cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
First-Year Students' Environmental Awareness and Understanding of Environmental Sustainability through a Life Cycle Assessment Module.

Background Incorporating environmental sustainability (ES) into engineering education is vital to both individual engineering students' success and to the profession as a whole. This study explores attitudes, conceptions, and misconceptions about ES that students bring to the classroom. A promising framework of design-based research is applied to gauge how instructional innovation can impact student attitudes, conceptions, and misconceptions. Purpose Two questions guided this research: What knowledge and attitudes about ES, particularly those pertaining to engineering, do first-year engineering students have? How can an engineering module focused on life cycle assessment in a first-year engineering course affect students' conceptual understanding to prepare them to develop a robust appreciation of environmental issues and ES in engineering? Design/Method A quantitative research design in the context of a comparative design-based research study was utilized to examine first-year engineering students' environmental awareness coming into the program and changes in their conceptions of ES following their participation in a module that focused on life cycle assessment (LCA). Results/Conclusion Following the participation in the LCA module, the intervention was able to address certain misconceptions and support students' shift to deeper understanding about ES. Students' perceptions regarding the complexity of LCA did not change. Including multifaceted issues such as LCA in the teaching of engineering students seems beneficial.
The use of attention and spatial information for rapid facial recognition in video

Bottom-up visual attention allows primates to quickly select regions of an image that contain salient objects. In artificial systems, restricting the task of object recognition to these regions allows faster recognition and unsupervised learning of multiple objects in cluttered scenes. A problem with this approach is that objects superficially dissimilar to the target are given the same consideration in recognition as similar objects. In video, objects recognized in previous frames at locations distant to the current fixation point are given the same consideration in recognition as objects previously recognized in locations closer to the current target of attention. Due to the continuity of smooth motion, objects recently recognized in previous frames at locations close to the current focus of attention have a high probability of matching the current target. Here we investigate rapid pruning of the facial recognition search space using the already-computed low-level features that guide attention and spatial information derived from previous video frames. For each video frame, Itti & Koch's bottom-up visual attention algorithm is used to select salient locations based on low-level features such as contrast, orientation, color, intensity, flicker and motion. This algorithm has shown to be highly effective in selecting faces as salient objects. Lowe's SIFT object recognition algorithm then extracts a signature of the attended object, for comparison with the facial database. The database search is prioritized for faces which better match the low-level features used to guide attention to the current candidate for recognition or those that were previously recognized near the current candidate's location. The SIFT signatures of the prioritized faces are then checked against the attended candidate for a match. By comparing performance of Lowe's recognition algorithm and Itti & Koch's bottom-up attention model with or without search space pruning we demonstrate that our pruning approach improves the speed of facial recognition in video footage.
CdTe junction phenomena

Abstract Five main areas of research on CdTe junction phenomena are reviewed in this paper: (1) the effect of surface etching and stoichiometry on the properties of Schottky barriers and heterojunctions with CdS and indium tin oxide (ITO) formed on p-type CdTe crystal; (2) the major junction transport models applicable to CdS/CdTe, CdS/ZnCdTe, ZnO/CdTe and ITO/CdTe junctions; (3) the deposition and control of the properties of p-type CdTe films using close-spaced vapor transport and the characteristics of CdS/CdTe junctions prepared with these films; (4) the successful doping of p-type CdTe films during growth by ion-beam doping methods; and (5) methods of preparing low-resistivity contacts to p-CdTe.
A diffusion model for reversible comsumption in emulsion liquid membranes

Abstract This work extends previous diffusion models for emulsion globules in which a solute reacts with an internal reagent. This model allows for reversible consumption of the solute by the internal reagent. Local concentration of the internal reagent is nonzero and satisfies reaction and phase equilibria within the reacted zone. Predicted solute absorption rates are lower for the reversible consumption model than for irreversible models.
THE CONFRONTATION ON NEUROPHYSIOLOGY IN HUNGARY

physiology. He further noted that indications of such a debate were found during his last visit in Hungary. The present paper constitutes a more detailed empirical exploration of the confrontation of Marxist-Leninist philosophy with contemporary neurophysiology, as it is taking place in one East-European Communist country. The reason for choosing Hungary as the locale of the confrontation is given by the fact that in that small country the confrontation is sufficiently contained to permit treatment by a single investigator. The situation is further helped along by the relative clarity of the issues. These were noted in the writer's previous theoretical overview.2 It is obvious that, in order to present a trustworthy report of the con frontation, the observer (in this case, the Sovietologist) should have a good overview of its ideo-political as well as intellectual factors. Such overview is difficult in the case of a large nation with many, relatively loosely connected institutions and individuals. In the event of a small Communist land the interested community is compact and its members are in more or less direct contact with one another. They know of each other's work, both on the experimental and theoretical levels. Such a compact situation is provided by Hungary. In that country's favor we must also reckon the fact that it prides itself on its scientists - many of whom have achieved international recognition in their fields - and that the country's research as well as publishing facilities are few in number. Thus we confront a situation in which a tight intellectual-scientific community, taking pride in its objective achievements, is pressured toward facing the challenge of Marxist philosophy by science, and is expressing its views in full cognizance of all members, in a very few periodical publications.3 This situation makes Hungary an ideal field for a case
Nucleation and Growth of Lead Sulfide Nano- and Microcrystallites in Supramolecular Polymer Assemblies

