cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Home hemodialysis: a crazy idea in 1963: a memoir.

In 1963, one of the abstracts we submitted for the Ninth ASAIO Congress entitled Hemodialysis at Home: Utilizing Domestic Electric Washing Machine by Y. Nose and J. Mikami was rejected. At that time, leading ASAIO nephrologists, including W. J. Kolff, B. H. Scribner, and J. P. Merrill, did not favor patients dialyzing at home in spite of it being the only means of keeping renal failure patients alive. Also at that time, many patients died because of the unavailability of hemodialysis in hospitals. However, in 1965 both Dr. Scribner's group in Seattle and Dr. Merrill's group in Boston initiated a home hemodialysis program. This program was further expanded in many centers, including Dr. Kolff's at Cleveland Clinic. Later, home hemodialysis was proven a safe, effective, yet inexpensive method of treating chronic renal insufficiency patients.
Kell Blood Group System and the McLeod Syndrome

The Kell blood group system was named after the person who made the first recognized antibody. Other than ABO, the Kell antigens are perhaps only second to the D antigen in the Rh system as potent immunogens. About 5% of K:−1 persons who are transfused with a single unit of K:1 red cells make anti-K1 IgG. The Kell blood group system is important not only in transfusion but also clinically since K1 is present on red cells of fetuses and maternal alloimmunization may cause hemolytic disease in the newborn.
Design and Development of a Dynamically, Scaled Distributed Electric Propulsion Aircraft Testbed

This paper details the motivation and design of a dynamically-scaled, distributed electric ducted fan testbed aircraft that was developed at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign as part of a Phase I NASA STTR, in collaboration with Empirical Systems Aerospace. A 21 % subscale model of a Cirrus SR22T was developed and instrumented to perform system identification flight testing in support of dynamics model validation. A new wing configuration, featuring a series of electric ducted fans integrated into the wing upper trailing edge, was designed in order to provide a platform to investigate and quantify the effects of propulsion-airframe interactions and the effectiveness of propulsive-based control. Analysis and trade studies were performed to select an appropriate fan configuration that provided sufficient differential thrust to allow similar propulsion-based yaw control authority as the rudder control surface of the baseline vehicle. Wind tunnel experiments were performed on select propulsor combinations of motors, electronic speed controllers, and fans to validate performance specifications and capabilities. The new distributed electric propulsion wing was built and integrated into the baseline Cirrus and a simplified ground testing apparatus was constructed to validate the propulsion system before flight. The feasibility of scaling the designed distributed electric propulsion concept to a full-size equivalent general aviation aircraft was then explored.
An Empowerment Theory Approach to Adventure Programming for Adults with Disabilities

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of an empowerment process on psychological empowerment toward recreation and leisure for adults with disabilities in an adaptive adventure program. Research participants were a convenience sample (n = 14) of adults with disabilities registered for one of two 3-day dog-sledding trips. Using a single-factor, nested measures design, participants were involved in both treatment and control groups. This study employed two different analyses: a paired-sample t-test and hierarchical linear modeling (HLM). While this study did not demonstrate a significant treatment effect, the HLM analysis did suggest that empowerment may be a dispositional construct versus a situational construct. Implications for both practice and research are discussed.
Neurosecretory Regulation of Oogenesis in the Bay Scallop, Argopecten irradians irradians (Lamarck)

ABSTRACT The neurosecretory cycle of the bay scallop can be divided into five stages which correlate with stages of oogenesis. It is proposed that Stage I is time or food dependent and secretes a neuroendocrine which allows nutrient accumulation while Stage II and III act as “on - off” mechanisms controlling transfer of these nutrients to the gonads. Advance of the neurosecretory cycle to Stage IV occurs with corresponding growth of oocytes to maturity. Another secretion (Stage V) may initiate spawning.
Predictable Effects of Bottom-up Visual Salience in Experimental Decisions and Games

“Bottom-up” visual perception is fast, universal, and does not depend on personal goals or experience. Where exactly bottom-up attention is directed in a visual image-- usually based on contrast, color, feature orientation, and centrality-- can be accurately predicted by machine-learned algorithms. We test whether this type of salience can help explain economic decisions in four experimental analyses (three are new). When people pick between sets of valued fruits, salience can lead to mistakes (lower-value sets are sometimes chosen because they are salient). Two studies show strong and weak influence on choices, respectively, of salience in stock price charts and salient payoffs in game matrices. The central analysis is evidence from games in which choices are locations in images. When players are trying to cooperatively match locations, concentration of salience is associated with the success of matching (r=.57). In competitive hider-seeker location games, all players choose salient locations more often. This fact creates a “seeker’s advantage” (9% wins compared to the 7% predicted by unique equilibrium). The location game data are consistent with cognitive hierarchy and level-k models in which predicted salience influences nonstrategic level-0 choices. Model estimates from hider-seeker games can predict behavior in matching games despite their opposite strategic structures. Looking forward, bottom-up salience could be included as a predictable type of costless involuntary “pre-attention” in expanded models of Bayesian-rational inattention. Novel applications involving prices and taxes, disability, ethnic markers, and visually-influenced beliefs are suggested.
Minority Rights through or against Majorities in Immigrant Welfare States

