cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Internal fixation for lumbosacral fusion.

By the placement of screws through the lateral articulations, rigid internal fixation can be secured in the lumbar spine-fusion operation. The position in which the joint is to be ankylosed can be accurately controlled, and the necessity for prolonged immobihization in plaster is eliminated. Forty (90 per cent.) of forty-four patients operated upon have solid bony fusion after two to seven years. The osseous fusion develops slowly while the patient is ambulatory.
A least-squares model specification test for a class of dynamic nonlinear economic models with systematically varying parameters

The problem of structural instability in estimated macroeconomic relationships has recently surfaced anew, due to a series of articles by the rational expectations school. A key explanation for the observed instability is said to be that the parameters appearing in modelled macroeconomic relationships, traditionally treated as constant or purely random, must realistically be viewed as the reflections of the demand and supply decisions of optimizing agents in the economy reacting rationally to changes in endogenous and exogenous variables, including changes induced by shifts in government policy decision rules. The present paper develops a least-squares measure for simultaneously testing the basic compatibility of prior dynamical, observational, and distributional model specifications against actual data for a class of dynamic nonlinear economic models with parameters explicitly modelled as nonlinear functions of endogenous and exogenous variables. Using invariant imbedding techniques, an algorithm is derived for sequentially updating the optimal least-squares estimates for parameters, endogenous variables, and squared residual modelling error sums as the duration of the process increases and new observations are obtained.
Performance metrics for the evaluation of hyperspectral chemical identification systems

Remote sensing of chemical vapor plumes is a difficult but important task for many military and civilian applications. Hyperspectral sensors operating in the long-wave infrared regime have well-demonstrated detection capabilities. However, the identification of a plume’s chemical constituents, based on a chemical library, is a multiple hypothesis testing problem which standard detection metrics do not fully describe. We propose using an additional performance metric for identification based on the so-called Dice index. Our approach partitions and weights a confusion matrix to develop both the standard detection metrics and identification metric. Using the proposed metrics, we demonstrate that the intuitive system design of a detector bank followed by an identifier is indeed justified when incorporating performance information beyond the standard detection metrics.
Profit Gap Analysis on the Small Scale Production of Shallot: A Case Study in a Small Village in East Java Province of Indonesia

This study attempts to contribute to poverty alleviation through increasing efficiency of input allocation which can raise profit of the small scale farmers without changing the technology they use. Accordingly, this study addresses the problem of allocative inefficiency and profit gap of the farmer’s shallot production. Double-log production function and polynomial cost function are applied to measure the profit gap analysis. The empirical results from double-log production function confirm that land, labor, fertilizer, and pesticide are allocated by farmers inefficiently. Furthermore, three simulations for efficient inputs allocation and profit gap analysis are taken into account based on the costs level spent by the farmers. The result shows that profit gaps are 4.72 percent, 13.96 percent and 17.92 percent for low, middle, and high input costs level, respectively.
Enantioselective Formal Syntheses of 11 Nuphar Alkaloids and Discovery of Potent Apoptotic Monomeric Analogues.

Concise, scalable, and enantioselective formal syntheses of eight dimeric and three monomeric nuphar alkaloids were achieved, along with the construction of a stereochemically diverse collection of the first known monomeric analogues having apoptotic activity. The syntheses involved the development of highly enantioselective Bronsted acid catalyzed vinylogous Mukaiyama-Mannich reactions, which feature the unprecedented use of a supersilyl group to control the regio-, enantio- and diastereoselectivity. Biological studies reveal that several of these novel nuphar analogues are even more potent than their dimeric natural product counterparts.
Patience auctions: the impact of time vs. money bidding on elicited discount rates

We introduce, test, and compare two auction-based methods for eliciting discount rates. In these “patience auctions”, participants bid the smallest future sum they would prefer -or- the longest time they would wait for a reward, rather than receive a smaller, immediate payoff. The most patient bidder receives the delayed reward; all others receive the immediate payoff. These auctions allow us to compare discounting when participants’ attention is focused on the temporal versus monetary dimension of delayed rewards. We find that the estimated parameters in the three most commonly used discount functions (exponential, hyperbolic, and quasi-hyperbolic) differ across these two bidding methods (time-bids vs. money-bids). Specifically, our participants tend to show more impatience under time-bids. Furthermore, we find that people are more likely to exhibit exponential (as opposed to hyperbolic) discounting and exhibit less present bias under time-bids, compared to money-bids. To our knowledge, this paper is the first to directly compare time versus money preference elicitations, within the same subjects, using an incentive-compatible mechanism.
Matching titles with cross title web-search enrichment and community detection

