cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Towards a 100 000 TES Focal Plane Array: A Robust, High-Density, Superconducting Cable Interface

We describe a new fabrication process carried out at the Princeton University Micro/Nano Fabrication Laboratory (MNFL) for creating high-density superconducting cables designed to interface with ACTPol (a polarization-sensitive receiver for the Atacama Cosmology Telescope) detector arrays. A polyimide substrate about 50 μm thick fabricated by spinning and furnace curing a polyimide precursor (HD Microsystems PI-2611) is used for the flexible part of the cable, which gradually transitions to a bare silicon substrate at each end of the cable for a robust wire bonding interface. Aluminum traces 400 nm thick are sputtered on top of the silicon/polyimide hybrid substrate then wet etched into 50-μm-wide traces at a 100 μm pitch. A 10-μm polyimide passivation layer is formed on top of the wiring layer to protect the aluminum traces. To release the flexible part of the cable from the hard silicon substrate reliably without RIE etching tools, we developed a novel process involving backside dicing of the silicon and a gold release layer. The aluminum traces are superconducting with a critical temperature of 1.2 K +/-0.1 K, and a critical current exceeding 5.7 mA at temperatures 1.0 K and below. Aluminum wires 25 μm thick wedge bonded to the cable bond pads have 9.5 g average pull strength.
Ligand specificity in the CRAL-TRIO protein family.

Intracellular trafficking of hydrophobic ligands is often mediated by specific binding proteins. The CRAL-TRIO motif is common to several lipid binding proteins including the cellular retinaldehyde binding protein (CRALBP), the α-tocopherol transfer protein (α-TTP), yeast phosphatidylinositol transfer protein (Sec14p), and supernatant protein factor (SPF). To examine the ligand specificity of these proteins, we measured their affinity toward a variety of hydrophobic ligands using a competitive [3H]-RRR-α-tocopherol binding assay. α-TTP preferentially bound RRR-α-tocopherol over all other tocols assayed, exhibiting a Kd of 25 nM. Binding affinities of other tocols for αTTP closely paralleled their ability to inhibit in vitro intermembrane transfer and their potency in biological assays. All other homologous proteins studied bound α-tocopherol but with pronouncedly weaker (> 10-fold) affinities than α-TTP. Sec14p demonstrated a Kd of 373 nM for α-tocopherol, similar to that for its native ligand, phosphatid...
Broadband and high-efficiency terahertz metamaterial linear polarization converters

We demonstrate ultrathin THz metamaterials capable of high-efficiency and broadband linear polarization conversion in reflection or transmission. Through the creation of a linear phase gradient, they are further employed in the demonstration of near-perfect anomalous reflection/refraction.
Factors affecting growth or survival of aeromonas hydrophila in foods

Recent surveys of retail fresh foods (fish and seafood, poultry, red meat, raw milk and vegetables) have indicated the presence of organisms of the Aeromonas hydrophila group in virtually every sample examined. As part of these surveys, A. hydrophila was observed to increase in number during storage of the food at 5°C. Thus, other measures to control the growth of these organisms in retail fresh foods must be sought and evaluated; in addition, measures to destroy any A. hydrophila introduced into the foods must be investigated. This review discusses the various measures besides temperature (pH, NaCl) to control the growth of A. hydrophila in foods as well as their destruction by heat, irradiation, and sanitizers.
Kinetics of milk coagulation: III. Mathematical modeling of the kinetics of curd formation following enzymatic hydrolysis of κ-casein—parameter estimation

A step function model of milk micelle agglomeration is proposed to explain the observed kinetics of milk clotting following rennet addition. The model ties together the primary and secondary phases of coagulation. The basis of the model is that no micelle flocculation takes place until ca. 75% of the kappa-casein in the milk is hydrolyzed, at which time flocculation occurs rapidly and the rate limiting step for the clotting process shifts to the kappa-casein hydrolysis reaction. Using such a model, it is possible to explain the clotting kinetics for both rapidly denaturing enzymes and stable enzyme systems. The average rate of the flocculation reaction can be obtained from clotting time-versus-reciprocal-enzyme-concentration data by extrapolating the data to infinite enzyme concentration. The critical conversion required for imminent flocculation can be found by extrapolating the enzyme concentration to zero. This approach indicates that the critical conversion necessary for gelation is temperature dependent changing from a limiting value of essentially 100% hydrolysis at temperatures below 15 degrees C to only 60% conversion at temperatures above 30 degrees C.
Isolation and viability of gastric mucosal surface cells of the rabbit.

