cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Low-Resource Multi-Domain Machine Translation for Spanish-Farsi: Neural or Statistical?

Abstract An important prerequisite for data-driven Machine Translation (MT) systems is the availability of high-quality training data. Corpus-based MT systems requiring domain specificity additionally require the selection of a large training dataset and application of proper domain adaptation techniques. This paper demonstrates the portability of MT systems to multiple domains under low-resource conditions for the target language, where target-language domain data are not available. We refer to this case as a bilingually low-resource language pair. We compare the performance of an attention-based Neural MT (NMT) system to that of a phrase-based Statistical MT (SMT) system under this condition, training each on parallel corpora consisting of different domains. Experimental results on Spanish-Farsi as a bilingually low-resource language pair show that the SMT paradigm still outperforms that of NMT.
The effect of electrical current on premature failures and microstructural degradation in bearing steel

Abstract Premature failures associated with microstructural degradation, i.e. white etching cracks (WECS), are becoming commonplace as applications are requiring tribological components to operate under extreme conditions. Although the specific drivers of WECs are still debated, the failures are often found in applications where cyclic loading is combined with added energy from stressors such as slip, impacts, or stray current. The aim of the current work is to elucidate effect that variable current has on premature failure. Numerous commercially available lubricants were tested, and both lubricant base oil type and additive package were found to have an effect on WEC failure time.
Purchase Options in Agricultural Farmland Leases

Agricultural farmland leasing is a popular option for many agricultural producers. This Article makes a contribution to the agricultural law literature by providing a comprehensive analysis of state appellate court decisions which involve option to purchase provisions in agricultural farmland leases. From cases involving the statue of frauds and rule against perpetuity, to abandonment, to wills and farm leases, to parole evidence, to operations of a farm in a "farm-like manner," to promissory estoppel and leasing, and to interpretation and construction issues and the validity of purchase options, state appellate courts throughout the country have examined issues relating to purchase options in agricultural leases.
Prospective Evaluation of Repeatability and Robustness of Radiomic Descriptors in Healthy Brain Tissue Regions In Vivo Across Systematic Variations in T2-Weighted Magnetic Resonance Imaging Acquisition Parameters.

BACKGROUND Radiomic descriptors from magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) are promising for disease diagnosis and characterization but may be sensitive to differences in imaging parameters. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the repeatability and robustness of radiomic descriptors within healthy brain tissue regions on prospectively acquired MRI scans; in a test-retest setting, under controlled systematic variations of MRI acquisition parameters, and after postprocessing. STUDY TYPE Prospective. SUBJECTS Fifteen healthy participants. FIELD STRENGTH/SEQUENCE A 3.0 T, axial T2 -weighted 2D turbo spin-echo pulse sequence, 181 scans acquired (2 test/retest reference scans and 12 with systematic variations in contrast weighting, resolution, and acceleration per participant; removing scans with artifacts). ASSESSMENT One hundred and forty-six radiomic descriptors were extracted from a contiguous 2D region of white matter in each scan, before and after postprocessing. STATISTICAL TESTS Repeatability was assessed in a test/retest setting and between manual and automated annotations for the reference scan. Robustness was evaluated between the reference scan and each group of variant scans (contrast weighting, resolution, and acceleration). Both repeatability and robustness were quantified as the proportion of radiomic descriptors that fell into distinct ranges of the concordance correlation coefficient (CCC): excellent (CCC > 0.85), good (0.7 ≤ CCC ≤ 0.85), moderate (0.5 ≤ CCC < 0.7), and poor (CCC < 0.5); for unprocessed and postprocessed scans separately. RESULTS Good to excellent repeatability was observed for 52% of radiomic descriptors between test/retest scans and 48% of descriptors between automated vs. manual annotations, respectively. Contrast weighting (TR/TE) changes were associated with the largest proportion of highly robust radiomic descriptors (21%, after processing). Image resolution changes resulted in the largest proportion of poorly robust radiomic descriptors (97%, before postprocessing). Postprocessing of images with only resolution/acceleration differences resulted in 73% of radiomic descriptors showing poor robustness. DATA CONCLUSIONS Many radiomic descriptors appear to be nonrobust across variations in MR contrast weighting, resolution, and acceleration, as well in test-retest settings, depending on feature formulation and postprocessing. EVIDENCE LEVEL 2 TECHNICAL EFFICACY: Stage 2.
Single institutional experience on primary neuroendocrine neoplasms of the kidney: a rare distinct entity.

