cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Effect of Intermittent Contact on the Stability of Thermoelastic Sliding Contact

In many sliding systems, the sliding surfaces are not coextensive, so that points on one surface experience alternating periods of contact and separation. This intermittent process can be expected to influence the sliding speed at which the system is susceptible to frictionally-induced thermoelastic instability (TEI). This question is explored in the context of a simple system consisting ofa rotating thin-walled cylinder whose end face slides against a rigid surface. The results show that at low Fourier number-i.e., when the frequency of the process is high compared with the thermal transient of the system-only the time-averaged frictional heat input is important and the critical speed is an inverse linear junction of the proportion of time in sliding contact. At higher Fourier number, lower critical speeds are obtained, but the dependence on Fourier number is relatively weak.
The moduli space of commutative algebras of finite rank

The moduli space of rank-$n$ commutative algebras equipped with an ordered basis is an affine scheme $\frakB_n$ of finite type over $\Z$, with geometrically connected fibers. It is smooth if and only if $n \le 3$. It is reducible if $n \ge 8$ (and the converse holds, at least if we remove the fibers above $2$ and $3$). The relative dimension of $\frakB_n$ is $\frac{2}{27} n^3 + O(n^{8/3})$. The subscheme parameterizing \'etale algebras is isomorphic to $\GL_n/S_n$, which is of dimension only $n^2$. For $n \ge 8$, there exist algebras that are not limits of \'etale algebras. The dimension calculations lead also to new asymptotic formulas for the number of commutative rings of order $p^n$ and the dimension of the Hilbert scheme of $n$ points in $d$-space for $d \ge n/2$.
Dust dynamics during protoplanetary disc clearing

We consider the dynamics of dust and gas during the clearing of protoplanetary discs. We work within the context of a photoevaporation/viscous model for the evolution of the gas disc, and use a two-fluid model to study the dynamics of dust grains as the gas disc is cleared. Small (10 μm) grains remain well coupled to the gas, but larger (∼1 mm) grains are subject to inward migration from large radii (∼50 au), suggesting that the time-scale for grain growth in the outer disc is ∼10 4 ‐10 5 yr. We describe in detail the observable appearance of discs during clearing, and find that pressure gradients in the gas disc result in a strong enhancement of the local dust-to-gas ratio in a ring near to the inner disc edge. Lastly, we consider a simple model of the disc‐planet interaction, and suggest that observations of disc masses and accretion rates provide a straightforward means of discriminating between different models of disc clearing.
Overlapped-MIMO radar waveform design for coexistence with communication systems

This paper explores a collocated overlapped-multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antenna architecture and a spectrum sharing algorithm via null space projection (NSP) for radar-communications coexistence. In the overlapped-MIMO architecture, the transmit array of a collocated MIMO radar is partitioned into a number of subarrays that are allowed to overlap. Each of the antenna elements has signals orthogonal to others in the same subarray and to the other subarrays. The proposed architecture not only improves sidelobe suppression to reduce interference to communications system, but also enjoys the advantages of MIMO radar without sacrificing the desirable characteristics such as beampattern and SNR gain. The radar-centric spectrum sharing then projects the radar signal onto the null space of the communications system's interference channel to avoid interference from the radar. Numerical results are presented that show the performance of the proposed design in terms of overall beampattern and sidelobe levels of the radar waveform and finally shows a comparison of the proposed system with existing collocated MIMO radar architectures.
Automatic synthesis of quantum circuits for point addition on ordinary binary elliptic curves

When designing quantum circuits for Shor's algorithm to solve the discrete logarithm problem, implementing the group arithmetic is a cost-critical task. We introduce a software tool for the automatic generation of addition circuits for ordinary binary elliptic curves, a prominent platform group for digital signatures. The resulting circuits reduce the number of $$T$$T-gates by a factor $$13/5$$13/5 compared to the best previous construction, without increasing the number of qubits or $$T$$T-depth. The software also optimizes the (CNOT) depth for $${\mathbb F}_2$$F2-linear operations by means of suitable graph colorings.
LARGE-AMPLITUDE LONGITUDINAL OSCILLATIONS IN A SOLAR FILAMENT

We have developed the first self-consistent model for the observed large-amplitude oscillations along filament axes that explains the restoring force and damping mechanism. We have investigated the oscillations of multiple threads formed in long, dipped flux tubes through the thermal nonequilibrium process, and found that the oscillation properties predicted by our simulations agree with the observed behavior. We then constructed a model for the large-amplitude longitudinal oscillations that demonstrates that the restoring force is the projected gravity in the tube where the threads oscillate. Although the period is independent of the tube length and the constantly growing mass, the motions are strongly damped by the steady accretion of mass onto the threads by thermal nonequilibrium. The observations and our model suggest that a nearby impulsive event drives the existing prominence threads along their supporting tubes, away from the heating deposition site, without destroying them. The subsequent oscillations occur because the displaced threads reside in magnetic concavities with large radii of curvature. Our model yields a powerful seismological method for constraining the coronal magnetic field and radius of curvature of dips. Furthermore, these results indicate that the magnetic structure is most consistent with the sheared-arcade model for filament channels.
TRUST AND CULTURE

