cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Newer insights into the management of interstitial lung disease in systemic sclerosis

Interstitial lung disease (ILD) is a debilitating complication of systemic sclerosis (SSc) and now the leading cause of death in SSc patients, largely from progressive respiratory failure or advanced pulmonary hypertension. Despite significant advances in our understanding of the epidemiology and pathogenesis of SSc-ILD, there are significant uncertainties in the approach to managing these patients given the heterogeneity of presentation, substantial variability in progression, and presence of comorbid cardiopulmonary conditions, particularly pulmonary hypertension and esophageal dilation with recurrent aspiration pneumonitis that portend poor prognosis. Early detection of progressive lung involvement based on worsening pulmonary physiology and quantification of fibrosing alveolitis severity on high-resolution computed tomography is critical as response to immunomodulatory agents is usually best when initiated earlier in the disease course. A selected group of patients may benefit from early referral for hematopoietic stem cell transplantation or lung/heart–lung transplant. The last decade has seen a significant advance in evidence-based approaches to treatment of SSc-ILD with immune suppressants, and there are several ongoing treatment trials with recent advances in understanding of the role of pro-inflammatory and profibrotic cytokines in SSc-ILD. The efficacy of antifibrotic agents in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis has also provided another promising avenue for utilization in these patients. In this review, we will provide an up-to-date review of the treatment options for SSc-ILD, the ongoing studies moving this field forward, emerging treatments for SSc-ILD, and propose a management algorithm for SSc-ILD, based on the available evidence in the literature and our experience.
Incidence of Peripheral Neuropathy with Docetaxel versus Paclitaxel in Women Treated for Breast Cancer (P6.172)

Objective: Prospectively characterize and compare the clinical features, severity and incidence of chemotherapy induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) among patients exposed to docetaxel versus paclitaxel. Background: CIPN is the second most common dose-limiting side effect of microtubule inhibitor based chemotherapies including the taxanes. Recognition of CIPN is necessary to make treatment decisions. The relative risk and severity of CIPN associated with docetaxel and paclitaxel has not been well defined. Design/Methods: Patients with breast cancer receiving either paclitaxel or docetaxel chemotherapy were prospectively evaluated prior to initiation of chemotherapy at 3–6 week intervals during and after treatment. The following assessments were then performed: the Neuropathy Total Symptom Score (NTSS-6), the Utah Early Neuropathy Score (UENS), and a CIPN specific quality of life scale, the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer-20 (EORTC-20). CIPN was defined based on the combination of symptoms and signs. The incidence and severity of CIPN was determined and compared between those receiving docetaxel and paclitaxel. Results: 21 participants each received docetaxel or paclitaxel. CIPN developed in 3/21 (14%) in the docetaxel group and 15/21 (71%) in the paclitaxel group. Age, cancer, respective cumulative dose and side effect profile were similar between both treatment groups. While the paclitaxel treated patients had significantly greater CIPN incidence there was no difference in severity in paclitaxel vs. docetaxel comparisons: NTSS6 (4.3+/− 2.5 vs. 2.4+/−1.3, p>0.05); UENS (6.6+/−4.7 vs. 3.0+/−1.7 p>0.05); EORTC (30.0+/−8.4 vs. 24.0+/−1 p>0.05). Conclusions: The incidence but not severity of CIPN is significantly higher in women treated with paclitaxel when compared to docetaxel. Fully understanding the differences in the development of CIPN between the taxanes is crucial for making treatment decisions and managing patients with breast cancer. Disclosure: Dr. Karafiath has nothing to disclose. Dr. Kolb has nothing to disclose. Dr. Singleton has nothing to disclose. Dr. Smith has received personal compensation for activities with CSL Behring, Grifols, and Allergan as a consultant. Dr. Smith has received personal compensation in an editorial capacity for NeuroLearn. Dr. Smith has received research support from the NIH, the ADA, and Impeto.
Predissociation dynamics of the HCl-(H2O)3 tetramer: An experimental and theoretical investigation.