Summary Primary pure renal neuroendocrine neoplasms (R-NENs) are a distinct and rare entity. Not much is known about the histopathology and biologic behavior of these tumors. We attempted to review the clinicopathologic aspects of these neoplasms encountered at our institution. We performed a retrospective chart review to identify primary pure (not admixed with any other tumor component) R-NENs from institutional Cancer Registry database. Pathologic review of the diagnostic archival slides was done for detailed assessment of the histologic features. R-NENs were classified according to the current WHO system for gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine neoplasms (GEP-NENs). Eight pure R-NEN cases were identified, all unifocal, and most (6/8) involved the right kidney. Three patients had poorly differentiated neuroendocrine carcinoma (NEC), and five had well-differentiated neuroendocrine tumor (NET). All tumors were located near the renal hilum, stained diffusely with synaptophysin, variably with chromogranin, and were negative for renal site-specific marker PAX8 or for markers of renal cell carcinoma. We identified two distinct patterns of growth: one of sheets with interspersed rosettes and the other of large nests with low proliferative crowded centers and peripheral cells with higher proliferation and prominent palisading. Based on Ki-67 proliferative index, the tumors were classifiable into WHO grade 1 or grade 2 (based on GEP-NEN). All three NECs characteristically showed cytologic features intermediate between classic large and small cell type. This is the first comprehensive clinicopathologic study involving the rare group of R-NEN. Classifying and grading them according to the GEP-NEN system is of prognostic significance.
Alternative splicing enhanced with deep machine learning: a novel method to detect ovarian cancer

Objectives: There is a continued effort to diagnose ovarian cancer in early stages. Alternative splicing analysis may provide a unique signature to discriminate between malignant and benign tissues. RNA-sequencing has enabled genome-wide assessment of alternative splicing. Furthermore, deep-learning prediction models of alternative splicing based on exon-specific sequences features enhances the value of this analysis. The aim of this study is to create a model that would discriminate high grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSC) from normal tube using deep-learning (or artificial intelligence, AI) and alternative splicing analysis. Methods: This is a case-control study of patients with confirmed HGSC and patients without personal history of HGSC undergoing salpingectomy for benign conditions. RNA-sequencing was performed on all tissue samples. Resulting RNA sequences were introduced in DARTS (Deep-learning Augmented RNA-Seq) software suite. DARTS created a model of differential alternative splicing aimed to discriminate between HGSC and normal fallopian tube. Performance of prediction models were measured by area under the curve (AUC). Results: 112 HGSC and 12 benign samples were successfully sequenced. Prior to deep machine-learning, we found 1,726 differentially spliced single exon transcripts between HGSC and benign samples (p Conclusions: Individual exon expression used to assess alternative splicing was analyzed with AI methods and created a model that identified HGSC with an AUC of 91%. This method could be applied to single-cell RNA-seq technologies to create diagnostic tools for detecting early HGSC.
Religiosity and happiness of Turkish speaking Muslims: does country happiness make a difference?

Contextual factors influence the relationship between religiosity and happiness, with sex and country of residence identified as salient moderators. This study used questionnaire data from Turkish ...
Sexual Victimization Disclosure: A Cluster Analysis Approach to Understanding Victimization Experiences in Disclosers and Non-Disclosers.

Research has used cluster analysis to identify clusters, or groups, of sexual victimization survivors who share similar assault experiences. However, researchers have not investigated whether disclosure status is a key component of the survivors’ experience. The current study identified two clusters among 174 disclosing and non-disclosing sexual victimization survivors. Cluster One (n = 74) included an incapacitated assault by a lesser-known perpetrator and disclosure of the event. Cluster Two (n = 100) included a verbally instigated assault by a well-known perpetrator and nondisclosure of the event. Follow up independent t-tests revealed that women in Cluster One had significantly higher depression and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms than women in Cluster Two. Results support prior research identifying clusters of victimization based on assault characteristics and suggest that disclosure status is a key variable in the recovery process. Specific implications for clinicians, policy makers, and the community are discussed.
In situ and remote monitoring of water quality in Puget Sound: The ORCA time-series

High frequency hydrological and meteorological measurements have been made in Puget Sound from 2001 to the present using remote profiling moorings. The moorings consists of a toroidal float upon which is mounted an electric winch that is powered by solar panels. Meteorological variables include, wind velocity and direction, air temperature, barometric pressure, and incident solar radiation while hydrographic variables include water temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, chlorophyll fluorescence and nitrate. Currently three moorings are operating in Puget Sound. All hydrographic variables displayed high frequency variability at all locations in Puget Sound, likely due to tidally advecting, patchy distributions. In the main basin of Puget Sound, the water column was well mixed during the winter months and water temperature was warmer than air temperature. With the onset of spring conditions plankton (fluorescence) bloomed and oxygen became supersaturated. However, there were numerous and frequent periods of destratification that could be correlated with wind events which mixed chlorophyll-containing surface waters downwards and nutrient-rich, oxygen-undersaturated water upwards. This process enhanced export production and injected oxygen into the deep waters. The chlorophyll maximum was found in the surface waters during the spring and fall bloom periods, but was located in the pycnocline during the summer months. By pooling all the oxygen data by hour of the day a diurnal oxygen curve was determined. The diurnal oxygen cycle was approximately sinusoidal with the minimum slightly before dawn and the maximum about at about 1800h and the amplitude was 17m moles of oxygen per liter. Primary production estimates derived from the oxygen cycle agreed with those determined from classical 14-C incubation methods. Statistical analysis of the data revealed that, at a minimum, daily sampling is necessary to assess the true values of the many measured variables. Without this sampling frequency resolving interannual differences or climate related changes would be difficult. However, given daily or greater sampling it should be possible to determine these types of changes as well as overall trends and cycles.
Combining rational interpolation with the vector fitting method