Title matching refers roughly to the following problem. We are given two strings of text obtained from different data sources. The texts refer to some underlying physical entities and the problem is to report whether the two strings refer to the same physical entity or not. There are manifestations of this problem in a variety of domains, such as product or bibliography matching, and location or person disambiguation.We propose a new approach to solving this problem, consisting of two main components. The first component uses Web searches to "enrich" the given pair of titles: making titles that refer to the same physical entity more similar, and those which do not, much less similar. A notion of similarity is then measured using the second component, where the tokens from the two titles are modelled as vertices of a "social" network graph. A "strength of ties" style of clustering algorithm is then applied on this to see whether they form one cohesive "community" (matching titles), or separately clustered communities (mismatching titles). Experimental results confirm the effectiveness of our approach over existing title matching methods across several input domains.
How was the Quantitative Easing Program of the 1930s Unwound

Abstract Outside of the recent past, excess reserves have only concerned policymakers in one other period: the Great Depression. The data show that excess reserves in the 1930s were never actively unwound through a reduction in the monetary base. Nominal economic growth swelled required reserves while an exogenous reduction in monetary gold inflows due to war embargoes in Europe allowed excess reserves to naturally decline towards zero. Excess reserves fell rapidly in early 1941 and would have unwound fully even without the entry of the United States into World War II. Consequently, policy tightening was at no point necessary and could have contributed to the 1937–1938 Recession.
The single-species metagenome: subtyping Staphylococcus aureus core genome sequences from shotgun metagenomic data

In this study we developed a genome-based method for detecting Staphylococcus aureus subtypes from metagenome shotgun sequence data. We used a binomial mixture model and the coverage counts at >100,000 known S. aureus SNP (single nucleotide polymorphism) sites derived from prior comparative genomic analysis to estimate the proportion of 40 subtypes in metagenome samples. We were able to obtain >87% sensitivity and >94% specificity at 0.025X coverage for S. aureus. We found that 321 and 149 metagenome samples from the Human Microbiome Project and metaSUB analysis of the New York City subway, respectively, contained S. aureus at genome coverage >0.025. In both projects, CC8 and CC30 were the most common S. aureus clonal complexes encountered. We found evidence that the subtype composition at different body sites of the same individual were more similar than random sampling and more limited evidence that certain body sites were enriched for particular subtypes. One surprising finding was the apparent high frequency of CC398, a lineage often associated with livestock, in samples from the tongue dorsum. Epidemiologic analysis of the HMP subject population suggested that high BMI (body mass index) and health insurance are possibly associated with S. aureus carriage but there was limited power to identify factors linked to carriage of even the most common subtype. In the NYC subway data, we found a small signal of geographic distance affecting subtype clustering but other unknown factors influence taxonomic distribution of the species around the city.
Diastereo- and enantioselective reactions of bis(pinacolato)diboron, 1,3-enynes, and aldehydes catalyzed by an easily accessible bisphosphine-Cu complex.

Catalytic enantioselective multicomponent processes involving bis(pinacolato)diboron [B2(pin)2], 1,3-enynes, and aldehydes are disclosed; the resulting compounds contain a primary C–B(pin) bond, as well as alkyne- and hydroxyl-substituted tertiary carbon stereogenic centers. A critical feature is the initial enantioselective Cu–B(pin) addition to an alkyne-substituted terminal alkene. This and other key mechanistic issues have been investigated by DFT calculations. Reactions are promoted by the Cu complex of a commercially available enantiomerically pure bis-phosphine and are complete in 8 h at ambient temperature; products are generated in 66–94% yield (after oxidation or catalytic cross-coupling), 90:10 to >98:2 diastereomeric ratio, and 85:15–99:1 enantiomeric ratio. Aryl-, heteroaryl-, alkenyl-, and alkyl-substituted aldehydes and enynes can be used. Utility is illustrated through catalytic alkylation and arylation of the organoboron products as well as applications to synthesis of fragments of tylono...
Monoclinic Sr1–xNaxSiO3–0.5x: New Superior Oxide Ion Electrolytes

Oxide ion electrolytes determine the temperature of operation of solid oxide fuel cells, oxygen separation membranes, and oxygen sensors. There is a strong incentive to lower their operating temperatures, in a solid oxide fuel cell, for example, from Top > 800 °C to Top ≈ 500 °C. The use of low-cost Na+ rather than K+ as the dopant in monoclinic SrSiO3 (C12/C1) is shown to provide a larger solid solution range (0 < x ≤ 0.45) in Sr1–xNaxSiO3–0.5x and to achieve an oxide ion conductivity σo ≥ 10–2 S·cm–1 by 525 °C as a result of lowering the temperature of a smooth transition to full disorder of the mobile oxide ions. The Sr1–xNaxSiO3–0.5x electrolytes are much less hygroscopic than Sr1–xKxSiO3–0.5x and are stable with a nickel composite anode in 5% H2/Ar as well as with cathodes such as La1–xSrxMnO3−δ and Sr0.7Y0.3CoO3−δ in air, which makes them candidate electrolytes for intermediate-temperature solid oxide fuel cells or for other applications of oxide ion electrolytes.
Structural Characterization of the Solvate Complexes of the Lithium Salts of Diorganophosphides and Phosphinideneborates; A Pathway to Phosphorus-Boron Double Bonds