Multilayer thin film assemblies fabricated by the sequential adsorption of polyelectrolytes on a quartz substrate were used as a supramolecular reaction template to study the in situ nucleation and growth of PbS nano- and microparticles. Chemical reaction within the polymer film was initiated by absorbing Pb2+ from an aqueous solution of Pb(NO3)2 followed by exposing the film to H2S gas. Electron microscopic examination of the films revealed that while nanoparticles are formed in films that were subject to one or two reaction cycles, large crystallites were formed when these films were exposed to a large number (10) of reaction cycles. In the latter case, a broad distribution of particle sizes is observed and may be attributed to Ostwald ripening. Detailed studies show the nucleation and growth of the PbS particles into crystallites of different shapes. UV−vis absorption studies reveal that the absorption spectral profiles of the films are dependent on the size of the PbS crystallites. The broadened absor...
FIRM SIZE, LEADING FIRMS AND MOBILITY

Industrial organization economists have generally treated the firms operating within industries as fairly homogeneous. The firms are assumed to be similar in terms of the main decision variables so that there are few differences in the price: output, and product strategies preferred by each firm. Furthermore, the firms are believed to enjoy similar market power so that market power is essentially a shared asset. Some of the recent literature rejects the shared asset view of market power. Among the more significant contributions to this literature is the concept of strategic groups. This paper focuses on the relevance of the strategic group concept for entry theory.
Diversity’s harvest: Interactions of diversity sources and communication technology on creative group performance

Abstract Our research is based on arguments that three different diversity sources in groups – agreeableness, openness, and ethnicity – might simultaneously possess separation properties that result in social categorization and variety properties that provide non-redundant and value-adding information resources. To help understand how these diversity sources interact with the additive and reductive features of communication technology to impact group creativity, we designed two studies involving computer mediation, nominal group technique, and face-to-face (control) communication. Our findings suggest that agreeableness, openness, and ethic diversity possess both negative separation and positive variety properties. Whereas the separation properties of all three diversity sources, as well as the variety properties of openness diversity, are evident in newly-formed groups, the variety properties of agreeableness and ethnic diversity are only manifest in mature groups. Finally, the additive and reductive features of communication technology interact with all three diversity sources to impact creative group performance in different ways.
MacLaboratory Controller: A switch and A/D interface between Apple’s Macintosh and peripheral apparatus

Apple’s Macintosh microcomputer has advantages over other systems used for laboratory control and data acquisition, especially because of its graphic and user-friendly features. However, a major perceived limitation has been its closed architecture. We describe an interface using the RS 422 modem port that supports up to 64 input/output (I/O) functions including analog-to-digital 4–12 channel input. The Controller software supplies an easily edited authoring tool in which functional relationships, logical operators, timing (millisecond accuracy), and counting functions are established through simple mouse and menu commands. Data from I/O functions may be displayed or saved as tab-delimited files that can be opened by various Macintosh statistical and spreadsheet packages and that are transportable to some mainframe applications.
The anticonvulsant stiripentol acts directly on the GABAA receptor as a positive allosteric modulator

Stiripentol (STP) has been used as co-therapy for treatment of epilepsy for many years. Its mechanism of action has long been considered to be indirect, as it inhibits the enzymes responsible for metabolism of other anti-convulsant agents. However, a recent report suggested that STP might also act at the neuronal level, increasing inhibitory GABAergic neurotransmission. We examined the effect of STP on the functional properties of recombinant GABA(A) receptors (GABARs) and found that it was a positive allosteric modulator of these ion channels. Its activity showed some dependence on subunit composition, with greater potentiation of alpha3-containing receptors and reduced potentiation when the beta1 or epsilon subunits were present. STP caused a leftward shift in the GABA concentration-response relationship, but did not increase the peak response of the receptors to a maximal GABA concentration. Although STP shares some functional characteristics with the neurosteroids, its activity was not inhibited by a neurosteroid site antagonist and was unaffected by a mutation in the alpha3 subunit that reduced positive modulation by neurosteroids. The differential effect of STP on beta1- and beta2/beta3-containing receptors was not altered by mutations within the second transmembrane domain that affect modulation by loreclezole. These findings suggest that STP acts as a direct allosteric modulator of the GABAR at a site distinct from many commonly used anti-convulsant, sedative and anxiolytic drugs. Its higher activity at alpha3-containing receptors as well as its activity at delta-containing receptors may provide a unique opportunity to target selected populations of GABARs.
Tropomodulin function and thin filament assembly in cardiac myocytes.

