cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Black‐White Differentials in Adult Homicide Mortality in the United States

Objective. This article examines individual level black-white differences in adult homicide mortality. Homicide is a major social problem and a central cause of preventable death in the United States. A homicide not only claims one life prematurely but can also devastate a family, friends, and a neighboring community. Methods. We link eight consecutive years of the National Health Interview Survey (1987–94) to the Multiple Cause of Death file through the National Death Index (1987–97), and use Cox proportional hazard models to examine the role of social factors in black-white homicide mortality in the United States. Results. We find that individual level sociodemographic characteristics—age, sex, marital status, education, employment status, and geographic factors—explain almost 35 percent of the racial differences in homicide mortality. Conclusions. These results demonstrate the contributions that National Center for Health Statistics data can make to criminological literature and reveal the mechanisms through which blacks experience higher homicide mortality than whites. Such illumination may lead to a reduction in the fourth leading preventable cause of death in the United States.
Snow as Deformity, Decoration, and Disguise

In the grotesque mode (passages from d'Aubigne, Cyrano and others) snow bedecks its victims with flour, sugar, cream, wig, foam, falling feathers, or spit from heaven, giving them a caricatural, comic, or monstrous aspect. Many of these images also appear in poetry whose basic allegiance is to the precieux tradition (Gautier's Fantuisies d'hiver), but the mockery is gentler: snow prettifies, decorates, domesticates. In satiric passages (the “mockery king of snow” in Richard II, W. R. Rogers' “White Christmas” and others) snow is an insubstantial pretense or a thin disguise. Whether as melting snowman, symbol of cold chastity, or white sheet that covers up an ugly reality, it is false, impermanent, and derisory. But each of these interrelated modes - the grotesque, the preecieux, the satiric - remains dependent on one or the other of the two fundamentalvisions of snow that it exaggerates, mocks, distorts, or embroiders upon: snow as a radiant affirmation of beauty, vitality, and renewal, (exemplified by the use of snow-as-feathers imagery in Ruth Stone's “Snow”) or snow as negation, deprivation, loss, and extinction, (exemplified by Apollinaire's use of the same imagery in “La Blanche Neige.”)
Roentgenographic interpretation of experimentally produced bony lesions. Part I

Abstract In a study of the limitations of the roentgenogram in detecting bony lesions, experimental defects were created in a dried human mandible to simulate periapical, periodontal, and central lesions in bone. Roentgenograms of these lesions were then compared with the actual appearance of the lesions as recorded by pre-experimental photographs and roentgenograms.
A Bayes-type estimator for the Bradley-Terry model for paired comparison

Abstract A Bayes-type estimator is proposed for the worth parameter π i and for the treatment effect parameter ln π i in the Bradley-Terry Model for paired comparison. In contrast to current Bayes estimators which require iterative numberical calculations, this estimator has a closed form expression. This estimation technique is also extended to obtain estimators for the Luce Multiple Comparison Model. An application of this technique to a 2 3 factorial experiment with paired comparisons is presented.
Impact of West Nile Virus on American Crows in the Northeastern United States, and Its Relevance to Existing Monitoring Programs

We assessed the changes in abundance of American crows in the northeastern U.S. following the arrival of West Nile virus (WNV), with two aims. First, we determined the impact and spatial extent of the initial epizootic that began in New York City. Second, we examined whether two existing surveillance programs monitoring for WNV (data from 2000 New York State dead bird testing, and 2000 mosquito testing) accurately predicted the observed impact of the disease on crow populations as measured using data from the North American Christmas Bird Count. The rationale for this second aim was that the two WNV surveys were new and with unknown biases and sensitivity, while the Christmas Bird Count has existed for decades, providing monitoring before the arrival of WNV in North America and a long time series of data useful in gauging sensitivity. As a result, the Christmas Bird Count represents a good benchmark against which to compare the two new surveillance programs. Consistency among these three sources of information was low, suggesting that while dead bird and mosquito surveys can currently indicate the later stages of severe outbreaks, the ability to consistently detect early stages of outbreaks is questionable.
Response to a letter by J.R. Wait on magnetic dipole currents

The commenter clarifies the physics of magnetic dipole currents. He then discusses J.R. Wait's contention (ibid., vol.34, no.2, p.139, 1992) that one can make magnetic dipole currents disappear by a mathematical transformation. >
Fabrication of electroactive composite nanofibers of functionalized polymer and CNT capable of specifically binding with the IgE (Immunoglobulin E) antibody