The cyclic HCl–(H2O)3 tetramer is the largest observed neutral HCl–(H2O)n cluster. The vibrational predissociation of HCl–(H2O)3 is investigated by theory, quasiclassical trajectory (QCT) calculations, and experiment, following the infrared excitation of the hydrogen-bonded OH-stretch fundamental. The energetically possible dissociation pathways are HCl + (H2O)3 (Pathway 1) and H2O + HCl–(H2O)2 (Pathway 2). The HCl and H2O monomer fragments are observed by 2 + 1 resonance enhanced multiphoton ionization combined with time-of-flight mass spectrometry, and their rotational energy distributions are inferred and compared to the theoretical results. Velocity map images of the monomer fragments in selected rotational levels are used for each pathway to obtain pair-correlated speed distributions. The fragment speed distributions obtained by experiment and QCT calculations are broad and structureless, encompassing the entire range of allowed speeds for each pathway. Bond dissociation energies, D0, are estimated experimentally from the endpoints of the speed distributions: 2100 ± 300 cm−1 and 2400 ± 100 cm−1 for Pathway 1 and Pathway 2, respectively. These values are lower but in the same order as the corresponding calculated D0: 2426 ± 23 cm−1 and 2826 ± 19 cm−1. The differences are attributed to contributions from vibrational hot bands of the clusters that appear in the high-speed tails of the experimental pair-correlated distributions. Satisfactory agreement between theory and experiment is achieved when comparing the monomer fragments’ rotational energies, the shapes of the speed distributions, and the average fragment speeds and center-of-mass translational energies. Insights into the dissociation mechanism and lifetime are gained from QCT calculations performed on a previously reported many-body potential energy surface. It is concluded that the dissociation lifetime is on the order of 10 ps and that the final trimer products are in their lowest energy cyclic forms.The cyclic HCl–(H2O)3 tetramer is the largest observed neutral HCl–(H2O)n cluster. The vibrational predissociation of HCl–(H2O)3 is investigated by theory, quasiclassical trajectory (QCT) calculations, and experiment, following the infrared excitation of the hydrogen-bonded OH-stretch fundamental. The energetically possible dissociation pathways are HCl + (H2O)3 (Pathway 1) and H2O + HCl–(H2O)2 (Pathway 2). The HCl and H2O monomer fragments are observed by 2 + 1 resonance enhanced multiphoton ionization combined with time-of-flight mass spectrometry, and their rotational energy distributions are inferred and compared to the theoretical results. Velocity map images of the monomer fragments in selected rotational levels are used for each pathway to obtain pair-correlated speed distributions. The fragment speed distributions obtained by experiment and QCT calculations are broad and structureless, encompassing the entire range of allowed speeds for each pathway. Bond dissociation energies, D0, are estimated e...
Cavity cooling of a mechanical resonator in the presence of a two-level-system defect

Cavity cooling via quantum backaction force can extract thermal fluctuations from a mechanical resonator to reach the quantum ground state. Surface or bulk two-level-system (TLS) defects in a mechanical resonator can couple with the mechanical mode via deformation potential and affect the cooling process significantly. Here, we develop a theory to study the cavity cooling of a mechanical mode in the presence of a TLS defect using the adiabatic elimination technique. Our result shows that the cooling process depends strongly on the resonance and the damping rate of the TLS.
USING THE LYMPH FISTULA RAT MODEL TO STUDY INCRETIN SECRETION

The past several decades have witnessed a flourish of interest in the field of incretin biology. The importance of the two incretin hormones, glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) and glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), in health and disease is becoming more apparent as the prevalence of type 2 diabetes and other metabolic disorders escalates. Rodent models have become indispensable in the study of the physiological function of GIP and GLP-1; however, investigators have run into several roadblocks when untangling the regulation of incretin secretion in these systems. The low circulating levels of the incretin hormones combined with sensitivity of the currently available assays require substantial amounts of blood to be removed from an animal if the hormones are to be analyzed over a period of time. Because of these limitations, continuous monitoring of GIP and GLP-1 secretion becomes difficult. A more effective means of studying incretin secretion in small animal models is therefore desirable. This chapter evaluates the use of the lymph fistula rat as a model to study the secretion of incretins. Lymph fistula models, in a variety of animals, have been used for decades to study the absorption and transport of lipid and lipophilic compounds; however, only recently has the value of this model been appreciated as a tool to explore incretin secretion.
Flannery O’Connor: The Flames of Heaven and Hell

In her lifetime of forty years, Flannery O’Connor produced two collections of stories, two short novels, and a volume of essays. Before she was killed by the fatal disease which also claimed her father’s life, her prolonged physical vulnerability — the literal death sentence under which she wrote — molded one of the most unique psyches in twentieth century American literature. Thirteen of her forty years were spent with the unremitting consciousness of imminent death; nine of those thirteen years were spent on crutches while she endured relapses and remissions, hospitalization, and surgery. It is probable that this harsh ontology gave her both the desire and the ability to abandon the trivial irrelevancies with which healthy, mundane beings clutter their lives in order to avoid, as she could not, the profoundest questions of human existence.
Eating High Fat Chow Enhances Sensitivity of Adolescent Rats to the Behavioral Effects of the Dopamine D2/D3 Receptor Agonist Quinpirole

Eating high fat chow increases sensitivity of rats to drugs that act indirectly on dopamine receptors (e.g., cocaine). This effect is greatest in female adolescent rats. Eating high fat chow also e...
Economic change and the supply of interest representation in the American States

We examine how economic change influences the supply of organized interests. Indeed, the economies of states have changed markedly since the turn of the century. State economies have grown, and the relative contributions of different economic sectors have changed. We use the Energy-Stability-Area model of interest system density to assess how these changes – along with changes in the productivity of different economic sectors in terms of generating organized interests – have influenced the size and composition of state interest communities from 1997 to 2007.1 We find that all three sources of economic change have uniquely contributed, and to a significant degree, to demographic change in state communities of organized interests.
Assessing the Opportunity Costs of Contracting in Noncompetitive Public Service Markets

The contracting tool is used to achieve superior citizen value by outsourcing public service delivery to private and nonprofit firms that are subject to market forces. In addition to these theorize...
Combined task activation display as an effective method to teach introductory fMRI users.

