cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Tunneling in MIS structures—I. Theory

Abstract Quantum mechanical tunneling through insulating barriers has received considerable attention in recent years, especially in metal-insulator-metal systems and p − n junctions. It is the purpose of this paper to discuss tunneling in the MIS contact. In this paper we define the d.c. currents which flow and then calculate the voltage distribution in the contact. It is found that as long as the semiconductor spacecharge region is of the order of the insulator thickness (∼ 50 A) considerable voltage drops across the semiconductor. Using this, a voltage region of low conductance is shown to exist, over which the metal Fermi level is opposite the forbidden gap of the semiconductor. This region is shown to be greater than the semiconductor energy gap. In addition, the a.c. frequency dependent currents which flow in an MIS contact due to interface states are calculated. It is shown that interface states can contribute to the a.c. conductance via two mechanisms; time lag in trapping and recombination of carriers in the semiconductor bands and tunneling via interface states. Both of these mechanisms are discussed and the conditions under which one or the other make the major contribution to the a.c. conductance is analyzed.
Right Ventricular Endomyocardial Biopsy

A right ventricular endomyocardial biopsy is a useful procedure for monitoring heart transplant patients or in diagnosing and treating patients with various cardiac and systemic diseases. When performed by an experienced cardiologist, there is little risk. The procedure, however, does require the nurse to perform the necessary patient preparation and monitoring along with standard nursing care to be successful.
The Effect of California's Breast Density Notification Legislation on Breast Cancer Screening.

Purpose: Half of US states mandate women be notified if they have dense breasts on their mammogram, yet guidelines and data on supplemental screening modalities are limited. Breast density (BD) ref...
Grameen Bank : A Revolutionary Concept

Grameen Bank's success has resulted in Prof Yunus receiving numerous international awards, including the World Food Prize last year. Bill Clinton has suggested that Yunus be given the Nobel Prize also. But the real prize that Prof Yunus desires is the eradication of poverty everywhere. Only the future will tell us if he succeeds. This article is available in The Park Place Economist: http://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/parkplace/vol3/iss1/18 Faizal Chaudhury '96 is a junior majoring in Economics and Accounting. Faizal is the new President of the Economics Society and is involved with numerous other campus activities. Faizal is a native ofBangladesh. Grameen Bank: A Revolutionary Concept
A framework to link localized cooling and properties of directed energy deposition (DED)-processed Ti-6Al-4V

Abstract Additive manufacturing (AM) of titanium alloys is a rapidly growing field due to an increase in design flexibility of parts. However, AM parts are highly anisotropic in material microstructure and mechanical behavior due to the change of the local processing conditions in the build-up process. This study follows a link chain model to investigate the relationships between process parameters, cooling rate, porosity and mechanical behavior. The aim of this work is to present a framework that is inspired by the three-link chain model. The framework combines theoretical, computational and experimental approaches. We demonstrate this by using an in-house thermal simulator to link predicted cooling rates with micrographs describing experimental shape descriptors to develop a relationship between solidification cooling rate and porosity geometry. Finally, representative volume elements from predicted porosity maps allow for a prediction of mechanical properties at localized areas. The capability of being able to predict mechanical behavior of titanium alloys is demonstrated for the directed energy deposition process.
Dimensions of Price as a Marketing Universal: A Comparison of Japanese and U.S. Consumers

Consumer behaviors within a segment and regarding a product category that do not vary across cultures are defined as market universale (Dawar and Parker 1994). Japanese and U.S. students (N = 267) ...
Subcortical projections from the amygdaloid complex.

It has long been known that the amygdala has substantial subcortical projections to the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis, the hypothalamus and the mediodorsal nucleus of the thalamus (e.g., Nauta, 1961; Cowan et al., 1965; Heimer and Nauta, 1969; De Olmos, 1972). Partially because of this, the function of the amygdaloid complex has been thought to be primarily related to visceral and autonomic mechanisms (e.g., Kaada, 1972). This concept has been somewhat altered by more recent studies. It is now clear that there are also widespread amygdaloid projections to the cerebral cortex (see Amaral, this volume), and that the complex is involved in cognitive as well as visceral functions (e.g., Gloor et al., 1982). However, recent investigations have also emphasized the subcortical projections from the amygdaloid nuclei, and have shown that they are even more complex and extensive than were previously thought. For example, the central amygdaloid nucleus projects not only to the lateral hypothalamus, but also to the full extent of the brainstem and even into the spinal cord (e.g., Hopkins, 1975; Price and Amaral, 1981; Mizuno et al., 1985). At the other end of the neuraxis, the amygdaloid nuclei provide the major telencephalic input to the nucleus basalis and other cell groups in the basal forebrain (Russchen et al., 1985b).
Is There Room for Safety Behaviors in Exposure Therapy for Anxiety Disorders