In this paper, a method is proposed to improve the initial poles and convergence of the vector fitting method. The procedure takes advantage of the robustness of the rational interpolation method in extracting stable poles over partitioned bandwidth and the numerical stability and fast convergence of the vector fitting method in generating accurate high-order rational approximation. First, the stable poles of the entire frequency range are obtained by partitioning the domain and performing rational interpolation in each bandwidth. Then, the collected poles are used as initial poles to the vector-fitting algorithm to obtain the overall high-order rational approximation. The accuracy and convergence of the standard vector fitting and proposed methods are compared. Examples are provided to demonstrate the advantage of the proposed approach.
Stress triggering of the great Indian Ocean strike‐slip earthquakes in a diffuse plate boundary zone

[1] On April 11, 2012, two great magnitude 8+ earthquakes occurred within a two-hour period off the west coast of northern Sumatra, Indonesia, in the broadly distributed India-Australia plate boundary zone. The magnitude 8.6 mainshock holds the distinction of being both the largest instrumentally recorded strike-slip earthquake and the largest earthquake away from a recognized plate boundary fault. The mainshock involved sequential ruptures of multiple fault planes oriented nearly perpendicular to each other. The adjacent 2004 megathrust earthquake statically loaded the northern Wharton Basin oceanic lithosphere on both of the 2012 mainshock fault plane orientations, and greatly enhanced the rate of earthquake activity in the region for a year. Viscoelastic relaxation of the asthenosphere following the 2004 and 2005 megathrust earthquakes continued to positively stress the offshore region, correlating with the locations of later strike-slip earthquakes, including two magnitude 7+ and the 2012 magnitude 8+ earthquakes.
Environmental Applications of Mass Spectrometry

Qualitative and quantitative procedures to analyze organic pollutants in all media—air, water, solid waste—have received considerable attention in the past few years. Within the United States most of this attention has been a direct or indirect result of the formation and mission of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), established in 1971.
Claims on Equity: Voting and Liquidity Differentials, Cash Flow Preferences and Financing Rights

In conventional valuation, we assume that all equity claims are identical and divide the value of equity by the number of claims (shares) to get the value per claim (share). In practice, though, claims on equity can vary on a number of dimensions. First, the claim can be a direct and perpetual one (standard equity) or it can be contingent on the value changing (equity option). Second, some equity investors have preferential claims on the cash flows- dividends in some cases and cash flows in liquidation in other cases. Third, some equity claims have superior control rights over other claims: this can take the form of differential voting rights in some cases and a bigger role in board composition and management in others. In some instances, the power is triggered by a control event such as an acquisition or an initial public offering. Fourth, some equity investors are provided with special rights to protect their interests when the firm acts in later periods. These can include disproportionate rights in subsequent financing decisions - the right to partake in the financing at a fixed price, for instance, or veto rights over new financing - as well as redemption rights, where they can reclaim the capital that they have invested. Finally, equity claims can vary in terms of liquidity, with some claims being more marketable than others. All of these differences can affect value, resulting in some equity claims having higher value than others.
Regulation of actomyosin interactions in Limulus muscle proteins

Contraction of striated muscle from Limulus polyphemus, the horseshoe crab, is regulated by both calcium binding to a troponin-tropomyosin-dependent thin filament array and a myosin light chain kinase-dependent phosphorylation of myosin. We have isolated myosin from Limulus striated muscle and examined how these two regulatory systems affect the sliding velocity of actin filaments over myosin, using an in vitro motility assay. Our results show that in the presence of ATP, Limulus myosin must be phosphorylated in order to move actin filaments. No movement was observed for actin filaments interacting with dephosphorylated Limulus myosin. Calcium was not required for actin movement. In contrast, when both troponin and tropomyosin are bound to actin filaments, calcium is required for the movement of actin filaments over phosphorylated myosin. These results demonstrate that the "off" state of either the thin filament or thick filament regulatory system is dominant and that for the movement to occur, both phosphorylated Limulus myosin and an activated troponin-tropomyosin system are required. Tropomyosin by itself increases the sliding velocity of actin filaments over phosphorylated Limulus myosin about 10-fold in a calcium-independent manner. Tropomyosins from turkey gizzard smooth muscle, bovine cardiac muscle, and Limulus muscle all have a profound effect in increasing the velocity. Troponin alone does not change the velocity. Partial sequences of the tryptic phosphopeptides of Limulus myosin regulatory light chains generated following the phosphorylation by gizzard myosin light chain kinase yield ATS(PO4)NVFAMFEQNQIA for 21 kDa and SGS(PO4)NVFSMFT for 31-kDa light chain.
An Asynchronous Microprocessor in Gallium Arsenide

