. The equilibrium structures are determined through their atomic forces. It is found that the spin moments of interfacial Ni atoms are significantly weakened due to the proximity effect from Cu. The Co adlayer in $\mathrm{Co}/{\mathrm{Cu}}_{2}/{\mathrm{Ni}}_{4}/\mathrm{Cu}(001)$ affects the Ni film very slightly due to the screening effects of the Cu layers. The average $3d$ holes increases by about 10% from ${\mathrm{Ni}}_{1}/\mathrm{Cu}(001)$ to ${\mathrm{Ni}}_{4}/\mathrm{Cu}(001).$ In ${\mathrm{Cu}}_{2}/{\mathrm{Ni}}_{4}/\mathrm{Cu}(001),$ the Cu capping layers reduce the average number of $3d$ holes of the Ni atoms by about 7.5% as compared to that in ${\mathrm{Ni}}_{4}/\mathrm{Cu}(001).$ Results are compared to experimental data from recent measurements using magnetic circular dichroism.
A review of Geographies of Disruption: Place Making for Innovation in the Age of Knowledge Economy. By Tan Yigitcanlar and Tommi Inkinen

Let us imagine three sets of world maps. The first shows iron and steel manufacturing cities in the 1950s; the second indicates major service-oriented cities (health, education, finance, leisure, t...
A Survey of Family Medicine and Internal Medicine Faculty and House Officers’ Understanding and Experience with Left Ventricular Assist Devices

Introduction The number of patients with stage D heart failure (HF) requiring a left ventricular assist device (LVAD) is on the rise. The aim herein is to examine family medicine (FM), internal medicine (IM) faculty and house officers (HO) understanding and experience about LVAD. Methods A survey was distributed by email to FM, IM faculty and HO at the University of Michigan. The survey contained questions about LVAD survival and basic management of arresting LVAD patients. Results 111 completed the survey (23.8%). Respondents self-identified as HO (59.5%) and the rest were FM and IM faculty. Only 30.9% reported receiving education on LVADs during their training and 66.6% reported being somewhat familiar with LVAD therapy. However, only half felt that LVAD therapy is a good option for improving quality of life and only 32% felt that LVADs improved survival. Only 6% of respondents estimated correct 1-year survival post pump implant. 77% correctly identified the anticoagulation of choice and 47% reported the appropriate way to measure blood pressure. No respondents received instruction on how to run a code on LVAD patients during ACLS certification, only 6.3% were aware of the recent AHA scientific statement regarding unresponsive LVAD patient management, and only 9% felt comfortable running a code blue on an LVAD patient. 49% and 35%, respectively, report that chest compressions and defibrillation can be performed if indicated. HO had better knowledge than IM and FM faculty regarding arresting LVAD patient management (p Conclusions Substantial knowledge gaps about LVAD and basic LVAD management were identified among IM, FM faculty and HO at a large teaching hospital. Similar knowledge gaps may exist among the larger internal and family medicine communities as a whole.
Exploring the Role of Context on Racially Responsive Supervision: The Racial Identity Social Interaction Model

Supervision may be an ideal format for training psychologists to be racially and culturally responsive because supervisors can tailor interventions to fit supervisees’ individual developmental needs. Nevertheless, over 30 years ago, counseling psychology researchers began identifying harmful effects of racially and culturally unresponsive supervision from the perspectives of supervisees. Missing from the literature has been empirical evidence from the perspectives of supervisors themselves. Moreover, research has failed to explore the influence of context (i.e., mental health sites) on supervision that addresses race and culture. The present study explored supervisors’ perspectives and experiences as they pertained to (a) providing racially and culturally responsive supervision, (b) the racial climate of their mental health work environments, and (c) influences of their institutional racial climates on their supervision practices as they pertained to race and culture. Interviews with psychologists, who identified as Black (n = 4) and White (n = 4), were analyzed using directed content analysis guided by the Racial Identity Social Interaction Model. Core domains and themes from the analysis drew connections between the supervisors’ perceptions of the racial climate of their institution and the challenges of supervising on race and culture. Findings from the study highlight the ways in which supervisors in mental health settings attempt to protect their supervisees in environments in which they often feel unprotected. Limitations and implications of the study for supervision theory, research, and practice are discussed.
Experiments in Post-Conflict Contexts

