cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The Adoption of IPM Techniques By Vegetable Growers in Florida, Michigan and Texas

Factors influencing the adoption of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) techniques are studied using survey data from individual vegetable producers from Florida, Michigan, and Texas. Farmers who adopt IPM tend to be less risk averse and use more managerial time on farm activities than nonadopters. Adopters are also more likely to operate large, irrigated farms and use more family labor. Locational factors and the type of crop grown are also influential in IPM adoption. The analysis uses a logit framework and introduces adopter categories first conceptualized by rural sociologists.
MEASURING THE ECONOMIC VALUE OF VOLUNTEER WORK GLOBALLY: CONCEPTS, ESTIMATES, AND A ROADMAP TO THE FUTURE

This article explores alternative approaches for measuring the economic value of volunteer work, develops a methodology for producing global estimates of this value using existing data sources, and identifies a new data source that promises to yield significantly improved data on which to base such estimates in the future at both the global and national levels. Both volunteering through organizations and directly for individuals are considered. Different approaches to valuation, including the replacement cost, opportunity cost, and social benefits approaches and both observed and reported market proxies, are examined. Based on a number of criteria, the replacement cost method using observed market wages is recommended. Using this method, the article estimates that 'volunteerland,' if it were its own country, would have the second largest adult population of any country in the world, and would be the world's seventh largest economy. The article concludes by discussing a new International Labour Organization Manual on the Measurement of Volunteer Work that adopts the basic method for defining and valuing volunteer work outlined here and promises to generate a much more robust and coherent body of data on volunteer work than has ever been available both globally and nationally.
This Is Not an Indian: Situating Claims about Indianness in Sporting Worlds

This article reviews the history and significance of Native Americanmascots as well as the ongoing controversy over the continued use of pseudo-Indian imagery in athletics. It offers a succinct review of the literature, identifying three key foci: stereotyping, historical structures, and institutional arrangements. Against this background, it underscores the central concerns and core contribution of the special: the examination of the competing and contradictory claims made on, off, about, and through Indianness in the creation and contestation of Native American mascots. It attends to the appropriation of Indianness at the heart of American imperialism as well as recent efforts to reclaimcontrol over Indianness through a decolonization of sporting worlds. A summary of the scope and significance of each of the contributions to the special issue follows.
A Study of the Impact of Minority Engineering Programs at the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering

The Engineering Concepts Institute, and the rest of the comprehensive minority student development program that followed it, has served students of Florida A&M University matriculating to the Florida A&M University—Florida State University (FAMU-FSU) College of Engineering. A significant relationship between participation in the programs under study and graduation/retention was identified with the Pearson Chi-squared test, Cochran-Mantel-Haenszel statistics, as well as the Mantel-Haenszel estimate. Students who participated in the program were estimated to have significantly higher odds of five-year graduation and six-year graduation than students who did not participate in the program. A comparison of high school GPAs identified a selection bias, and high school GPA was then used to control for this selection bias in a multiple logistic regression model. While multiple individual cohorts remain statistically significant, the aggregate of all cohorts lacks significance due to the small number of participants and the possible overly stringent penalty imposed by the addition of high school GPA. Nevertheless, the results continue to show the positive trend observed earlier—that Minority Engineering Program participants are 25 percent more likely to be retained and graduate in engineering than students who had similar high school GPA but did not participate in the program—it is expected that continuing longitudinal study will bear out this trend as statistically significant. Although the programs described in this paper have been discontinued as a result of personnel changes, the study of the program is still useful as a contribution to the body of evidence supporting the effectiveness of such programs.
Angular and polarization response of multimode sensors with resistive-grid absorbers

High-sensitivity receiver systems with near-ideal polarization sensitivity are highly desirable for development of millimeter and submillimeter radio astronomy. Multimoded bolometers provide a unique solution to achieve such sensitivity, for which hundreds of single-mode sensors would otherwise be required. The primary concern in employing such multimoded sensors for polarimetery is the control of the polarization systematics. In this work, we examine the angular- and polarization-dependent absorption pattern of a thin resistive grid or membrane, which models an absorber used for a multimoded bolometer. The result shows that a freestanding thin resistive absorber with a surface resistivity of η/2, where η is the impedance of free space, attains a beam pattern with equal E- and H-plane responses, leading to zero cross-polarization. For a resistive-grid absorber, the condition is met when a pair of grids is positioned orthogonal to each other and both have a resistivity of η/2. When a reflective backshort termination is employed to improve absorption efficiency, the cross-polar level can be suppressed below −30 dB if acceptance angle of the sensor is limited to ≲60°. The small cross-polar systematics have even-parity patterns and do not contaminate the measurements of odd-parity polarization patterns, for which many of the recent instruments for cosmic microwave background are designed. Underlying symmetry that suppresses these cross-polar systematics is discussed in detail. The estimates and formalism provided in this work offer key tools in the design consideration of the instruments using the multimoded polarimeters.
DNA Interstrand Cross-Links Induce Futile Repair Synthesis in Mammalian Cell Extracts

