cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Particle modeling of liquid drop formation on a solid surface in 3-D

Abstract Using a molecular aggregate approach and classical Newtonian dynamics, we show how to simulate a liquid drop formation on a horizontal solid surface in three-dimensional space. We use sets of quasi-molecular particles which interact in accordance with classical molecular-type formulas. For application, the liquid is taken to be water while the solid surface is taken to be graphite. The resulting dynamical equations for the particles are large systems of second-order, nonlinear, ordinary differential equations which must be solved by a numerical method. Computer simulations of the results and related contact angle calculations are presented and discussed. The results are in complete agreement with experimentation and the method can be extended to nonflat surfaces.
Phase I trial of interferon α2b and liposome-encapsulated all-trans retinoic acid in the treatment of patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma

BACKGROUND Studies suggest that retinoic acid (RA) can augment the antitumor effects of interferon-based therapy in patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma (RC); however, this benefit has not been achieved convincingly using oral formulations of 13-cis RA and all-trans RA. Liposome-encapsulated all-trans RA (ATRA-IV) has improved pharmacokinetics with increased and prolonged ATRA serum levels compared with oral retinoids. METHODS Cohorts of 3–6 patients with progressive metastatic RC received a dose of 3 MU interferon α2b per day subcutaneously, which was escalated weekly to 5 MU and then to 10 MU, plus ATRA-IV beginning at a dose of 90 mg/m2 intravenously three times per week (Monday, Wednesday, and Friday), with a planned escalation to a maximum of 140 mg/m2. RESULTS Two of the initial five patients experienced Grade 3 leukopenia while receiving 3 MU interferon and 90 mg/m2 ATRA-IV. Therefore, the trial was amended to begin ATRA-IV at a dose of 15 mg/m2 three times per week with a planned escalation by 15 mg/m2 per cohort plus interferon-α at a dose of 3 MU subcutaneously 5 days per week (Monday through Friday), which was escalated weekly to 5 MU and then to 10 MU. Twelve patients were treated on the revised schedule. Toxicity was mild and included Grade 2 anemia (n = 7 patients), leukopenia (n = 2 patients), nausea (n = 2 patients), fatigue (n = 2 patients), fever (n = 2 patients), hepatic toxicity (n = 1 patient), edema (n = 1 patient), neurocortical toxicity (n = 1 patient), headache (n = 1 patient), and infection (n = 1 patient). One patient developed hyperthyroidism, and one patient required admission for bacteremia from a line infection. Dose limiting toxicity was Grade 3 hepatic toxicity, which was observed at a dose of 30 mg/m2 ATRA-IV in 2 of 6 patients. Only 2 of 12 patients agreed to a dose escalation up to 10 MU interferon-α. Of 12 patients who were evaluable for response, 2 patients (17%) had a partial response in bone and lung, including 1 partial response of > 91 weeks' duration, at a dose of 15 mg/m2 ATRA-IV three times per week and 5 MU interferon-α. Five additional patients experienced stable disease, two of whom had disease progression in bone only. CONCLUSIONS The acceptable toxicity profile and preliminary efficacy results suggest that this regimen warrants further evaluation. ATRA-IV (15 mg/m2 TIW) and interferon-α (3 MU Monday through Friday escalated weekly to 5 MU and to 7 MU) are recommended for further study in patients with advanced RC. Cancer 2002;95:1220–7. © 2002 American Cancer Society. DOI 10.1002/cncr.10809
The Color Glass Condensate: An Intuitive Description

I argue that the physics of the scattering of very high energy strongly interacting particles is controlled by a new, universal form of matter, the Color Glass Condensate. I motivate the existence of this matter and describe some of its properties.
All Validities are Not Created Equal: Determinants of Variation in SAT Validity Across Schools

Previous research has demonstrated that cognitive test validities are generalizable and predictive of academic performance across situations. However, even after accounting for statistical artifacts (e.g., sampling error, range restriction, criterion reliability), substantial variability often remains around estimates of cognitive test–performance relationships suggesting the presence of additional moderators. In the present study, we examine the sources of institutional variation in Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) validity across a sample of 110 institutions. Institutional characteristics moderated the size of SAT validities, such that more selective schools and schools that emphasize traditional assessment techniques (i.e., school records, standardized tests) showed higher SAT validities while schools that were larger and where students demonstrated more financial need, schools that emphasized the usage of alternative assessment techniques (i.e., essays, letters of recommendations, extracurricular activi...
TIME-SERIES ANALYSIS OF SUPER-KAMIOKANDE MEASUREMENTS OF THE SOLAR NEUTRINO FLUX