Abstract This study describes a mechanical method for obtaining small sheets of gastric mucosal surface cells and an enzymatic digestion method for obtaining isolated gastric mucosal surface cells. Exclusion of vital dyes, maintenance of intracellular K + and Na + gradients, and O 2 consumption studies suggest that both preparations are viable. Histochemical stains indicate that both preparations are relatively pure. A major difference between the scraped and isolated surface cells is the rate of O 2 consumption. The response of the two preparations to glucose and to dinitrophenol, which interferes with mitochondrial respiration, suggests that the differences in oxygen consumption are not due to major alterations in oxidative phosphorylation. This correlates with electron microscopic examinations which show that mitochondrial structure does not appear to have been greatly affected by the isolation procedures. Alteration of the enzyme digestion method permitted isolation of gastric glandular cells. Expected differences in oxygen consumption and enzyme activity were observed between the isolated surface and glandular cell preparations.
The role of reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate in glucose- and temperature-dependent doxorubicin cytotoxicity

The mechanism of doxorubicin resistance induced by glucose deprivation was examined using an L929 cell system. Resistance developed even when the synthesis of glucose-regulated proteins was suppressed by supplementing glucose-deprived cultures with uridine. Resistance was also not correlated with pyruvate availability, with DNA strand breaks, or with intracellular drug or nucleotide levels. However, intracellular concentrations of reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) decreased to undetectable levels in glucose-deprived cells with or without uridine supplementation. NADPH depletion induced by treating glucose-fed cells with low concentrations of methylene blue afforded the same degree of protection as glucose deprivation, and normal sensitivity could be restored to glucose-deprived cells by adding NADPH to the culture medium. These results suggest that decreased NADPH availability is responsible for the doxorubicin resistance induced by glucose deprivation. Although drug uptake and NADPH production increased with temperature, these effects could not fully account for the >1000-fold decrease in clonogenic survival observed over the 25°–27° C temperature range. Similarly, manipulation of NADPH levels confirmed a role for drug bioreduction in the cytotoxic mechanism but did not suggest that NADPH availability was rate-limiting for this process at any temperature employed.
Total lymphocyte deficiency attenuates AngII-induced atherosclerosis in males but not abdominal aortic aneurysms in apoE deficient mice.

Objective T and B lymphocytes are associated with atherosclerosis and aneurysms. Angiotensin II (AngII) infusion into hypercholesterolemic mice results in augmentation of atherosclerosis and abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) formation. In this study, we determined whether total lymphocyte deficiency reduced AngII-induced vascular diseases.
Differences in endothelial function between Korean-Asians and Caucasians.

BACKGROUND The vascular endothelium plays an integral role in maintaining vascular homeostasis, including the regulation of blood flow, vascular tone, and platelet aggregation. The aim of this study was to see if there were any differences in endothelial function between Koreans and Caucasians. MATERIAL/METHODS This was accomplished by 2 measures of endothelial function--the response to local heat and the response to vascular occlusion. Ten Caucasian and 10 Korean male and female subjects participated (<35 years old). Endothelial function was assessed by the skin blood flow response to local heat using a thermode for 6 minutes at 3 temperatures (38°C, 40°C and 42°C) and by vascular occlusion for 4 minutes followed by release and measurement of skin blood flow for 2 minutes. RESULTS When applying 6 minutes of local heat at 3 different temperatures (38°C, 40°C, and 42°C), the skin blood flows were significantly higher for all temperatures in Caucasians as compared with Koreans, with peak blood flow of 223±48.1, 413.7±132.1, and 517.4±135.8 flux in Caucasians and 126.4±41.3, 251±77.9, and 398±97.2 flux in Koreans, respectively (p=0.001). Results of this study support the idea that the skin blood flow response to occlusion was significantly higher in Caucasians (peak 411.9±88.9 flux) than Koreans (peak 332.4±75.8 flux) (p=0.016). CONCLUSIONS These findings suggest that Koreans may have lower endothelial function than Caucasians, which may be explained, in part, by genetic variations between the 2 ethnic groups.
Smoothing and interpolation by kriging and with splines

Let scalar measurements at distinct points x1, ⋯, xn be y1, ⋯, yn.We may look for a smooth function f(x)that goes through or near the points (xi, yi).Kriging assumes f(x)is a random function with known (possibly estimable) covariance function (in the simplest case). Splines assume a definition of the smoothness of a nonrandom function f(x).An elementary explanation is given of the fact that spline approximations are special cases of the solution of a kriging problem.
The effects of thermal deformation on flow in a jointed geothermal reservoir

Abstract In a Hot Dry Rock (HDR) geothermal reservoir, heat is removed primarily by fluid flowing through joints in relatively impermeable rock. Cooling causes the rock to thermally contract and deform, changing the joint opening; fluid viscosity can change by an order of magnitude over typical temperature ranges. In this paper we examine these effects on flow in both a single joint and in a more complex reservoir. We show that thermal deformation can either reduce flow due to local pinching of a joint or can increase flow due to global thermal opening of a joint. Which effect will dominate is dependent on the peripheral boundary conditions. In a reservoir, it is likely that both behaviors occur. Data from the HDR site at Fenton Hill indicates a generally decreasing flow (pinching). However, there have been periodic step increases in flow that more than compensate for the reduced flow (global joint opening).
Mechanical and conductive properties of metal fibre-filled polymer composites