The regulation of thin filament length is a fundamental property of all striated muscles. Tropomodulin is an actin and tropomyosin binding protein that is exclusively associated with the free (pointed) ends of thin filaments. In vitro and in vivo studies reveal that tropomodulin is an actin filament pointed end capping protein, which is required to maintain the final length of thin filaments and is essential for contractile activity in embryonic chick cardiac myocytes. Understanding the mechanisms of thin filament assembly, as well as determining the roles of proteins modulating actin filament dynamics, is important for future considerations of the molecular bases for myopathies seen in various types of heart disease.
The Effects of Infertile Insemination and Individuality of Bulls upon the Subsequent Fertility of Cows Returning for Service

Summary Two studies were conducted to determine the effects of the bull used on first service on the fertility of his return cows at second service. Certain bulls used on first service may affect the conception rate of other bulls used on his return cows at later services. The lowered fertility produced in the cows by the first bull is much more apparent for low-fertility bulls than for average-fertility bulls. There is a definite association between the average length of the return-interval and the fertility of the return cows at second service, long return-intervals being associated with low fertility.
Burkitt's and Burkitt-like lymphoma in children and adolescents: a review of the Children's Cancer Group experience.

Historically, the survival of children and adolescents with Burkitt's and Burkitt-like lymphoma had been poor. Recently, short and intensive chemotherapy appears to have improved disease outcome. We therefore reviewed the results of four successive Children's Cancer Group trials conducted on 470 children with disseminated Burkitt's and Burkitt-like lymphoma. Of the patients studied, the median age was 8 years (0-21 years), the male:female ratio was 4:1, 58% had lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) > or = 500 IU/l, 23% had M2 or M3 bone marrow (BM), and 12% demonstrated central nervous system involvement. In a multivariate analysis, the 4-year event-free survival (EFS) in patients > or = 15-years-old compared with or = 500 IU/l compared with LDH < 500 IU/l was 49 +/- 3 versus 71 +/- 4% (P < 0.001). Furthermore, patients treated on the most recent protocol, which was short and more intensive, had a significantly improved survival compared with those on previous trials (4-year EFS 80 +/- 6 versus 54 +/- 2%, P < 0.001). In summary, the outcome for childhood Burkitt's and Burkitt-like lymphoma has recently improved with the use of short and intensive B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma-directed therapy.
Faces of the feminine in ancient, medieval, and modern India

The essays in this collection explore ideas about women and their positions in Indian society from the earliest historical period up to the present day. The collection is designed both to provide students and researchers with primary material from literary, historical and sociological sources and on that basis to critically explore specific issues.
Superficial acral fibromyxoma

We present a case of a superficial acral fibromyxoma (SAFM) of the distal aspect of the thumb with radiographic evidence of extrinsic pressure erosion of the underlying cortex. This 47-year-old woman presented with a slow-growing mass over the distal aspect of the right thumb that proved to be SAFM on surgical pathology. This is a relatively rare mesenchymal neoplasm of the periungual and subungual regions of fingers and toes.
A unified theory of scope for quantifiers and wh-phrases

This paper presents an analysis of quantifier and wh-operator scope in terms of a lexicalized theory of quantifier storage, within the framework of Head-Driven Phrase Structure Grammar. The proposed analysis provides an alternative to the derivational approach wherein quantifier scope is determined at a separate level of representation via movement, and shows how scope of quantifiers and wh-phrases (fronted or in situ) can be handled in a unified way in a constraint-based grammar. Lexicalization of quantifier storage offers an account of scope facts in raising and unbounded dependency constructions which have been problematic in an earlier constraint-based approach to quantifier scope.
Intramolecular recombination as a source of mitochondrial chromosome heteromorphism in Neurospora.

Abstract Approximately 20% of the genome is missing and an equivalent amount is under-represented in the mitochondrial chromosome population of a stopper ( stp ) mutant of Neurospora crassa during the stopped phase of its cyclical growth pattern. At this stage, a 21 kb (7.2 μ) circular molecule, one-third the length of the normal chromosome, is the predominant form. A complementary 43 kb (14.6 μ) circle appears upon resumption of growth. The circles arise by reciprocal recombination at or near directly repeated tRNA met sequences and the frequency of the two depends upon their rates of replication from replication origins unique to each of them. The 7.2 and 14.6 μ circles are the most frequent of the heteromorphic derivatives found within wild-type mitochondrial chromosome populations.
Nucleation and Growth of Boron Nanowires on ZrB2 Particles

Amorphous boron rich nanowires are grown on ZrB 2 particles using diborane as the gas precursor in a CVD process under 20 Torr pressure and at 900 °C. These nanowires have uniform diameters of tens of nanometers and lengths of up to several micrometers. The boron-rich nanowires are characterized and found to be composed of boron clusters containing unit cells of icosahedral B 12 . A surface nucleation and growth mechanism of solid boron from vapor phase is proposed to explain the nanowire growth. The role of ZrB 2 particles in the synthesis of the boron-rich nanostructures is also discussed.
The Shock Index as a Predictor of Vasopressor Use in Emergency Department Patients with Severe Sepsis