Abstract The structures of several solvated lithium diorganophosphides are described. These may take a variety of structures including chain-like polymers with alternating Li+ and PR2 − groups, dimeric species with PR2 − groups bridging two Li+ ions or mononuclear species having terminal −PR2 groups which have pyramidal geometries at phosphorus. The Li+ ions in all structures are solvated by either THF or Et2O bases. Separation of the Li+ can be effected using 12-crown-4 to coordinate Li+ as [Li(12-crown-4)2]+ affording free [PR2]− counterions. An extension of these techniques has led to the synthesis of the first compounds which have B-P double bonds. These are the compounds [Li(Et2O)2PRBMes2] and [Li(12-crown-4)2][PRBMes2](R=Ph, C6H11,Mes) which have B-P bond lengths of 1.82 – 1.83A.
Arbiter of science: Institutionalization and status effects in FDA drug review 1990–2004:

In this article the author proposes that firm status has a significant effect on the regulatory evaluation process. Regulators rely on external signals of quality such as status to resolve uncertai...
Deferred Revenues and the Matching of Revenues and Expenses

An increase in the complexity of firms’ contracts with customers, combined with changes in reporting regulations, has resulted in a substantial increase in revenue deferrals in recent years. Between 2002 and 2009, each year nearly forty percent of industrial firms on COMPUSTAT reported a deferred revenue liability, with the liability averaging at least ten percent of sales revenue. This study examines the implications of revenue deferrals for firms’ financial statements, equity values, and for analysts’ forecasts of sales and earnings. When revenues are deferred but some of the associated expenses are recognized as incurred, revenue deferrals depress current margins and improve margins in the period in which revenue is recognized. Analysis in this paper shows that the deferral of revenues without the capitalization of associated costs adversely affects earnings predictability, which, in turn, results in significant errors in analyst forecasts of both sales and margins and in mispriced securities. The results show that market participants use current sales and margins to predict future earnings without making adequate adjustments for the fact that revenue deferrals depress current sales and margins and inflate future sales and margins. Therefore, when revenue deferrals increase, analysts underestimate future earnings and investors undervalue the firm. Conversely, when revenue deferrals decrease, analysts overestimate future earnings and investors overvalue the firm.
Private and verifiable interdomain routing decisions

Existing secure interdomain routing protocols can verify validity properties about individual routes, such as whether they correspond to a real network path. It is often useful to verify more complex properties relating to the route decision procedure -- for example, whether the chosen route was the best one available, or whether it was consistent with the network's peering agreements. However, this is difficult to do without knowing a network's routing policy and full routing state, which are not normally disclosed. In this paper, we show how a network can allow its peers to verify a number of nontrivial properties of its interdomain routing decisions without revealing any additional information. If all the properties hold, the peers learn nothing beyond what the interdomain routing protocol already reveals; if a property does not hold, at least one peer can detect this and prove the violation. We present SPIDeR, a practical system that applies this approach to the Border Gateway Protocol, and we report results from an experimental evaluation to demonstrate that SPIDeR has a reasonable overhead.
First-principles simulations and shock Hugoniot calculations of warm dense neon

All-electron path integral Monte Carlo (PIMC) and density functional theory molecular dynamics (DFT-MD) simulations provide a consistent, first-principles investigation of warm dense neon plasmas in the density-temperature range of 1--15 g ${\mathrm{cm}}^{\ensuremath{-}3}$ and ${10}^{4}--{10}^{9}$ K. At high temperatures, DFT-MD becomes intractable because of too many partially occupied bands, while at lower temperatures, PIMC is intractable because of the free-particle approximation of fermion nodes. In combination, PIMC and DFT-MD pressures and internal energies provide a coherent equation of state with a region of overlap in which the two methods cross-validate each other. Pair-correlation functions at various temperatures and densities provide details of the plasma structure and the temperature-driven ionization process. The electronic density of states of neon shows that a gap persists for the highest density-temperature conditions studied here with DFT-MD. Finally, the computed shock Hugoniot curves show an increase in compression as the first and second shells are ionized.
Debt Erosion and the Market Process

This paper explores the effects of debt erosion on the market process. Debt erosion is the attempt by government to lower the real value of its debt through the creation of unexpected inflation. In addition to the costs recognised by most economists, debt erosion through unexpected inflation can impair the price system's ability to coordinate exchange activity and can result in costly capital misallocations. This is because the creation of unexpected inflation implies disequilibrium in the money market. To avoid the harm from such monetary shocks, this paper suggests a separation between money and state, enshrined in an explicit rule at the constitutional level.
Diastereo- and Enantioselective Addition of Anilide-Functionalized Allenoates to N-Acylimines Catalyzed by a Pyridylalanine-Based Peptide

A selective peptide-catalyzed addition of allenic esters to N-acylimines is reported. Tetrasubstituted allenes were achieved with up to 42:1 diastereomeric ratio and 94:6 enantiomeric ratio (up to 99:1 er after recrystallization of the major diastereomer). An exploration of the role of individual amino acids within the peptide was undertaken. The scope of the reaction was explored and revealed heightened reactivity with thioester-containing allenes. A mechanistic framework that may account for the observed reactivity is also described.
Understanding the Factors Underlying Variation in Detection Errors of Video- and Thermal-Imaging Cameras

