cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A note on the neoclassical ambiguity and the specific factor production model under variable returns to scale

Abstract This note investigates the relationship between commodity price changes and factor rewards in a specific factor production model that admits variable returns to scale. The principal result is that in the presence of variable returns to scale the so-called ‘neoclassical ambiguity’ may be resolved without resorting to detailed knowledge of the mobile factor's preferences. That is to say, the effect of a commodity price change may (as it does with the returns to those factors specific to each industry) raise or lower the real reward of the mobile factor in terms of either commodity, depending only on the characteristics of the technology.
The effects of dexamethasone on histone phosphorylation in L cells

Abstract Phosphorylation of the histones of L cells was examined during early G1 and S phases after exposure of the cells to 1 μM dexamethasone. H2A and H1 were the only histones phosphorylated during either phase, and the extent of phosphorylation was greater during S phase. The steroid hormone increased the amount of phosphorylation of H2A during both phases, but had no effect on that of H1. This increase in H2A phosphorylation due to the steroid hormone could be part of the mechanism by which the hormone exerts its effects on genetic expression.
Economic analysis of fuel ethanol production from corn starch using fluidized-bed bioreactors

Abstract The economics of fuel ethanol production from dry-milled corn starch were studied in fluidized-bed bioreactors (FBRs) using immobilized biocatalysts. Glucoamylase immobilized on porous diatomaceous earth was used for hydrolysis of the starch to glucose in a packed-bed reactor. The fermentation of glucose to ethanol was carried out in FBRs using Zymomonas mobilis immobilized in κ -carageenan beads. Volumetric ethanol productivities of up to 24 g/l h were achieved in non-optimized laboratory-scale systems. For a 15 million gal/yr ethanol plant, an economic analysis of this process was performed with Aspen Plus (Aspen Technology, Cambridge, MA) process simulation software. The analysis shows that an operating cost savings in the range of 1.1–3.1 cents/gal can be realized by using the FBR technology.
Water follows carbon: CO2 incites deep silicate melting and dehydration beneath mid-ocean ridges

Hydrous defects in nominally anhydrous minerals influence the physical properties and reduce the melting point of mantle rocks. Consequently, it is believed that extraction of H 2 O beneath mid-ocean ridges by dehydration melting enhances the creep strength of the upper mantle and produces a chemical lithosphere. However, recent studies show that trace water induces melting at shallower depths beneath ridges than previously believed. Here we explore the hypothesis that incipient melting, dehydration, and strengthening of the subridge mantle is promoted by trace quantities of carbon. Experiments at 3 GPa on carbonated peridotite with 1 and 2.5 wt% CO 2 produce partial melts that change from carbonatites with 2 to carbonated silicate melts with >25 wt% SiO 2 between 1325 and 1350 °C. Enhanced melting of carbonated peridotite relative to volatile free peridotite is parameterized as a simple function of the concentration of CO 2 in the melt. Application of this model to mantle with 100 ppm bulk CO 2 suggests that the subridge mantle undergoes silicate melting ∼130–140 °C below the CO 2 -free solidus, corresponding to a depth of ∼110 km beneath ridges, and that 0.2 wt% partial melting will be attained at a depth of ∼75 km. The combined effects of H 2 O and CO 2 further enhance deep silicate melting, as H 2 O partitions from nominally anhydrous silicates to carbonated silicate melts. Thus, the deepest silicate melting beneath ridges will be induced by the combination of H 2 O and CO 2 , rather than simply by dehydration melting of nominally anhydrous peridotite, and this combination is likely responsible for dehydration strengthening of the oceanic lithosphere and for geochemical signatures of deep melting in mid-oceanic ridge basalt.
So Long as They Grow Out of It: Comics, The Discourse of Developmental Normalcy, and Disability

This essay draws on two emerging fields—the study of comics or graphic fiction, and disability studies—to demonstrate how graphic fictions articulate the embodied, ethical, and sociopolitical experiences of impairment and disability. Examining David B’s Epileptic and Paul Karasik and Judy Karasik’s The Ride Together, I argue that these graphic novels unsettle conventional notions of normalcy and disability. In so doing, they also challenge our assumed dimensions and possibilities of the comics genre and medium, demonstrating the great potential comics hold for disability studies.
Non-Newtonian Flow and Heat Transfer in an Obstructed Channel With Radio-Frequency Heating

The hydrodynamic and thermal conditions associated with the flow of a non-Newtonian fluid (polystyrene), which is heated volumetrically by electric radio-frequency excitation, is considered. The fluid is forced through a two-dimensional channel having local, stationary blocks, which restrict the flow and are maintained at a constant rms voltage potential. Detailed and overall system response is examined for a range of fluid velocities, restriction sizes, and radio-frequency heating rates. This heating reduces the pressure drop induced by the restriction and alters the flow structure, suggesting that it may be used to control and augment conventional injection molding operations.
Trifluoroacetate profiles in the Arctic, Atlantic, and Pacific Oceans.