A recently released data set of Super-Kamiokande data comprises 184 bins of about 10 days each, from 1996 May to 2001 July. The power spectrum of the acquisition times has a huge peak at frequency ν = 35.98 (period 10.15 days), where frequencies are measured in cycles per year, leading to severe aliasing of the power spectrum that complicates the analysis. The strongest peak in the range 0-100 in a power spectrum formed by a likelihood procedure is at ν = 26.57 (period 13.75 days) with S = 11.26. For the range 0-40, the second-strongest peak is at 9.42 (period 38.82 days) with S = 7.3. Since 26.57 + 9.42 = 35.99, we infer that the weaker peak at 9.42 is an alias of the stronger at 26.57. When we subtract the oscillation at 26.57 from the data, the resulting CLEAN spectrum has no peak with power in excess of 6.3 in the range 0-100, and none with power in excess of 5.0 in the range 0-40. We note that 26.57 falls in the band 26.36-27.66, formed from twice the range of synodic rotation frequencies of an equatorial section of the Sun. We find from the shuffle test that the probability of obtaining a peak of S = 11.26 or more by chance in this band is 0.1%. This new result therefore supports previous evidence, found in Homestake and GALLEX-GNO data, for rotational modulation of the solar neutrino flux. The frequency 25.57 yr-1 points to a source of modulation at or near the tachocline.
Economic Structure and Regional Disparity in China: Beyond the Kuznets Transition

The literature on regional change in post-reform China suggests a consistent pattern of increasing regional disparity during 1990s. This article explains disparity through the lens of industrial transition as reflected in the three major economic sectors, agriculture, manufacturing, and services from 1995 to 2004. Increased economic output in China has been accompanied by dramatic changes in employment structure at both the national and regional level. Changes at the provincial level have been driven by national trends and changes of industry mix as well as regional characteristics. The importance of industry mix and regional competitive advantage varies across sectors and has different impacts on employment and output. This analysis indicates that employment loss in agriculture in the western and central regions has not been made up by the increases in other sectors. The differential rate of transition in economic structure toward the secondary and tertiary sectors has contributed to the widening gap between the coastal areas and the other parts of the
Spatial competition and market power in banking

Abstract Banks in non-metropolitan areas compete in a spatially differentiated environment. Non-metro community banks have been insulated from increasing competition from metro banks due to their reliance on soft information in relationship lending. Proximity to borrowers, therefore, may be an important source of market power for non-metro community banks. This paper estimates a structural model of the supply and demand of banking services in which pricing power is allowed to depend explicitly on the distance between rival banks. A spatial autoregressive econometric model shows that approximately 38.0% of economic surplus earned by firms in non-metropolitan banking in the upper midwest is due to spatial market power.
Astronomy: trouble at first light.

The question of how much light the first stars produced is fundamental to models of the Universe's development. But observations have so far failed to agree: is the answer a lot, or not very much at all?
Bureaucrats and Indians: Principal-agent relations and efficient management of tribal forest resources

Abstract Under PL 638 Indian tribes can contract with the Bureau of Indian Affairs to take over the management and marketing of tribal timber resources. When Indian principals replace Bureau agents in these tasks, both the quantity of timber harvested (relative to potential) and the price obtained increase. Tribes' participation in the program is related both to their levels of economic development and the pecuniary gains available from improved incentives.
Spreading of viscous liquids at high temperature: silicate glasses on molybdenum.

The spreading of Si-Ca-Al-Ti-O glasses on molybdenum has been investigated. By controlling the oxygen activity in the furnace, spreading can take place under reactive or non-reactive conditions. As the nucleation of the reaction product under reactive conditions is slow in comparison to the spreading kinetics, in both cases the glass front moves on the metal surface with similar spreading velocities. Spreading can be described using a molecular dynamics model where the main contribution to the wetting activation energy comes from the viscous interactions in the liquid. Enhanced interfacial diffusions in low-oxygen activities (reactive cases) form triple-line ridges that can pin the wetting front and cause a stick-slip motion.
Efficient Inference of Object Types

Abstract M. Abadi and L. Cardelli have recently investigated a calculus of objects (1994). The calculus supports a key feature of object-oriented languages: an object can be emulated by another object that has more refined methods. Abadi and Cardelli presented four first-order type systems for the calculus. The simplest one is based on finite types and no subtyping, and the most powerful one has both recursive types and subtyping. Open until now is the question of type inference, and in the presence of subtyping "the absence of minimum typings poses practical problems for type inference." In this paper, we give an O(n3) algorithm for each of the four type inference problems and we prove that all the problems are P-complete. We also indicate how to modify the algorithms to handle functions and records.
Status and performance of HST/wide field camera 3

Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) is a powerful UV/visible/near-infrared camera currently in development for installation into the Hubble Space Telescope. WFC3 provides two imaging channels. The UVIS channel features a 4096 x 4096 pixel CCD focal plane covering 200 to 1000 nm wavelengths with a 160 x 160 arcsec field of view. The UVIS channel provides unprecedented sensitivity and field of view in the near ultraviolet for HST. It is particularly well suited for studies of the star formation history of local galaxies and clusters, searches for Lyman alpha dropouts at moderate redshift, and searches for low surface brightness structures against the dark UV sky background. The IR channel features a 1024 x 1024 pixel HgCdTe focal plane covering 800 to 1700 nm with a 139 x 123 arcsec field of view, providing a major advance in IR survey efficiency for HST. IR channel science goals include studies of dark energy, galaxy formation at high redshift, and star formation. The instrument is being prepared for launch as part of HST Servicing Mission 4, tentatively scheduled for late 2007, contingent upon formal approval of shuttle-based servicing after successful shuttle return-to-flight. We report here on the status and performance of WFC3.
Trajectory analysis of radiative heating for planetary missions with aerobraking of spacecraft

Predictions of nonequilibriu m and equilibrium radiative heating are obtained for the Titan aerocapture and two near-Earth aeroassisted orbital transfer vehicle (AOTV) missions. The Titan results include both the stagnation region and aft end of the fore cone of the conceptual aerocapture vehicle configuration for a range of entry parameters encompassing those of proposed mission profiles. The near-Earth AOTV results include orbit transfer between possible space station locations at geosynchronous and libration center L5 (a null point of the Earth-moon gravitational field overlap) orbits and equatorial and polar low Earth orbits, respectively. Several conceptual AOTV shapes, having a wide range of ballistic coefficients that simulate a variety of mission scenarios, are analyzed for each case. For both missions, results generally show that nonequilibrium is enhanced over equilibrium radiative heating and generally exceeds convective heating. Nonequilibrium radiative heating is thus an important factor in the design of thermal protection systems for Titan aerocapture and near-Earth AOTV missions and possibly for other future aeroassisted planetary missions. For Titan aerocapture, the nonequilibrium radiative heat flux can exceed several kilowatts per square centimeter, which is comparable to that of the Venus probe, and requires ablating-type materials to accommodate the heat shielding requirements. For near-Earth AOTV missions, the nonequilibrium flux dominates and is of such magnitude that nonrigid AOTV concepts are impractical without major breakthroughs being made in flexible, reusable materials technology. For rigid AOTV concepts, however, generic thermal protection systems (by use of non-ablating materials) may possibly satisfy the bulk of mission requirements in cislunar space.
Uncovering RNA binding proteins associated with age and gender during liver maturation

In the present study, we perform an association analysis focusing on the expression changes of 1344 RNA Binding proteins (RBPs) as a function of age and gender in human liver. We identify 88 and 45 RBPs to be significantly associated with age and gender respectively. Experimental verification of several of the predicted associations in mice confirmed our findings. Our results suggest that a small fraction of the gender-associated RBPs (~40%) are expressed higher in males than females. Altogether, these observations show that several of these RBPs are important and conserved regulators in maintaining liver function. Further analysis of the protein interaction network of RBPs associated with age and gender based on the centrality measures like degree, betweenness and closeness revealed that several of these RBPs might be prominent players in aging liver and impart gender specific alterations in gene expression via the formation of protein complexes. Indeed, both age and gender-associated RBPs in liver were found to show significantly higher clustering coefficients and network centrality measures compared to non-associated RBPs. The compendium of RBPs and this study will help us gain insight into the role of post-transcriptional regulatory molecules in aging and gender specific expression of genes.
'Biologic' level structures through chemistry : a total synthesis of a unimolecular pentavalent MUCI glycopeptide construct

A convergent synthesis of a unimolecular pentavalent-MUC1 glycopeptide has been accomplished. A tandem repeat of unglycosylated human tumor-associated MUC1, a potential target for cancer immunotherapy, was incorporated into the known unimolecular pentavalent carbohydrate construct (5). This is an important step toward the development of a new fully synthetic anticancer vaccine candidate (1).
Understanding the Motivations, Participation, and Performance of Open Source Software Developers: A Longitudinal Study of the Apache Projects

Understanding what motivates participation is a central theme in the research on open source software (OSS) development. Our study contributes by revealing how the different motivations of OSS developers are interrelated, how these motivations influence participation leading to performance, and how past performance influences subsequent motivations. Drawing on theories of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, we develop a theoretical model relating the motivations, participation, and performance of OSS developers. We evaluate our model using survey and archival data collected from a longitudinal field study of software developers in the Apache projects. Our results reveal several important findings. First, we find that developers' motivations are not independent but rather are related in complex ways. Being paid to contribute to Apache projects is positively related to developers' status motivations but negatively related to their use-value motivations. Perhaps surprisingly, we find no evidence of diminished intrinsic motivation in the presence of extrinsic motivations; rather, status motivations enhance intrinsic motivations. Second, we find that different motivations have an impact on participation in different ways. Developers' paid participation and status motivations lead to above-average contribution levels, but use-value motivations lead to below-average contribution levels, and intrinsic motivations do not significantly impact average contribution levels. Third, we find that developers' contribution levels positively impact their performance rankings. Finally, our results suggest that past-performance rankings enhance developers' subsequent status motivations.
Rigorous analysis of open microstrip lines, of arbitrary cross section in bound and leaky regimes

