cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Review and Extension on Ambidexterity: A Theoretical Model Integrating Networks and Absorptive Capacity

We provided an integrative model linking ambidexterity, absorptive capacity and networks. External networks, measured through centrality and multiplexity, and internal networks through behavioral context, dual structure and top management teams affect an organization’s ambidexterity. In addition, multiplexity positively affects an organization’s realized and potential absorptive capacity, while centrality has an inverse-u relationship with potential and a positive relation with realized absorptive capacity. Also, internal networks through coordination, capabilities and socialization capabilities affect an organization realized and potential absorptive capacity. Realized absorptive capacity positively affects ambidexterity, while potential absorptive capacity moderates the relationship between realized absorptive capacity and ambidexterity. In posing our model, it was assumed that the operating environment of the firm remains constant. We generate propositions on these relationships for empirical testing and further theoretical insights.
Moment growth bounds on continuous time Markov processes on non-negative integer lattices

We consider Markov processes in continuous time with state space $\posint^N$ and provide two sufficient conditions and one necessary condition for the existence of moments $E(\|X(t)\|^r)$ of all orders $r \in \nat$ for all $t \geq 0$. The sufficient conditions also guarantee an exponential in time growth bound for the moments. The class of processes studied have finitely many state independent jumpsize vectors $\nu_1,\dots,\nu_M$. This class of processes arise naturally in many applications such as stochastic models of chemical kinetics, population dynamics and queueing theory for example. We also provide a necessary and sufficient condition for stochiometric boundedness of species in terms of $\nu_j$.
Network of Spaces and Interaction-Related Behaviors in Adult Intensive Care Units

Using three spatial network measures of "space syntax", this correlational study describes four interaction-related behaviors among three groups of users in relation to visibility and accessibility of spaces in four adult intensive care units (ICUs) of different size, geometry, and specialty. Systematic field observations of interaction-related behaviors show significant differences in spatial distribution of interaction-related behaviors in the ICUs. Despite differences in unit characteristics and interaction-related behaviors, the study finds that when nurses and physicians "interact while sitting" they prefer spaces that help maintain a high level of environmental awareness; that when nurses "walk" and "interact while walking" they avoid spaces with better global access and visibility; and that everyone in ICUs "walk" more in spaces with higher control over neighboring spaces. It is argued that such consistent behavioral patterns occur due to the structural similarities of spatial networks over and above the more general functional similarities of ICUs.
Welfare and distributional impacts of price shocks in Malawi: a non-parametric approach

This analysis used measures of Compensating Variation and Net Benefit Ratio to assess the short-run effects of higher prices on different wealth groups in rural and urban areas of Malawi. Compensating Variation analysis indicated that in aggregate terms, both rural and urban households had suffered with the recent price increases, but urban areas were more severely impacted. Relatively better-off households in urban areas had much larger welfare losses than the poorest, while in rural areas there was not much difference across wealth groups. Losses in expenditure on food consumption (particularly dominated by cereals and grains) were higher in rural areas. In both areas, the poorest households carried the heaviest burden of the food price increases. The opposite result was found for non-food items, where negative effects were stronger among urban households and, in both areas, the relatively better-off carried a heavier burden. Accounting for substitution effects in consumption, with households adjusting away from more expensive items, resulted in a significant reduction in welfare losses and poverty incidence in urban, but not in rural areas. In each scenario, female-headed households experienced the most adverse impacts. Results were translated into tangible policy and programmatic recommendations, specifying alternative budget scenarios which could compensate the most adversely affected groups. Net Benefit Ratio Analysis, which brings in supply side considerations, found that, assuming “no wage effects”, doubling the price of food would reduce real income by about a third in urban areas, and by less that a fifth in rural areas, with the poorest in each area suffering the most. This is a reflection of the fact that there are relatively more households that produce and sell in rural areas than in urban areas. Assuming a wage response to price increases, we find that the adverse effects were reduced more strongly in urban areas, which is a reflection of a more active wage labor market in those areas, where wage adjustments help to minimize the negative effects of price shocks. This analysis suggested that policies should be oriented towards supporting household livelihoods by strengthening social protection interventions, including direct cash transfers and labor intensive public works programs, to effectively protect and compensate households for welfare losses that result from price shocks. In order to be able to capture general equilibrium and long-term effects of price shocks and adjustment to them, it is recommended that future research should combine partial equilibrium methods with a general equilibrium framework.
Credit Conditions and the Cyclical Behavior of Inventories

This paper examines micro data on U. S. manufacturing firms' inventory behavior during different macroeconomic episodes. Much of the analysis focuses on the 1981–1982 recession, which was apparently caused in large part by tight monetary policy. We find that the inventory investment of firms without access to public bond markets is significantly liquidity-constrained during this period. A similar pattern emerges during the 1974–1975 recession, in which tight money also appears to have played a role. In contrast, such liquidity constraints are largely absent during periods of looser monetary policy in the 1970s and 1980s.
New Directions for Suicide Prevention Centers

