cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Biophysical mechanisms of single-cell interactions with microtopographical cues

Biophysical cues encoded in the extracellular matrix (ECM) are increasingly being explored to control cell behavior in tissue engineering applications. Recently, we showed that cell adhesion to microtopographical structures (“micropegs”) can suppress proliferation in a manner that may be blunted by inhibiting cellular contractility, suggesting that this effect is related to altered cell-scaffold mechanotransduction. We now directly investigate this possibility at the microscale through a combination of live-cell imaging, single-cell mechanics methods, and analysis of gene expression. Using time-lapse imaging, we show that when cells break adhesive contacts with micropegs, they form F-actin-filled tethers that extend and then rupture at a maximum, critical length that is greater than trailing-edge tethers observed on topographically flat substrates. This critical tether length depends on myosin activation, with inhibition of Rho-associated kinase abolishing topography-dependent differences in tether length. Using cellular de-adhesion and atomic force microscopy indentation measurements, we show that the micropegs enhance cell-scaffold adhesive interactions without changing whole-cell elasticity. Moreover, micropeg adhesion increases expression of specific mechanotransductive genes, including RhoA GTPase and myosin heavy chain II, and, in myoblasts, the functional marker connexin 43. Together, our data support a model in which microtopographical cues alter the local mechanical microenvironment of cells by modulating adhesion and adhesion-dependent mechanotransductive signaling.
Live publishing: the onstage redeployment of journalistic authority

In the past 5 years, live, in-person events have become significant revenue sources for industries ranging from high-tech to music. This article explores the rise of live events within one such industry – journalism – linking the rise of ‘live publishing’ to post-industrial career norms and digital economy business models. Drawing on interviews with 10 media companies and participant observation at two conferences produced by The Wall Street Journal, this article shows how media companies position themselves as the legitimate conveners of conferences and forums by redeploying traditional discourses of cultural authority; this enables them to bring together their existing networks of sources, audience members, and sponsors. By convening these groups in a physical space, live publishing takes isolated nodes within media organizations’ networks and renders them visible and accessible to each other, allowing media firms to extract value from these previously immaterial relationships. More broadly, live publishing demonstrates how the interaction of virtual and physical networks allows organizations to transform and redeploy cultural authority into new systems of networked power.
Atypical mycobacteria keratitis after laser in situ keratomileusis unresponsive to fourth-generation fluoroquinolone therapy

We report a case of post-laser in situ keratomileusis atypical mycobacteria infection unresponsive and resistant to fourth-generation fluoroquinolones, which highlights the importance of a high level of suspicion and the need for multidrug therapy for effective eradication.
Current-Limited Time-Optimal Response in Digitally Controlled DC–DC Converters

This paper addresses the problem of time-optimal load-transient response in digitally controlled dc-dc buck converters incorporating an inductor current limitation. The concept of current-limited, time-optimal control (CL-TOC) is introduced and compared to the conventional unconstrained time-optimal solution. A fundamental tradeoff between maximum-allowed current overshoot and voltage recovery time is recognized and analytically formulated, thus providing the engineer with the necessary analytical tools for performance evaluation. Furthermore, the minimum number of switching actions required to handle a generic CL-TOC transient is determined, thus leading to the formulation of a minimum-switch CL-TOC concept. Two distinct approaches for implementing minimum-switch digital CL-TOC are then introduced. The first method extends a parameter-independent time-optimal control that has the advantage of achieving the time-optimal switching sequence without the need for a prior knowledge of the output filter LC parameters or input voltage. The second approach implements a near CL-TOC employing the switching-surface concept and defining the current limitation in the state space. Experimental results are provided to validate the theory and demonstrate the effectiveness of the approaches.
Inhibition of osteopenia by low magnitude, high-frequency mechanical stimuli

The identification of anabolic agents for the treatment of metabolic bone disease is a highly prized, and elusive, goal. In searching for the osteogenic (bone-producing) constituents within mechanical stimuli, it was determined that high frequency (10-100 Hz) and low magnitude (<10 microstrain) stimuli were capable of augmenting bone mass and morphology, thereby benefiting both bone quantity and quality. Using animal models, it is shown that these mechanical signals can double bone-formation rates, inhibit disuse osteoporosis and increase the strength of trabecular bone by 25%. Considering that the magnitude of these mechanical signals are several orders of magnitude below those which cause damage to the bone tissue, it is proposed that this modality could be useful in the treatment of metabolic bone diseases.
Fundamentals of condition index evolving profiles for qualitative analysis of unresolved chromatographic peaks