Video-imaging technology has long been used for vehicle detection at signalized intersections. This technology provides many advantages over conventional inductive loops. Video-imaging cameras are easier and safer to install and maintain; the cameras cause no damage to the pavement; and detection zones can be adjusted or redrawn when travel lanes are realigned or reassigned as a result of widening or remarking of the pavement. Despite the advantages, video-imaging cameras are generally susceptible to varying lighting conditions. Thermal-imaging cameras produce images on the basis of the difference in thermal energy emitted by objects and do not rely on visible light. Thus, the cameras are more robust in various lighting conditions. In this paper, both video-imaging and thermal-imaging technologies were evaluated for stop bar vehicle detection at signalized intersections. The detection errors were correlated with concurrent weather and environmental conditions. The performance of both types of cameras appe...
Reduction in Fatal Longitudinal Barrier Crash Rate Due to Electronic Stability Control

Electronic stability control (ESC) is a vehicle safety system designed to keep vehicles moving in the direction commanded by the driver and thereby prevent loss-of-control crashes. Previous research has shown that ESC has been highly effective at reducing road departures related to loss of control. ESC is mandatory in all U.S. passenger vehicles manufactured from model year 2012 onward; by a 2014 estimate, ESC is in approximately one-third of passenger vehicles on the road. The proliferation of ESC may therefore alter benefit-to-cost ratios for roadside barriers. The objective of this analysis was to determine the effect of ESC on fatal crashes with roadside barriers. This objective was a first step toward determining whether ESC reduced the overall rate of crashes with roadside barriers and whether ESC had any effect on impact conditions or injury outcomes in barrier crashes. For cars, ESC reduced the odds of fatal crashes with roadside barriers by about 50% and reduced the odds of fatal rollovers that o...
The Role of MR Imaging in Evaluating Metastatic Spinal Disease

Fifty-eight patients with suspected epidural metastases were evaluated with MR imaging. Six patients were examined on two separate occasions. MR was judged to be diagnostic in 60 of the 64 examinations. Twenty-two patients also underwent myelography. MR was as diagnostic as myelography in all cases of epidural metastases. In addition, MR offered several advantages over myelography in the evaluation of metastatic spinal disease, including demonstration of paravertebral tumor extension, identification of additional osseous metastatic lesions, and visualization of areas of spinal cord compression occurring between areas of myelographic blocks. We conclude that MR imaging is the examination of choice for evaluating suspected metastatic spinal disease.
Enantioselective polyene cyclizations

The cyclization of polyolefins represents a powerful tool for the rapid generation of molecular complexity. Within the last decade, significant discoveries have been made in the development of methods for converting prochiral polyene substrates into the corresponding polycyclic products with high levels of enantiocontrol. This review highlights advances in the area of enantioselective polyene cyclizations and their use in the synthesis of complex secondary metabolites.
Parallel Equivalence Class Sorting: Algorithms, Lower Bounds, and Distribution-Based Analysis

We study parallel comparison-based algorithms for finding all equivalence classes of a set of $n$ elements, where sorting according to some total order is not possible. Such scenarios arise, for example, in applications, such as in distributed computer security, where each of n agents are working to identify the private group to which they belong, with the only operation available to them being a zero-knowledge pairwise-comparison (which is sometimes called a "secret handshake") that reveals only whether two agents are in the same group or in different groups. We provide new parallel algorithms for this problem, as well as new lower bounds and distribution-based analysis.
Synthesis of the Privileged 8-Arylmenthol Class by Radical Arylation of Isopulegol

Hydrogen atom transfer (HAT) circumvents a disfavored Friedel–Crafts reaction in the derivatization of the inexpensive monoterpene isopulegol. A variety of readily prepared aryl and heteroaryl sulfonates undergo a formal hydroarylation to form 8-arylmenthols, privileged scaffolds for asymmetric synthesis, as typified by 8-phenylmenthol. High stereoselectivity is observed in related systems. This use of HAT significantly extends the chiral pool from the inexpensive monoterpene isopulegol.
Sustainable Agriculture Irrigation Management: The Water-Energy-Food Nexus in Pajaro Valley, California

The water-energy-food (WEF) nexus is quickly becoming one of the most critical global environmental challenges of the twenty first century. However, WEF systems are inherently complex; they typically are dynamic and span multiple land or agro-ecosystems at a regional or global scale. Addressing this challenge requires a systems approach to optimal and sustainable resource management across multiple dimensions. To that end, using Pajaro Valley (California) as a case study, our research aims to (1) highlight synergies and tradeoffs in food and water production, (2) build a dynamic framework capable of examining intertemporal resource relationships, and (3) detail the steps required to develop incentive-compatible financing of the resulting management plans when benefits are not distributed uniformly across users. Using a stylized model, we find that in the long run, inland growers benefit from the halting of seawater intrusion (SWI) due to overpumping of groundwater. We also calculate that the water provided by the proposed College Lake Multi-Objective Management Program-a plan designed to halt SWI and support sustainable water and agricultural development in the region-will generate net revenue of $40-58 million per year, compared to an annualized cost of less than $3 million. An equal cost-sharing plan would be desirable if the benefit of the project exceeded $1,268 per year for each well owner. Since this may not necessarily be the case for smaller well owners, one possible alternative is to allocate costs in proportion to expected benefits for each user.
Secure Computation on Floating Point Numbers.