: This paper considers a number of questions regarding the epidemiology of suicidal phenomena and discusses some of the efforts of the Cornell Program in Social Psychiatry to study these questions and to explore new directions for suicide prevention work. Particular attention is paid to high suicide risk groups that are outside the network of existing medical services. Strategies for extending the clinical picture differentiating between syndromes assessing individual risk, clarifying etiological factors, and improving the working of the health services are considered.
Self-disturbances in Schizophrenia: History, Phenomenology, and Relevant Findings From Research on Metacognition

With a tradition of examining self-disturbances (Ichstorungen) in schizophrenia, phenomenological psychiatry studies the person’s subjective experience without imposing theoretical agenda on what is reported. Although this tradition offers promising interface with current neurobiological models of schizophrenia, both the concept of Ichstorung and its history are not well understood. In this article, we discuss the meaning of Ichstorung, the role it played in the development of the concept of schizophrenia, and recent research on metacognition that allows for the quantitative study of the link between self-disturbance and outcome in schizophrenia. Phenomenological psychiatrists such as Blankenburg, Binswanger, and Conrad interpreted the Ichstorung as disturbed relationship to self and others, thus challenging recent efforts to interpret self-disturbance as diminished pure passive self-affection, which putatively “explains” schizophrenia and its various symptoms. Narrative is a reflective, embodied process, which requires a dynamic shifting of perspectives which, when compromised, may reflect disrupted binding of the components of self-experience. The Metacognition Assessment Scale—abbreviated as MAS-A—suggests that persons with schizophrenia tend to produce narratives with reductions in the binding processes required to produce an integrated, embodied self within narrated life stories, and in interactive relationships with others.
The impact of school choice on student outcomes: an analysis of the Chicago Public Schools

We explore the impact of school choice on student outcomes in the context of open enrollment within the Chicago Public Schools (CPS). Roughly half of the students opt out of their assigned high school to attend a different CPS school, and these students are much more likely than those who remain in their assigned schools to graduate. To determine the source of this apparent benefit, we compare outcomes across (i) similar students with differential access to schooling options and (ii) travelers and non-travelers within the same school. The results suggest that, other than for students who select career academies, the observed cross-sectional benefits are likely spurious.
Synthetic Studies on Perophoramidine and the Communesins: Construction of the Vicinal Quaternary Stereocenters

An efficient synthetic strategy for installation of the two vicinal quaternary carbon centers of the communesins is reported. Key steps include the O-allylation/Claisen rearrangement of spirolactone systems, which are formed by tandem intramolecular Heck cyclization/carbonylation. Substituent and solvent effects on the stereochemical outcome of the Claisen rearrangements have been examined. The stereochemical assignment of the allyl spirolactone previously reported as 17 has now been revised to 31, which has the communesin relative configuration at the quaternary carbons. Key C-allyl spirolactone 59 bearing functional handles required for the communesin core has been constructed with a 9.8:1 diastereomer ratio.
X-ray crystallographic and NMR structural studies of trans-2,3-dichloro-5-ethyl-2,3-dihydrothieno[2 3-b]pyridine syn-1-oxide reactions of thiophene rings with hypochlorite reagents

X-ray analysis of a crystalline product obtained by treatment of 5-ethylthieno[2,3-b]pyridine with excess acidified hypochlorite establishes its stereochemistry as trans-2,3-dichloro-5-ethyl-2,3-dihydrothieno-[2,3-b]pyridine syn-1-oxide (5), wherein the pyridine ring is planar and the dihydrothiophene ring is non-planar with a C2-S-C7a angle of 86.6°. The trans geometry is corroborated by a proton-proton coupling constant J2,3 of 6.8 Hz. Comparison of 1H and 13C nmr data for 5 with analogous crystalline 2,3-dichloro-1-oxide addenda isolated in the isosteric benzo[b]thiophene and thieno[2,3-b]pyridine parent systems indicates that some proposed stereochemical assignments are questionable.
New oligomers of conduritol-F and muco-inositol. Synthesis and biological evaluation as glycosidase inhibitors

Several oligomers possessing the configuration of conduritol-F and muco-inositol have been prepared and tested against six glycosidase enzymes. Electrochemical dehalogenation and reductive deprotection of cinnamyl ethers are featured in the reported syntheses. The synthesis, properties, and biological activities are investigated.
An Improved Analysis for a Greedy Remote-Clique Algorithm Using Factor-Revealing LPs

Given a positive integer k and a complete graph with non-negative edge weights satisfying the triangle inequality, the remote-clique problem is to find a subset of k vertices having a maximum-weight induced subgraph. A greedy algorithm for the problem has been shown to have an approximation ratio of 4, but this analysis was not shown to be tight. In this paper, we use the technique of factor-revealing linear programs to show that the greedy algorithm actually achieves an approximation ratio of 2, which is tight.
Near infrared Raman spectroscopic study of reactive gliosis and the glial scar in injured rat spinal cords