Electroactive nanofibers decorated with α,ω-bi-(dinitrophenylcaproic acid), abbreviated as DNP, have been prepared by electrospinning a solution of α,ω-bi[2,4-dinitrophenylcaproic][poly(ethyleneoxide)-b-poly(2-methoxystyrene)-b-poly(ethylene oxide)], polystyrene and single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs). The α,ω-bi[2,4-dinitrophenylcaproic][poly(ethyleneoxide)-b-poly(2-methoxystyrene)-b-poly(ethyleneoxide)] polymers were synthesized by living anionic polymerization and subsequent esterification to obtain the DNP-functionalized polymers. The nanofibers (300 nm) were electrospun onto a silicon wafer substrate at a voltage of 10 kV using dimethylformamide and chlorobenzene as solvents. The nanofibers were characterized by Raman spectroscopy, fluorescence microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and optical microscopy. The DNP groups, therein, were tethered to the nanofibers via oligo(oxyethylene) spacers. The DNP groups decorating the nanofibers were capable of specifically binding with anti-DNP immunoglobulin E (IgE). The binding specificity of nanofibers containing 1% SWCNTs with anti-DNP IgE was studied via fluorescently labeled (Fluorescein IsoThioCyanate) FITC-IgE. Electronic activity of the nanofibers was studied by I–V plots from Kelvin sensing. The I–V plots before sensitizing with IgE differed from the I–V plots after binding with IgE. The results of the studies suggest the possibility of developing functional nanofibers as the active component in biosensors. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Equilibrium, Trade, and Capital Accumulation

The paper summarizes the author’s principal contributions to economic theory: (1) one of the first rigorous proofs of the existence of competitive equilibrium; (2) existence of competitive equilibrium with weakened assumptions; (3) the minimum income approach to demand theory; (4) tâtonnement stability with weak gross substitutes; (5) a general theory of comparative advantage; (6) factor price equalization with attention to factor supplies; and (7) turnpike theory allowing for von Neumann facets and neighbourhood convergence.
The Teacher as Strategic Scientist: A Solution to Our Educational Crisis?

The solution to the educational dilemma is tied necessarily to the ability of teachers to insure that their students achieve learning objectives that are germane to the survival of the culture and the species. The growing body of scientifically based practices necessary to eliminate the existing educational crisis is briefly outlined. It is argued that these practices can be implemented by teachers who function as strategic scientists. The science used by such teachers include research findings and teaching models incorporating that research (Precision Teaching, Direct Instruction, Programmed Instruction, Personalized System of Instruction). In order to train, support, and motivate the pervasive and sustained application of effective pedagogy by teachers who function as strategic scientists, behavior analysis must be applied to all components of schooling-students, parents, teachers, and supervisors. One model for doing so has developed over the last decade. Research studies and applications in six schools for handicapped children in this country and abroad suggest that this comprehensive application of behavior analysis to schooling (CABAS) is effective, efficient, and viable.
The Cancer Genome Atlas Clinical Explorer: a web and mobile interface for identifying clinical–genomic driver associations

Background The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) project has generated genomic data sets covering over 20 malignancies. These data provide valuable insights into the underlying genetic and genomic basis of cancer. However, exploring the relationship among TCGA genomic results and clinical phenotype remains a challenge, particularly for individuals lacking formal bioinformatics training. Overcoming this hurdle is an important step toward the wider clinical translation of cancer genomic/proteomic data and implementation of precision cancer medicine. Several websites such as the cBio portal or University of California Santa Cruz genome browser make TCGA data accessible but lack interactive features for querying clinically relevant phenotypic associations with cancer drivers. To enable exploration of the clinical–genomic driver associations from TCGA data, we developed the Cancer Genome Atlas Clinical Explorer.
A PARTIAL ROSTRUM OF THE SAWFISH PRISTIS LATHAMI GALEOTTI, 1837, FROM THE EOCENE OF SOUTH CAROLINA

Sawfishes of the family Pristidae comprise a group of rays having dorsoventrally flattened, sharklike bodies and elongated rostra bearing a row of teeth on each side. Some species may attain total body lengths (TL) of 7 m or more (Compagno and Last, 1999). Unlike the similarly-shaped sawsharks of the family Pristiophoridae, the number of rostral teeth and their proportions are established in utero and maintained into adulthood (Slaughter and Springer, 1968; Miller, 1974), and if a tooth is lost the alveolus remains empty. In addition, the gills are located on the underside of the body and there are no rostral barbels (Tricas et al., 1997; Compagno and Last, 1999). Recent Pristidae consists of five to seven species (depending on synonymy) within two genera, Pristis (Linck, 1790) and Anoxypristis (White and Moy-Thomas, 1941). Although oral teeth and partial rostra have been described (Casier, 1949; Cappetta, 1987), remains of fossil pristids consist primarily of rostral teeth. It is quite possible, therefore, that the apparent species diversity, often based on relatively few specimens, is exaggerated (see Casier, 1949). Cappetta (1987) reported that the temporal distribution of the genus Pristis extends from the Early Eocene (Ypresian) to Recent, and published records indicate that the extinct species, P. lathami (Galeotti, 1837), was limited to the Eocene (see below). However, Case (1994) described fragmentary specimens from Louisiana that indicate Pristis occurred as early as the Late Paleocene. In North America, Pristis lathami has been reported from the Eocene of Alabama (White, 1956; Thurmond and Jones, 1981), Arkansas (Westgate, 1984), Georgia (Muller, 1999; Case and Borodin, 2000a; Westgate, 2001), Louisiana (Manning and Standhardt, 1986), Maryland (Ward and Wiest, 1990), Mississippi (Leriche, 1942), New Jersey (Fowler, 1911), North Carolina (Timmerman and Chandler, 1995; Case and Borodin, 2000b), and Virginia (Kent, …
OFC tutorial: III-V and silicon photonic integrated circuit technologies

