cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Oligarchs and the Russian Government: Fight Against Corruption or the Private Business?

Many scholars have interpreted the Russian government’s attack on the private oil companies, as in the most famous Yukos Crisis, as a legitimate battle against corruption. However, in the transition economies, the state can abuse its power by acting like a monopoly and not letting any competitive firms to operate. It can easily do so, by disguising its aim of retaining its monopoly power as a “fight with corruption”. In this paper we build a game between the state firm (government) and the private firm (oligarchs), where the oligarchs can be of “strong” or “weak” type. Oligarchs use the amount of bribe to signal their type, and try to influence the government’s decision of whether confiscating the private firm by accusing it of being corrupt, versus letting her operate and collecting bribe.
Fast accelerated failure time modeling for case-cohort data

Semiparametric accelerated failure time (AFT) models directly relate the expected failure times to covariates and are a useful alternative to models that work on the hazard function or the survival function. For case-cohort data, much less development has been done with AFT models. In addition to the missing covariates outside of the sub-cohort in controls, challenges from AFT model inferences with full cohort are retained. The regression parameter estimator is hard to compute because the most widely used rank-based estimating equations are not smooth. Further, its variance depends on the unspecified error distribution, and most methods rely on computationally intensive bootstrap to estimate it. We propose fast rank-based inference procedures for AFT models, applying recent methodological advances to the context of case-cohort data. Parameters are estimated with an induced smoothing approach that smooths the estimating functions and facilitates the numerical solution. Variance estimators are obtained through efficient resampling methods for nonsmooth estimating functions that avoids full blown bootstrap. Simulation studies suggest that the recommended procedure provides fast and valid inferences among several competing procedures. Application to a tumor study demonstrates the utility of the proposed method in routine data analysis.
Constraints on meta-stable de Sitter flux vacua

We consider flux compactification of type IIB string theory as the orientifold limit of an F-theory on a Calabi-Yau fourfold. We show that when supersymmetry is dominantly broken by the axion-dilaton and the contributions of the F-terms associated with complex structure moduli are small, the Hessian of the flux potential always has tachyonic modes for de Sitter vacua. This implies that there exist no meta-stable de Sitter vacua in this limit. Moreover, we find that the stability requirement imposes a relation between the values of cosmological constant and the scale of supersymmetry breaking for non-supersymmetric anti de Sitter vacua in this limit. The proof is general and does not rely on the details of the geometry of the compact Calabi-Yau internal space. We finally analyze the consequences of these constraints on the statistics of meta-stable de Sitter vacua and address some other related issues.
Functoriality, Smith theory, and the Brauer homomorphism

If is an automorphism of order p of the semisimple group G, there is a natural correspondence between mod p cohomological automorphic forms on G and G . We describe this correspondence in the global and local settings.
Making Space for Time: Issues in Space-Time Data Representation

Even with much activity over the past decade, including organized efforts on both sides of the Atlantic, the representation of both space and time in digital databases is still problematic and functional space-time systems have not gone beyond the limited prototype stage. Why is this the case? Why did it take twenty years from the first GIS for the for representation and analysis in the temporal, as well as the spatial dimension, to begin? I explore the answers to these questions by giving a historical overview of the development of space-time representation in the geographic information systems and database communities and a review of the most recent research. Within the context of this perspective, I also question what seems to be a spirit of self-accusation in which the lack of functional space-time systems has been discussed in the literature and in meetings of GIS researchers. I close by offering my own interpretation of current research issues on space-time data models and languages.
A geometric approach to leveraging weak learners

AdaBoost is a popular and effective leveraging procedure for improving the hypotheses generated by weak learning algorithms. AdaBoost and many other leveraging algorithms can be viewed as performing a constrained gradient descent over a potential function. At each iteration the distribution over the sample given to the weak learner is proportional to the direction of steepest descent. We introduce a new leveraging algorithm based on a natural potential function. For this potential function, the direction of steepest descent can have negative components. Therefore, we provide two techniques for obtaining suitable distributions from these directions of steepest descent. The resulting algorithms have bounds that are incomparable to AdaBoost's. The analysis suggests that our algorithm is likely to perform better than AdaBoost on noisy data and with weak learners returning low confidence hypotheses. Modest experiments confirm that our algorithm can perform better than AdaBoost in these situations.
Dual Theory for Free Fermions

A wave equation for free fermions is proposed based on the structure of the dual theory for bosons. Its formal properties preserve the role played by the Virasoro algebra. Additional Ward-like identities, compatible with the equation, are shown to exist. Its solutions lie on linear trajectories. In particular, the parent is shown to be doubly degenerate, but these solutions lie on different sheets of the cut $j$ plane.
Enhanced skin effect for partial-element equivalent-circuit (PEEC) models