Large populations can gain from economies of scale but lose internal trust due to diluted information. This creates an optimal group size. However, trusting strangers who claim to be members invites outsiders to disguise as insiders and abuse extended trust. Thus, if cultural diversity can raise the imitation cost it can promote cooperation. Even so, however, scale economies are lost when the population subdivides and the cultural boundaries may have to be enforced to prevent assimilation. The model is consistent with norms against inter-cultural marriage and episodic boundary-reinforcing conflict where formal institutions for contract enforcement are weak.
Flag enumerations of matroid base polytopes

In this paper, we study flag structures of matroid base polytopes. We describe faces of matroid base polytopes in terms of matroid data, and give conditions for hyperplane splits of matroid base polytopes. Also, we show how the cd-index of a polytope can be expressed when a polytope is split by a hyperplane, and apply these to the cd-index of a matroid base polytope of a rank 2 matroid.
Spontaneous emergence of complex optimal networks through evolutionary adaptation

Abstract An important feature of many complex systems, both natural and artificial, is the structure and organization of their interaction networks with interesting properties. Such networks are found in a variety of applications such as in supply chain networks, computer and communication networks, metabolic networks, food webs, etc. Here, we present a theory of self-organization by evolutionary adaptation in which we show how the structure and organization of a network is related to the survival, or in general the performance, objectives of the system. We propose that a complex system optimizes its network structure in order to maximize its overall survival fitness which is composed of short- and long-term survival components. These in turn depend on three critical measures of the network, namely, efficiency, robustness and cost, and the environmental selection pressure. Fitness maximization by adaptation leads to the spontaneous emergence of optimal network structures, both power law and non-power law, of various topologies depending on the selection pressure. Using a graph theoretical case study, we show that when efficiency is paramount the “star” topology emerges and when robustness is important the “circle” topology is found. When efficiency and robustness requirements are both important to varying degrees, other classes of networks such as the “hub” emerge. This theory provides a general conceptual framework for integrating survival or performance objectives, environmental or selection pressure, evolutionary adaptation, optimization of performance measures and topological features in a single coherent formalism. Our assumptions and results are consistent with observations across a wide variety of applications. This framework lays the ground work for a novel approach to model, design and analyze complex networks, both natural and artificial, such as metabolic pathways, supply chains and communication networks.
Managing factory risk to improve customer satisfaction

Due to one single event that scrapped over 900 wafers, an approach was developed to prevent this type of catastrophic scrap from reoccurring. This factory-wide approach considered the affects of (1) People, Process and Methods; (2) Facilities; (3) Gases, Chemicals and other Source components. It also evaluated each individual process in extreme detail. This approach focused on measurable outputs to maintain process control. By implementing this approach of assessing factory risk, in-line scrap decreased by 27% over a one year period of time. In the 19 months since this approach was initiated, there has not been one in-line event that scrapped more than 375 wafers. Scrap reduction was accomplished by many different methods including increasing the sample frequency between measurable outputs, measuring product wafers where appropriate, modifying procedures including training, upgrading the factory infrastructure, adding tool sensorization, and applying SPC correctly.
Interference of nematic quantum critical quasiparticles: A route to the octet model

We study the effect of nematic quantum critical fluctuations on quasiparticle interference. We show that nematic quantum critical fluctuations, which cause back and forth slushing of the $d$-wave nodes along the underlying Fermi surface, provide a natural mechanism for the accumulation of coherence that has been present in QPI experiments.
The relationship among age and other factors on incidence of cybersickness in immersive environment users

The work presented in this poster is a study of cybersickness in 450 visitors to a virtual reality (VR) lab on a university campus. Researchers observed several interesting trends, including an increased incidence and severity of sickness among older visitors and lower incidence and severity of sickness in younger visitors. This finding is in direct contrast to studies of traditional motion sickness commonly sited in the VR literature, and was first presented in our previous poster [Arns & Cerney 2005]. Other factors, including gender, level of game play, presence score and susceptibility rating were examined as secondary factors. The current poster covers some other interesting findings of the study.
Visualizing authorship for identification

As a result of growing misuse of online anonymity, researchers have begun to create visualization tools to facilitate greater user accountability in online communities. In this study we created an authorship visualization called Writeprints that can help identify individuals based on their writing style. The visualization creates unique writing style patterns that can be automatically identified in a manner similar to fingerprint biometric systems. Writeprints is a principal component analysis based technique that uses a dynamic feature-based sliding window algorithm, making it well suited at visualizing authorship across larger groups of messages. We evaluated the effectiveness of the visualization across messages from three English and Arabic forums in comparison with Support Vector Machines (SVM) and found that Writeprints provided excellent classification performance, significantly outperforming SVM in many instances. Based on our results, we believe the visualization can assist law enforcement in identifying cyber criminals and also help users authenticate fellow online members in order to deter cyber deception.
Should aid reward performance? : evidence from a field experiment on health and education in Indonesia