Introduction: Severe sepsis is a leading cause of non-coronary death in hospitals across the United States. Early identification and risk stratification in the emergency department (ED) is difficult because there is limited ability to predict escalation of care. In this study we evaluated if a sustained shock index (SI) elevation in the ED was a predictor of short-term cardiovascular collapse, defined as vasopressor dependence within 72 hours of initial presentation. Methods: Retrospective dual-centered cross-sectional study using patients identified in the Yale-New Haven Hospital Emergency Medicine sepsis registry. Results: We included 295 patients in the study with 47.5% (n=140) having a sustained SI elevation in the ED. Among patients with a sustained SI elevation, 38.6% (54 of 140) required vasopressors within 72 hours of ED admission contrasted to 11.6% (18 of 155) without a sustained SI elevation (p=0.0001; multivariate modeling OR 4.42 with 95% confidence intervals 2.28–8.55) . In the SI elevation group the mean number of organ failures was 4.0 ± 2.1 contrasted to 3.2 ± 1.6 in the non-SI elevation group (p=0.0001). Conclusion: ED patients with severe sepsis and a sustained SI elevation appear to have higher rates of short-term vasopressor use, and a greater number of organ failures contrasted to patients without a sustained SI elevation. An elevated SI may be a useful modality to identify patients with severe sepsis at risk for disease escalation and cardiovascular collapse.
Fragmented rural labour markets

Rural labour markets in India and elsewhere are fragmented by villages. This article analyses inter‐village mobility barriers, insider‐outsider differentiation and the nature of the intra‐village labour exchange. Unemployment reduces the opportunity cost of labour to peasants below an institutionally‐determined wage while lack of ‘familiarity’ raises the cost of recruiting and employing non‐village labourers to village employers above that wage. Hence, patron‐client relations between village employers and employees benefit both and will be the characteristic form of labour exchange. Under appropriate conditions, sharecropping may also emerge as a way of organising production and of sharing the rents within villages.
Low-Dose Hyperradiosensitivity: Is There a Place for Future Investigation in Clinical Settings?

Background and Purpose In vitro radiation doses of below 0.5 Gy have been shown to be more effective than higher doses per unit dose in killing clonogenic cells of many epithelial tumor cell lines. This phenomenon is known as low-dose hyperradiosensitivity. Preclinical studies have now suggested that there is synergism between chemotherapy and low-dose fractionated radiotherapy (LD-FRT). To test the clinical efficacy of this approach, we prospectively evaluated concurrent palliative chemotherapy and LD-FRT in patients with various types of epithelial tumors. Methods and Materials Patients suffering from relapses or metastases of epithelial tumors were scheduled to receive concurrent LD-FRT (two fractions of 0.4 Gy per day) and chemotherapy. Radiologic assessments were performed after three cycles of chemotherapy plus LD-FRT. Results Between June 2006 and October 2007, 12 patients with lung cancer, 7 patients with head-and-neck tumors, 2 patients with breast cancer, and 1 patient with esophageal carcinoma, for a total patient population of 22, underwent concomitant LD-FRT and chemotherapy. All patients but 3 (86%) had received previous treatments for their cancer. The median total dose of LD-FRT delivered was 800 cGy (range, 320–1280 cGy). The overall response rate was 45% (42% in previously treated patients). Grade 3–4 hematologic toxicities (Radiation Therapy Oncology Group ratings) were observed in 2 patients. At a median follow-up of 6.5 months, however, no local toxicity was observed. Conclusion In our experience, concurrent LD-FRT and chemotherapy was well tolerated. Because the response rate seems promising, prospective Phase II studies of the strategy are now under way.
The Rise of the German Universities

Author's summary.— From the middle ages to the present day one can distinguish ten periods which contributed to the founding of most German universities. The reason for their establishment and the historical influences which molded the development of higher learning in Germany are set forth.
Maintaining verified software

Maintaining software in the face of evolving dependencies is a challenging problem, and in addition to good release practices there is a need for automatic dependency analysis tools to avoid errors creeping in. Verified software reveals more semantic information in the form of mechanized proofs of functional specifications, and this can be used for dependency analysis. In this paper we present a scheme for automatic dependency analysis of verified software, which for each program checks that the collection of installed libraries is sufficient to guarantee its functional correctness. We illustrate the scheme with a case study of Haskell packages verified in higher order logic. The dependency analysis reduces the burden of maintaining verified Haskell packages by automatically computing version ranges for the packages they depend on, such that any combination provides the functionality required for correct operation.
Cost effectiveness of a short-term pediatric neurosurgical brigade to Guatemala.