Abstract Data are presented which show that the critical volume loading of a metallic filler needed to induce electrical conductivity in a polymer matrix can be substantially reduced by adding the metal as randomly dispersed fibres. Higher aspect ratio fibres will induce conductivity at lower volume loadings. Composites exhibiting resistivities below 200 ohm cm have been prepared with as little as 7.7 volume percent aluminium fibres having an aspect ratio of 24 : 1. At such low filler loadings the mechanical properties of the composite are similar to those obtained with an identical loading of milled glass fibres. While aluminium is poorly wet by most virgin polymers, this characteristic can be improved by polymer modification and surface treatments. The thermal properties of these composites are shown to follow predictions based on Nielsen's theory.
The effect of monochromatic infrared energy on sensation in subjects with diabetic peripheral neuropathy : A double-blind, placebo-controlled study Response to clifft et al

The recent paper by Clifft et al. (1) concludes that monochromatic infrared energy (MIRE) is no better than placebo MIRE in restoring sensation in the lower extremities of subjects with diabetes. We would like to suggest an alternative conclusion. First, the subjects were treated with a MIRE device that delivered photo energy and therapeutic heat at a lower level than has been used in other clinical studies. Treatment times per session were also only 66% of those reported by Leonard et al. (2). As a result, …
Excited-state radiative lifetimes in self-assembled quantum dots obtained from state-filling spectroscopy

Studying a uniformly excited ensemble of InAs islands, the emission intensities of the allowed radiative transitions are modeled in the state-filling limit for pulsed and steady-state excitation as a function of the average number of electron-hole pairs per dot. The only unknown parameters included in the equations are the radiative recombination rates of each transition. For steady-state excitation, it is found that in the high excitation limit the emission intensity ratio of any two transitions tends towards a well-defined value proportional to the ratio of their recombination rates. The results of the model are compared with experiments for steady-state excitation and excited states radiative lifetimes are obtained experimentally.
Yukon-Tanana terrane: A partial acquittal

The Yukon-Tanana composite terrane, northern Canada and eastern Alaska, is divisible into two distinct terranes on the basis of metamorphic cooling ages and inferred structural level. The Nisling terrane records Early Cretaceous cooling ages, whereas the Teslin-Taylor Mountain terrane records pre-Late Jurassic cooling. The Nisling terrane, present at the lowest structural levels within the Yukon-Tanana terrane, represents North American continental-margin crust that was partly subducted beneath the accretionary prism of a southwest-dipping (present-day coordinates) early Mesozoic subduction complex, represented by the Teslin-Taylor Mountain and Slide Mountain terranes. The Nisling is exposed as a result of mid-Cretaceous crustal extension subsequent to Jurassic crustal thickening related to Teslin-Taylor Mountain-Slide Mountain emplacement. Although the Nisling and Teslin-Taylor Mountain terranes have many petrologic and tectonic differences, their mutual relations provide a unified view of early to middle Mesozoic tectonics of the western North American margin, a view that dispels the notion that large tracts of the northern Cordillera are "suspect."
Late Mycobacterium bovis spondylitis after intravesical BCG therapy

A 72-year-old man presented with a 6-month history of low back and leg pain. Past medical history revealed transurethral resection of bladder cancer followed by multiple intravesical BCG instillation 12 years ago. Imaging studies of the thoracolumbar spine showed osteolysis of the L3 and L4 vertebrae and the associated intervertebral disc space, and a large soft tissue mass with signal abnormalities suggesting of an abscess. CT-guided needle biopsy showed Mycobacterium bovis infection. A triple anti-tuberculous chemotherapy regimen including isoniazid, rifampicin, and ethambutol was administered for 12 months. Surgical treatment included drainage of the abscess and L2-L5 spinal instrumentation and fusion. Intravesical BCG therapy may be complicated by late disseminated disease to the bone even many years after initial BCG therapy. Patients having BCG therapy should be closely evaluated thereafter for the possibility of hematogenous spread of mycobacteria to distant sites.
Effect of Confederate's Sex and Status on Competitive Behavior of Male and Female college students

Summary American undergraduate students (N = 120) played 30 trials of the Prisoner's Dilemma game and were randomly assigned to one of six experimental conditions of 10 males and 10 females each. In conditions 1–6 the confederate was portrayed as low-status male, same-status male, high-status male, low-status female, same-status female, and high-status female, respectively. The confederate played a randomized predetermined strategy with equal numbers of cooperative and competitive responses. The results indicated a significant sex-of-subject by confederate-status interaction. Males were more cooperative in the high- than low-status conditions. Females were more cooperative in the low- than same- or high-status conditions.
Organic anion transport is the primary function of the SLC17/type I phosphate transporter family

Recently, molecular studies have determined that the SLC17/type I phosphate transporters, a family of proteins initially characterized as phosphate carriers, mediate the transport of organic anions. While their role in phosphate transport remains uncertain, it is now clear that the transport of organic anions facilitated by this family of proteins is involved in diverse processes ranging from the vesicular storage of the neurotransmitter glutamate to the degradation and metabolism of glycoproteins.
Fractal volume compression