The problem of an open microstrip line of arbitrary cross section is solved by an integral equation technique in conjunction with the method of moments. The approach is general and can handle, as special cases, multiple strips and strips of finite or infinitesimal thickness. It applies to both the fundamental and higher order modes, whether in the bound or the leaky regime. Computed dispersion curves and modal current distributions are presented for several cases of interest and, where possible, are compared with published data. >
Services Exports and the States: Measuring the Potential

States within the United States have long promoted goods exports to help their businesses and improve their economies. In contrast, promotion of services exports remains relatively unexplored, although the value of promoting services exports is potentially large. In 1995, services trade entered international discipline with the General Agreement on Trade in Services. In 2004, services trade made up more than one fifth of all U.S. trade. The United States routinely has a surplus in services trade. One barrier to state promotion of services exports has been the difficulty of measuring state services exports. This article discusses the potential of services trade for the states, reviews efforts to measure subnational services exports, and introduces a new method to estimate state-level services exports. This method can help state development officials better understand statewide economic trends, design programs, and approach federal policy makers about gaining advantages from future trade liberalization efforts.
Metal Coated Fibers

Hermetically-coated optical fibers have been fablicated with aluminum coating using metal dipping method. Mechanical and optical properties of the fibers have been investigated for high temperature applications. Mechanical aging test have been performed at the temperature from 300°C to 400°C by static fatigue mandrel test. Aluminum coated fibers have been proved their fatigue resistivity, there have been no problem at 350°C continuous exposure. Optical aging test have been performed from room temperature to 600 °C. Several kinds of aluminum coated fibers which include different core material or different combination of core and cladding material, have been tested and loss spectra have been evaluated. Ultra-violet absorption tail and OH-absorption peaks appeared in all fiber when heating, but their magnitude and influences for application wavelength seems quite different. In silica core fiber, two absorption increase is small, so that, there is no influences of loss increase at 0.85 μm band. In germanium doped fiber, loss caused by the defect center must be converted to the stable permanent OH when high temperature application.
Smart cars on smart roads: problems of control

Key features of one automated intelligent vehicle/highway system (IVHS) are outlined, it is shown how core driver decisions are improved, a basic IVHS control system architecture is proposed, and a design of some control subsystems is offered. Some experimental work is summarized. A system that promises a threefold increase in capacity is outlined, and a four-layer hierarchical control architecture that decomposes this problem into more manageable units is proposed. >
Surface Wave Parametric Signal Processing

New types of surface acoustic wave devices which utilize parametric interactions between surface acoustic waves to perform signal processing functions will be described. These devices can give real time convolution of two modulated rf signals. Similar devices can also be employed to time invert a modulated rf signal, so two devices can be used in combination to obtain the correlation between two rf signals. As these are the basic signal processing functions required, the devices are also capable of performing fast Fourier transforms and pulse compression of chirped signals.
Treatment of the aging face

Treatment of the aging face involves the use of topical agents such as sunscreens, moisturizers, alpha hydroxy acids, and Retin A. The surgical treatments in the hands of dermatologists include soft tissue augmentation, chemical peels, and dermabrasion.
GMM estimation of autoregressive roots near unity with panel data

This paper investigates a generalized method of moments (GMM) approach to the estimation of autoregressive roots near unity with panel data and incidental deterministic trends. Such models arise in empirical econometric studies of Þrm size and in dynamic panel data modeling with weak instruments. The two moment conditions in the GMM approach are obtained by constructing bias corrections to the score functions under OLS and GLS detrending, respectively. It is shown that the moment condition under GLS detrending corresponds to taking the projected score on the Bhattacharya basis, linking the approach to recent work on projected score methods for models with inÞnite numbers of nuisance parameters (Waterman and Lindsay, 1998). Assuming that the localizing parameter takes a nonpositive value, we establish consistency of the GMM estimator and Þnd its limiting distribution. A notable new Þnding is that the GMM estimator has convergence rate n 1/6 , slower than √ n, when the true localizing parameter is zero (i.e., when there is a panel unit root) and the deterministic trends in the panel are linear. These results, which rely on boundary point asymptotics, point to the continued difficulty of distinguishing unit roots from local alternatives, even when there is an inÞnity of additional data. JEL ClassiÞcation: C22 & C23
On the fields generated by the lengths of closed geodesics in locally symmetric spaces