Experiments are increasingly used to better understand various aspects of civil conflict. A critical barrier to peace is often conflict recurrence after a settlement or other attempt to end fighting between sides. This chapter examines the growing literature on experiments in post-conflict contexts to understand their contributions and limitations to our understanding of the dynamics in this period. It argues that work on post-conflict contexts takes two different perspectives: a peace stabilization approach emphasizes special problems from civil conflict, including how to sustain peace agreements, while a peace consolidation approach emphasizes problems common to statebuilding, including how to reconstruct communities. Both seek in part to prevent conflict recurrence, though, and that is the focus of this chapter. Although more existing theory links stabilization programs with enduring peace, more existing experiments examine consolidation programs. Both approaches would benefit from new work. Post-conflict contexts in general, however, are difficult environments in which to work, and so experiments face three interrelated challenges: first, these contexts present special ethical challenges due to both the high stakes of peace and the sensitivity of subjects; second, these are complex treatments often conducted simultaneously by different actors, and these are treatments that depend on both institutional change and behavioral responses, so change is the constant in these contexts; and, third, these contexts also face heterogeneity in terms of programs but also contexts that mean the lessons may not travel even among post-conflict settings. Despite these challenges, experiments in post-conflict contexts hold promise for advancing our understanding of enduring peace.
Viperin: An ancient radical SAM enzyme finds its place in modern cellular metabolism and innate immunity

Viperin plays an important and multifaceted role in the innate immune response to viral infection. Viperin is also notable as one of very few radical SAM–dependent enzymes present in higher animals; however, the enzyme appears broadly conserved across all kingdoms of life, which suggests that it represents an ancient defense mechanism against viral infections. Although viperin was discovered some 20 years ago, only recently was the enzyme's structure determined and its catalytic activity elucidated. The enzyme converts CTP to 3′-deoxy-3′,4′-didehydro-CTP, which functions as novel chain-terminating antiviral nucleotide when misincorporated by viral RNA-dependent RNA polymerases. Moreover, in higher animals, viperin interacts with numerous other host and viral proteins, and it is apparent that this complex network of interactions constitutes another important aspect of the protein's antiviral activity. An emerging theme is that viperin appears to facilitate ubiquitin-dependent proteasomal degradation of some of the proteins it interacts with. Viperin-targeted protein degradation contributes to the antiviral response either by down-regulating various metabolic pathways important for viral replication or by directly targeting viral proteins for degradation. Here, we review recent advances in our understanding of the structure and catalytic activity of viperin, together with studies investigating the interactions between viperin and its target proteins. These studies have provided detailed insights into the biochemical processes underpinning this unusual enzyme's wide-ranging antiviral activity. We also highlight recent intriguing reports that implicate a broader role for viperin in regulating nonpathological cellular processes, including thermogenesis and protein secretion.
The Paradox of Inclusion: Applying Olmstead’s Integration Mandate in Prisons

In this essay, I discuss Olmstead and some potential opportunities and barriers to implementing Olmstead’s integration mandate in prisons. In particular, I address what I term the paradox of inclusion with respect to applying the integration mandate in prison. Recognizing that the central features and function of prisons conflict with the animating spirit of Olmstead, I discuss what is at stake in legal advocacy aimed at providing greater access and inclusion for people with disabilities in these carceral spaces. I contend that precisely because Olmstead conflicts with some of the central features and functions of the American punishment system, the Olmstead decision possesses properties that may allow for a more transformative reimagining of the rights of all incarcerated people, in addition to incarcerated people with disabilities.
MICROCOMPUTED TOMOGRAPHY OF CALCIUM-HYDROXIDE EXPOSED VITAL NERVE TISSUE: A PILOT PROTOCOL