In this paper, several techniques for designing asynchronous circuits in Gallium Arsenide are presented. Several new circuits were designed, to implement specific functions necessary to the design of a full microprocessor. A sense-amplifier, a completion tree, and a general circuit structure for operators specified by production rules are introduced. These circuit were used and tested in a variety of designs, including two asynchronous microprocessors and two asynchronous static RAM''s. One of the microprocessor runs at over 100 MIPS with a power consumption of 2 Watts.
Design and rationale for a randomized controlled trial to reduce readmissions among patients with depressive symptoms

Abstract Background The Re-Engineered Discharge (Project RED) reduces 30-day readmission rates by 30%. However, our data indicates that for patients displaying depressive symptoms during hospitalization, Project RED is less effective in preventing unplanned readmission. We aim to examine the effectiveness of RED-D, a modified brief Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) protocol delivered as a post-discharge extension of the Re-Engineered Discharge, in reducing 30-day readmissions rates and emergency department (ED) use as well as depressive symptoms for medical patients with comorbid depressive symptoms. Methods This paper details the study design and implementation of an ongoing, federally funded randomized controlled trial of our post-discharge mental health intervention, RED-D, compared to the RED plus usual care. This research has two primary objectives: (1) to determine whether RED-D delivered telephonically by a mental health professional immediately following discharge is effective in reducing hospital readmission and emergency department use for patients displaying depressive symptoms during their inpatient stay, and (2) to examine whether this approach yields a clinically significant reduction in depressive symptoms. We intend to recruit 1200 participants randomized to our intervention, RED-D (n = 600), and to RED plus usual care (n = 600). Conclusions Hospitalized patients with depressive symptoms are at increased risk for 30-day readmission. We aim to conduct a randomized clinical trial to evaluate the comparative effectiveness of RED-D, our post-discharge modified brief CBT intervention compared to RED alone in reducing readmissions and depressive symptoms for this at-risk population.
Transient Apical Thickening Following Apical Ballooning Syndrome: A Case Series

The authors describe transient apical thickening mimicking apical hypertrophic cardiomyopathy following apical ballooning syndrome. These findings are observed on multimodality cardiac imaging and appear to constitute a novel entity. Possible pathophysiologic mechanisms are explored.
The Differential Engagement of Arrestin Surface Charges by the Various Functional Forms of the Receptor

G-protein-coupled receptor signaling is terminated by arrestin proteins that preferentially bind to the activated phosphorylated form of the receptor. Arrestins also bind active unphosphorylated and inactive phosphorylated receptors. Binding to the non-preferred forms of the receptor is important for visual arrestin translocation in rod photoreceptors and the regulation of receptor signaling and trafficking by non-visual arrestins. Given the importance of arrestin interactions with the various functional forms of the receptor, we performed an extensive analysis of the receptor-binding surface of arrestin using site-directed mutagenesis. The data indicated that a large number of surface charges are important for arrestin interaction with all forms of the receptor. Arrestin elements involved in receptor binding are differentially engaged by the various functional forms of the receptor, each requiring a unique subset of arrestin residues in a specific spatial configuration. We identified several additional phosphate-binding elements in the N-domain and demonstrated for the first time that the active receptor preferentially engages the arrestin C-domain. We also found that the interdomain contact surface is important for arrestin interaction with the non-preferred forms of the receptor and that residues in this region play a role in arrestin transition into its high affinity receptor binding state.
Reproductive Health in the Adolescent and Young Adult Cancer Patient: An Innovative Training Program for Oncology Nurses

In 2008, approximately 69,200 adolescents and young adults (AYAs) were diagnosed with cancer, second only to heart disease for males in this age group. Despite recent guidelines from professional organizations and clinical research that AYA oncology patients want information about reproductive health topics and physician support for nurses to address these issues with patients, existing research finds few oncology nurses discuss this topic with patients due to barriers such as lack of training. This article describes an innovative eLearning training program, entitled Educating Nurses about Reproductive Issues in Cancer Healthcare. The threefold purpose of this article is to: (1) highlight major reproductive health concerns relevant to cancer patients, (2) describe the current status of reproductive health and oncology communication and the target audience for the training, and (3) present a systematic approach to curriculum development, including the content analysis and design stages as well as the utilization of feedback from a panel of experts. The resulting 10-week curriculum contains a broad-based approach to reproductive health communication aimed at creating individual- and practice-level change.
An Update of Real-World TV Advertising Tests