Abstract A graphical library searching algorithm is described for the identification of components present in multi-component samples. The procedure is based on condition index involving profiles (CIEP) and variance decomposition proportions (VDP) from singular value decomposition of time-evolving multi-component spectra and library spectra. Impurities which may be present in samples do not seriously affect the results. In order to substantiate the competence of CIEP and VDP, the methods are demonstrated on simulated ultraviolet-visible spectrophotometry coupled with liquid chromatography. A new method of pure-component spectrochromatogram subtraction based on CIEP is used to remove identified components from multi-component samples. The results from CIEP subtraction are compared with rank annihilation factor analysis. The CIEP and VDP procedures are shown to be robust to poorly chromatographic peaks. The effects of concentration ratios and spectral similarities are also reported. Estimations of chromatographic elution profiles are shown to be possible with the CIEP methodology.
Integrated millimeter-wave corner-cube antennas

An integrated corner-reflector antenna has been designed, fabricated and measured at millimeter-wave frequencies. The structure consists of a traveling-wave antenna integrated on a 1.2- mu m dielectric membrane, and suspended in a longitudinal cavity etched in a silicon wafer. A novel traveling wave antenna design, the modified-bend antenna, with an antenna length of 1.2 lambda and spacing 0.96 lambda from the apex, results in a wideband input impedance centered at 140 Omega and low cross-polarization levels. Measurements at 180-270 GHz show a well-defined pattern with low sidelobe levels, and a main-beam efficiency of 93% and 83% at 180 and 222 GHz, respectively. The monolithic approach allows the integration of a matching network and a Schottky-diode or SIS detector at the base of the antenna to yield a low-noise monolithic millimeter-wave receiver. >
Determining the Impact of Block Scheduling on Leadership Involvement in the FFA

In the past two decades various changes have impacted the public school educational system. In1983, the National Commission on Excellence in Education addressed a report to the American people regarding the risks that education in the United States would be facing in the years ahead. This report,A Nation at Risk, generated reactions that ultimately led to action on educational reform issues. Years later in 1994, the National Education Commission on Time and Learning concluded, inPrisoners of Time(1994), that student time could be better spent, and the teaching and learning process would be better fulfilled, if schools were to move to a block scheduling format, “moving from a focus on time to a focus on learning” (p. 4). The result was the proposal to restructure the school day to longer class periods and fewer classes and ultimately became known as block scheduling.
Binding in Wholewheat Syntax

In this paper I shall explore one way of stating constraints on movement as constraints on binding without enriching the syntax with representations of unpronounced bound variables (as, for example, has been proposed by proponents of trace theory). While the only kind of movement that I will talk about here is wh-movement, I believe that the kind of techniques discussed may be extended to other kinds of movement which might be treated as corresponding to the binding of a variable.
What Can Austin Tell Us about Truth

In recent discussions of the problem of truth, Austin's views have been largely overlooked. This is unfortunate, since many of his criticisms aimed at Strawson's redundancy theory carry over to more recent incarnations of deflationism. And unlike contemporary versions of the correspondence theory of truth, Austin's manages properly to situate truth in its conceptual neighbourhood wherein it belongs to “a whole dimension of different appraisals which have something or other to do with the relation between what we say and the facts.” A proper analysis of truth cannot be given apart from a broader study of speech acts.
Temperature measurement for a nanoparticle suspension by detecting the Brownian motion using optical serial sectioning microscopy (OSSM)

A concept of nonintrusive thermometry is presented based on the correlation of the Brownian motion of suspended nanoparticles with the surrounding fluid temperature. Detection of fully three-dimensional Brownian motion is possible by the use of optical serial sectioning microscopy (OSSM). This technique measures optically diffracted particle images, the so-called point spread function (PSF), and determines the defocusing or line-of-sight location of the imaged particle measured from the focal plane. A dry objective lens (40×, 0.75 NA) is used to detect the diffraction patterns of 500 nm polystyrene fluorescent (505/515) nanoparticles suspended in water at a volume concentration of 4 × 10−6, for a range of temperatures from 5 to 70 °C. The measured mean square displacement (MSD) data (figure 8, table 1) agree fairly well with the well-known Einstein predictions. Differentials of 5.54%, 4.26% and 3.19% were found for the 1D, 2D and 3D cases, respectively. In summary, the line-of-sight Brownian motion detection using the OSSM technique is proposed in lieu of the more cumbersome two-dimensional Brownian motion tracking on the imaging plane as a potentially more effective tool to nonintrusively map the temperature fields for nanoparticle suspension fluids.
Acoustic Imaging Of Experimental Subaqueous Sediment-Laden Flows And Their Deposits

Abstract This paper presents a non-invasive acoustic reflection technique to visualize sediment-laden flows over a wide range of sediment concentrations (5–75% by volume) in the laboratory. A Panametrics V301-SU Immersion transducer with 0.5 MHz center frequency was used to generate acoustic reflections that were sampled at 10 MHz. The strength of this technique is the direct characterization of both the internal structure of sediment-laden flows and their deposits, especially for high-concentration conditions. A combination of reflection continuity, amplitude, and mutual coherence were used to identify three distinct acoustic facies: short-scatter, long-scatter, and continuous-reflection. Here we present two examples in which the acoustic facies allows the interpretation of (a) the temporal evolution of internal mixing and stratification within a flow and contemporaneous deposition of its sediment and (b) the horizontal and vertical partitioning of mud and sand within a deposit generated by a sediment-laden flow.
Fractional order controller for pitch loop control of a VTOL UAV