The authors report an experiment in 3,000 villages that tested whether incentives improve aid efficacy. Villages received block grants for maternal and child health and education that incorporated relative performance incentives. Sub-districts were randomized into incentives, an otherwise identical program without incentives, or control. Incentives initially improved preventative health indicators, particularly in underdeveloped areas, and spending efficiency increased. While school enrollments improved overall, incentives had no differential impact on education, and incentive health effects diminished over time. Reductions in neonatal mortality in non-incentivized areas did not persist with incentives. The authors find no systematic scoring manipulation or funding reallocation toward richer areas.
Evaluating the specification errors of asset pricing models

Abstract This paper evaluates the specification errors of several empirical asset pricing models that have been developed as potential improvements on the CAPM. We use the methodology of Hansen and Jagannathan (J. Finance 51 (1997) 3), and the test assets are the 25 Fama-French (J. Financial Econom. 52 (1997) 557) equity portfolios sorted on size and book-to-market ratio, and the Treasury bill. We allow the parameters of each model's pricing kernel to fluctuate with the business cycle. While we cannot reject correct pricing for Campbell's (J. Political Econom. 104 (1996) 298) model, stability tests indicate that the parameters may not be stable. A robustness test also indicates that none of the models correctly price returns that are scaled by the term premium.
Image coding using wavelet transforms and entropy-constrained trellis-coded quantization

The discrete wavelet transform has recently emerged as a powerful technique for decomposing images into various multi-resolution approximations. Multi-resolution decomposition schemes have proven to be very effective for high-quality, low bit-rate image coding. In this work, we investigate the use of entropy-constrained trellis-coded quantization (ECTCQ) for encoding the wavelet coefficients of both monochrome and color images. ECTCQ is known as an effective scheme for quantizing memoryless sources with low to moderate complexity, The ECTCQ approach to data compression has led to some of the most effective source codes found to date for memoryless sources. Performance comparisons are made using the classical quadrature mirror filter bank of Johnston and nine-tap spline filters that were built from biorthogonal wavelet bases. We conclude that the encoded images obtained from the system employing nine-tap spline filters are marginally superior although at the expense of additional computational burden. Excellent peak-signal-to-noise ratios are obtained for encoding monochrome and color versions of the 512/spl times/512 "Lenna" image. Comparisons with other results from the literature reveal that the proposed wavelet coder is quite competitive. >
Capillarity-like growth of protein folding nuclei

A full structural description of transition state ensembles in protein folding includes the specificity of the ordered residues composing the folding nucleus as well as spatial density. To our knowledge, the spatial properties of the folding nucleus and interface of specific nuclei have yet to receive significant attention. We analyze folding routes predicted by a variational model in terms of a generalized formalism of the capillarity scaling theory that assumes the volume of the folded core of the nucleus grows with chain length as Vf ≈ N3ν. For 27 two-state proteins studied, the scaling exponent ν ranges from 0.2 to 0.45 with an average of 0.33. This average value corresponds to packing of rigid objects, although generally the effective monomer size in the folded core is larger than the corresponding volume per particle in the native-state ensemble. That is, on average, the folded core of the nucleus is found to be relatively diffuse. We also study the growth of the folding nucleus and interface along the folding route in terms of the density or packing fraction. The evolution of the folded core and interface regions can be classified into three patterns of growth depending on how the growth of the folded core is balanced by changes in density of the interface. Finally, we quantify the diffuse versus polarized structure of the critical nucleus through direct calculation of the packing fraction of the folded core and interface regions. Our results support the general picture of describing protein folding as the capillarity-like growth of folding nuclei.
Improved MR Imaging of the Orbit at 1.5 T with Surface Coils

A method for obtaining localized high-resolution magnetic resonance (MR) images of the eye and orbit is demonstrated. The method uses modified surface receiver coils placed immediately adjacent to the anatomy to detect the MR signal. Surface coils provide enhanced sensitivity for imaging voxels close to the surface of the body while limiting the received patient-generated noise. The resulting improvement in signal-to-noise ratio allows for a reduction in the imaging voxel size to about 0.5 × 0.5 × 5 mm in scan times of 3.4–5 min. At this level of resolution, anatomic detail in the orbital region previously unobservable in MR images is seen.
Numerical Solution of Natural Convection in Eccentric Annuli