This paper is the next installment of our analysis of length-commensurable locally symmetric spaces begun in Prasad and Rapinchuk (Publ Math IHES 109:113–184, 2009). For a Riemannian manifold $$M$$ , we let $$L(M)$$ be the weak length spectrum of $$M$$ , i.e. the set of lengths of all closed geodesics in $$M$$ , and let $${\fancyscript{F}}(M)$$ denote the subfield of $$\mathbb{R }$$ generated by $$L(M).$$ Let now $$M_i$$ be an arithmetically defined locally symmetric space associated with a simple algebraic $$\mathbb{R }$$ -group $$G_i$$ for $$i = 1, 2.$$ Assuming Schanuel’s conjecture from transcendental number theory, we prove (under some minor technical restrictions) the following dichotomy: either $$M_1$$ and $$M_2$$ are length-commensurable, i.e. $$\mathbb{Q } \cdot L(M_1) = \mathbb{Q } \cdot L(M_2)$$ , or the compositum $${\fancyscript{F}}(M_1){\fancyscript{F}}(M_2)$$ has infinite transcendence degree over $${\fancyscript{F}}(M_i)$$ for at least one $$i = 1$$ or $$2$$ (which means that the sets $$L(M_1)$$ and $$L(M_2)$$ are very different).
Constructing belief networks to evaluate plans

This paper examines the problem of constructing belief networks to evaluate plans produced by an knowledge-based planner. Techniques are presented for handling various types of complicating plan features. These include plans with context-dependent consequences, indirect consequences, actions with preconditions that must be true during the execution of an action, contingencies, multiple levels of abstraction, multiple execution agents with partially-ordered and temporally overlapping actions, and plans which reference specific times and time durations.
Nonlinear prediction for Gaussian mixture image models

Prediction is an essential operation in many image processing applications, such as object detection and image and video compression. When the images are modeled as Gaussian, the optimal predictor is linear and easy to obtain. However, image texture and clutter are often non-Gaussian, and, in such cases, optimal predictors are difficult to obtain. In this paper, we derive an optimal predictor for an important class of non-Gaussian image models, the block-based multivariate Gaussian mixture model. This predictor has a special nonlinear structure: it is a linear combination of the neighboring pixels, but the combination coefficients are also functions of the neighboring pixels, not constants. The efficacy of this predictor is demonstrated in object detection experiments where the prediction error image is used to identify "hidden" objects. Experimental results indicate that when the background texture is nonlinear, i.e., with fast-switching gray-level patches, it performs significantly better than the optimal linear predictor.
Integrated planning for telepresence with time delays

Teleoperation of remote robotic systems over time delays in the range of 2-10 seconds poses a unique set of challenges. In the context of a supervisory control system for the JSC Robonaut humanoid robot, we have developed an "intelligent assistant" that integrates an artificial intelligence planner (JSH0P2) with execution monitoring of the state of both the human supervisor and the remote robot. The assistant reasons simultaneously about the world state on both sides of the time delay, which represents a novel application of this technology. The purpose of the assistant is to provide advice to the human supervisor about current and future activities, derived from a sequence of high-level goals to be achieved. To do this, the assistant must simultaneously monitor and react to various data sources, including actions taken by the supervisor who is issuing commands to the robot (e.g. with a data glove), actions taken by the robot, and the environment of the robot, both as currently perceived over the time delay, along with the current sequence of goals. We have developed a "leader/follower" software architecture to handle the dual time-shifted streams of execution feedback. In this paper we describe the integrated planner and its executive, and how it operates in normal and anomaly situations.
An Analysis of the Skype Peer-to-Peer Internet Telephony Protocol

Skype is a peer-to-peer VoIP client developed in 2003 by the organization that created Kazaa. Skype claims that it can work almost seamlessly across NATs and firewalls and has better voice quality than other VoIP clients. It encrypts calls end-to-end, and stores user information in a decentralized fashion. Skype also supports instant messaging and conferencing. This paper analyzes key Skype functions such as login, NAT and firewall traversal, call establishment, media transfer, codecs, and conferencing under three different network setups. Analysis is performed by careful study of the Skype network traffic and by intercepting the shared library and system calls of Skype. We draw a map of super nodes to which Skype establishes a TCP connection at login.
Factor structure of the autonomy preference index in people with severe mental illness

People vary in the amount of control they want to exercise over decisions about their healthcare. Given the importance of patient-centered care, accurate measurement of these autonomy preferences is critical. This study aimed to assess the factor structure of the Autonomy Preference Index (API), used widely in general healthcare, in individuals with severe mental illness. Data came from two studies of people with severe mental illness (N=293) who were receiving mental health and/or primary care/integrated care services. Autonomy preferences were assessed with the API regarding both psychiatric and primary care services. Confirmatory factor analysis was used to evaluate fit of the hypothesized two-factor structure of the API (decision-making autonomy and information-seeking autonomy). Results indicated the hypothesized structure for the API did not adequately fit the data for either psychiatric or primary care services. Three problematic items were dropped, resulting in adequate fit for both types of treatment. These results suggest that with relatively minor modifications the API has an acceptable factor structure when asking people with severe mental illness about their preferences to be involved in decision-making. The modified API has clinical and research utility for this population in the burgeoning field of autonomy in patient-centered healthcare.
Knots on a positive template have a bounded number of prime factors