Exposure-based treatments are often regarded as one of the major success stories in the treatment of anxiety disorders McNally (Clinical Psychology Review 27(6):750–759, 2007). Encouraging patients to confront anxiety-provoking cues is a central element in most empirically supported treatments for the anxiety disorders. Consequently, it only makes sense for clinical scientists to investigate procedural factors that influence the efficacy of exposure treatments. One procedural issue that has recently become the focus of considerable research and some controversy is whether to make safety behaviors available during exposure treatment Rachman et al. (Behaviour Research and Therapy 46(2):163–173, 2008). The overarching aim of this chapter is to provide an up-to-date report on the status of safety behavior research in the context of exposure therapy and to provide clinicians specific recommendations for the (a) clinical assessment of safety behaviors; (b) strategies for helping patients withdraw anxiogenic safety behaviors; and (c) strategies for utilizing safety behaviors to enhance exposure treatments.
Checking and filtering global set constraints

This paper considers feasibility checking and filtering of global constraints over set variables. It makes four main contributions. (1) It presents a feasibility checker for the global alldisjoint constraint. (2) It proposes primal filters for the combination of a global disjoint constraint and symmetry-breaking constraints. (3) It proposes dual filters for global intersection constraints. (4) It presents primal/dual filters for the combination of a global intersection constraint and symmetry-breaking constraints. All these contributions are independent of the underlying domain representation. Experimental results show that these proposals have complementary benefits, may improve efficiency significantly, and make it possible to solve larger instances of two standard benchmarks.
International Reserve Adequacy in Central America

Countries’ absolute and relative international reserves adequacy has recently attracted considerable attention. The analysis has however concentrated on the largest and most advanced economies. We apply various methodologies for assessing reserve adequacy in Central America, taking into account the region’s high degree of deposit dollarization. We find that reserve cover is low both in an absolute and relative sense, suggesting further reserve accumulation is an important policy option for reducing vulnerabilities.
'I Will Give Unto You My Law': Section 42 as a Legal Text and the Paradoxes of Divine Law

The idea of divine law occupies an uneasy place in the modern world. In most modern legal systems, divine law is relegated to liminal spaces unoccupied by the authority of secular law. Hence, divine law is generally seen as legitimately speaking only to private, moral, or religious issues. For believers, however, this truncating of divine law's authority presents the problem of how to reconcile the primacy of God's authority with the practical dominance of secular over sacred law. This paper explores how Mormonism has responded to this problem by providing a close reading of section 42 of the Doctrine & Covenants, a passage of Mormon scripture written in the 1830s. It argues that ultimately Mormonism presents a paradoxical conception of divine law that both insists on its own ultimate authority while simultaneously sacralizing its own retreat before secular power. The resulting conception has proven spiritually unsatisfying for some, but has allowed Mormonism to successfully negotiate the tensions created by the idea of divine law in the modern world.
Activity of novel antifungal compound APX001A against a large collection of Candida auris.

Background APX001A is an antifungal agent that targets a novel pathway-glycosylphosphatidylinositol glycolipid biosynthesis. It has been shown to be effective against a variety of fungal species, including Candida spp., Aspergillus spp. and other filamentous fungi. Objectives To determine the activity of APX001A against the emerging fungal pathogen Candida auris. Methods APX001A was tested by broth microdilution against 100 geographically distinct isolates of C. auris. Results APX001A showed activity against all isolates, including some that were resistant to one or more antifungals, with MIC50 and MIC90 of 0.002 and 0.008 mg/L, respectively. Conclusions These findings suggest that APX001A shows encouraging activity against the emerging fungal pathogen C. auris.
Quantitative radiomics: Validating image textural features for oncological PET in lung cancer

Abstract Background and purpose Radiomics textural features derived from PET imaging are of broad and current interest due to recent evidence of their prognostic value during cancer management. An inherent assumption is the link between these imaging features and the underlying tumoral phenotypic spatial heterogeneity. The purpose of this work was to validate this assumption for tumors within the lung through a comparison of image based textural features and the ground truth activity distribution from which the images were created. A second purpose was to assess the level at which PET imaging introduces spatial texture not present in the associated ground truth activity distribution. Materials and methods 25 lung lesions were created using an anthropomorphic phantom. Ten of the lesions had a spherical shape with a uniform activity distribution. The remaining 15 had an irregular shape with a heterogeneous activity distribution. PET images were created for each lesion using Monte Carlo simulation. 79 textural features related to the gray-level intensity histograms, co-occurrence matrices, neighborhood difference matrices, run length, and size zone matrices were derived from both the simulated PET images and ground truth activity maps. A comparison was made between the two datasets using statistical analysis. Results For homogenous lesions, features extracted from the PET images were largely irrelevant to the underlying uniform activity distribution. Additionally, the majority of these features assumed substantial values implying that an extensive amount of spatial texture had been introduced into the final imaging data. For heterogeneous lesions, complex trends were observed in the deviation between features extracted from PET images and those extracted from the ground truth activity maps. Moreover, the extent of both the deviation and the associated dynamic range was seen to be greatly feature-dependent. Conclusion The use of image based textural features as a surrogate for tumoral phenotypic spatial heterogeneity could not be clearly validated. The association between the two is complex and a significant amount of uncertainty exist due to the introduction of incidental texture during image acquisition and reconstruction.
Survival, Movements, and Habitat Use of Fledgling Veeries (Catharus fuscescens) in Northeastern Pennsylvania