Abstract Rationale and objectives Interpreting functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) can be an overwhelming and challenging task for trainees, particularly when post processing, synthesizing and interpreting data from multiple language paradigms. Currently, there is no established best method for teaching fMRI interpretation to new trainees. The purpose of our study is to compare the use of combined task activation display (CTAD) and conventional display of fMRI language paradigms as an effective method to teach fMRI to the introductory learner. Materials and methods Following IRB approval, 43 unique cases (with 10 repeat cases to assess intra-reader variability) were identified based on the inclusion/exclusion criteria. Eight radiology trainees, without prior exposure to fMRI, were asked to determine language lateralization based on activation of Wernicke's area, Broca's area, and the pre-supplementary motor area. Prior to trainee interpretation, a 15-minute training session was conducted to describe the expected anatomic locations of the language centers. Trainees were asked to determine language dominance using either the CTAD or conventional methods. Following a 6-week washout period, the same eight trainees were asked to interpret the cases using the opposite interpretation approach. Results Interpreting fMRI with the CTAD method significantly increased trainee accuracy (85.4% vs 70.9% p Conclusion Combined task activation display is an effective method to teach fMRI to introductory learners.
2-Spinor and 4-spinor wavefunctions and Hamiltonians – 2D hexagonal materials

Abstract With the advent of the metal–insulator transition (MIT) as a tool for adjusting the properties of lower dimensions materials, with nanoscale dimensions in one or more of the coordinate directions, it is worthwhile to derive analytical formulas for the electronic energy in k-space, for a generic two-dimensional hexagonal lattice as a prelude for their use in nanoscopic transport devices (using the MIT) or other solid state devices. This is done in the tight binding (TB) approximation, since it allows a tractable analytical development, with some refinements possible. This lattice structure is applicable to many 2D materials like graphene, BN, MoS2, and many others. This chapter reviews 2-spinors (Section 8.1 ), builds 4-spinors using a reordered wavefunction and a restructured Hamiltonian (Section 8.2 ), looks at eigenenergies and eigenfunctions obtained using 4-spinors (Section 8.3 ), and obtains eigenenergies based on 4-spinors under an approximation (Section 8.4 ).
Effects of Residual Stress on Guided Waves in Layered Media

Ultrasonic techniques are widely employed for nondestructive testing. However, residual stresses in materials, resulting from service conditions or from manufacturing processes such as rolling, drawing, or welding, usually cause significant nonlinear effects in stress wave propagation. The elastic wave speeds can be changed by stresses in a solid; this phenomenon is called the acoustoelastic effect.
Efficient and Accurate MRI Super-Resolution Using a Generative Adversarial Network and 3D Multi-level Densely Connected Network

High-resolution (HR) magnetic resonance images (MRI) provide detailed anatomical information important for clinical application and quantitative image analysis. However, HR MRI conventionally comes at the cost of longer scan time, smaller spatial coverage, and lower signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). Recent studies have shown that single image super-resolution (SISR), a technique to recover HR details from one single low-resolution (LR) input image, could provide high quality image details with the help of advanced deep convolutional neural networks (CNN). However, deep neural networks consume memory heavily and run slowly, especially in 3D settings. In this paper, we propose a novel 3D neural network design, namely a multi-level densely connected super-resolution network (mDCSRN) with generative adversarial network (GAN)–guided training. The mDCSRN trains and inferences quickly, and the GAN promotes realistic output hardly distinguishable from original HR images. Our results from experiments on a dataset with 1,113 subjects shows that our new architecture outperforms other popular deep learning methods in recovering 4x resolution-downgraded images and runs 6x faster.
The Science of the Age

As the early promise of bacteriology came to fruition in the twentieth century, proponents of spiritual healing argued that children’s health care was a matter of parents’ religious freedom and gained exemptions for spiritual healing within state child neglect statutes. Reframing the issue as adults’ religious freedom blunted the momentum for child welfare and left unanswered the question of whether any child was entitled to health care. By century’s end Americans agreed that parenting required familiarity with scientific information and cooperating with pediatricians but remained less certain that children’s access to medical care was a shared national interest. Thus today children whose physical well-being may depend upon the science of the age remain vulnerable.
Structure of an RNA helix with pyrimidine mismatches and cross-strand stacking

