cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Determination of nitrated polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in diesel particulate-related standard reference materials by using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry with negative ion chemical ionization

Gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) with negative ion chemical ionization (NICI) detection was utilized for quantitative determination of nitrated polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (nitro-PAHs) in diesel particulate-related standard reference materials (SRMs). Prior to GC/MS analysis, isolation of the nitro-PAHs from the complex diesel particulate extract was accomplished using solid phase extraction (SPE) and normal-phase liquid chromatographic (LC) fractionation using an amino/cyano stationary phase. Concentrations of eight to ten mononitro-PAHs and three dinitropyrenes were determined in three diesel particulate-related SRMs: SRM 1650a Diesel Particulate Matter, SRM 1975 Diesel Particulate Extract, and SRM 2975 Diesel Particulate Matter (Industrial Forklift). The results from GC/MS NICI using two different columns (5% phenyl methylpolysiloxane and 50% phenyl methylpolysiloxane) were compared to each other and to results from two other laboratories for selected nitro-PAHs. 1-Nitropyrene was the most abundant nitro-PAHs in each of the diesel particulate SRMs (19.8±1.1 µg g−1 particle in SRM 1650a and 33.1±0.6 µg g−1 particle in SRM 2975). Three dinitropyrene isomers were measured in SRM 1975 at 0.5–1.4 µg g−1 extract and in SRM 2975 at 1–3 µg g−1 particle.
Complex and chaotic systems

Complex and chaotic systems are known to be essential in natural phenomena. Chaos and complex, long transients are as common as fixed points, periodic orbits, and limit cycles in continuous dynamical systems. In this paper, we provide an overview of complex and chaotic systems, and their computation. We are interested in understanding of the behavior in general and building future-generation computers using these systems.
Privacy models and languages: assurance checking policies

Assurance policies express the security and data protection processes and mechanisms which should be in place to protect users’ data. Users define such policies to express the minimum privacy protection which they wish to have in place by the recipient of their data. Service providers publish their policies to assert protection which should be in place, and for which they are able to provide evidence that this is indeed the case. Thus, assurance policies may be regarded as a specialised form of release and data handling policy, depending upon the context.
Skin lesion segmentation using deep convolution networks guided by local unsupervised learning

Automatic localization of skin lesions within dermoscopy images is a crucial step toward developing a decision support system for skin cancer detection. However, segmentation of the lesion image can be challenging, as these images possess various artifacts distorting the uniformity of the lesion area. Recently, deep convolution learning-based techniques have drawn great attention for pixel-wise image segmentation. These deep networks produce coarse segmentation, and convolutional filters and pooling layers result in segmentation of a skin lesion at a lower resolution than the original skin image. To overcome these drawbacks, we have proposed a superpixel-based fine-tuning strategy to effectively utilize the characteristics of the skin image pixels to accurately extract the border of the lesion. Our proposed approach not only learns a global map for skin lesions, but also acquires the local contextual information, such as lesion boundary. It can, therefore, accurately segment lesions within a given skin image, even in the presence of fuzzy boundaries and complex textures. To evaluate the performance of our proposed method, experiments have been conducted using the 2016 International Symposium on Biomedical Imaging dataset, and these experiments suggest the effectiveness of the proposed method.
Association of preweaning and weaning serum cortisol and metabolites with ADG and incidence of respiratory disease in beef cattle

The objectives of this experiment were to determine the association of circulating cortisol, lactate, and glucose at, and prior to, weaning with ADG and incidences of bovine respiratory disease (BRD) in beef cattle. A blood sample was collected approximately 3 wk prior to weaning and at weaning from genetically diverse steers and heifers ( = 451). Cattle were weighed periodically throughout the study and ADG was calculated for the preweaning period (152 ± 15 d), the receiving period (45 d postweaning), the finishing period (200 d), and total postweaning ADG. Incidences of BRD were recorded and analyzed as a binary trait. Lung lesions were recorded at slaughter. Preweaning serum cortisol concentrations were positively associated ( = 0.040) with receiving ADG and explained 0.74% of the variance of receiving ADG. Preweaning glucose concentrations were positively associated ( 0.180). Weaning serum glucose concentrations tended to be predictive of the presence of lung lesions at weaning ( = 0.060). These data indicate that glucose measured early in life is associated with growth rate, and could indicate that carbohydrate metabolism could contribute to variation in ADG.
Prior Experience OF Entrepreneurial Teams and Innovation

Innovation in entrepreneurial ventures is influenced by a plethora of factors, including the composition and characteristics of the entrepreneurial team. Prior entrepreneurial experience of team me...
A CT ΔΣ ADC with 9/50MHz BW achieving 73/71dB DR designed for robust blocker tolerance in 14nm FinFET