A Presentation to the WissenschaftsZentrumBerlin (WZB) Conference on Majority and Minority Rights It is hardly surprising that the topic of “majority rights” is being discussed at the WZB at this time. Not long ago, it would have been intellectually disreputable, politically toxic, and morally outre for a liberal or social democratic institution to focus on the rightness or plausibility of cultural and legal claims made by the majority at the presumed expense of minorities. Of course, the economic claims of the many against the few, of working people against economic elites, were fair game. But it has in large part been the inability of law, politics, and culture in the nation state over the past generation to regulate or discipline contemporary capitalism that has brought us to the current impasse where liberal democracy, including its focus on culture and on minority rights, does not seem to be serving the interests of majorities. With that crisis, certain pillars of the liberal state, pillars meant to serve both majorities and minorities, natives and immigrants, have come to be questioned – above all the adequacy of universalist civic nationalist identities or Verfassungspatriotismus. In their place we see renewed concerns with social cohesion and social solidarity, defined visa- vis both established older minorities and more recent immigrants through the lens of historical, ethnic and cultural majority identities and preferences.
The association between parental views on dietary quality and physical activity levels

Introduction:Numerous external factors, including parental influences, impact the dietary quality and physical activity of children. In this study, we examined if parental views were associated wit...
Spectral properties of the exponential distance matrix

Given a graph $G$, the exponential distance matrix is defined entry-wise by letting the $(u,v)$-entry be $q^{\text{dist}(u,v)}$, where $\text{dist}(u,v)$ is the distance between the vertices $u$ and $v$ with the convention that if vertices are in different components, then $q^{\text{dist}(u,v)}=0$. In this paper, we will establish several properties of the characteristic polynomial (spectrum) for this matrix, give some families of graphs which are uniquely determined by their spectrum, and produce cospectral constructions.
Network characteristics and supply chain resilience under conditions of risk propagation

Abstract Inspired by the fact that a combination of network characteristics can describe a network more fully than the network type is able to, especially since some networks do not belong to any one specific type, this research effort investigates the relationship between network characteristics and supply chain resilience. We begin by demonstrating that the investigation of network characteristics can lead to a better understanding of supply chain resilience. We then identify the key network characteristics that best represent network structure in determining resilience. We show that utilizing a reduced list of characteristics yields performance equal to that when using a complete set of characteristics. Based on the results, we summarize key points that can support interpretation of the impact of network characteristics on resilience. We also conduct a case study to illustrate how our approach can be employed to understand resilience.
Daily racial discrimination experiences, ethnic–racial identity, and diurnal cortisol patterns among Black adults.

Objectives The present study examined the daily relation between racial discrimination experiences and diurnal cortisol patterns among a sample of Black American adults. The daily diary approach afforded the chance to examine how within-person fluctuations in racial discrimination experiences related to same- and next-day changes in cortisol patterns. The use of a lagged approach examines whether exposure to racial discrimination results in diminished outcomes. It was expected that healthy levels of ethnic-racial identity would moderate the relation between racial discrimination and cortisol parameters. Method The participants included 93 Black adults (e.g., 20 males and 73 females) who ranged in age from 17 to 56 years old. Participants completed measures of racial discrimination and ethnic-racial identity, and provided 9 saliva samples. Results The results indicate that on days when individuals reported increased racial discrimination experiences, they exhibited higher cortisol levels at bedtime and greater overall cortisol output that same day. Lagged analyses revealed that on days when participants reported increased racial discrimination experiences, they exhibited less pronounced cortisol awakening responses and steeper diurnal cortisol slopes the next day. These associations were moderated by high racial centrality levels, high private regard levels, and low public regard levels. Conclusions Same-day racial discrimination experiences related to compromised diurnal cortisol patterns. The effects of racial discrimination experiences on next-day physiological functioning largely depended on ethnic-racial identity dimensions, and afforded individuals the ability to recover. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).
Ultrasound during neck rotation to reveal a case of positional occlusion of the internal carotid artery

Positional occlusion of the internal carotid artery is an unusual phenomenon. Reports are scarce in the literature and generally related to compression by external agents when the head is rotated. Cases with no extrinsic etiology are even more uncommon and require high suspicion to avoid misdiagnosis. We present a case of a patient with intermittent internal carotid occlusion depending on the position of the head with no external agent identified. Due to the dynamic characteristics of this presentation, diagnostic tests yielded contradictory results. Carotid ultrasound during neck rotation revealed the positional occlusion. Ultrasound is a versatile technique to explore the carotid arteries in different angles of the neck, useful if positional pathology is suspected.
Use of C7 Slope as a Surrogate Marker for T1 Slope: A Radiographic Study in Patients with and without Cervical Deformity.