Background Calcium hydroxide (CH) preparations are used in many endodontic procedures. Extrusion of CH into the mandibular canal may cause inferior alveolar nerve (IAN) injury. With an in vivo rat sciatic nerve sample, this phenomenon was subsequently imaged by using multiple modalities. Objective The aim of this study was to determine if histologic differences were evident on microcomputed tomography (MCT), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and hematoxylin and eosin (HE ThermoFisher, Waltham, MA) at ×200, ×400, ×800, ×1000, and ×1500 magnifications under the low-vacuum secondary electron detector (LFD). Images were interpreted to determine if differences were present in the CH samples compared with the controls. Results Preliminary findings showed promise for demonstrating nerve structure and form. In addition, the animal model protocol appears helpful for testing CH and other substances on nerve tissue in vivo. Discussion MCT and SEM imaging are effective tools in evaluating nerve structure and change in conjunction with H&E–stained histologic samples. Acknowledgments We would like to thank John Chrisler and John Hough for their assistance with surgical and specimen preparations during this project.
Acoustic microstreaming near a plane wall due to a pulsating free or coated bubble: velocity, vorticity and closed streamlines

Acoustic microstreaming due to an oscillating microbubble, either coated or free, is analytically investigated. The detailed flow field is obtained and the closed streamlines of the ring vortex generated by microstreaming are plotted in both Eulerian and Lagrangian descriptions. Analytical expressions are found for the ring vortex showing that its length depends only on the separation of the microbubble from the wall and the dependence is linear. The circulation as a scalar measure of the vortex is computed quantitatively identifying its spatial location. The functional dependence of circulation on bubble separation and coating parameters is shown to be similar to that of the shear stress.
Finding High-Degree Vertices with Inclusive Random Sampling

The friendship paradox (FP) is the famous phenomenon that one’s friends typically have more friends than they themselves do. The FP has inspired novel approaches for sampling vertices at random from a network when the goal of the sampling is to find vertices of higher degree. The most famous of these methods involves selecting a vertex at random and then selecting one of its neighbors at random. Another possible method would be to select a random edge from the network and then select one of its endpoints at random, again predicated on the fact that high degree vertices will be overrepresented in the collection of edge endpoints. In this paper we propose a simple tweak to these methods where we consider the degrees of the two vertices involved in the selection process and choose the one with higher degree. We explore the different sampling methods theoretically and establish interesting asymptotic bounds on their performances as a way of highlighting their respective strengths. We also apply the methods experimentally to both synthetic graphs and real-world networks to determine the improvement inclusive sampling offers over exclusive sampling, which version of inclusive sampling is stronger, and what graph characteristics affect these results.
Association of Electronic Health Record Vendors With Hospital Financial and Quality Performance: Retrospective Data Analysis.

Background: Electronic health records (EHRs) are a central feature of care delivery in acute care hospitals; however, the financial and quality outcomes associated with system performance remain unclear. Objective: In this study, we aimed to evaluate the association between the top 3 EHR vendors and measures of hospital financial and quality performance. Methods: This study evaluated 2667 hospitals with Cerner, Epic, or Meditech as their primary EHR and considered their performance with regard to net income, Hospital Value–Based Purchasing Total Performance Score (TPS), and the unweighted subdomains of efficiency and cost reduction; clinical care; patient- and caregiver-centered experience; and patient safety. We hypothesized that there would be a difference among the 3 vendors for each measure. Results: None of the EHR systems were associated with a statistically significant financial relationship in our study. Epic was positively associated with TPS outcomes (R2=23.6%; β=.0159, SE 0.0079; P=.04) and higher patient perceptions of quality (R2=29.3%; β=.0292, SE 0.0099; P=.003) but was negatively associated with patient safety quality scores (R2=24.3%; β=−.0221, SE 0.0102; P=.03). Cerner and Epic were positively associated with improved efficiency (R2=31.9%; Cerner: β=.0330, SE 0.0135, P=.01; Epic: β=.0465, SE 0.0133, P<.001). Finally, all 3 vendors were associated with positive performance in the clinical care domain (Epic: β=.0388, SE 0.0122, P=.002; Cerner: β=.0283, SE 0.0124, P=.02; Meditech: β=.0273, SE 0.0123, P=.03) but with low explanatory power (R2=4.2%). Conclusions: The results of this study provide evidence of a difference in clinical outcome performance among the top 3 EHR vendors and may serve as supportive evidence for health care leaders to target future capital investments to improve health care delivery. Trial Registration:
An early global role for Axin is required for correct patterning of the anterior-posterior axis in the sea urchin embryo