The structure of a 22-base-pair RNA helix with mismatched pyrimidine base pairs is reported. The helix contains two symmetry-related CUG sequences: a triplet-repeat motif implicated in myotonic dystrophy type 1. The CUG repeat contains a U–U mismatch sandwiched between Watson–Crick pairs. Additionally, the center of the helix contains a dimerized UUCG motif with tandem pyrimidine (U–C/C–U) mismatches flanked by U–G wobble pairs. This region of the structure is significantly different from previously observed structures that share the same sequence and neighboring base pairs. The tandem pyrimidine mismatches are unusual and display sheared, cross-strand stacking geometries that locally constrict the helical width, a type of stacking previously associated with purines in internal loops. Thus, pyrimidine-rich regions of RNA have a high degree of structural diversity.
Acute Upper Airway Obstruction

Acute Upper Airway Obstruction Acute upper airway obstruction has varied causes with distinct pathophysiological features. High-flow oxygen remains the basis for management, but improvements in equ...
Factors Influencing The Human Preferred Interaction Distance

Nonverbal interactions are a key component of human communication. Since robots have become significant by trying to get close to human beings, it is important that they follow social rules governing the use of space. Prior research has conceptualized personal space as physical zones which are based on static distances. This work examined how preferred interaction distance can change given different interaction scenarios. We conducted a user study using three different robot heights. We also examined the difference in preferred interaction distance when a robot approaches a human and, conversely, when a human approaches a robot. Factors included in quantitative analysis are the participants’ gender, robot’s height, and method of approach. Subjective measures included human comfort and perceived safety. The results obtained through this study shows that robot height, participant gender and method of approach were significant factors influencing measured proxemic zones and accordingly participant comfort. Subjective data showed that experiment respondents regarded robots in a more favorable light following their participation in this study. Furthermore, the NAO was perceived most positively by respondents according to various metrics and the PR2 Tall, most negatively.
Anatomical Markers of Activity in Hypothalamic Neurons

The scientific community has searched for years for ways of examining neuronal tissue to track neural activity with reliable anatomical markers for stimulated neuronal activity. Existing studies that focused on hypothalamic systems offer a few options but do not always compare approaches or validate them for dependence on cell firing, leaving the reader uncertain of the benefits and limitations of each method. Thus, in this article, potential markers will be presented and, where possible, placed into perspective in terms of when and how these methods pertain to hypothalamic function. An example of each approach is included. In reviewing the approaches, one is guided through how neurons work, the consequences of their stimulation, and then the potential markers that could be applied to hypothalamic systems are discussed. Approaches will use features of neuronal glucose utilization, water/oxygen movement, changes in neuron-glial interactions, receptor translocation, cytoskeletal changes, stimulus-synthesis coupling that includes expression of the heteronuclear or mature mRNA for transmitters or the enzymes that make them, and changes in transcription factors (immediate early gene products, precursor buildup, use of promoter-driven surrogate proteins, and induced expression of added transmitters. This article includes discussion of methodological limitations and the power of combining approaches to understand neuronal function. © 2020 American Physiological Society. Compr Physiol 10:549-575, 2020.
Nonreciprocity as a generic route to traveling states

We examine a nonreciprocally coupled dynamical model of a mixture of two diffusing species. We demonstrate that nonreciprocity, which is encoded in the model via antagonistic cross-diffusivities, provides a generic mechanism for the emergence of traveling patterns in purely diffusive systems with conservative dynamics. In the absence of nonreciprocity, the binary fluid mixture undergoes a phase transition from a homogeneous mixed state to a demixed state with spatially separated regions rich in one of the two components. Above a critical value of the parameter tuning nonreciprocity, the static demixed pattern acquires a finite velocity, resulting in a state that breaks both spatial and time-reversal symmetry, as well as the reflection parity of the static pattern. We elucidate the generic nature of the transition to traveling patterns using a minimal model that can be studied analytically. Our work has direct relevance to nonequilibrium assembly in mixtures of chemically interacting colloids that are known to exhibit nonreciprocal effective interactions, as well as to mixtures of active and passive agents where traveling states of the type predicted here have been observed in simulations. It also provides insight on transitions to traveling and oscillatory states seen in a broad range of nonreciprocal systems with nonconservative dynamics, from reaction-diffusion and prey-predators models to multispecies mixtures of microorganisms with antagonistic interactions.
U.S. Immigrant Integration Policy in Light of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted a critical shortage of medical personnel in the United States Yet, there is an untapped pool of an estimated 263,000 immigrant physicians, nurses, and health-care technicians who are not using their training in the United States This essay provides a brief explanation of the factors that result in underutilization of immigrants? skills Connecting theory with practice, it then proposes potential policy solutions to the shortage of medical personnel through strategic immigration initiatives This article is protected by copyright All rights reserved
Mapping global shifts in Saccharomyces cerevisiae gene expression across asynchronous time trajectories with diffusion maps