The governing equations for transient natural convection in eccentric annular space are solved with two highorder accurate numerical algorithms. The equation set is transformed into bipolar coordinates and split into two one-dimensional equations: finite elements are used in the direction normal to the cylinder surfaces; the pseudospectral technique is used in the azimuthal direction. Transient solutions of the entire flowfield are obtained for 102 </?a<106, 0.70<Pr<102, with the inner cylinder near the top, bottom, and side of the outer cylinder. Results are similar to experimental and numerical values previously published for low Ra numbers. A B c D e g
Reward System Design and Group Creativity: An Experimental Investigation

ABSTRACT: In an environment where three-person groups develop a creative solution to an important problem, we examine whether the efficacy of either individual- or group-based creativity-contingent incentives depends on whether they take the piece-rate or tournament form. We predict and find that group (intergroup) tournament pay increases group cohesion and collaborative efforts, which ultimately lead to a more creative group solution, relative to group piece-rate pay. While individual (intragroup) tournament pay increases individual efforts, we find that it does not enhance the creativity of group solutions relative to individual piece-rate pay. Our results advance the burgeoning management accounting literature on creativity-contingent incentives by demonstrating that reward systems are more likely to promote group creativity through collaborative efforts rather than independent individual efforts. We also provide important insights into when and why tournament pay can boost group creativity in organiz...
Dynamics of the Transition Corona

Magnetic reconnection between the open and closed magnetic fields in the corona is believed to play a crucial role in the corona/heliosphere coupling. At large scale, the exchange of open/closed connectivity is expected to occur in pseudo-streamer (PS) structures. However, there is neither clear observational evidence of how such coupling occurs in PSs, nor evidence for how the magnetic reconnection evolves. Using a newly developed technique, we enhance the off-limb magnetic fine structures observed with the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly and identify a PS-like feature located close to the northern coronal hole. We first identify that the magnetic topology associated with the observation is a PS, null-point (NP) related topology bounded by the open field. By comparing the magnetic field configuration with the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) emission regions, we determined that most of the magnetic flux associated with plasma emission are small loops below the PS basic NP and open field bounding the PS topology. In order to interpret the evolution of the PS, we referred to a three-dimensional MHD interchange reconnection modeling the exchange of connectivity between small closed loops and the open field. The observed PS fine structures follow the dynamics of the magnetic field before and after reconnecting at the NP obtained by the interchange model. Moreover, the pattern of the EUV plasma emission is the same as the shape of the expected plasma emission location derived from the simulation. These morphological and dynamical similarities between the PS observations and the results from the simulation strongly suggest that the evolution of the PS, and in particular the opening/closing of the field, occurs via interchange/slipping reconnection at the basic NP of the PS. Besides identifying the mechanism at work in the large-scale coupling between the open and closed fields, our results highlight that interchange reconnection in PSs is a gradual physical process that differs from the impulsive reconnection of the solar-jet model.
Evaluating the Effectiveness of Alternative Extension Methods: Triple-Bag Storage of Cowpeas by Small-Scale Farmers in West Africa

This study examined two questions related to the adoption of triple-bag storage technology for farmers storing cowpeas in West Africa. First the effect of an extension program, focused on village demonstrations, on adoption was considered. Second, the effect of radio messages to augment this extension program was analyzed. The results indicate that adoption was positively affected by the extension program and radio messages do augment the effectiveness.
Formation of an interface by competitive erosion

We introduce a graph-theoretic model of interface dynamics called competitive erosion. Each vertex of the graph is occupied by a particle that can be either red or blue. New red and blue particles alternately get emitted from their respective bases and perform random walk. On encountering a particle of the opposite color they kill it and occupy its position. We prove that on the cylinder graph (the product of a path and a cycle) an interface spontaneously forms between red and blue and is maintained in a predictable position with high probability.
Complex cobordism and embeddability of CR-manifolds

This paper studies (directed) complex cobordisms between compact three dimensional strictly pseudoconvex Cauchy-Riemann manifolds. Assume the complex cobordism between the compact strictly pseudoconvex Cauchy-Riemann manifolds M1 and M0 is given by a compact complex manifold X with boundary having M1 as its pseudoconvex end and M0 as its pseudoconcave end. We answer the following questions: if one of the ends is an embeddable CR-manifold is the other end also embeddable? Are all CR-functions on the pseudoconvex end of X boundary values of holomorphic functions on the interior of X ?I f the complex cobordism manifold X is of dimension greater than 2, the affirmative answer to these questions follows immediately from the embeddability of all strictly pseudoconvex CR-manifolds of dimension greater than 3. For complex cobordisms of dimension 2 these questions were still open. The ends of complex cobordism 2-manifolds are strictly pseudoconvex CR-manifolds of dimension 3 whose embeddability is no longer guaranteed and is a topic of active research. To answer the questions raised above, we produce two new methods to construct pseudoconcave surfaces, whose boundaries are non-embeddable strictly pseudoconvex CR-manifolds of dimension 3. The constructions allow us to show that: 1. There are complex cobordant 3-dimensional strictly pseudoconvex CR
A cache-pinning strategy for improving generational garbage collection