Objective With subspecialty surgical care often unavailable to poor patients in developing countries, short-term brigades have filled a portion of the gap. We prospectively assessed the cost effectiveness of a pediatric neurosurgical brigade to Guatemala City, Guatemala. Methods Data were collected on a weeklong annual pediatric neurosurgical brigade to Guatemala. Disability adjusted life-years (DALYs) averted were the metric of surgical effectiveness. Cost data included brigade expenses, as well as all costs incurred by the local health care system and patient families. Results During the mission, 17 pediatric neurosurgical interventions were performed. Conditions these patients suffered would result in 382 total DALYs. Using conservative values of surgical effectiveness, procedures performed averted 138.1 DALYs. Although all operative and postoperative costs were covered by the visiting surgical team, patients spent an average of $226 in U.S. dollars for preoperative workup, travel, food/lodging, and lost wages (range, $36–$538). The local health care system absorbed a total cost of $12,910. Complete mission costs were $53,152, for a cost effectiveness of $385 per DALY averted. Conclusions To our knowledge, this is the first study evaluating cost effectiveness of a short-term neurosurgical brigade. Although surgical intervention is acknowledged as playing a crucial role in global health, subspecialty surgical care is still broadly perceived as a luxury. Although providing care through local surgeons is undeniably more efficient than bringing in foreign medical teams, such care is not universally available. This study argues that volunteer neurosurgical teams can provide high complexity care with a competitive cost-effective profile.
A simple technique for estimating operative environmental temperature

Abstract 1. 1.|Operative environmental temperature (Tc) is commonly measured using a taxidermic mount consisting of a hollow copper cast of an animal's body covered by the animal's integument. We compare estimates of Tc made using such mounts with those derived from use of painted metal sphere thermometers, which are easier to construct and more rugged than taxidermic mounts. 2. 2.|Comparison of data for 4 bird species indicates that metal spheres may be acceptable Tc-thermometers for analyses involving multiple measurements over moderately long time-scales (e.g. several hours). 3. 3.|In this case, positive and negative differences between operative temperature estimated from use of taxidermic mounts and painted spheres tend to compensate and the average difference is usually less than 2°C. This difference is similar to that resulting from postural variation of taxidermic mounts or variation among individual mounts in identical postures. 4. 4.|Sensitivity analysis indicates that use of painted spheres is unlikely to be an important source of error in estimates of total daily energy expenditure. 5. 5.|In contrast, use of painted sphere thermometers in analyses involving fewer measurements over shorter-time scales can produce unacceptable discrepancies from values obtained from taxidermic mounts (i.e. up to 6.3°C).
Stochastic theory of line shape. II. Nonsecular effects in the EPR spectrum of CO 2 - in calcite

The random-phase-approximation result derived in the preceding paper is used to study the EPR line shape of CO 2 - defects in CaCO 3 . Relaxation is caused by a thermally activated mechanism due to which the oxygen ions hop between three equivalent sites in the (111) plane. As a result, the Zeeman Hamiltonian jumps at random between three different forms with equal probability. The calculated spectra for different values of the relaxation rate agree well with the experimental results of Hughes and Soos. At high temperatures, an additional spin-relaxation mechanism is shown to account for the observed residual linewidth when the external magnetic field is along the crystal trigonal axis.
A Shallow Water Model of the Winter Stratosphere.

The shallow water equations are used to investigate the interaction of planetary wave-breaking with a 'diabatic' forcing. The numerical integrations demonstrate the formation of a sharp gradient in potential vorticity at the edge of the polar vortex, despite 'diabatic relaxation' toward a smooth gradient. Successive cycles of Rossby wave-breaking accentuate the distinction between the vortex and the surf-zone. Persistent easterly acceleration in the tropics eventually produces a flow regime of little relevance to the atmosphere. For the period when the flow has some qualitative resemblance to the middle stratosphere diffusion coefficients are calculated from the meridional fluxes of potential vorticity and of passive tracers. It is found that the unique dynamical nature of potential vorticity among tracers is not reflected in its diffusion coefficient.
Measuring the concept of marital quality as social indicators in urban China

The research reported in this article examines the theoretical and empirical dimensionality of marital quality in urban Chinese marriages. Using survey data from the People's Republic of China, the author carried out a series of confirmatory factor analyses (CFA). Results revealed that the quality of urban Chinese Marriages can be conceptualized as a two-factorial and multidimensional construct. To further validate and generalize this conceptualization, the very same CFA models were tested in both arranged and free choice marriages. The finding indicated that marital quality can be indeed measured by marital interaction, marital satisfaction, marital disagreement, marital problem, and marital instability indicators. This result is consistent with the marital quality literature in the United States.
Statistical Simulation of the IC Manufacturing Process

