cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Acoustic radiation from weakly wrinkled premixed flames

This paper describes a theoretical analysis of acoustic radiation from weakly wrinkled (i.e., u � /SL < 1) premixed flames. Specifically, it determines the transfer function relating the spectrum of the acoustic pressure oscillations, P � (ω), to that of the turbulent velocity fluctuations in the approach flow, U � (ω). In the weakly wrinkled limit, this transfer function is local in frequency space; i.e., velocity fluctuations at a frequency ω distort the flame and generate sound at the same frequency. This transfer function primarily depends upon the flame Strouhal number St (based on mean flow velocity and flame length) and the correlation length, Λ ,o f the fl ow fluctuations. For cases where the ratio of the correlation length and duct radius Λ/a � 1, the acoustic pressure and turbulent velocity power spectra are related by P � (ω) ∼ ω 2 U � (ω) and P � (ω) ∼ U � (ω) for St � 1a nd St � 1, respectively. For cases where Λ/a � 1, the transfer functions take the form P � (ω) ∼ ω 2 (Λ/a) 2 U � (ω) and P � (ω) ∼ ω 2 (Λ/a) 2 (Ψ − ∆ ln(Λ/a))U � (ω) for St � 1a ndSt � 1, respectively, where Ψ and ∆ are constants. The latter result demonstrates that this transfer function does not exhibit a simple power law relationship in the high frequency region of the spectra. The simultaneous dependence of this pressure–velocity transfer function upon the Strouhal number and correlation length suggests a mechanism for the experimentally observed maximum in acoustic spectra and provides some insight into the controversy in the literature over how this peak should scale with the flame Strouhal number.
Fiber-Based Broadband-Access Deployment in the United States

After more than 20 years of research and development, a combination of technological, regulatory, and competitive forces are finally bringing fiber-based broadband access to commercial fruition. The three main approaches-hybrid fiber coax, fiber to the cabinet, and fiber to the home-are each vying for dominance in the industry, and each has significant future potential to grow customers and increase bandwidth and associated-service offerings. Further technical advances and cost reductions will be adopted, eventually bringing performance levels and bandwidth to gigabits-per-second rates when user demand warrants while keeping service costs affordable
UV Resonance Raman Detection of Artificial Sweetener in Soda Pop—Just for the Fun of It

Ultraviolet resonance Raman (UVRR) spectroscopy has recently demonstrated its potential as a powerful technique for the study of biomolecular structure and for probing chromophores in complex systems. UVRR investigations of proteins and peptides have demonstrated selective enhancement of the aromatic amino acid ring vibrations of small peptide chains and proteins. UVRR is particularly useful for studying aromatic ring systems in complicated fuel, coal liquid, and petroleum mixtures. An increase of up to six orders of magnitude in sensitivity can occur compared with that for normal Raman spectroscopy, because of the resonance phenomenon.
Cultural differences in relational knowledge

Much research in developmental psychology and cognitive development presumes a universal developmental trend that is independent of culture. One such trend, from object to relational knowledge, is seen over and over. However, most of this research is based on the study of children and individuals from Western cultures. This paper considers the possibility that this developmental trend might differ in different cultures.
Prognostic impact of subclassification of radical prostatectomy positive margins by linear extent and Gleason grade.

Purpose: We evaluated the relationship of progression to positive surgical margin linear length and Gleason grade at a positive surgical margin.Materials and Methods: We studied 2,150 prostatectomies done for pT2 or pT3a disease to determine grade, stage and surgical margin status. In patients with positive surgical margins we recorded the location, number, positive margin linear length and highest Gleason grade at a positive margin. The Kaplan-Meier method and log rank test were used to determine differences in progression-free probability among positive margin features. The concordance index was used to discriminate the accuracy of grouping surgical margin status as negative/positive vs positive margin linear length/highest Gleason grade.Results: A total of 207 cases (10%) showed positive surgical margins, including 93 (45%) that were pT2+ and 114 (55%) that were pT3a. Patients with pT3a and positive margins had greater prostate specific antigen and tumor volume, and Gleason score 7 or greater than thos...
Multiple-filter approach to phase retrieval from modulus data

A new approach is given for the problem of reconstruction of phase from modulus data. A set of Wiener-filter functions is formed that multiply, in turn, displaced versions of the modulus data (in frequency space) such that the sum is a minimum L2-error norm solution for the object. The modulus data are permitted to contain both noise and signal (object) components. The required statistics are power spectra of the signal and noise, and correlations between modulus data at given frequencies and complex object spectral values at adjacent frequencies. In a numerical simulation, a 3 × 3 filter array is used to reconstruct any member of an object class consisting of 16 pictures of space shuttles in various combinations. The 16 pictures are used as a learning set to form the required power spectra and correlations mentioned above. Reconstructions are formed in the presence of data noise, data gaps, and filter-construction noise, in varying amounts. Results are encouraging in that the space shuttle images are always recognizable.
Experimental characterization and numerical simulations of dispersion-managed breathing-mode semiconductor mode-locked ring laser