DNA interstrand cross-links are induced by many carcinogens and anticancer drugs. It was previously shown that mammalian DNA excision repair nuclease makes dual incisions 5' to the cross-linked base of a psoralen cross-link, generating a gap of 22 to 28 nucleotides adjacent to the cross-link. We wished to find the fates of the gap and the cross-link in this complex structure under conditions conducive to repair synthesis, using cell extracts from wild-type and cross-linker-sensitive mutant cell lines. We found that the extracts from both types of strains filled in the gap but were severely defective in ligating the resulting nick and incapable of removing the cross-link. The net result was a futile damage-induced DNA synthesis which converted a gap into a nick without removing the damage. In addition, in this study, we showed that the structure-specific endonuclease, the XPF-ERCC1 heterodimer, acted as a 3'-to-5' exonuclease on cross-linked DNA in the presence of RPA. Collectively, these observations shed some light on the cellular processing of DNA cross-links and reveal that cross-links induce a futile DNA synthesis cycle that may constitute a signal for specific cellular responses to cross-linked DNA.
Decomposing algebraic sets using Gro¨bner bases

Abstract A symbolic algorithm is presented which decomposes a general algebraic set in n dimensions into its irreducible components. Starting with a collection of multivariate defining polynomials, the algorithms produces a set of Grobner Bases each of which is a collection of defining polynomials for a particular irreducible component. It is proposed that this may be a useful tool in CAGD systems since the degrees of the resulting irreducible components may be smaller than the degree of the original algebraic set. Moreover, the equations for the irreducible components which are produced may indicate special geometric properties that were not apparent from the given equations for the algebraic set.
Aging is associated with an increase in T cells and inflammatory macrophages in visceral adipose tissue

Age-related adiposity has been linked to chronic inflammatory diseases in late life. To date, the studies on adipose tissue leukocytes and aging have not taken into account the heterogeneity of adipose tissue macrophages (ATMs), nor have they examined how age impacts other leukocytes such as T cells in fat. Therefore, we have performed a detailed examination of ATM subtypes in young and old mice using state of the art techniques. Our results demonstrate qualitative changes in ATMs with aging that generate a decrease in resident type 2 (M2) ATMs. The profile of ATMs in old fat shifts toward a proinflammatory environment with increased numbers of CD206(-)CD11c(-) (double-negative) ATMs. The mechanism of this aging-induced shift in the phenotypic profile of ATMs was found to be related to a decrease in peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ expression in ATMs and alterations in chemokine/chemokine receptor expression profiles. Furthermore, we have revealed a profound and unexpected expansion of adipose tissue T cells in visceral fat with aging that includes a significant induction of regulatory T cells in fat. Our findings demonstrate a unique inflammatory cell signature in the physiologic context of aging adipose tissue that differs from those induced in setting of diet-induced obesity.
An Improved Lower Bound for the Complementation of Rabin Automata

Automata on infinite words (ω-automata) have wide applications in formal language theory as well as in modeling and verifying reactive systems. Complementation of ω-automata is a crucial instrument in many these applications, and hence there have been great interests in determining the state complexity of the complementation problem. However, obtaining nontrivial lower bounds has been difficult. For the complementation of Rabin automata, a significant gap exists between the state-of-the-art lower bound 2^Ω(NlgN) and upper bound 2^O(kNlgN), where k, the number of Rabin pairs, can be as large as 2N. In this paper we introduce multidimensional rankings to the full automata technique. Using the improved technique we establish an almost tight lower bound for the complementation of Rabin automata. We also show that the same lower bound holds for the determinization of Rabin automata.
Dose Escalation in Stage III Non–Small-Cell Lung Cancer: Patients Agree With the Clinical Results

2. Minsky BD, Pajak TF, Ginsberg RJ, et al. INT 0123 (Radiation Therapy Oncology Group 94-05) phase III trial of combined-modality therapy for esophageal cancer: high-dose versus standard-dose radiation therapy. J Clin Oncol. 2002;20(5): 1167-1174. 3. Movsas B, Hu C, Sloan J, et al. Quality of life analysis of a radiation dose–escalation study of patients with non–small-cell lung cancer: a secondary analysis of the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group 0617 randomized clinical trial [published online November 25, 2015]. JAMA Oncol. doi:10.1001/jamaoncol.2015.3969.
Controlling The Moral Hazard Created By Limiting Liability

Accounting firms may choose to organize either as Limited Liability Companies (LLC) or as Limited Liability Partnerships (LLP) to eliminate joint and several liability for their partners. However, before firms consider adopting either new entity form to limit tortuous liability, the moral hazard problem associated with these entity choices should be evaluated. This article examines the issue of accountant liability and offers suggestions to reduce moral hazard while still protecting the accountant from personal liability.
The Braincase Assigned to the Ornithopod Dinosaur Uteodon McDonald, 2011, Reassigned to Dryosaurus Marsh, 1894: Implications for Iguanodontian Morphology and Taxonomy