In generational garbage collection, the youngest generation of the heap is frequently traversed during garbage collection. Due to randomness of the traversal, memory access patterns are unpredictable and cache performance becomes crucial to garbage-collection efficiency. Our proposal to improve cache performance of garbage collection is to “pin” the youngest generation (sometimes called the nursery) in the cache, converting all nursery accesses to cache hits. To make the nursery fit inside the cache, we reduce its size, and, to prevent its eviction from the cache, we configure the operating system's page-fault handler to disallow any page allocation that would cause cache conflicts to the nursery. We evaluated our scheme on a copying-style generational garbage collector using IBM VisualAge Smalltalk and Jikes research virtual machine. Our simulation results indicate that the increase in frequency of garbage collection due to a smaller nursery is overshadowed by gains of converting all nursery accesses to cache hits.
Capta versus Data: Method and Evidence in Communicology.

Methodology is a basic concern with types of evidence, structures of analysis, and rules of judgment for validity. This article compares the research methods of phenomenology and positivism. Qualitative research is a focus on the objective use of normative logics of measurement in empirical experience. The sample evidence analyzed is taken from discourse data reported by A. R. Luria in his book Cognitive Development originally published in russian in 1974. The application of Communication Theory (phenomenology) is contrasted with that of information theory (positivism). Then, the Luria evidence is analyzed for its internal logics (deduction, induction, abduction, adduction). An external comparison is made between the Luria findings and a common diagnostic instrument for measuring language development in children.
Linear convex stochastic optimal control with applications in production planning

Linear stochastic systems with convex performance criteria and convex, compact control regions are studied. The admissible control region is assumed to be a continuous function of the (perfectly) observed state. Optimal feedback controls are shown to exist within the class of Borel measurable functions of past states. In fact, they are shown to be continuous functions of the present state. Using dynamic programming the optimal return function is shown to be convex. Asymptotic results for stable systems are derived. These results are then used to explore several problems in aggregate production and work-force planning. Computational aspects of the results in the context of the smoothing problem are discussed.
Did China's Tax-for-Fee Reform Improve Farmers' Welfare in Rural Areas?

Abstract China enacted a rural tax reform – the ‘Tax-for-Fee Reform’ (TFR) – in the late 1990s. A crucial but unanswered question is whether this reform improved farmers’ welfare in rural areas. This article uses village-level survey data from the Chinese Household Income Project in order to examine the effect of the TFR on farmers’ direct and indirect welfare. We find no evidence that the direct welfare effects improved farmers’ net income. In contrast, the reform appears to have reduced the villages’ financing capacity, and hence to have lowered their overall expenditures. These indirect effects have had significant negative impacts on farmers’ welfare.
Balancing Output Length and Query Bound in Hardness Preserving Constructions of Pseudorandom Functions

We revisit hardness-preserving constructions of a pseudo-random function (PRF) from any length doubling pseudo-random generator (PRG) when there is a non-trivial upper bound \(q\) on the number of queries that the adversary can make to the PRF. Very recently, Jain, Pietrzak, and Tentes (TCC 2012) gave a hardness-preserving construction of a PRF that makes only \(O(\log q)\) calls to the underlying PRG when \(q = 2^{n^\epsilon }\) and \(\epsilon \ge \frac{1}{2}\). This dramatically improves upon the efficiency of the construction of Goldreich, Goldwasser, and Micali (FOCS 1984). However, they explicitly left open the question of whether such constructions exist when \(\epsilon \frac{1}{2}\). We obtain our construction through the use of information-theoretic tools such as almost \(\alpha \)-wise independent hash functions coupled with a novel proof strategy.
Diversity and Multiplexing Tradeoff in General Fading Channels

The optimal tradeoff between diversity gain and multiplexing gain for multiple-inputmultiple-output (MIMO) channels has been studied recently under the independent and identically distributed (i.i.d.) Rayleigh-fading assumption. In this correspondence, this result is extended and the optimal tradeoff performance is derived for generalized fading channel conditions, including different fading types, nonidentical fading distributions, spatial correlation, and nonzero channel means. Our results include many known models as special cases and shed light on the effects of different channel parameters on the optimal tradeoff performance
SV mixture models with application to S&P 500 index returns ☆

Understanding both the dynamics of volatility and the shape of the distribution of returns conditional on the volatility state is important for many financial applications. A simple single-factor stochastic volatility model appears to be sufficient to capture most of the dynamics. It is the shape of the conditional distribution that is the problem. This paper examines the idea of modeling this distribution as a discrete mixture of normals. The flexibility of this class of distributions provides a transparent look into the tails of the returns distribution. Model diagnostics suggest that the model, SV-mix, does a good job of capturing the salient features of the data. In a direct comparison against several affine-jump models, SV-mix is strongly preferred by Akaike and Schwarz information criteria.
How much is a quantum controller controlled by the controlled system