For most passerines, survival and behavior during the postfledging period are poorly known, even though these population characteristics are potentially important to demography and conservation. In 2013–2014 radiotelemetry was used to measure survival, movements, and habitat use of juvenile Veeries (Catharus fuscescens) during the postfledgingdependent period in a landscape dominated by mature forest in northeastern Pennsylvania. In total I tracked 29 juvenile Veeries and conducted habitat sampling at sites used by fledglings and at associated random sites. Survival during the first 21 d postfledging was high (0.78), with most mortalities occurring during the first 7 d, and all deaths attributed to predation. Fledglings moved gradually away from their nests as they aged, averaging 333±62 m by 19–21 d. However, there was much variation in movement patterns among individuals, perhaps reflecting differences in spatial distribution of important microhabitats or differences in timing of postfledging dispersal. Like fledglings of many other species of forest passerines, Veery fledglings preferred microhabitats with dense woody understory vegetation: compared to random sites, sites used by fledglings had, on average, greater woody ground cover, midstory cover, and sapling density but had lower density of eastern hemlock trees. However, unlike many other forest passerine species, Veery fledglings did not exhibit broad shifts to other nonnesting habitat types. These results provide the first detailed study of postfledging survival and behavior of the Veery and add generally to our understanding of postfledging ecology in forest passerines.
Characteristics of the storage proteins of cotton

The storage proteins of the cottonseed are composed of α and β globulins which are homologous to the vicilins and legumins, respectively, of the legumes. Gene sequences for members of both protein families have been determined, and the derived amino acid compositions are presented here. The proteolytic cleavages and glycosylations involved in the processing of the preproproteins during embryogenesis to yield the proteins found in the mature seed are outlined.
Hamiltonian Flows, SU(∞), SO(∞), USp(∞), and Strings

Based on the infinite-dimensional algebras we have introduced, SU(∞) is identified with general hamiltonian flows in 2-d phase-space, SO(∞) with flows generated by x-p-odd hamiltonians, and USp(∞) with those of hamiltonians of special symmetry. Gauge theories for SU(∞), SO(∞), and USp(∞) are thus formulated in terms of surface (sheet) coordinates for toroidal phase-space. Spacetime-independent configurations of their gauge fields directly yield the quadratic Schild-Eguchi string action.
At the Heart of Bacterial Cytokinesis: The Z Ring

Bacterial cell division is mediated by the divisome which is organized by the Z ring, a cytoskeletal element formed by the polymerization of the tubulin homologue FtsZ. Despite billions of years of bacterial evolution, the Z ring is nearly universal among bacteria that have a cell wall and divide by binary fission. Recent studies have revealed the mechanism of cooperative assembly of FtsZ and that the Z ring consists of patches of FtsZ filaments tethered to the membrane that treadmill to distribute the septal biosynthetic machinery. Here, we summarize these advances and discuss questions raised by these new findings.
Clinico-Neuropathological Findings in the Oldest Old from the Georgia Centenarian Study

BACKGROUND Centenarian studies are important sources for understanding of factors that contribute to longevity and healthy aging. Clinico-neuropathological finding is a key in identifying pathology and factors contributing to age-related cognitive decline and dementia in the oldest old. OBJECTIVE To characterize the cross-sectional relationship between neuropathologies and measures of premortem cognitive performance in centenarians. METHODS Data were acquired from 49 centenarians (≥98 years) from the Georgia Centenarian Study. Cognitive assessment from the time point closest to mortality was used (<1 year for all subjects) and scores for cognitive domains were established. Neuropathologies [cerebral atrophy, ventricular dilation, atherosclerosis, cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA), Lewy bodies, hippocampal sclerosis (HS), hippocampal TDP-43 proteinopathy, neuritic plaque (NP) and neurofibrillary tangle (NFT) counts, Braak staging, and National Institute on Aging-Reagan Institute (NIARI) criteria for the neuropathological diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease (AD)] were compared among subjects with different ratings of dementia. Linear regression was applied to evaluate the association between cognitive domain scores and neuropathologies. RESULTS Wide ranges of AD-type neuropathological changes were observed in both non-demented and demented subjects. Neocortical NFT and Braak staging were related to clinical dementia rating. Neocortical NFT and NP, Braak and NIARI staging, cerebral and ventricular atrophy, HS, CAA, and TDP-43 proteinopathy were differentially associated with poor performance in multiple cognitive domains and activities of daily living. CONCLUSION AD-type pathology was associated with severe dementia and poor cognition but was not the only variable that explained cognitive impairment, indicating the complexity and heterogeneity of pathophysiology of dementia in the oldest old.
The use of reaction time distributions to study attention in male rats: the effects of atomoxetine and guanfacine