As the fundamental tuning step for vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), pitch loop control has significant impact on the flight. In this paper, an auto-regressive with exogenous input (ARX) model is acquired and converted to a first-order plus time delay (FOPTD) model for the pitch loop of a VTOL UAV. Based on the FOPTD model, a fractional order [proportional integral] (FO[PI]) controller is designed. An integer order PI controller based on the modified Ziegler-Nichols (MZNs) tuning rule and a general integer order proportional integral derivative (PID) controller are also designed for comparison following three design specifications. Simulation results have shown that the proposed fractional order controller outperforms both the MZNs PI controller and the integer order PID controller in terms of robustness and disturbance rejection.
Time Delay in the Kuramoto Model of Coupled Oscillators

We generalize the Kuramoto model of coupled oscillators to allow time-delayed interactions. New phenomena include bistability between synchronized and incoherent states, and unsteady solutions with time-dependent order parameters. We derive exact formulas for the stability boundaries of the incoherent and synchronized states, as a function of the delay, in the special case where the oscillators are identical. The experimental implications of the model are discussed for populations of chirping crickets, where the finite speed of sound causes communication delays, and for physical systems such as coupled phase-locked loops or lasers.
A 6 watt LDMOS broadband high efficiency distributed power amplifier fabricated using LTCC technology

A novel new approach in designing high efficiency power distributed amplifiers for broadband wireless applications has been developed. This synthesis technique allows the designer to achieve power added efficiencies, during class B operation, greater than 50% while still preserving the low VSWR and broadband characteristics of distributed structures. The performance of these newly designed amplifiers can yield the same PAE and power output performance of narrow band, single-ended, reactively matched amplifiers, without the high sensitivity to manufacturing variations. This synthesis technique has been applied to develop LDMOS and PHEMT distributed power amplifiers for cellular base stations and portable communication applications.
Quark contribution to the small-x evolution of color dipole

The small-$x$ deep inelastic scattering in the saturation region is governed by the nonlinear evolution of Wilson-lines operators. In the leading logarithmic approximation it is given by the Balitsky-Kovchegov (BK) equation for the evolution of color dipoles. In the next-to-leading order (NLO) the nonlinear equation gets contributions from quark and gluon loops. In this paper I calculate the quark-loop contribution to small-$x$ evolution of Wilson lines in the NLO. It turns out that there are no new operators at the one-loop level\char22{}just as at the tree level, the high-energy scattering can be described in terms of Wilson lines. In addition, from the analysis of quark loops I find that the argument of coupling constant in the BK equation is determined by the size of the parent dipole rather than by the size of produced dipoles. These results are to be supported by future calculation of gluon loops.
Soil Clean Up by in-situ Surfactant Flushing. II. Theory of Micellar Solubilization

Mathematical models for describing the solubilization of various types of contaminants in micelles of ionic and nonionic surfactants are described. Contaminants which are purely hydrophobic compounds and those which are amphipathic are handled, and electrical effects are described by means of a Debye-Huckel theory approach. It is found that the concentration of contaminant solubilized is a linear function of the total surfactant concentration provided that this is above the critical micelle concentration of the surfactant, in agreement with experimental results.
Revenue, Voice, and Public Goods in Three Pre-Modern States

At least since the European Enlightenment, Western theories of state formation have developed around a dichotomizing principle that distinguishes between a highly centralized non-Western "other," the oriental despotic, versus a more liberal, democratic and market-driven Western form of the state (e.g., Sherratt 1989: 164). More recently, another non-Western type, the loosely integrated segmentary state, has been identified in the anthropological literature (e.g., Asad 1973), including many pre-modern states of sub-Saharan Africa, Southeast Asia, and Hindu South Asia (Southall 1956: 248-49; 1988: 64-65; Stein 1980: 265-74, 339; 1995). Neoevolutionists and other anthropologists interested in the development of early states focused most of their attention on non-Western forms (e.g., Harris 1979: 102; Service 1975). From this perspective they constructed their causal models on the premise that state-building reflects primarily the emergence of a strategizing governing elite able to, variously, organize networks of redistribution (Service 1975), maintain an order of stratification (Fried 1967: 235), provide irrigation services (Wittfogel 1957), reorganize managerial systems in response to socio-environmental stress (Flannery 1972), dominate commoners under conditions of resource stress (Cameiro 1970; Sanders et al. 1976), or stage rituals confirming the centrality of rulers in a hierarchical cosmos (e.g., Geertz 1980). The concept of a more democratic and market-driven Western state formation process incorporates a relatively greater role for commoner voices and strategic action in state building (e.g., Midlarsky 1999: 188-93),
Synergistic heterozygosity in mice with inherited enzyme deficiencies of mitochondrial fatty acid β-oxidation