Activation of Wnt/β-catenin (cWnt) signaling at the future posterior end of early bilaterian embryos is a highly conserved mechanism for establishing the anterior-posterior (AP) axis. Moreover, inhibition of cWnt at the anterior end is required for development of anterior structures in many deuterostome taxa. This phenomenon, which occurs around the time of gastrulation, has been fairly well characterized, but the significance of intracellular inhibition of cWnt signaling in cleavage-stage deuterostome embryos for normal AP patterning is less well understood. To investigate this process in an invertebrate deuterostome, we defined Axin function in early sea urchin embryos. Axin is ubiquitously expressed at relatively high levels in early embryos and functional analysis revealed that Axin suppresses posterior cell fates in anterior blastomeres by blocking ectopic cWnt activation in these cells. Structure-function analysis of sea urchin Axin demonstrated that only its GSK-3β-binding domain is required for cWnt inhibition. These observations and results in other deuterostomes suggest that Axin plays a crucial conserved role in embryonic AP patterning by preventing cWnt activation in multipotent early blastomeres, thus protecting them from assuming ectopic cell fates.
Comparison of Effective Methods to Determine Concentrations of Acrylamide-Based Polymers

This paper evaluates five different methods for polymer concentration determination, nitrogen digestion method, starch-cadmium iodide (CdI2) method, turbidimery method, total organic carbon (TOC) method and gel permeation chromatography (GPC) method. It enables the engineers to choose the most appropriate analytical method to measure polyacrylamide concentration at different reservoir conditions. For each method, linearity range, limit of detection, reproducibility, salinity tolerance, surfactant interferences and hydrolysis degree are provided. Moreover, the practicalities for field application are discussed. It shows that the nitrogen-digestion method is suitable for polymer concentration determination in field environment.
Racial/Ethnic Disparity in Suicidal Ideation, Suicide Attempt and Non-suicidal Intentional Self-harm Among Pregnant Women in the United States.

We examined the prevalence of suicidal ideation, suicide attempt and non-suicidal intentional self-harm among pregnant women in the United States stratified by race/ethnicity. Data on hospital admissions among pregnant women 15–49 years during 2016–2017 compiled in the Nationwide Inpatient Sample were used for this study. We assessed the prevalence and factors of suicidal ideation, suicide attempt and non-suicidal intentional self-harm among different race/ethnicities. The prevalence of suicidal ideation, suicide attempt and non-suicidal intentional self-harm was greatest among hospitalized Non-Hispanic (NH) Black pregnant women. As compared to pregnant women who were routinely discharged, those who died during the course of hospitalization had about eight times the odds for NH-Whites, four times the odds for NH-Blacks and five times the odds for Hispanics of suicidal ideation or attempt. Appropriate measures are needed for prompt diagnosis and management of mental health issues in pregnant women belonging to vulnerable sub-groups.
Frictional Behavior of Low-Cost Steel-Polymer Interfaces for Seismic Isolation

AbstractThis paper presents the results of an experimental program studying and comparing the frictional behavior of eight different polymers sliding on galvanized steel at velocities up to 350 mm...
Promises and pitfalls of using computer vision to make inferences about landscape preferences: Evidence from an urban-proximate park system