Secure computation undeniably received a lot of attention in the recent years, with the shift toward cloud computing offering a new incentive for secure computation and outsourcing. Surprisingly little attention, however, has been paid to computation with non-integer data types. To narrow this gap, in this work we develop efficient solutions for computation with real numbers in floating point representation, as well as more complex operations such as square root, logarithm, and exponentiation. Our techniques are information-theoretically secure, do not use expensive cryptographic techniques, and can be applied to a variety of settings. Our experimental results also show that the techniques exhibit rather fast performance and in some cases outperform operations on integers.
RNA as an enzyme.

The catalytic activity of ribonucleic acid is reviewed, with the intervening sequence (IVS) of the ribosomal RNA precursor of Tetrahymena serving as a major example. The IVS catalyzes its own excision from the precursor RNA and at the same time ligation of the flanking sequences, a reaction termed self-splicing. The excised IVS RNA can act as an enzyme to catalyze sequence-specific cleavage and ligation reactions on substrate RNA molecules. The RNA polymerization activity of the IVS supports the possibility that RNA catalysis could have been important in establishing a prebiotic self-replicating system. Other systems in which RNA catalysis has been found include related group I IVSs, group II IVSs, ribonuclease P, and certain plant infectious RNAs.
Low point prevalence of peptic ulcer in normal individuals with Helicobacter pylori infection.

Objective A recent study from Italy reported a high prevalence of ulcer disease in asymptomatic Helicobacter pylori infection. Such results are at variance with previous endoscopy screening studies. Our study was performed to obtain data on ulcer prevalence in normal H. pylori-infected subjects in the United States. Methods One hundred and ninety healthy individuals of either gender, over the age of 18, were studied. After completion of a detailed questionnaire and a urea breath test for H. pylori status, endoscopy was performed. Ulcer was defined as a mucosal ulceration > 5 mm in diameter and with apparent depth. Results There were 108 (57%) women and 82 (43%) men. The mean (+/-SD) age was 38.9 (+/-10.7) yr, range 21-79 yr. Careful history obtained after enrollment revealed presence of dyspeptic symptoms in 35 subjects (18%); the remaining 155 individuals were completely symptom-free. Infection with H. pylori was present in 102 subjects (54%). The infection rate was highest in Hispanics (70%), followed by African-Americans (58%), Caucasians (38%), and Asians (17%). The prevalence increased with age. Only two (1%) of 190 subjects, both with H.pylori infection, had peptic ulcer. In the H. pylori-infected group, the prevalence of peptic ulcer was 2%. Conclusion In the United States, significant unrecognized and asymptomatic gastroduodenal disease is uncommon in H. pylori-infected individuals. These findings do not support the need for a mass screening program for H. pylori infection or for the use of antimicrobial treatment of asymptomatic subjects with this infection.
Effects of anoxia and ischemia on thallium exchange in rabbit myocardium

We investigated the effects of anoxia and ischemia on thallium (201Tl) exchange using isolated rabbit interventricular septa. Anoxia for 20 or 40 min caused a decrease in 201Tl tissue uptake due to an increased efflux of 201Tl with a smaller increase in 201Tl influx. Between 40 and 60 min of anoxia, the increased efflux of 201Tl was reversed and the increase in 201Tl influx was absent. After 60 min of reoxygenation, septa made anoxic for 20-60 min recovered at least 95% of the Tl lost. Mechanical recovery, however, was still significantly depressed. Reperfusion after total ischemia for 20-60 min was followed by resumption of 201Tl uptake despite continued mechanical dysfunction. Efflux rates during reperfusion after ischemia were significantly different from preischemic values but not in a predictable way. This unpredictability complicates interpretation of clinical 201Tl redistribution studies. These results represent important differences from those reported previously using 42K [Am. J. Physiol. 232 (Heart Circ. Physiol. 1): H85-H94 and H564-H570, 1977]. Anoxia did not increase the influx of 42K. Also, 60 min of ischemia resulted in progressive losses of 42K. This implies there are different sensitivities and/or mechanisms for Tl compared with K uptake. Our results are consistent with 201Tl uptake by severely damaged and nonviable cells.
Why not the best for the chronically ill

Premium adjustors to neutralize risk selection among health plans are the weakest component in the technology for assuring competitive markets. It will be many years before we have adjustors adequa...
Simulating the Complexities of Heterogeneous Catalysis with Model Systems: Case studies of SiO2 Supported Pt-Group Metals