Norepinephrine (NE) is involved in the control of sustained attention. Studies of sustained attention in humans include measures of reaction time (RT) and RT variability (RTV). The present study tested the role of NE using components of the RT distribution in rats in a manner thought to be similar to human studies of RTV. This study tested the effects of increased synaptic NE (atomoxetine (ATX)) and α-2 receptor binding (guanfacine) on attentional lapses in rats. Male Sprague-Dawley rats (n = 20) were trained and tested in a two-choice RT task (2CRTT). Atomoxetine dose (saline, 0.1, 0.5, 1.0 mg/kg, i.p.), guanfacine dose (saline, 0.01, 0.1, 0.3 mg/kg, i.p.), and distractors were manipulated in three experiments. RT was divided into initiation time (IT) and movement time (MT). Analyses of distribution mode (peak) and deviation from the mode (skew) were then performed. ATX and guanfacine had no effect on IT mode, reduced IT devmode, and increased MT mode. When distractors were introduced, ATX again improved devmode, but a lack of interaction between ATX and distractor indicated that ATX did not prevent distractor-induced impairments. IT devmode is a measure of distribution skew thought to reflect lapses of attention. The effects of ATX on IT devmode suggest that increased synaptic NE reduces attentional lapses. These findings are consistent with human reports of reduced RTV after ATX administration. The same pattern of results with guanfacine suggests that the effects of increased NE are due in part to binding at α-2 noradrenergic receptors.
Dynamic optimization with side information.

We develop a tractable and flexible approach for incorporating side information into dynamic optimization under uncertainty. The proposed framework uses predictive machine learning methods (such as $k$-nearest neighbors, kernel regression, and random forests) to weight the relative importance of various data-driven uncertainty sets in a robust optimization formulation. Through a novel measure concentration result for a class of machine learning methods, we prove that the proposed approach is asymptotically optimal for multi-period stochastic programming with side information. We also describe a general-purpose approximation for these optimization problems, based on overlapping linear decision rules, which is computationally tractable and produces high-quality solutions for dynamic problems with many stages. Across a variety of examples in inventory management, finance, and shipment planning, our method achieves improvements of up to 15\% over alternatives and requires less than one minute of computation time on problems with twelve stages.
The Invasion Hierarchy: Ecological and Evolutionary Consequences of Invasions in the Fossil Record

Species invasions are pervasive in Earth history, yet the ecological and evolutionary consequences vary greatly. Ancient invasion events can be organized in a hierarchy of increasing invasion inten...
Kneeling trunk kinematics during simulated sloped roof shingle installation

Abstract Trunk musculoskeletal disorders are common among residential roofers. Addressing this problem requires a better understanding of the movements required to complete working tasks, such as affixing shingles on a sloped residential roof. We analyzed the extent to which the trunk kinematics during a shingling process are altered due to different angles of roof slope. Eight male subjects completed a kneeling shingle installation process on three differently sloped roof surfaces. The magnitude of the trunk kinematics was significantly influenced by both slope and task phase of the shingling process, depending on the metric. The results unequivocally point to roof slope and task phase as significant factors altering trunk kinematics. However, extension of the results to roofing workers should be done carefully, depending on the degree to which the study protocol represents the natural setting. Future studies on shingle installation in residential roofing should absolutely consider capturing a wider array of shingling procedures in order to encapsulate all the possible methods that are used due to the lack of a standardized procedure.
Root-niche separation between savanna trees and grasses is greater on sandier soils

In savannas, partitioning of below‐ground resources by depth could facilitate tree–grass coexistence and shape vegetation responses to changing rainfall patterns. However, most studies assessing tree versus grass root‐niche partitioning have focused on one or two sites, limiting generalization about how rainfall and soil conditions influence the degree of rooting overlap across environmental gradients. We used two complementary stable isotope techniques to quantify variation (a) in water uptake depths and (b) in fine‐root biomass distributions among dominant trees and grasses at eight semi‐arid savanna sites in Kruger National Park, South Africa. Sites were located on contrasting soil textures (clayey basaltic soils vs. sandy granitic soils) and paired along a gradient of mean annual rainfall. Soil texture predicted variation in mean water uptake depths and fine‐root allocation. While grasses maintained roots close to the surface and consistently used shallow water, trees on sandy soils distributed roots more evenly across soil depths and used deeper soil water, resulting in greater divergence between tree and grass rooting on sandy soils. Mean annual rainfall predicted some variation among sites in tree water uptake depth, but had a weaker influence on fine‐root allocation. Synthesis. Savanna trees overlapped more with shallow‐rooted grasses on clayey soils and were more distinct in their use of deeper soil layers on sandy soils, consistent with expected differences in infiltration and percolation. These differences, which could allow trees to escape grass competition more effectively on sandy soils, may explain observed differences in tree densities and rates of woody encroachment with soil texture. Differences in the degree of root‐niche separation could also drive heterogeneous responses of savanna vegetation to predicted shifts in the frequency and intensity of rainfall.
Theophylline dosing and pharmacokinetics for renal protection in neonates with hypoxic–ischemic encephalopathy undergoing therapeutic hypothermia