Comparative Raman spectra of ex vivo, saline-perfused, injured and healthy rat spinal cord as well as experiments using enzymatic digestion suggest that proteoglycan over expression may be observable in injured tissue. Comparison with authentic materials in vitro suggest the occurrence of side reactions between products of cord digestion with chondroitinase (cABC) that produce lactones and similar species with distinct Raman features that are often not overlapped with Raman features from other chemical species. Since the glial scar is thought to be a biochemical and physical barrier to nerve regeneration, this observation suggests the possibility of using near infrared Raman spectroscopy to study disease progression and explore potential treatments ex vivo and if potential treatments can be designed, perhaps to monitor potential remedial treatments within the spinal cord in vivo.
SitePrint: three-dimensional pharmacophore descriptors derived from protein binding sites for family based active site analysis, classification, and drug design.

Integrating biological and chemical information is one key task in drug discovery, and one approach to attaining this goal is via three-dimensional pharmacophore descriptors derived from protein binding sites. The SitePrint program generates, aligns, scores, and classifies three-dimensional pharmacophore descriptors, active site grids, and ligand surfaces. The descriptors are formed from molecular fragments that have been docked, minimized, filtered, and clustered in protein active sites. The descriptors have geometric coordinates derived from the fragment positions, and they capture the shape, electrostatics, locations, and angles of entry into pockets of the recognition sites: they also provide a direct link to databases of organic molecules. The descriptors have been shown to be robust with respect to small changes in protein structure observed when multiple compounds are cocrystallized in a protein. Five aligned thrombin cocrystals with an average core α-carbon RMSD of 0.7 A gave three-dimensional ph...
DWARF GALAXIES WITH OPTICAL SIGNATURES OF ACTIVE MASSIVE BLACK HOLES

We present a sample of 151 dwarf galaxies (10{sup 8.5} ∼< M{sub *} ∼< 10{sup 9.5} M{sub ☉}) that exhibit optical spectroscopic signatures of accreting massive black holes (BHs), increasing the number of known active galaxies in this stellar-mass range by more than an order of magnitude. Utilizing data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Data Release 8 and stellar masses from the NASA-Sloan Atlas, we have systematically searched for active BHs in ∼25,000 emission-line galaxies with stellar masses comparable to the Magellanic Clouds and redshifts z < 0.055. Using the narrow-line [O III]/Hβ versus [N II]/Hα diagnostic diagram, we find photoionization signatures of BH accretion in 136 galaxies, a small fraction of which also exhibit broad Hα emission. For these broad-line active galactic nucleus (AGN) candidates, we estimate BH masses using standard virial techniques and find a range of 10{sup 5} ∼< M{sub BH} ∼< 10{sup 6} M{sub ☉} and a median of M{sub BH} ∼ 2 × 10{sup 5} M{sub ☉}. We also detect broad Hα in 15 galaxies that have narrow-line ratios consistent with star-forming galaxies. Follow-up observations are required to determine if these are true type 1 AGN or if the broad Hα is from stellarmore » processes. The median absolute magnitude of the host galaxies in our active sample is M{sub g} = –18.1 mag, which is ∼1-2 mag fainter than previous samples of AGN hosts with low-mass BHs. This work constrains the smallest galaxies that can form a massive BH, with implications for BH feedback in low-mass galaxies and the origin of the first supermassive BH seeds.« less
Multi-Atlas Segmentation with Joint Label Fusion of Osteoporotic Vertebral Compression Fractures on CT

The precise and accurate segmentation of the vertebral column is essential in the diagnosis and treatment of various orthopedic, neurological, and oncological traumas and pathologies. Segmentation is especially challenging in the presence of pathology such as vertebral compression fractures. In this paper, we propose a method to produce segmentations for osteoporotic compression fractured vertebrae by applying a multi-atlas joint label fusion technique for clinical computed tomography (CT) images. A total of 170 thoracic and lumbar vertebrae were evaluated using atlases from five patients with varying degrees of spinal degeneration. In an osteoporotic cohort of bundled atlases, registration provided an average Dice coefficient and mean absolute surface distance of \(92.7\,{\pm }\,4.5\)% and \(0.32\,{\pm }\,0.13\) mm for osteoporotic vertebrae, respectively, and \(90.9\,{\pm }\,3.0\,\%\) and \(0.36\,{\pm }\,0.11\) mm for compression fractured vertebrae.
Last chance therapies: can a just and caring society do health care rationing when life itself is at stake?