Technologies can change rapidly and profoundly: • Traditional drivers for photonic integration: — Cost, size, power reduction for “stable configurations” (telelcom) — Also opportunities/drivers where role changes to critical enabling technology • Higher level modulation formats & coherent solutions, low-power transceivers/arrays; • Si photonics will be increasingly powerful, but will still have to compete for a spot with high performance incumbent InP PIC technology • But… new markets & drivers on the horizon with potential for dramatic change in technology and market dynamics of photonic integration: — Enabling the scaling of electronic functionality in client applications — New requirements drives new performance metrics • Need for ultra high density, ultra-low power, while maintaining high digital signal fidelity — Need for unprecedented intimacy between photonics and electronics
Performance of FMIPv6-based cross-layer handover for supporting mobile VoIP in WiMAX networks

This paper presents validation and evaluation of mobile VoIP support over WiMAX networks using the FMIPv6-based cross layer handover scheme. A software module has been implemented for the FMIPv6-based handoff scheme. The handoff delay components are formulated. To evaluate its support of mobile VoIP, we carefully assess the handoff delay, the total delay, and the R factor which is a representation of voice user satisfactory degree. Simulation results show that the cross-layering handoff scheme, as compared with the non-cross-layer scheme, successfully decreases layer-3 handoff delay by almost 50%, and is therefore thriving to support mobile VoIP services. We believe this is the first performance evaluation work for the FMIPv6-based cross-layer scheme, and hence an important work for the WiMAX research community.
Natural history of moderate aplastic anemia in children.

Background Moderate aplastic anemia (MAA) in children is a rare, idiopathic condition of bone marrow insufficiency that can resolve spontaneously, persist for months or years, or progress to severe aplastic anemia (SAA). We evaluated the rate of progression to SAA. Methods We reviewed the records of 136 children referred for evaluation of bone marrow failure from 1978 to 2002 at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. MAA was defined by a hypocellular bone marrow (<50%) and 2 or 3 cytopenias (absolute neutrophil count <1,500/mm3, absolute reticulocyte count <40,000/mm3, platelet count <100,000/mm3) lasting at least 6 weeks. Results Twenty-four patients met the criteria for MAA. At a median follow-up of 66 months (range, 10–293), 16 patients (67%) progressed to SAA, 5 (21%) had persistent MAA, and 3 (12%) had complete resolution of MAA. No risk factors for progression could be identified. Conclusions When childhood MAA is treated with supportive care alone, 2/3 of patients progress to SAA. © 2004 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Asymmetric distribution in the biosynthesis of cotton cellulose-[U- 14 C]

Autoradiographs of mature cotton bolls which earlier had radioglucose introduced via a thin incision into their peduncles show a marked asymmetry in distribution of the label. Radio assay shows the specific activity of the cotton fibres on the treated side to be as much as 30-fold that on the opposite side.
Robust pole-placement for ellipsoidally uncertain systems

A technique is proposed for synthesizing pole-placement controllers capable of assigning the closed-loop poles of an family of plants inside a specified design region. The design is applicable to plants characterized by uncertain parameters that are known to lie inside an ellipsoid. Ellipsoidal parametric uncertainty descriptions are particularly useful because they arise naturally in the context of parameter estimation, and hence have the advantage of being quantifiable using experimental input-output data. The control-design problem is posed as a minimax program that is shown to be convex, and that can be solved using numerical techniques with global convergence guarantees.
Comparison of human skin opto-thermal response to near-infrared and visible laser irradiations: a theoretical investigation

Near-infrared wavelengths are absorbed less by epidermal melanin, and penetrate deeper into human skin dermis and blood than visible wavelengths. Therefore, laser irradiation using near-infrared wavelengths may improve the therapeutic outcome of cutaneous hyper-vascular malformations in moderately to heavily pigmented skin patients and those with large-sized blood vessels or blood vessels extending deeply into the skin. A mathematical model composed of a Monte Carlo algorithm to estimate the distribution of absorbed light, numerical solution of a bio-heat diffusion equation to calculate the transient temperature distribution, and a damage integral based on an empirical Arrhenius relationship to quantify the tissue damage was utilized to investigate the opto-thermal response of human skin to near-infrared and visible laser irradiations in conjunction with cryogen spray cooling. In addition, the thermal effects of a single continuous laser pulse and micropulse-composed laser pulse profiles were compared. Simulation results indicated that a 940 nm wavelength induces improved therapeutic outcome compared with a 585 and 595 nm wavelengths for the treatment of patients with large-sized blood vessels and moderately to heavily pigmented skin. On the other hand, a 585 nm wavelength shows the best efficacy in treating small-sized blood vessels, as characterized by the largest laser-induced blood vessel damage depth compared with 595 and 940 nm wavelengths. Dermal blood content has a considerable effect on the threshold incident dosage for epidermal damage, while the effect of blood vessel size is minimal. For the same macropulse duration and incident dosage, a micropulse-composed pulse profile results in higher peak temperature at the basal layer of skin epidermis than an ideal single continuous pulse profile.
Connections matter--how viruses use cell­cell adhesion components.