Strong self-phase modulation (SPM) in semiconductor gain media induces nonlinear chirp impressed on propagating pulses, which can be difficult to compensate. Our approach is to employ an intracavity dispersion management scheme to decrease the detrimental effect of SPM by utilizing the concept of chirped pulse amplification inside a laser cavity. Stretching the pulse before the cavity gain element minimizes SPM and extracts energy more efficiently. The subsequently compressed pulse bleaches the semiconductor saturable absorber (SA) more easily. The breathing-mode semiconductor mode-locked ring laser regime describes how the pulse alternately experiences stretching and compression while propagating within the ring cavity.
Microsecond Molecular Dynamics Simulation Shows Effect of Slow Loop Dynamics on Backbone Amide Order Parameters of Proteins

A molecular-level understanding of the function of a protein requires knowledge of both its structural and dynamic properties. NMR spectroscopy allows the measurement of generalized order parameters that provide an atomistic description of picosecond and nanosecond fluctuations in protein structure. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulation provides a complementary approach to the study of protein dynamics on similar time scales. Comparisons between NMR spectroscopy and MD simulations can be used to interpret experimental results and to improve the quality of simulation-related force fields and integration methods. However, apparent systematic discrepancies between order parameters extracted from simulations and experiments are common, particularly for elements of noncanonical secondary structure. In this paper, results from a 1.2 μs explicit solvent MD simulation of the protein ubiquitin are compared with previously determined backbone order parameters derived from NMR relaxation experiments [Tjandra, N.; Felle...
Children's reporting of food insecurity in predominately food insecure households in Texas border colonias

Background: Food insecurity is associated with detrimental physical, psychological, behavioral, social, and educational functioning in children and adults. Greater than one-quarter of all Hispanic households in the U.S. are food insecure. Hispanic families in the U.S. comprise 30% of households with food insecurity at the child level, the most severe form of the condition. Methods: Food security discordance was evaluated among 50 Mexican-origin children ages 6–11 and their mothers living in Texas border colonias from March to June 2010. Mothers and children were interviewed separately using promotora-researcher administered Spanish versions of the Household Food Security Survey Module and the Food Security Survey Module for Youth. Cohen’s kappa statistic (κ) was used to analyze dyadic agreement of food security constructs and level of food security. Results: Eighty percent of mothers reported household food insecurity while 64% of children identified food insecurity at the child level. There was slight inter-rater agreement in food security status (κ= 0.13, p= 0.15). Poor agreement was observed on the child hunger construct (κ= �0.06, p= 0.66) with fair agreement in children not eating for a full day (κ= 0.26, p < 0.01) and relying on low-cost foods (κ= 0.23, p= 0.05). Conclusions: Mother and child-reported household and child-level food insecurity among this sample of limited-resource Mexican-origin colonias residents far surpass national estimates. While the level of dyadic agreement was poor, discordance may be attributable to parental buffering, social desirability in responses, and/or the age of children included in the present analysis. Future research should continue to explore how food security is understood from the perspectives and experiences of children and adolescents.
The impact of clean indoor-air laws and cigarette smuggling on demand for cigarettes: an empirical model.

This study examines the impact of clean indoor-air laws and smuggling activities on states' per capita cigarette consumption and revenues by using a static demand model. The analysis was based on data for 50 states and the District of Columbia (DC) of the United Sates over the period 1970-1995. The estimated price elasticities of demand for cigarettes ranged from -0.48 to -0.62, indicating that a 10% increase in price would reduce consumption per capita by 4.8% to 6.2%. Anti-smoking laws had a significant negative impact on per capita consumption. In 1995, consumption was reduced by 4.7 packs per capita among states with anti-smoking laws, or 1.1 billion fewer packs of cigarettes consumed. Both short-distance smuggling between neighbouring states and long-distance smuggling from Kentucky, North Carolina and Virginia existed and were significant. Smuggling activities from military bases and Indian reservations, however, were not significant. On average, 6% of states' tax revenues were lost due to smuggling activities in 1995. Results also showed that short-distance smuggling was less important than long-distance smuggling as a source of the revenue loss.
The role of market fundamentals and speculation in recent price changes for crude oil

I hypothesize that the price spike and collapse of 2007–2008 are driven by both changes in both market fundamentals and speculative pressures. Contrary to arguments for a demand shock, I hypothesize that prices rise sharply in 2007–2008 because ongoing growth in Chinese oil demand runs into a sudden and unexpected halt to a decade long increase in non-OPEC production. This caused a loss of OPEC spare capacity because increased demand for OPEC production runs ahead of increases in OPEC capacity. These changes are reinforced by speculative expectations. Although difficult to measure directly, I argue for the role of speculation based on the following: (1) a significant increase in private US crude oil inventories since 2004; (2) repeated and extended break-downs (starting in 2004) in the cointegrating relationship between spot and far month future prices that are inconsistent with the law of one price and arbitrage opportunities; and (3) statistical and predictive failures by an econometric model of oil prices that is based on market fundamentals. These changes are related to the behavior and impact of noise traders on asset prices to sketch mechanisms by which speculative expectations can affect crude oil prices.
The open network laboratory: a resource for networking research and education