Information about the random behavior of the IC manufacturing process can be applied for IC and process design tasks. In this paper a methodology for modeling random fluctuations of IC manufacturing process is proposed. A simulator of a complete bipolar manufacturing process called FABRICS, is described. A few applications illustrating advantages of the proposed statistical process modeling method are discussed.
Ratios of bacterial cells to Entamoeba histolytica trophozoites in cultures

Abstract When relatively fresh bacterial cells were used in MS-F type Entamoeba histolytica cultures, a minimum of 4400 bacterial cells (colony-forming units) sufficed, on the average, to produce each new amebal trophozoite of the F22 strain. Evidence is presented that indicates that this number of bacterial cells reflects a nutritional limit for ameba growth rather than a requirement for the amount of metabolic activity which these cells provide. When suboptimal quantities of fresh bacterial cells were employed together with attenuated bacterial cells, it was found that as few as 2000 fresh cells sufficed to stimulate the production of each new trophozoite. This lower number probably reflects a limiting level of metabolic activity by the associate organism. This required metabolic activity may be expended in the conditioning of the culture fluid rather than in a direct action upon the ameba.
Protection of Pipelines in Shipping Lanes

Design implies choice from among alternatives — for each alternative solution the designer should assess the total associated risk. The total risk is a composite of both the likelihood of various levels of hazards, and the uncertainty in the response behaviour of the system. The selection or decision process demands a weighing of the costs, risks, and benefits of the alternatives. Using an example, a probabilistic method is outlined for deciding upon the depth of burial of pipelines in shipping lanes. Producing a well-engineered solution to this problem involves the synthesis of many kinds of information. There is a requirement to analyse statistical information on the types of hazards, their frequencies and their possible growth. There is also generally a choice of measures that can be used to protect the pipeline. The choice of protective measure demands a weighing of costs, risks, and benefits and must also include any characteristic which leads to economic or other losses. In this paper each hazard is classified into five levels based on the amount of damage a hazard could impart on the system (this is termed the “demand levels”). These demand levels, when subjected to the system, result in various damage states. The damage states, which are assumed to be the cost of repair or replacement, are also represented in five discrete forms. These five general states of damage are defined in terms of such loss-related factors as level of repair cost, degree of the structural and non-structural damage and the fraction of people injured or killed.Copyright © 2005 by ASME
Eigenvalue and Eigenfunction Asymptotics for Regular Sturm-Liouville Problems

Abstract In this paper, we obtain asymptotic formulas for eigenvalues, eigenfunctions, and the reciprocals of the eigenfunction norms for eigenvalue problems associated with the general Sturm-Liouville equation ( pu ′)′ + (λ r − q ) u = 0 having regular endpoints. The method is based on a conversion to Liouville Normal Form and an iterative procedure of solving the associated Volterra integral equation, producing an asymptotic expansion of the solution in higher powers of 1/λ 1/2 as λ → ∞.
Role of Novel Anticoagulants for Patients with Mechanical Heart Valves

The introduction of the target-specific oral anticoagulants (TSOACs) has led to a major shift in the management of patients at risk for thrombosis. The landscape continues to evolve as the evidence regarding their efficacy and safety in various clinical situations emerges. Antithrombotic therapy for thromboprophylaxis in patients with mechanical heart valves is challenging. To date, the RE-ALIGN trial comparing dabigatran etexilate to warfarin is the only randomized controlled study in this patient population. The higher risk of thromboembolic and bleeding events in the group of patients who received dabigatran compared with warfarin reinforced current guidelines recommending against the use of TSOACs in patients with mechanical heart valves. However, additional studies are needed to find suitable alternatives to vitamin K antagonists in this unique patient population.
Middle‐Class African American Parents’ Conceptions of Parenting in Early Adolescence

Conceptions of parenting were examined in 87 middle-class African American parents (87 mothers and 51 fathers) of early adolescents (M= 13.11 years of age). Using semistructured interviews, parents were queried about two developmentally salient issues of early adolescence: parental limit-setting and adolescent independence. Parents primarily defined firm limits in terms of nonnegotiation, strongly endorsed setting firm limits regarding a range of issues, and justified the importance of limits by focusing on adolescents’ socialization and psychological development. Mothers rated limiting adolescents’ behavior as more important than permitting or encouraging adolescents’ independence. Limits were seen as more important by mothers of younger rather than older early adolescent females, but mothers encouraged independence more for younger rather than older early adolescent males. Mothers permitted independent decisions regarding a limited range of issues such as clothes and appearance, based on psychological concerns with adolescents’ developing autonomy and competence; they encouraged independence primarily by encouraging greater responsibility. The results demonstrate that there is considerable heterogeneity in African American parents’ beliefs and goals about parenting in early adolescence.
Differentiating Careers from Jobs in the Search for Dual-Career Couples:

Members of social categories with multifaceted definitions are often sampled using only one or two characteristics, generating theoretical and methodological problems. Here, the author examines the case of “dual-career” couples. The author tests how closely respondents' and scholars' distinctions between careers versus jobs correspond and how well selected definition models capture career-oriented couples. Members of fifty-one married couples self-identify as having a job or career and then explain how they differentiate those concepts. Respondents' rationales correspond well to scholarly definitions, focusing primarily on time and emotional investments, and less on advancement or income. Work orientation generally varies, as predicted, by education and work characteristics, although many people presumed to be career-oriented report having jobs (e.g., professional women), and vice versa (e.g., part-time workers). Systematic tests of definition models suggest that many sampling approaches used in dual-care...
Virulence attributes of low-virulence organisms.