The epithelium is a highly organized type of animal tissue. Except for blood and lymph vessels, epithelial cells cover the body, line its cavities in single or stratified layers and support exchange between compartments. In addition, epithelia offer to the body a barrier to pathogen invasion. To transit through or to replicate in epithelia, viruses have to face several obstacles, starting from cilia and glycocalyx where they can be neutralized by secreted immunoglobulins. Tight junctions and adherens junctions also prevent viruses to cross the epithelial barrier. However, viruses have developed multiple strategies to blaze their path through the epithelium by utilizing components of cell–cell adhesion structures as receptors. In this Commentary, we discuss how viruses take advantage of the apical junction complex to spread. Whereas some viruses quickly disrupt epithelium integrity, others carefully preserve it and use cell adhesion proteins and their cytoskeletal connections to rapidly spread laterally. This is exemplified by the hidden transmission of enveloped viruses that use nectins as receptors. Finally, several viruses that replicate preferentially in cancer cells are currently used as experimental cancer therapeutics. Remarkably, these viruses use cell adhesion molecules as receptors, probably because – to reach tumors and metastases – oncolytic viruses must efficiently traverse or break epithelia.
Tax Evasion and Currency Ratio: Panel Evidence from Developing Countries

We examine the linkage between tax evasion and the currency ratio of non-OECD countries for the period 1984-2006. The study uses the GMM dynamic panel data estimation method to address group heterogeneity, the endogeneity of explanatory variables, and persistence in the variables. We find that higher tax rates lead to a higher currency ratio. Furthermore, we find that lower enforcement strength of the tax authority, the level of development, the rate of interest, the rate of inflation, and the degree of urbanization across countries tend to explain currency ratio.
DISCOURSE STRATEGIES IN PULAAR: THE USE OF FOCUS

This paper uses the concept of discourse cohesion as a basis for looking at certain sentence emphasis patterns in Pulaar (Fula). In particular, four patterns of focus are examined, first syntactically and then pragmatically. Focus in Pulaar can be divided according to clefting and pseudo-clefting patterns for subject and non-subject focus. These four patterns are discussed in depth. Then, I suggest that the idea of discourse connectedness provides a model for explaining the choice of a focus pattern in a given environment. Examples of this are drawn from a transcription of the story of Gelaajo Ham Bodeejo, performed by Mammadu Non Gii se, a griot from northern Senegal.
Digital DNA: The Nagoya Protocol, Intellectual Property Treaties, and Synthetic Biology

This report, prepared for the Synthetic Biology Project at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, builds on, and continues the exploration begun in the 2013 report by Bagley and Rai, “The Nagoya Protocol and Synthetic Biology: A Look at the Potential Issues.” In particular, it considers current challenges for the intellectual property protection of synthetic biology outputs, implementation issues concerning the 2010 Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit Sharing to the Convention on Biological Diversity, and possible interactions between the requirements of the Protocol and the World Trade Organization’s Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property (TRIPS). It also explores emerging concerns regarding synthetic biology and digital genetic information misappropriation in relation to non-commercial research projects. Finally, it presents highlights of negotiations in the World Intellectual Property Organization Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual Property, Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge, and Folklore, that may relate to both the Nagoya Protocol and TRIPS and thus may be relevant for researchers, particularly those working in the area of synthetic biology.
Abstract WP445: Age Differences in the Impact of Sleep Apnea on Cognition and Quality of Life

Introduction: Using a subsample from the national REasons for Geographic And Racial Differences in Stroke (REGARDS) study, we examined the associations of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) with cogniti...
Impact of Inventory on Quota-Bonus Contracts with Rent Sharing

We study the impact of limited inventory on optimal salesforce compensation contracts. We use the framework of Oyer (2000), characterized by limited liability and rent sharing with the agent. A commonly invoked assumption in the inventory management literature is that the demand distribution satisfies the increasing failure rate (IFR) property. Under this assumption, however, Oyer (2000) shows that a quota-bonus contract -- a widely adopted salesforce compensation contract in the practice -- cannot sustain in equilibrium. We show that due to demand censoring in the presence of limited inventory (i.e., demand realizations higher than the inventory level are unobservable), a quota-bonus contract is the optimal equilibrium contract, and it exists, even for a demand distribution with the IFR property. Since many well-known distributions have the IFR property, and inventory constraints are operative in many real-world situations, our results significantly extend the scope of the optimality of quota-bonus contracts. Our results also underscore the importance of considering the inventory aspect while making salesforce compensation decisions.
Comparison of the Interface and Surface Morphologies of Zirconium and Titanium Silicides on Silicon