This work demonstrates a multi-Mode CT ΔΣ ADC in 14nm FinFET Intel Technology. The proposed converter makes use of a novel 5-bit partial DEM technique at 1.25GHz that, in conjunction with an offset current dumping solution, drastically reduces current and area. The ADC reaches a measured DR of 73/71 dB while consuming 8/12 mW for the 9/50 MHz BW modes, respectively.
Refined Theories for the Dynamic Analysis of Sandwich Structures

The objective of this study is to give an overview of existing theories for analyzing the behavior of sandwich beams and plates and to develop an approach for evaluating their behavior under dynamic loading. The dispersion relations for harmonic wave propagation through sandwich structures are shown to be a sound basis for evaluating whether the individual layers are modeled properly. The results provide a guide in the selection of existing models or the development of new models.Copyright © 2017 by ASME
Structures of Environmental Inequality: Property and Vulnerability

Abstract Property in land is fundamental to the legal system of rights and citizenship in the United States. Real property shapes both identity and life chances. This article considers three distin...
Are Your Polyhedra the Same as My Polyhedra

“Polyhedron” means different things to different people. There is very little in common between the meaning of the word in topology and in geometry. But even if we confine attention to geometry of the 3-dimensional Euclidean space-as we shall do from now on -“polyhedron” can mean either a solid (as in “Platonic solids”, convex polyhedron, and other contexts), or a surface (such as the polyhedral models constructed from cardboard using “nets”, which were introduced by Albrecht Durer [[17]] in 1525, or, in a more modern version, by Aleksandrov [[1]]), or the 1-dimensional complex consisting of points (“vertices”) and line-segments (“edges”) organized in a suitable way into polygons (“faces”) subject to certain restrictions (“skeletal polyhedra”, diagrams of which have been presented first by Luca Pacioli [[44]] in 1498 and attributed to Leonardo da Vinci). The last alternative is the least usual one-but it is close to what seems to be the most useful approach to the theory of general polyhedra. Indeed, it does not restrict faces to be planar, and it makes possible to retrieve the other characterizations in circumstances in which they reasonably apply: If the faces of a “surface” polyhedron are simple polygons, in most cases the polyhedron is unambiguously determined by the boundary circuits of the faces. And if the polyhedron itself is without selfintersections, then the “solid” can be found from the faces. These reasons, as well as some others, seem to warrant the choice of our approach.
Extraction and cleanup of organochlorine and organophosphorus pesticide residues in fats by supercritical fluid techniques

A supercritical fluid extraction and cleanup procedure was developed for separating organochlorine and organophosphorus pesticides from fats. Supercritical carbon dioxide modified with 3% (v/v) acetonitrile was used to extract the pesticides at 60 degrees C and separate the pesticides from the fats at 4000 psi and 95 degrees C on an in-line, C1 silica-based column. The extraction and cleanup procedure gave good recoveries for 43 of 62 nonpolar to moderately polar organochlorine and organophosphorus pesticides from fats, whereas 49 were recovered through conventional Florisil column cleanup before quantitation. This procedure can extract and clean up pesticide residues from 0.65 g animal-based fat and 1.0 g oils. Coeluted residues in the pesticide fraction ranged from 2.5 mg for butterfat to 0.8 mg for corn oil. Results for samples analyzed with this integrated extraction cleanup procedure were reproducible and comparable with results obtained with the current Total Diet Study methodology.
Legato: An At-Most-Once Analysis with Applications to Dynamic Configuration Updates

Modern software increasingly relies on external resources whose location or content can change during program execution. Examples of such resources include remote network hosts, database entries, dynamically updated configuration options, etc. Long running, adaptable programs must handle these changes gracefully and correctly. Dealing with all possible resource update scenarios is difficult to get right, especially if, as is common, external resources can be modified without prior warning by code and/or users outside of the application's direct control. If a resource unexpectedly changes during a computation, an application may observe multiple, inconsistent states of the resource, leading to incorrect program behavior. This paper presents a sound and precise static analysis, Legato, that verifies programs correctly handle changes in external resources. Our analysis ensures that every value computed by an application reflects a single, consistent version of every external resource's state. Although consistent computation in the presence of concurrent resource updates is fundamentally a concurrency issue, our analysis relies on the novel at-most-once condition to avoid explicitly reasoning about concurrency. The at-most-once condition requires that all values depend on at most one access of each resource. Our analysis is flow-, field-, and context-sensitive. It scales to real-world Java programs while producing a moderate number of false positives. We applied Legato to 10 applications with dynamically updated configurations, and found several non-trivial consistency bugs.
Breastfeeding, schooling, and income: Insights from the Indonesian Family Life Survey.