Model catalyst surfaces, consisting of vapor-deposited metal nanoparticles supported on a planar oxide support, can help to link reactivity studies on well-defined single crystal surfaces with those conducted on high-surface area supported catalysts. When coupled with near atmospheric pressure kinetic and spectroscopic techniques, these well-defined model catalyst surfaces represent a useful approach to combine the power of surface analytical techniques with reactivity studies under relevant reaction conditions. Here, we review recent results of our investigations characterizing the physical and catalytic properties of Pt/SiO2 and Rh/SiO2 model catalyst surfaces. As will be discussed, the model catalyst approach can help simulate the complexities of catalytic reactions on supported catalysts, helping to provide insights into the role of particle size, particle morphology, and surface adsorbates in dictating the observed structure-sensitivity (activity and selectivity) during reactions at near atmospheric pressures.
Age, distribution and style of deformation in Alaska north of 60°N: Implications for assembly of Alaska

Abstract The structural architecture of Alaska is the product of a complex history of deformation along both the Cordilleran and Arctic margins of North America involving oceanic plates, subduction zones and strike-slip faults and with continental elements of Laurentia, Baltica, and Siberia. We use geological constraints to assign regions of deformation to 14 time intervals and to map their distributions in Alaska. Alaska can be divided into three domains with differing deformational histories. Each domain includes a crustal fragment that originated near Early Paleozoic Baltica. The Northern domain experienced the Early Cretaceous Brookian orogeny, an oceanic arc-continent collision, followed by mid-Cretaceous extension. Early Cretaceous opening of the oceanic Canada Basin rifted the orogen from the Canadian Arctic margin, producing the bent trends of the orogen. The second (Southern) domain consists of Neoproterozoic and younger crust of the amalgamated Peninsular-Wrangellia-Alexander arc terrane and its paired Mesozoic accretionary prism facing the Pacific Ocean basin. The third (Interior) domain, situated between the first two domains and roughly bounded by the Cenozoic dextral Denali and Tintina faults, includes the large continental Yukon Composite and Farewell terranes having different Permian deformational episodes. Although a shared deformation that might mark their juxtaposition by collisional processes is unrecognized, sedimentary linkage between the two terranes and depositional overlap of the boundary with the Northern domain occurred by early Late Cretaceous. Late Late Cretaceous deformation is the first deformation shared by all three domains and correlates temporally with emplacement of the Southern domain against the remainder of Alaska. Early Cenozoic shortening is mild across interior Alaska but is significant in the Brooks Range, and correlates in time with dextral faulting, ridge subduction and counter-clockwise rotation of southern Alaska. Late Cenozoic shortening is significant in southern Alaska inboard of the underthrusting Yakutat terrane at the Pacific margin and in northeastern Alaska.
Bibliography of books and articles related to manufacturing: 1991

This bibliography has been compiled for the convenience and use of those attending the 1991 Advanced Semiconductor Manufacturing Conference and Workshop and others in the field of manufacturing. The bibliography is broken down into five major areas: just-in-time (JIT) methodologies, corporate strategy, quality, financial methods, and periodicals. >
Enchondroma of the Distal Phalanx

The patient was a 29-year-old woman who was evaluated by a physical therapist in a direct-access capacity for an enlarged distal phalanx on the fourth digit of her left hand. After discussing the patient's presentation with an orthopaedic hand surgeon due to concern for nonmusculoskeletal pathology, radiographs were ordered and findings were thought to be consistent with an enchondroma, which is a benign lesion commonly seen in the hand.
Disordered hyperuniform heterogeneous materials

Disordered hyperuniform many-body systems are distinguishable states of matter that lie between a crystal and liquid: they are like perfect crystals in the way they suppress large-scale density fluctuations and yet are like liquids or glasses in that they are statistically isotropic with no Bragg peaks. These systems play a vital role in a number of fundamental and applied problems: glass formation, jamming, rigidity, photonic and electronic band structure, localization of waves and excitations, self-organization, fluid dynamics, quantum systems, and pure mathematics. Much of what we know theoretically about disordered hyperuniform states of matter involves many-particle systems. In this paper, we derive new rigorous criteria that disordered hyperuniform two-phase heterogeneous materials must obey and explore their consequences. Two-phase heterogeneous media are ubiquitous; examples include composites and porous media, biological media, foams, polymer blends, granular media, cellular solids, and colloids. We begin by obtaining some results that apply to hyperuniform two-phase media in which one phase is a sphere packing in d-dimensional Euclidean space [Formula: see text]. Among other results, we rigorously establish the requirements for packings of spheres of different sizes to be 'multihyperuniform'. We then consider hyperuniformity for general two-phase media in [Formula: see text]. Here we apply realizability conditions for an autocovariance function and its associated spectral density of a two-phase medium, and then incorporate hyperuniformity as a constraint in order to derive new conditions. We show that some functional forms can immediately be eliminated from consideration and identify other forms that are allowable. Specific examples and counterexamples are described. Contact is made with well-known microstructural models (e.g. overlapping spheres and checkerboards) as well as irregular phase-separation and Turing-type patterns. We also ascertain a family of autocovariance functions (or spectral densities) that are realizable by disordered hyperuniform two-phase media in any space dimension, and present select explicit constructions of realizations. These studies provide insight into the nature of disordered hyperuniformity in the context of heterogeneous materials and have implications for the design of such novel amorphous materials.
Rapid hyperosmotic-induced Ca2+ responses in Arabidopsis thaliana exhibit sensory potentiation and involvement of plastidial KEA transporters