ABSTRACT The braincase from the Upper Jurassic (lower Tithonian) Morrison Formation of the Carnegie Quarry at Dinosaur National Monument (Utah), which was assigned to the ankylopollexian iguanodontian ornithopod dinosaur Uteodon aphanoecetes (Carpenter and Wilson, 2008) is actually that of the dryosaurid iguanodontian Dryosaurus cf. D. altus (Marsh, 1878). The purported braincase autapomorphy of U. aphanoecetes, occipital condyle projects farther ventrally than basal tubera, is an artifact of damage to the latter structures in this specimen. The newly identified braincase of Dryosaurus Marsh, 1894, reveals features that are not easily observed in other specimens of this taxon, such as well-developed fossae on the anterior surfaces of the paroccipital processes and a spike-shaped parasphenoid that lacks the dorsal process seen in Dysalotosaurus Virchow, 1919. The distinction of this latter dryosaurid genus from Dryosaurus is here regarded as tentative. The removal of the braincase in question from the hypo...
Understanding the Role of Technology for Meeting the Support Needs of Older Adults in the USA with Functional Limitations

Issue Research shows that for the quickly growing older adult population, sustaining independence in everyday activities is a prevalent challenge, often as a result of functional limitations. Along with preexisting impairments, physical and sensory age-related changes contribute to older adults experiencing difficulties in functional limitations in performing basic, instrumental, and enhanced activities of daily living. Since many older adults elect to compensate for these challenges through the use of assistive technology, there is a need for technological support solutions that facilitate autonomy and independence among older adults, and relieve the burden of formal and informal caregivers. Method In this paper we extract pertinent information from survey data in studies that examined the challenges faced by older adults in the USA and we provide direction for the use of appropriate technological solutions. We explore the associated existing assistive technology solutions as well as the acceptance of these technologies by older adults including major barriers to their usage. Results There is very little recent data available to speak to the current needs of older adults with functional limitations. While several technological support solutions exist, there are issues of acceptance and adoption that deem these solutions ineffective, leading to low usage rates. As a result, we discuss the potential of accessible everyday technologies to meet unfulfilled needs. Conclusion However, our review highlights the need for more recent data on functional limitations of older adults and provides a call to action for more research to understand older adults’ support needs.
Evaluation of neural network modeling to predict non-water-stressed leaf temperature in wine grape for calculation of crop water stress index

Precision irrigation management in wine grape production is hindered by the lack of a reliable method to easily quantify and monitor vine water status. Mild to moderate water stress is desirable in wine grape for controlling vine vigor and optimizing fruit yield and quality. A crop water stress index (CWSI) that effectively monitors plant water status has not been widely adopted in wine grape because of the need to measure well-watered and non-transpiring leaf temperature under identical environmental conditions. In this study, we calculated a daily CWSI for the wine grape cultivars Syrah and Malbec (Vitis vinifera L.) by estimating well-watered leaf temperature with an artificial neural network (NN) model and non-transpiring leaf temperature based on the cumulative probability of the measured difference between ambient air and deficit-irrigated grapevine leaf temperature. We evaluated the reliability of this methodology by comparing the calculated CWSI to midday leaf water potential and irrigation amount in replicated plots of above ground, drip-irrigated vines provided with 30, 70 or 100% of their estimated evapotranspiration demand under warm, semiarid field conditions in southwestern Idaho USA. Infrared and environmental sensors were used to monitor leaf temperature and weather conditions throughout berry development. The input variables for the NN model with lowest error were 15-minute average values for air temperature, relative humidity, solar radiation and wind speed collected between 13:00 and 15:00 MDT. A feed-forward perceptron NN model was developed for each cultivar because of their difference in well-watered leaf temperature. Predicted and measured well-watered leaf temperature had correlation coefficients of 0.91 and 0.86 for ‘Syrah’ and ‘Malbec’, respectively. Non-transpiring leaf temperature for both cultivars was air temperature plus 15 degrees Celsius. The daily CWSI consistently differentiated between deficit irrigation amounts, irrigation events, and rainfall and explained between 51 and 70% of the variability in midday leaf water potential. The methodology used to calculate a daily CWSI for wine grape in this study provided a real-time indicator of vine water status that could be automated for use as a decision-support tool in a precision irrigation system.
Statistical Problems of Joint Research