BACKGROUND Theophylline, a non-selective adenosine receptor antagonist, improves renal perfusion in the setting of hypoxia-ischemia and may offer therapeutic benefit in neonates with hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) undergoing hypothermia. We evaluated the pharmacokinetics and dose-exposure relationships of theophylline in this population to guide dosing strategies. METHODS A population pharmacokinetic analysis was performed in 22 neonates with HIE undergoing hypothermia who were part of a prospective study or retrospective chart review. Aminophylline (intravenous salt form of theophylline) was given per institutional standard of care for low urine output and/or rising serum creatinine (5 mg/kg intravenous (i.v.) load then 1.8 mg/kg i.v. q6h). The ability of different dosing regimens to achieve target concentrations (4-10 mg/L) associated with clinical response was examined. RESULTS Birth weight was a significant predictor of theophylline clearance and volume of distribution (p < 0.05). The median half-life was 39.5 h (range 27.2-50.4). An aminophylline loading dose of 7 mg/kg followed by 1.6 mg/kg q12h was predicted to achieve target concentrations in 84% of simulated neonates. CONCLUSIONS In neonates with HIE undergoing hypothermia, theophylline clearance was low with a 50% longer half-life compared to full-term normothermic neonates without HIE. Dosing strategies need to consider the unique pharmacokinetic needs of this population. IMPACT Theophylline is a potential renal-protective therapy in neonates with HIE undergoing therapeutic hypothermia; however, the pharmacokinetics and dose needs in this population are not known. Theophylline clearance was low in neonates with HIE undergoing therapeutic hypothermia with a 50% longer half-life compared to full-term normothermic neonates without HIE. As theophylline is advanced in clinical development, dosing strategies will need to consider the unique pharmacokinetic needs of neonates with HIE undergoing therapeutic hypothermia.
Optical and electrochemical effects of H2 and O2 bubbles at upward-facing Si photoelectrodes

The effects of the size, contact-angle, and coverage of gas bubbles on solar fuels devices were characterized at cm-scale, upward-facing planar and microwire-array Si photoelectrodes in stagnant electrolytes. Experimental measurements were supported by ray-tracing simulations of surface attached gas bubble films. A dilute, redox-active tracer allowed for the quantification of the mass-transport effects of bubble coverage during photoanodic O2(g) evolution at upward-facing photoanodes in 1.0 M KOH(aq.). Measurements of the gas coverage at upward-facing p-Si photocathodes in 0.50 M H2SO4(aq.) allowed for the nucleation rate and contact angle of H2(g) bubbles to be evaluated for systems having various surface free energies. Under simulated solar illumination, the rapid departure of small O2(g) bubbles produced stable photocurrents at upward-facing oxygen-evolving Si photoanodes and yielded increased mass-transport velocities relative to a stagnant electrolyte, indicating that bubbles can provide a net benefit to the photoelectrochemical performance of an upward-facing photoanode in solar fuels devices.
SMUT: multi-SNP Mediation intersection-Union Test

Tens of thousands of reproducibly identified GWAS (Genome-Wide Association Studies) variants, with the vast majority falling in non-coding regions resulting in no eventual protein products, call urgently for mechanistic interpretations. Although numerous methods exist, there are few, if any methods, for simultaneously testing the mediation effects of multiple correlated SNPs via some mediator (for example, the expression of a gene in the neighborhood) on phenotypic outcome. We propose SMUT, multi-SNP Mediation intersection-Union Test to fill in this methodological gap. Our extensive simulations demonstrate the validity of SMUT as well as substantial, up to 92%, power gains over alternative methods. In addition, SMUT confirmed known mediators in a real dataset of Finns for plasma adiponectin level, which were missed by many alternative methods. We believe SMUT will become a useful tool to generate mechanistic hypotheses underlying GWAS variants, facilitating functional follow-up. The R package SMUT is publicly available from CRAN at https://CRAN.R-project.org/package=SMUT.
Towards a Phenomenology of Resurrection and of Ghosts

In this paper, I work to situate the reading and writing that constitute a phenomenology of religion, especially with respect to the stories of the Resurrection of Jesus. First, I use the descriptions of lived embodiment by Husserl in Cartesian Meditations (1970) and by Merleau-Ponty in The Visible and the Invisible (1968) in order to inaugurate a phenomenological reading of the Resurrection of Jesus by the Gospel authors Luke and John. Then I use Jacques Derrida’s Specters of Marx (1994) and John Caputo’s “Bodies Still Unrisen, Events Still Unsaid” (2007) to account for the deeper phenomenological problem of how to distinguish the uniqueness of the Resurrection from that of the reappearance of a ghost. Finally, in light of the literary and conceptual analyses of the first two sections, I establish the method of a phenomenology of religion as a peculiar kind of epoche, an epoche of “obvious” political moves within a religious attitude, that allows us to practice a relation with the text not simply as literary or as conceptual but as the conscience of a community. Ultimately, the paper works to describe the Resurrection of Jesus as an event that pushes toward the very practice of textuality within the communities-to-come.
Ablation of Proliferating Osteoblast Lineage Cells After Fracture Leads to Atrophic Nonunion in a Mouse Model.