ABSTRACT An analysis is performed on the results of 50 recent real-world TV advertising tests conducted by Information Resources, Inc. to update the findings of Lodish et al. [ Journal of Marketing Research 32, 2 (1995): 125–39] and Hu, Lodish, and Krieger (Hu et al.) [ Journal of Advertising Research 47, 3 (2007): 341–53]. Overall, the improvement of TV advertising sales effectiveness from media weight increase is significant for established products, consistent with Hu et al.9s finding based on tests completed after 1995, further confirming that TV advertising effectiveness has improved during recent years. The new results continue to confirm that using valid and reliable pretests to assess TV advertising effectiveness should be an important practice in the industry.
Evidence for two separate β-ketoacyl CoA reductase components of the hepatic microsomal fatty acid chain elongation system in the rat☆

The hepatic microsomal fatty acid chain elongation system can utilize either NADPH or NADH. Elongation activity, measured as the rate of malonyl CoA incorporation into palmitoyl CoA, was enhanced by a fat-free diet and by bovine serum albumin (BSA) when either cofactor was employed. When the intermediate products were determined, it was observed that in the presence of BSA and NADPH, the predominant product was the saturated elongated fatty acid, whereas in the presence of BSA and NADH, the major intermediate was the beta-ketoacyl derivative. Employing beta-ketostearoyl CoA as substrate, BSA markedly inhibited NADH-supported beta-ketoacyl CoA reductase activity and stimulated NADPH-supported activity. Furthermore, the sum of the NADH-dependent and NADPH-dependent beta-ketoreductase activities approximated the activity obtained when both cofactors were present in the incubation medium, suggesting the existence of two beta-ketoacyl CoA reductases, one using NADH and the other, NADPH.
Ratios and indexes in nematode taxonomy

It is proposed to call "Index" the ratios traditionally included in nematode descriptions (ratios a, b, c, V, etc.) when they are used as a numerical expression of an ordered qualitative character (such as the shape or the position of an organ), and to reserve the name of "Ratios" to the entities recently reviewed by Roggen, Revets and Van den Berghe (Nematologica, 1987). It is shown that it is always possible to use an index instead of an ordered qualitative character for describing a shape or a position, as long as the index is biologically related to the characteristic being described. Indexes are more objective than the corresponding qualitative characters. Also, they can be used in parametric statistical analyses, and in particular in discriminant function analyses.
The effect of rumen digesta inoculation on the time course of recovery from classical diet-induced milk fat depression in dairy cows.

Abstract Ten ruminally cannulated cows were used in a crossover design that investigated the effect of rumen digesta inoculation from non-milk fat-depressed cows on recovery from classical diet-induced milk fat depression (MFD) characterized by reduced fat yield, reduced de novo milk fat synthesis, and increased alternate trans isomers. Two additional cows fed a high-fiber and low-polyunsaturated fatty acid (FA) diet (31.8% neutral detergent fiber, 4.2% FA, and 1.2% C18:2) were used as rumen digesta donors. Milk fat depression was induced during the first 10d of each period by feeding a low-fiber and high-polyunsaturated FA diet (induction; 26.1% neutral detergent fiber, 5.8% FA, and 1.9% C18:2), resulting in a 30% decrease in milk fat yield. A recovery phase followed where all cows were switched to the high-forage, low-polyunsaturated FA diet and were allocated to (1) control (no inoculation) or (2) ruminal inoculation with donor cow digesta (8kg/d for 6d). Milk yield and composition were measured every 3d. Milk yield progressively decreased during recovery. Milk fat concentration increased progressively during the recovery phase and no effect of treatment existed at any time point. Also, no treatment effect of milk fat yield was detected. The concentration of milk de novo FA increased progressively during recovery for both treatments and was higher for inoculated compared with control cows on d 6. In agreement, milk fat concentration of trans -10, cis -12 conjugated linoleic acid decreased progressively in both treatments and was lower in inoculated cows on d 3 and 6. Ruminal inoculation from non-milk fat-depressed cows did not change milk fat yield, but slightly accelerated the rate of recovery of de novo FA synthesis and normal ruminal FA biohydrogenation, demonstrating a possible opportunity for other interventions that improve the ruminal environment to accelerate recovery from this condition.
Designing Freeform Lenses for Intensity and Phase Control of Coherent Light with Help from Geometry and Mass Transport

We study here the problem of determining a system of two refractive interfaces transforming a plane wavefront of a given shape and radiation intensity into a coherent output plane wavefront with prescribed output position, shape and intensity. Such interfaces can be refracting surfaces of two different lenses or of one lens. In geometrical optics approximation, the analytic formulation of this problem in both cases requires construction of maps with controlled Jacobian. Though this Jacobian can be expressed as a second order partial differential equation of Monge-Ampere type for a scalar function defining one of the refracting surfaces, its analysis is not straightforward. In this paper we use a geometric approach for reformulating the problem in certain associated measures and defining weak solutions. Existence and uniqueness of weak solutions in Lipschitz classes for both cases are established by variational methods. Our results show, in particular, that two types of interfaces exist in each case for the same data: one of these types always consists of two interfaces, one of which is concave or convex and the second convex or concave, while the interfaces of the second type may be neither convex nor concave. The availability of a design with convex/concave lenses is particularly important for fabrication. The truly geometric nature of this problem permits its statement and investigation in \({\mathbb {R}^{N+1},\, N \geqq 1}\) .
Thermal conductivity and sound velocities of hydrogen-silsesquioxane low- k dielectrics