inference. Hence, a discussion under the subject of statistical problems of joint research, as cast under the general topic of "Economic Implications of Agricultural Experiments" must deal basically with the problem of making inferences-specifically inferences dealing with economic decisions, in which experimental data are involved. A basic assumption is that these inferences are in the form of optimal decisions, or leading to optimal decisions. The nature and quality of such inferences depend, first of all, upon the thinking behind the planning of experiments, as well as on their proper execution and basic interpretation. When these experiments are part of a joint research project, statistical problems likely will be compounded, for regardless of the singleness of the prime objective, specific secondary objectives related to the individual components of the joint effort are almost certain to be included. The purpose of this discussion is to examine the basis for what might be termed problem areas in the joint research effort between economists and agronomists, soil scientists, animal scientists, and other related areas, and to suggest a few general approaches to some of these problems to make them more tractable. Some of the broader and more general problems will be discussed, since these must be well understood before useful solutions of more specific problems can be made. This discussion is much in the nature of a review, since most of the specific statistical problems have been treated in detail by writers who will be referred to in the appropriate sections.
Microassembly via Coordinated Manipulation of Objects Using a Multifingered Micromanipulator

This paper presents a novel approach to manipulation and assembly of micro-scale objects using a chip-scale multi-fingered micromanipulator, in which multiple, independently controlled compliant fingers coordinate with each other to grasp and manipulate multiple objects simultaneously on-chip. The structural and functional advantages of this multi-fingered micromanipulator in achieving high dexterity in a compact form as compared to other state-of-the-art manipulation tools are discussed. A formulation of the kinematics of the manipulator’s compliant fingers along with two different control strategies including an operator-driven closed-loop control and a semi-autonomous open-loop control for coordinated manipulation and on-chip assembly of micro-scale objects are introduced. Finally, the details of implementation of both control strategies and successful experimental demonstration of manipulations and assembly of two interlocking micro-scale parts with sub-micron mating clearance using the multifingered manipulator are presented.Copyright © 2011 by ASME
Preservation of mixed-layer ichnofabrics in oxygenation-event beds

Owing to preservational biases, ichnofabrics of fine-grained marine strata deposited under steady-state conditions typically contain little information on infaunal activities in shallower substrate levels, particularly surface mixed layers. However, as suggested by studies of the Miocene Monterey Formation (central California), the tops of bioturbated oxygenation-event beds within laminated sequences may preserve relatively undisturbed mixed-layer ichnofabrics as a consequence of deoxygenation and associated cessation of bioturbation
Regulation of Blood Flow in Gross-Circulation for Intracardiac Surgery.∗:

SummaryIn acute experiments on dogs 2 types of flowmeters were compared for regulating the 2-way flow of blood in donor cross-circulation during intracardiac surgery. (1) By arranging 2 flow rate recorders (5734 bristle flowmeters) to act as a flow-difference-meter, differences in the volume flow of blood from donor to recipient and vice versa could be recorded. This method appears, however, rather complicated for use in the operating room. (2) A cumulative flow recording method was found to be simple and reliable. For this purpose, the donor rested on zero reading scales which acted as a cumulative flowmeter indicating blood inflow and outflow from the donor. With the aid of the scales, blood loss from the donor could be accurately measured and replaced by intravenous infusion. For practical purposes it is felt that continuous weighing of the donor provides the best method for insuring equal bidirectional flow in cross-circulation under operating room conditions.
Intraoral technique for locking reconstruction plate fixation using an implant handpiece with adapted drills.

Background Locking reconstruction plates are used in the treatment of jaw trauma and diseases if there is a need for surgical resection and to prevent pathologic fracture after tumor excision. Fixation is typically performed using an extraoral approach. Methods This article describes a technique for the intraoral fixation of locking reconstruction plates that uses prototyping to model the plate before the procedure as well as an implant handpiece with adapted drills for bone drilling and the insertion of screws into relatively inaccessible areas. Conclusion Intraoral fixation not only prevents nerve damage and facial scarring but also minimizes the plate's risk of extraoral exposure and reduces surgical morbidity. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Head Neck, 2016
Application of High Dimensional Model Representation in Probability Assessment and Regulation of Power Flow

High dimensional model representation(HDMR) possesses unique performance in describing the relationship between the output and the multiple inputs of a nonlinear system, and the relation between power state variables and multiple bus inputs of the power system just accords with the related property of HDMR. Based on this, HDMR is applied in probabilistic assessment and regulation of power flow, that is, the HDMR relation among the power transmitted in the key branch and power sources and loads is constructed by typical representative samples to replace large-scale power flow computation carried out by traditional power flow calculation modes undertaking the task of power flow probabilistic assessment, thus the generation of cumulative probability distribution of power flow in key branch and the efficiency to obtain its related property can be greatly improved. To solve the congestion of power flow in key branch, a probabilistic regulation strategy, which utilizes the global sensitivity information provided by HDMR and takes performance indices of energy conservation and emission reduction into account, is designed. Simulation results of IEEE New England 10-machine 39-bus system show that applying HDMR can evidently speed up the calculation of probabilistic assessment of power flow power system and enhance the regulation performance of power flow congestion.
A Necessary and Sufficient Condition for Throughput Scalability of Fork and Join Networks with Blocking