The vast majority of infections involving female pelvic structures arise from organisms that are members of the normal flora. In addition, exogenous organisms that invade through the lower genital tract must interact with organisms that are part of the host's flora. In contrast to the concept that the normal flora is entirely innocuous, recent research has begun to identify what appear to be virulence attributes among these ordinarily low-virulence organisms. Most of our understanding of virulence has been derived from highly virulent organisms, of which Neisseria gonorrhoeae provides an example of relevance to the female genital tract. A review of the virulence factors of the gonococcus is presented to serve as an example of the variety of virulence properties associated with pathogenic bacteria. Molecular biology has begun to clarify one of the important paradigms of pathogenic bacteriology—that bacteria change their expression of virulence properties in response to their location within a host or to the stage of infection. Thus, infection involves not only the possession of virulence factors, but also the carefully controlled use of those factors. Virulence is often controlled by the coordinate expression of many virulence-associated genes in response to one environmental signal. With regard to low- virulence organisms present in the female lower genital tract, we are beginning to identify some of their virulence attributes. Examples from the work of our laboratory include the hemolysin of Gardnerella vaginalis and an immunosuppressive mycotoxin produced by Candida albicans. Demonstrating the coordinate expression (or other control mechanisms) of virulence factors in these sometimes innocuous and sometimes inimical organisms represents the next frontier in the study of normal vaginal microbiology.
Journalism’s “Crazy Old Aunt”: Helen Thomas and Paradigm Repair

Veteran White House correspondent Helen Thomas abruptly retired in summer 2010 after she gave unscripted remarks widely perceived to be anti-Semitic. This case study applies paradigm repair and att...
The diagnosis of primary biliary cirrhosis

Primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) is a chronic liver disease characterized by the immune mediated destruction of small intrahepatic bile duct epithelial cells leading to cholestasis and cirrhosis. The autoimmune basis of PBC is supported by the highly specific anti-mitochondrial antibodies (AMAs) and autoreactive T cells, the former being the basis for diagnosis in the vast majority of cases. Although a rare disease, the incidence rates of PBC have been increasing, possibly due to increased testing and diagnosis as opposed to a true increase in disease incidence. Presently, most cases are asymptomatic and only suspected based upon routine liver tests. Those with symptoms typically complain of pruritus and fatigue. The diagnosis of PBC is based on the presence of at least 2 of 3 key criteria including a persistently elevated serum alkaline phosphatase, the presence of serum AMAs, and liver histology consistent with PBC. Anti-nuclear antibodies specific to PBC are useful in cases in which AMAs are not detected and may indicate a more aggressive course. Ursodeoxycholic acid is the only proven therapy for PBC and in most cases can delay or prevent disease progression. However, a subgroup of patients does not adequately respond to ursodeoxycholic acid and for whom new therapies are needed.
Second Language Reading Strategy Instruction: Its Effects on Comprehension and Word Inference Ability

ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines for Reading have brought attention to the complex array of skills which constitute L2 reading proficiency as well as to issues surrounding the development of reading proficiency. Consequently, a small but increasing number of researchers, curriculum designers, and teachers are now thinking of ways in which to help L2 readers develop such skills as making and confirming predictions, creating pre-reading expectations, identifying a text's macro-structure, and using textual redundancy, context, signalling cues, and background knowledge to enhance comprehension. One widely recommended method of improving learners' ability to comprehend L2 texts is explicit instruction in reading comprehension strategies.' This study evaluates the effect of such instruction on intermediate-level French
The spatial characteristics of atrial activation in ventriculo-atrial excitation.

Spatial characteristics of atrial activation were analyzed in arrhythmias displaying a ventriculo-atrial sequence of excitation: junctional rhythm with preceding ventricular activation, “reciprocal” atrial beating, complete or high-grade A-V block with ventriculoatrial response and ventricular extrasystoles with ventriculoatrial response. It was found that the coupled P waves were markedly dissimilar with regard to their polarity and vectorial characteristics. Vectorial analysis suggested that the course of the anomalous atrial activation is consistent with an A-V nodal origin of impulses in a minority of cases only, while in the majority the depolarization process appeared to originate in various portions of both atria. This interpretation is in conflict with the theory postulating retrograde conduction of impulses through or from the A-V node as the basic mechanism of ventriculo-atrial excitation, and raises the possibility that the “retrograde” P waves are frequently due to stimuli originating in various automatic atrial centers induced, in some way, by the preceding ventricular activity.
The desorption of CO from small Pt particles on Al2O3