Thermal conductivities of hydrogen-silsesquioxane thin films---Dow Corning ``flowable oxide'' and nanoporous ``extra-low-$k''$ spin-on dielectrics---are measured in the temperature range 80--400 K using the $3\ensuremath{\omega}$ method. Film thickness and atomic densities are characterized by the combination of Rutherford-backscattering spectrometry and variable-angle spectroscopic ellipsometry. Measurements of the longitudinal speeds of sound by picosecond ultrasonics and interferometry enable comparisons with the model of the minimum thermal conductivity of homogeneous materials. This model fails to capture the strong temperature dependence of the conductivity. Data for nanoporous silsesquioxane and ${\mathrm{SiO}}_{2}$ are compared to the predictions of effective medium theories of heterogeneous materials. Differential-effective-medium theory predicts a scaling of thermal conductivity $\ensuremath{\Lambda}$ with atomic density n, $\ensuremath{\Lambda}\ensuremath{\propto}{n}^{3/2}$ in good agreement with experiment. The comparisons with effective-medium theories suggest that a greater control of pore microstructure may enable significant improvements in the thermal and mechanical properties of porous dielectrics.
Transitional economy tourism: German travel consumers' perceptions of Lithuania.

This paper examines the current status of tourism in Lithuania as well as potential German tourists' perceptions of Lithuania as a tourist destination. As tourism is an important source of foreign exchange and provides jobs for a large number of people, the Lithuanian Government is quite interested in increasing the number of tourists visiting the country. Data gathered at the International Tourism Exchange in Berlin was analysed and recommendations made concerning marketing techniques that could be used to increase tourism from the European Union and other western countries. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley &Sons, Ltd.
Role of Dispersion Interactions Between Hydrocarbon Chains in Boundary Lubrication

A model utilizing simple structural defect theory in molecular monolayers quantitatively accounts for the relationship between measured friction coefficients at monolayer coverage and additive properties such as enthalpy of fusion, chain length, chain symmetry, and solubility in hydrocarbon media. This model is an extension of a recent model of boundary lubrication for a simple two-component lubricant (i.e., base lubricant and one additive) relating friction coefficient to surface coverage. For a given polar end group, it is shown that the lateral cohesive interactions between the hydrocarbon chains in the monolayer play the major role in reducing friction and that the sum total of these interactions approximates the enthalpy of fusion. The coupling between friction coefficient at monolayer coverage and solubility directly follows from thermodynamics. Presented at the 41st Annual Meeting, in Toronto, Ontarlo, Canada, May 12–15, 1986
Segmented Linear Subspaces for Illumination-Robust Face Recognition

All images of a convex Lambertian surface captured with a fixed pose under varying illumination are known to lie in a convex cone in the image space that is called the illumination cone. Since this cone model is too complex to be built in practice, researchers have attempted to approximate it with simpler models. In this paper, we propose a segmented linear subspace model to approximate the cone. Our idea of segmentation is based on the fact that the success of low dimensional linear subspace approximations of the illumination cone increases if the directions of the surface normals get close to each other. Hence, we propose to cluster the image pixels according to their surface normal directions and to approximate the cone with a linear subspace for each of these clusters separately. We perform statistical performance evaluation experiments to compare our system to other popular systems and demonstrate that the performance increase we obtain is statistically significant.
Gross cystic disease fluid protein-15 as a marker for breast cancer: Immunohistochemical analysis of 690 human neoplasms and comparison with alpha-lactalbumin

The identification of metastatic carcinoma of the breast may be difficult in the absence of a previous history of breast cancer. Various immunophenotypic markers have been introduced to aid in this process. A monoclonal antibody directed at a 15-kilodalton (kd) gross cystic disease fluid protein (GCDFP-15) was applied immunohistochemically to paraffin sections of 105 breast cancers and 585 nonmammary malignancies in order to assess its value in this context. In addition, GCDFP-15 was compared with another putative mammary epithelial marker, alpha-lactalbumin (ALA), with respect to sensitivity and specificity for a diagnosis of breast carcinoma. Overall, the rates of specificity and sensitivity and the predictive value of a positive result for GCDFP-15 were 95%, 74%, and 74%, respectively. Corresponding statistical parameters for ALA were 50%, 50%, and 23%. A consistent congruency between the reactivity patterns of primary and metastatic breast cancers was noted for GCDFP-15 but not for ALA. Besides mammary carcinomas, the major tumor types that expressed GCDFP-15 were carcinomas of the salivary glands, sweat glands, and prostate. Since the latter three types of lesions are unlikely to be diagnosed as metastatic breast cancer, statistical indices were recalculated after exclusion of these three tumor types. Following this exclusion, the adjusted rate of specificity of GCDFP-15 and the predictive value of a positive result for a diagnosis of metastatic carcinoma of the breast were each 99%. In contrast, predictive parameters for ALA were not altered. These results show that GCDFP-15 is a specific marker for breast cancer and is superior to ALA in this respect.
Calmodulin kinase signaling in heart: an intriguing candidate target for therapy of myocardial dysfunction and arrhythmias.