This research explores the principles, implementation, and optimization of a competitive volume compression system based on fractal image compression. The extension of fractal image compression to volumetric data is trivial in theory. However, the simple addition of a dimension to existing fractal image compression algorithms results in infeasible compression times and noncompetitive volume compression results. This paper extends several fractal image compression enhancements to perform properly and efficiently on volumetric data, and introduces a new 3D edge classification scheme based on principal component analysis. Numerous experiments over the many parameters of fractal volume compression suggest aggressive settings of its system parameters. At this peak efficiency, fractal volume compression surpasses vector quantization and approaches within 1 dB PSNR of the discrete cosine transform. When compared to the DCT, fractal volume compression represents surfaces in volumes exceptionally well at high compression rates, and the artifacts of its compression error appear as noise instead of deceptive smoothing or distracting ringing.
Modeling Epithelial Cell Homeostasis: Steady-state Analysis

Critical to epithelial cell viability is the homeostasis of cell volume and composition during changes in transcellular transport. In this study, two previously developed mathematical models (principal cell of the collecting duct and proximal tubule cell) are approximated by their linearizations about a reference condition. This yields matrices which estimate cell volume, cell composition, and transcellular fluxes in response to perturbations of bath conditions and membrane transporter activity. These approximations are themselves extended with the inclusion of linear dependence of membrane transport coefficients on cell variables (e.g., volume, solute concentrations, or electrical potential). This provides cell models with variable permeabilities, which may be homeostatic, and which can be examined systematically: sequentially testing each membrane permeability and its controlling cell variable. In the proximal tubule approximation, volume-mediated increases in peritubular K—Cl or Na—3HCO3 cotransport, and volume-mediated decreases in Na,K-ATPase activity are homeostatic; modulation of peritubular K permeability has little impact. In the principal cell model, volume homeostasis is afforded by volume-sensitive peritubular Na/H exchange or Cl− conductance. Predictions from the linear analysis are confirmed in the full models. This approach yields a systematic examination of homeostasis in an epithelial model, and identifies candidate control parameters.
Linezolid resistance in a clinical isolate of Staphylococcus aureus

The new oxazolidinone antimicrobial, linezolid, has been approved for the treatment of infections caused by various gram-positive bacteria, including meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE). Although instances of linezolid resistance in VRE have been reported, resistance has not been encountered among clinical isolates of S aureus. We have characterised an MRSA isolate resistant to linezolid that was recovered from a patient treated with this agent for dialysis-associated peritonitis.
Determination of biological toxins using capillary electrokinetic chromatography with multiphoton-excited fluorescence.

We report a highly sensitive and rapid strategy for characterizing biological toxins based on capillary electrokinetic chromatography with multiphoton-excited fluorescence. In this approach, aflatoxins B1, B2, and G1 and the cholera toxin A-subunit are fractionated in ∼80 s in a narrow-bore electrophoretic channel using the negatively charged pseudostationary phase, carboxymethyl-β-cyclodextrin. The aflatoxinshighly mutagenic multiple-ringed heterocycles produced by Aspergillus fungiare excited at the capillary outlet through the simultaneous absorption of two to three 750-nm photons to yield characteristic blue fluorescence; cholera toxin A-subunit, the catalytic domain of the bacterial protein toxin from Vibrio cholera, is excited through an unidentified multiphoton pathway that apparently includes photochemical transformation of an aromatic residue in the polypeptide. The anionic carboxymethyl-β-cyclodextrin, used to chromatographically resolve the uncharged aflatoxins, enhances emission from these com...
Rank 2 commuting ordinary differential operators and Darboux conjugates of KdV

Abstract By considering the factorizations (flags) and associated (simultaneous) second order Darboux transformations of the square and cube of an arbitrary second order Schrodinger operator, we generate commuting ordinary differential operators of orders four and six with a singular elliptic spectrum. This procedure generates true rank 2 commutative algebras. Under the KdV flow, each such factorization (flag) leads to an integrable equation for which the corresponding Darboux transformation generates a Lax-type operator as one of a commuting pair of orders four and six with singular elliptic spectrum. Hence, these integrable equations are Darboux conjugates of KdV.
Sham-feeding of corn oil by rats: sensory and postingestive factors.