A series of depth profiles was collected at 22 sites in the Arctic, North and South Atlantic, and Pacific Oceans to determine spatial patterns for trifluoroacetate (TFA) concentrations in the marine environment and to investigate possible natural sources of TFA. Profiles were also taken over underwater vents in the North and South Pacific and the Mediterranean Sea. At the profile sites, TFA values ranged from 800 m) having concentrations of 50 ng/L or more. To determine if underwater vents could contribute to the TFA concentrations in the oceans, profiles were taken over three vents in the Pacific and Mediterranean Oceans. The results suggest that some deep-sea vents may be natural sources of TFA.
Fiber Supplementation Lowers Plasma p-Cresol in Chronic Kidney Disease Patients

Objective To determine the effects of supplemental fiber on plasma p -cresol, stool frequency, and quality of life (QoL) in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients. Design and Setting In a 12-week single-blind study, participants were provided with control muffins and supplements (5.5 g sucrose/day) for 2 weeks, muffins containing 10 g/day pea hull fiber and control supplements for 4 weeks, and muffins with 10 g/day pea hull fiber and 15 g/day inulin as a supplement for 6 weeks. Subjects Individuals with CKD ( n = 13; 6 males, 7 females; aged 65 ± 3 years; estimated glomerular filtration rate 2 ) completed the study. Main Outcome Measures Plasma p -cresol was determined by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, stool frequency by 5-day journals, and QoL by the KDQOL-36™. Results Plasma p -cresol decreased from 7.25 ± 1.74 mg/L during week 1 to 5.82 ± 1.72 mg/L during week 12 ( P 70% inulin intake), from 6.71 ± 1.98 mg/L to 4.22 ± 1.16 mg/L ( P P P P Conclusions Supplementing the diet of CKD patients with fiber may be a dietary therapy to reduce p -cresol and improve stool frequency.
Managed Care, Health Care Reform, and Academic Psychiatry

Although the process of national health care reform has slowed, state-based reform initiatives and market forces driven by managed care are dramatically reconfiguring the health care environment This decentralized process of health care reform poses numerous threats to academic departments of psychiatry, which must develop strategic plans to cope with the changes. The authors outline the effects of health care reform on clinical service, education, and research and discuss strategies of response in each domain, including examples from their department at Yale University. An active response to health care reform provides academic departments of psychiatry an opportunity to participate in shaping the future of psychiatry while reorganizing their teaching and research programs. (Academic Psychiatry 1997;21:72–85)
The effect of rule 12b-1 on bond fund expense ratios

This paper presents empirical evidence that bond mutual funds which have adopted the use of 12b-1 fees have not achieved the goal of lowering expense ratios. Using a model specific to bond funds, as opposed to generic models used in previous studies on equity funds, the analysis confirms that the 12b-1 fee is an additional cost borne by shareholders of the fund without any additional benefit. However, this cost as a percent of the net asset value of the fund has decreased from 1991 through 1994. This reduction coincides with the submission of a proposed rule change by the National Association of Security Dealers concerning maximum sales charges imposed by mutual funds on December 28, 1990 and the implementation of limits on 12b-1 fees which became effective in July of 1993.
Basalt compositions from the Mid-Atlantic Ridge at the SMARK area (22°30′N to 22°50′N) – implications for parental liquid variability at isotopically homogeneous spreading centers

Abstract Major- and trace-element analyses of over 50 well-located samples from the third segment south of the Kane Transform Fault are reported. These can be grouped into four age groups based on structural relations and paleomagnetic data. Although no spatial relations are discerned and most trace-element concentrations vary with the extent of fractionation, trends of decreasing Rb and Cs and increasing Ba and Th over the past million years are revealed. The compositions of these samples are similar to basaltic rocks recovered from around the Kane Transform Fault and allow assessment of geochemical variability along a series of geologically diverse ridge segments both north of the transform and from greater than 150 km to the south. Most of the variation can be explained by polybaric fractionation with local contributions from enriched sources. Remarkably, the extreme variations in crustal thickness, segment morphology, depth of the median valley, and even the presence of the Kane Transform Fault are not associated with compositionally distinct parental basaltic liquids. A comparison with other relatively isotopically homogeneous ridge segments reveals that parental basalts from near the Kane Transform Fault are not uniquely homogeneous. This comparison suggests that crustal morphology and spreading rate do not play a dominant role in the amount of compositional diversity in parental basalts generated at mid-ocean ridges.
Prospero and Pax2 combinatorially control neural cell fate decisions by modulating Ras- and Notch-dependent signaling