Abstract We have used mice with inborn errors of mitochondrial fatty acid β-oxidation to test the concept of synergistic heterozygosity. We postulated that clinical disease can result from heterozygous mutations in more than one gene in single or related metabolic pathways. Mice with combinations of mutations in mitochondrial fatty acid β-oxidation genes were cold challenged to test their ability to maintain normal body temperature, a sensitive indicator of overall β-oxidation function. This included mice of the following genotypes: triple heterozygosity for mutations in very-long-chain acyl CoA dehydrogenase, long-chain acyl CoA dehydrogenase, and short-chain acyl CoA dehydrogenase genes (VLCAD+/−//LCAD+/−//SCAD+/−); double heterozygosity for mutations in VLCAD and LCAD genes (VLCAD+/−//LCAD+/−); double heterozygosity for mutations in LCAD and SCAD genes (LCAD+/−//SCAD+/−); single heterozygous mice (VLCAD+/−, LCAD+/−, SCAD+/−) and wild-type. We found that approximately 33% of mice with any of the combined mutant genotypes tested became hypothermic during a cold challenge. All wild-type and single heterozygous mice maintained normal body temperature throughout a cold challenge. Despite development of hypothermia in some double heterozygous mice, blood glucose concentrations remained normal. Biochemical screening by acylcarnitine and fatty acid analyses demonstrated results that varied by genotype. Thus, physiologic reduction of the β-oxidation pathway, characterized as cold intolerance, occurred in mice with double or triple heterozygosity; however, the derangement was milder than in mice homozygous for any of these mutations. These results substantiate the concept of synergistic heterozygosity and illustrate the potential complexity involved in diagnosis and characterization of inborn errors of fatty acid metabolism in humans.
A Jet Exhaust Model for Soot Dispersion and Visibility

This study describes the development of a numerical model to investigate soot dispersion and visibility in the exhaust of a jet aircraft. Equations for momentum, thermal energy, and mass transport are described and numerically solved for compressible, turbulent flow in an axi-symmetric jet. In addition, mass transport equations for particulate soot are developed by applying the conventional method of moments and using the six lowest generalized moments. An algorithm for moment inversion, providing a particulate spectral distribution, is described and applied to the generalized moments. Furthermore, we show that the extinction and transmission coefficients for Mie scattering can be written as integral properties of the particulate spectra. Finally, we apply the numerical model to the configuration of a common transport aircraft. We present results for five test cases of particulate soot loading at the exit plane, by showing the downstream effects of soot dispersion on exhaust visibility. Briefly, we describe ongoing efforts to couple vapor and particle transport equations in order to model the effects of condensation growth on plume visibility
Uncertainty in Distributed and Interoperable Spatial Information Systems

Many facets of spatial data representation inherently involve issues of accuracy and uncertainty. This problem is greatly magnified when considering the integration of spatial data from different sources, such as in a distributed or interoperable environment. The general concept, of schema merging Involves the resolution of incompatibilities as in a distributed environment. These may be either structural or semantic in nature. Structural incompatibilities involve those, for example, in which attributes for representing the same values arc tie-fined differently. Semantic incompatibilities, however, represent those cases in which similarly defined attributes have different meanings or values For example, an attribute of WIDTH for a road in one database may include the widih of associated accca lanes, while in anoiltei database it may be only the main drive able portion of the road. Such semantic issues are much more difficult to resolve, as they require a fleeper understanding oi ute data. We will survey tnc issues as diwussed above for spatial data in such environments and describe several approaches lor different aspects of the data using furry set techniques lo deal with the incompatibilities.
Probabilistic neural network prediction of ascites in broilers based on minimally invasive physiological factors

A Probabilistic Neural Network (PNN) was trained to predict ascites in broilers based on minimally invasive inputs (i.e., physiological factors that do not require the death of the bird). A PNN is a supervised, three-layer, artificial neural network that classifies input patterns (e.g., physiological data) into specific output categories (e.g., ascites or no ascites). The PNN inputs were O2 level in the blood, body weight, electrocardiogram (ECG), hematocrit, S wave, and heart rate of individual birds. These data were from three experiments that have been described previously (Roush et al., 1996a,b). The three data sets were pooled into a combined data set for a total of 170 observations. From the pooled data, a training set (117 birds), a calibration set (17 birds), and a verification set (36 birds) were extracted. The PNN was trained on the training data set. To prevent the PNN from overfitting the training data, the neural network was evaluated on its ability to make correct predictions of the calibration data set. At the point at which the neural network made the highest number of correct classifications for the calibration data set, the trained neural network was saved on the computer. When the PNN was applied to the complete data set, the sensitivity or proportion of the birds with ascites that the PNN correctly diagnosed was 0.97 (75/77 birds). The specificity or proportion of birds that the PNN made a correct diagnosis of not having ascites was 0.98 (91/93 birds). When the PNN was applied to the verification data set, which was not subjected to neural network training, the sensitivity was 0.95 (19/20) and the specificity was 0.88 (14/16 birds). Use of models developed with artificial neural networks may enhance the diagnosis of ascites in broilers. The results may be useful in choosing and developing broiler strains that do not have a propensity for ascites.
Empirical Advances in the Study of Early European Nationalisms