Abstract Previous research indicates that rats fed a high-fat (HF) diet increase their intake and preference for oil compared with rats fed a high-carbohydrate (HC) diet. To assess whether this increased intake was due to the sensory or postingestive properties of oil, rats were adapted to either the HF or HC diet and then allowed to sham-feed pure corn oil daily for 30 min. During the first 4 trials, rats fed the HF diet sham-fed more oil than did rats fed the HC diet; however, this difference diminished with repeated testing and was absent after 8 trials. In both diet groups, 4–5 calories (approximately 25%) of sham-fed oil could not be recovered and may have escaped to the intestine. These results suggest that, compared with rats fed a HC diet, rats fed a HF diet are initially attracted to the sensory properties of oil, but that the differential oil intakes of rats fed the HF or HC diet are maintained by postingestive, rather than sensory factors.
Aggregate Location Monitoring for Wireless Sensor Networks: A Histogram-Based Approach

Location monitoring systems are used to detect human activities and provide monitoring services, e.g., aggregate queries. In this paper, we consider an aggregate location monitoring system where wireless sensor nodes are counting sensors that are only capable of detecting the number of objects within their sensing areas. As traditional query processors rely on the knowledge of users' exact locations, they cannot provide any monitoring services based on the readings reported from counting sensors. To this end, we propose an adaptive spatio-temporal histogram to enable monitoring services without the need of users' exact locations. The main idea of the histogram is to keep statistics about the distribution of moving objects. At the core of the histogram, we propose three techniques, memorization, locality awareness and packing, to improve monitoring accuracy and efficiency. Furthermore, the histogram is designed in a way that achieves a trade-off between the energy and bandwidth consumption of the sensor network and the accuracy of monitoring services. Experimental results show that the proposed histogram provides high-quality location monitoring services (i.e., 90% accuracy for both skewed and uniform mobility patterns) and outperforms a basic histogram and the state-of-the-art spatio-temporal histogram by two orders of magnitude in most cases.
Fighting obesity or obese persons? Public perceptions of obesity-related health messages

This study examined public perceptions of obesity-related public health media campaigns with specific emphasis on the extent to which campaign messages are perceived to be motivating or stigmatizing. In summer 2011, data were collected online from a nationally representative sample of 1014 adults. Participants viewed a random selection of 10 (from a total of 30) messages from major obesity public health campaigns from the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia, and rated each campaign message according to positive and negative descriptors, including whether it was stigmatizing or motivating. Participants also reported their familiarity with each message and their intentions to comply with the message content. Participants responded most favorably to messages involving themes of increased fruit and vegetable consumption, and general messages involving multiple health behaviors. Messages that have been publicly criticized for their stigmatizing content received the most negative ratings and the lowest intentions to comply with message content. Furthermore, messages that were perceived to be most positive and motivating made no mention of the word ‘obesity’ at all, and instead focused on making healthy behavioral changes without reference to body weight. These findings have important implications for framing messages in public health campaigns to address obesity, and suggest that certain types of messages may lead to increased motivation for behavior change among the public, whereas others may be perceived as stigmatizing and instill less motivation to improve health.
Effects of mu, kappa, and delta opioid receptor agonists on the function of hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis in monkeys

Summary Opioids can modulate neuroendocrine function. Less is known about the involvement of opioid receptor subtypes in the stimulatory effects of opioids on the primate hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis. The aim of this study was to investigate the stimulatory effects of opioids selective for each receptor subtype on plasma adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) and cortisol levels in both male and female monkeys. The blood collection procedure was conducted in home-caged and unanesthetized rhesus monkeys that showed low and stable basal ACTH and cortisol levels. Three opioid receptor agonists, fentanyl, U-50488H, and SNC80, were used in behaviorally active doses; they are highly selective for mu, kappa, and delta opioid receptors, respectively. Plasma samples were collected at multiple time points before and after IV administration of each compound and were quantified by radioimmunoassay. Neither fentanyl (0.0003–0.02 mg/kg) nor SNC80 (0.03–0.3 mg/kg) changed either ACTH or cortisol basal levels. In contrast, U-50488H (0.01–1 mg/kg) dose-dependently stimulated ACTH and cortisol release in both male and female monkeys. Importantly, the stimulatory effects of U-50488H on the secretion of ACTH were blocked by a selective kappa opioid receptor antagonist, nor-Binaltorphimine. The antagonist effect of nor-binaltorphimine lasted up to 20 weeks. These results indicate that only synthetic kappa, but not mu or delta opioid receptor agonists stimulate HPA axis activity after acute administration in primates.
Grid Creation Strategies for Efficient Ray Tracing

Both theoretical analysis and practical experience have shown that when ray tracing a well-behaved model with N geometric primitives, the lowest ray tracing times using a grid acceleration structure occurs when the grid has 0(N) cells. This paper extends the theoretical analysis in two ways and then experimentally verifies that analysis for several geometric models. The first extension is to examine how model characteristics influence the choice of the number of cells in a grid, with models made of long thin primitives being of particular interest. For such models, the lowest trace times come when O(N1.5) cells are used, but may not always be practical due to the super-linear memory usage. The second extension is to nested grids where a grid cell may itself contain another grid. For the case of scattered data such as exploding particles, nesting is not helpful. For the case of tessellated manifolds with compact triangles, O(N0.6) cells at top level is optimal if only one level of nesting is allowed. For d levels of nesting, O(N3/(3+2d)) is optimal for the top level. For long thin primitives, O(N) cells at the top level is optimal when one level of nesting is allowed, but this again comes at the cost of super-linear memory usage.
Dynamics of nonstationary return-to-zero pulses in dispersion-managed systems