Templates are branched 2-manifolds with semi-flows used to model "chaotic" hyperbolic invariant sets of flows on 3-manifolds. Knotted orbits on a template correspond to those in the original flow. Birman and Williams conjectured that for any given template the number of prime factors of the knots realized would be bounded. We prove a special case when the template is positive; the general case is now known to be false. AMS Classification 37D45; 57M25
Behavioral Economics and Public Policy: A Pragmatic Perspective †

The debate about behavioral economics { the incorporation of insights from psychology into economics { is often framed as a question about the foundational assumptions of economic models. This paper presents a more pragmatic perspective on behavioral economics that focuses on its value for improving empirical predictions and policy decisions. I discuss three ways in which behavioral economics can contribute to public policy: by oering new policy tools, improving predictions about the eects
Optical spin initialization and nondestructive measurement in a quantum dot molecule

The spin of an electron in an InAs/GaAs quantum-dot molecule is optically prepared and nondestructively measured through trion-triplet states. With two-laser transmission spectroscopy we demonstrate both simultaneously, something not previously accomplished in single quantum dots.
Recursive state estimation: Unknown but bounded errors and system inputs

A method is discussed for estimating the state of a linear dynamic system using noisy observations, when the input to the dynamic system and the observation errors are completely unknown except for bounds on their magnitude or energy. The state estimate is actually a set in state space rather than a single vector. The optimum estimate is the smallest calculable set which contains the unknown system state, but it is usually impractical to calculate this set. A recursive algorithm is developed which calculates a time-varying ellipsoid in state space that always contains the system's true state. Unfortunately the algorithm is still unproven in the sense that its performance has not yet been evaluated. The algorithm is closely related in structure but not in performance to the algorithm obtained when the system inputs and observation errors are white Gaussian processes. The algorithm development is motivated by the problem of tracking an evasive target, but the results have wider applications.
Electron transfer reactions in chemistry theory and experiment

Since the late 1940s, the field of electron transfer processes has grown enormously in chemistry, electrochemistry, and biology. The development of the field, experimentally and theoretically, as well as its relation to the study of the other kinds of chemical reactions, presents an intriguing history in which many threads have been brought together. In this article, some history, recent trends, and my own involvement are described.
Branes And Supergroups

Extending previous work that involved D3-branes ending on a fivebrane with \({\theta_{\mathrm{YM}}\neq 0}\), we consider a similar two-sided problem. This construction, in case the fivebrane is of NS type, is associated to the three-dimensional Chern–Simons theory of a supergroup \({{\rm U}(m|n)}\) or \({{\rm OS}_{\rm p}(m|2n)}\) rather than an ordinary Lie group as in the one-sided case. By S-duality, we deduce a dual magnetic description of the supergroup Chern–Simons theory; a slightly different duality, in the orthosymplectic case, leads to a strong-weak coupling duality between certain supergroup Chern–Simons theories on \({\mathbb{R}^{3}}\); and a further T-duality leads to a version of Khovanov homology for supergroups. Some cases of these statements are known in the literature. We analyze how these dualities act on line and surface operators.
Magnesium as an ISRU-Derived Resource for Lunar Structures

AbstractMagnesium is one of the most pervasive metals in lunar soil and has many characteristics that make it applicable to in situ refining and production. This somewhat overlooked alkaline earth metal is easily cast, used, and recycled, characteristics that are required in the Moon's harsh environment. Moreover, alloys of this element have several properties fine-tuned for building shelters in a lunar environment, including several advantages over aluminum alloys. Magnesium alloys may prove to be the optimal choices for reinforcing lunar structures or manufacturing components as needed on the Moon. As such, further research on the in situ resource utilization (ISRU) of magnesium is imperative for the development of a self-sufficient lunar base. This paper brings together key properties of magnesium within the context of it being used as an in situ resource once the Moon, again, becomes a goal for permanent habitation and we require the ability to live there in perpetuity.
MODELS AND RESOURCE METRICS FOR PARALLEL AND DISTRIBUTED COMPUTATION

This paper presents a framework of using resource metrics to characterize the various models of parallel computation. Our framework reflects the approach of recent models to abstract architectural details into several generic parameters, which we call resource metrics. We examine the different resource metrics chosen by different parallel models, categorizing the models into four classes: the basic synchronous models, and extensions of the basic models which more accurately reflect practical machines by incorporating notions of asynchrony, communication cost, and memory hierarchy. We then present a new parallel computation model, the LogP-HMM model, as an illustration of design principles based on the framework of resource metrics. The LogP-HMM model extends an existing parameterized network model (LogP) with a sequential hierarchical memory model (HMM) characterizing each processor. The result captures both network communication costs and the effects of multileveled memory such as local cache and I/O. Mo...
Green's Functions and Numbering System for Transient Heat Conduction