In this paper, a skin-effect modeling approach is presented that is suitable for all frequency regimes of interest and therefore is most appropriate for transient interconnect analysis. Yet, the new formulation lends itself to a model that can be abstracted for use in conjunction with surface integral and finite difference-based electromagnetic tools for interconnect modeling. While a volume filament technique is not computationally feasible at high frequencies, where a fine discretization is necessary, the formulation that is presented avoids this difficulty by carefully casting the behavior of a conductor into the form of a global surface impedance, thus requiring fewer unknowns. Several examples illustrating the ability of the proposed model to accurately capture proximity and skin-effect behaviors will be shown, Interconnect resistance and inductance per-unit-length results are given and compared with those obtained using different models.
High-voltage devices and circuits fabricated using foundry CMOS for use with electrostatic MEM actuators

Abstract Devices and circuits capable of high-voltage operation are necessary for the actuation of micromachined electrostatic structures that require high voltages (20–100 V). These high-voltage devices have traditionally been fabricated using specialized processes. Monolithic integration of the actuators with circuits, including the high-voltage drive, makes it important to provide high-voltage circuit elements in CMOS, which is often the process of choice for signal-processing circuits. Fabrication processes available through foundry services using standard CMOS are attractive to users with no or limited access to clean-room facilities. High-voltage n- and p-type MOS transistors have been fabricated using the 2.0 μm analog CMOS process available through the MOSIS foundry service. By using the n-well and the p-base layers as lightly doped drains, breakdown voltages are 120 V and −27 V for the NMOS and PMOS structures, respectively. The corresponding Early voltages are − 1000 V for the NMOS and 240 V for the PMOS devices. A simple differential amplifier using the high-voltage devices has been fabricated and used to drive all-aluminum electrostatic actuator structures. A first-level SPICE model has also been derived for the high-voltage transistors.
On blocking zeros and strong stabilizability of linear multivariable systems

Abstract Motivated by a crucial role blocking zeros play in deciphering the strong stabilizability of a given system, a careful study of blocking zeros is undertaken here. After developing certain properties of blocking zeros and based on the multiplicity structure of invariant zeros, we identify what kind of invariant zeros are blocking zeros. For controllable and observable systems, an invariant zero is a blocking zero if and only if its geometric multiplicity is equal to the normal rank of the transfer function of the given system. This result leads to delineation of the class of controllable and observable time-invariant linear systems into two subclasses, (1) “simply SISO” systems whose normal rank is unity, and (2) “truly MIMO” systems whose normal rank is greater than unity. In a “simply SISO” system, every invariant zero is a blocking zero and hence a “simply SISO” system is not necessarily strongly stabilizable. On the other hand, a “truly MIMO” system with distinct invariant zeros does not have any blocking zeros and hence is always strongly stabilizable. Also, given any “truly MIMO” system, there always exists an arbitrarily small perturbation of its dynamic matrix such that the perturbed system has no blocking zeros and hence is strongly stabilizable. In this sense, one can say that a MIMO system “almost always” has no blocking zeros and hence is “almost always” strongly stabilizable.
Graduate education in clinical psychology: "We're not in Kansas anymore".

In this article, the author addresses changes impacting graduate education in clinical psychology, including those in technology, the academy, and the marketplace, and discusses implications of these changes for psychology. Significant concerns are raised concerning issues of supply and demand as well as the nature of the product of graduate education and training.
Capacitated Max-Batching with interval graph compatibilities

We consider the problem of partitioning interval graphs into cliques of bounded size. Each interval has a weight, and the weight of a clique is the maximum weight of any interval in the clique. The goal is then to find such a partition of minimum total weight. This graph problem can also be interpreted as a batch scheduling problem. Solving a long-standing open question, we show NP-hardness, even if the bound on the clique sizes is constant. Moreover, we give a PTAS for this case.
Unusual Magnetic Fields of Uranus and Neptune: Metallic Fluid Hydrogen

W. J. Nellis Department of Physics, Harvard University Cambridge, MA 02138, USA nellis@physics.harvard.edu The full paper is published: Modern Physics Letters B (Condensed Matter) Vol. 29, No. 1 (2015) 1430018 (29 pages) I.Introduction! NASA’s Voyager 2 spacecraft discovered the unusual non-dipolar and non-axisymmetric magnetic fields of the Ice Giant Planets Uranus and Neptune (U/N) in the 1980’s [1]. Materials in the Giant Planets are degenerate [2]. The magnetic fields of U/N are made primarily by convection of metallic fluid H (MFH) [3]. The magnetic fields of U/N are both ~2x10
Lamassu: storage-efficient host-side encryption