This article discusses several recent monographs and edited volumes that reconsider the standing of ‘the nation’ in early modern European culture. The emphasis is placed on empirical interventions that condition the picture received from some famous works of the modernist-constructivist school, while debunking older ‘dichotomies’ regarding presumed differences in the nature of Eastern and Western European thought. Although adhering themselves to a modernist perspective, the contributions cited below show that far from springing on the scene, as Benedict Anderson wrote ‘towards the late 18th century,’ the nation figured much earlier in European culture and it was from this inheritance that thinkers of Enlightenment-era vintage obtained a number of conceptual and heuristic devices employed in their works. The nation enjoyed a particular rise in status on the basis of its serviceability, based again on older conventions, for the anthropological pursuits of the age. These insights offer a major advance for historians in narrative coherence by demonstrating the extent to which Enlightenment endeavors in this vein were culturally-mediated and, in turn, influenced the terms of subsequent political debate.
Foreign Aid, Development Strategies, and Poverty Reduction

Globalization brings the suffering of the world's poor directly to the attention of those fortunate to have been born non-poor in high-income countries. And there is plenty of suffering. In 2004, an estimated 969 million people - more than 18% of the world's population - lived on less than roughly $1/day per person and were thus classified as "extremely poor" by global standards (Chen and Ravallion 2007). Indeed, outside of China, the developing world has not enjoyed any sustained progress over the past quarter century in reducing the number of extremely poor people. Meanwhile, in some regions the number of extremely poor people has increased significantly. In sub-Saharan Africa, even in the face of population growth, the extreme poor have consistently accounted for 41-48 percent of the subcontinent's residents since good estimates began around 1980. For Christians especially, Jesus' injunction that, "Whatever you do to the least of my brethren, you do to me." (Matthew 25:40) reminds us that to ignore the suffering of others is an offense against God. Hence the Christian's natural instinct to provide aid to the poor. However, good intentions and good deeds do not always translate into favorable results, as the checkered history of foreign aid makes clear. Foreign aid - the transfer of government resources to poorer countries - has long been deemed an essential part of any strategy to reduce poverty and hunger. It encompasses both short-term relief of suffering resulting from natural disasters and war, as well as longer-term development to end chronic deprivation. The modern era of foreign aid began with post-World War II reconstruction, in particular the Marshall Plan, when the United States devoted 2-3 percent of its national income annually to restore war-ravaged Europe. Once European recovery was well underway by the second half of the 1950s, Europe's former colonies in Africa and Asia began achieving independence and became the new foci for foreign aid. Over the intervening half century, aid has become an industry, professionalized in United Nations agencies, multilateral development banks and a vast network of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) committed to humanitarian relief, long-term development, or both. Cassen (1987), Mosley (1987) and Tarp (2000) provide excellent histories of foreign aid.
The effect of anemic anoxia on the cellular development of nucleated red cells.

The action of an anoxic stimulus on red cell production was studied in rabbits bled 20 ml./Kg., kept anemic for 20 hours and then reinfused with the previously removed blood. This 20-hour period of anemic anoxia was followed by a characteristic reticulocyte response, a response which was modified by nitrogen mustard or colchicine administered immediately after the 20-hour period of anemia, but was not influenced by anoxia or hyperoxia in the postanemic period. When mitotic division was arrested by colchicine during the 20-hour period of anemic anoxia, the onset of the reticulocyte response, though delayed by 1 to 2 days, was otherwise of characteristic magnitude. These observations indicate that (1) the anoxic stimulus operates in the bone marrow by accelerating the differentiation of stem cells into pronormoblasts, and that thereafter (2) the maturation and multiplication of differentiated nucleated red cells proceed at fixed rates independent of the anoxic stimulus.
Dangerous shores and disoriented penguins in Beyond the Utmost Bound: A Performance about Antarctic Exploration

ABSTRACTThis essay describes Beyond the Utmost Bound: A Performance about Antarctic Exploration, which retold the story of Robert Falcon Scott's Terra Nova expedition of 1911–1913. The performance interwove scenes adapted from Apsley Cherry-Garrard's The Worst Journey in the World with scenes that provided contemporary reflections on representing Antarctica in art, photography, and literature, with narration staged as a dialogue between a contemporary and a heroic age explorer. The performance argued thematically for the value of research that may not necessarily be connected directly to immediate gain, locating the ultimate value of exploration not in the “bagging of the pole” nor in the heroics of its narratives, but in Terra Nova’s scientific work and in the camaraderie that forms among researchers.
Stop and Frisk in New York City: A Look at Police Powers, Policies, Procedures and Actions