A numbering system for transient heat conduction is proposed in connection with Green's functions. A tabulation of Green's functions for rectangular coordinates is given that can be used for a total of 220 different sets of boundary conditions; one-, two-, and three-dimensional cases are included. This total can be further extended for additional terms in the heat conduction equation. The proposed numbering system has a number of advantages, including the efficient tabulation and location of Green's functions and exact heat conduction solutions. Such a numbering system provides a framework for the computer cataloging and retrieval of a heattransfer data base in diffusion and heat conduction. Nomenclature c = specific heat / = nonhomogeneous boundary condition term F = initial temperature distribution g — volume energy source G = Green's function h —heat-transfer coefficient k = thermal conductivity m — coefficient in Eq. (7) n — outward-pointing normal coordinate r = radial coordinate r_ = general coordinates R = region s = number of boundary conditions s' = surface coordinate S = surface t = time T — temperature
Missing-iron problem and Type Ia supernova enrichment of hot gas in galactic spheroids

Type Ia supernovae (Ia SNe) provide a rich source of iron for hot gas in galactic stellar spheroids. However, the expected supersolar iron abundance of the hot gas is not observed. Instead, X-ray observations often show decreasing iron abundance towards galactic central regions, where the Ia SN enrichment is expected to be the highest. We examine the cause of this missing-iron problem by studying the enrichment process and its effect on X-ray abundance measurements of the hot gas. The evolution of Ia SN iron ejecta is simulated in the context of galaxy-wide hot gas outflows, in both supersonic and subsonic cases, as may be expected for hot gas in galactic bulges or elliptical galaxies of intermediate masses. SN reverse-shock-heated iron ejecta is typically found to have a very high temperature and low density, hence producing little X-ray emission. Such hot ejecta, driven by its large buoyancy, can quickly reach a substantially higher outward velocity than the ambient medium, which is dominated by mass-loss from evolved stars. The ejecta is gradually and dynamically mixed with the medium at large galactic radii. The ejecta is also slowly diluted and cooled by in situ mass injection from evolved stars. These processes together naturally result in the observed positive gradient in the average radial iron abundance distribution of the hot gas, even if mass weighted. This trend is in addition to the X-ray measurement bias that tends to underestimate the iron abundance for the hot gas with a temperature distribution.
Thermal and hydrologic attributes of rock glaciers and periglacial talus landforms: Sierra Nevada, California, USA

Abstract To explore thermal regimes and hydrologic capacity of rock glaciers and related periglacial talus landforms, mini-thermochrons were deployed in and around potentially ice-embedded features of the Sierra Nevada. Results from pilot studies at 13 rock glaciers and 7 taluses indicate that outlet springs from these landforms generally do not desiccate but persist year-round as ice (frozen) in winter and flowing water in the warm season. Temperatures of water (liquid and ice) in rock-glacier outlet springs had an annual mean of −0.2 °C and mean of 0.6 °C during the warm season with very low diurnal fluctuation. These and other attributes suggest the existence of internal ice and/or permafrost supplying the springs. Air temperatures of rock-glacier matrices (1 m below the surface) versus surface air corroborate the periglacial nature of internal environments: annual air temperatures of matrices were below freezing (mean, −0.8 °C). Compared to surface air, especially during the warm season, matrix air temperatures were significantly colder and fluctuated less. Talus landforms followed a similar pattern, although water- and matrix air temperatures were warmer, and contrasts with surface air were not as strong as for rock glaciers. For rock glaciers and talus slopes, matrix air temperatures showed resistance (buffering) to changes in external air temperatures. Unique geomorphic conditions of rock glaciers and periglacial taluses in the Sierra Nevada appear to maintain cool-buffered thermal regimes at least partly decoupled from external air. Springs support persistent wetlands and lakes at their snouts, retaining water in otherwise semi-arid high cirques, and contribute as hydrologic reserves and critical habitat for alpine biota. Daily and seasonal lags and buffering effects suggest that ice within these landforms might resist surface warming on the longer term, which could make these landforms increasingly important as regional climates change.
Stable colored particles R-SUSY relics or not?

R-hadrons are only one of many possible stable colored states that the LHC might produce. All such particles would provide a spectacular, if somewhat unusual, signal at ATLAS and CMS. Produced in large numbers and leaving a characteristic signature throughout all layers of the detector, including the muon chamber, they could be traight forward to discover even with low luminosity. Though such long lived colored particles (LLCPs) can be realized in many extensions of the Standard Model, most analyses of their phenomenology have focused only on R-hadrons. In order to distinguish among the possibilities, fundamental quantum numbers of the new states must be measured. In this paper, we demonstrate how to identify the SU(3)_C charge and spin of such new particles at the LHC.
The Al Gore effect: An Inconvenient Truth and voluntary carbon offsets