What does it mean to be a just and caring society, or managed care plan, when we have only limited resources to meet virtually unlimited health care needs, and the need before us now is a person faced with death unless h/she has access to a very expensive medical intervention offering only a relatively small gain in life expectancy? This is the "last chance therapy" problem. Examples of such therapies would include Herceptin therapy for metastasized breast cancer, and the left-ventricular assist device or the totally implantable artificial heart for end-stage heart disease. Making rationing decisions with respect to such therapies is clearly morally challenging, but ultimately inescapable. Appeal to the Rule of Rescue to prevent such rationing decisions is not morally defensible, given the cost and ubiquity of such needed rescue efforts, not to mention the unjust distortions in meeting other health needs caused by the large resource demands associated with last chance therapies. Likewise, reliance on market mechanisms will not yield just access to these therapies. The core argument of this essay is that a certain version of rational democratic deliberation is most likely to yield "just enough" rationing outcomes regarding these therapies, given that no philosophic theories of justice can yield a uniquely morally correct resolution to this rationing problem due to the "burdens of judgment" integral to such problems. The key moral virtue of such suitably structured deliberative conversations is that rationing decisions are freely self-imposed through a process of public reason-giving that is congruent with both our deepest liberal political commitments and our evolving complex considered judgments of health care justice. An additional virtue of this democratic deliberative approach is that it allows us to address effectively a number of other broad rationing problems, including the "fair chances/best outcomes," "ragged edge," and "priorities" problems.
Distributed Parameter Estimation via Pseudo-likelihood

Estimating statistical models within sensor networks requires distributed algorithms, in which both data and computation are distributed across the nodes of the network. We propose a general approach for distributed learning based on combining local estimators defined by pseudo-likelihood components, encompassing a number of combination methods, and provide both theoretical and experimental analysis. We show that simple linear combination or max-voting methods, when combined with second-order information, are statistically competitive with more advanced and costly joint optimization. Our algorithms have many attractive properties including low communication and computational cost and "any-time" behavior.
Firm-Level Monopsony and the Gender Pay Gap

This study uses linked employer–employee data to estimate firm-by-gender specific labor supply elasticities. Using a dynamic model of labor supply, I find evidence that females face a greater degree of search frictions than males. However, the majority of the gender gap in labor supply elasticities is driven by across-firm sorting rather than within-firm differences. I find that males face a labor supply elasticity 0.15 points higher than females, which leads to 3.3 percent lower earnings for women. Sixty percent of the elasticity differential can be explained by marriage and child penalties faced by women but not men.
Agent-based analysis of asset pricing under ambiguous information

In a representative agent model, the behavior of a social system is described in terms of a single aggregate decision maker. Such models are popular in economic and finance research, largely due to their analytic tractability, but fail to account for real-world agent heterogeneity. Agent-based simulation models naturally incorporate such heterogeneity, and we exploit this capability to investigate a recent model from the finance literature proposed by Epstein and Schneider (ES), and its ability to explain the classic equity premium puzzle in risky asset pricing. In addition to the ambiguity-averse trading strategy adopted by the representative agent in the ES model, we consider simple Bayesian strategies. Rather than impose a particular strategy profile, we employ an empirical game-theoretic approach to derive stable market compositions among the set of candidate strategies.For most market configurations that we examined, ambiguity-averse pricing was not present in equilibrium support. We do, however, find ambiguity-averse pricing in equilibrium support for a market configuration analogous to an illiquid asset. For none of the market configurations that we examined were we able to find significant equity premia. Both our use of strategic equilibrium as a market composition concept, and the actions of our simulated market microstructure contribute to removing any equity premium. These findings underscore the need to verify that results from abstract representative-agent models are supportable in a higher-fidelity model where heterogeneity and strategic interactions are taken into account.
Spectral recognition with a PCNN preprocessor

This is a report on work in progress. Spectral recognition is central to many areas of science and technology. Classical spectral recognition analysis techniques (least squares, partial least squares, etc.) are sensitive to offset and gain drifts and errors. This sensitivity can cause excessive costs for spectrometer resources and calibrations. Neural techniques relieve some of this sensitivity but none approach human competence. It is desirable to mimic human spectral analysis not only to improve the results but to minimize detector constraints and costs. We suggest that the first step in human analysis is peak detection. We are exploring the 1D PCNN as a peak segmenter for spectral peak finding in the presence of noise and drifts in gain and offset. We present results of 1D pulse coded neural network peak detection with both simulated and actual static spectra. We also use the PCNN to form a scale and translation invariant feature vector that may be decomposed using classical techniques such as least squares. Finally, we propose using a PCNN to exploit the temporal aspects of spectral acquisition.
Approximate permutation tests and induced order statistics in the regression discontinuity design