Nonunion is defined as the permanent failure of a fractured bone to heal, often necessitating surgical intervention. Atrophic nonunions are a subtype that are particularly difficult to treat. Animal models of atrophic nonunion are available; however, these require surgical or radiation-induced trauma to disrupt periosteal healing. These methods are invasive and not representative of many clinical nonunions where osseous regeneration has been arrested by a "failure of biology". We hypothesized that arresting osteoblast cell proliferation after fracture would lead to atrophic nonunion in mice. Using mice that express a thymidine kinase (tk) "suicide gene" driven by the 3.6Col1a1 promoter (Col1-tk), proliferating osteoblast lineage cells can be ablated upon exposure to the nucleoside analog ganciclovir (GCV). Wild-type (WT; control) and Col1-tk littermates were subjected to a full femur fracture and intramedullary fixation at 12 weeks age. We confirmed abundant tk+ cells in fracture callus of Col-tk mice dosed with water or GCV, specifically many osteoblasts, osteocytes, and chondrocytes at the cartilage-bone interface. Histologically, we observed altered callus composition in Col1-tk mice at 2 and 3 weeks postfracture, with significantly less bone and more fibrous tissue. Col1-tk mice, monitored for 12 weeks with in vivo radiographs and micro-computed tomography (μCT) scans, had delayed bone bridging and reduced callus size. After euthanasia, ex vivo μCT and histology showed failed union with residual bone fragments and fibrous tissue in Col1-tk mice. Biomechanical testing showed a failure to recover torsional strength in Col1-tk mice, in contrast to WT. Our data indicates that suppression of proliferating osteoblast-lineage cells for at least 2 weeks after fracture blunts the formation and remodeling of a mineralized callus leading to a functional nonunion. We propose this as a new murine model of atrophic nonunion. © 2021 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research (ASBMR).
New Corn Plant Draws Fire From GM Food Opponents

In December, Monsanto Corp. applied to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for approval to field-test and sell a new line of modified corn. The plant carries a bacterial gene that produces a toxin that kills one of the toughest insect pests of corn, the so-called corn rootworm complex, actually the larvae of three related beetle species. A go-ahead for field tests could come as early as next month, and Monsanto says it hopes to be able to sell seeds to farmers in time for planting next year. But biotech watchdogs are urging EPA to reject Monsanto9s applications unless a host of safety questions are answered.
The implementation of an EMG controlled robotic arm to motivate pre-college students to pursue biomedical engineering careers

Biomedical engineering is an exciting field that demands the skills of many engineering disciplines. While the demand for biomedical engineers is greatly increasing, the awareness of the field may not be increasing at the same rate. This study, which included an EMG controlled robotic arm, was shown to motivate pre-college students to pursue biomedical engineering careers. This research may lead to a tutorial that can be used on the high school level as a lab activity, as well as, a tool for recruiting biomedical engineering students at the university level.
Inequalities Connecting Eigenvalues & Nonprincipal Subdeterminants.

The nonprincipal subdeterminants of a normal matrix satisfy certain quadratic identities. In this paper, these identities are used to obtain upper bounds on such subdeterminants in terms of elementary symmetric functions of the moduli of the eigenvalues. The same analysis yields lower bounds on the spread of a normal matrix and on the Hilbert norm of an arbitrary matrix.
Increasing the lock-in probability of blind symbol time offset estimators in OFDM systems

For orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) receivers, the mutual orthogonality of the subcarriers is preserved only if the estimated symbol timing error lies in the lock-in region. Conventionally, a bias is added to the coarse symbol time offset (STO) estimate to move the symbol timing error into the lock-in region, thus increasing the lock-in probability. Upon review of the literature, no analysis has been provided on determining which bias values can improve the lock-in probability. This paper is the first to investigate adding a bias to blind coarse STO estimators, and analyze its performance in terms of the lock-in probability. It will be shown that the optimal value of the bias term is dependent on the channel, which is not ideal for blind estimators. Hence, an upper bound on the optimal value is derived that is valid for all channels, and then the bound is made tighter for realistic wireless communication channels. It is shown that these bounds are dependent solely on the length of the cyclic prefix, thus the coarse STO estimators remain blind.
Self-efficacy with application to nursing education: a concept analysis.