Background T1 slope has emerged as an important radiographic parameter in the evaluation and surgical management of adult cervical spinal deformity. Given the high rates of nonvisualization of T1 slope on upright cervical radiographs, however, this study examined the evaluation of C7 slope as a potential surrogate marker. Methods This is a retrospective review in adult patients with and without cervical deformity to examine the correlation of C7 and T1 slopes on routine upright cervical radiographs. In secondary analysis, correlations of C7 and T1 slopes were made amongst various demographic variables, different surgical groups, and various measures of cervical alignment. Cervical deformity was defined as sagittal vertical axis >40 mm, coronal Cobb angle >10°, and sagittal Cobb >10° in kyphosis. Results C7 slope was visualized in 93% of patients as opposed to T1 slope in 68% of patients, leading to a final study population of 129 patients. Mean values of C7 and T1 slopes were 26.5° and 28.1°, respectively. Significant correlation was found in patients with and without cervical deformity (r = 0.9, P Conclusions Results demonstrated that C7 and T1 were in direct correlation in a variety of different cohorts regardless of deformity status or prior fusion. This study indicates that C7 slope may be reliably used a surrogate marker especially when visualization of T1 slope is not possible.
Engaging parents of hospitalized neonates during a pandemic

Abstract Background Engaging families through patient- and family-centered care (PFCC), the NICU nurse upholds the core concepts providing holistic care. The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic altered the daily routine of visiting parents to hospitals around the nation, particularly for pediatric and neonatal populations. Methods This paper describes innovative strategies implemented in a large Level IV NICU to promote the core concepts of PFCC that ensured parent-infant bonding while limiting exposure to a pandemic infection, such as COVID-19. Discussion Strategies discussed include virtual visits between parents and infants to promote bonding; virtual parent support groups to encourage information sharing; remote music therapy options which included take-home music kits; diaries, albums, and celebration boards to support participation; among others. Parent collaboration throughout implementation promoted partnership. Conclusion Utilizing a variety of unique and innovative approaches to promote PFCC strategies became a critical component of routine planning and care delivery for one large neonatal intensive care unit.
Wearable and mobile healthcare nanosystems and their applications in medicine

Wearable and Mobile Healthcare Nanosystems will be presented with a focus on the implementation of various engineering principles in the conception, design, development, analysis and operation of biomedical, biotechnological, wireless systems and applications. The primary objective of this talk is to introduce the latest research topics and techniques in biomedical and nanomedical wearable wireless technologies. This talk also discusses the development and application of mobile wearable nano-bio health monitoring systems for telemedicine. Nanomaterials-based biosensors used to measure physiological signals, such as electrocardiogram (ECG), electroencephalogram (EEG), electromyogram (EMG), and electrooculogram (EOG) will be discussed with the latest developments in Neurocardiology. Techniques and methodologies for physiological signal processing and utilizing Smartphones as base stations are discussed. Cloud computing resources used for complex computations, such as feature extraction and automatic diagnosis will be discussed.
Analyzing the Overhead of File Protection by Linux Security Modules

Over the years, the complexity of the Linux Security Module (LSM) is keeping increasing (e.g. 10,684 LOC in Linux v2.6.0 vs. 64,018 LOC in v5.3), and the count of the authorization hooks is nearly doubled (e.g. 122 hooks in v2.6.0 vs. 224 hooks in v5.3). In addition, the computer industry has seen tremendous advancement in hardware (e.g., memory and processor frequency) in the past decade. These make the previous evaluation on LSM, which was done 18 years ago, less relevant nowadays. It is important to provide up-to-date measurement results of LSM for system practitioners so that they can make prudent trade-offs between security and performance. This work evaluates the overhead of LSM for file accesses on Linux v5.3.0. We build a performance evaluation framework for LSM. It has two parts, an extension of LMBench2.5 to evaluate the overhead of file operations for different security modules, and a security module with tunable latency for policy enforcement to study the impact of the latency of policy enforcement on the end-to-end latency of file operations. In our evaluation, we find opening a file would see about 87% (Linux v5.3) performance drop when the kernel is integrated with SELinux hooks (policy enforcement disabled) than without, while the figure was 27% (Linux v2.4.2). We found that the performance of the above downgrade is affected by two parts, policy enforcement, and hook placement. To further investigate the impact of policy enforcement and hook placement respectively, we build a Policy Testing Module, which reuses hook placements of LSM, while alternating latency of policy enforcement. With this module, we are able to quantitatively estimate the impact of the latency of policy enforcement on the end-to-end latency of file operations by using a multiple linear regression model and count policy authorization frequencies for each syscall. We then discuss and justify the evaluation results with static analysis on syscalls' call graphs.
Inhibition of hepatitis C virus by vitamin D