Many storage customers are adopting encryption solutions to protect critical data. Most existing encryption solutions sit in, or near, the application that is the source of critical data, upstream of the primary storage system. Placing encryption near the source ensures that data remains encrypted throughout the storage stack, making it easier to use untrusted storage, such as public clouds. Unfortunately, such a strategy also prevents downstream storage systems from applying content-based features, such as deduplication, to the data. In this paper, we present Lamassu, an encryption solution that uses block-oriented, host-based, convergent encryption to secure data, while preserving storage-based data deduplication. Unlike past convergent encryption systems, which typically store encryption metadata in a dedicated store, our system transparently inserts its metadata into each file's data stream. This allows us to add Lamassu to an application stack without modifying either the client application or the storage controller. In this paper, we lay out the architecture and security model used in our system, and present a new model for maintaining metadata consistency and data integrity in a convergent encryption environment. We also evaluate its storage efficiency and I/O performance by using a variety of microbenchmarks, showing that Lamassu provides excellent storage efficiency, while achieving I/O throughput on par with similar conventional encryption systems.
Synthesis of Triphenylethylene Bisphenols as Aromatase Inhibitors That Also Modulate Estrogen Receptors

A series of triphenylethylene bisphenol analogues of the selective estrogen receptor modulator (SERM) tamoxifen were synthesized and evaluated for their abilities to inhibit aromatase, bind to estrogen receptor α (ER-α) and estrogen receptor β (ER-β), and antagonize the activity of β-estradiol in MCF-7 human breast cancer cells. The long-range goal has been to create dual aromatase inhibitor (AI)/selective estrogen receptor modulators (SERMs). The hypothesis is that in normal tissue the estrogenic SERM activity of a dual AI/SERM could attenuate the undesired effects stemming from global estrogen depletion caused by the AI activity of a dual AI/SERM, while in breast cancer tissue the antiestrogenic SERM activity of a dual AI/SERM could act synergistically with AI activity to enhance the antiproliferative effect. The potent aromatase inhibitory activities and high ER-α and ER-β binding affinities of several of the resulting analogues, together with the facts that they antagonize β-estradiol in a functional ...
Resource Allocation for Statistical Estimation

Statistical estimation in many contemporary settings involves the acquisition, analysis, and aggregation of data sets from multiple sources, which can have significant differences in character and in value. Due to these variations, the effectiveness of employing a given resource, e.g., a sensing device or computing power, for gathering or processing data from a particular source depends on the nature of that source. As a result, the appropriate division and assignment of a collection of resources to a set of data sources can substantially impact the overall performance of an inferential strategy. In this expository article, we adopt a general view of the notion of a resource and its effect on the quality of a data source, and we describe a framework for the allocation of a given set of resources to a collection of sources in order to optimize a specified metric of statistical efficiency. We discuss several stylized examples involving inferential tasks such as parameter estimation and hypothesis testing based on heterogeneous data sources, in which optimal allocations can be computed either in closed form or via efficient numerical procedures based on convex optimization. This work is an inferential analog of the literature in information theory on allocating power across communications channels of variable quality in order to optimize for total throughput.
Current Resources for Evidence-Based Practice, January/February 2016.

How Traditional Research Design and Settings Make It Difficult to Prove the Benefits of Normal Labor and Birth A few weeks ago, I attended the Tri-State American College of Nurse-Midwives (ACNM) conference hosted by the South Carolina ACNM affiliate for midwives from South Carolina, North Carolina, and Georgia. At the conference, Amy Romano reviewed the evidence for various practices in labor and birth, including ambulation in labor, early cord clamping, elective induction, and routine neonatal suctioning following birth (Romano, 2015). In her review of the evidence, she mentioned several times that the optimal care for women and neonates may not be easy to discern in many studies of labor and birth, largely due to traditional settings for research studies and traditional research designs (Romano, 2015).
Mandatory vaccination of health care workers: whose rights should come first?

What would you do if you knew that by undergoing a minor medical intervention, you might save the life of another person? What if you could potentially save dozens of lives? How risky would the intervention have to be before you would even hesitate? Vaccination is a minor medical procedure that reduces or eliminates the risk of contracting a targeted disease. If the disease is contagious, a vaccine can also reduce the risk of disease in people with whom the vaccinated person comes into contact. Vaccination is credited with preventing more illness and death over the past hundred years than any other medical advance.1
Platinum and taxane intraperitoneal chemotherapy after secondary cytoreductive surgery for recurrent ovarian carcinoma

16043 Background: Intraperitoneal chemotherapy (IP) after primary optimal debulking for advanced stage epithelial ovarian carcinoma improves survival. The objective of this research is to describe ...
Combining nonexchangeable functional or survival data sources in oncology using generalized mixture commensurate priors

Conventional approaches to statistical inference preclude structures that facilitate incorporation of supplemental information acquired from similar circumstances. For example, the analysis of data obtained using perfusion computed tomography to characterize functional imaging biomarkers in cancerous regions of the liver can benefit from partially informative data collected concurrently in non-cancerous regions. This paper presents a hierarchical model structure that leverages all available information about a curve, using penalized splines, while accommodating important between-source features. Our proposed methods flexibly borrow strength from the supplemental data to a degree that reflects the commensurability of the supplemental curve with the primary curve. We investigate our method's properties for nonparametric regression via simulation, and apply it to a set of liver cancer data. We also apply our method for a semiparametric hazard model to data from a clinical trial that compares time to disease progression for three colorectal cancer treatments, while supplementing inference with information from a previous trial that tested the current standard of care.
Evidence for seafloor-intensified mixing by surface-generated equatorial waves