Due to emerging applications such as cloud computing and big data analytics, modern information processing systems are growing increasingly large and complex. A critical issue concerns the throughput performance as the system grows in size. This paper models distributed information processing systems as fork and join queueing networks with blocking. We identify necessary and sufficient conditions for throughput scalability of such fork and join networks as they grow in size. Previous studies have either focused on special structured networks such as tandem or tree networks, or provided only necessary conditions for throughput scalability. In this paper, we show that such necessary conditions are not sufficient. We present a key topological concept called ``minimum level" of the underlying graph, and develop lower and upper bounds for the throughput of arbitrary FJQN/Bs. The bounds depend on network degree, minimum level, deterministic cycle time, buffer sizes, and service time distributions, but not on network size. We show that level-boundedness and degree-boundedness are necessary and sufficient conditions to guarantee that the throughput of an FJQN/B is bounded away from zero as network size goes to infinity.
Long-term follow-up of a multiloculated arachnoid cyst of the middle cranial fossa.

Arachnoid cysts are benign intracranial lesions that are typically diagnosed incidentally. We describe the case of a 56-year-old man who presented with a multiloculated arachnoid cyst of the middle...
A library to run evolutionary algorithms in the cloud using mapreduce

We discuss ongoing development of an evolutionary algorithm library to run on the cloud. We relate how we have used the Hadoop open-source MapReduce distributed data processing framework to implement a single "island" with a potentially very large population. The design generalizes beyond the current, one-off kind of MapReduce implementations. It is in preparation for the library becoming a modeling or optimization service in a service oriented architecture or a development tool for designing new evolutionary algorithms.
Variable-Field Hall Measurement and Transport in LWSingle-Layer n-Type MBE Hg1−xCdxTe

Molecular beam epitaxy n-type long-wavelength infrared (LWIR) Hg1−xCdxTe (MCT) has been investigated using variable-field Hall measurement in the temperature range from 50 K to 293 K. A quantitative mobility spectrum analysis technique has been used to determine the role of multicarrier transport properties with respect to epilayer growth on lattice-matched cadmium zinc telluride, as well as lattice-mismatched silicon (Si) and gallium arsenide (GaAs) buffered substrates. Overall, after postgrowth annealing, all layers were found to possess three distinct electron species, which were postulated to originate from the bulk, transitional (or higher-x-value) regions, and an interfacial/surface layer carrier. Further, the mobility and concentration with respect to temperature were analyzed for all carriers, showing the expected mobility temperature dependence and intrinsic behavior of the bulk electron. Electrons from transitional regions were seen to match expected values based on the carrier concentration of the resolved peak. At high temperature, the lowest-mobility carrier was consistent with the properties of a surface carrier, while below 125 K it was postulated that interfacial-region electrons may influence peak values. After corrections for x-value and doping density at 77 K, bulk electron mobility in excess of 105 cm2 V−1 s−1 was observed in all epilayers, in line with expected values for lightly doped n-type LWIR material. Results indicate that fundamental conduction properties of electrons in MCT layers are unchanged by choice of substrate.
Unified approach to H/sub /spl infin//-optimal control of singularly perturbed systems: imperfect state measurements

The key contribution of the paper is to present continuous-time and discrete-time singularly perturbed cases simultaneously under general imperfect state measurements using infinite-horizon formulations from the game theoretic approach, thereby highlighting the similarities and differences. We first show that as the small parameter /spl epsiv/ approaches zero, the optimal disturbance attenuation levels for a full order system under a quadratic performance index converges to the maximum of the optimal disturbance attenuation levels for the slow and fast subsystems under appropriate slow and fast quadratic cost functions. Then, we construct a controller based on the slow subsystem only, and obtain conditions under which it delivers a desired performance level even though the fast dynamics have been completely neglected. The ultimate performance level achieved by this "slow" controller can be uniformly improved upon, however, by a composite controller that uses some feedback from the output of the fast subsystem. We construct one such controller via a two step sequential procedure that uses static feedback from the fast system output and dynamic feedback from an appropriate slow system output, each one obtained by solving appropriate /spl epsiv/-independent lower dimensional H/sub /spl infin//-optimal control problems under some informational constraints.
The Freedom to Teach: Using Open Educational Resources in Your Courses