Grapes grown in a particular geographic region often produce wines with consistent characteristics, suggesting there are site-specific factors driving recurrent fermentation outcomes. However, our understanding of the relationship between site-specific factors, microbial metabolism, and wine fermentation outcomes are not well understood. Here, we used differences in Saccharomyces cerevisiae gene expression as a biosensor for differences among Pinot noir fermentations from 15 vineyard sites. We profiled time series gene expression patterns of primary fermentations, but fermentations proceeded at different rates, making analyzes of these data with conventional differential expression tools difficult. This led us to develop a novel approach that combines diffusion mapping with continuous differential expression analysis. Using this method, we identified vineyard specific deviations in gene expression, including changes in gene expression correlated with the activity of the non-Saccharomyces yeast Hanseniaspora uvarum, as well as with initial nitrogen concentrations in grape musts. These results highlight novel relationships between site-specific variables and Saccharomyces cerevisiae gene expression that are linked to repeated wine fermentation outcomes. In addition, we demonstrate that our analysis approach can extract biologically relevant gene expression patterns in other contexts (e.g., hypoxic response of Saccharomyces cerevisiae), indicating that this approach offers a general method for investigating asynchronous time series gene expression data. ImportanceWhile it is generally accepted that foods, in particular wine, possess sensory characteristics associated with or derived from their place of origin, we lack knowledge of the biotic and abiotic factors central to this phenomenon. We have used Saccharomyces cerevisiae gene expression as a biosensor to capture differences in fermentations of Pinot noir grapes from 15 vineyards across two vintages. We find that gene expression by non-Saccharomyces yeasts and initial nitrogen content in the grape must correlates with differences in gene expression among fermentations from these vintages. These findings highlight important relationships between site-specific variables and gene expression that can be used to understand, or possibly modify, wine fermentation outcomes. Our work also provides a novel analysis method for investigating asynchronous gene expression data sets that is able to reveal both global shifts and subtle differences in gene expression due to varied cell - environment interactions.
Changes in health-related quality of life for HCV-infected people who inject drugs on opioid agonist treatment following sustained virologic response.

BACKGROUND Although efforts to treat hepatitis C virus (HCV) in people who inject drugs (PWID) yield high rates of sustained virologic response (SVR), the relationship between successful HCV treatment and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) among PWID is poorly understood. This study examined HRQOL changes throughout HCV treatment and post-treatment for PWID achieving SVR. METHODS Participants included 141 PWID who achieved SVR following HCV treatment onsite at three opioid agonist treatment (OAT) clinics in Bronx, NY. The EQ-5D-3L assesses five health dimensions (mobility, self-care, usual activities, pain/discomfort, anxiety/depression), producing an index of HRQOL ranging from 0-1. EQ-5D-3L was measured at baseline, 4-, 8-, and 12-weeks during treatment and 12- and 24-weeks post-treatment. Linear mixed effects regression models were used to assess changes in the mean EQ-5D-3L index over time. RESULTS Mean EQ-5D-3L index baseline was 0.66 (SE=0.02). Whereas over half the population reported no baseline problems with self-care (85.1%), usual activities (56.0%), and mobility (52.5%), at least two-thirds reported problems with pain/discomfort (78.0%) and anxiety/depression (66.0%), with 22.0% and 21.3% reporting extreme problems for pain/discomfort and anxiety/depression, respectively. Twenty-four weeks post-treatment, proportions reporting pain/discomfort and anxiety/depression decreased by 25.7% and 24.0%, respectively. The mean EQ-5D-3L index significantly improved during treatment (p<0.0001), and improvement was sustained following treatment completion, with mean EQ-5D-3L index of 0.77 (SE=0.02) 12-weeks post-SVR. CONCLUSIONS HCV treatment led to sustained improvement in HRQOL for PWID on OAT who achieved SVR. Future research is necessary to determine whether improvements in HRQOL can be sustained beyond 12-weeks post-SVR.
Smooth Path Planning for Continuum Arms

Continuum arms, with their mix of compliance, payload, safety, and manipulability, are perfectly suited to serve as co-robots, and their applications range from industry and manufacturing to human healthcare. Their hyper-redundancy serves as their most significant challenge for path planning and path planning approaches commonly used with rigid-link robots, such as inverse kinematics, that fail to provide reliable trajectories for continuum arms. We propose an Inverse Kinematics-based approach to address the limitations of previously-proposed Kinematics-based approaches. Using this new approach, we are able to efficiently generate very rich sets of configurations, which, in turn, lead to smooth path planning for such continuum manipulators. To validate the smoothness of the paths generated by our approach, we apply dynamics constraints to the generated trajectories. We show that, when tracked by a controller, the paths that are generated using the proposed approach are much smoother than previously-proposed Kinematics-based approaches: The proposed approach allows the continuum arm to traverse the trajectories very accurately and in time less than half of that taken by previous (reliable) path planning approaches.
Migration Justice and Legitimacy