The concept of an equivalence group, a cluster of cells with equal potential to adopt the same specific fate, has served as a useful paradigm to understand neural cell type specification. In the Drosophila eye, a set of five cells, called the 'R7 equivalence group', generates a single photoreceptor neuron and four lens-secreting epithelial cells. This choice between neuronal versus non-neuronal cell fates rests on differential requirements for, and cross-talk between, Notch/Delta- and Ras/mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK)-dependent signaling pathways. However, many questions remain unanswered related to how downstream events of these two signaling pathways mediate distinct cell fate decisions. Here, we demonstrate that two direct downstream targets of Ras and Notch signaling, the transcription factors Prospero and dPax2, are essential regulators of neuronal versus non-neuronal cell fate decisions in the R7 equivalence group. Prospero controls high activated MAPK levels required for neuronal fate, whereas dPax2 represses Delta expression to prevent neuronal fate. Importantly, activity from both factors is required for proper cell fate decisions to occur. These data demonstrate that Ras and Notch signaling are integrated during cell fate decisions within the R7 equivalence group through the combinatorial and opposing activities of Pros and dPax2. Our study provides one of the first examples of how the differential expression and synergistic roles of two independent transcription factors determine cell fate within an equivalence group. Since the integration of Ras and Notch signaling is associated with many developmental and cancer models, these findings should provide new insights into how cell specificity is achieved by ubiquitously used signaling pathways in diverse biological contexts.
Sparrow: distributed, low latency scheduling

Large-scale data analytics frameworks are shifting towards shorter task durations and larger degrees of parallelism to provide low latency. Scheduling highly parallel jobs that complete in hundreds of milliseconds poses a major challenge for task schedulers, which will need to schedule millions of tasks per second on appropriate machines while offering millisecond-level latency and high availability. We demonstrate that a decentralized, randomized sampling approach provides near-optimal performance while avoiding the throughput and availability limitations of a centralized design. We implement and deploy our scheduler, Sparrow, on a 110-machine cluster and demonstrate that Sparrow performs within 12% of an ideal scheduler.
SCULPTING THE PAST IN PRECLASSIC MESOAMERICA: OLMEC STONE MONUMENTS AND THE PRODUCTION OF SOCIAL MEMORY

Scholars encountering the monolithic sculptures of the Gulf lowland Olmec since the early twentieth century have frequently employed the term “monument” to describe these works. Often the word has been applied in reference to the formal qualities of the sculptures as well as to their antiquity. The function of monuments as sites of public remembering, however, has never been fully explored in relation to these works. This article discusses the evidence for, and implications of, viewing certain Olmec sculptures as public monuments intended to generate, transform, and erase the social memory of Olmec populations. Case studies of sculptural contexts suggest that such monuments were subject to diachronic transpositions and transformations in order to affect shifts in the collective memory over time. They remain as physical testaments to the maneuverings of Olmec elites within complex and ever-changing power relations that relied on the process of memory-making as part of the political stratagem.
The major mycolic acids of Mycobacterium smegmatis.

Mycolic acids derived from the cell wall of Mycobacterium smegmatis have been fractionated as their phenacyl esters by high performance liquid chromatography. Chromatography on a lo-pm particle size silica gel column resulted in the isolation of two minor (A and D) and two major (B and C) components. When subjected to reverse phase partition chromatography, the major components (B and C) were further resolved into five and four components, respectively. Analysis of these components by 270-MHz ‘H nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and ammonia chemical ionization and electron impact mass spectrometry demonstrated that each isolated component was a different mycolic acid. Mycolic acids of the C series were found to form an homologous series with the empirical formula CnH2n-203, where n = 60,62,64, and 66. Each member of the series was found to contain a linear CzzH4, branch at C-2, a C3 hydroxyl group, and a single isolated carbon-carbon double bond. The complete structures of members of this series are reported in the accompanying article (Wang, M. Y. H., and Gray, G. R. (1979) J. BioZ. Chem. 254, 5741-5744). Mycolic acids of the B series were found to form two homologous series with the same empirical formula (CnH2n-403), one series with n = 74, 76, 78, 80, and 82, and the other series with n = 75,77,79,81, and 83. Each member of both series was found to contain a linear C22H45 branch at C-2, a C-3 hydroxyl group, and two isolated carbon-carbon double bonds. Each member of the latter series (n = odd) was also found to contain a secondary C-methyl group, which was absent in the former series. The locations of the double bonds have not been established for members of these series.
Mitochondria and Cardiovascular Aging

Old age is a major risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. Several lines of evidence in experimental animal models have indicated the central role of mitochondria both in lifespan determination and in cardiovascular aging. In this article we review the evidence supporting the role of mitochondrial oxidative stress, mitochondrial damage and biogenesis as well as the crosstalk between mitochondria and cellular signaling in cardiac and vascular aging. Intrinsic cardiac aging in the murine model closely recapitulates age-related cardiac changes in humans (left ventricular hypertrophy, fibrosis and diastolic dysfunction), while the phenotype of vascular aging include endothelial dysfunction, reduced vascular elasticity, and chronic vascular inflammation. Both cardiac and vascular aging involve neurohormonal signaling (eg, renin-angiotensin, adrenergic, insulin-IGF1 signaling) and cell-autonomous mechanisms. The potential therapeutic strategies to improve mitochondrial function in aging and cardiovascular diseases are also discussed, with a focus on mitochondrial-targeted antioxidants, calorie restriction, calorie restriction mimetics, and exercise training.
Compliance with guidelines for the medical care of first urinary tract infections in infants: a population-based study.