Recent research has highlighted associations of breastfeeding with IQ, schooling, and income, but uncertainty about such links remains. The Indonesian Family Life Survey, representative of 83% of the Indonesian population, provides data on breastfeeding, parents' years of schooling, wealth, and other family characteristics in 1993-1994, as well as schooling and income in 2014-2015 for 5,421 children of those families. Using linear regressions and controlling for village or neighbourhood, as well as propensity score matching, we analysed breastfeeding associations for boys and girls separately, when regularly fed foods/beverages other than breast milk is significantly associated with years of schooling in 2014-2015 for girls, but not for boys, after controlling for the village or neighbourhood of residence in 1993-1994. For girls, ages 1 to 1.9, 2 to 2.9, 3 to 3.9, and >4 months, relative to ages <1 month, are associated with an additional 0.41 to 0.46 years of schooling, with p values of 0.086, 0.071, 0.043, and 0.026, respectively. No comparable estimate for boys attains statistical significance. Using propensity score matching yields similar results. Associations with annual income in 2014-2015 are not statistically significant, either for all children, or for either sex. Our finding suggests that delaying regular feeding of foods/beverages other than breast milk beyond 1 month may help girls' schooling but has no observable association with annual income, perhaps because of lower labour force participation by women. Also, the inclusion of controls for village or neighbourhood of residence reduces confounding.
Some Functions of Active Handling: Studies with Blinded Humans:

A review of a five-year research into the characteristics of effective search strategies and the contribution made by exploratory scanning to accurate perception, involving comparisons of blind and...
Use of Autologous Blood Components in Lymphedema Treatment: A Systematic Review.

The main benefit of autologous therapies is its easier obtention and relatively lower concerns regarding ethical implications and patient safety. We conducted a systematic review of publications assessing the potential use of blood components (lymphocytes, red blood cells (RBCs), platelet-rich plasma (PRP)) as targeted therapy in the treatment of lymphedema. We hypothesized that blood components could be used as targeted therapy in the lymphedema treatment. We also conducted a comprehensive, systematic review of the published literature on the use of blood components as targeted therapies in the treatment of lymphedema using the PubMed database. Eligibility criteria excluded papers that aimed to investigate the correlation of inflammatory cells and the physio-pathogenesis of lymphedema. Abstracts, presentations, reviews, and meta-analyses were also excluded. From the 338 potential papers found in the literature, 11 studies fulfilled the eligibility criteria. Different types of targeted therapies were proposed, but the majority of papers investigated the potential use of lymphocytes (9/11). The use of PRP was investigated in two papers and the use of RBCs in one paper. Interestingly, six out of 11 studies were done on patients with lymphedema, but the most recent was published in 1999. The remaining publications were experimental studies on dogs, rats, or in vitro. The publications demonstrated positive outcomes for the delivery of lymphocytes and PRP in lymphedema treatment. Lymphocyte was the most common blood component investigated. Even though more than half of the papers found were conducted on patients, we noticed a scientific gap of more than 20 years on the topic.
The Relationship of Disease-Specific Knowledge and Health Literacy With the Uptake of Self-Care Behaviors in CKD

Abstract Introduction Individuals with chronic kidney disease (CKD) generally have poor participation in self-care. We hypothesized that greater kidney disease knowledge and health literacy would associate with better self-care. Methods We enrolled 401 participants with non-dialysis dependent CKD from one academic center in this cross-sectional study. Validated surveys were used to assess health literacy level (inadequate vs. adequate; Rapid Estimate of Adult Literacy in Medicine), perceived kidney disease knowledge (Perceived Kidney Disease Knowledge Survey [PiKS]), objective kidney disease knowledge (Kidney Disease Knowledge Survey [KiKS]), and a CKD self-care measure was constructed as the sum of self-reported self-care behaviors using the adapted Summary of Diabetes Self-Care Activities Assessement. The association between health literacy level, PiKS scores, KiKS scores, and the CKD self-care measure was assessed with multivariable adjusted linear regression models. Results Participants had a mean age of 57 years and 17.7% had inadequate health literacy. PiKS scores were positively associated with the CKD self-care measure (β=1.05, 95% CI 0.50, 1.63), and a positive trend was observed for KiKS scores and the CKD self-care measure (β =0.30, 95% CI: -0.12-0.72). Health literacy was not associated with CKD self-care measure. Conclusion Objective kidney disease knowledge is likely necessary, but not sufficient for self-care and may depend on the level of health literacy. Perceived kidney knowledge may offer a novel target to assess patients at risk for poor self-care, and be used targeted in educational interventions.
Deformation behavior of metallic glass composites and plasticity accommodation at microstructural length-scales

Abstract Bulk metallic glass matrix composites represent a unique microstructural design strategy for overcoming the strength/ductility trade-off in structural alloys. Site-specific mechanical behavior of a Ti-based bulk metallic glass composite was evaluated at microstructural length-scale. The micro-pillars on the amorphous matrix showed an average yield point of 1.9 GPa followed by serrated plastic deformation characteristic of shear banding. In contrast, micro-pillars on the crystalline dendritic phase showed a much lower yield strength of 0.72 GPa on average for the four different crystallographic orientations chosen, smooth plastic flow with no recognizable load burst, and stable strain-hardening after yield point. A number of micro-pillars were made at the interface between the glassy matrix and the crystalline dendrite. The mixed micro-pillars showed homogeneous deformation and greater plasticity which was attributed to their smaller stored elastic energy. Shear bands initiated in the amorphous matrix were arrested by the crystalline dendrite, which accommodated plasticity through slip bands and dislocations pile-ups. The interface remained intact after plastic deformation, with no observable signs of devitrification in the amorphous phase.
Agency in Greco-Roman philosophy