The Open Network Laboratory (ONL) is a remotely accessible network testbed designed to enable networking faculty, students and researchers to conduct experiments using high performance routers and applications. The system is built around a set of extensible, high-performance routers and has a graphical interface that enables users to easily configure and run experiments remotely. ONL's Remote Laboratory Interface (RLI) allows users to easily configure a network topology, configure routes and packet filters in the routers, assign flows or flow aggregates to separate queues with configurable QoS and attach hardware monitoring points to real-time charts. The remote visualization features of the RLI make it easy to directly view the effects of traffic as it moves through a router, allowing the user to gain better insight into system behavior and create compelling demonstrations. Each port of the router is equipped with an embedded processor that provides a simple environment for software plugins allowing users to extend the system's functionality. This paper describes the general facilties and some networking experiments that can be carried out. We hope that you and your collegues and students will check out the facility and register for an account at our web site onl.arl.wustl.edu
Induction of anterior chamber-associated immune deviation requires an intact, functional spleen

When allogeneic P815 mastocytoma cells (derived from DBA/2 mice) are injected into the anterior chamber of the eyes of BALB/c mice, they take advantage of the immunologic privilege within this site...
FLORAX-flow-rate based hop by hop backpressure control for IEEE 802.3x

The standard IEEE 802.3x is introduced to manage the XON/XOFF flow control mechanism in full duplex gigabit Ethernet. In an IEEE 802.3x network, a downstream station can send XOFF messages to upstream stations to stop them from sending data until a specified time slot has passed or the downstream station receives a XON message. The development of an efficient XON/XOFF flow control mechanism is still an active research topic. This paper describes FLORAX, an IEEE 802.3x XON/XOFF control scheme with proposed modifications. It introduces a hop-by-hop backpressure control based on flow rate in order to fully utilize the performance of large scale LANs. The control strategy of FLORAX is based on applying backpressure depending on the bandwidth of the flows, where flow is defined to be a source-destination MAC address pair. FLORAX allows the use of a service level agreement (SLA) for quality of service. FLORAX is fair in the sense that it distributes the bandwidth among flows during congestion. The simulation study is performed to compare the performance of earlier approaches with FLORAX. Experiment results demonstrate that FLORAX achieves fair bandwidth distribution for the duration of transmission, efficient use of link bandwidth, and reduction in packet loss.
Helping as a Component of Parent-Adult Child Relations

Much research on intergenerational helping has focused on help from adult children to parents, but few studies have examined help in both directions. This article focuses on the frequency of severa...
Migrant Students with Limited English Proficiency: Can Fast ForWord Language™ Make a Di ference in Their Language Skills and Academic Achievement?

This study evaluated the efficacy of the computer-assisted intervention program known as Fast ForWord Language™ in a sample of migrant students in Grades 1 through 6 who were native Spanish speakers. Fast ForWord Language™ combines intensive training in multiple receptive English language skills with adaptive acoustic waveform lengthening and amplification to purportedly accelerate the English language learning skills of children who are nonnative English language speakers. Students either were randomly assigned to a treatment or no-contact control condition or were matched on grade, English language proficiency, and nonverbal IQ. All students were assessed in five domains before and immediately after the 4- to 8-week intervention: (a) spoken English language proficiency; (b) oral language competency; (c) phonological awareness; (d) basic reading skills; and (e) classroom behavior. Except for performance on a measure of sight-word recognition, on which children in the treatment group achieved a significan...
The Immune System in Breast Cancer Initiation and Progression: Role of Epithelial to Mesenchymal Transition

The mammary gland is a complex organ necessary for providing nutrition and immunity to the newborn. Understanding the normal physiology and architecture of the mammary gland is essential because it is an anatomic site that is often diseased in humans. Cancer remains one of the dominant diseases detected in breast tissue. Worldwide, breast cancer is responsible for over 400,000 deaths annually. Despite our tremendous efforts, the molecular and cellular pathways to initiation and progression of breast cancer remain poorly understood. What has become increasingly clear is the microenvironment in the normal and malignant breast can have a profound influence on malignancy. While there are data that suggest that one component of the microenvironment, the immune system, protects against breast cancer, other data support a pathological role. In this review the authors take a comprehensive approach in defining this paradoxical, double-edged, role of the immune system.
How Can Gratitude Interventions Be Used to Enhance Well-Being?

In this chapter I explain some of the more practical aspects of gratitude. Specifically, I present empirically supported gratitude interventions in some detail. Gratitude exercises seem to fall into four categories that I refer to as (1) grateful recounting, (2) grateful reflection, (3) grateful expression, and (4) grateful reappraisal. After discussing each of these forms of gratitude exercises, I then examine interventions that are designed to encourage the disposition of gratitude. In the application of gratitude it is important to consider potential moderators. Thus I discuss potential treatment moderators such as affectivity and gender. The chapter concludes with suggestions for future innovations in gratitude treatment research.
The Future in Nuclear Power

Perceptions of nuclear power tend to be dominated by concerns on safety and waste management, and the key to understanding how these can be handled with security and sustainability is a fundamental understanding of nuclear processes and materials. This chapter traverses the chapters from atomic-level nuclear changes, to reactor options, and finally the handling of spent nuclear fuel. A comprehensive understanding leads to comprehensive solutions that are sustainable.
Diagnostic Delays in Type B Aortic Dissections

Acute aortic conditions, including aortic dissection and intramural hematoma, are very serious illnesses that require prompt and appropriate medical attention, with misdiagnosis being potentially fatal. It is well understood that fast diagnosis and treatment is crucial to obtain optimal outcomes for
Cortisone on oxygen consumption of granulation tissue from the rabbit.