Abstract This paper examines the relationship between climate change awareness and household behavior by testing whether Al Gore's documentary An Inconvenient Truth caused an increase in the purchase of voluntary carbon offsets. I find that in the two months following the film's release, zip codes within a 10-mile radius of a zip code where the film was shown experienced a 50 percent relative increase in the purchase of voluntary carbon offsets. During other times, offset purchasing patterns for zip codes inside the 10-mile radius were similar to the patterns of zip codes outside the 10-mile radius. There is, however, little evidence that individuals who purchased an offset due to the film purchased them again a year later.
Re-Configurable Antenna & Transmission Power for Location Aware MANET Routing with Multiple Objective Optimization

In this paper we develop a Directional Antenna Multi-path Location Aided Routing (DA-MLAR) scheme with On Demand Transmission Power (ODTP) support. The routing approach is based on multiple objectives. DAMLAR is a reactive routing protocol that minimizes the protocol overhead of other reactive routing protocols. DAMLAR also improves the packet delivery ratio and end-toend delay. The targeted application contexts include MANET with energy awareness, and communications in space networks, where efficient and reliable packet delivery is very challenging due to the high bit error rate, intermittent connectivity, limited bandwidth, and energy. By using different transmission power based on the calculated distance from the current sender node to the destination node or the next hop node, DA-MLAR-ODTP gets the best of the directional and omni-directional modes. Compared to DA-MLAR, on demand transmission power mode further improves the packet delivery ratio by up to 37% and dwindles end-to-end delay by up to 57% with approximately the same amount of energy consumption. The multiple objective optimization is based on using a Normalized Weighted Additive Utility Function (NWAUF) approach that shows comparison of different objective performances with and without on demand transmission power capability. Simulation experiments were conducted. They show that is the developed technique strengthens the reliability of communication systems for given targeted objectives.
Rising Growth, Declining Investment : The Puzzle of the Philippines

The economy of the Philippines is open to trade and capital inflows, and has grown rapidly since 2002. Over the last 10 years, however, domestic investment, while stagnant in real terms, has shrunk as a share of GDP. In an open and growing economy, why the decline? Three reasons explain the puzzle. First, the public sector cannot afford expanding its investment at GDP growth rates. Second, the capital-intensive private sector does not find it convenient to raise investment at the economy's pace. Third, fast-growing businesses in the service sector do not need to rapidly increase investment to enjoy rising profits. Yet, the economy keeps growing. On the demand-side, massive labor migration results in remittances that fuel consumption-led-growth. On the supply-side, free from rent-capturing regulations, a few non-capital-intensive manufactures and services boost exports. The economic system is in equilibrium at a low level of capital stock, where all economic agents have no incentive to unilaterallyincrease investment and the first mover bears short-term costs. As a consequence, growth is slower and less inclusive than it could be. To make it speedier and more sustainable, and to reduce unemployment and poverty, the economy needs to move to a"high-capital-stock"equilibrium. This would be attainable through better-performing eco-zones, a competitive exchange rate, greater government revenues, and fewer elite-capturing regulations.
Opportunistic capacity and error exponent regions for compound channel with feedback

Capacity of a compound channel without feedback is defined in a pessimistic manner as the maximum rate determined before the start of communication such that communication is reliable. In the presence of feedback, the transmission rate can adapt to the channel chosen by nature. Thus, capacity can be defined in an opportunistic manner as the maximum rate determined at the end of communication such that communication is reliable. Under this definition, transmission rate and error exponents are regions rather than scalars. In this paper, variable length communication over a compound channel with feedback is formulated, its opportunistic capacity region is characterized, and lower bounds for its error exponent region are provided.
Distributed Consensus Algorithms in Sensor Networks: Quantized Data and Random Link Failures

The paper studies the problem of distributed average consensus in sensor networks with quantized data and random link failures. To achieve consensus, dither (small noise) is added to the sensor states before quantization. When the quantizer range is unbounded (countable number of quantizer levels), stochastic approximation shows that consensus is asymptotically achieved with probability one and in mean square to a finite random variable. We show that the mean-squared error (mse) can be made arbitrarily small by tuning the link weight sequence, at a cost of the convergence rate of the algorithm. To study dithered consensus with random links when the range of the quantizer is bounded, we establish uniform boundedness of the sample paths of the unbounded quantizer. This requires characterization of the statistical properties of the supremum taken over the sample paths of the state of the quantizer. This is accomplished by splitting the state vector of the quantizer in two components: one along the consensus subspace and the other along the subspace orthogonal to the consensus subspace. The proofs use maximal inequalities for submartingale and supermartingale sequences. From these, we derive probability bounds on the excursions of the two subsequences, from which probability bounds on the excursions of the quantizer state vector follow. The paper shows how to use these probability bounds to design the quantizer parameters and to explore tradeoffs among the number of quantizer levels, the size of the quantization steps, the desired probability of saturation, and the desired level of accuracy ? away from consensus. Finally, the paper illustrates the quantizer design with a numerical study.