Agency, the theme of my life’s work, consists of efficacy, future-minded optimism, and imagination. I here attempt to trace the history of agency in Western thought over the Greco-Roman epoch. The ...
Accelerated Synthesis of a Ni2Cl2(BTDD) Metal–Organic Framework in a Continuous Flow Reactor for Atmospheric Water Capture

Atmospheric water capture (AWC) has tremendous potential to address the global shortage of clean drinking water. The Ni₂Cl₂(BTDD) metal–organic framework (MOF) has shown optimal water sorption performance under low relative humidity conditions, but its potentially high production costs, stemming in part from its lengthy multiday synthesis, has hindered widespread implementation. As with most traditional MOF syntheses, the original synthesis of Ni₂Cl₂(BTDD) involves batch reactors that have intrinsic inefficiencies impacting productivity during scale-up. We report a continuous manufacturing process for Ni₂Cl₂(BTDD) that can achieve higher yields, reduced solvent use, and drastically faster crystallization times in comparison to the batch process. Optimization of the synthesis space in the flow reactor as a function of residence time, temperature, and solvent volume yields 50% and 40% reductions in methanol and hydrochloric acid consumption by volume, respectively, with a simultaneous 3-fold increase in productivity (defined in units of kgMOF m–³day–¹). A computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model was developed to quantitate productivity enhancements in the flow reactor based on improved heat-transfer rates, larger surface-area to volume ratios, and effective residence times. This work adds critical facets to the growing body of research suggesting that the synthesis of MOFs in flow reactors offers unique opportunities to reduce production costs.
A framework for teaching an undergraduate data analytics class

The explosive growth of data analytics has led to a large demand for analytical skills which is outstripping the supply of this skillset. Business schools across the world are responding to this challenge by offering graduate and undergraduate programs in data analytics. There is a growing body of literature covering the graduate level programs, but very little literature covers the undergraduate courses. This article covers the basic topics, themes and universal issues in teaching the undergraduate introduction to the data analytics course. We provide an over-arching framework on how to deliver an introduction course. We examine three different introduction classes at three AACSB accredited schools. We conclude with common issues, mitigation plans, and lessons learned.
Living Donor Liver Transplantation in Acute-on-Chronic Liver Failure: Encouraging Outcomes But With Important Caveats.

Acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) is a syndrome of acute hepatic deterioration in decompensated cirrhosis, with development of organ failures.1 Risk stratification of ACLF, as per the European Association for the Study of the Liver-Chronic Liver Failure (EASL-CLIF) definition, is based on the number of organ failures which have developed.1 The 90-day mortality associated with ACLF is greater than that of mere decompensated cirrhosis, and the development of three or more organ failures (ACLF-3) has a particularly high mortality rate, of approximately 80% at 90-days.
Rebound tonometry by iCare 200 (IC200): comparison with Tono-Pen in the operating room and Goldmann applanation in the clinic.

BACKGROUND Tonometry guides decision making in children with known or suspected glaucoma. The iCare IC200 is a recently FDA-approved rebound tonometer that can measure intraocular pressure (IOP) in both supine and upright patients. The purpose of this study was to evaluate this new tonometer against more commonly used standard instruments: Tono-Pen in the operating room (OR arm) and Goldmann applanation in the clinic (clinic arm). METHODS The OR arm included sequential children undergoing general anesthesia. The clinic arm included cooperative children seen in clinic. IOP was measured twice (right eye then left eye, repeat) with IC200 and either Tono-Pen (OR arm) or Goldmann (clinic arm). RESULTS A total of 99 children were included: 75 for the OR arm and 24 for the clinic arm. There was a strong correlation between the IOP measured by IC200 and each device (R2 = 0.81 for Tono-Pen; R2 = 0.78 for Goldmann). In the OR arm, the overall mean IOP difference (ΔIOP [Tono-Pen - IC200]) was -1.6 mm Hg. For eyes with corneal edema (n = 12), ΔIOP ranged from -8 to 15 mm Hg. At IOP >20 mm Hg, mean ΔIOP was -3.7 mm Hg. In the clinic arm, the mean ΔIOP (ΔIOP [Goldmann - IC200]) was -1.2 mm Hg. CONCLUSIONS In eyes of children under general anesthesia with IOP <20 mm Hg without corneal edema, IC200 and Tono-Pen correlated well. In cooperative clinic patients, Goldmann and IC200 correlated well over the range of IOP studied.
Problems of posting sentries: variations on the art gallery theorem