Abstract The adsorption of CO on small Pt particles supported on alumina was studied using temperature programmed desorption (TPD). Samples were prepared by vapor deposition of Pt onto a flat substrate in ultra high vacuum. Metal coverages were reproducibly obtained using a film thickness monitor which was calibrated with Auger electron spectroscopy (AES). AES results indicated that Pt grew in a layer-by-layer manner on alumina at both 90 and 300 K and that these metal films aggregated into particles when heated above 650 K in vacuum. The average particle size could be estimated from the amount of CO desorbing in TPD and from the metal coverage and could be varied from 1.1 nm up to a continuous film. For the smallest particles, CO desorbed in a single state at 510 K. For larger particles, a second desorption state at 400 K was also observed. Since the desorption of CO occurs at similar temperatures on single crystals of Pt, these results indicate that the adsorption properties for CO on small particles of Pt on alumina are very similar to those for CO on bulk Pt. The change in the relative populations of the two desorption states with increasing particle size is interpreted as evidence for the formation of (111)-type facets on the larger particles.
An X-ray diffraction comparison of myelins from the human nervous system.

Earlier small-angle X-ray diffraction studies have indicated that central and peripheral nerve myelins may be significantly different structurally, although relatively few examples for each system and for individual species have been examined. In order to understand better the intra- and inter-system relationships, this study has developed more extensive information for a single species: six cases centrally and ten peripherally, featuring cranial nerves and a few others of the human nervous system. Peripheral myelin spacings (membrane pair thicknesses) are relatively similar, 184.4 +/- 1.40 A, and the ratios of diffraction peak height intensities of the second to fourth orders are also closely bunched: 1.85 +/- 0.216. Central myelin spacings and intensity ratios are distinctly different and more variable: spacings 160.3-165.8 A and intensity ratios 2.81-4.46. It appears that within a given species or between closely related (e.g., mammalian) species peripheral myelins possess relatively invariant structures, though significant spacing declines are encountered for both systems as phylogenetic relationships become more distant. The observed greater variability of CNS structures within a single species may correspond to known compositional differences between CNS regions or result from observational difficulties. In any case there is a marked discontinuity between the myelin structures of CNS and PNS nerves.
D1 dopamine receptor blockade prevents the facilitation of amphetamine self-administration induced by prior exposure to the drug.

Prior exposure to amphetamine leads to sensitized locomotor responding to subsequent injections and an enhanced predisposition to self-administer low doses of the drug. Because D1 dopamine (DA) receptors have been shown to play an important role in the development of sensitized locomotor responding to amphetamine, the present experiment assessed their contribution to the development of facilitated amphetamine self-administration produced by prior exposure to the drug. During a pre-exposure phase, rats were administered two injections on each of 10 consecutive days. The first injection (saline, 1 ml/kg, i.p., or the D1 DA receptor antagonist SCH23390, 0.04 mg/kg, s.c.) preceded the second (saline or amphetamine, 1.5 mg/kg, i.p.) by 30 min. Starting 10 days after the last injection, animals were given the opportunity to lever press for a low dose of amphetamine (10 microg/kg per infusion) in a two-lever (active versus inactive) continuous reinforcement operant task, in each of seven daily sessions. Consistent with previous reports, prior exposure to amphetamine resulted in an increase in active versus inactive lever pressing. Blocking D1 DA receptors with SCH23390 prior to each of the amphetamine pre-exposure injections prevented the development of this enhanced self-administration of amphetamine. When animals were grouped according to their locomotor response to a novel environment (assessed prior to the experiment), it was found, again in agreement with previous reports, that enhanced drug self-administration (as indicated by increased active versus inactive lever pressing as well as shorter latencies to emit the first active lever press, shorter inter-response times and more time-out responses on this lever) was observed only in amphetamine pre-exposed rats that had shown a locomotor response to novelty above the median of the subject sample (high responders). Preceding the amphetamine pre-exposure injections with SCH23390 blocked the development of enhanced drug self-administration observed in these animals. These findings, indicating that manipulations known to block the induction of locomotor and dopaminergic sensitization by amphetamine also block the facilitation of drug self-administration, suggest an important and common role for D1 DA receptor activation in the development of enhanced responding to and for drug.
Ultrathin nitrided gate dielectrics by plasma-assisted processing

Ultrathin (<3nm) gate dielectrics made by plasma nitridation of SiO 2 films have been studied by a combination of physical (ellipsometry, Nuclear Reaction Analysis, Medium Energy Ion Scattering, and Atomic Force Microscopy) and electrical (C-V, I-V, and constant voltage stress) methods. The main observation we report here is a reduction of leakage current in the nitrided oxides at the expense of reduced (peak) mobility, flatband voltage shift (for high concentration of incorporated nitrogen) and lower breakdown strength.