Little is known about mixing in the abyssal equatorial oceans in spite of its inferred importance for upwelling dense water. Here we present full-depth microstructure turbulence profiles obtained in the equatorial Pacific that show evidence for intense wind-generated abyssal mixing. Mixing was intensified over the bottom 700 m where the diffusivity reached 10−3 m2 s−1, of similar intensity to mixing driven by tidal flow over rough topography. However, here the mixing was found over smooth topography. We suggest that the intense mixing could have been driven by surface-generated equatorial waves through two possible mechanisms: (1) near-bottom wave trapping as a result of the horizontal component of the Earth's rotation and (2) inertial instability. The generation of lee waves over smooth topography at low latitudes and their subsequent breaking is another viable mechanism for the mixing.
Euclidean spanners in high dimensions

A classical result in metric geometry asserts that any n-point metric admits a linear-size spanner of dilation O(log n) [PS89]. More generally, for any c > 1, any metric space admits a spanner of size O(n1+1/c), and dilation at most c. This bound is tight assuming the well-known girth conjecture of Erdos [Erd63].We show that for a metric induced by a set of n points in high-dimensional Euclidean space, it is possible to obtain improved dilation/size trade-offs. More specifically, we show that any n-point Euclidean metric admits a near-linear size spanner of dilation O(√log n). Using the LSH scheme of Andoni and Indyk [AI06] we further show that for any c > 1, there exist spanners of size roughly O(
An fMRI Study of Responses to Sexual Stimuli as a Function of Gender and Sensation Seeking: A Preliminary Analysis

Although sexual cues produce stronger neural activation in men than in women, mechanisms underlying this differential response are unclear. We examined the relationship of sensation seeking and the brain's response to sexual stimuli across gender in 27 subjects (14 men, M = 25.2 years, SD = 3.6, 85.2% Caucasian) who underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while viewing sexual and nonsexual images. Whole-brain corrected significant clusters of regional activation were extracted and associated with gender, sensation seeking, and sexual behaviors. Men responded more to sexual than nonsexual images in the anterior cingulate/medial prefrontal cortex (ACC/mPFC), anterior insula/lateral orbitofrontal cortex, bilateral amygdala, and occipital regions. Sensation seeking related positively to ACC/mPFC (r = 0.65, p = 0.01) and left amygdala (r = 0.66, p = 0.01) response in men alone, with both of these correlations being significantly larger in men than in women (ps < 0.03). The relationship between brain responses and self-reported high-risk and low-risk sexual behaviors showed interesting, albeit nonsignificant, gender-specific trends. These findings suggest the relationship between sexual responsivity, sensation seeking, and sexual behavior is gender specific. This study indicates a need to identify the gender-specific mechanisms that underlie sexual responsivity and behaviors. In addition, it demonstrates that the nature of stimuli used to induce positive mood in imaging and other studies should be carefully considered.
The Effect of Ability on Young Men's Self‐Employment Decision: Evidence from the NELS

Using the National Educational Longitudinal Study data, we examine the role of pre-market abilities on young men's self-employment decision. Our results indicate that cognitive and non-cognitive abilities are two important, in opposing directions, predictors of self-employment. We also find that cognitive and non-cognitive abilities may differ in their malleability with the latter being more malleable during adolescence.
Iterated diffusion maps for feature identification

Abstract Recently, the theory of diffusion maps was extended to a large class of local kernels with exponential decay which were shown to represent various Riemannian geometries on a data set sampled from a manifold embedded in Euclidean space. Moreover, local kernels were used to represent a diffeomorphism H between a data set and a feature of interest using an anisotropic kernel function, defined by a covariance matrix based on the local derivatives D H . In this paper, we generalize the theory of local kernels to represent degenerate mappings where the intrinsic dimension of the data set is higher than the intrinsic dimension of the feature space. First, we present a rigorous method with asymptotic error bounds for estimating D H from the training data set and feature values. We then derive scaling laws for the singular values of the local linear structure of the data, which allows the identification the tangent space and improved estimation of the intrinsic dimension of the manifold and the bandwidth parameter of the diffusion maps algorithm. Using these numerical tools, our approach to feature identification is to iterate the diffusion map with appropriately chosen local kernels that emphasize the features of interest. We interpret the iterated diffusion map (IDM) as a discrete approximation to an intrinsic geometric flow which smoothly changes the geometry of the data space to emphasize the feature of interest. When the data lies on a manifold which is a product of the feature manifold with an irrelevant manifold, we show that the IDM converges to the quotient manifold which is isometric to the feature manifold, thereby eliminating the irrelevant dimensions. We will also demonstrate empirically that if we apply the IDM to features which are not a quotient of the data manifold, the algorithm identifies an intrinsically lower-dimensional set embedding of the data which better represents the features.
Photoredox catalysis in a complex pharmaceutical setting: toward the preparation of JAK2 inhibitor LY2784544.