SummaryThe oxygen consumption (Q02) of pooled dermal and granulation tissue slices from 2.5-3.5 kg male white rabbits were studied by the Warburg technic. The rabbits were divided into 3 groups: (A) Those subjected to dermal injury. (B) Those subjected to dermal injury, but in addition receiving pre- and post-operative cortisone treatment, i.e., 25 mg/day. (C) Those animals subjected to a sham operation. 1. “Normal” uninjured dermal slices give a mean endogenous Q02 value of 0.27 ± 0.02 (Group C, Table I). 2. Slices from untreated granulation tissues (Group A) show an increase of 396% over their control (Group C). 3. Slices from cortisone-treated granulation tissue (Group B) give only a 67% increase over the control (C), or a 66% decrease when compared with untreated granulation tissue (A). 4. The implications of these results are discussed.
A consistent information criterion for support vector machines in diverging model spaces

Information criteria have been popularly used in model selection and proved to possess nice theoretical properties. For classification, Claeskens et al. (2008) proposed support vector machine information criterion for feature selection and provided encouraging numerical evidence. Yet no theoretical justification was given there. This work aims to fill the gap and to provide some theoretical justifications for support vector machine information criterion in both fixed and diverging model spaces. We first derive a uniform convergence rate for the support vector machine solution and then show that a modification of the support vector machine information criterion achieves model selection consistency even when the number of features diverges at an exponential rate of the sample size. This consistency result can be further applied to selecting the optimal tuning parameter for various penalized support vector machine methods. Finite-sample performance of the proposed information criterion is investigated using Monte Carlo studies and one real-world gene selection problem.
Tetralogy of Fallot with absent pulmonary valve. Should valve insertion be part of the intracardiac repair

Thirteen patients with the complex of tetralogy of Fallot and absent pulmonary valve were treated. Three infants presented with severe cardiorespiratory distress (Group I) necessitating surgical intervention in two and intensive medical treatment in the third; there were no late survivals. The remaining 10 patients were operated upon electively at an older age (Group II); in six the ventricular septal defect was closed and the right ventricular outflow obstruction relieved (Group IIA), and in the other four a valve was inserted at the pulmonary anulus at the time of intracardiac repair (Group IIB). There was no hospital mortality in Group II. Five of the six patients in Group IIA remained symptomatic postoperatively, and three needed a subsequent pulmonary valve insertion. All patients in Group IIB were symptom free following operation; one patient began having a progressive decrease in exercise tolerance 2 years later as a result of homograft stenosis. Improvement in right ventricular function, exercise performance, decrease in pulmonary artery size, and cardiothoracic ratio were more marked in those patients who had primary insertion of a pulmonary valve. The clinical results and postoperative assessment of cardiac function tend to indicate that pulmonary valve insertion should be performed at the time of the intracardiac repair.
Sentinel node biopsy for breast cancer: showtime or dress rehearsal?

INTRODUCTION Sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) may prove superior to axillary node dissection (AND) for breast cancer staging. At issue is whether existing clinical data support performance of SLNB without AND at this time. DISCUSSION The various methods of SLNB are discussed in detail. SLNB using radiocolloids and surgical probes (with or without blue dye) yields superior SLN localization rates as compared to blue dye alone. However, the incidence of false-negative SLNB is variable with all methods and frequently 10% or higher (11.4% in the only published multicenter study). CONCLUSIONS Outside of a clinical trial, SLNB should be performed in addition to, not instead of, AND. The sensitivity of pathological staging is enhanced and nonaxillary SLNs are identified, while concomitant AND apprehends all false-negative SLNBs. Two prospective randomized cooperative trials provide excellent educational, training and research opportunities for North American breast surgeons as they gain experience with this new, promising staging procedure.
Transphyseal ACL Reconstruction in Skeletally Immature Patients: Does Independent Femoral Tunnel Drilling Place the Physis at Greater Risk Compared With Transtibial Drilling?