TOPIC. Concept analysis and self-efficacy. PURPOSE. This article analyzes the concept self-efficacy and its relationship to nursing education using Walker and Avant's methodology. SOURCES. Published literature. CONCLUSION. Nursing literature suggests increasing students' perceived self-efficacy will help to narrow the theory–practice gap. Self-efficacy is a cognitive variable that affects performance behaviors and affective processes. Perceived self-efficacy can be influenced by a direct experience, vicarious experience, or verbal persuasion. Individuals with high levels of self-efficacy demonstrate the defining attributes of confidence, perceived capability, and perseverance.
High-speed inverse square roots

Inverse square roots are used in several digital signal processing, multimedia, and scientific computing applications. This paper presents a high-speed method for computing inverse square roots. This method uses a table lookup, operand modification, and multiplication to obtain an initial approximation to the inverse square root. This is followed by a modified Newton-Raphson iteration, consisting of one square, one multiply-complement, and one multiply-add operation. The initial approximation and Newton-Raphson iteration employ specialized hardware to reduce the delay, area, and power dissipation. Application of this method is illustrated through the design of an inverse square root unit operands in the IEEE single precision format. An implementation of this unit with a 4-layer metal, 2.5 Volt, 0.25 micron CMOS standard cell library has a cycle rime of 6.7 ns, an area of 0.41 mm/sup 2/, a latency of five cycles, and a throughput of one result per cycle.
Variation in selection and utilization of host crops in the field and laboratory by Drosophila suzukii Matsumara (Diptera: Drosophilidae), an invasive frugivore.

BACKGROUND Drosophila suzukii, a pest of soft-skinned berries and stone fruits, has recently rapidly expanded its global range. The impacts of D. suzukii infestation and subsequent fruit damage in North America and Europe have been profound. The aim of the present work was to assess host selection of D. suzukii in the field and laboratory, with an emphasis on hosts commonly grown in the southeastern United States, where D. suzukii has been established since 2010. RESULTS Raspberries were infested at a greater rate than blackberries in the field, and varieties within both species were infested at different rates. Primocane-fruiting blackberries were often the least heavily infested. Further, blackberries and raspberries grown under high tunnels were infested at lower rates than those grown outside. Fruit and artificial substrates with a lower surface penetration force were more heavily infested than firmer substrates in the laboratory; no eggs were laid in artificial substrates exceeding 52.00 cN surface penetration force. CONCLUSION Infestation rates differ between species and varieties within species of Rubus in the southeastern United States. Fruit penetration force is one potential measure of host susceptibility, but host attractiveness will likely depend upon additional factors, such as soluble sugar content. © 2013 Society of Chemical Industry
A microprocessor-based dynamic inductance/capacitance meter

A microprocessor-based dynamic inductance/capacitance meter has been developed. Two different approaches are examined utilizing the frequency response of the circuit where the unknown reactive element is included. One procedure uses an LC oscillator which generates a frequency that is proportional to the reactive elements, while the other employs the resonance response of an RLC circuit from which the unknown element can be determined by the phase relationship. An 8088 processor detects the frequency counts in the first procedure, monitors the phase relationship in the second, and performs the required calculations for both. The microprocessor periodically samples the output of the LC oscillator at its input port to dynamically monitor the changes in the reactive circuit elements. Within 5% error over the frequency range of 100 Hz to 256 kHz, a wide range of inductance and capacitance values for both approaches were determined. >
The role of the paid preparer in nonprofit reporting quality

Abstract The purpose of this paper is to examine whether the preparer of the Form 990 influences the Form 990 reporting quality. Currently, the Form 990 is the only widely available source of governance and financial information for nonprofit organizations. The leading rater of nonprofit organizations, Charity Navigator, relies primarily on information from the Form 990 in developing their ratings. We identify misreporting by utilizing five measures of reporting quality. We find organizations that hire an outside accounting firm to prepare the Form 990 report higher quality financial information than organizations that choose to prepare the Form 990 in house. Interestingly, the size of the accounting firm is not associated with the quality of Form 990 reporting with the exception that paid preparers who are sole proprietors are more likely to misreport. Further exploration reveals that paid preparers who file more returns are less likely to misreport indicating that specialization is associated with more accurate reporting on Form 990. Our study contributes to the literature by using multiple reporting measures to examine the impact of paid preparers on the reporting quality of 990s. Furthermore, our study is the first to consider how specialization affects the accuracy of 990 returns.
The Effect of Opacity and Productivity of Spanish Suffixes on Derived Words

Abstract Studies have shown the impact of morphological knowledge on grammatical awareness and reading achievement ( Carlisle, 1995 ; Marinellie and Kneile, 2012). There are factors, such as low productivity and opacity, which make derived words difficult to understand. Those and the deep structure of opaque derived words need further investigation ( Gayatri, 2013; Serrano-Dolader, 2006 ). The goal of this study is to develop a scale of opacity along a continuum based on the number of changes to the lemma when the suffix is applied. Each of these changes was measured over a corpus of 550 derived words with productive Spanish suffixes (DRAE, 2001). 130 native Spanish high-school students and a small group of advanced non-native college students of Spanish were tested on the scale. Results reveal the usefulness of the scale to assess processing and reading difficulties in Spanish. Validation results indicate that all participants react in a similar way when facing basic morphological decisions.
End-user effectiveness: A cross-cultural examination