We report a detailed investigation into the application of visible light-mediated photocatalysis to a challenging bond construction in a complex pharmaceutical target. The optimized reaction allowed the direct coupling of N-methylmorpholine with an unfunctionalized pyridazine in good yield and selectivity, and with high purity of the product isolated via crystallization. The reaction also facilitated the expedient synthesis of a range of analogues via the use of other commercially available N-methyl substituted tertiary amines, and therefore it represents an attractive tool for medicinal chemistry. Furthermore, a number of other interesting photoredox reactions were discovered during the course of this investigation, such as a formal methylation reaction via C–N bond cleavage, functionalization of C–H bonds alpha to amides, and a visible light-mediated iminium ion reduction.
Functionalizing Pillar[n]arenes

ConspectusMacrocyclic chemistry has relied on the dominance of some key cavitands, including cyclodextrins, calixarenes, cyclophanes, and cucurbiturils, to advance the field of host–guest science. Very few of the many other cavitands introduced by chemists during these past few decades have been developed to near the extent of these four key players. A relatively new family of macrocycles that are becoming increasingly dominant in the field of macrocyclic chemistry are the pillar[n]arenes composed of n hydroquinone rings connected in their 2- and 5-positions by methylene bridges. This substitution pattern creates a cylindrical or pillar-like structure that has identical upper and lower rims. The preparation of pillar[n]arenes is facile, with pillar[5]- through pillar[7]arene being readily accessible and the larger macrocycles (n = 8–14) being accessible in diminishing yields. The rigid pillar[n]arene cavities are highly π-electron-rich on account of the n activated aromatic faces pointing toward their cen...
The Single-Party Dictator's Dilemma: Information in Elections without Opposition

The literature on authoritarian institutions points to nationwide elections as a mechanism for learning about the preferences of citizens. In using elections in this way, however, authoritarians face a trade-off between gathering reliable information and guaranteeing electoral victory. In this article, we explore how single-party regimes manage this trade-off and the particular types of information available to them. Using candidate-level data from Vietnam, we demonstrate that single-party regimes, in particular, forsake information on overall regime support and strength of opposition in favor of information on the popularity of local notables and the compliance of local officials with central mandates. In addition, we show that ex ante electioneering is less risky than ex post fraud at achieving these goals.
Enantioselective Intramolecular C–H Insertion Reactions of Donor–Donor Metal Carbenoids

The first asymmetric insertion reactions of donor–donor carbenoids, i.e., those with no pendant electron-withdrawing groups, are reported. This process enables the synthesis of densely substituted benzodihydrofurans with high levels of enantio- and diastereoselectivity. Preliminary results show similar efficiency in the preparation of indanes. This new method is used in the first enantioselective synthesis of an oligoresveratrol natural product (E-δ-viniferin).
Gender Politics in Global Governance

Chapter 1 Introduction Chapter 2 Gender Politics in Global Governance Part 3 Part I: Locating Women: Organizational Spaces in Global Governance Chapter 4 Women Workers in the United Nations: From Margin to Mainstream? Chapter 5 United Nations Peacekeeping: Men's and Women's Work Chapter 6 Negotiating International Norms: The Inter-American Commission of Women and the Convention on Violence against Women Chapter 7 Gender and Transnational Democracy: The Case of the European Union Chapter 8 Nongovernmental Organizations: An Alternative Power Base for Women? Part 9 Part II: Shaping Agendas: Feminist Strategies in Global Governance Chapter 10 The Women's International League for Peace and Freedom: Organizing Women for Peace in the War System Chapter 11 International Women's Activism and the 1994 Cairo Population Conference Chapter 12 Shaping the Human Rights Agenda: The Case of Violence against Women Chapter 13 Realizing Women's Human Rights: Nongovernmental Organizations and the United Nations Treaty Bodies Chapter 14 The United Nations Women's Conferences and Feminist Politics Part 15 Part III: Contesting Language: Gendered Rules in Global Governance Chapter 16 What Is a Worker? Gender, Global Restructuring, and the ILO Convention on Homework Chapter 17 Women in the Neoliberal "Frame" Chapter 18 An Ecofeminist Critique of the International Economic Structure Chapter 19 Trafficking in Women: Alternate Migration or Modern Slave Trade? Chapter 20 Gender Construction and the Protection Mandate of the UNHCR: Responses from Guatemalan Women Chapter 21 Of Roots, Leaves, and Trees: Gender, Social Movements, and Global Governance Chapter 22 Works Cited Chapter 23 Appendix: The United Nations System Chapter 24 Index
Silylation-Based Kinetic Resolution of α-Hydroxy Lactones and Lactams