Until the development of direct-acting antivirals (DAAs), interferon (IFN)-based therapy had been the primary treatment strategy for patients with chronic hepatitis C, even though this therapy has a therapeutic limitations and considerable side effects. Therefore, many efforts have been made to improve the efficacy of treatment. Several clinical studies have clearly shown that supplementation with vitamin D of IFN-based therapy improves treatment efficacy. To clarify the molecular mechanisms of the effect of vitamin D on IFN-based therapy, several researchers have performed basic research with cell culture models of hepatitis C virus (HCV). Consequently, two vitamin D3 metabolites, 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 (25-(OH)D3) and 1α,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 (1α,25-(OH)2D3), have been suggested to have anti-HCV effects. 25-(OH)D3 inhibits HCV production by suppressing infectious virus assembly through reducing apolipoprotein expression, while 1α,25-(OH)2D3 inhibits HCV production by modulating IFN signaling and/or inducing various host factors associated with the inhibition of viral genome replication. In addition, an antimicrobial peptide, LL-37, which is known to be partly regulated by vitamin D, was also reported to exhibit an anti-HCV effect by disrupting infectious viral particles directly. In conclusion, vitamin D3 supplementation improves the response rate of IFN-based therapy via the direct and/or indirect anti-HCV effects of vitamin D3 metabolites.
Cutaneous T-cell lymphoma patient-derived xenografts retain molecular characteristics across passages

Introduction: Cutaneous T-cell lymphomas (CTCLs) are a clinically heterogeneous array of clonal neoplasms of skin-homing CD4+ T-helper lymphocytes. Mycosis fungoides (MF) is the most common subtype of CTCL. Its clinical course varies significantly. Median survival times range from over fifteen years in its mildest form to under two in its most severe. Elucidation of MF pathogenesis and drug development are hampered by the dearth of CTCL laboratory models. Models examined in the literature are largely derived from leukemic CTCL, many of which have been shown to be confounded by HTLV-1 virus positivity. Additionally, recent models demonstrate phenotypic divergence even in the context of stable TCR clonality across passages. Here we molecularly characterize patient-derived xenografts (PDX) from six MF patients, compare their features to known CTCL characteristics and examine their stability over passages. Materials and methods: We established and analyzed ten PDX lines from six MF patients. Patient tumor cells were obtained from peripheral blood or lymph node fine needle aspirate and engrafted into NSG mice (P0). Subsequent passages (P1/2) were made by engrafting cells from P0/1 spleens in naive NSG mice. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from a subset of patients were collected for comparison to PDXs. Whole exome sequencing (WES) data was used for mutational and copy number analysis. Three PDX lines were also transcriptionally characterized using RNA sequencing. Results: WES analysis demonstrates the presence of canonical CTCL driver events in all samples. In all PDXs with patient PBMCs available for comparison, we find that subsets of these driver events were maintained through grafting. Strikingly, PDXs established from tumor cells collected at later points in clinical disease progression reflect tumor evolution. We identify genomic features that may show associations with successful engraftments. Through RNA-seq analysis, we observe that PDX transcriptional phenotypes harbored similarities to primary patient samples in the literature. We also demonstrate the transcriptional stability of one PDX into P1. Conclusion: Overall, we demonstrate that we have established PDXs that faithfully retain genomic and transcriptional features of CTCL across passages. Our results have implications not only for use of the models described here, but also for development of future xenografts by similar methods. We predict that employing molecularly stable CTCL PDXs in preclinical experiments could have significant benefits for the elucidation of CTCL pathophysiology and the development of novel CTCL treatments.
Clinical experience with prosthetic materials: Historical perspectives, current problems, and future directions

This paper describes a surgeon's clinical experience with the use of prosthetic materials over the course of his 30-year career in orthopedic surgery. In the beginning, a historical review is given detailing the progressive improvement in techniques and in selection of materials for the manufacture of implants, beginning with the use of iron wire in the 18th century and proceeding systematically through the development of an appreciation of the significance of the composition of the metal used, and later, of the nonmetallic material used. A discussion of the progressively more acute appreciation of the two-way-street nature of the problem of compatibility is presented. A development of the cobalt-chrome-molybdenum alloys is briefly reviewed. A development of the austenitic stainless steels and their increasing refinement over the years is also reviewed. The development of the use of titanium and its alloys, beginning in the United Kingdom and proceeding to other countries, is reviewed. The place of thermoplastic and thermosetting resins is then described, beginning with the wide use of the Judet prosthesis following the Second World War and proceeding to the development of the total joint replacement era with the use of polymethyl methacrylate to serve as a grouting compound in the fixation of both metallic and ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene components. The tissue reaction to wear particles is described and illustrated, demonstrating a new dimension in tissue reaction to implant materials. In conclusion, it is suggested that several of the new biomaterials being developed in various laboratories and universities in the world will find their way into use in surgery. Hopefully a substitute for polymethyl methacrylate will be found, with less mechanical and biological problems. A fundamental understanding of the processes involved in interaction between implant and host is needed for the development of more suitable implant materials in the future.
NASA S and Ma at the Crossroads. the Role of NASA Quality Insight/Oversight for Commercial Crewed Launch Vehicles

The presentation slides examine: The Journey, Current Safety and Mission Assurance (S and MA) Oversight/Insight, The Change, The Issue, Potential NASA relationship with Commercial Partners, and Commercial "X" FRR - Are you Go.
The Politics of households in Ottoman Egypt: The ascendancy of Ibrahim Kâhya al-Qazdağli and the emergence of the Qazdağli beylicate