In order for a state to rightfully exercise self-determination by means of setting policies concerning migrants and migration, they must be legitimate, Gillian Brock argues in Justice for People on the Move. Legitimacy, in Brock’s view, requires that states satisfy three (jointly sufficient) conditions: they must respect their own citizens’ human rights; they must be a part of a legitimate state system; and they must adequately contribute to the maintenance of this state system. In her new book, Brock also argues persuasively for a variety of migration-related policies that states ought to adopt (concerning, for example, addressing the needs of refugees, regularization of undocumented migrants, and protections for temporary labor migrants). In previous work (Brock, Global Justice: A Cosmopolitan Account, Oxford University Press, New York, 2009; Brock and Blake, Debating Brain Drain: May Governments Restrict Emigration?, Oxford University Press, New York, 2015), Brock has compellingly defended the justice of policies designed to allay the harmful effects of brain drain. In this commentary, I wish to argue that the legitimacy standard Brock defends in Justice for People on the Move is an obstacle to the justified adoption of the migration-related policies Brock demonstrates here and in previous work to be substantively morally justified, if not required by justice. If a state is not legitimate, then it lacks the moral standing to adopt migration policies that are otherwise morally justified. I do not intend to question the importance of the concept of state legitimacy for political philosophy generally. However, I wish to argue that that in the context of migration justice, considerations of state legitimacy may be contrary to the goal of defending a view on what policies a state ought to adopt. It may be more useful simply to consider whether or not there is moral justification for a particular state to adopt a particular policy.
A new strategy towards spectral selectivity: Selective leaching alloy to achieve selective plasmonic solar absorption and infrared suppression

Abstract Cost-effective and spectrally selective solar absorbers that possess high solar absorptance, low thermal emittance, and superior thermal stability are essential for photothermal conversion applications, e.g., industrial heating, solar desalination, photothermal catalysis, and concentrating solar power systems. Here, a new strategy using a selective leaching reaction is demonstrated for transfiguring the broad-spectrum and highly reflective aluminum alloys into plasmonic-nanostructure selective solar absorbers (PNSSAs). Enabled by surface plasmon resonance, this strategy via assembling copper nanostructured thin film on an alloy mirror yields tunable manipulation of the spectral selectivity, high and omnidirectional solar absorptance (0.94 from 0 to 60°), low thermal emittance (0.03 at 100 °C), and excellent thermomechanical stability. Featured with merits of competitive performance of spectral selectivity, the feasibility of solution-processed fabrication, and cost-effectiveness of raw materials and chemicals, selective-leaching-alloy to achieve PNSSAs is a promising and universal approach for achieving high photothermal efficiency (85%) of solar thermal energy harvesting. The compatibility of this strategy with other metal alloys, such as steel and superalloys, extends its applications to fabricating mid- and high-temperature selective solar absorbers.
Black Nerds, Asian Activists, and Caucasian Dogs: Online Race-based Cultural Group Identities within Facebook Groups

This study focuses on modern representations of race on the Internet. As race continues to be used as a meaningful category for understanding the social world, Internet-based displays of racial membership reflect the ongoing significance of race. Concurrent with Facebook's growth in popularity has been the development in ways that racial identity has been expressed online. While Facebook has been the site of study for individual behavior, Facebook Group behavior is still understudied. The author applies the communication theory of identity and self-categorization theory to digital expressions of race as examples of cultural markers of identification. Thematic analysis is used to examine intra-racial and cross-racial variances across cultural groups that are self-identified as White/Caucasian, Black/African-American, and Asian/Asian-American. The results indicate that users of colors create online representations of race that are different and counter to those found in mass media.
EXTIRPAR Y EXPULSAR: SOBRE LA GESTIÓN PENAL DE LOS INMIGRANTES POSTCOLONIALES EN LA UNIÓN EUROPEA *

Este trabajo trata de aplicar el modelo teorico de la relacion entre la division etnoracial y el Estado penal en los Estados Unidos al fenomeno del extraordinario incremento de la encarcelacion de los inmigrantes postcoloniales en la Union Europea durante las dos ultimas decadas en la era del neoliberalismo triunfante. La construccion de la “Europa fortaleza” en la era de la flexibilizacion del trabajo y de la inseguridad social generalizada, ha acelerado un doble movimiento que condena al ostracismo a los inmigrantes. El primero actua a traves del traslado externo, mediante la expulsion, de los inmigrantes irregulares. El segundo opera a traves de su extirpacion interna mediante el incremento de su encarcelacion. Estos dos procesos se dirigen directamente contra las poblaciones que expresan el “exterior”, tanto desde punto de vista social como simbolico, de la emergente Europa postnacional, a saber, los inmigrantes postcoloniales y sus descendientes mas inmediatos.
Increasing Profits Through Cost-Reduction: The Role of the Cost-Profit Structure

We derive equations that allow managers and analysts to quickly forecast percentage change in profit and perform what if analyses without the need to build spreadsheet models or develop pro-forma income statements. The equations specify the relationship between the changes in costs and profit in the short-run. They require that the cost-profit structure be known. One of the equations can be used when cost cuts across the board are planned; the other when the cuts are in certain types of cost.
A 0.38 pj/bit 1.24 nW chip-to-chip serial link for ultra-low power systems