In the regression discontinuity design (RDD), it is common practice to assess the credibility of the design by testing whether the means of baseline covariates do not change at the cut-off (or threshold) of the running variable. This practice is partly motivated by the stronger implication derived by Lee (2008), who showed that under certain conditions the distribution of baseline covariates in the RDD must be continuous at the cut-off. We propose a permutation test based on the so-called induced ordered statistics for the null hypothesis of continuity of the distribution of baseline covariates at the cut-off; and introduce a novel asymptotic framework to analyse its properties. The asymptotic framework is intended to approximate a small sample phenomenon: even though the total number n of observations may be large, the number of effective observations local to the cut-off is often small. Thus, while traditional asymptotics in RDD require a growing number of observations local to the cut-off as n→∞, our framework keeps the number q of observations local to the cut-off fixed as n→∞. The new test is easy to implement, asymptotically valid under weak conditions, exhibits finite sample validity under stronger conditions than those needed for its asymptotic validity, and has favourable power properties relative to tests based on means. In a simulation study, we find that the new test controls size remarkably well across designs. We then use our test to evaluate the plausibility of the design in Lee (2008), a well-known application of the RDD to study incumbency advantage.
Quark confinement and surface critical phenomena

Surface critical phenomena and the related onset of Goldstone modes probe the fundamental properties of the confining flux in Quantum Chromodynamics. New ideas on surface roughening and their implications for lattice studies of quark confinement are presented. Problems with the oversimplified string description of the Wilson flux sheet are discussed.
Weaving Schauder frames

Abstract We extend the concept of weaving Hilbert space frames to the Banach space setting. Similar to frames in a Hilbert space, we show that for any two approximate Schauder frames for a Banach space, every weaving is an approximate Schauder frame if and only if there is a uniform constant C ≥ 1 such that every weaving is a C -approximate Schauder frame. We also study weaving Schauder bases, where it is necessary to introduce two notions of weaving. On one hand, we can ask if two Schauder bases are woven when considered as Schauder frames with their biorthogonal functionals, and alternatively, we can ask if each weaving of two Schauder bases remains a Schauder basis. We will prove that these two notions coincide when all weavings are unconditional, but otherwise they can be different. Lastly, we prove two perturbation theorems for approximate Schauder frames.
Effectively Control the Risks of Colorado Potato Beetle in the Potato Industry: A Spatial Approach

Our study focuses on modeling Colorado potato beetle (CPB) outbreaks and damage caused in Maine. The approach is to evaluate CPB outbreak frequency in a spatio-temporal framework. A block bootstrapping method with has been used to evaluate the CPB damage on a experimental field of potatoes. With this approach, impacts of environmental factors on CPB outbreaks and implications of crop rotations are assessed. Some explanatory variables, including temperature, crop rotations and soil minerals have been detected to have significant impacts. Consequently, our method offers a way to design spatial layout to minimize the risks of CPB outbreaks, given the current environmental information of a field.
Detecting Multiple Information Sources in Networks under the SIR Model

In this paper, we study the problem of detecting multiple information sources in networks under the Susceptible-Infected-Recovered (SIR) model. First, assuming the number of information sources is known, we develop a sample-path-based algorithm, named clustering and localization, for trees. For $g$ -regular trees, the estimators produced by the proposed algorithm are within a constant distance from the real sources with a high probability. We further present a heuristic algorithm for general networks and an algorithm for estimating the number of sources when the number of real sources is unknown.
Norms as a basis for governing sociotechnical systems

We understand a sociotechnical system as a microsociety in which autonomous parties interact with and about technical objects. We define governance as the administration of such a system by its participants. We develop an approach for governance based on a computational representation of norms. Our approach has the benefit of capturing stakeholder needs precisely while yielding adaptive resource allocation in the face of changes both in stakeholder needs and the environment. We are currently extending this approach to address the problem of secure collaboration and to contribute to the emerging science of cybersecurity.
Magma ascent pathways associated with large mountains on Io

Abstract While Jupiter's moon Io is the most volcanically active body in the Solar System, the largest mountains seen on Io are created by tectonic forces rather than volcanic construction. Pervasive compression, primarily brought about by subsidence induced by sustained volcanic resurfacing, creates the mountains, but at the same time inhibits magma ascent in vertical conduits (dikes). We superpose stress solutions for subsidence, along with thermal stress, (both from the “crustal conveyor belt” process of resurfacing) in Io's lithosphere with stresses from Io mountain-sized loads (in a shallow spherical shell solution) in order to evaluate magma ascent pathways. We use stress orientation (least compressive stress horizontal) and stress gradient (compression decreasing upwards) criteria to identify ascent pathways through the lithosphere. There are several configurations for which viable ascent paths transit nearly the entire lithosphere, arriving at the base of the mountain, where magma can be transported through thrust faults or perhaps thermally eroded flank sections. The latter is consistent with observations of some Io paterae in close contact with mountains.
Quantum Critical Behavior in a Concentrated Ternary Solid Solution.