We consider unitary transformations on a bipartite system A × B. To what extent entails the ability to transmit information from A to B the ability to transfer information in the converse direction? We prove a dimension-dependent lower bound on the classical channel capacity C(A ← B) in terms of the capacity C(A → B) for the case that the bipartite unitary operation consists of controlled local unitaries on B conditioned on basis states on A. If the local operations are given by the regular representation of a finite group G we have C(A → B) = log |G| and C(A ← B) = log N where N is the sum over the degrees of all inequivalent representations. Hence the information deficit C(A → B) − C(A ← B) between the forward and the backward capacity depends on the “non-abelianness” of the control group. For regular representations, the ratio between backward and forward capacities cannot be smaller than 1/2. The symmetric group S n reaches this bound asymptotically. However, for the general case (without group structure) all bounds must depend on the dimensions since it is known that the ratio can tend to zero. Our results can be interpreted as statements on the strength of the inevitable backaction of a quantum system on its controller.
California coastal management with a changing climate

With over 2,000 miles (3,218 km) of ocean and estuarine coastline, California faces significant coastal management challenges as a result of climate change-induced sea level rise. Under high emission scenarios, recent models predict 1.4 m or more of sea level rise by 2100, accompanied by increasing storm surges. This article investigates the most important issues facing coastal managers, explores the policy tools available for adapting to the impacts of climate change, assesses institutional constraints to adaptation, and identifies priorities for future research and policy action. We find that adaptation tools exist for dealing with anticipated increases in coastal erosion and flooding, but they involve significant costs and tradeoffs. In particular, coastal armoring, such as seawalls, can protect developed coastal lands, but destroys beaches and habitat. Although California already has policies and institutions that aim to balance the competing objectives for coastal development, management agencies are at the early stages of understanding how to facilitate adaptation. Research priorities to inform coastal adaptation planning include: (i) inventorying coastal resources to provide a firmer basis for balancing decisions on property and habitat protection, (ii) identifying opportunities for coastal habitat migration, (iii) assessing the vulnerabilities of existing and planned coastal infrastructure, and (iv) experimenting with alternatives to armoring as a way of managing the changing coastline.
Technological change and risk management: an application to the economics of corn production

The paper investigates the linkages between technological change and production risk, with an application to corn. The effects of technology on risk exposure are analyzed. We define technological progress to be risk-increasing (risk-decreasing) if it increases (decreases) the relative risk premium. The analysis is applied to panel data from Wisconsin research stations. Conditional moments (including mean, variance and skewness) of corn yield, grain moisture and corn profit are estimated for different sites. We investigate how the trade-off between expected return and the risk premium varies over time and over space. The empirical results indicate that technological progress contributes to reducing the exposure to risk as well as downside risk in corn production, although this effect varies across sites. They also stress the role of the relative maturity of corn hybrids as a means of managing risk.
Solid target boronization of the MST reversed-field pinch during pulsed discharge cleaning

Abstract A solid rod of hot-pressed boron carbide is currently being used as the source of boron during boronization of MST. In previous work we have demonstrated that boronization can be effectively accomplished by insertion of a low apparent density B 4 C rod into the edge hydrogen plasma of normal high-power RFP discharges. We have now extended that technique and can boronize MST by inserting a negatively biased B 4 C rod into pulsed discharge cleaning (PDC) helium plasmas. The same positive results of reduced impurity contamination and particle reflux are achieved with this new boronization method. The bias for the target is provided by the ohmic heating transformer which is pulsed to produce the PDC discharges. Current flow through the B 4 C rod is limited by an inductor. The amount of hydrogen in the amorphous boron carbide films is minimal because the only hydrogen in the PDC plasma is that left over from RFP discharges.
On computing the worst-case peak gain of linear systems

The authors present simple upper and lower bounds for the l/sup infinity / gain of finite-dimensional discrete-time linear time-invariant systems. They use these bounds to derive upper and lower bounds for the worst-case l/sup infinity / gain of discrete-time systems with diagonal perturbations. >
On modular invariant partition functions of conformal field theories with logarithmic operators

We extend the definitions of characters and partition functions to the case of conformal field theories which contain operators with logarithmic correlation functions. As an example we consider the theories with central charge c=cp,1=13−6(p+p−1), the “border” of the discrete minimal series. We show that there is a slightly generalized form of the property of rationality for such logarithmic theories. In particular, we obtain a classification of theories with c=cp,1 which is similar to the A-D-E classification of c=1 models.
Local spin foams

The central object of this paper is a holonomy formulation for spin foams. Within this new representation, we analyze three general requirements: locality, composition law and cylindrical consistency. In particular, cylindrical consistency is shown to fix the arbitrary normalization of the vertex amplitude in the case of Euclidean signature.
Survey Finds Public Support For Legal Interventions Directed At Health Behavior To Fight Noncommunicable Disease