We examine the following problem and its variations: “Given a collection of mutually disjoint polygons (the objects) properly contained in a polygon (the enclosure), what is the minimum number of stationary guards that need to be posted within the enclosure but outside the objects so that every edge of each object is seen by some guard”.
Satire, Propaganda, Play, Storytelling. Notes on Critical Interactive Digital Narratives

Paolo Pedercini, better known through his Molleindustria alter-ego, is a game designer specializing in social critique through apparently simple casual video games - uniting digital storytelling, game-based mechanics with the discursive genres of satire and propaganda. This work examines three recent pieces - Oiligarchy, Phone Story and Tax Evaders - to explore how the affordances of interactive digital storytelling overlap with critical and political discourse.
The school health program in the Soviet Union.

Reprinted by permission of the American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance, www.AAHERD.org.
Total Energy Expenditure of Infants with Congenital Heart Disease Post-surgical Intervention

Background: Growth failure is common in infants with congenital heart disease (CHD), however it is unclear if it is due to increased total energy expenditure (TEE). Objectives: To determine if TEE of infants with CHD post-surgical intervention differs from healthy infants, and evaluate the accuracy of equations used to calculate TEE. Design: Infants with CHD and surgical intervention within 30 days of life, and healthy 3- and 12-month old infants, were enrolled. TEE was measured via doubly labeled water at 3-months (n=15 CHD, 12 healthy) and 12-months (n=11 CHD, 12 healthy). Multiple linear regression models were fit to examine the association between health status (CHD vs. healthy) and TEE. Regression/summary statistics were used to assess accuracy of equations for calculating TEE. Results: 3-month TEE did not differ significantly between CHD vs. healthy infants; TEE was 36.4 kcal/day higher for CHD vs. healthy (95% CI: -46.3, 119.2 kcal/day; p=0.37). 12-month TEE was also not significantly different, wi...
Preparation of the heme protein P-450 from the adrenal cortex and some of its properties.

Abstract Details of a method for the preparation and purification of the heme protein P-450 from bovine adrenal glands are described. This method consists of the isolation of mitochondria, their ultrasonic disruption, followed by lyophilization, and extractions with acetone and 1-butanol in several steps, which remove 60 to 70% of the neutral and phospholipids. The heme protein P-450 is isolated by a fractional extraction with solutions of the neutral detergent Triton N-101, followed by ammonium sulfate precipitation and dialysis. The resulting optically clear preparation can be stored in the frozen state for several months without deterioration. After reconstitution with the specific FAD-containing reductase and the specific iron sulfur protein, both isolated and partially purified from the adrenal cortex, this P-450 preparation is highly active as steroid 11β-hydroxylase (EC 1.14.1.6) with TPNH as electron donor (pH optimum 6.3 to 6.5, turnover number 5 to 10 min-1 at 25°). The heme protein is also active in steroid 11β-hydroxylation with artificial electron donors in the presence of the specific iron sulfur protein. In addition, the reconstituted enzyme system catalyzes the side chain cleavage of cholesterol. The optical absorption spectra of the preparation exhibit Soret maxima at 416, 419, and 448 nm for the Fe3+, the Fe2+ form, and the CO-compound, respectively. The EPR spectrum shows the characteristic features of the low spin (S = ½ form of P-450 (Fe3+), with principal components 1.91, 2.24, and 2.42 of the g-tensor. P-450 accounts for 98% or more, and a P-420 type material for the remaining part of the measured protoheme IX content; these are the only heme proteins detectable. Specific concentration of P-450 in the preparation lies between 1.5 and 2.0 nmoles per mg of protein; the preparation contains also neutral and phospholipids (of the order of 10 to 15%), but negligible amounts of cholesterol (l0.1%). This enzymatically active material is suitable for optical and other spectroscopic studies as well as detailed investigations of the physical characteristics and the chemical nature of the heme protein P-450. A brief comparison is made with the properties of other particulate or solubilized P-450 preparations, obtained by several investigators from liver microsomes and other mammalian sources, and with the soluble P-450cam from Pseudomonas putida.
Accurate, meshless methods for magnetohydrodynamics