The use of stop and frisk tactics has long been an issue of contention between the New York Police Department and some members of the community. One of the issues debated by the two sides is the disproportionate number of African American males stopped and searched by the police. This paper will address issues related to stop and frisk policies and procedures and the implementation of those policies and procedures by police officers. Special attention will be given to issues raised in a recent class action lawsuit that challenged the constitutionality of NYPD's stop-and frisk policy. It was argued that the NYPD program amounted to "indirect racial profiling" because it targeted blacks and Hispanics disproportionately to their populations.
Corporate Social Responsibility and Employee Engagement, Course Overview

Analyzes the link between corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities and employee engagement, including CSR effects on employee commitment and motivation, new skills and training, and motivation. Also discusses best practices in employee engagement through CSR.Learning Objective: Help students understand the link between corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities and employee engagement
Robust Trajectory Optimization: A Cooperative Stochastic Game Theoretic Approach

We present a novel trajectory optimization framework to address the issue of robustness, scalability and efficiency in optimal control and reinforcement learning. Based on prior work in Cooperative Stochastic Differential Game (CSDG) theory, our method performs local trajectory optimization using cooperative controllers. The resulting framework is called Cooperative Game-Differential Dynamic Programming (CG-DDP). Compared to related methods, CG-DDP exhibits improved performance in terms of robustness and efficiency. The proposed framework is also applied in a data-driven fashion for belief space trajectory optimization under learned dynamics. We present experiments showing that CG-DDP can be used for optimal control and reinforcement learning under external disturbances and internal model uncertainties.
Rubiacearum Americanarum Magna Hama V. Amphidasya in Mesoamerica and Western South America

The neotropical genus Amphidasya includes 13 species in northern South America and adjacent Central America. A key to all the species of this genus is presented; the new combination Amphidasya longicalycina (Dwyer) C. M. Taylor is made, based on Hoffmannia longicalycina Dwyer, for the most commonly collected species in Central America; and the following new species are described and illustrated: A. amethystina J. L. Clark & C. M. Taylor from western Ecuador, A. brevidentata C. M. Taylor from western Colombia, A. elegans C. M. Taylor from southwestern Colombia and central Ecuador, and A. panamensis C. M. Taylor from Panama.
Near-Infrared and Visible Spectroscopy of CH3D in Liquid Argon Solutions

The near-infrared and visible spectra of CH3D in liquid argon solutions have been measured around 95 K. The fundamental and overtones, Δv = 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 around the C−H stretch and Δv = 1, 2, a...
Suicidal Emergence and Reproduction by Overwintered Pink Bollworm Moths

Adult pink bollworms, Pectinophora gossypiella (Saunders), that emerged from hibernation before small squares were on the cotton plant (21 days before blooming) usually failed to produce any progeny in field cage tests. Thus all emergence up to this time may be considered suicidal. Rate of reproduction by overwintered moths ranged from <1- to 9.4-fold depending on temperature and stage of fruiting on the plants at the time of moth emergence. High temperatures (42°C or more) for the 4 days immediately after emergence greatly reduced reproduction. In the field cages, the rate of reproduction of laboratory-reared moths was ca. 1/10 that of native overwintered moths. Partially sterile moths (irradiated as newly emerged adults with 10 krad of ∞Co gamma rays) did not produce any progeny in field cages.
Suppression of Plasma Gonadotropins, Testosterone and Sperm Production in Adult Male Monkeys by a Potent Inhibitory Analog of LHRH

Suppression of circulating levels of reproductive hormons is desirable in some clinical situations, such as the treatment of precocious puberty and steroid-dependent neoplasms and the control of male and female fertility. Synthetic inhibitory analogs of LHRH are being developed as potential therapeutic agents for use in these circumstances, and as a prelude to human trials have been tested for their ability to inhibit reproductive function in a variety of animal models. Only limited information is available concerning the effects of these agents in male non-human primates [1–5].
Character displacement and phyletic change in the evolution of the radiolarian subfamily Artiscinae

The radiolarian subfamily Artiscinae in deep-sea sediments of the equatorial Pacific consists of both an ancestral lineage that has persisted from the Early Miocene to the Recent and a descendant lineage that originated, probably by allopatric speciation, in the Middle Miocene and became extinct at the end of the Miocene. Measurements of shell dimensions were made on samples of both lineages throughout their stratigraphic ranges. For almost all of the measured dimensions, morphologic rates of change increased in the ancestral lineage following the establishment of sympatry with the descendant lineage. Rates of change were consistently higher in the descendant lineage than in the ancestral lineage during sympatry. Differential rates of phyletic change exhibited by the 2 lineages resulted in significant divergence between them, which may be interpreted as possible character displacement at the
Wounds of common carotid arteries