Abstract The ubiquitous use of the internet and social media has provided social and spatial scientists with a wealth of data from which inferences about landscape preferences can be gained. These data are increasingly being used as an alternative to data collected from surveys of recreationists. While the rapidly growing body of research using social media is impressive, little work has been done to compare the image content of social media to preferences elucidated via more traditional methods. We compare the landscape features derived through a computer vision algorithm used to analyze social media photographs with preferences derived through a traditional on-site intercept survey. We found that landscape features identified through the computer vision algorithm were, by and large, significantly different compared to landscape features that park users said improved their recreational experiences. Additionally, we did not find substantial differences in landscape preferences between visitors who share photographs of their park visit on social media and those who do not. We suggest a diversity of data sources and analytical methods should be used in a complementary and comparative way. Our analysis here suggests both surveys and social media images can provide important insights about landscape preferences, but neither in isolation is perfect.
Magnetic Fields in Supernovae

A relatively modest value of the initial rotation of the iron core, a period of ∽ 6 – 31 s, will give a very rapidly rotating protoneutron star and hence strong differential rotation with respect to the infalling matter. Under these conditions, a seed field is expected to be amplified by the magnetorotational instability (MRI) and to grow exponentially. Exponential growth of the field on the time scale Ω-1 by the MRI will dominate the linear growth process of field line “wrapping” with the same characteristic time. The shear is strongest at the boundary of the newly formed protoneutron star. Modest initial rotation velocities of the iron core result in sub-Keplerian rotation and a sub-equipartition magnetic field that nevertheless produce substantial magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) luminosity and hoop stresses: saturation fields of order 1015 — 1016 G develop ∽ — 300 msec after bounce with an associated MHD luminosity of ∽ — 1049 — 1053 erg s-1 . Bi-polar flows driven by this MHD power can affect or even cause the explosions associated with core-collapse supernovae. If the initial rotation is too slow, then there will not be enough rotational energy to power the supernova despite the high luminosities. The MRI should be active and may qualitatively alter the flow if a black hole forms directly or after a fall-back delay.
Elliptic Curves, Modular Forms, and Their L-functions

Many problems in number theory have simple statements, but their solutions require a deep understanding of algebra, algebraic geometry, complex analysis, group representations, or a combination of all four. The original simply stated problem can be obscured in the depth of the theory developed to understand it. This book is an introduction to some of these problems, and an overview of the theories used nowadays to attack them, presented so that the number theory is always at the forefront of the discussion. Lozano-Robledo gives an introductory survey of elliptic curves, modular forms, and $L$-functions. His main goal is to provide the reader with the big picture of the surprising connections among these three families of mathematical objects and their meaning for number theory. As a case in point, Lozano-Robledo explains the modularity theorem and its famous consequence, Fermat's Last Theorem. He also discusses the Birch and Swinnerton-Dyer Conjecture and other modern conjectures. The book begins with some motivating problems and includes numerous concrete examples throughout the text, often involving actual numbers, such as 3, 4, 5, $\frac{3344161}{747348}$, and $\frac{2244035177043369699245575130906674863160948472041} {8912332268928859588025535178967163570016480830}$. The theories of elliptic curves, modular forms, and $L$-functions are too vast to be covered in a single volume, and their proofs are outside the scope of the undergraduate curriculum. However, the primary objects of study, the statements of the main theorems, and their corollaries are within the grasp of advanced undergraduates. This book concentrates on motivating the definitions, explaining the statements of the theorems and conjectures, making connections, and providing lots of examples, rather than dwelling on the hard proofs. The book succeeds if, after reading the text, students feel compelled to study elliptic curves and modular forms in all their glory.
Electrolyte Diffusion in Compacted Montmorillonite Engineered Barriers