The morphology of zirconium suicide grown on Si(111) is investigated and compared to that of titanium suicide on Si(111) and (100). Zirconium was deposited on atomically clean silicon in UHV, and the suicide was formed by postdeposition annealing. ZrSi2 films formed from ≥100 A of Zr deposited on Si(111) remained continuous for anneals of 400°C to 700°C. A film formed from 50 A of Zr on Si(111) remained continuous for anneals up to 800°C, at which point the reappearance of a partial 7×7 LEED pattern indicated island formation. The interfaces of the films, studied by TME, show roughening after suicide formation. These results are compared and contrasted with the islanding behavior of titanium suicides, and analyzed in terms of a liquid-liquid model previously used with TiSi2.
Finding health-related quality of life outcomes sensitive to health-care organization and delivery.

OBJECTIVES.The author identifies and assesses health-related quality-of-life outcomes for evaluating health-care structure and process.METHODS.Development of a conceptual model and presentation of case studies are used to identify methods of outcomes research necessary to evaluate health-care organi
Imaging Based Tissue Optics: Parallel Monte Carlo Modeling and Phantom Measurements

An imaging based method has been investigated for the determination of spatial distribution of the optical parameters of a heterogeneous medium by comparing reflectance images with full-field illumination from Monte Carlo simulations and phantom measurements.
TEMPORAL VARIATION IN SELECTION ON A FLORAL CHARACTER.

Variation temporelle de la direction et de l'importance de la selection phenotypique sur des caracteres de la corolle etudie sur 3 annees chez Calathea ovandensis en relation avec la presence d'insectes pollinisateurs
Germany Special Riot Police

In modern world,terroristic act is very rampant. Terroristic means are more and more superb. Peace-loving people are impossible to defend effectively. There are three special riot police troops. In three of them,the 90th squadron of frontier police is regarded as model by other country's police because of its crack organization,excellent equipment and good training,especially its outstanding achievement in defending and attacking terrorism.
Honesty and Faithfulness: Moral Foundation in the Construction of Market Economy and Harmonious Society

In constructing market economy,dishonesty and faithlessness is an obstacle to the development ofChinese economy,which many peoplefromall circles are concerned.The paperinsiststhat honestyandfaithfulnessis the moral foundationinthe construction of market economy and harmonious society.
Law Firm Disqualification and Nonlawyer Employees: A Proposal for a Consistent Analysis

Four key values should be considered in formulating a procedure for evaluating disqualification motions based upon the movement of a nonlawyer employee. They are the protection of the former client's confidential information, the right of the new client to have the lawyer of his choice, the mobility of nonlawyer personnel and the administration of justice. For the past client, concerns about the protection of valuable or critical private information create incentives to seek to disqualify past counsel. For the new client, the issue is important as well. Disqualification may cause a client to lose the attorney of his choice and may force the client to incur substantial costs to replace existing counsel with fresh counsel who will have to spend time and energy to get up to speed. For attorneys and their employees, disqualification may impose burdens on the movement of lawyers and employees who may be unable to obtain employment if the rules are too strict. And, recently, disqualification motions have become a form of gamesmanship or even harassment that diverts attention from the real cause of action. These issues point out a very real need for a predictable standard by which to review motions to disqualify counsel. For lawyers and their staffs, a predictable analysis would make planning for new employees more efficient. Knowing what rules will be applied makes it possible to create a set of internal controls tailored to meet the applicable standard. For courts, a predictable rule enhances decision making and should reduce not only the time needed to decide a motion, but the number of motions as well. If the rule is transparent, the court will be free to focus on the merits of the underlying claim rather than on the sideshow of the disqualification motion.The rules for disqualification of lawyers are quite strict. The question presented here is whether the same rules that apply to lawyers should apply to nonlawyer employees. Most often, these conflicts arise when a nonlawyer employee is hired by a firm that represents a client in a case in which the employee's prior employer also represents a party.
Potential ecological impacts of trace metals on aquatic biota within the Upper Little Tennessee River Basin, North Carolina