Background:Most studies examining the safety and efficacy of transphyseal anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction for skeletally immature patients utilize transtibial drilling. Independent femoral tunnel drilling may impart a different pattern of distal femoral physeal involvement.Purpose:To radiographically assess differences in distal femoral physeal disruption between transtibial and independent femoral tunnel drilling. We hypothesized that more oblique tunnels associated with independent drilling involve a significantly larger area of physeal disruption compared with vertically oriented tunnels.Study Design:Cross-sectional study; Level of evidence, 3.Methods:We analyzed skeletally immature patients aged between 10 and 15 years who underwent transphyseal ACL reconstruction utilizing an independent femoral tunnel drilling technique between January 1, 2008, and March 31, 2011. These patients were matched with a transtibial technique cohort based on age and sex. Radiographic measurements were reco...
Electric strength and molecular structure of saturated gaseous hydrocarbons

While many intensive investigations have been made on a few gases (e.g. the noble gases, hydrogen, nitrogen and air) in an effort to elucidate the mechanism of spark breakdown, little effort has been made to correlate the sparking potential with molecular structure (la). We have attempted to do this by studying a series of closely related saturated hydrocarbons from C 1 through C 6 , including straight chain, branched and cyclic compounds. We have measured also the so-called “corona starting voltage” for these gases placed in an uniform field between glass dielectrics. This is of interest because it represents gas breakdown between electrodes of markedly higher work function than the metals, and also because of its importance in the field of electrical insulation.
The Holy Spirit in the Word of God

The Apostle's words, “The Letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life,” do not refer to figurative phrases … but rather plainly to the law, which forbids whatever is evil. —Augustine Beneath the common Protestant Christianity professed by North and South, a chasm widened not only in constitutional interpretation and vision of social order but in theology. During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, acrimonious debate shook the long-standing pillars of Christian belief: authority of Scripture; Revelation; the divinity of Jesus; the afterlife; the very existence of God. By the nineteenth century the doctrines of original sin, human depravity, the Trinity, and much else were receding in Western Europe and in the northern states of the American Union, where the social relations of transatlantic capitalism shook the ground on which Christian orthodoxy and a conservative world view could be sustained. In the South, however, slavery permitted them to flourish. Before the War and beyond, the South resisted the principal theological and philosophical tendencies of the age, and the southern churches, Arminian and Calvinist, stood firm for orthodoxy. Flannery O'Connor, explaining the difference between twentieth-century Northerners and Southerners, suggested that a great many more Southerners than Northerners still believe in original sin. Demotion of Jesus from Second Person of the Trinity to a moral philosopher became fashionable in the late eighteenth century, enlisting the talents of Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, and Joseph Priestley among those who sought to disentangle the “mythical” from the “real” Jesus. Bishop Meade recalled that Episcopalian preaching in Virginia at the beginning of the nineteenth century had been substituting morality for religion, as English clergymen took their texts less from Scripture than from Plato, Cicero, and Epictetus.
Deep Neural Network Sequence-Discriminative Training

The cross-entropy criterion discussed in the previous chapters treats each frame independently. However, speech recognition is a sequence classification problem. In this chapter, we introduce the sequence-discriminative training techniques that match better to the problem. We describe the popular maximum mutual information (MMI), boosted MMI (BMMI), minimum phone error (MPE), and minimum Bayes risk (MBR) training criteria, and discuss the practical techniques, including lattice generation, lattice compensation, frame dropping, frame smoothing, and learning rate adjustment, to make DNN sequence-discriminative training effective.
شبيه سازي انسان در پرتو نظام بين المللي حقوق بشر (Human Cloning and the International System of Human Rights Law)

Persian Abstract: شبيه سازي انسان از جمله فن آوريهايي است كه به خاطر جنبههاي مختلف اخلاقي آن به شدت مورد اختلاف است. صاحبنظران در موافقت و مخالفت با اين فن آوري استدلالهايي مطرح كردهاند كه در تضاد با يكديگر بوده، بر مباني فكري متفاوتی بنا شده اند. دولتها نيز در وضع قوانين رويكردهاي متفاوتي به اين فن آوري داشته اند. به دليل ابعاد جهاني اين فن آوري، دولتها خواستار تنظيم معاهده اي بين المللي براي قاعده مند كردن آن شدند. اين خواسته، با وجود آنكه در سطح اروپا امكان پذير بوده، در سطح جهاني با شكست مواجه شده و به تصويب اعلاميه اي ضعيف در مجمع عمومي سازمان ملل متحد منتهي شده است. با آنكه دولتها همگي بر نظام بين المللي حقوق بشر به عنوان مبناي مشترك بحث درباره اين موضوع اتفاق داشتند، تفاسير مختلفي كه از قواعد و مفاهيم اين نظام ارايه كردند در عمل مانع از حصول توافق بين آنها شد. در اين رساله، ضمن بررسي انتقادي رويكردهاي مختلف به شبيه سازي انسان، ضرورت مبنا قرار گرفتن نظام بين المللي حقوق بشر براي قاعده مند كردن شبيه سازي در سطح بين المللي توجيه شده است. سپس، قواعد مرتبط اين نظام با شبيه سازي بررسي شده اند و در نهايت، مفاهيمي كه نظام بين المللي حقوق بشر با آنها ساخته و پرداخته شده، تحليل شده اند تا سازگارترين رويكرد به شبيه سازي انسان با نظام بين المللي حقوق بشر معرفي گردد.English Abstract: Human cloning is one of the most hotly debated scientific issues of our time. Theorists have provided conflicting opinions in agreement and disagreement with this technology, such opinions often being based on differing ethical theories. States have also adopted diverging approaches to this technology. Due to the global ramifications of human cloning, States have sought the conclusion of a global treaty for the regulation thereof. Although this has been possible within the regional setting of Europe, the global attempt at regulation has failed and simply resulted in the adoption of a weak resolution by the UN General Assembly. Although States were in agreement about the international system of human rights as being the general theory of ethics, guiding the discussions for regulation, the divergent interpretations provided by States on the rules and concepts of this system were such as to preclude the possibility of a meaningful agreement.In this thesis, after critically reviewing the different positions on the ethical aspects of human cloning, the necessity of basing the international system of human rights as the general ethical theory for the international regulation of this technology is justified. Then, the relevant rules of the said system are reviewed and finally, an analysis of the core concepts of the international system of human rights as they relate to the subject at hand is provided in order to introduce the most compatible approach to human cloning with the international system of human rights.
Cocaine-mediated downregulation of microglial miR-124 expression involves promoter DNA methylation