Background No population-based studies have examined the degree to which practice parameters are followed for urinary tract infections in infants. Objective To describe the medical care of children in their first year of life after a first urinary tract infection. Methods Using Washington State Medicaid data, we conducted a retrospective cohort study of children with a urinary tract infection during their first year of life to determine how many of these children received recommended care based on the most recent guidelines from the American Academy of Pediatrics. Recommended care included timely anatomic imaging, timely imaging for reflux, and adequate antimicrobial prophylaxis. Multivariate logistic-regression models were used to evaluate if hospitalization for first urinary tract infection, young age at time of diagnosis, gender, race, primary language of parents, having a managed care plan, and rural location of household residence were associated with recommended care. Results Less than half of all children diagnosed with a urinary tract infection in their first year of life received the recommended medical care. Children who were hospitalized for their first urinary tract infection were significantly more likely than children who were not hospitalized to receive anatomic imaging (relative risk [RR]: 1.38; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.20-1.57) and imaging for reflux (RR: 1.62; 95% CI: 1.34-1.90). Conclusions There is poor compliance with guideline-recommended care for first urinary tract infections in infants in a Medicaid population. Given the trend toward increased outpatient management of urinary tract infections, increased attention to outpatient imaging may be warranted.
Prebiotic fibre-incorporated whey protein crisps processed by supercritical fluid extrusion

Summary Prebiotic soluble fibre (fructooligosaccharides)-incorporated whey protein crisps were produced by low-shear supercritical fluid extrusion (SCFX), which utilises supercritical CO2 as an expansion agent instead of steam. Protein crisps with desirable qualities were obtained with a formulation containing 8% prebiotic fibre and 60% whey protein concentrate (WPC-80), which gave the final product with a protein content of 49.6% (w/w). A maximum of 70% WPC-80 and 8% prebiotic fibre could be incorporated to produce expanded protein crisps; however, increasing WPC-80 from 50% to 70% decreased the end-product expansion ratio from 3.1 to 1.2 and increased the product hardness and piece density from 1.3 to 2.8 kN and 0.63 to 0.75 g mL−1, respectively. Addition of 8% prebiotic fibre did not affect the textural qualities of final products. The process produced an expanded protein matrix with unique internal microstructure of uniformly distributed closed cells. Amino acid analysis indicated that 90% of the total lysine and 92% of the total essential amino acids were retained after SCFX processing and oven-drying, indicating the preservation of protein nutritional quality during the process.
Design for semiconductor manufacturing. Perspective

The semiconductor industry is challenged to sustain the historical rate of exponential growth in product innovation and productivity for as long into the future as possible. If this challenge is to be met, substantial investments in chip-design automation are required to improve design capabilities and to narrow the widening gap between projected increases in device complexity and design productivity. Design for manufacture (DFM) is one potential means to leverage the required investment in design automation. DFM focuses on understanding how the design of a product interacts with the various processes and facilities available to make that product, in order to conceive and refine design alternatives that tend to optimize the product in the context of existing or projected manufacturing capabilities. In this paper, we review the current literature on DFM as applied in other industries and consider the relevance of state-of-the-art DFM principles and tools to improved efficiency and productivity within the semiconductor industry. We observe that, overall, many of the organizational structures for implementing DFM already exist within semiconductor firms and the industry more broadly. Moreover, much of the existing spectrum of layout, modeling, simulation, and analysis tools used for semiconductor device, process, equipment, and factory design can be thought of as components of a de facto system of design for semiconductor manufacturing (DFSM). While recent work aimed specifically at DFSM shows great promise, advances in the development of component design tools are lagging and integration of these tools into a coherent system for DFSM is only emerging. Systems integration of tools which characterize future processes and technologies will be needed in order to posit design rules which are sufficiently robust to allow their incorporation in industry-standard automated design and layout tools. The implications are that there is a need for accelerated improvements in DFSM tools and integration if historical semiconductor productivity growth is to be sustained.
Modeling the Probability of Freeway Rear-End Crash Occurrence