Abstract The multifunctional Ca 2+ /calmodulin (CaM)-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII) has emerged as a proarrhythmic and procardiomyopathic signal in a wide range of structural heart diseases. This review discusses CaMKII structure and function and recent evidence implicating CaMKII inhibition as a potential strategy for treating myocardial dysfunction and arrhythmias in the setting of structural heart disease.
Effect of insulin upon the accumulation of d-glucose 6-phosphate and d-lactic acid in tissues of the rat

Abstract The effect of glucose and glucose plus insulin administration on the concentration of d -glucose-6-PO 4 and d -lactic acid in diaphragm, skeletal muscle, liver, heart, brain and fat pad of the normal rat was investigated. Significant increases in d -glucose-6-PO 4 levels were found in diaphragm and skeletal muscle after glucose plus insulin administration, no changes in the tissue levels of the ester were found in heart, brain or fat pad and a small but significant decrease was noted in liver. Of the tissues studied, only diaphragm exhibited a significant increase in d -lactic acid content after glucose plus insulin administration.
In vitro development of Dirofilaria immitis microfilariae: Selection of culture media and serum levels

Abstract Sneller V.-P. and Weinstein P.P. 1982. In vitro development of Dirofilaria immitis microfilariae: selection of culture media and serum levels. International Journal for Parasitology 12 : 233–238. Eight commercially available culture media and four sparging gas mixtures varying in oxygen tensions were studied with regard to the development of D. immitis microfilariae in vitro . Media tested were: NCTC-135, RPMI 1640, Ham's F-12, Waymouth's 705/1, mosquito culture medium, Schneider's Drosophila medium, Grace's tissue culture medium and Caenorhabditis briggsae maintenance medium. Heat-inactivated fetal calf serum was tested initially at concentrations of 10, 20 and 40% in the above media. Microfilarial development was best in serum-free Ham's F-12 medium containing Aedes albopictus cells. The percentages of developing worms were further increased with the addition of blood to the above culture. Serum in Ham's F-12 was inhibitory to worm development at concentrations of 10% or higher. A sparging gas mixture of 5% CO 2 /95% N 2 was superior to those containing oxygen. A favorable basic culture system for the early development of D. immitis microfilariae thus consisted of serum-free Ham's F-12 with A. albopictus cells and sparged with a gas mixture of 5% CO 2 /95% N 2 .
Head Injury Among Drug Abusers: An Indicator of Co-Occurring Problems

Alcohol and other drug use has been associated with traumatic brain injury both as a contributing factor to the injury and as a complicating factor for rehabilitation. Brain injury is associated with an increase in mental health and other problems that may be related to drug and alcohol abuse and that may influence recovery. This study examined self-reports of 661 drug-abusing inmates with self-reported head injury, health problems and mental health problems. Three groups were examined for this study: those having no head injury, one head injury, and two or more head injuries. Results indicate that inmates with head injuries had a significantly greater number of health problems, higher levels of alcohol and marijuana use, and significantly more mental health problems including depression, anxiety, suicidal thinking, and difficulties in concentrating and controlling violent behavior. This study suggests that questions regarding head injuries during assessment may identify drug abusers who need a treatment approach that accommodates their co-occurring problems and difficulties with processing and complying with treatment interventions.
Note on the comparison of calpains I, II and calpastatin activity in two different types of porcine skeletal muscles

1. Activities of calpains I and II and calpastatin in two different types of porcine skeletal muscles were compared. 2. Semimembranosus muscle was composed of mixed fiber types with mainly glycolytic fibers (65%), while masseter muscle was composed exclusively of oxidative fibers. 3. Calpain I activity was lower and calpain II activity was higher in masseter muscle as compared to semimembranosus muscle. Calpastatin activities were similar in both muscles.
Multiple personal genomes await

Genomic data will soon become a commodity; the next challenge — linking human genetic variation with physiology and disease — will be as great as the one genomicists faced a decade ago, says J. Craig Venter.
Interactive training for handwriting recognition in historical document collections