A silylation-based kinetic resolution has been developed for α-hydroxy lactones and lactams employing the chiral isothiourea catalyst (−)-benzotetramisole and triphenylsilyl chloride as the silyl source. The system is more selective for lactones than lactams, and selectivity factors up to 100 can be achieved utilizing commercially available reagents.
Self‐Interest vs. Greed and the Limitations of the Invisible Hand

Markets can only function well if there is an appropriate legal framework to restrict the behavior of market participants; however, the legal framework is inevitably inadequate. A "greedy" market participant that seeks to gain at the expense of others can usually find some way to do so. This might be done within the legal framework, or it might involve a violation of the law that is difficult to enforce. Since the legal system does not generally guarantee that markets can function efficiently, there is a role for other institutions to foster a more enlightened self-interest as a social norm and thus improve efficiency.
Identification of Export Opportunities: A Shift-share Approach:

The search for new export markets is a high priority for firms in the 1980s. This article considers a technique that could be useful in screening markets and products for possible export opportunit...
Simple Amine-Directed Meta-Selective C–H Arylation via Pd/Norbornene Catalysis

Herein we report a highly meta-selective C–H arylation using simple tertiary amines as the directing group. This method takes advantage of Pd/norbornene catalysis, offering a distinct strategy to control the site selectivity. The reaction was promoted by commercially available AsPh3 as the ligand and a unique “acetate cocktail”. Aryl iodides with an ortho electron-withdrawing group were employed as the coupling partner. A wide range of functional groups, including some heteroarenes, are tolerated under the reaction conditions. In addition, the amine directing group can be easily installed and transformed to other common versatile functional groups. We expect this C–H functionalization mode to have broad implications for developing other meta-selective transformations beyond this work.
The Economics of Disclosure and Financial Reporting Regulation: Evidence and Suggestions for Future Research

This paper discusses the empirical literature on the economic consequences of disclosure and financial reporting regulation, drawing on U.S. and international evidence. Given the policy relevance of research on regulation, we highlight the challenges with (1) quantifying regulatory costs and benefits, (2) measuring disclosure and reporting outcomes, and (3) drawing causal inferences from regulatory studies. Next, we discuss empirical studies that link disclosure and reporting activities to firm-specific and market-wide economic outcomes. Understanding these links is important when evaluating regulation. We then synthesize the empirical evidence on the economic effects of disclosure regulation and reporting standards, including the evidence on International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) adoption. Several important conclusions emerge. We generally lack evidence on market-wide effects and externalities from regulation, yet such evidence is central to the economic justification of regulation. Moreover, evidence on causal effects of disclosure and reporting regulation is still relatively rare. We also lack evidence on the real effects of such regulation. These limitations provide many research opportunities. We conclude with several specific suggestions for future research.
Time Requirements for Intraoperative Neurosonography

The time requirements needed for radiologists to perform intraoperative neurosonography were analyzed. Eighty-five consecutive intracranial and spinal operative procedures were prospectively monitored, and it was found that (1) the average length of time spent in the operating room by the radiologist was 1 hr in spinal cases and 52 min in intracranial cases; (2) the wide range of time spent in each case depended on the complexities of the operation; (3) only one-fifth of the radiologist9s time in the operating room was spent performing the study and interpreting the sonograms; and (4) 24% of cases were either emergencies or were performed after normal working hours. It may be helpful to take these factors into consideration when there are plans to offer the service of intraoperative neurosonography.
Natural organic matter fouling and chemical cleaning of nanofiltration membranes

Fouling and subsequent chemical cleaning are two important issues for sustainable operation of nanofiltration (NF) membranes in water quality control applications. Because fouling strongly depends on the feed water quality, especially the ionic composition, chemical cleaning solutions should be chosen to target the solution chemistry that is most responsible for the formation of a compact, high resistance fouling layer. In this study, the effect of solution chemistry on natural organic matter (NOM) fouling of two NF membranes with different surface properties was investigated. Compared to monovalent cations, divalent cations were found to greatly enhance NOM fouling by complexation. Moreover, calcium ions caused a much greater fouling rate than magnesium ions, presumably due to the intermolecular bridging formed among NOM molecules through the calcium ions. Various chemical cleaning solutions were evaluated for water flux recovery efficiency. Although both deionized water and dilute NaOH solution were found effective in cleaning membranes fouled in the absence of calcium ions, efficient chemical cleaning in presence of calcium was achieved only when the calcium ion bridging was eliminated. The cleaning efficiency was shown to be highly dependent on solution pH and the concentration of the chemical cleaning agent.
An Evaluation of the Functions and Effectiveness of Urban Riparian Forest Buffers