The high prevalence of chronic diseases in the United States with lifestyle-related risk factors, such as obesity and tobacco use, has sparked interest in legal strategies to influence health behavior. However, little is known about the public’s willingness to accept these policies as legitimate, which in turn may affect compliance. We present results from a national survey of 1,817 US adults concerning the acceptability of different public health legal interventions that address noncommunicable, or chronic, diseases. We found that support for these new interventions is high overall; substantially greater among African Americans and Hispanics than among whites; and tied to perceptions of democratic representation in policy making. There was much support for strategies that enable people to exercise healthful choices—for example, menu labeling and improving access to nicotine patches—but considerably less for more coercive measures, such as insurance premium surcharges. These findings suggest that the leas...
Unusual Behavior in The Magnetic Anisotropy of Ultra-Thin Co Sandwiches: The Role of Au Underlayers.

We have used in situ polar Kerr effect measurements to study the magnetic anisotropy of X/Co/Y sandwich structures grown by MBE on Cu(111) buffers, where X and Y are variable thicknesses of Au. For fixed values of Y and in the case of an underlayer wedge, e.g. variable X value, we have found a sharp minimum in both coercive field and perpendicular anisotropy at ≈1 atomic layer of the Au underlayer. This anisotropy behavior is opposite to that of an Au overlayer deposited on a Co film, i.e. variable Y and fixed X.
Teaching invention, innovation, and entrepreneurship to Northern Nevada high school science and math teachers

The economic history of the United States is replete with examples of inventors and small business innovators making major contributions. From the late 18th century to the present time, major technical advancements have been made as a result of individual inventors, innovators, and entrepreneurs, working independently of large industrial corporations and government laboratories. It is alarming to note, however, just how little is being taught in this country about subjects relating to inventing, innovating, and being an entrepreneur. This paper describes a special class that was designed and taught to a group of Northern Nevada high school math and science teachers. The class time was spread over a three-day period, and the topics covered were all related to invention, innovation, and entrepreneurship. The final afternoon was devoted to developing methods, techniques, and curriculum for the high school teachers to consider for use in their own classes.
Behavior of neutral atoms in a spontaneous force trap

A classical collective behavior is observed in the spatial distributions of a cloud of optically trapped neutral atoms. They include extended uniform-density ellipsoids, rings of atoms around a small central ball, and clumps of atoms orbiting a central core. The distributions depend sensitively on the number of atoms and the alignment of the laser beams. Abrupt bistable transitions between different distributions are seen. This system is studied in detail, and much of this behavior can be explained by the incorporation of long-range interactions between the atoms in the equation of equilibrium. It is shown how attenuation and multiple scattering of the incident photons lead to these interactions.
Learning hidden Markov models for regression using path aggregation

We consider the task of learning mappings from sequential data to real-valued responses. We present and evaluate an approach to learning a type of hidden Markov model (HMM) for regression. The learning process involves inferring the structure and parameters of a conventional HMM, while simultaneously learning a regression model that maps features that characterize paths through the model to continuous responses. Our results, in both synthetic and biological domains, demonstrate the value of jointly learning the two components of our approach.
Texas Interconnection Grid: Economic Optimal Capacity Utilization Rate Evidence

For the first time in the literature, the supply and demand model, with 2011-2014 data, is used to analyze the Texas Interconnection grid electricity market. The electric utility industry’s production function, fixed, variable and total cost curve represents the supply curve. The demand curve is the electricity price in the assumed perfectly competitive electricity market. The efficient scale of production is established—located where the U-shaped average total cost curve reaches a minimum—and using marginal analysis, where marginal revenue equals marginal cost, to determine the economic optimal capacity utilization rate that maximizes electric utility industry profits. This paper’s aggregate results on the economics of the electric utility market are meaningful, insightful and well-timed—having important electric utility policy implications. Keywords : Economic optimal capacity utilization rate: Efficient scale of production: Capacity planning: Electric utility policy JEL Classifications : G31; G38; H44; K23
Medicolegal problems in determining cause of death in motor vehicle accidents.

Fatalities associated with traffic accidents may generate an impressive number of medicolegal problems of vital importance to the families of victims, insurance companies, compensation boards, prosecuting attorneys, traffic regulating authorities, and the public at large. The medical and legal causality of death, the determination of the role played by the victim in the accident, the responsibility of the victim in initiating the accident, the estimation of the postaccident survival incurring legal compensation for pain and suffering and problems of survivorship related to inheritance, are only some of the more important motives in the medicolegal potpourri of traffic accidents. Obviously, the pivotal medicolegal problem is the determination of the causality of death: did the demise occur before or after the accident, and is any causal relationship present between the traffic accident and the death?
Bidentate planar chiral η6-arene tricarbonyl chromium(0) complexes: ligands for catalytic asymmetric alkene hydrosilylation