Recently, we explored new meshless finite-volume Lagrangian methods for hydrodynamics: the ‘meshless finite mass’ (MFM) and ‘meshless finite volume’ (MFV) methods; these capture advantages of both smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) and adaptive mesh refinement (AMR) schemes. We extend these to include ideal magnetohydrodynamics (MHD). The MHD equations are second-order consistent and conservative. We augment these with a divergence-cleaning scheme, which maintains ∇⋅B≈0∇⋅B≈0. We implement these in the code GIZMO, together with state-of-the-art SPH MHD. We consider a large test suite, and show that on all problems the new methods are competitive with AMR using constrained transport (CT) to ensure ∇⋅B=0∇⋅B=0. They correctly capture the growth/structure of the magnetorotational instability, MHD turbulence, and launching of magnetic jets, in some cases converging more rapidly than state-of-the-art AMR. Compared to SPH, the MFM/MFV methods exhibit convergence at fixed neighbour number, sharp shock-capturing, and dramatically reduced noise, divergence errors, and diffusion. Still, ‘modern’ SPH can handle most test problems, at the cost of larger kernels and ‘by hand’ adjustment of artificial diffusion. Compared to non-moving meshes, the new methods exhibit enhanced ‘grid noise’ but reduced advection errors and diffusion, easily include self-gravity, and feature velocity-independent errors and superior angular momentum conservation. They converge more slowly on some problems (smooth, slow-moving flows), but more rapidly on others (involving advection/rotation). In all cases, we show divergence control beyond the Powell 8-wave approach is necessary, or all methods can converge to unphysical answers even at high resolution.
The interaction of bone Gla protein (osteocalcin) with phospholipid vesicles.

Abstract The binding interaction of bone Gla protein (BGP), or osteocalcin, to phospholipid vesicles in the presence of calcium has been investigated. Two separate indirect methodologies involving displacement of pyrene-modified Factor Va bound to phospholipid vesicles, and competition with several coagulation proteins in a prothrombin activation assay were performed. Titration of BGP into a cuvette containing phospholipid vesicles (75:25, L-alpha-phosphatidylcholine/L-alpha-phosphatidylserine (PCPS] saturated with pyrene-modified Factor Va resulted in a systematic decrease in steady-state anisotropy, suggesting competition for membrane binding sites with pyrene-modified Factor Va. BGP was also found to inhibit thrombin generation in the prothrombin activation assay. Approximately 50% inhibition was observed at 3 microM BGP under phospholipid-limiting (0.5 microM PCPS) concentrations. No inhibition was observed under phospholipid excess (30 microM PCPS) concentrations. Direct measurement of phospholipid binding was measured using equilibrium gel filtration. Elution profiles using fixed lipid (3.4 mumol of PCPS) and varying BGP concentrations (1-17 microM) in the presence of 3 mM CaCl2 showed a BGP-phospholipid association. Quantitation of determined isotherm yielded a dissociation constant of 6 +/- 1 microM with a stoichiometry of 102 +/- 9 BGP molecules/vesicle at saturation (35 PCPS lipids/BGP) in the presence of 3 mM CaCl2. These results support the hypothesis that protein gamma-carboxylation events are coincident with membrane binding potential.
An Eco-Marxist analysis of oil depletion via urban sprawl

Abstract The United States' urban zones are the most sprawled in the world. Urban sprawl in the US substantially contributes to global oil depletion and to the global warming phenomenon. In this article the author demonstrates that urban sprawl can only be fully comprehended within the political economy framework developed by Karl Marx. Marx concepts of value and rent are indispensable to understanding the profligate use of fossil fuels vis-a-vis urban sprawl. Additionally, the author shows that the public policy-making process that prompted/maintains urban sprawl in the US is consistent with the business dominance view of public policy formation.
Rapid, simplified method for measuring total hepatic cholesterol.

Because determinations of hepatic total cholesterol are frequently needed, an automated, continuous-flow method would be useful to have available. Hepatic total cholesterol is extracted with isopropyl alcohol in one step and the extract is then quantitatively analyzed by an accepted AutoAnalyzer procedure for serum total cholesterol. Homogenization of the tissue eliminates the use of proteolytic enzymes or KOH for the digestive process. The one-step extraction of total cholesterol with isopropyl alcohol simultaneously precipitates interfering proteins. Addition of FeCl3 color reagent to an aliquot of clear extract produces a stable color with a density proportional to the amount of cholesterol present, which can be quantitatively detected by a colorimeter and recorded on a graphic recorder. This automated method eliminates tedious, time-consuming processes, and can greatly increase the reliability and accuracy of hepatic total cholesterol determinations. This method is shown to be rapid, reproducible, and simple. The procedure is adapted for both wet tissue and lyophilized samples, the latter giving slightly more reproducible results.
BIOPHYSICAL AND BIOCHEMICAL DETERMINANTS OF CONTRACTILE FORCE GENERATION, REGULATION, AND FUNCTION

Understanding muscle contraction answers one of the fundamental questions posed in classical times, namely the nature of the spiritus animalis. The spiritus animalis was an intrinsic property of living things. Erasistratus (3rd century B.C.) of the Alexandrian school associated the spiritus animalis with the muscles. The pneuma was thought to course along the nerves and make the muscles swell and shorten.
A consistent algorithm for derivative estimation of Markov chains