Abstract This study tests the proposed effect of national environments on end-user computing (EUC). Data were collected from seven American and ten Israeli companies. The participants were 138 Israeli end-users and 156 US end-users, all holding managerial positions. The results indicate some major differences between the two samples; Israeli managers had more computer experience and training than US managers, while US managers reported a much higher level of information center support and showed more favorable attitudes toward EUC than did their Israeli counterparts. Significant differences were also found between the two cultures in end-user satisfaction and overall system usage; US managers were found to be less satisfied with their information systems and used them less frequently than Israeli managers. On the other hand, Israeli managers reported using the system for fewer tasks and features. These findings are discussed and conclusions are drawn concerning the need for cross-cultural studies in the information systems field in general and in end-user computing in particular.
Energy deficit without reducing dietary carbohydrate alters resting carbohydrate oxidation and fatty acid availability

Reduced carbohydrate (CHO) availability after exercise has a potent influence on the regulation of substrate metabolism, but little is known about the impact of fat availability and/or energy defic...
A. Programmable device for simulation of tidal flux

An apparatus is described which permits precise, versatile control of simulated tidal flux in laboratory microcosms. A key component of the system, a programmable electronic control unit, can closely imitate any natural tidal function and is readily adaptable to other experimental applications that utilize timed switching capability. The programmable control unit is also cheaper and easier to operate than computer-based systems.
Recovery of radial Po2 profiles from phosphorescence quenching measurements in microvessels

Work by previous investigators has indicated that a substantial amount of oxygen diffuses from the precapillary circulation. These losses imply that there should be radial gradients of oxygen tension (Po2) in arterioles, leading to a non-uniform distribution of oxygen within these microvessels. We have employed the phosphorescence quenching method to measure oxygen, allowing us to evaluate the heterogeneity of Po2 inside short segments of microvessels. The phosphorescence decay curve contains information about the distribution of oxygen within the excited volume and the distribution can be represented as a histogram, by decomposing the decay curve into several components with weights proportional to the volume fraction of plasma with different Po2, under the condition of a high signal-to-noise ratio. Furthermore, the histogram can be converted into a radial profile of Po2, based on the assumptions of a circular vascular lumen, axisymmetric distribution of oxygen and monotonic Po2 profile. Albumin-bound Pd-porphyrin phosphor was infused into the circulation of hamsters and excited by flash illumination at 10 Hz, with a square region of excitation light just covering the entire lumen, (i.e. width of region equaled luminal diameter) of microvessels in the hamster mesentery. A set of 50 curves (5 s of data) was averaged to obtain a decay curve with low noise. Curves were analyzed with the above histogram procedure, and this analysis allowed us to distinguish between Po2 values originating from intra and extravascular subvolumes. The intravascular Po2 in these microvessels was very heterogeneous, which could be explained by the existence of significant radial Po2 gradients. The radial Po2 gradients were estimated to be approximately 1 mmHg/μm.
Malignant external otitis: Insights into pathogenesis, clinical manifestations, diagnosis, and therapy

Malignant external otitis is an infection of the external ear canal, mastoid, and base of the skull caused by Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The condition occurs primarily in elderly patients with diabetes mellitus. Current theories on pathogenesis and anatomic correlations are reviewed. Severe, unrelenting otalgia and persistent otorrhea are the symptomatic hallmarks of the disease, whereas an elevated erythrocyte sedimentation rate is the only distinctive laboratory abnormality. Iatrogenic causes such as administration of broad-spectrum antibiotics and aural irrigation may play a predisposing role in high-risk populations. The disease can result in cranial polyneuropathies (with facial nerve [VII] paralysis being the most common) and death. The mainstay of treatment is administration of antipseudomonal antibiotics for four to eight weeks. Recurrence is common, and mortality remains at about 20 percent despite antibiotic therapy. Given the increasing longevity of diabetic patients, the frequency of this disease is increasing. Internists, family practitioners, and ambulatory care physicians must now be cognizant of the presenting symptoms, while infectious disease specialists and otolaryngologists need to be appraised of strides in diagnosis and therapy. The role of surgery should be minimized. Use of new diagnostic radiologic modalities and new antipseudomonal antibiotics discussed in this review should lead to improved outcome.
Relationship between growth temperature and shedding of lipopolysaccharides by gram-negative bacilli

To explore the possibility that physiologically elevated temperatures might reduce the shedding of lipopolysaccharides (LPS) by gram-negative bacteria, the in vitro rates of growth and LPS release byEscherichia coli 055 andSalmonella typhimurium were compared at 33 °C, 37 °C and 41 °C. Rates of LPS accumulation in liquid culture supernatants were measured by radioimmunoassay for O-antigen.Escherichia coli 055 cells, adapted to 35 °C and then grown at different temperatures, showed increased growth and LPS release rates parallel with rising incubation temperatures. The growth of a clinical isolate ofSalmonella typhimurium (not a laboratory strain) was suppressed slightly at 33 °C, but LPS shedding was unaffected by temperature changes. Adaptation ofEscherichia coli 055 to 40 °C was associated with a smooth-rough transition and a reduced release rate of O-antigen, but no difference in growth rate when compared with a 35 °C-adapted strain. Thus, the release rate of LPS by gram-negative bacteria does not necessarily parallel their growth rate. This mechanism does not seem to explain the apparently beneficial effect of fever on the outcome of gram-negative infections in higher animals.