The Upper Little Tennessee River (ULTR) possesses one of the most diverse assemblages of aquatic biota in North America, including the endangered Appalachian elktoe mussel (Alasmidonta raveneliana). Populations of the Appalachian elktoe significantly declined along with other species following an extreme flood in 2004. This paper examines the potential role that four toxic trace metals (Cu, Cr, Ni, and Zn) played in the population declines. Dissolved and total-recoverable concentrations of Cr and Ni measured during three flood events were below USEPA and North Carolina freshwater guidelines for potential impacts on aquatic biota, respectively. In contrast, 58% of the samples exceeded NC guideline values for total-recoverable concentrations of Cu and Zn. In general, metal concentrations increased with increasing discharge and suspended sediment concentrations (SSC). These relationships, combined with sequential extraction data from sediments, suggest that most metals were transported in the particulate form and were not readily bioavailable. During individual events, metal concentrations for a given discharge were influenced by a “first flush” hysteresis effect. Rapid increases in metal concentrations during the early stages of an event appear to be related to the entrainment of fine sediment, including particulate Fe to which the metals are sorbed. Instantaneous metal loads calculated for nine tributaries to the ULTR, combined with previously collected data, suggest that the majority of the metals were derived from the erosion of sediment and particulate Fe from subsurface soil horizons developed in bedrock containing sulfidic layers. The erosion was particularly pronounced in tributary basins in poor to moderate ecological condition. While a fraction of the Cu may have been derived from Cu-based pesticides and was periodically elevated above guideline values in river waters, the data in total suggest that toxic trace metals were unlikely to play a major role in the decline of elktoe populations.
Metal Oleate Induced Etching and Growth of Semiconductor Nanocrystals, Nanorods, and Their Heterostructures

Unexpected etching of nanocrystals, nanorods, and their heterostructures by one of the most commonly used metal precursors, metal oleates, is reported. Zn oleate is shown to etch CdS nanorods anisotropically, where the length decreases without a significant change in the diameter. Sodium oleate enhances the etch rate, whereas oleic acid alone does not cause etching, indicating the importance of the countercation on the rate of oleate induced etching. Subsequent addition of Se precursors to the partially etched nanorods in Zn oleate solution can lead to epitaxial growth of CdSe particles rather than the expected ZnSe growth, despite an excess amount of Zn precursors being present. The composition of this epitaxial growth can be varied from CdSe to ZnSe, depending on the amount of excess oleic acid or the reaction temperature. Similar tuning of composition can be observed when starting with collinear CdSe/CdS/CdSe rod/rod/rod heterostructures and spherical CdS (or CdSe/CdS core/shell) nanocrystals. Conversi...
Viscoelastic behavior and construction of master curve for graphene/polyimide nanocomposites:

Dynamic mechanical spectroscopy is used to investigate the variation of the glass rubbery transition temperature (Tg) of graphene/polyimide nanocomposites. The Tg was obtained as the temperature corresponding to the peak of the tan δ versus temperature curve for the alpha transition. Cole–Cole curve was constructed for the matrix and the composites composite at 1 Hz and a hemispherical curve was obtained suggesting that the constituents have similar relaxation behavior. The time–temperature superposition principle was used to model the behavior of the nanocomposites at lower frequencies and longer times. Frequency sweep was performed in the range of 0.05–100 Hz at different temperatures. The storage modulus curves obtained at different temperatures (isothermal), as a function of frequency, were shifted horizontally to construct a continuous master curve. Both the generalized reduced gradient method and the Williams–Landel–Ferry (WLF) equation were used to calculate the activation energy for glass–rubber t...
Modulation masking and glimpsing of natural and vocoded speech during single-talker modulated noise: Effect of the modulation spectrum

Compared to notionally steady-state noise, modulated maskers provide a perceptual benefit for speech recognition, in part due to preserved speech information during the amplitude dips of the masker. However, overlap in the modulation spectrum between the target speech and the competing modulated masker may potentially result in modulation masking, and thereby offset the release from energetic masking. The current study investigated masking release provided by single-talker modulated noise. The overlap in the modulation spectra of the target speech and the modulated noise masker was varied through time compression or expansion of the competing masker. Younger normal hearing adults listened to sentences that were unprocessed or noise vocoded to primarily limit speech recognition to the preserved temporal envelope cues. For unprocessed speech, results demonstrated improved performance with masker modulation spectrum shifted up or down compared to the target modulation spectrum, except for the most extreme time expansion. For vocoded speech, significant masking release was observed with the slowest masker rate. Perceptual results combined with acoustic analyses of the preserved glimpses of the target speech suggest contributions of modulation masking and cognitive-linguistic processing as factors contributing to performance.
Triumphal March: The Problem Lies in Our Perceiving

Although Triumphal March appears in Collected Poems among the “Unfinished Poems,” it was first published as an Ariel Poem, in 1931. What the eye brings, and what the ear likewise contributes, form the ontological surface of the poem. “The natural wakeful life of the Ego is a perceiving,” says the Roman speaker, a thoroughgoing empiricist, observing a parade in honor of a victorious general, whom the crowd awaits, expectantly. Other voices break in, as does another time, and the poem proceeds to juxtapose (the truly triumphal) Christian “dispensation” with the pagan: in the perceived lies hidden the Word. Both/and trumps binary oppositions, opening a way to understand the meaning of Christmas.
Design of a new bi-state active frequency selective surface