Neuroinflammation plays a critical role in the development of reward-related behavior in cocaine self-administration rodents. Cocaine, one of most commonly abused drugs, has been shown to activate microglia both in vitro and in vivo. Detailed molecular mechanisms underlying cocaine-mediated microglial activation remain poorly understood. microRNAs (miRs) belonging to a class of small noncoding RNA superfamily have been shown to modulate the activation status of microglia. miR-124, one of the microglia-enriched miRs, functions as an anti-inflammatory regulator that maintains microglia in a quiescent state. To date, the possible effects of cocaine on microglial miR-124 levels and the associated underlying mechanisms have not been explored. In the current study, we demonstrated that cocaine exposure decreased miR-124 levels in both BV-2 cells and rat primary microglia. These findings were further validated in vivo, wherein we demonstrated decreased abundance of miR-124 in purified microglia isolated from cocaine-administered mice brains compared with cells from saline administered animals. Molecular mechanisms underlying these effects involved cocaine-mediated increased mRNA and protein expression of DNMTs in microglia. Consistently, cocaine substantially increased promoter DNA methylation levels of miR-124 precursors (pri-miR-124-1 and -2), but not that of pri-miR-124-3, both in vitro and in vivo. In summary, our findings demonstrated that cocaine exposure increased DNA methylation of miR-124 promoter resulting into its downregulation, which, in turn, led to microglial activation. Our results thus implicate that epigenetic modulation of miR-124 could be considered as a potential therapeutic approach to ameliorate microglial activation and, possibly, the development of cocaine addiction.
Magnesium incorporated chitosan based scaffolds for tissue engineering applications.

Abstract Chitosan based porous scaffolds are of great interest in biomedical applications especially in tissue engineering because of their excellent biocompatibility in vivo , controllable degradation rate and tailorable mechanical properties. This paper presents a study of the fabrication and characterization of bioactive scaffolds made of chitosan (CS), carboxymethyl chitosan (CMC) and magnesium gluconate (MgG). Scaffolds were fabricated by subsequent freezing-induced phase separation and lyophilization of polyelectrolyte complexes of CS, CMC and MgG. The scaffolds possess uniform porosity with highly interconnected pores of 50–250 μm size range. Compressive strengths up to 400 kPa, and elastic moduli up to 5 MPa were obtained. The scaffolds were found to remain intact, retaining their original three-dimensional frameworks while testing in in-vitro conditions. These scaffolds exhibited no cytotoxicity to 3T3 fibroblast and osteoblast cells. These observations demonstrate the efficacy of this new approach to preparing scaffold materials suitable for tissue engineering applications.
Geometrical description of Berry's phase

Berry, Simon, and Aharonov and Anandan have discovered, interpreted, and generalized a geometrical phase factor that occurs for a quantum state evolving around a closed path in the projective Hilbert space of rays. Here this phase is directly given in terms of the holonomies of several natural geometrical structures on the projective space.
DNP Preparation in Supporting Critical Skills for Magnet® Program Directors

Magnet® organizations are required to identify a Magnet program director (MPD), who plays a critical role in attaining and maintaining Magnet designation. The evidence is sparse related to qualifications or recommended educational levels of those assuming an MPD role. In this article, the author discusses how one of the DNP Essentials, clinical scholarship and the use of analytical methods for evidence-based practice, is reported to prepare nurses for the MPD role.
Peripheral Arterial Disease in CKD: Disease Burden, Outcomes and Interventional Strategies

Peripheral arterial disease and chronic kidney disease are two of the most prevalent chronic illnesses of our time. Together these conditions are associated with significant morbidity and mortality, and have a major impact both medically and economically. Those individuals with chronic kidney disease in conjunction with peripheral arterial disease have much worse outcomes. The management strategies of peripheral arterial disease are also compounded by the presence of chronic kidney disease, which increases the risk of procedural complications and adverse outcomes.
Use of pharyngeal packs in functional endoscopic sinus surgery: A randomized controlled trial.