The bentonite-based engineered barrier or packing is a proposed component of several designs conceived to dispose of high-level nuclear waste in geologic repositories. Once radionuclides escape the waste package, they must first diffuse through the highly impermeable clay-rich barrier before they reach the host repository. To determine the effectiveness of the packing as a sorption barrier in the transient release period and as a mass-transfer barrier in the steady release period over the geologic time scales involved in nuclear waste disposal, a fundamental understanding of the diffusion of electrolytes in compacted clays is required. We present, and compare with laboratory data, a model quantifying the diffusion rates of cationic cesium and uncharged tritium in compacted montmorillonite clay. Neutral tritium characterizes the geometry (i.e., tortuosity) of the particulate gel. After accounting for cation exchange, we find that surface diffusion is the dominant mechanism of cation transport, with an approximate surface diffusion coefficient of 2 x 10 W cmS/s for cesium. This value increases slightly with increasing background ionic strength. The implications of this work for the packing as a migration barrier are twofold. During the transient release period, K/sub d/ values are of little importance in retarding ion migration. This ismore » because sorption also gives rise to a surface diffusion path, and it is surface diffusion which controls the diffusion rate of highly sorbing cations in compacted montmorillonite. During the steady release period, the presence of surface diffusion leads to a flux through the packing which is greatly enhanced. In either case, if surface diffusion is neglected, the appropriate diffusion coefficient of ions in compacted packing will be in considerable error relative to current design recommendations. 11 refs., 4 figs., 1 tab.« less
Asset protection in multinational enterprises – where to now?: Implications for asset protection planning in multinational enterprises from the OECD’s work on BEPS

Purpose – This paper aims to shed light on the potential implications for asset protection planning in multinational enterprises (MNEs) from the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD)’s work on base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) and the global push towards increased transparency and automatic information exchange. Design/methodology/approach – An examination of the academic literature across a range of areas of the law relevant to MNEs and an analysis of the risks facing MNEs and the significance of asset protection in managing these risks. An examination of the OECD’s work on BEPS and automatic information exchange and implications for asset protection strategies utilised by MNEs with a particular focus on the critical issues of disclosure, ownership and control. Findings – The full extent to which MNEs will be affected by the OECD’s work on BEPS remains unknown. Early signs indicate a significant shift in the focus of tax rules away from the pricing of specific transactions b...
MOTHERHOOD IN CHRISTIANITY AND ISLAM: Critiques, Realities, and Possibilities

Common experiences of mothering offer profound critiques of maternal ethical norms found in both Christianity and Islam. The familiar responsibilities of caring for children, assumed by the majority of Christian and Muslim women, provide the basis for reassessing sacrificial and selfless love, protesting unjust religious and political systems, and dismantling romanticized notions of childcare. As a distinctive category of women's experience, motherhood may offer valuable perspectives necessary for remedying injustices that afflict mothers and children in particular, as well as for developing cross-cultural understandings of justice in general.
Crystal growth and structure determination of K2TiO3 : A five coordinate titanate

Abstract Long, needle-shaped single crystals of K2TiO3 were grown out of a reactive high temperature hydroxide melt. The structure was determined by single crystal X-ray diffraction and found to crystallize in the orthorhombic Cmcm space group with a = 10.0283(2) A, b = 6.9346(2) A, c = 5.4534(1) A, V = 379.242(15) A3, and Z = 4. The structure is related to the K2SnO3 and K2ZrO3 structures, which crystallize in the Pnma space group, and that of K2PbO3, which crystallizes in the Cmc21 space group. The structure consists of chains of trans edge-sharing TiO5 rectangular pyramids with alternating apical directions. The chains are separated by KO7 polyhedra.
Corporate bankruptcy : assessment, analysis and prediction of financial distress, insolvency, and failure