This paper presents a bi-state frequency selective surface (FSS) designed using a passive and active FSS on both side of a thin dielectric substrate. Specifically, the proposed unit cell (of the bi-state FSS) includes a passive loaded cross dipole FSS on one side and an active dipole (utilizing PIN diodes) with perpendicular bias lines on the opposite side. The proposed bistate FSS is capable of functioning in reflection mode when the active FSS is reverse biased, and in transmission mode when forward biased. The proposed design also features reduced electrical size, thereby reducing the sensitivity of this design to incident angle of the interrogating electric field.
The Problem of Objectivity as a Problem of Modernity

In Chapter 1 of The Problem of Rationality entitled “The Problem of Objectivity,” Donald Davidson establishes an argument to the effect that thought – in the sense of a thinking activity that makes truth claims about its objects – is dependent on the concept of objectivity (Davidson, 2004, pp. 3–18). Davidson’s reasoning is pretty straightforward and it would in my view be difficult to dispute it. I have no intention of doing so; instead, I endorse its basic conclusions. Davidson’s argument runs roughly as follows: To think means, among other things, to use concepts in various ways, for instance in making judgments, attributing properties to objects, characterizing situations or events, etc. None of this would be possible, however, without also possessing the concept of truth, since making statements or entertaining propositions of this kind means to make a truth claim. To think, then, would be impossible without being aware of the difference between truth and falsity, since such thoughts or propositions must necessarily be either true or false (independently of the question whether their truth or falsity can ever be established). Making a truth claim presupposes an understanding of the distinction between truth and falsity, since to claim something to be true also means to be aware of the possibility of getting it wrong.
Preprocedural Risk Assessment Prior to PPVI with CMR and Cardiac CT

Percutaneous pulmonary valve intervention (PPVI) is a less invasive and less costly approach to pulmonary valve replacement compared with the surgical alternative. Potential complications of PPVI include coronary compression and pulmonary arterial injury/rupture. The purpose of this study was to characterize the morphological risk factors for PPVI complication with cardiac MRI and cardiac CTA. A retrospective review of 88 PPVI procedures was performed. 44 patients had preprocedural cardiac MRIs or CTAs available for review. Multiple morphological variables on cardiac MRI and CTA were compared with known PPVI outcome and used to investigate associations of variables in determining coronary compression or right ventricular-pulmonary arterial conduit injury. The most significant risk factor for coronary artery compression was the proximity of the coronary arteries to the conduit. In all patients with coronary compression during PPVI, the coronary artery touched the conduit on the preprocedural CTA/MRI, whilst in patients without coronary compression the mean distance between the coronary artery and the conduit was 4.9 mm (range of 0.8-20 mm). Multivariable regression analysis demonstrated that exuberant conduit calcification was the most important variable for determining conduit injury. Position of the coronary artery directly contacting the conduit without any intervening fat may predict coronary artery compression during PPVI. Exuberant conduit calcification increases the risk of PPVI-associated conduit injury. Close attention to these factors is recommended prior to intervention in patients with pulmonary valve dysfunction.
Framing how we think about disagreement

Disagreement is a hot topic right now in epistemology, where there is spirited debate between epistemologists who argue that we should be moved by the fact that we disagree and those who argue that we need not. Both sides to this debate often use what is commonly called “the method of cases,” designing hypothetical cases involving peer disagreement and using what we think about those cases as evidence that specific normative theories are true or false, and as reasons for believing as such. With so much weight being given in the epistemology of disagreement to what people think about cases of peer disagreement, our goal in this paper is to examine what kinds of things might shape how people think about these kinds of cases. We will show that two different kinds of framing effect shape how people think about cases of peer disagreement, and examine both what this means for how the method of cases is used in the epistemology of disagreement and what this might tell us about the role that motivated cognition is playing in debates about which normative positions about peer disagreement are right and wrong.
A novel adaptive genetic algorithm for wine farm layout optimization

In this paper we propose an adaptive genetic algorithm (AGA) to optimize wind farm layout in order to achieve a highest aggregate wind power conversion efficiency with the presence of wake effect impacts. Instead of using random “crossover” in each iteration as in conventional GA, our proposed adaptive algorithm introduces novel relocation of “bad” turbines so that turbines experiencing worst wake effect impacts in a layout will be relocated to some new and more efficient positions. Therefore each iteration of the AGA can more effectively improve the aggregate wind power conversion efficiency and greatly accelerate the algorithm convergence. We experiment the proposed AGA and compare its performance with conventional GA based on a number of scenarios such as multi-directional wind distribution, offshore and inland wind distribution, with sparse and crowded farm settings. Numerical results verify the effectiveness of the proposed AGA algorithm which is able to locate an optimal layout at a much faster convergence speed and achieve a higher aggregate wind power output from a farm.
Development of a power system protection laboratory/test-bed at Clarkson university

In this paper, a power system protection laboratory is discussed which will help the students and researchers to study power system protection and relay communication. This setup allows the researchers to simulate different types of bolted and impedance faults at different locations of a power system. Singlephase to ground, phase-phase to ground, phase-phase, and three-phase faults can be studied. In addition, users are able to study the communication and coordination issues among the relays.
Cognitive Determination of Policies for Data Management in IoT Systems