Abstract A series of seventeen wounds involving the common carotid artery is reported from experiences in certain forward army hospitals during World War II. The artery was ligated in twelve patients and eight of these survived, with cerebral signs (transient hemiplegia) in only two cases. Of the five unligated patients four died, two from arterial occlusion by thrombosis, one due to coincidental hemorrhage from a severed vetebral artery and one following arterial anastomosis (Blakemore method). The overall mortality rate for this series was 47 per cent. The authors prefer early debridement and direct attack on the arterial wound to conservative management of suspected common carotid wounds. Immediate ligation of this artery is highly hazardous, however, and should be avoided whenever possible. Recent improvements in surgical methods for restoring blood vessel continuity and the circulation distally, notably by cannulization, may reduce the mortality rate somewhat and should be employed. The unavoidable time lag before surgery under combat conditions and inherent inadequacies in cerebral collateral circulation shown by many individuals, however, probably will maintain this rate at a relatively high level.
On Quasiconformal Extensions of the Beurling–Ahlfors Type

Publisher Summary Beurling and Ahlfors had determined which homeomorphisms of the real line are the boundary values of quasiconformal self-maps of the upper half-plane. Further, for each such homeomorphism of the real line, they found an explicit quasiconformal extension. Later, the clifford J. Earle and Eells showed that the Beurling–Ahlfors extension depends continuously on the boundary values and, therefore, provides a continuous cross section of the universal Teichmuller space. This cross section is real analytic. The chapter presents a theorem, which gives a family of real analytic cross sections depending holomorphically on a complex parameter τ. It also presents another theorem, which applies the earlier results to the Bers fiber space over universal Teichmuller space.
The Strategic Shuffle: Ethnic Geography, the Internal Security Apparatus, and Elections in Kenya

For autocrats facing elections, officers in the internal security apparatus play a crucial role by engaging in coercion on behalf of the incumbent. Yet reliance on these officers introduces a principal-agent problem: Officers can shirk from the autocrat's demands. To solve this problem, autocrats strategically post officers to different areas based on an area's importance to the election and the expected loyalty of an individual officer, which is a function of the officer's expected benefits from the president winning reelection. Using a data set of 8,000 local security appointments within Kenya in the 1990s, one of the first of its kind for any autocracy, I find that the president's coethnic officers were sent to, and the opposition's coethnic officers were kept away from, swing areas. This article demonstrates how state institutions from a country's previous authoritarian regime can persist despite the introduction of multi-party elections and thus prevent full democratization.
Integration and Globalization of the Canadian and U.S. Banking Industries: A Modest Role For NAFTA?

This chapter presents evidence that the impact of NAFTA on the direct banking presence of Canadian banks in the United States and U.S. banks in Canada may have been relatively modest. No post-NAFTA change in the level of banking activity, as measured by assets of Canadian banks in the United States and U.S. banks in Canada occurred, and the current market shares of Canadian banks in the United States and of U.S. banks in Canada appear to be low. Despite a less than central role for NAFTA in setting the agenda of international banking issues, important policy concerns remain. These include internal policy debates within NAFTA countries, because the legal and regulatory environment in each of the signatory countries affects banks from each of the other countries.
Choosing thresholds for density-based map construction algorithms

Due to the ubiquitous use of various positioning technologies in smart phones and other devices, geospatial tracking data has become a routine data source. One of its uses that has gained recent popularity is the construction of street maps from vehicular tracking data. Due to the inherent noise in the data, many map construction algorithms are based on thresholding a density function. While kernel density estimation provides a firm theoretical foundation for computing the density from the measurements, the thresholds are generally picked in a heuristic, and often brute-force way, which results in slow algorithms with no guarantees on the map construction quality. In this paper, we formalize the selection of thresholds in a density-based street map construction algorithm. We propose a new thresholding technique that uses persistent homology combined with statistical analysis to determine a small set of thresholds that captures all relevant topological features. We formally prove that when the samples are drawn uniformly from the street map, a constant number of thresholds suffices to recover the street map. We also provide algorithms to compute the thresholds for different sampling assumptions. Finally, we show the effectiveness of our algorithms in several experiments on artificially generated data and on real GPS trajectory data.
Gender Gap in Tenure & Promotion: Evidence from the Economics Ph.D. Class of 2008

This study examines early career outcomes (i.e., tenure and promotion) of the Economics Ph.D. class of 2008. We find that relative to males in the same cohort, female economists are less likely (by about 14%) to have received tenure and promotion eight years post-graduation. The gender gap becomes more pronounced (of 26%) among individuals of foreign origins working in the U.S. In addition, we find a similar gender bias regarding whether an individual remains in academia since the initial job placement in 2008. Our paper contributes to the literature by examining a new and growing dimension of the labor market for economics Ph.D.'s, i.e., women and internationals.
Reflective SOA-based fiber Bragg grating ultrasonic sensing system with two wave mixing interferometric demodulation