The face centered cubic (fcc) alloy NiCoCrx with x ≈ 1 is found to be close to the Cr concentration where the ferromagnetic transition temperature, Tc, goes to 0. Near this composition these alloys exhibit a resistivity linear in temperature to 2 K, a linear magnetoresistance, an excess –TlnT (or power law) contribution to the low temperature heat capacity, and excess low temperature entropy. All of the low temperature electrical, magnetic and thermodynamic properties of the alloys with compositions near x ≈ 1 are not typical of a Fermi liquid and suggest strong magnetic fluctuations associated with a quantum critical region. Lastly, the limit of extreme chemical disorder in this simple fcc material thus provides a novel and unique platform to study quantum critical behavior in a highly tunable system.
Improving Contracts Through Expanding Perspectives of Understanding

Understanding contracts generally through a legal perspective has systemic influences on how companies are organized; how personnel communicate internally and externally; how and by whom strategic planning proceeds; what is identified as a contract problem, and the conceived structure of that problem; the procedures with which problem should be addressed; and what counts as success or failure in resolving the problem. If one were to change or expand the basic perspective by which contracts are understood, then suddenly all of those associated concepts and structures could also become more open to new ideas. The purpose of this article is to make more explicit the basic assumptions by which we understand contracts and suggest how the many connected functions are influenced by those core assumptions. The article also explores how our basic perceptions about contracting might change, and how the associated business ideas and structures might also change, if we were to imagine contracts from two alternative perspectives: the economic exchange that is the substance and basic purpose of contracts, and the personal relationships that go into making and implementing an agreement.
Monitoring Routing Topology in Dynamic Wireless Sensor Network Systems

In large-scale multi-hop wireless sensor networks (WSNs) for data collection, the ability of monitoring per-packet routing paths at the sink is essential in better understanding network dynamics, and improving routing protocols, topology control, energy conservation, anomaly detection, and load balance in WSN deployments. In this study, we consider this important problem under tremendous WSN routing dynamics, which cannot be addressed by previous methods based on a routing tree model. We formulate the WSN topology inference as a novel optimization problem, and devise efficient decoding algorithms to effectively recover WSN routing topology at the sink in real-time using a small fixed-size path measurement attached to each packet. Rigorous complexity analysis of the devised algorithms is given. Performance evaluation is conducted via extensive simulations. The results reveal that our approach significantly outperforms other state-of-the-art methods including MNT, Pathfinder, and CSPR. Furthermore, we validate our approach intensively with a real-world outdoor WSN deployment running collection tree protocol for environmental data collection.
Efficient and robust density estimation using Bernstein type polynomials

A method of parameterising and smoothing the unknown underlying distributions using Bernstein type polynomials with positive coefficients is proposed, verified and investigated. Any distribution with bounded and smooth enough density can be approximated by the proposed model which turns out to be a mixture of the beta distributions, beta, , for some optimal degree m. A simple change-point estimating method for choosing the optimal degree m of the approximate model is presented. The proposed method gives a maximum likelihood density estimate which is consistent in distance at a nearly parametric rate under some conditions. Simulation study shows that one can benefit from both the smoothness and the efficiency by using the proposed method which can also be used to estimate some population parameters such as the mean. The proposed methods are applied to three data sets of different types.
The Structure of Neoprene. VI. Crystallization

A volume dialometric study of the crystallization behavior of polychloroprenes made at −40°, 10°, and 40°C. has shown that the melting point of the crystalline phase in these polymers is an inverse linear function of polymerization temperature. Polychloroprene made at −40°C. melts at ca. 65°C., while conventional 40°C. neoprenes melt at ca. 40°C. Comparison of this data with the melting point depression observed in a chloroprene/methacrylonitrile copolymer and in polychloroprene/diluent mixtures has made possible calculations which confirm earlier hypotheses that neoprenes have a highly regular structure. Commercial neoprenes made at 40°C. are calculated to consist of 80–85% of the trans-2-chloro-2-butylene units which result from trans-1,4 polymerization of chloroprene. Densities determined for crystalline and amorphous neoprenes have been used to calculate the degree of crystallinity of these polymers, and this information has made possible calibration of the infrared crystallization-sensitive bands, for use in measurement of degree of crystallinity. The heat of fusion of the crystalline phase of neoprenes has been found from diluent data to be 22.7 ± 2 calories per gram.
Towards tera terra: Terabase sequencing of terrestrial metagenomics

From a microbiological perspective, soil is largely unexplored even though we know it has a rich diversity of microbial life. Depending on its physical and chemical properties, soil can contain 109-1010 microbial cells per gram, including tens of thousands of different bacterial, archaeal, and fungal species, plus viruses and protists.
Molecular Germanium selenophosphate salts: Phase-change properties and strong second harmonic generation

A new series of germanium chalcophosphates with the formula A4GeP4Q12 (A = K, Rb, Cs; Q = S, Se) have been synthesized. The selenium compounds are isostructural and crystallize in the polar orthorhombic space group Pca21. The sulfur analogues are isostructural to one another but crystallize in the centrosymmetric monoclinic space group C2/c. All structures contain the new molecular anion [GeP4Q12]4–; however, the difference between the sulfides and selenides arises from the change in crystal packing. Each discrete molecule is comprised of two ethane-like P2Q6 units that chelate to a central tetrahedral Ge4+ ion in a bidentate fashion. The selenides were synthesized pure by stoichiometric reaction of the starting materials, whereas the sulfides contained second phases. The band gaps of the molecular salts are independent of the alkali metal counterions and have a value of 2.0 eV for the selenides and 3.0–3.1 eV for the sulfides. All A4GeP4Se12 compounds melt congruently, and the potassium analogue can be q...
Method for Structural Characterization of High Polymeric Networks by an Osmotic Pressure Technique