A consistent algorithm for derivative estimation of finite-state, discrete-time Markov chains is presented. The basic idea is to simulate original Markov chains with modified performance measures that can be estimated by extra simulation. The computational load of the extra simulation at each step is bounded. The algorithm attains the best possible rate of convergence as the simulation time goes to infinity. A connection between the algorithm and solutions to Poisson equations is also revealed. >
How Mental Simulations of the Future and Message‐Induced Expectations Influence Purchasing Goals

In the reported experiment, participants considered future fantasies about owning an electronics product, negative realities that impeded the realization of that fantasy (e.g., insufficient money), or simultaneously considered both. Consistent with Fantasy Realization Theory (Oettingen, 1996), only participants who simultaneously considered fantasies and reality formed stronger (weaker) goals to purchase their fantasy product if they read an advertisement for an electronics store leading them to expect that doing so was feasible (unfeasible). Purchasing goals were not influenced by expectations in the other conditions. The theoretical and practical contributions of these findings as well as future directions for research are discussed.
A generalized multiple scales approach to a class of linear differential equations

Generalized multiple scales method for solving linear differential equations with variable coefficients applied to Liouville-Green approximation
Mediated Lesson Study, Collaborative Learning, and Cultural Competence Among Early Childhood Educators

Abstract Early childhood educators have competing demands that minimize their ability to utilize evidence-based practices and respond to the challenges posed by culturally diverse classrooms. Using a case study method, we studied four female early childhood teachers at a university-affiliated preschool who developed mini-research projects using a mediated form of lesson study. Findings showed that the collegial nature of a mediated form of lesson study resulted in reflective practices and increased professional collaboration among the teachers. However, there was no resultant change in the ways that the teachers used their cultural awareness in their teaching. Results have implications for teacher educators, early childhood education teachers, and preschool directors with regard to teacher efficacy and practitioner inquiry.
Univariate and Multivariate Specification Search Indices in Covariance Structure Modeling.

Abstract In previous studies of specification searches in covariance structure modeling, researchers have found the LISREL modification index to be an unreliable index of specification error, despite its popularity. In this study simulated population data were used to compare the relative performance of the modification index and Chou and Bentler's Lagrange multiplier test, which is a multivariate generalization of the modification index recently made available in Bentler's EQS program. Success of the two approaches was compared for four levels of model misspecification, with measurement and structural misspecifications as well as errors of omission and inclusion present at all four levels. It was shown that although both indices failed to recover the true model except at the lowest level of misspecification, both were more successful at detecting measurement than structural misspecifications.
Am Doping in Copper-Oxide Superconducting Systems

The effect of Am doping on the physical properties of three superconducting systems (RBa2Cu3O7, Pb2Sr2R1-xCaxCu3O8 and R2-xMxCuO4) have been studied using x-ray diffraction, x-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) and magnetic susceptibility experiments. Am is incorporated into all three systems as the tetravalent ion and superconductivity is not observed in any of the resultant compounds. The absence of superconductivity in Pb2Sr2Am0.5Ca0.5Cu3O8 is attributed to the transfer of charge from Am to the Cu-O planes. Systems that cannot incorporate a tetravalent ion, notably AmBa2Cu3O7 and Ani2CuO4, do not form. Although Pr1.85Am0.15CuO4forms with similar structure to Pr1.85Ce0.15CuO4, and Am like Ce is tetravalent, it is not superconducting. We argue that the absence of superconductivity in the Am doped Pr compound it is due to the hybridization of radially-extended f orbitals on the magnetic Am4+ ion with the Cu-O band states.
Creating a Culture of Quality: The Remarkable Transformation of the Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care System

The improvement of diabetes care in the Veterans Affairs and other closed health care systems represents major progress toward optimal management for chronic diseases. Applying the experience of th...
Automatic and scalable fault detection for mobile applications

This paper describes the design, implementation, and evaluation of VanarSena, an automated fault finder for mobile applications (``apps''). The techniques in VanarSena are driven by a study of 25 million real-world crash reports of Windows Phone apps reported in 2012. Our analysis indicates that a modest number of root causes are responsible for many observed failures, but that they occur in a wide range of places in an app, requiring a wide coverage of possible execution paths. VanarSena adopts a ``greybox'' testing method, instrumenting the app binary to achieve both coverage and speed. VanarSena runs on cloud servers: the developer uploads the app binary; VanarSena then runs several app ``monkeys'' in parallel to emulate user, network, and sensor data behavior, returning a detailed report of crashes and failures. We have tested VanarSena with 3000 apps from the Windows Phone store, finding that 1108 of them had failures; VanarSena uncovered 2969 distinct bugs in existing apps, including 1227 that were not previously reported. Because we anticipate VanarSena being used in regular regression tests, testing speed is important. VanarSena uses two techniques to improve speed. First, it uses a ``hit testing'' method to quickly emulate an app by identifying which user interface controls map to the same execution handlers in the code. Second, it generates a ProcessingCompleted event to accurately determine when to start the next interaction. These features are key benefits of VanarSena's greybox philosophy.
Autophagy protects proximal tubular cells from injury and apoptosis.