This paper is divided into three sections that address the various elements of understanding, predicting and analyzing corporate failure and bankruptcy. Part I covers the definitions of corporate failure, explains the bankruptcy process and then classifies various potential causes of failure into broad categories. The causes are bifurcated into company-specific versus external factors. The company-specific factors include an in depth discussion and analysis of business causes versus financial causes, as well as the interrelation between the two. The most important factors, such as financial and operating leverage, are explored in great detail to gain a better understanding of their implications and impact on corporate failure. Part II covers various approaches for analyzing corporate risk and predicting corporate failure. It first details the credit analysis process from the perspective of lenders and credit agencies as a method for credit evaluation and prediction of default. Then, it provides an in depth explanation of financial ratio analysis as a prediction method and provides an overview of the main statistical prediction models. It concludes with a discussion of the implications of the model findings with respect to the causes detailed in Part I. Lastly, Part III describes the outcome of the study performed to analyze the causes of failure as described in Part I by using a combination of the methods highlighted in Part II. The purpose of the study is to identify the sequence and magnitude of relative ratio deterioration in failed firms in order to establish the relative frequency of the various categories of causes of failure. Various ratios and metrics were used as proxies for relative liquidity complications, profitability issues, business problems, and leverage concerns. The impact of macroeconomic events is also evaluated by isolating the impact of the 2008-2009 recession on the relative ratio measures.
Soft microfluidic neural probes for wireless drug delivery in freely behaving mice

We present ultrathin, soft microfluidic neural probes with wireless drug delivery capability that can be injected precisely in the deep brain tissue. These probes permit targeted, wireless, spatiotemporal control of pharmacological manipulation in freely behaving mice. Because of the flexible, wireless nature of this probe, it is minimally invasive and has potential for broad applications in neuroscience as well as clinical medicine.
Molecular structures that influence the immunomodulatory properties of the lipid A and inner core region oligosaccharides of bacterial lipopolysaccharides

The relationship between chain length as well as the position of fatty acyl groups to the ability of lipid A to abolish the expression of suppressor T-cell (Ts) activity was examined. Fatty acyl chain lengths of C12 to C14, as in the lipid A of Escherichia coli and Salmonella minnesota, appear to be optimal for this bioactivity, since lipid A preparations with fatty acyl groups of relatively short chain length (C10 to C12 for Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Chromobacterium violaceum) or predominantly long chain length (C18 for Helicobacter pylori) are without effect. The presence of an acyloxyacyl group of appropriate chain length at the 3' position of the glucosamine disaccharide backbone of lipid A also plays a decisive role. By contrast, the lipid A proximal inner core region oligosaccharides of some bacterial lipopolysaccharides increase the expression of Ts activity; this is due mainly to the capacity of such oligosaccharides, which are relatively conserved in structure among gram-negative bacteria, to enlarge or expand upon the population of CD8+ Ts generated during the course of a normal antibody response to unrelated microbial antigens. The minimal structure required for the expression of the added immunosuppression observed appears to be a hexasaccharide containing one 2-keto-3-deoxyoctonate residue, two glucose residues, and three heptose residues to which are attached two pyrophosphorylethanolamine groups. The relevance of these findings to virulence and to the pathogenesis of gram-negative infections is discussed.
Estimating duplication by content-based sampling

We define a new technique for accurately estimating the amount of duplication in a storage volume from a small sample and we analyze its performance and accuracy. The estimate is useful for determining whether it is worthwhile to incur the overhead of deduplication. The technique works by scanning the fingerprints of every block in the volume, but only including in the sample a single copy of each fingerprint that passes a filter. The selectivity of the filter is repeatedly increased while reading the fingerprints, to produce the target sample size. We show that the required sample size for a reasonable accuracy is small and independent of the size of the volume. In addition, we define and analyze an on-line technique that, once an initial scan of all fingerprints has been performed, efficiently maintains an up-to-date estimate of the duplication as the file system is modified. Experiments with various real data sets show that the accuracy is as predicted by theory. We also prototyped the proposed technique in an enterprise storage system and measured the performance overhead using the IOzone micro-benchmark.