Open educational resources (OER) are “high-quality, openly licensed, online educational materials that offer an extraordinary opportunity for people everywhere to share, use, and reuse knowledge” (William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, n.d.). These materials range from full courses and course materials (including textbooks) to streaming videos and software. Innovative educators recognize that OER offer an exciting alternative to restrictive (and expensive) textbooks by allowing them the freedom to select quality content that better fits their pedagogy. Students benefit from more engaged learning, lower costs, and the ability to revise and remix these materials as assigned by their instructor. The virtual sky is the limit! The 4-VA Collaborative at George Mason University recently announced a competitive grants pilot program (February, 2016) to incentivize Mason instructional faculty to identify existing, or create new, open digital content and incorporate it into their course(s). The proposed interactive presentation session will build on the Mason 4-VA pilot program. A team of four faculty members from Mason and J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College will lead the session. Discussion topics to be covered include defining OER, describing Creative Commons licenses, strategies for integrating OER in courses, and identifying quality materials. Participants should bring a laptop as they will be divided into small groups during the session to familiarize themselves with websites that aggregate OER content applicable to their discipline(s). By the end of this session, participants will be able to: Define OER, Understand Creative Commons licenses, Outline the first steps in planning an OER project, and Identify some online sources for discipline-specific OER. We anticipate that OER collaborations will emerge from this session. References Mason 4-VA Collaborative. (February, 2016). Course Redesign: Using Open Educational Resources. Retrieved from http://4va.gmu.edu/call-for-proposals William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. (n.d.) Open Educational Resources . Retrieved from http://www.hewlett.org/programs/education/open-educational-resources
SHG Linked Micro-Enterprises - The Kerala Experience

Setting up of micro-enterprises or micro-businesses by women seeking microfinance has become a popular employment generation and poverty eradication model in India. The exponential growth of women groups, microfinance institutions and micro-businesses are solid evidences for the myriads of opportunities and advantages the model presents. Different States in India with varied geographical, cultural and political environment are adopting their own modes of promotional efforts in this regard. The Kudumbashree Mission - the poverty eradication mission of the State of Kerala - has been instrumental in facilitating the formation of women groups, micro-enterprises, provision of administrative and financial aid, and monitoring the microfinance activities in the State. The present micro study about the Kudumbashree linked micro-enterprises in three panchayats of the Ernakulam district of Kerala reveals the general and economic prospects of the enterprises along with different problems confronted by micro-entrepreneurs. It also advocates the strategies to be adopted by the enterprises, and promotional agencies to overcome the problems, and survive in the competitive environment.
A new pumping lemma for indexed languages, with an application to infinite words

We prove a pumping lemma in order to characterize the infinite words determined by indexed languages. An infinite language L determines an infinite word α if every string in L is a prefix of α. If L is regular or context-free, it is known that α must be ultimately periodic. We show that if L is an indexed language, then α is a morphic word, i.e., α can be generated by iterating a morphism under a coding. Since the other direction, that every morphic word is determined by some indexed language, also holds, this implies that the infinite words determined by indexed languages are exactly the morphic words. The pumping lemma which we use to obtain this result generalizes one recently proved for the class ET0L.
A Restricted Subset Selection Rule for Selecting At Least One of the t Best Normal Populations in Terms of Their Means: Common Known Variance Case

Consider k (≥ 2) normal populations with unknown means μ1,..., μk and a common known variance σ2. Let μ[1] ≤ ... ≤ μ[k] denote the ordered μi. Our goal is to select a non-empty subset of the k populations whose size is at most m (1 ≤ m ≤ k − t) so that at least one of the populations associated with the t (1 ≤ t ≤ k − 1) largest means is included in the selected subset with a minimum guaranteed probability P*, whenever μ[k−t+1] − μ[k−t] ≥ δ* where P* and δ* are specified in advance of the experiment. Santner (1976) proposed and investigated a procedure (R s) based on samples of size n from each of the populations. We propose and investigate an alternative procedure R hp with the same sampling scheme. We compare our rule with that of a procedure that selects a subset of fixed size m. The special case of t = 1 was earlier studied by Gupta and Santner (1973) and Hsu and Panchapakesan (2003).
Abstract 275: High Fat Diet-induced Decreases In Insulin Signaling In Afferent Renal Nerves Are Prevented By Intrathecal Injection Of Metformin In Rats

Metformin, an anti-type 2 diabetic agent that increases insulin sensitivity in target tissues, has been suggested having neuroprotective effects. Our previous data showed that metformin protects against high fat diet (HFD)-induced impairment in renal afferent nerves that express the transient receptor potential vanilloid 1 (TRPV1) channels, and prevents HFD-induced renal functional deterioration and hypertension. However, mechanisms of metformin-mediated neuroprotection are largely unknown. This study tests the hypothesis that HFD impairs insulin signaling in afferent renal nerves, which is prevented by metformin via the pathway of IRS-1-tyr, AMPK, and GLUT-1/3. Metformin (1 ng/kg, daily intrathecal injection via indwelled catheters to segments T8-L3 supplying the kidneys) or vehicle was given to rats fed a HFD or normal fat diet (Con) for 8 weeks. Immunohistochemical staining showed that insulin receptor substrate-1 phosphorylated with serine (p-IRS-1-ser), insulin receptor substrate-1 phosphorylated with tyrosine (p-IRS-1-tyr), phosphorylated AMP-activated protein kinase (p-AMPK), glucose transporter 1 (GLUT-1), and GLUT-3 were expressed in dorsal root ganglia (DRG). Levels of p-IRS-1-ser were increased by HFD but decreased by metformin in Con rats, and HFD-induced increases in p-IRS-1-ser were prevented by metformin. Levels of p-IRS-1-tyr, p-AMPK, and the trafficking of GLUT-1 and GLUT-3 from cytoplasma to cell membrane in DRG were decreased by HFD but increased by metformin in Con rats, and HFD-induced decreases in these parameters were prevented by metformin (p-IRS-1-tyr, Con: 0.23±0.02, Con+Met: 0.34±0.04, HFD: 0.14±0.02, HFD+Met: 0.22±0.03, p
Recent History of Heme-Containing Proteins: Advances in Structure, Functions, and Reaction Intermediate Determination