Abstract An apparatus was designed to measure the osmotic pressure of solvent-polymer systems. The method is unique in that semirigid polymers may be incorporated as the solute component without specimen fissures occurring from excessive solvent dilative action. The advantages of this technique are: high polymeric materials both elastomeric and plastic can be structurally characterized by the same technique; the calculated effective molecular weight of the polymer network will reflect a value consistent with the polymer's performance characteristics; and the method is only restricted to lyophilic polymer—solvent systems.
National assessment of physicians’ breast-feeding knowledge, attitudes, training, and experience

Objective. —Previous reports have demonstrated that physician counseling can improve rates of breast-feeding initiation and duration but suggest that physicians are ill-prepared for this role. It is unclear whether residency training for pediatricians, obstetrician/gynecologists, and family physicians provides the knowledge and skills necessary for effective breast-feeding promotion. Design. —Survey. Participants. —A national random sample of 3115 residents and 1920 practicing physicians in pediatrics, obstetrics/gynecology, and family medicine. Outcomes. —Assessment of breast-feeding knowledge, attitudes, training, and experience. Results. —Overall response rate was 68%. All groups demonstrated significant deficits in knowledge of breast-feeding benefits and clinical management; for example, less than 50% of residents chose appropriate clinical management for a breast-fed jaundiced infant or a breast abscess. Practicing physicians performed slightly better, but still more than 30% chose incorrect advice for mothers with low milk supply. Residents reported that their breast-feeding instruction consisted mainly of didactic lecture, not patient experience. Only 55% of senior residents recalled even one instance of precepting related to breast-feeding, and less than 20% had demonstrated breast-feeding techniques at least five times during residency. Regarding preparation for breast-feeding counseling, more than 50% of all practicing physicians rated their residency training as inadequate. Overall, physician involvement in breast-feeding promotion was endorsed by 90% of respondents, yet only half rated themselves as effective in counseling breast-feeding patients. The greatest predictor of physician self-confidence was previous personal or spousal breast-feeding experience. Conclusions. —In this national sample of residents and practicing physicians in three specialties, physicians were ill-prepared to counsel breast-feeding mothers. Deliberate efforts must be made to incorporate clinically based breast-feeding training into residency programs and continuing education workshops to better prepare physicians for their role in breast-feeding promotion. (JAMA. 1995;273:472-476)
Variations in public and private employees’ perceptions of organizational preparedness for natural disasters

Studies have demonstrated that public and private organizations differ in many respects (e.g. funding mechanisms and risk-taking capabilities). Based on this scholarship, we expect to see differences in their disaster preparedness levels. Hence, we propose the following research question: Are there variations in public and private employees’ perceptions of organizational preparedness for natural disasters? We answer this question by employing the theories of publicness and social identity. We define publicness through the core approach arguing that public and private organizations are uniquely different based on their legal status or ownership and social identity as an individual’s feeling of oneness or belongingness to a particular group or organization. Using data gathered in 2014 from a nationally representative sample of 1634 public and private employees in the United States, we posit that employees of private organizations will report higher preparedness levels in comparison to employees of p...
Gels and gel-derived glasses in the Na2O-B2O3-SiO2 system

The containerless melting of high-purity multicomponent homogeneous gels and gel-monoliths offers a unique approach to making ultrapure multicomponent optical glasses in the reduced gravity environment of space. Procedures for preparing and characterizing gels and gel-derived glasses in the Na2O-B2O3-SiO2 system are described. Preparation is based on the polymerization reactions of alkoxysilane with trimethyl borate or boric acid and a suitable sodium compound. The chemistry of the gelling process is discussed in terms of process parameters and the gel compositions. The physicochemical nature of gels prepared by three different procedures were found to be significantly different. Infrared absorption spectra indicate finite differences in the molecular structures of the different gels. The melting of the gel powders and the transformation of porous gel-monoliths to transparent “glass” without melting are described.
Classical emulation of a quantum computer

This paper describes a novel approach to emulate a universal quantum computer with a wholly classical system, one that uses a signal of bounded duration and amplitude to represent an arbitrary quantum state. The signal may be of any modality (e.g. acoustic, electromagnetic, etc.) but this paper will focus on electronic signals. Individual qubits are represented by in-phase and quadrature sinusoidal signals, while unitary gate operations are performed using simple analog electronic circuit devices. In this manner, the Hilbert space structure of a multi-qubit quantum state, as well as a universal set of gate operations, may be fully emulated classically. Results from a programmable prototype system are presented and discussed.
Disordered Microbial Communities In The Upper Respiratory Tract Of Cigarette Smokers