This project was undertaken to evaluate the effectiveness of urban riparian forest buffers for a number of potential functions. States and local jurisdictions are increasingly requiring riparian buffers during the development of land for urban uses. At the same time these same jurisdictions must meet the requirements of Total Maximum Daily Loads for pollutant reduction, NPDES-Municipal Stormwater Discharge Permits, and other environmental programs, such as, the Chesapeake Bay Program that require not only pollutant load reductions, but also habitat improvements. This research provides needed information urban riparian forest buffers through a field research design that incorporated a contrast between three sites with a high degree of forested riparian buffer with three sites that had a low amount of forested buffer. The research included, hydrologic measurements, pollutant concentration and load measurements, temperature recordation, buffer floristic analysis, and stream benthic community analysis. This study demonstrates the value of urban riparian forest buffers as a Best Management Practice and provides a model ordinance for use in the development of local jurisdiction stream buffer requirements. This title belongs to WERF Research Report Series ISBN: 9781843397014 (eBook)
Are PCPs Inherent in Efficient Arguments

Starting with Kilian (STOC `92), several works have shown how to use probabilistically checkable proofs (PCPs) and cryptographic primitives such as collision-resistant hashing to construct very efficient argument systems (a.k.a. computationally sound proofs), for example with polylogarithmic communication complexity. Ishai et al. (CCC `07) raised the question of whether PCPs are inherent in efficient arguments, and to what extent. We give evidence that they are, by showing how to convert any argument system whose soundness is reducible to the security of some cryptographic primitive into a PCP system whose efficiency is related to that of the argument system and the reduction (under certain complexity assumptions).
Spontaneous dimensional reduction in quantum gravity

Hints from a number of different approaches to quantum gravity point to a phenomenon of “spontaneous dimensional reduction” to two spacetime dimensions near the Planck scale. I examine the physical meaning of the term “dimension” in this context, summarize the evidence for dimensional reduction, and discuss possible physical explanations.
Construction of k-Angle Tight Frames

ABSTRACTFrames have become standard tools in signal processing due to their robustness against transmission errors and their resilience to noise. Equiangular tight frames (ETFs) are particularly useful and have been shown to be optimal for transmission under a certain number of erasures. Unfortunately, ETFs do not exist in many cases and are hard to construct when they do exist. However, it is known that an ETF of d + 1 vectors in a d dimensional space always exists. This article gives an explicit construction of ETFs of d + 1 vectors in a d dimensional space. This construction works for both real and complex cases and is simpler than existing methods. The absence of ETFs of arbitrary sizes in a given space leads to generalizations of ETFs. One way to do this to consider tight frames where the set of (acute) angles between pairs of vectors has k distinct values. This article presents a construction of tight frames such that for a given value of k, the angles between pairs of vectors take at most k distinc...
Upper Critical Field and Kondo Effects in Fe(Te0.9Se0.1) Thin Films by Pulsed Field Measurements

The transition temperatures of epitaxial films of Fe(Te0:9Se0:1) are remarkably insensitive to applied magnetic field, leading to predictions of upper critical fields Bc2(T = 0) in excess of 100 T. Using pulsed magnetic fields, we find Bc2(0) to be on the order of 45 T, similar to values in bulk material and still in excess of the paramagnetic limit. The same films show strong magnetoresistance in fields above Bc2(T), consistent with the observed Kondo minimum seen above Tc. Fits to the temperature dependence in the context of the WHH model, using the experimental value of the Maki parameter, require an effective spin-orbit relaxation parameter of order unity. We suggest that Kondo localization plays a similar role to spin-orbit pair breaking in making WHH fits to the data.
pong: fast analysis and visualization of latent clusters in population genetic data

Motivation: A series of methods in population genetics use multilocus genotype data to assign individuals membership in latent clusters. These methods belong to a broad class of mixed-membership models, such as latent Dirichlet allocation used to analyze text corpora. Inference from mixed-membership models can produce different output matrices when repeatedly applied to the same inputs, and the number of latent clusters is a parameter that is often varied in the analysis pipeline. For these reasons, quantifying, visualizing, and annotating the output from mixed-membership models are bottlenecks for investigators across multiple disciplines from ecology to text data mining. Results: We introduce pong, a network-graphical approach for analyzing and visualizing membership in latent clusters with a native interactive D3.js visualization. pong leverages efficient algorithms for solving the Assignment Problem to dramatically reduce runtime while increasing accuracy compared with other methods that process output from mixed-membership models. We apply pong to 225 705 unlinked genome-wide single-nucleotide variants from 2426 unrelated individuals in the 1000 Genomes Project, and identify previously overlooked aspects of global human population structure. We show that pong outpaces current solutions by more than an order of magnitude in runtime while providing a customizable and interactive visualization of population structure that is more accurate than those produced by current tools. Availability and Implementation: pong is freely available and can be installed using the Python package management system pip. pong’s source code is available at https://github.com/abehr/pong. Contact: ude.nworb.inmula@rheb_noraa or ude.nworb@nardnahcamars Supplementary Information: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Spithioneines A and B, Two New Bohemamine Derivatives Possessing Ergothioneine Moiety from a Marine-Derived Streptomyces spinoverrucosus