A microscopic model of freeway rear-end crash risk is developed based on a modified negative binomial regression and estimated using Washington State data. Compared with most existing models, this model has two major advantages: (1) It directly considers a driver's response time distribution; and (2) it applies a new dual-impact structure accounting for the probability of both a vehicle becoming an obstacle (Po) and the following vehicle's reaction failure (Pf). The results show for example that truck percentage-mile-per-lane has a dual impact, it increases Po and decreases Pf, yielding a net decrease in rear-end crash probabilities. Urban area, curvature, off-ramp and merge, shoulder width, and merge section are factors found to increase rear-end crash probabilities. Daily vehicle miles traveled (VMT) per lane has a dual impact; it decreases Po and increases Pf, yielding a net increase, indicating for example that focusing VMT related safety improvement efforts on reducing drivers' failure to avoid crashes, such as crash-avoidance systems, is of key importance. Understanding such dual impacts is important for selecting and evaluating safety improvement plans for freeways.
Multi-robot routing with linear decreasing rewards over time

We study multi-robot routing problems (MR-LDR) where a team of robots has to visit a set of given targets with linear decreasing rewards over time, such as required for the delivery of goods to rescue sites after disasters. The objective of MR-LDR is to find an assignment of targets to robots and a path for each robot that maximizes the surplus, which is defined to be the total reward collected by the team minus its total travel cost. We develop a mixed integer program that solves MR-LDR optimally with a flow-type formulation and can be solved faster than the standard TSP-type formulations but also show that solving MR-LDR optimally is NP-hard. We then develop an auction-based algorithm and demonstrate that it solves MR-LDR in seconds and with a surplus that is comparable to the surplus found by the mixed integer program with a 12 hour time limit.
Cache contention and application performance prediction for multi-core systems

The ongoing move to chip multiprocessors (CMPs) permits greater sharing of last-level cache by processor cores but this sharing aggravates the cache contention problem, potentially undermining performance improvements. Accurately modeling the impact of inter-process cache contention on performance and power consumption is required for optimized process assignment. However, techniques based on exhaustive consideration of process-to-processor mappings and cycle-accurate simulation are inefficient or intractable for CMPs, which often permit a large number of potential assignments. This paper proposes CAMP, a fast and accurate shared cache aware performance model for multi-core processors. CAMP estimates the performance degradation due to cache contention of processes running on CMPs. It uses reuse distance histograms, cache access frequencies, and the relationship between the throughput and cache miss rate of each process to predict its effective cache size when running concurrently and sharing cache with other processes, allowing instruction throughput estimation.We also provide an automated way to obtain process-dependent characteristics, such as reuse distance histograms, without offline simulation, operating system (OS) modification, or additional hardware. We tested the accuracy of CAMP using 55 different combinations of 10 SPEC CPU2000 benchmarks on a dual-core CMP machine. The average throughput prediction error was 1.57%.
Validity Indices of the D-48 Test and the D-70 Test

The D-48 and D-70, two forms of the Domino Test, were compared for equivalence and predictive ability. The tests were administered to 321 undergraduate students, and criterion scores obtained were ...
Comparison of linear distributed‐parameter filters to lumped approximants

Optimal distributed-parameter filters are commonly implemented using approximating lumped Kalman filtering theory. The effect of such an approximation is investigated. A theoretical development shows that there is a loss in the spatial noise correlation for the lumped approximants. Two numerical examples of engineering significance illustrate that one result of this loss is slower filter convergence for the lumped approximants relative to the full distributed-parameter filters.
THE EFFECTS OF RESIDENT LEVEL OF TRAINING ON THE RATE OF PEDIATRIC PRESCRIPTION ERRORS IN AN ACADEMIC EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT

Abstract Background Medication errors are a leading cause of increased cost and iatrogenic injury in the pediatric population. In the academic setting, studies have suggested that these increased error rates are related primarily to resident inexperience, thus advocating a higher level of supervision. Study Objective We sought to identify the number of prescription errors in our institution's academic Emergency Department, how this varied between the beginning and end of the academic year and between practitioners at varying levels of training. Methods A retrospective review of computer-based outpatient prescriptions for children aged 0–12 years old was performed. Outpatient prescriptions were reviewed during a 2-week time block at the end of the academic year and beginning of the academic year (109 [June] and 111 [July] data sets, respectively). Prescriptions were retrieved electronically and reviewed for appropriate dosing. Errors were defined as those that varied>10% above or below recommended weight-based dosing. Results Twenty-nine (16.1%) of 180 written prescription orders were determined to be incorrectly written. Error rates were not significantly different between the beginning and end of the academic year. In both sampling periods, a higher percentage were found to be derived from senior level practitioners in both data sets (9/14 and 10/15; respectively), but few of these were considered high-grade prescription errors. Conclusions Overall prescription error rates at our institution are comparable to nationally reported error rates in children. Error rates were not associated with newly matriculated residents. These findings dispute previously held opinion that physician level of training is a factor of prescription errors.
Biochemical and Morphological Studies of Rat Submandibular Gland: II. Partial Purification of Proteins from Granule-Rich Fraction