Plants experience hyperosmotic stress when faced with saline soils and possibly with drought stress, but it is currently unclear how plant roots perceive this stress in an environment of dynamic water availabilities. Hyperosmotic stress induces a rapid rise in intracellular Ca(2+) concentrations ([Ca(2+)]i) in plants, and this Ca(2+) response may reflect the activities of osmo-sensory components. Here, we find in the reference plant Arabidopsis thaliana that the rapid hyperosmotic-induced Ca(2+) response exhibited enhanced response magnitudes after preexposure to an intermediate hyperosmotic stress. We term this phenomenon "osmo-sensory potentiation." The initial sensing and potentiation occurred in intact plants as well as in roots. Having established a quantitative understanding of wild-type responses, we investigated effects of pharmacological inhibitors and candidate channel/transporter mutants. Quintuple mechano-sensitive channels of small conductance-like (MSL) plasma membrane-targeted channel mutants as well as double mid1-complementing activity (MCA) channel mutants did not affect the response. Interestingly, however, double mutations in the plastid K(+) exchange antiporter (KEA) transporters kea1kea2 and a single mutation that does not visibly affect chloroplast structure, kea3, impaired the rapid hyperosmotic-induced Ca(2+) responses. These mutations did not significantly affect sensory potentiation of the response. These findings suggest that plastids may play an important role in early steps mediating the response to hyperosmotic stimuli. Together, these findings demonstrate that the plant osmo-sensory components necessary to generate rapid osmotic-induced Ca(2+) responses remain responsive under varying osmolarities, endowing plants with the ability to perceive the dynamic intensities of water limitation imposed by osmotic stress.
Enhanced dynamical stability with harmonic slip stacking

We develop a configuration of radio-frequency (rf) cavities to dramatically improve the performance of slip-stacking. Slip-stacking is an accumulation technique used at Fermilab to nearly double proton intensity by maintaining two beams of different momenta in the same storage ring. The two particle beams are longitudinally focused in the Recycler by two 53 MHz 100 kV rf cavities with a small frequency difference between them. We propose an additional 106 MHz 20 kV rf cavity with a frequency at the double the average of the upper and lower main rf frequencies. We show the harmonic rf cavity cancels out the resonances generated between the two main rf cavities and we derive the relationship between the harmonic rf voltage and the main rf voltage. We find the area factors that can be used to calculate the available phase space area for any set of beam parameters without individual simulation. We establish Booster beam quality requirements to achieve 99\% slip-stacking efficiency. We measure the longitudinal distribution of the Booster beam and use it to generate a realistic beam model for slip-stacking simulation. We demonstrate that the harmonic rf cavity can not only reduce particle loss during slip-stacking, but also reduce the final longitudinal emittance.
A Kernel-based Lagrangian method for imperfectly-mixed chemical reactions

Abstract Current Lagrangian (particle-tracking) algorithms used to simulate diffusion–reaction equations must employ a certain number of particles to properly emulate the system dynamics—particularly for imperfectly-mixed systems. The number of particles is tied to the statistics of the initial concentration fields of the system at hand. Systems with shorter-range correlation and/or smaller concentration variance require more particles, potentially limiting the computational feasibility of the method. For the well-known problem of bimolecular reaction, we show that using kernel-based, rather than Dirac delta, particles can significantly reduce the required number of particles. We derive the fixed width of a Gaussian kernel for a given reduced number of particles that analytically eliminates the error between kernel and Dirac solutions at any specified time. We also show how to solve for the fixed kernel size by minimizing the squared differences between solutions over any given time interval. Numerical results show that the width of the kernel should be kept below about 12% of the domain size, and that the analytic equations used to derive kernel width suffer significantly from the neglect of higher-order moments. The simulations with a kernel width given by least squares minimization perform better than those made to match at one specific time. A heuristic time-variable kernel size, based on the previous results, performs on par with the least squares fixed kernel size.
Investigation of beam self-polarization in the future e+e− circular collider

The use of resonant depolarization has been suggested for precise beam energy measurements (better than 100 keV) in the ${e}^{+}{e}^{\ensuremath{-}}$ Future Circular Collider (FCC-${e}^{+}{e}^{\ensuremath{-}}$) for $Z$ and $WW$ physics at 45 and 80 GeV beam energy respectively. Longitudinal beam polarization would benefit the $Z$ peak physics program; however it is not essential and therefore it will be not investigated here. In this paper the possibility of self-polarized leptons is considered. Preliminary results of simulations in presence of quadrupole misalignments and beam position monitors (BPMs) errors for a simplified FCC-${e}^{+}{e}^{\ensuremath{-}}$ ring are presented.
Factors Impacting E-Government Development