Spithioneines A and B (1 and 2), two new bohemamine-type pyrrolizidine alkaloids possessing an unusual ergothioneine moiety, were isolated from a marine-derived Streptomyces spinoverrucosus. Their structures were elucidated by spectroscopic analysis, CD spectra, and chemical degradation and synthesis. Compounds 1 and 2 are rare natural products that incorporate the amino acid ergothioneine.
Temporal Update Dynamics Under Blind Sampling

Network applications commonly maintain local copies of remote data sources in order to provide caching, indexing, and data-mining services to their clients. Modeling performance of these systems and predicting future updates usually requires knowledge of the inter-update distribution at the source, which can only be estimated through blind sampling—periodic downloads and comparison against previous copies. In this paper, we first introduce a stochastic modeling framework for this problem, where updates and sampling follow independent point processes. We then show that all previous approaches are biased unless the observation rate tends to infinity or the update process is Poisson. To overcome these issues, we propose four new algorithms that achieve various levels of consistency, which depend on the amount of temporal information revealed by the source and capabilities of the download process.
Richardson Extrapolation for Linearly Degenerate Discontinuities

In this paper we investigate the use of Richardson extrapolation to estimate the convergence rates for numerical solutions to wave propagation problems involving discontinuities. For many cases, we find that the computed results do not agree with the a-priori estimate of the convergence rate. Furthermore, the estimated convergence rate is found to depend on the specific details of how Richardson extrapolation was applied; in particular the order of comparisons between three approximate solutions can have a significant impact. Modified equations are used to analyze the situation. We elucidated, for the first time, the cause of apparently unpredictable estimated convergence rates from Richardson extrapolation in the presence of discontinuities. Furthermore, we ascertain one correct structure of Richardson extrapolation that can be used to obtain predictable estimates. We demonstrate these results using a number of numerical examples.
Tradeoffs between forests and farming in the Legal Amazon Region of Brazil

Deforestation has been a topic of debate in climate change discussions due to its effect on CO2 emissions. The Amazon Forest, the biggest tropical forest in the world, is located along the north of Brazil. There, expansion of soy and corn production has pushed the production of livestock and other crops toward the Amazon forest, which involves a tradeoff between the area in forests versus these activities. We estimated the tradeoff between agriculture and forest for the 771 municipalities of the Amazon region by finding the production possibility frontier, using Data Envelopment Analysis. This tradeoff was estimated based on directional output distance functions. We found that, on average, 58% of observable total revenue from livestock, grains and timber production would be foregone to decrease deforestation in 2006 by 93%. We also estimated determinants of efficiency differences across states, which suggested that environmental efficiency was enhanced in municipalities with higher development indexes.
Two Axes of Domains for Domain Analysis

This paper adds two analytical devices to domain analysis, claiming that for domain analysis to work cumulatively transferable definitions of domains must be written. To establish this definition the author provides two axes to consider: Areas of Modulation and Degrees of Specialization. These axes may serve as analytical devices for the domain analyst to delineate what is being studied and what is not being studied in a domain analysis.
Semi-analytic model of plasma-jet-driven magneto-inertial fusion

A semi-analytic model for plasma-jet-driven magneto-inertial fusion is presented. Compressions of a magnetized plasma target by a spherically imploding plasma liner are calculated in one dimension (1D), accounting for compressible hydrodynamics and ionization of the liner material, energy losses due to conduction and radiation, fusion burn and alpha deposition, separate ion and electron temperatures in the target, magnetic pressure, and fuel burn-up. Results show 1D gains of 3–30 at spherical convergence ratio <15 and 20–40 MJ of liner energy, for cases in which the liner thickness is 1 cm and the initial radius of a preheated magnetized target is 4 cm. Some exploration of parameter space and physics settings is presented. The yields observed suggest that there is a possibility of igniting additional dense fuel layers to reach high gain.
Development of a Method for the N-Arylation of Amino Acid Esters with Aryl Triflates

A general method for the N-arylation of amino acid esters with aryl triflates is described. Both α- and β-amino acid esters, including methyl, tert-butyl, and benzyl esters, are viable substrates. Reaction optimization was carried out by design of experiment (DOE) analysis using JMP software. The mild reaction conditions, which use t-BuBrettPhos Pd G3 or G4 precatalyst, result in minimal racemization of the amino acid ester. This method is the first synthetic application of the t-BuBrettPhos Pd G4 precatalyst. Mechanistic studies show that the observed erosion in enantiomeric excess is due to racemization of the amino acid ester starting material and not of the product.
China and Asia in Global Trade Slowdown

Asia and China made disproportionate contributions to the slowdown of global trade growth in 2015. China’s import growth slowed starkly, driven by both external and domestic factors, including a rebalancing of demand. Econometric results point to weak investment and rebalancing as the main causes of the import slowdown. Spillover effects from China’s rebalancing are estimated for some 60 countries using value-added trade data, and are found to be more negative on Asia and commodity exporters than others.