Soluble proteins derived from a centrifuged and filtered granule-rich fraction of homogenized rat submandibular gland were analyzed by gel filtration, ion-exchange chromatography, and polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Both the granule-rich fraction and final supernatant fraction contained alkaline esterase activity. The major protein component, derived from granules of the convoluted tubules, was further resolved into a series of peptides ranging in molecular weight from 9,000 to 55,000 daltons.
On facets of knapsack equality polytopes

The 0/1 knapsack equality polytope is, by definition, the convex hull of 0/1 solutions of a single linear equation. A special form of this polytope, where the defining linear equation has nonnegative integer coefficients and the number of variables having coefficient one exceeds the right-hand side, is considered. Equality constraints of this form arose in a real-world application of integer programming to a truck dispatching scheduling problem. Families of facet defining inequalities for this polytope are identified, and complete linear inequality representations are obtained for some classes of polytopes.
On linguistic analysis of numerical dynamic systems

Linguistic dynamic systems (LDS) are man-machine interfaces for bridging between the machine world in numbers and the human world in words. The evolving laws of a type-I LDS are constructed by applying the fuzzy extension principle to those of its conventional counterpart while its states are linguistic. The evolving laws of a type-II LDS are modeled by linguistic rules while its states are also linguistic. In this paper, the existence of fixed points of type-II LDS is studied based on point-to-fuzzy-set mappings. Linguistic controllers are designed to control type-II LDS to goal states specified in words.
State Making, Knowledge, and Ignorance: Translation and Concealment in Mexican Forestry Institutions

Officials in the Mexican environmental protection agency, the Secretaria de Medio Ambiente, Recursos Naturales y de Pesca (SEMARNAP), deploy representations of agropastoral fires set by rural people to find urban allies, whereas officials and rural people in Oaxaca avoid mentioning fire and firewood cutting. Rigorous fire and firewood regulations are largely unenforced, producing official ignorance of burning and firewood cutting, partially because of the absence of fire and firewood forms within SEMARNAP and partially because of collusion and collaboration at the state level. This is compared with official knowledge of logging in indigenous forest communities in the state of Oaxaca to argue that official knowledge can be the product not of state-imposed projects of legibility but, rather, of alliances and entanglements between the state and politically powerful interlocutors. Practices of silencing and concealment are not the result of inadequate Mexican forestry institutions but are inherent to the process of knowledge production. (Keywords: Mexico, forestry, indigenous communities, ignorance, translation, actor-networks)
The Changing Antitrust/Regulation Interface in the US: Railways and Beyond

The transition from regulation to competition creates both structural and governance issues in rail, as it has in telecommunications and electricity. The latter two sectors provide both models for handling structural issues through either strict separation or fostering competition among vertically integrated firms and lessons regarding when separation may be problematic regarding operations and investment. We then turn to the antitrust/regulation interface, describing present rail immunities and using proposed legislation to identify competitive problems involving bottleneck control and conditions on sales of routes to short lines. Even if immunity were lifted, antitrust may (and perhaps should) be unable to address alleged problems. Addressing substantive harms may also be precluded by a recent radical shift in US law, making antitrust defer to regulatory authority. Recent political changes may herald a reversal, with consequences going far beyond rail.
Using probabilistic approach to joint clustering and statistical inference: Analytics for big investment data

This paper proposes a Contrarian Probabilistic Model (CPM) to evaluate the effectiveness of contrarians' investment in preferred stocks using big data from Tradeline. CPM accommodates the unique features of investment data which are often correlated, nested, heterogeneous, non-normal with missing values. The clustering and statistical inference are integrated in CPM, which enables joint investment behavior trajectory pattern recognition and risk analyses based on the entire variance-covariance structure between and within clusters. The empirical study using CPM provides a finer and comprehensive evaluation of contrarian investment in preferred stocks. Two distinctive investment behavior trajectory clusters were identified, showing a few high-risk-seeking contrarians achieved high returns over five year long-term investment, while the majority of contrarians did not outperform glamour stockholders in preferred stock investment. Although CPM was developed using historical data, it could be developed into an analytical tool for online near real time big investment data analyses.
Global-mean marine δ13C and its uncertainty in a glacial state estimate