Ibrahim Kâhya's background Ibrahim Kâhya al-Qazdagli came from what we might call the secondary branch of the Qazdagli line started by Mustafa Kâhya. He was the tābi ʿ of Mustafa Kâhya's rather obscure follower Suleyman Cavus, who seemed content to subordinate himself to his older and more enterprising khūshdāsh Hasan Kâhya. Ibrahim's ethnicity cannot be determined with any certainty. The muhimme repeatedly refers to him by the nisba Kazdagli, implying that he, like Mustafa Kâhya, came from western Anatolia. Yet the muhimme applies the epithet Kazdagli to earlier household heads, such as Hasan and ʿOsman Kâhyas, whom the records of Cairo's sharīʿa courts indicate to have been mamluks. If Ibrahim were a mamluk, he would have followed a pattern within the developing Qazdagli household of leadership by manumitted mamluks. Like the previous generation of Qazdaglis, furthermore, Ibrahim's generation evidently adhered to the “weaker comrade” tradition to which Ibrahim's patron Suleyman Cavus himself had fallen victim. Thus, Ibrahim emerged as primus inter pares among Suleyman Cavus's clients, the rest of whom barely warrant mention in the chronicles. Ibrahim Kâhya followed established Qazdagli practice in using the pilgrimage as a channel of influence. We recall that at the time of the massive Qazdagli defection to the ʿAzeban corps in 1710, Hasan Cavus al-Qazdagli was busy serving as serdar qiṭār al-ḥajj while his lesser khūshdāsh Suleyman held the post of serdar al-ṣurra and one Ibrahim Corbaci that of serdar Jiddawī .
Sensitivity of Stratospheric Retrievals from Radio Occultations on Upper Boundary Conditions

The main uncertainty in the stratospheric retrievals from GPS radio occultation (RO) measurements comes from the lack of reliable measurements in the upper stratosphere and above where the bending due to the neutral atmosphere is weak and residual ionospheric effects are strong. In this work, we quantify the bias and uncertainty of the refractivity and temperature retrievals due to different upper boundary strategies using a simulation study. We use refractivity profile derived from lidar pressure and temperature profiles as the input states in generating the synthetic occultations. Random noise levels commensurate with the CHAMP RO measurements are added to the simulated data. We examine the sensitivity of stratospheric retrievals to two different upper boundary methods, one based on exponential extrapolation and the other on MSIS climatology. The simulation results show that both methods lead to comparable levels of temperature bias (less than 0.5 K below 30 km altitude), provided that the upper boundary heights are set above 55 km.
Nonlinear Cusped Caustics for Dispersive Waves

A multiple-scale perturbation analysis for slowly varying weakly nonlinear dispersive waves predicts that the wave number breaks or folds and becomes triple-valued. This theory has some difficulties, since the wave amplitude becomes infinite. Energy first focuses along a cusped caustic (an envelope of the rays or characteristics). The method of matched asymptotic expansions shows that a thin focusing region with relatively large wave amplitudes, valid near the cusped caustic, is described by the nonlinear Schrodinger equation (NSE). Solutions of the NSE are obtained from an asymptotic expansion of an equivalent linear singular integral equation related to a Riemann-Hilbert problem. In this way connection formulas before and after focusing are derived. We show that a slowly varying nearly monochromatic wave train evolves into a triple-phased slowly varying similarity solution of the NSE. Three weakly nonlinear waves are simultaneously superimposed after focusing, giving meaning to a triple-valued wave number. Nonlinear phase shifts are obtained which reduce to the linear phase shifts previously described by the asymptotic expansion of a Pearcey integral.
A three-axis fast-tow digital Video Plankton Recorder for rapid surveys of plankton taxa and hydrography

A new Video Plankton Recorder (VPRII) has been developed for rapid surveys of plankton and seston in the size range of 100µm–1cm. The VPRII system includes: 1) a high-resolution digital camera (1Mpixel, 10-bits, 30Hz frame-rate), 2) a fast towfish capable of tow speeds up to 12 knots and 3-axis motion for automatic undulation and ship-wake avoidance, small diameter tow cable and winch for deployment on coastal vessels, and 3) new interface software (Visual Plankton) for automatic identification of plankton to major taxa and visualization of these taxa together with hydrographic data in real time. Camera and strobe optics are laboratory-adjusted to select the field-of-view (5–20mm), and depth-of-field is objectively calibrated using a tethered organism (e.g., copepod) and automatic focus-detection software. The VPRII towfish comprises a fuselage, a fixed main wing, and three servo-controlled tail fins: port and starboard for dive, climb, and roll control and rudder for lateral movement. Placement of the strobe (starboard wing-tip), camera (fuselage nose), and cantilevered tow-bridle minimize disturbance of the imaged volume. Compared with typical net surveys in shelf areas, the VPRII counts more plankton per station, quantifies ubiquitous fragile forms, automatically identifies plankton to major taxa and measures their size, quantifies scales of patchiness down to a few cm, and displays high-resolution distributions of plankton taxa and hydrography while underway. The VPRII is available to researchers via the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution ship instrumentation pool.
CHIMERA: a real-time programming environment for manipulator control