We present a method of interactive training for handwriting recognition in collections of documents. As the user transcribes (labels) the words in the training set, words are automatically skipped if they appear to match words that are already transcribed. By reducing the amount of redundant training, better coverage of the data is achieved, resulting in more accurate recognition. Using word-level features for training and recognition in a collection of George Washington's manuscripts, the recognition ratio is approximately 2%-8% higher after training with our interactive method than after training the same number of words sequentially. Using our approach, less training is required to achieve an equivalent recognition ratio. A slight improvement in recognition ratio is also observed when using our method on a second data set, which consists of several pages from a diary written by Jennie Leavitt Smith.
Techniques and instrumentation for study of natural electromagnetic induction at sea

Abstract Electromagnetic fluctuations in the ocean have external sources above (ionospheric) and below (secular variation of the earth's magnetic field), and internal, purely oceanic sources associated with interaction between water velocity fields and the earth's field. Energy diagrams indicative of the electromagnetic activity in the sea are presented. From the latter, estimates of the resolution required in electromagnetic research at sea can be made. Absolute minima of 1 γ and 0.05 μV/m are necessary for magnetic and electric fields, respectively. Because the ocean shields overhead sources at frequencies above a few hundred c/h and because motional fields have weak signatures, a resolution at least 10 times higher would considerably enhance the scope of such research. The response of electric field instruments to motionally induced fields depends upon whether they are fixed or drifting, but both types respond similarly to fields of external origin. The most stringent limitation to electric field sampling in the sea is the difficulty in achieving low-noise electrical continuity between measuring circuits and sea water. Even the best matched silver—silver chloride electrodes introduce variable electrochemical signals hard to maintain below a millivolt. These mask very low frequency signals unless sophisticated techniques such as electrode switching are used.
Method of using redundancy in very large computer stores

The organisation of a very large random-access computer store which uses redundancy in the form of error-correcting codes is described. The improvements in manufacturing yield which can be achieved by means of such redundancy are emphasised in the form of examples. However, with typical basic store sizes in the capacity range 10 7 -10 8 bits, some of the most significant improvements in manufacturing yield are achieved by programmed assembly which makes use of the ease of testability of such redundant systems. The conclusion is that widespread use of the proposed technique of design and manufacture can result in significant savings, both to designer and customer.
Diets of calanoid copepods on the West Florida continental shelf : Relationships between food concentration, food composition and feeding activity

Bottle incubations were conducted in March, July/August and October 1992. to measure the daily rations (R) and objectively characterize the diets of the calanoid copepodsEucalanus elongatus, Undinula vulgaris, Centropages velificatus andTemora stylifera from the west Florida continental shelf. Daily rations,R, were clustered around two, order-of-magnitude different means, 1.3 and 11.2% of body C d−1, representative of quiescent and active feeding modes, respectively. The food concentration at which the transition from quiescent to active mode occurred was influenced by food particle size. In the quiescent mode, diets were dominated by nanoplankton, whereas no food type dominated the diet in the active mode. Selective feeding, defined as a statistically significant difference between the frequency distributions of foods in the diet and environment, occurred in both quiescent and active copepods. However, what appeared to be selective feeding in quiescent copepods could be explained by processes that passively modified the distribution of the diet relative to that of the food supply. Conversely, selective feeding in active copepods apparently resulted from foraging for particles >5 μm in diameter in food environments dominated by nanoplankton (<5 μm).
Local-field corrections to surface and interface core-level shifts in insulators.

We present a model for the extra-atomic contributions to core-level shifts in insulating thin films on polarizable substrates. The final-state shift is calculated from the screening-dependent local fields at a photoemitting atom and shown to be comparable to the initial-state Madelung potential shift in polar crystals. For Xe(111) films, our model completely accounts for experimental results. For NaCl(100) and ${\mathrm{CaF}}_{2}$(111) surfaces, we present predictions of surface core-level shifts for simple bulk terminations. We discuss corrections which can be incorporated into our model.
Chiral solitons in nuclei: Electromagnetic form-factors

We calculate the electromagnetic form factors of a bound proton. The chiral quark-soliton model provides the quark and antiquark substructure of the proton, which is embedded in nuclear matter. This procedure yields significant modifications of the form factors in the nuclear environment. The sea quarks are almost completely unaffected, and serve to mitigate the valence quark effect. In particular, the ratio of the isoscalar electric to the isovector magnetic form factor decreases by 20% at Q{sup 2}=1 GeV{sup 2} at nuclear density, and we do not see a strong enhancement of the magnetic moment.
Modification of escape from noxious stimuli after bulbar reticular formation lesions

Quantitative behavioral tests showed that unilateral bulbar lesions made in anesthetized cats, damaging nucleus gigantocellularis (NGc), nucleus paragigantocellularis dorsalis (Pgd), and/or the magnocellular tegmental field (FTM), increased latency and threshold voltage for escape from electric shock to the feet. Motor function, visual orientation, and orientation to sound were normal. It is hypothesized that NGc, Pgd, and FTM may constitute a functional complex, operating such that adequate unilateral damage to this field significantly disrupts input into the midline thalamic area.