Cigarette smokers have an increased risk of infectious diseases involving the respiratory tract. Some effects of smoking on specific respiratory tract bacteria have been described, but the consequences for global airway microbial community composition have not been determined. Here, we used culture-independent high-density sequencing to analyze the microbiota from the right and left nasopharynx and oropharynx of 29 smoking and 33 nonsmoking healthy asymptomatic adults to assess microbial composition and effects of cigarette smoking. Bacterial communities were profiled using 454 pyrosequencing of 16S sequence tags (803,391 total reads), aligned to 16S rRNA databases, and communities compared using the UniFrac distance metric. A Random Forest machine-learning algorithm was used to predict smoking status and identify taxa that best distinguished between smokers and nonsmokers. Community composition was primarily determined by airway site, with individuals exhibiting minimal side-of-body or temporal variation. Within airway habitats, microbiota from smokers were significantly more diverse than nonsmokers and clustered separately. The distributions of several genera were systematically altered by smoking in both the oro- and nasopharynx, and there was an enrichment of anaerobic lineages associated with periodontal disease in the oropharynx. These results indicate that distinct regions of the human upper respiratory tract contain characteristic microbial communities that exhibit disordered patterns in cigarette smokers, both in individual components and global structure, which may contribute to the prevalence of respiratory tract complications in this population.
The Effect of Available Short-Circuit Capacity and Trail Cable Length on Substation Voltage Amplification in Surface Excavation Industry

The use of long-length medium-voltage portable trailing cables in the surface extraction industry to power the major excavation tools, such as electric rope shovel (ERS), electric drills, electric hydraulic mining shovel (HMS), and dragline is indispensable. Since these cables are highly capacitive with low X / R ratio, it is very important to conduct voltage stability analysis before adding a new machine to an existing power system. This paper investigates the effect of the trailing cable length on the mine substation voltage quality. An overvoltage condition that causes the failure of an auxiliary power supplies onboard one of the high-power machines is investigated. The possible causes of the overvoltage, predominantly the interaction between current harmonics generated by the use of variable speed drives and the long-cable capacitance and substation inductance, are described theoretically and simulated. Power requirements and installation guidelines for high-power electrically driven mining shovels are established. Onsite measurements are used to validate the theoretical analysis and confirm recommendations.
Palladium Catalyzed Diaryl Sulfoxide Generation from Aryl Benzyl Sulfoxides and Aryl Chlorides

Diaryl sulfoxides are synthesized from aryl benzyl sulfoxides and aryl chlorides via three sequential catalytic cycles all promoted by a NiXantPhos-based palladium catalyst. The key step is S-arylation of a sulfenate anion. An air- and moisture-stable precatalyst derived from NiXantPhos efficiently facilitates the transformation. Various functional groups, including those with acidic protons, were tolerated. This method can also be extended to methyl and dibenzyl sulfoxides substrates.
Selmer groups of twists of elliptic curves over K with K-rational torsion points

We generalize a result of Frey on Selmer groups of twists of elliptic curves over \(\mathbf Q \) with \(\mathbf Q \)-rational torsion points to elliptic curves defined over number fields of small degree K with a K-rational torsion point. We also provide examples of elliptic curves coming from Zywina that satisfy the conditions of our Corollary D.
The Chemistry of C-Nucleosides

A group of nucleosides in which the ribofuranosyl moiety is linked to a heterocyclic base through a carbon-to-carbon bond (hence called C-nucleosides) have been found in nature.(1) The first example was pseudouridine (ψ-uridine), which was isolated in 1957(2) as the fifth nucleoside obtained from “soluble RNA,” and its structure was established in 1962 as 5-(β-d-ribofuranosyl)uracil(3,4) (Fig. 1). It is now known that ψ-uridine is present ubiquitously in active transfer RNA (tRNA),(5) and that certain tRNAs deficient in ψ-uridine are incapable of participating in protein synthesis. (5, 6) This C-nucleoside is formed enzymatically from uridine after assembly of the tRNA chain. (7–10)
Detrifluoroacetylative Generation of Halogenated Enolates: Practical Access to Perhalogenated Ketones and Alkenes

Sequential chlorination/fluorination of aromatic trifluoroacetylated ketones gives 1-aryl 2-chloro-2,4,4,4-tetrafluorobutan-1,3-dione hydrates that are used for the synthesis of ketones and alkenes exhibiting a terminal bromochlorofluoromethyl group. The hydrates undergo detrifluoroacetylative cleavage and subsequent bromination in the presence of a copper(II) bisoxazoline catalyst, K2CO3, and NBS at room temperature. The corresponding bromochlorofluoromethyl ketones can be applied in Wittig and Horner–Wadsworth–Emmons reactions and dibromoalkenylations.