CHIMERA is a real-time computing environment used in the Reconfigurable Modular Manipulator System project. CHIMERA, which is both a hardware and software environment, allows rapid development and implementation of real-time control programs. It provides a C/Unix-flavored concurrent programming environment for a Motorola 68020 multiprocessor hardware configuration connected to a Sun workstation. CHIMERA has been implemented using commercial hardware in conjunction with a sophisticated, locally developed software package, resulting in a reliable, reasonably priced, and easily duplicated system. CHIMERA is currently being ported for real-time control of the CMU Direct Drive Arm II. The authors describe the implementation and capabilities of the CHIMERA environment and illustrate how these features are used in robot control applications. >
Topological quantum field theory and four manifolds

I review some recent results on four-manifold invariants which have been obtained in the context of topological quantum field theory. I focus on three different aspects: (a) the computation of correlation functions, which give explicit results for the Donaldson invariants of non-simply connected manifolds, and for generalizations of these invariants to the gauge groupSU(N);(b) compactifications to lower dimensions, and connections to three-manifold topology and to intersection theory on the moduli space of flat connections on Riemann surfaces; (c) four-dimensional theories with critical behaviour, which give some remarkable constraints on Seiberg-Witten invariants and new results on the geography of four-manifolds.
Global distribution of equatorial magnetosonic waves observed by THEMIS

[1] We investigate the wave magnetic field data from three THEMIS spacecraft over the recent 31 months to perform a statistical study of equatorial magnetosonic (MS) wave properties and spatial distribution. The THEMIS spacecraft provide good data coverage in the dominant MS wave region near the equator and at 2≤L≤8. Our global survey shows that strong amplitudes and high occurrence of MS waves are generally observed near the equator, outside the plasmapause, on the dawnside during geomagnetically disturbed periods. In addition, increase of geomagnetic activity shifts the MS wave distribution toward earlier magnetic local time. Strong MS waves generally have RMS wave amplitudes ∼50 pT and an occurrence rate ∼20% on the dawnside outside the plasmapause and could therefore have an important influence on both ring current ion and energetic electron dynamics in the Earth's radiation belts.
MEMS reliability in shock environments

In order to determine the susceptibility of our MEMS (MicroElectroMechanical Systems) devices to shock, tests were performed using haversine shock pulses with widths of 1 to 0.2 ms in the range from 500 g to 40000 g. We chose a surface-micromachined microengine because it has all the components needed for evaluation: springs that flex, gears that are anchored, and clamps and spring stops to maintain alignment. The microengines, which were unpowered for the tests, performed quite well at most shock levels with a majority functioning after the impact. Debris from the die edges moved at levels greater than 4000 g causing shorts in the actuators and posing reliability concerns. The coupling agent used to prevent stiction in the MEMS release weakened the die-attach bond, which produced failures at 10000 g and above. At 20000 g we began to observe structural damage in some of the thin flexures and 2.5-micron diameter pin joints. We observed electrical failures caused by the movement of debris. Additionally, we observed a new failure mode where stationary comb fingers contact the ground plane resulting in electrical shorts. These new failures were observed in our control group indicating that they were not shock related.
The US national defense education act: Failure of supply‐side language legislation

Abstract The United States Congress passed the National Defense Education Act in 1958 in an attempt to create a reserve army of scientists and foreign language experts. I argue that the legislation failed to accomplish its goal in regard to the foreign language component of the Act because Congress neglected to create a demand for foreign language experts in addition to the supply. The neglect stemmed from the way the need for foreign language skills was conceived of and talked about by the legislators, particularly when contrasted with science‐technology needs. Comparisons are made with other language policies, in particular the US Bilingual Education Act of 1968.
Vibrational spectra of 1,2-bis(dihaloboryl)ethanes, Cl2BCH2CH2BCl2 and F2BCH2CH2BF2

Abstract Infrared spectra are presented for 1,2-bis(dichloroboryl)ethane and 1,2-bis(difluoroboryl)ethane in the solid (−196°), liquid, and gas phases, of the normal isotopic molecules. Vibrational assignments are based on these data as well as infrared spectra of deutero analogs and liquid phase Raman spectra. Urey—Bradley type force constants were obtained for 1,2-bis(dichloroboryl)ethane and evidence is given for an acentric conformer in liquid and gas phases.
Effects of Molecular Geometry on the STM Image Contrast of Methyl- and Bromo-Substituted Alkanes and Alkanols on Graphite

Scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) images have been collected for a series of substituted alkanes and alkanols that form ordered overlayers at room temperature on highly ordered pyrolytic graphite surfaces. Molecules that have been imaged possess an internal bromide, with or without terminal alcohol groups (HO(CH2)9CHBr(CH2)10OH and H3C(CH2)16CHBr(CH2)16CH3), an internal −OH group (H3C(CH2)16CHOH(CH2)16CH3), and an internal methyl group (H3C(CH2)16CHCH3(CH2)16CH3). These data allow comparison to the STM image contrast reported previously for molecules in which −OH, −Br, and −CH3 groups were located in terminal positions of alkane chains adsorbed onto graphite surfaces. When the functional groups were in gauche positions relative to the alkyl chain, and thus produced molecular features that protruded toward the tip, the functional groups were observed to produce bright regions in a constant current STM image, regardless of the STM contrast behavior observed for these same functional groups when they were ...
Code division controlled-MAC in wireless sensor network by adaptive binary signature design

We consider the problem of signature waveform design for code division medium-access-control (MAC) of wireless sensor networks (WSN). In contract to conventional randomly chosen orthogonal codes, an adaptive signature design strategy is developed under the maximum pre-detection SINR (signal to interference plus noise ratio) criterion. The proposed algorithm utilizes slowest descent cords of the optimization surface to move toward the optimum solution and exhibits, upon eigenvector decomposition, linear computational complexity with respect to signature length. Numerical and simulation studies demonstrate the performance of the proposed method and offer comparisons with conventional signature code sets.
Immunoaffinity isolation of ductal carcinoma antigen using monoclonal antibody F36/22.

Abstract Monoclonal antibody (McAb) F36/22, raised against a human breast tumor line, identifies an antigen found in the circulation of cancer patients. Antigen was purified from malignant effusions using McAb-affinity chromatography followed by adsorption-desorption from immobilized wheat germ lectin. Electrophoretic analysis demonstrated the isolation of a single high mol. wt glycoprotein exhibiting an isoionic point near pH 4.2 and a density of approx. 1.45 g/ml. Although highly reactive with wheat germ lectin, a negligible or weak interaction was observed with concanavalin A, lentil lectin and peanut agglutinin. The antigen was immune-precipitable, indicating the occurrence of multiple McAb-binding sites, and was resistant to heat and acid treatments. Antigenicity was not perturbed following protease or neuraminidase treatments, but was affected upon exposure to alkaline conditions. Taken together, these data suggest that McAb F36/22 recognizes a high mol. wt component occurring in circulation as a mucin-like glycoprotein.
Visually Lossless Compression of Stereo Images

With consumer-grade 3D displays becoming widely available, stereoscopic 3D imaging has received increased attention over the last few years. Since a left eye and a right eye image are contained in a stereo pair, stereoscopic imaging requires double the amount of data compared to 2D images. Therefore, efficient data compression techniques are especially critical in these applications. In this paper, we propose a method to determine visibility thresholds (VTs) for 3D displays with active shutter glasses. These VTs are then used in a novel visually lossless compression method for monochrome stereoscopic 3D images.
Electron microscopy of soil-borne wheat mosaic virus in host cells.

Abstract Electron microscopy of sections of pelleted soil-borne wheat mosaic virus and infected leaf cells of wheat ( Triticum aestivum L.) revealed hollow-cored rod-shaped virus particles in various types of aggregates. Small, loose clusters of particles were often associated with large masses of loosely clumped, convoluted tubules of about twice the diameter of virus particles. Virus particles were also peripherally associated with small crystalline inclusions occurring in host cell cytoplasm. Highly ordered aggregations of virus particles were found in vacuoles of relatively old cells. Cross sections of these aggregates showed a hexagonal arrangement of virus particles with denselv staining material between adjacent particles.
Hubbard U=∞ model in one dimension: The slave-boson method as an alternative bosonization scheme

Le modele de Hubbard a U=∞ en une dimension est equivalent a un fermion sans spin et non interactif, dans un champ de jauge. Le champ de jauge induit par les fluctuations des spins est decrit par un gaz d'instantons. Ce gaz est dans la phase du plasma, ce qui conduit au decouplage du spin et de la charge aux grandes distances. Ces resultats sont utilises pour trouver les correlations charge-charge et l'exposant de la renormalisation de Wowe
Ubiquitin in retrovirus assembly: Actor or bystander?

The assembly of retroviruses is deceptively simple. Only the product of the gag gene is required for the formation of a virus-like particle (1). After its synthesis in the cytoplasm Gag is targeted to the plasma membrane, where Gag-Gag interactions, Gag-RNA interactions, Gag-membrane interactions, and perhaps Gag-host protein interactions lead to a bulging out of the nascent virus particle, first as a horseshoe-shaped and then as a lollipop-shaped structure that can be visualized by electron microscopy. The process of membrane envelopment of the virus is called budding. The last step in budding is a membrane fusion event that serves to pinch off the virus, releasing it into the medium. Late in assembly, perhaps concomitant with pinching off or just preceding it, a viral protease cleaves Gag at several sites, leading to a morphological change in the virus. This process is called maturation and is essential for the virus to become infectious.
Myeloma with multiple rearranged immunoglobulin kappa genes: only one kappa gene codes for kappa chains