We describe an analytical framework for return-to-zero (RZ) propagation in dispersion-managed fiber systems. The pulses may generally not follow the same periodicity as that of the dispersion map (i.e., nonstationary evolution), which can complicate the design and monitoring of such systems. We show that a phase-plane representation of pulses is useful in identifying as well as predicting the salient features of this multiscale and nonlinear evolutionary behavior. Numerical calculations of RZ pulse-train propagation over 4000 km are carried out to demonstrate the correspondence of theory and simulation
Single-mode fiber coupler

This paper describes the fabrication process and coupling principle of a single-mode fiber coupler. Precise etching properties of the fibers used are presented. Fiber etching is shown to result in smooth surfaces. Coupling is seen to vary with the refractive index of the material separating the fiber cores. Coupling efficiency is shown to be variable in a controlled and reversible manner after coupler fabrication. For a 3-dB coupling efficiency, <1-dB insertion loss has been obtained.
Pheromone particle swarm optimization of stochastic systems

Pheromone particle swarm optimization (PSO) of stochastic systems tests the impact of adjustments to algorithm parameters on algorithm performance when searching for optimal solutions to stochastic simulations. To test the benefit of adjusting PSO, the tuned algorithm is compared to the results from the commercial optimization software, OptQuest. In addition, two modifications to pheromone PSO are proposed. These include utilizing orthogonal arrays as an initial position for the algorithm and biasing the release of pheromones in the first iteration based on the relative strength of the objective function. These modifications are shown to improve the average objective functions found as well as the time to convergence in the optimization of some problem types. This paper also highlights the applicability of using pheromone PSO to optimize stochastic simulations compared to commercial optimization software.
Exact solution for excess electrons in quantum mechanically operating solar cells, under cumulative Auger effects

We derive excess carrier populations in quantum wells, embedded in the intrinsic region of p-i-n solar cells. In the process of the analysis, we (a) solve for photo-generated carriers in quantum wells and (b) determine explicit dependence on incident solar wavelength. We include in the computations the existence of optical gaps near 1eV or wavelengths in the near infrared, so that our complete device design covers both visible and IR spectra simultaneously: a clear advantage over bulk and nitride-base solar currently studied solar cells. In the process of derivations, we include the effect of recombination losses via cumulative Auger recombination coefficients cn on photo-excited carriers in intrinsic quantum wells nph, as found in the middle region of p-i-n solar cells, leading to an explicit new result of the form: nph∼cn-1/3. We find the total carrier concentration to be the sum of photo-excited and background carriers, namely, ntotal=nph+no. Our approach is general and can be applied to different semiconducting layers, while as a concrete application, we select lattice-matched germanium and gallium arsenide layers forming quantum wells. Excess carrier concentrations of the order of 1018 per unit volume are predicted for thin GaAs-Ge quantum wells, under steady solar photon incidence, while the background dark carrier concentration is near 1014 carriers per unit volume.
More than an African American Facilitator and a Prayer: Integrating Culture and Community into HIV Prevention Programs for African American Girls

Sexually active African American adolescent females are at a heightened risk for contracting sexually transmitted infections including HIV/AIDS [15]. As such, there is a need for prevention and intervention programs to address this health disparity within a culturally sensitive and developmentally appropriate framework. Research has shown that culturally integrated interventions can be effective at reducing HIV risk [18, 19, 32]. The goals of this chapter are to: (1) define culture, cultural competency, and cultural integration; (2) discuss community integration in HIV prevention programs; and (3) discuss ways in which culture can be attended to and integrated in prevention and intervention efforts. The chapter addresses each goal in order, beginning with an overview of relevant concepts.
Innovating Conservation Agriculture: The Case of No‐Till Cropping

The extensive sociological studies of conservation agriculture have provided considerable understanding of farmers' use of conservation practices, but attempts to develop predictive models have failed. Reviews of research findings question the utility of the conceptual and methodological perspectives of prior research. The argument advanced here is that actor-network theory is useful in analyzing conservation agriculture as a radically different agriculture: a new paradigm with new beliefs about soils, plants, the environment, and farmers themselves as well as new crop production systems. The new indigenous cultures of conservation tillage and cropping are innovative products of social networks that join farmland, farmers, farm advisors, and farm supply representatives in new ways. The spread of conservation agriculture has occurred as the result both of new agricultural science of conservation tillage and cropping and the spread of these new networks and their innovative cropping systems.
IMUX: Managing Tor Connections from Two to Infinity, and Beyond

We consider proposals to improve the performance of the Tor overlay network by increasing the number of connections between re- lays, such as Torchestra and PCTCP. We introduce a new class of attacks that can apply to these designs, socket exhaustion, and show that these attacks are effective against PCTCP. We also describe IMUX, a design that generalizes the principles behind these designs while still mitigating against socket exhaustion attacks. We demonstrate empirically that IMUX resists socket exhaustion while finding that web clients can realize up to 25% increase in performance compared to Torchestra. Finally, we empirically evaluate the interaction between these designs and the recently proposed KIST design, which aims to improve performance by intelligently scheduling kernel socket writes.
Estimating chlorophyll a concentrations from remote-sensing reflectance in optically shallow waters