Objective To determine if pharyngeal packs have an effect on postoperative pain and postoperative nausea and vomiting in functional endoscopic sinus surgery (FESS). Study Design Forty-six patients scheduled for routine endoscopic sinus surgery were recruited into this study. The patients were randomly allocated to have or to not have pharyngeal packing prior to surgery. Methods The placement of pharyngeal packs during FESS is controversial. Theoretically, pharyngeal packs may prevent postoperative nausea and vomiting by preventing ingestion of blood during sinus surgery. However, prior studies have not conclusively demonstrated this to be the case in FESS. Pharyngeal packs have been associated with complications including throat pain, aspiration, and death. The objective of this randomized control trial was to determine if pharyngeal packs have an effect on postoperative throat pain, nausea, and vomiting in order to determine their importance during FESS. Patients were blinded to intervention. Postoperatively, throat pain and nausea/vomiting scores were recorded. Results There was no significant difference in mean throat pain at 4 hours following surgery (P = 0.860). At 24 hours after surgery, patients without pharyngeal packing experienced more pain than those who had a throat pack placed (P = 0.002). There was no significant difference in the level of nausea at 4 hours after surgery (P = 0.315) or at 24 hours after surgery (P = 0.315). Conclusion We recommend against the routine use of placing pharyngeal packs during FESS. Level of Evidence 1b. Laryngoscope, 127:2460–2465, 2017
Simultaneous recovery of chromophore concentrations and ultrasound velocity by spectrally resolved photoacoustic tomography

We describe a new spectral approach for inversion of photoacoustic data with multi-wavelength pulsed laser illumination. Multi-spectral PAT provides a means of recovery of different chromophore concentrations and ultrasound velocity simultaneously and directly by incorporating prior spectral information into the image reconstruction process. It is demonstrated from simulation tests and small animal experiments that the multi-parameter recovery based on multispectral PAT is reliable and accurate. The reconstructed multiple parameter images may provide us a key tool to quantify physiological function, disease progression, or response to intervention.
Helen Maria Williams and the Peace of 1783

ABSTRACTHelen Maria Williams’s Ode on the Peace, written on the occasion of the 1783 Peace of Paris (which officially ended the War of American Independence), considers two fundamental questions: how should the end of war be understood? and how should the arrival of peace be represented? Active in London Dissenting circles, Williams witnessed the hard work, letter-writing campaigns, and political petitioning that lay behind the 1783 treaty. In this essay, I argue that Williams knew that peace does not come merely when the war machines are exhausted, but is an achievement that must be earned, and crucial to her ode is her sense that this work is not over, for peace is not a mysterious visitation but a habit of life, one that writers have a responsibility to teach to readers.
Somatic Embryogenesis in Bananas and Plantains (Musa Clones and Species)

The genus Musa (bananas and plantains, family Musaceae) comprises about 25 species. The main center of diversity of these tree-like herbaceous monocotyledons is southeast Asia, but edible fruit and ornamental varieties have long been grown widely in the tropics and subtropics of both hemispheres.
21 Is lupus nephritis onset delayed in older caucasian females with less aggressive pathology

Background Lupus Nephritis (LN) usually presents within five years of SLE diagnosis. Male gender, Hispanic and African American race, and childhood-onset SLE portend greater risk of early nephritis. However, patients with late-occurring nephritis are poorly characterized. Since proliferative nephritis is a more aggressive class of nephritis than membranous and mesangial, we hypothesized that female gender, Caucasian race, adult-onset SLE, and membranous pathology would be associated with a later onset of nephritis. Methods A single large urban medical center was the source for retrospective record review of patients who underwent kidney biopsy between 1999 and 2015. Patients with biopsy-proven LN were evaluated to determine whether gender, race, age at SLE diagnosis, age at first biopsy, or histopathologic classification were associated with time between SLE diagnosis and first renal biopsy. Results 630 patients were screened. After elimination of duplicates, those without initial biopsy, biopsy findings other than LN, and unknown date of SLE diagnosis, 293 subjects had adequate data available for analysis. Those with late onset SLE, diagnosis after age 50, were excluded from further analysis due to known differences in this subgroup. The remaining 278 patients had characteristics shown in table 1. Twenty-nine percent of patients in this cohort developed nephritis more than 5 years after initial SLE diagnosis. Multivariable linear regression identified greater age at first biopsy and race as the strongest predictors of time between SLE diagnosis and first renal biopsy. Hispanic patients were more likely to present with LN earlier in their course and Asian patients were more likely to present later, with African American and Caucasian groups between them. The model accounts for 27% of the variability in the time elapsed between diagnosis and biopsy. Histopathologic class did not make a significant contribution, and proliferative nephritis was noted in similar numbers of patients who developed LN after 5 years and those in the early presenting group. Conclusions Surprisingly, more than a quarter of known LN patients at this large US center present after 5 years of SLE, higher than expected based on low numbers of late onset nephritis in other cohorts. This appears to be more common in Caucasian and Asian subgroups. Older patients are more likely to develop nephritis later, but aggressive histopathology is not less likely in later presentations. The data underscore the importance of remaining vigilant about nephritis risk in patients of diverse demographics five years and more after diagnosis with SLE. Funding Source(s): Mallinckrodt Research Fellowship, NIH:T32DK007257,UL1TR001105,U54GM104938,P30AR053483,U01AI101934,U19AI082714
Association Between the Release of Netflix's 13 Reasons Why and Suicide Rates in the United States: An Interrupted Time Series Analysis.