In many myelomas more than one kappa gene is rearranged (2-5). We are reporting here the results of studies undertaken to determine whether all the rearranged genes are expressed. It was found that in the myeloma NS-1 three different rearranged kappa genes exist. In a subline of NS-1 and several hybridomas produced by fusion of mouse spleen cells with NS-1 it was found that production of NS-1 kappa chains was correlated with the presence of one of the three kappa genes. Loss of this "expressed" gene eliminated the synthesis of the NS-1 kappa chains, loss of one of the other two rearranged kappa genes did not. It is hypothesized, that allelic exclusion (20) of kappa genes generally operates by the functional rearrangement of one kappa gene; other rearrangements are relatively frequent, at least in myelomas, but mostly they are nonfunctional and thus scrambled antibody molecules do not arise.
Chaotic price behavior in a non-linear cobweb model

Abstract The cobweb model for the evolution of prices is considered with backward bending supply curves and multi-valued demand curves. These deterministic, non-linear dynamical systems are shown to exhibit a broad spectrum of complex time behavior including stable periodic cycles of arbitrary order and chaos.
Automated construction of legal arguments

Unlike ordinary expert systems, an automated legal reasoning system does not aim to provide an answer. Its objective should be to provide, for any given case, a well-constructed argument (or preferably several of them) rather than a definitive answer. In this article, some major issues in the design and development of automated legal reasoning systems are discussed. A prototype implementation of an Automated Legal Argument Constructor (ALAC)is presented. This prototype contains a federal act. Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction ACT (UCCJA), and by examining the evidence, both supporting and disproving, suggests the strongest argument. the article focuses on the foundations on which ALAC was constructed. Our intention is to provide an assessment of the state of the art; however, in some cases, we offer suggestions for new directions.
Prospects for supplying raw materials to the refractories industry

On discute des problemes d'approvisionnement en matieres premieres de qualite pour l'industrie sovietique des produits refractaires
New insights into the mechanism of narrow-band UVB therapy for psoriasis.

Psoriasis has long served as a model for the reciprocity between disease and treatment. That is, psoriasis has shown us how treatment can teach us about a disease as well as how a better understanding of the disease can teach us about treatment. For example, clinical observations regarding the efficacy of cyclosporine in treating psoriasis demonstrated a critical role for inflammation in psoriasis pathogenesis (Ellis et al., 1986). This in turn led to a clearer understanding of how methotrexate results in amelioration of psoriasis (Johnston et al., 2005), and subsequent insights into the initiation and resultant cascade of inflammatory events have led to the development of effective biologic agents (DiSepio and Chandraratna, 2000).
Synchronously mode-locked fiber laser based on parametric gain modulation and soliton shaping

A novel synchronously mode-locked fiber laser is demonstrated by combining the parametric gain modulation in a pulse-pumped nonlinear optical loop mirror (NOLM) with the soliton shaping property of a nonlinear amplifying loop mirror (NALM). Parametric gain modulation induced by the synchronous pump pulses within the NOLM starts and defines the timing of the mode-locked signal pulses, while the nonlinear intensity discrimination in the NALM stabilizes the mode-locked pulses and optimizes their shapes. A stream of 1.3 ps transform-limited soliton pulses is generated when the NOLM is pumped by a mode-locked fiber laser. Moreover, we find that the timing jitter of the synchronously mode-locked pulse train is suppressed by more than 10 dB when compared to the pumping laser.
Setting Pesticide Reference Doses: A Retrospective Analysis Examining Key Data and Choices

ABSTRACTToxicity tests are widely used to set “acceptable” levels of chemical exposure. Different organizations have identified a base set of tests specifying a mix of endpoints, durations, and species to be tested. A specific test and endpoint is chosen as the basis for calculation of human health risk values like reference doses (RfDs). This study empirically evaluates the data and choices made in setting acute and chronic RfDs for 352 conventional pesticides. The results suggest that for Acute, Acute-Female Specific, and Chronic RfDs one test is used far more than others. Ninety-six percent of the 116 Acute Female-Specific RfDs relied on a developmental toxicity test and 78% of Chronic RfDs used the chronic bioassay. Tests in rats were used far more often than other species in all RfD calculations. For all types of RfDs a total uncertainty factor of 100 was most common although values as low as 1 and as high as 3000 were seen. These results provide insights not only into the science policy frameworks u...
Practicing What We Teach at Duquesne: A Laboratory for Leadership

The Interdisciplinary Doctoral Program for Educational Leaders (IDPEL) is a radical departure from traditional leadership teaching methodologies. IDPEL embodies a teaching experience in which the program itself provides models of the very leadership skills, traits, and methodologies that the participants are encouraged to study and emulate. It is a program that boldly attempts to put best leadership theories into practice--in the operations of the program itself. Indeed, leadership is best taught through a combination of theoretical inquiry and research, practical application of the concepts studied in the "real world," and modeling of best practices in a laboratory setting. In this leadership laboratory, the issues with which IDPEL community members grapple are real and very important--they deal with the structure, function, and composition of the doctoral program itself, and with three essential aspects of leadership.