Abstract A paleo-data compilation with 492 δ13C and δ18O observations provides the opportunity to better sample the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) and infer its global properties, such as the mean δ13C of dissolved inorganic carbon. Here, the paleo-compilation is used to reconstruct a steady-state water-mass distribution for the LGM, that in turn is used to map the data onto a 3D global grid. A global-mean marine δ13C value and a self-consistent uncertainty estimate are derived using the framework of state estimation (i.e., combining a numerical model and observations). The LGM global-mean δ13C is estimated to be 0.14‰ ± 0.20‰ at the two standard error level, giving a glacial-to-modern change of 0.32‰ ± 0.20‰. The magnitude of the error bar is attributed to the uncertain glacial ocean circulation and the lack of observational constraints in the Pacific, Indian, and Southern Oceans. To halve the error bar, roughly four times more observations are needed, although strategic sampling may reduce this number. If dynamical constraints can be used to better characterize the LGM circulation, the error bar can also be reduced to 0.05 to 0.1‰, emphasizing that knowledge of the circulation is vital to accurately map δ13C in three dimensions.
Emergency Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Musculoskeletal Trauma

Abstract Musculoskeletal (MSK) trauma is commonly encountered in the emergency department. Computed tomography and radiography are the main forms of imaging assessment, but the use of magnetic resonance (MR) imaging has become more common in the emergency room (ER) setting for evaluation of low-velocity/sports-related injury and high-velocity injury. The superior soft tissue contrast and detail provided by MR imaging gives clinicians a powerful tool in the management of acute MSK injury in the ER. This article provides an overview of techniques and considerations when using MR imaging in the evaluation of some of the common injuries seen in the ER setting.
When prior knowledge and law collide: Helping jurors use the law.

Jurors are supposed to rely on the judge's instructions for verdict selection. However, recent research indicates that people have constructed naive representations of crimes that conflict with the judge's instructions and that influence decision making. The present research explored potential solutions to this conflict. Two experiments revealed that the problem cannot be circumvented by avoiding people's prior knowledge; subjects activated and used their prior knowledge of crimes even when the crime name was withheld. Experiment 3 demonstrated that a supplementary instruction to disregard prior knowledge was also ineffective. Experiment 4 revealed that a supplementary instruction designed to revise subjects' existing representations did improve decision accuracy. These experiments indicate that the conflict between people's prior knowledge and the law cannot easily be avoided or disregarded, but its impact can be reduced by revising people's existing concepts.
The Relationship of Oviposition Time and Egg Characteristics to the Daily Light:Dark Cycle

Abstract Hourly oviposition (egg laying) time and egg weight were studied over 24 hr in first-cycle commercial hens at 33 and 76 wk of age to gain better insight into profitable egg gathering practices. Eggs from two flocks (60,000 birds each) of White Leghorn hybrids were sampled directly of the egg belts in adjacent, similar houses. Hourly plots of oviposition times indicated that 50% of a young flocks eggs are laid within 13 hr after the beginning of the dark cycle, while in older flocks oviposition is delayed another 30 to 60 min. Linear regression of daily egg weights showed that eggs are consistently heavier in the morning and decline 2 to 9 g/egg/day between 0500 and 1800 hr. Coupled with other knowledge, including the daily change in shell integrity, the findings herein have applications for the mechanical gathering of eggs in a commercial setting to minimize egg breakage and increase the number of gradable eggs.
Constitutional Change: A Public Choice Analysis

Amendments to the Constitution, especially to the fundamental rights, have two starkly different patterns in Indian constitutional history. During 1950–80, Parliament was the battleground for seeking formal constitutional amendments; while post-1980, the Supreme Court became the power centre, with interest groups seeking amendments through interpretation. What is the reason for this shift of interest-group activity from the legislature to the judiciary? The existing literature has attributed this shift to the increasing power of the Indian Supreme Court; coalition politics; changes in ideology; greater emphasis on positive rights; etc. In this chapter, I explain the change in constitutional amendments using economic analysis.
Imaging Studies in Patients with Central Vestibular Disorders

Whenever new technologic advances occur within medicine, we must try to understand the specific applicability of the technology and balance this against the clinical value that the technology adds. The prerequisite for the selection process of studies is the presence of a valid clinical diagnosis that can be confirmed by one or more radiologic techniques.
Key Issues of Fénelon’s Personal Biographical Embellishment in Playing for Time

Eischeid offers a fresh perspective into Fania Fenelon’s background and her personal biographical claims in this chapter. Issues discussed include her purported time in the French Resistance, her alleged torture by the Gestapo, and smaller anomalies from her personal history.
Refugees: Stress in trauma

Abstract Armed conflicts throughout the world have created millions of refugees who in their tragic lives may have experienced death of family members, starvation, torture, and long periods in refugee camps. In the country of resettlement, many refugees will have major psychiatric problems including post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, traumatic brain injury, and psychosis. The evaluation of refugees is difficult because of language, culture, and the effect of trauma itself. Many forms of technical treatment have been suggested, but probably the personal characteristics of the therapist and providing safety and continuity over time is the most helpful. Much symptomatic relief can be given with medicine targeting insomnia, nightmares, and irritability. More research is needed to understand why some traumatized refugees get symptoms and others do not; what treatments are effective for patients from different cultures, and how to treat the high rate of cardiovascular disease among refugees.
Crops on demand