Heme proteins play a remarkably diverse range of important roles in biology, and each year bring an increased understanding to a field that has been already extensively investigated. While different heme protein families have unique gene sequences, protein folding, and varied roles in biochemistry, all have in common the heme iron prosthetic group as their active site. Surrounding this architecture are axial ligands and other active site amino acids that play additional roles of intermediate stabilization, substrate recognition, and conformational changes. Heme proteins have long been at the forefront of spectroscopic studies due to their structural and electronic characteristics; numerous physical and spectroscopic methods have been first applied to the study of heme proteins over the years.
JAK Inhibitors Taking on Psoriatic Arthritis.

Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory skin disease that affects 2 to 4% of the population.1 Inflammatory arthritis develops in approximately 30% of patients with psoriasis and can have a major effect on activities of daily living and quality of life.2 Peripheral joint involvement in patients with psoriatic arthritis can be oligoarticular or polyarticular and can cause joint destruction. Several medications are used to treat psoriatic arthritis, and the choice of agent and the timing of administration in the course of the disease depend on disease manifestations, their severity, and prognostic factors.2 Therapy typically involves the sequential use of nonsteroidal antiinflammatory . . .
Below C Level: A Simulator for Visualizing x86-64 (Abstract Only)

Students often encounter assembly language during the course of their education as part of learning about the low-level operation of computer systems. While there are many assembly languages ranging from simple to complex, x86-64 is widely used in introductory level computer systems courses. Unfortunately, students often have difficulty visualizing the execution of an x86-64 program. Interactions between instructions, relevant registers, and the effect that instructions have on memory are all concepts that students struggle to understand. While students can use GDB or other debuggers to help them step through the execution of a program, there are currently no x86-64 simulators aimed at introductory computing students. Below C Level (BCL) is an x86-64 simulator aimed at helping novices overcome the barriers to learning this challenging language. BCL visualizes program state, specifically the program stack and register file in order to assist novice x86-64 programmers in tracing the execution of their programs. One of the primary motives for the creation of BCL was the desire for a simulator with a simple and intuitive interface that enables the user to spend more time focusing on the task at hand rather than attempting to understand a complex program. BCL provides this simple interface, which allows users to view firsthand the effects their code has upon the program stack and registers.
Practical and Productive Thinking in Aristotle

I argue that, on Aristotle’s account, practical thinking (unlike productive thinking) has as its origin a desire whose object is the very thing that one reasons about how to promote. This means: (a) there is only a contingent relationship between the desire that one practically reasons about how to satisfy and the action one decides on; (b) practical thinking and action (unlike productive thinking and production) cannot be separated from the agent. I also show how my account of practical thinking can shed new light on Aristotle’s claim that the virtuous agent must decide on her virtuous actions ‘for themselves’.
Made from Scratch. A Sustainable Handbag Made of Bacterial Cellulose Grown in Fermenting Tea

The purpose of this work was to explore bacterial cellulose as a novel sustainable leather-like material for handbag design. This exploration was carried out in two parts. In the first part, bacterial cellulose material was developed through fermentation process of Kombucha tea, using common household ingredients such as tea, sugar and vinegar, and bacterial cultures. In the second part, a saddle bag style handbag was constructed using the cellulose mats. Regular construction and sewing techniques as well as laser cutting technology were successfully utilized to create an intricate handbag design using bacterial cellulose.
Two-stage entrapped mixed microbial cell process for simultaneous removal of organics and nitrogen for rural domestic sewage application.

A two-stage entrapped mixed microbial cell ( 2S EMMC) process which separates nitrification and denitrification phases by the installation of the anoxic and oxic EMMC reactors packed with EMMC carriers was operated with 6, 4, 3, and 2 hours of hydraulic retention time (HRT) using simulated domestic wastewater. The activated sludge was immobilized using cellulose acetate for the EMMC carriers. Similar soluble chemical oxygen demand (SCOD) removal efficiencies of 90-97% were observed for all HRTs (SCOD loading rate of 0.84-2.30 g/L/d) applied. In order to achieve more than 80 % of TN removal efficiency, the HRT should be maintained higher than 4 hours (less than 0.24 g/L/d of TN loading rate). Denitrification was a rate-limiting step which controlled overall TN removal efficiency at TN loading rate of 0.15-0.31 g/L/d although nitrification efficiencies achieved 97-99 %. The effluent TSS of less than 25 mg/L in the 2S EMMC process was maintained at the SCOD loading rate of less than 1.23 g/L/d with back-washing intervals of 5 and 10 days in the anoxic and oxic EMMC reactors, respectively. The minimum HRT of 4 hours is required for high removal efficiencies of organics (average 95.6 %) and nitrogen (average 80.5 %) in the 2S EMMC process with 3 times of recirculation ratio.
Simulation Evaluations of an Autonomous Urban Air Mobility Network Management and Separation Service