Damages such as cracking or impact loading in civil, aerospace, and mechanical structures generate transient ultrasonic waves, which can be used to reveal the structural health condition. Hence, it is necessary to find a practical tool based on ultrasonic detection for structural health monitoring. In this work, we describe an intelligent fiber-optic ultrasonic sensing system, which is designed based on a fiber Bragg grating (FBG) and a reflective semiconductor optical amplifier (RSOA) used as an adaptive source, and demodulated by an adaptive photorefractive two wave mixing (TWM) technique without any active compensation of quasi-static strains and temperature. As the wavelength of the FBG shifts due to the excited ultrasonic waves, the wavelength of the optical output from the fiber cavity laser shifts accordingly. With regard to the shift of the FBG reflective spectrum, the adaptivity of the RSOA-based laser is analyzed theoretically and verified by the TWM demodulator. Additionally, due to the response time of the photorefractive crystal, the TWM demodulator is insensitive to low frequency-FBG spectral shift. The results demonstrate that this proposed FBG ultrasonic sensing system has high sensitivity and can respond the ultrasonic waves into the megahertz frequency range, which shows a potential for acoustic emission detection in practical applications.
Water lavage as an adjunct to cytoreductive surgery with hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (CRS-HIPEC)

Abstract Background Water lavage (WL) during gastrointestinal cancer surgery has osmotically mediated lytic effects on tumor cells. We investigated the safety and efficacy of WL with CRS-HIPEC. Methods This is a retrospective review, 1/2003-7/2014, of a single institution experience with CRS-HIPEC comparing patients who had WL (WL+) to those who did not (WL−). Results Of 157 CRS-HIPECs, 16 (10.2%) were WL+. WL+ had more PCI scores >20 compared to WL− (56.3% vs 19.4%, respectively, p = 0.003); however, the completeness of cytoreduction (CC) was similar. There were no differences in hospital length of stay or post-operative complications. The average POD 1 sodium (Na) level was statistically lower in the WL+ group (133.6 ± 2.5 vs 135.5 ± 3.2 mEq/L, p = 0.023); however, the average Na at discharge for each group was 140 mEq/L. There were no differences in 3-year OS (3WL+:0.63 vs WL−:0.68, p = 0.97) or RFS (WL+:0.32 vs WL−:0.39, p = 0.47). A subset analysis for patients with PCI >20 showed no difference between groups. Conclusions WL offers a low cost, safe and theoretically efficacious method of tumor cell lysis for peritoneal malignancy.
Pyrrolo[2,3-d:5,4-d′]bisthiazoles: Alternate Synthetic Routes and a Comparative Study to Analogous Fused-Ring Bithiophenes

New synthetic methods have been developed for the preparation of 4-alkyl- and 4-aryl-pyrrolo[2,3-d:5,4-d′]bisthiazole (PBTz) building blocks from 2,4-thiazolidinedione. The resulting PBTz products have been fully characterized via structural, electronic, and optical methods, thus allowing full comparison to the previously reported dithieno[3,2-b:2′,3′-d]pyrrole (DTP) analogues. Such comparisons then allow a detailed discussion of the relative electronic effects of the various methods utilized to tune the properties of the parent DTP building block.
International Student Support Groups: Learning from Experienced Group Members and Leaders

A multisite qualitative study investigated the experiences of six group leaders and 10 group members who participated in seven different university counseling center international student support g...
Reference, (In)Commensurability and Meanings

Received conceptions of the meanings of scientific terms assign to meanings an essentially benign methodological role: the meaning of a term consists of principles or inference rules which are, always or for the most part, (approximately) true or reliable. In fact, many scientific terms have meanings which are malignant: which are mainly false or misleading and which detract from, rather than contribute to, scientific progress. Kuhn’s conception of incommensurability can be fruitfully extended to take account of malignant meanings. Malignant meanings are especially implicated in cases, like that of human sociobiology, in which the influence of social ideology on scientific practice is especially profound.
Antimicrobial Resistance: A Global Perspective

Antimicrobial resistance is of concern to many of us. However, despite a call for action, we ofttimes seem to be speaking to the wind. As the problem advances, we wonder when and how medical and public health measures will deal with it. Resistance is not local or national, it is international. It is not just in one hospital or community, but in hospitals and communities worldwide. Therefore, if we are going to curtail the problem we have to approach it on a global scale.
Evaluation and Treatment of STD Exposure and Sexual Assault

Primary care providers may be asked to evaluate and treat patients who have had unprotected exposure to possible sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). This might occur in a variety of scenarios, ranging from consensual but unprotected sex with a known partner to sexual assault, in which the assailant is unknown.