Abstract S E Ar-type reactions of various heterocycles with ortho -substituted (1′ S , P )-tricarbonyl[(1-chloroethyl)-η 6 -benzene]chromium(0) derivatives lead to a family of novel planar chiral bidentate and pseudo-bidentate ligands. Two members of this family (1′ S , P )-2-[1′-tricarbonyl-η 6 -((2″- P , P -diphenylphosphino)phenyl)-chromium(0))ethyl] furan and thiophene show high activity and enantioselectivity in the Pd-catalyzed hydrosilylation of styrenes.
CASIMIR: a high resolution far-IR/submm spectrometer for airborne astronomy

CASIMIR, the Caltech Airborne Submillimeter Interstellar Medium Investigations Receiver, is a far-infrared and submillimeter heterodyne spectrometer, being developed for the Stratospheric Observatory For Infrared Astronomy, SOFIA. CASIMIR will use newly developed superconducting-insulating-superconducting (SIS) mixers. Combined with the 2.5 m mirror of SOFIA, these detectors will allow observations with high sensitivity to be made in the frequency range from 500 GHz up to 1.4 THz. Initially, at least 5 frequency bands in this range are planned, each with a 4-8 GHz IF passband. Up to 4 frequency bands will be available on each flight and bands may be swapped readily between flights. The local oscillators for all bands are synthesized and tuner-less, using solid state multipliers. CASIMIR also uses a novel, commercial, field-programmable gate array (FPGA) based, fast Fourier transform spectrometer, with extremely high resolution, 22000 (268 kHz at 6 GHz), yielding a system resolution > 10 6 . CASIMIR is extremely well suited to observe the warm, ≈ 100K, interstellar medium, particularly hydrides and water lines, in both galactic and extragalactic sources. We present an overview of the instrument, its capabilities and systems. We also describe recent progress in development of the local oscillators and present our first astronomical observations obtained with the new type of spectrometer.
Country-of-Origin Premiums for Retailers in International Trades: Evidence from eBay's International Markets

Abstract Using real-world transaction prices in the Internet auction Web site eBay's U.S., U.K., and global markets, the authors study the price dispersion of homogeneous products related to the sellers’ country-of-origin. For both tangible and intangible products and services, sellers from the United States enjoy a price premium. This premium appears to stem from country-of-origin equity instead of trading risk or product quality. The findings of this research suggest potential profitable opportunities in international trade by employing the retailer's country-of-origin as an arbitrage tool.
Directed diffusion for wireless sensor networking

Advances in processor, memory, and radio technology will enable small and cheap nodes capable of sensing, communication, and computation. Networks of such nodes can coordinate to perform distributed sensing of environmental phenomena. In this paper, we explore the directed-diffusion paradigm for such coordination. Directed diffusion is data-centric in that all communication is for named data. All nodes in a directed-diffusion-based network are application aware. This enables diffusion to achieve energy savings by selecting empirically good paths and by caching and processing data in-network (e.g., data aggregation). We explore and evaluate the use of directed diffusion for a simple remote-surveillance sensor network analytically and experimentally. Our evaluation indicates that directed diffusion can achieve significant energy savings and can outperform idealized traditional schemes (e.g., omniscient multicast) under the investigated scenarios.
Modular Product Design Using Cyberinfrastructure for Global Manufacturing

Modularization of parts—a fairly recent trend in product development—allows part definitions to be kept in a machine-readable form, making it possible to define a part based on its input interfaces, output interfaces, behaviors, and geometric information. The machine-readable representation of parts enables manufacturing companies to more efficiently identify parts suppliers in global and virtual environments. Such representation also helps automate modular product design during detailed parametric design phases. Our research showed that modular product design can be formulated as an artificial intelligence (AI) Planning problem, and we propose a cyberinfrastructure-based framework to support automation. We demonstrate the proposed framework's implication on global manufacturing using part specification information for personal computers as an example.
Oxidative Carbocation Formation in Macrocycles: Synthesis of the Neopeltolide Macrocycle

Makrocyclische Oxocarbeniumionen wurden aus Makrolactonen mit Benzyl- oder Allyletherfunktionen durch oxidative C-H-Bindungsaktivierung in Gegenwart von 2,3-Dichlor-4,5-dicyanchinon (DDQ) erhalten. Die Nutzlichkeit dieser effizienten Reaktion fur die Synthese komplexer Molekule wurde anhand ihrer Verwendung zum Aufbau des Tetrahydropyronrings in einer kurzen Formalsynthese von Neopeltolid demonstriert (siehe Retrosynthese).
Dihydroxylation/glycol cleavage of tricarbonyl(triene)iron complexes

Abstract (Polyene)Fe(CO) 3 complexes ( 1 ) are shown to be stable to a two-step osmylation/periodate cleavage sequence to produce (dienal)Fe(CO) 3 complexes ( 2 ). In contrast, ozonolysis of 1 has been reported to lead to destruction of the complex.