E-government presents ways to utilize information and communication technologies to help governments facilitate their daily administration and to provide better services to citizens, businesses, and government agencies. This research investigates factors affecting e-government development. Based on the Growth Theory and Human Capital Theory from the economics literature, we hypothesize that Information and Computer Technology, and Human Development are two factors impacting e-government development. The hypotheses were empirically tested using secondary data from the United Nations and the United Nations Development Programme. The results support the two hypotheses. Further analysis was also carried out to compare countries with low, medium, and high human development levels.
Modular and Adaptable Tumor Niche Prepared from Visible Light Initiated Thiol-Norbornene Photopolymerization

Photopolymerized biomimetic hydrogels with adaptable properties have been widely used for cell and tissue engineering applications. As a widely adopted gel cross-linking method, photopolymerization provides experimenters on-demand and spatial-temporal controls in gelation kinetics. Long wavelength ultraviolet (UV) light initiated photopolymerization is among the most popular methods in the fabrication of cell-laden hydrogels owing to its rapid and relatively mild gelation conditions. The use of UV light, however, still causes concerns regarding its potential negative impacts on cells. Alternatively, visible light based photopolymerization can be used to cross-link cell-laden hydrogels. The majority of visible light based gelation schemes involve photoinitiator, co-initiator, and comonomer. This multicomponent initiation system creates added challenges for optimizing hydrogel formulations. Here, we report a co-initiator/comonomer-free visible light initiated thiol-norbornene photopolymerization scheme to p...
A framework for analyzing resparsification algorithms

A spectral sparsifier of a graph G is a sparser graph H that approximately preserves the quadratic form of G, i.e., for all vectors x, xTLGx ≈ xTLHx, where LG and LH denote the respective graph Laplacians. Spectral sparsifiers generalize cut sparsifiers, and have found many applications in designing graph algorithms. In recent years, there has been interest in computing spectral sparsifiers in semi-streaming and dynamic settings. Natural algorithms in these settings often involve repeated sparsification of a graph, and in turn accumulation of errors across these steps. We present a framework for analyzing algorithms that perform repeated sparsifications that only incur error corresponding to a single sparsification step, leading to better results for many of these reseparsification based algorithms.As an application, we show how to maintain a spectral sparsifier in the semi-streaming setting: We present a simple algorithm that, for a graph G on n vertices and m edges, computes a spectral sparsifier of G with O(n log n) edges in a single pass over G, using only O(n log n) space, and O(m log2n) total time. This improves on previous best semi-streaming algorithms for both spectral and cut sparsifiers by a factor of log n in both space and runtime. The algorithm also extends to semi-streaming row sampling for general PSD matrices. As another application, we use this framework to combine a spectral sparsification algorithm by Koutis with improved spanner constructions to give a parallel algorithm for constructing O(n log2n log log n) sized spectral sparsifiers in O(m log2n log log n) time. This is the best combinatorial graph sparsification algorithm to date, and the size of the sparsifiers produced is only a factor log n log log n more than ones produced by numerical routines.
Recovery guarantee of non-negative matrix factorization via alternating updates

Non-negative matrix factorization is a popular tool for decomposing data into feature and weight matrices under non-negativity constraints. It enjoys practical success but is poorly understood theoretically. This paper proposes an algorithm that alternates between decoding the weights and updating the features, and shows that assuming a generative model of the data, it provably recovers the ground-truth under fairly mild conditions. In particular, its only essential requirement on features is linear independence. Furthermore, the algorithm uses ReLU to exploit the non-negativity for decoding the weights, and thus can tolerate adversarial noise that can potentially be as large as the signal, and can tolerate unbiased noise much larger than the signal. The analysis relies on a carefully designed coupling between two potential functions, which we believe is of independent interest.
Mapping the Extinction Curve in 3D: Structure on Kiloparsec Scales

Author(s): Schlafly, EF; Peek, JEG; Finkbeiner, DP; Green, GM | Abstract: Near-infrared spectroscopy from APOGEE and wide-field optical photometry from Pan-STARRS1 have recently made precise measurements of the shape of the extinction curve possible for tens of thousands of stars, parameterized by R(V). These measurements revealed structures in R(V) with large angular scales, which are challenging to explain in existing dust paradigms. In this work, we combine three-dimensional maps of dust column density with R(V) measurements to constrain the three-dimensional distribution of R(V) in the Milky Way. We find that the variations in R(V) are correlated on kiloparsec scales. In particular, most of the dust within one kiloparsec in the outer Galaxy, including many local molecular clouds (Orion, Taurus, Perseus, California, and Cepheus), has a significantly lower R(V) than more distant dust in the Milky Way. These results provide new input to models of dust evolution and processing, and complicate the application of locally derived extinction curves to more distant regions of the Milky Way and to other galaxies.
Defining ‘good health’

We all want to live a long life with ‘good health’. But what does that really mean? Clinicians often define ‘good health’ as the absence of disease. Indeed, modern biomedical research focuses on finding remedies for specific ailments, that, when absent, will yield ‘good health’.