A multi-spectral classification and quantification technique is developed for estimating chlorophyll a concentrations, Chl, in shallow oceanic waters where light reflected by the bottom can contribute significantly to the above-water remote-sensing reflectance spectra, Rrs(k). Classification criteria for determining bottom reflectance contributions for shipboard Rrs(k) data from the west Florida shelf and Bahamian waters (1998–2001; n=451) were established using the relationship between Rrs(412)/Rrs(670) and the spectral curvature about 555 nm, [Rrs(412)*Rrs(670)]/Rrs(555) 2 . Chlorophyll concentrations for data classified as ‘‘optically deep’’ and ‘‘optically shallow’’ were derived separately using best-fit cubic polynomial functions developed from the band-ratios Rrs(490)/Rrs(555) and Rrs(412)/Rrs(670), respectively. Concentrations for transitional data were calculated from weighted averages of the two derived values. The root-mean-square error (RMSElog10) calculated for the entire data set using the new technique was 14% lower than the lowest error derived using the best individual band-ratio. The standard blue-to-green, band-ratio algorithm yields a 26% higher RMSElog10 than that calculated using the new method. This study demonstrates the potential of quantifying chlorophyll a concentrations more accurately from multi-spectral satellite ocean color data in oceanic regions containing optically shallow waters.
The motion induced by a radially stretching membrane in a rotating fluid system

The flow induced above an impermeable sheet undergoing linear radial stretching in a system rotating at angular velocity Ω is investigated. The problem is governed by the single parameter , where a is the stretching rate of the membrane. A similarity reduction of the Navier-Stokes equations leads to a pair of nonlinearly-coupled ordinary differential equations which are numerically solved over the range . Coriolis forces acting on the radially stretching flow in the vicinity of the wall induces azimuthal flow in the boundary layer. A large-σ analysis of the system leads to the Ekman equations describing the balance of Coriolis and viscous forces for which an exact solution is presented. Numerical results for the radial and azimuthal shear stresses, along with the magnitude of the velocity induced into the boundary layer, are shown to be in good agreement with the large-σ asymptotic results.
A characterization of health, immunity, and intestinal microbial colonization in neonatal Holstein calves fed pasteurized whole milk and challenged with Mycobacterium avium, subsp. paratuberculosis

Neonatal calves are immune-suppressed and susceptible to infection by Mycobacterium avium, subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP). Dietary colostrum and fatsoluble vitamins were hypothesized to enable positive regulation of microbial interactions through immunity. Thus, thirty Holstein calves were randomly assigned to experimental treatments: 1) colostrum deprived (CD), no vitamins; 2) colostrum replacer (CR), no vitamins; 3) CR, vitamin A; 4) CR, vitamin D3; 5) CR, vitamin E; 6) CR, vitamins A, D3, E, and were fed pasteurized whole milk (PWM) for 14 d. Calves were orally inoculated with 10 8 cfu of Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP) per dose on d 1 and 3 of age. Blood was collected at birth and on d 1, 7, and 14, and feces were collected on d 7. Calves were euthanized on d 14 for collection of intestinal contents, mucosal scrapings, and tissues. Serum was assayed for immunoglobulin G1, inflammatory acute phase proteins, and metabolites of vitamins A, D3, and E, and peripheral and lymphoid mononuclear leukocytes were characterized by flow cytometry. The immune status and health of calves was related to intestinal microbial community structure. Non-supplemented calves fed PWM were vitamin D and E deficient, and supplementation with colostrum and vitamins D3 and E decreased the likelihood of scours. Colostrum-deprived calves failed to passively acquire IgG1 and haptoglobin and exhibited decreased peripheral abundance of γδ T cells, which indicated TH1-biased immunity. TH1-like peripheral responses to PHA were observed in vitro, but TH2-like lymphoid responses to MAP in vitro included γδ T cell proliferation. Shedding of MAP was observed at d 7, and MAP colonized the distal small intestine in low abundance.
Validating indicators of disaster recovery with qualitative research.

INTRODUCTION Recovery from disasters is a critical function of federal, state, and local governments, yet measurable, validated indicators of community recovery remain unidentified. A list of potential recovery indicators was developed by the authors through a literature review, recovery plan review, and case study of two disaster impacted communities. METHODS To validate the indicators, qualitative data was collected from experts on disaster recovery. Twenty-one key informant interviews and two focus groups were conducted between January and April of 2014 to solicit feedback from disaster recovery practitioners and academics. RESULTS Five major themes emerged from the qualitative data. These included: the flexibility of the indicators to serve multiple purposes for communities and individuals both pre- and post- disaster; the focus areas are comprehensive, but content and organization can be improved; the importance of seeing the indicators as a self-assessment, rather than a tool for comparing communities; the potential challenges of collecting data for some indicators; and the identification of potential measurement issues with the indicators. DISCUSSION The proposed recovery indicators can be utilized by both practitioners and researchers to effectively track post-disaster recovery. They capture many of the complexities of community disaster recovery and provide potential opportunities for linkages to the development of disaster recovery plans and other activities that could increase community resilience in the future.
COMPARISON OF STORM LONGSHORE TRANSPORT RATES TO PREDICTIONS