In Evolution Made to Order , Helen Anne Curry offers a fascinating foray into a mutated cornucopia of agricultural and horticultural products and the tools that made them. Viewing biological innovation as little different from "any other modern industrial product," Curry firmly plants her history of biological innovation within both the history of larger technological systems and the promissory realm that links scientific and commercial ingenuity, industrial efficiency, and democratic demand.
Quantitative analysis of the proliferative-to-invasive transition of hypoxic glioma cells

Hypoxia is a hallmark of gliomas that is often associated with poor prognosis and resistance to therapies. Insufficient oxygen supply reduces the proliferation rate of tumor cells, which contributes to a slower progression of the lesion, but also increases the invasiveness of the tumor, making it more aggressive. To understand how these two counteracting mechanisms combine and modify the tumor's global growth, this paper proposes a quantitative approach based on a biomathematical model. The model predicts that the net effect of the proliferative-to-invasive transition leads to a lower survival even for slight increments of the invasive capacity of hypoxic tumor cells. The model also shows that tumor cells use the phenotype change to normalize the levels of oxygen in the tissue. The model results can be directly compared to in vivo data obtained using anatomic and molecular imaging modalities.
“A Part of Who I Am”: Material Objects as “Plot Devices” in the Formation of Religious Selves

What role do material objects play in the formation of religious subjects? Drawing from an ethnographic investigation of the evolving relationships between a group of Eastern Orthodox converts and their religious icons, this article develops a theoretical approach to this question that conceptualizes material artifacts as “plot devices” in the formation of religious identity narratives. Integrating insights from studies of material religious culture with narrative theories of identity, this article argues that religious artifacts become significant to religious identity construction to the extent they act as resources for the configuration of a narrative structure in which transcendent or sacred others play a part. As the empirical details of this study demonstrate, attending to how religious objects’ symbolic meanings (i.e., who or what they represent) are mediated by their unique material characteristics (how they make meanings physically present to social actors in embodied social interaction) is of vital importance for explaining the significant role material artifacts play in the religious emplotment of action and experience.
Soft Sensor Applications in Industrial Vinylacetate-ethylene (VAE) Polymerization Processes

Measuring product properties during vinylacetate-ethylene (VAE) polymerizations can be difficult due to economic and technical limitations. The use of soft sensors, mathematical methods using available process data (current and historic), can be an effective solution to infer the sought after property and calculate properties not directly measurable. The setup of a soft sensor in an industrial environment for a long term, successful application needs to take into account several additional hurdles. These include the variability of the process, soft factors leading to the acceptance of this tool in production, and the effort needed for long-term support and maintenance among others. These points are illuminated using the successful development and implementation of a VAE dispersion process based tile adhesive tensile strength soft sensor.
Lagrangian Daes: A Starting Point for Applications in Control

Abstract This paper presents the status of our effort to reformulate the basic tools and algorithlns of dynamic systems and control in terms of energy, work, and constraints using Lagrangian differential-algebraic equations (DAEs). We review the physical basis of Lagrangian DAEs and illustrate their application in modeling, simulation, and linear analysis. Our purpose is to show that this approach provides a promising starting point for applications in control in general.
Comparative study of CAVET with dielectric and p-GaN gate and Mg ion-implanted current blocking layer

In this work, a study of two different types of current aperture vertical electron transistor (CAVET) with ion-implanted blocking layer are presented. The device fabrication and performance limitation of a CAVET with a dielectric gate is discussed, and the breakdown limiting structure is evaluated using on-wafer test structures. The gate dielectric limited the device breakdown to 50V, while the blocking layer was able to withstand over 400V. To improve the device performance, an alternative CAVET structure with a p-GaN gate instead of dielectric is designed and realized. The pGaN gated CAVET structure increased the breakdown voltage to over 400V. Measurement of test structures on the wafer showed the breakdown was limited by the blocking layer instead of the gate p-n junction.
Anti-Rheumatic Therapy and Comorbidity

Anti-rheumatic medications have improved survival and quality of life for patients with rheumatic diseases. Published guidelines help physicians select the appropriate therapy from among the traditional immunosuppressants and disease-modifying agents to the newer small molecules and biologic drugs. However, given the paucity of data for patients with comorbidities, not surprisingly these evidenced-based guidelines do not address the use of anti-rheumatic medications for patients with many of the common chronic medical illnesses. Biologic and chronic disease registries although providing the long-term follow-up needed to evaluate the safety of specific anti-rheumatic drugs are susceptible to the channeling of patients to specific therapies based on the presumed risk of complications. In this chapter we review some of the published data of anti-rheumatic drugs in patients with chronic medical illnesses and provide recommendations.