Objective To estimate the association between the release of the Netflix series 13 Reasons Why and suicide rates in the United States. Method Using segmented quasi-Poisson regression and Holt-Winters forecasting models, we assessed monthly rates of suicide among individuals aged 10 to 64 years grouped into 3 age categories (10–17, 18–29, and 30–64 years) between January 1, 2013, and December 31, 2017, before and after the release of 13 Reasons Why on March 31, 2017. We also assessed the impact of the show’s release on a control outcome, homicide deaths. Results After accounting for seasonal effects and an underlying increasing trend in monthly suicide rates, the overall suicide rate among 10- to 17-year-olds increased significantly in the month immediately following the release of 13 Reasons Why (incidence rate ratio [IRR], 1.29; 95% CI, 1.09–1.53); Holt-Winters forecasting revealed elevated observed suicide rates in the month after release and in two subsequent months, relative to corresponding forecasted rates. Contrary to expectations, these associations were restricted to boys. Among 18- to 29-year-olds and 30- to 64-year-olds, we found no significant change in level or trend of suicide after the show’s release, both overall and by sex. The show’s release had no apparent impact in the control analyses of homicide deaths within any age group. Conclusion The release of 13 Reasons Why was associated with a significant increase in monthly suicide rates among US youth aged 10 to 17 years. Caution regarding the exposure of children and adolescents to the series is warranted.
In the Time of Frost: El Niño and the Political Ecology of Vulnerability in Papua New Guinea

Climatic anomalies associated with El Nino bring prolonged droughts and night-time frosts that devastate subsistence gardens in the Papua New Guinea highlands. As a customary process of adaptation ...
Estimating FBO Employment in the United States

The purpose of this paper is to document the number, distribution, and categories of employees working at fixed base operators (FBOs) in the United States (U.S.). A secondary purpose is to document the types of services offered by FBOs in the U.S. The methodology used in this paper was a combination of literature review and survey research. In the literature review, the U.S. Census Bureau’s North American Industry Classification System was consulted along with private sources such as the World Aerospace Database (WAD), the Independent Fixed Base Operators Association, and the National Air Transportation Association. In the survey, a total of 3,211 FBOs were sent a one page survey regarding FBO employment and services, of which only 941 FBOs returned a survey (or 29.3%). This response rate limits the results of the survey to describe the characteristics of the study group only and not the entire FBO sector of the aviation industry. The respondents reported a total of 15,965 employees. An additional 61,169 employees were found at FBOs listed in the WAD, with 4,454 of those at FBOs covered by the survey, leaving a total of 56,715 additional employees not covered by the survey. Combining the two totals provides a total of 72,680 employees at FBOs in the U.S.
Application of non-stationary iterative time-domain deconvolution

In this study, non-stationary iterative time-domain deconvolution (CNS-ITD) is investigated. The propagating wavelets are first estimated in several overlapping Gabor windows of the data. Matrix-vector operations in the time-domain are then performed by estimating a small number of columns of the wavelet matrix by interpolation within a sparse iterative estimation for the largest reflectivities. The iteration process is stopped when a minimum root mean square (RMS) residual or a maximum number of iterations is reached. Although initially formulated on the basis of work in earthquake seismology, CNS-ITD is a matching pursuit type of approach performed continuously in the time-domain for the non-stationary case. The results can then be convolved with a higher frequency wavelet in order to make the results stationary in time and to increase the resolution of the data. We first apply CNS-ITD to synthetic data with a time-varying attenuation, where the method successfully identifies the largest reflectors in the data. We then apply CNS-ITD to two observed shallow seismic datasets where improved resolution is obtained.
2D topological insulator bismuth selenide analyzed by in situ XPS

Bismuth selenide (Bi2Se3), a two-dimensional topological insulator material purchased from Alfa Aesar, was analyzed using in situ x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The XPS spectra obtained from a fresh surface exfoliated in ultrahigh vacuum include a survey scan, high resolution spectra of O 1s, Bi 5d, Se 3d, Bi 4f, Se 3p, Se LMM, C 1s, and the valence band. Quantitative analysis indicates a Se deficient surface composition of Bi2Se2.8, which is consistent with the Fermi level position in the conduction band detected in this work.Bismuth selenide (Bi2Se3), a two-dimensional topological insulator material purchased from Alfa Aesar, was analyzed using in situ x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The XPS spectra obtained from a fresh surface exfoliated in ultrahigh vacuum include a survey scan, high resolution spectra of O 1s, Bi 5d, Se 3d, Bi 4f, Se 3p, Se LMM, C 1s, and the valence band. Quantitative analysis indicates a Se deficient surface composition of Bi2Se2.8, which is consistent with the Fermi level position in the conduction band detected in this work.