Longshore sediment transport (LST) is of primary importance to long-term shoreline changes and must be accounted for in most coastal designs. Predicting LST has been hampered by the lack of direct measurements during storm conditions against which the models can be calibrated. The Sensor Insertion System (SIS) developed at the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Field Research Facility provides a way to directly measure LST during storms. The SIS was operated during the growth, peak, and waning stages of three storms between April, 1997 and February, 1998 in which the waves reached a maximum individual height of 5.6m. In up to 14 cross-shore locations, concentration and velocity measurements were made throughout the water column. These measurements were compared to total transport models of USACE 1984, Kamphius 1991, Kraus, et al. 1988, Walton 1980, and the cross-shore distribution model of Bodge and Dean 1987. The results show the storm measurements had a consistent pattern; rapidly increasing to a peak rate, then gradually decreasing during the waning stages of each storm. Cross-shore distributions of longshore flux tended to peak over the offshore bar and at the beach where wave dissipation caused high suspended sediment concentrations. These peaks were not co-located with maximum longshore currents, which tended to peak at mid-surf. The comparisons show that the models would benefit from comparison to the storm measurements.
Interfaces in Silicon Carbide Whisker and Carbon Fiber Reinforced Calcium Phosphate Composites

The microstructural and chemical characteristics of silicon carbide whisker/calcium phosphate and carbon fiber/calcium phosphate composites were studied using analytical transmission electron microscopy. The interface at these calcium phosphate-based composites was studied, with particular attention to finding evidence of a chemical reaction at the interface. Structural observations made on these composites explain the fact that their mechanical properties may be strongly affected by the structural properties.
The Electrochemical Equivalent of Pure Silver-A Value of the Faraday.

Oxygen-free high-purity samples were used in a precise determination of the electrochemical equivalent of silver. A comprehensive mass spectrometric analysis for impurities was performed. Our value agrees well with prior measurements of the same quantity at the National Bureau of Standards (NBS) by Craig and coworkers. We find the electrochemical equivalent of pure silver to be 1.1179648 mg F=96486.33(24)ANBS⋅s⋅mol-1(2.5ppm) . Attached to this figure is an uncertainty whose random component (standard deviation of the mean of 8 determinations) is 9.5 × 10-7 mg C-1 (0.85 ppm). The root-sum-square of systematic uncertainties of known origin is 1.07 × 10-6 mg C-1 (0.96 ppm). The above value for the electrochemical equivalent of silver leads us to calculate the Faraday to be: F = 96486.33 (24) ANBS · s · mol-1 (2.5 ppm).
Teaching Production Management

Addresses some questions concerning production management. Definition of production to an economist; Responsibility analysis of production management; Responsibilities of the vice president of manufacturing; Problem analysis of management.
On the Group of Units of a Ring

(1971). On the Group of Units of a Ring. The American Mathematical Monthly: Vol. 78, No. 5, pp. 522-523.
Assessing the Reactivity of Free Chlorine Constituents Cl2, Cl2O, and HOCl Toward Aromatic Ethers

Cl2 and Cl2O are highly reactive electrophiles capable of influencing rates of disinfection byproduct (DBP) precursor chlorination in solutions of free available chlorine (FAC). The current work examines how organic compound structure influences susceptibility toward chlorination by Cl2 and Cl2O relative to the more abundant (but less reactive) electrophile HOCl. Chlorination rates and products were determined for three aromatic ethers, whose reactivities with FAC increased in the order: 3-methylanisole <1,3-dimethoxybenzene <1,3,5-trimethoxybenzene. Varying solution conditions (pH, [FAC], [Cl–]) permitted quantification of regiospecific second-order rate constants for formation of each product by Cl2, Cl2O, and HOCl. Our results indicate that as the reactivity of methoxybenzenes decreases, the importance of Cl2 and Cl2O (relative to HOCl) increases. Accordingly, Cl2 and Cl2O are likely to play important roles in generating DBPs that originate from natural organic matter (NOM) constituents of somewhat mod...
Investigation on Health Status of TNT Workers in A Chemical Enterprise of Hefei City

[Objective]To understand the trinitrotoluene(TNT) operation on the health of workers.[Methods]Health examination was performed on 102 TNT workers from a chemical enterprise(exposed group) and 92 workers without TNT exposure from another factory(control group).[Results]The incidence of lens opacities among exposed group was significantly higher than that of control group(P0.05),and it increased with extending of service length.Serum alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase of exposed group were significantly higher than those of control group(P0.05).ECG results also showed that TNT can cause certain damage on the heart.[Conclusion]Under the current production conditions,the main hazard of TNT to workers is chronic damage.