As energy-constrained systems continue to reduce their power consumption, Unding an optimal point of operation for the principle components in the energy budget becomes increasingly important. With energy dominant system components like communication circuits, it is important to consider both energy-per-bit and power in the context of the system's use cases. In this paper, we propose optimization of chip-to-chip links considering both energy-per-cycle and energy-per-bit to find the optimal operating voltage and activity factor while minimizing wasted energy and power. A fabricated 130 nm chip was used to verify this finding and resulted in an energy-per-bit of 0.38 pj/bit and power of 1.24 nW.
Variable Order and Distributed Order Fractional Operators

Many physical processes appear to exhibit fractional order behavior that may vary with time or space. The continuum of order in the fractional calculus allows the order of the fractional operator to be considered as a variable. This paper develops the concept of variable and distributed order fractional operators. Definitions based on the Riemann-Liouville definitions are introduced and behavior of the operators is studied. Several time domain definitions that assign different arguments to the order q in the Riemann-Liouville definition are introduced. For each of these definitions various characteristics are determined. These include: time invariance of the operator, operator initialization, physical realization, linearity, operational transforms. and memory characteristics of the defining kernels. A measure (m2) for memory retentiveness of the order history is introduced. A generalized linear argument for the order q allows the concept of "tailored" variable order fractional operators whose a, memory may be chosen for a particular application. Memory retentiveness (m2) and order dynamic behavior are investigated and applications are shown. The concept of distributed order operators where the order of the time based operator depends on an additional independent (spatial) variable is also forwarded. Several definitions and their Laplace transforms are developed, analysis methods with these operators are demonstrated, and examples shown. Finally operators of multivariable and distributed order are defined in their various applications are outlined.
Extending client-server infrastructure using middleware components

Embracing inapt infrastructure technology is a major threat in developing extensive and efficient Web-based systems. The architectural strength of all business models demands an effective integration of various technological components. Middleware, the center of all applications, becomes the driver-- everything works if middleware does. In the recent times, the client/server environment has experienced sweeping transformation and led to the notion of the "Object Web." Web browser is viewed as a universal client that is capable of shifting flawlessly and effortlessly between various applications on the Internet. This paper attempts to investigate middleware and the facilitating technologies, and point toward the latest developments, taking into account the functional potential of the on-market middleware solutions, as well as their technical strengths and weaknesses. The paper would describe various types of middleware, including database middleware, Remote Procedure Call (RPC), application server middleware, message-oriented middleware (MOM), Object Request Broker (ORB), transaction-processing monitors and Web middleware, etc., with on-market technologies.
Book review: Annual Review of Computer Science Volume 1, 1986. Edited by Joseph Traub, Barbara J. Gresz, Butler Lampson, and Nils J. Nilsson (Annual Reviews, Inc.)

Volume 1 of the Annual Review of Computer Science is the first in a series of annual publications by Annual Reviews, Inc. Intended to review the state of the art in computer science through a collection of review articles. This series represents the 27th such series by Annual Reviews (starting with the Annual Review of Biochemistry in 1932.)
Auto-assign method for large scale flip-chip package design

The package size for Application-Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) becomes larger; the mainstream size is above 50mm * 50mm for current communication and networking ASICs with more than 2000 IOs. It will take more and more time to assign logical connections from chip solder bump to package solder ball across the substrate before layout design start, so an effective method of automatic assignment for package design is key for turn-around time (TAT) reduction. The benefit of package connections TAT reduction is to drive fast time to market based upon current chip-package co-design methodology. An example of real ASIC in production is presented in this paper to demonstrate the effectiveness of this automatic assign method that is integrated in so called Auto-Assign tool.
Optical analysis of high power free electron laser resonators

The first part of this paper briefly describes the optics code used at Los Alamos National Laboratory to do optical analyses of various components of a free electron laser. The body of the paper then discusses the recent results in modeling low frequency gratings and ripple on the surfaces of liquid-cooled mirrors. The ripple is caused by structural/thermal effects in the mirror surface due to heating by optical absorption in high power resonators. Of interest is how much ripple can be permitted before diffractive losses or optical mode distortions become unacceptable. Preliminary work is presented involving classical diffraction problems to support the ripple study. The limitations of the techniques are discussed and the results are compared to experimental results where available.
Characteristic x-rays from (n, γ) products and their utilization in activation analysis

The possibility of using characteristic X-rays from radioactive elements in activation analysis was investigated during this work with particular emphasis on (n, γ) products. At least 27 of 56 elements investigated during this work were found to yield themselves to activation analysis employing characteristic X-rays from electron capture or internal conversion processes during isomeric transition. In presenting the results, a survey made of several elements and the limits of detection of 21 elements have been reported. Specific applications of this method were studied for the analysis of copper in a variety of samples (ores, minerals, steels, spent lubricants and human blood). The results of this investigation show that the use of characteristic X-rays in activation analysis has several advantages because the energies of these radiations are closely related to the periodicity of the elements themselves.
Presence of a vacuolar H+-pyrophosphatase in promastigotes of Leishmania donovani and its localization to a different compartment from the vacuolar H+-ATPase