Internet of Things (IoT) has emerged as a very hot area in the past few years. Managing data in IoT systems is still a challenging research topic, particularly when one aims at determining the correct set of decisions to take given some trigger events in an IoT system. The state of the art in determining such actions and corresponding policies is ad-hoc, based on significant human intervention. In this work, we propose a cognitive automated approach for policy and action determination in IoT systems that uses historical data to learn the best set of actions to take and involves an mathematical optimization module that chooses the optimal set of actions to pursue given the limited resource capacity in the system. Our system requires minimal human intervention and thus could be very beneficial in today’s IoT frameworks.
An object-relational interpretation of Thomas Mann's Death in Venice

The protagonist of Thomas Mann’s novella “Death in Venice” is examined in terms of object-relational theory. Splitting, his primary defense mechanism, which is employed both intrapsychically and in...
Commercial Importance of Adventitious Rooting to Horticulture

Vegetative or clonal reproduction is the most important propagation method used for the commercial production of many, if not most, horticultural crops (ornamentals, fruits, nuts and vegetables). One of the major advances in early agriculture was the discovery that important food crops such as figs, grapes and olives could be regenerated by inserting the base of their woody stems into the ground to induce the formation of adventitious roots and, hence, new plants. Because clonal reproduction may not occur naturally or at least easily in various plant species, the history of horticulture has evolved to a large extent around the development of new technologies for vegetative propagation. More elaborate propagation facilities and commercial asexual propagation techniques have continued to evolve to extend the process to more and more plants at lower costs per unit of production.
Sexually transmitted diseases in the tropics

Several sexually transmitted diseases are endemic in the tropics. The morbidity and mortality from the human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV-1 and HIV-2) alone now rival that caused by Plasmodium falciparum malaria in several African and Asian nations. The genital ulcers of chancroid and syphilis facilitate the sexual transmission of HIV. Within the last two decades, the bacteria causing chancroid and gonorrhoea throughout the world have acquired plasmids that mediate bacterial resistance to penicillins and other antibiotics. This has significantly increased the costs of treatment. There is little prospect that the prevalence of gonorrhoea, chancroid, syphilis and HIV will decrease in the tropics in the near future without a global change in sexual behaviours and practices.
Neurobiological Perspectives on Agency: Ten Axioms and Ten Propositions

Herein, I define agency broadly, ranging from primitive animal activity to consciously driven human activity. I take the broad view because much of human conscious agency is driven by primitive neural processes. At the simplest level, actions are intrinsic, automated, and unconscious. At slightly higher levels, such actions are responses to stimuli. At still higher levels, actions arise from such agency elements as inherent drives, perception, memory recall, expected utility, intent to act, decision, plans, and finally action. These elements of agency may be unconscious, conscious, or some mixture of both.
Calibrating magnification bias for the $E_G$ statistic to test general relativity

We assess the effect of magnification bias on the $E_G$ statistic for probing gravity. $E_G$, a statistic constructed from power spectrum estimates of both weak lensing and redshift space distortions (RSD), directly tests general relativity (GR) while in principle being independent of clustering bias. This property has motivated its recent use in multiple tests of GR. Recent work has suggested that the magnification bias of galaxies due to foreground matter perturbations breaks the bias-independence of the $E_G$ statistic. The magnitude of this effect is very sensitive to the clustering and magnification biases of the galaxy sample. We show that for realistic values of the clustering and magnification biases, the effect for magnification bias is small relative to statistical errors for most spectroscopic galaxy surveys but large for photometric galaxy surveys. For the cases with significant magnification bias, we propose a method to calibrate magnification bias using measurements of the lensing auto-power spectrum. We test this calibration method using simulations, finding that our calibration method can calibrate $E_G$ from 2-4 times the simulation error to well within the errors, although its accuracy is sensitive to the precision of the measured redshift distribution and magnification bias, but not the clustering bias. This work gives strong evidence that this method will work increasingly well in future CMB lensing surveys.
Trends towards Biomimicry in Theranostics

Over the years, imaging and therapeutic modalities have seen considerable progress as a result of advances in nanotechnology. Theranostics, or the marrying of diagnostics and therapy, has increasingly been employing nano-based approaches to treat cancer. While first-generation nanoparticles offered considerable promise in the imaging and treatment of cancer, toxicity and non-specific distribution hindered their true potential. More recently, multistage nanovectors have been strategically designed to shield and carry a payload to its intended site. However, detection by the immune system and sequestration by filtration organs (i.e., liver and spleen) remains a major obstacle. In an effort to circumvent these biological barriers, recent trends have taken inspiration from biology. These bioinspired approaches often involve the use of biologically-derived cellular components in the design and fabrication of biomimetic nanoparticles. In this review, we provide insight into early nanoparticles and how they have steadily evolved to include bioinspired approaches to increase their theranostic potential.