This paper presents an initial implementation of an autonomous Urban Air Mobility network management and aircraft separation service for urban airspace that does 1) departure and arrival scheduling across the network, 2) continuous trajectory management to ensure safe separation between aircraft, and 3) seamless integration with traditional operations. The highly-autonomous AutoResolver algorithm developed for traditional aviation was extended to provide these capabilities. An evaluation of this initial implementation was conducted in fast-time simulations using a dense, two-hour traffic scenario with Urban Air Mobility aircraft flying between a network of 20 vertiports in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex. When the spatial separation was reduced from 0:3nmi to 0:1nmi, the total de- lay decreased by 7:3%; when the temporal separation was reduced from 60s to 45s, the total delay decreased by 28:4%. The total number of conflict resolutions decreased by 26% and 17%, respectively. Furthermore, when a scheduling horizon greater than the duration of UAM flights was used (50min), most conflicts were resolved pre-departure producing ground delay. By comparison, when a shorter scheduling horizon was used (8min), most conflicts were resolved post-departure generating airborne delay. For all scheduling and separation constraints tested, AutoResolver prevented loss of separation from occurring. Urban Air Mobility operations have the ability to revolutionize how people and goods are transported and this paper presents initial research focusing on the high levels of autonomy required for an airspace system capable of scaling to handle significantly higher densities of aircraft.
Diachronic equivalence: an examination of the international news network

Barabasi (Linked: how everything is connected to everything else and what it means for business, science, and everyday life. Basic Books, New York, 2014) argues that a significant proportion of nodes can be randomly removed from any scale-free network without it breaking apart. Gao et al. (Nature 530:307–312, 2016) suggest that three additional properties of networks, density, heterogeneity and symmetry, facilitate their ability to adjust their activities to retain functionality in times of stress. Barnett and Jiang (Anal Soc Netw Anal Min 6(1):1–15, 2016) examined the World Wide Web and found that while there are changes in the use of individual websites in this scale-free network due to weekly cycles in viewing specific websites, extreme events as well as other social and cultural events, the overall network is remarkably stable. This paper suggests an additional property, the structural equivalence of nodes that facilitates network stability. Further, it differentiates between two forms of equivalence, synchronous or structural equivalence, and diachronic equivalence, which indicate that two nodes’ position in a network change over time in a similar manner. A subset of the World Wide Web, the international news network is examined to demonstrate these notions. Daily data on the use of the world’s 44 most frequently visited news websites by 118 countries were mined over the 17 month period September 1, 2015 to January 30, 2017, to create a longitudinal two-mode network (countries and websites). The results suggest that individual structurally and diachronic equivalent nodes may be removed from both the international and website networks without impacting how the network changes over time.
APOL1, Acid Load, and CKD Progression.

Introduction High dietary acid load and metabolic acidosis are associated with an accelerated decline in kidney function and may contribute to the observed heterogeneity in end-stage renal disease (ESRD) risk according to APOL1 genotype. Our objective was to examine the associations of metabolic acidosis and dietary acid load with kidney disease progression, according to APOL1 genotype, among individuals with chronic kidney disease (CKD). Methods We studied 1048 African American participants in the Chronic Renal Insufficiency Cohort. Metabolic acidosis was defined as blood levels of serum bicarbonate less than 22 mEq/L, and dietary acid load was quantified by potential renal acid load (PRAL) using data from the Diet Health Questionnaire. APOL1 status was defined as having 2 risk variants, consisting of either possible combination of the G1 and G2 risk alleles. We tested associations of APOL1 and dietary and metabolic acidosis with CKD progression, defined as time to ESRD or 50% decline in eGFR. Results During a median follow-up period of 7 years, 379 participants had an incident CKD progression event (6.4 events per 100 person-years). After full adjustment, among participants with 2 APOL1 variants, the analysis failed to detect an association between metabolic acidosis or dietary acid load and CKD progression (hazard ratio [HR], 1.03; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.96–1.11 per 1 mEq/L higher serum bicarbonate and an HR, 1.03; 95% CI, 0.92–1.15 per 10 mEq/L higher PRAL). Similar associations were noted among participants without the APOL1 high-risk genotype. Conclusion In a population at high risk of developing ESRD, metabolic acidosis and dietary acid load were not associated with CKD progression.