Inorganic pyrophosphate promoted the acidification of an intracellular compartment in permeabilized promastigotes of Leishmania donovani, as measured by Acridine Orange uptake. The proton gradient generated by pyrophosphate was collapsed by addition of nigericin or NH4Cl. Pyrophosphate-driven proton translocation was stimulated by potassium ions, and inhibited by NaF, the pyrophosphate analogues imidodiphosphate and aminomethylenediphosphonate (AMDP), dicyclohexylcarbodiimide, and the thiol reagents p-hydroxymercuribenzoate and N-ethylmaleimide, all at concentrations similar to those that inhibit the plant vacuolar proton-pumping pyrophosphatase (H+-PPase). The proton translocation activity had a pH optimum in the range 7.0-7.5, and was unaffected by bafilomycin A1 (40 nM), concanamycin A (5 nM), sodium o-vanadate (500 microM) and KNO3 (200 mM). AMDP-sensitive pyrophosphate hydrolysis was also detected in promastigotes, and potassium ions also stimulated this activity. Sodium ions disrupted pH gradients established in the presence of ATP but not in the presence of pyrophosphate, and sequential addition of ATP and pyrophosphate resulted in partially additive Acridine Orange accumulation, suggesting that the vacuolar H+-PPase is in a different intracellular compartment from the vacuolar H+-ATPase and Na+/H+ exchanger of L. donovani promastigotes. Separation of promastigote extracts on Percoll gradients yielded a dense fraction that contained H+-PPase activity but lacked ATPase activity and markers for mitochondria, glycosomes and lysosomes. The organelles in this fraction appeared by electron microscopy to consist of electron-dense vacuoles. In summary, these results indicate that, in contrast to plant vacuoles, vacuolar H+-PPase and vacuolar ATPase activities are present in different compartments in L. donovani promastigotes.
Solid earth science in EOS — report of the solid earth panel

The Solid Earth Panel of the Earth Observing System (EOS) Investigators Working Group prepared this document in response to the consideration of scientific priorities for EOS that took place during the late Summer and Fall of 1991, at the Seattle meeting of the IWG and the Easton meeting of the Payload Panel. The discussions at those meetings centered on the research priorities set forth in the IPCC assessment of climate change (Houghton et ai., 1990). This report thus focuses on the importance of solid earth science to those issues of climate change and does not consider a number of other imlJortant areas where satellite remote sensing plays critical roles in understanding the solid earth component of the earth system. These areas, well summarized in the Coolfont Report (NASA, 1991), include studies of the earth's geopotential fields, tectonic plate motions, surface deformation related to earthquakes and other internal processes, and lithospheric structure and evolution. Within these constraints, the report thus focuses on the dynamic interactions of the solid earth and climate as manifested primarily in the terrestrial land surface system and by the effects of volcanoes on climate. The report first argues for a high priority for the terrestrial land surface system overall, describes the critical roles of solid earth science in the study of this system, and then discusses solid earth sciences instrument priorities.
Inactivation of arf-bp1 Induces p53 Activation and Diabetic Phenotypes in Mice

It is well accepted that the Mdm2 ubiquitin ligase acts as a major factor in controlling p53 stability and activity in vivo. Although several E3 ligases have been reported to be involved in Mdm2-independent p53 degradation, the roles of these ligases in p53 regulation in vivo remain largely unknown. To elucidate the physiological role of the ubiquitin ligase ARF-BP1, we generated arf-bp1 mutant mice. We found that inactivation of arf-bp1 during embryonic development in mice resulted in p53 activation and embryonic lethality, but the mice with arf-bp1 deletion specifically in the pancreatic β-cells (arf-bp1FL/Y/RIP-cre) were viable and displayed no obvious abnormality after birth. Interestingly, these mice showed dramatic loss of β-cells as mice aged, and >50% of these mice died of severe diabetic symptoms before reaching 1 year of age. Notably, the diabetic phenotype of these mice was largely reversed by concomitant deletion of p53, and the life span of the mice was significantly extended (p53LFL/FL/arf-bp1FL/Y/RIP-cre). These findings underscore an important role of ARF-BP1 in maintaining β-cell homeostasis in aging mice and reveal that the stability of p53 is critically regulated by ARF-BP1 in vivo.
Gas Dynamic Gain of Supersonic Thrust Nozzles

Thrust misalignment in rocket nozzles is investigated for the situation where the gas flow field is misaligned with respect to the axis of the supersonic region of the nozzle. The analysis is based upon the threedimensional method of characteristics, and hence considers the full nonlinearity of the flow field. Numerical results are presented for a wide range of nozzle geometries. These results yield considerable insight into the thrust misalignment phenomenon, and indicate means by which thrust misalignment arising from certain kinds of nozzle misalignment can be reduced. Implications to thrust vector control are also discussed.