Autophagy is upregulated during ischemia–reperfusion (IR)-induced and cisplatin-induced acute kidney injury (AKI). Proximal tubule-specific Atg7 knockout mice exhibited increased renal injury compared with wild-type mice following cisplatin- and IR-induced AKI. Inhibition of autophagy by chloroquine aggravated AKI, whereas upregulation of autophagy by rapamycin recovered lost renal function and histology, further indicating a protective role of autophagy in AKI. These findings reported by Jiang et al. will provide stimulus to further examine the role and mechanism of the enhancement of autophagy in AKI.
“Communication in life”: A real‐world approach to speech communication graduate education

Communication In Life was an intensive four‐week “live‐in” summer session for graduate students in Speech Communication sponsored by the Department of Communication at The Florida State University. The session was held on St. George Island in the Gulf of Mexico off the Florida coast. This article describes the goals, activities, advantages, and disadvantages of the program. In addition, suggestions are provided for teachers desiring to initiate a similar program at their university.
Counting elements in semigroups

Abstract The objective of this communication is to show that Tainiter's technique of characterizing and counting idempotent elements in a symmetric semigroup can be strengthened and generalized to apply to the characterization and counting of all elements of any symmetric semigroup and in fact of any symmetric m-semigroup. Some of the counting formulas obtained are quite complicated. Their computational aspects and the combinatorial analysis of their generating functions will be left for a later paper.
Economic aspects of policies to control nitrate contamination resulting from agricultural production

The paper discusses the basic welfare problem of various nitrogen pollution control policies. It is suggested that the relative cost advantage of investment in water treatment as compared with controls on agricultural production depends on the geographical extension of the contamination, on the level of the required nitrate limit and on the related tradeoffs between environmental and agricultural policy goals. Since pollution control should be, if economically feasible, origin-oriented, agricultural policy measures require particular consideration. Three types of policy instruments are evaluated qualitatively, namely persuasion and extension, economic incentives and mandatory policies. The paper comes to the conclusion that there is a need for certain region-specific nitrogen control measures, especially for those giving priority to improved, i.e. less contaminating, farming practices which lie in the economic self interest of farmers. Moreover, environment benefits should also be taken into account in discussions of overall reforms of the Common Agricultural Policy. Yet it is premature to propose explicit nitrate control policies on a sector wide scale as long as uncertainties with respect to their technical and welfare implications prevail.
Abiotic U(VI) reduction by sorbed Fe(II) on natural sediments

Abstract Laboratory experiments were performed as a function of aqueous Fe(II) concentration to determine the uptake and oxidation of Fe(II), and Fe(II)-mediated abiotic reduction of U(VI) by aquifer sediments from the DOE Rifle field research site in Colorado, USA. Mossbauer analysis of the sediments spiked with aqueous 57Fe(II) showed that 57Fe(II) was oxidized on the mineral surfaces to 57Fe(III) and most likely formed a nano-particulate Fe(III)-oxide or ferrihydrite-like phase. The extent of 57Fe oxidation decreased with increasing 57Fe(II) uptake, such that 98% was oxidized at 7.3 μmol/g Fe and 41% at 39.6 μmol/g Fe, indicating that the sediments had a limited capacity for oxidation of Fe(II). Abiotic U(VI) reduction was observed by XANES spectroscopy only when the Fe(II) uptake was greater than approximately 20 μmol/g and surface-bound Fe(II) was present, possibly as oligomeric Fe(II) surface species. The degree of U(VI) reduction increased with increasing Fe(II)-loading above this level to a maximum of 18% and 36% U(IV) at pH 7.2 (40.7 μmol/g Fe) and 8.3 (56.1 μmol/g Fe), respectively in the presence of 400 ppm CO2. Greater U(VI) reduction was observed in CO2-free systems [up to 44% and 54% at pH 7.2 (17.3 μmol/g Fe) and 8.3 (54.8 μmol/g Fe), respectively] compared to 400 ppm CO2 systems, presumably due to differences in aqueous U(VI) speciation. While pH affects the amount of Fe(II) uptake onto the solid phase, with greater Fe(II) uptake at higher pH, similar amounts of U(VI) reduction were observed at pH 7.2 and 8.3 for a similar Fe(II) uptake. Thus, it appears that abiotic U(VI) reduction is controlled primarily by sorbed Fe(II) concentration and aqueous U(VI) speciation. The range of Fe(II) loadings tested in this study are within the range observed in biostimulation experiments at the Rifle site, suggesting that Fe(II)-mediated abiotic U(VI) reduction could play a significant role in field settings.
Purification of cerebroside galactosidase from rat brain

Abstract A method is described for the preparation of a β-galactosidase which acts on the brain lipid, ceramide galactoside. The enzyme is obtained from particles that sediment between 1000–13000 × g from rat brains and is extracted with a 6% sodium cholate solution. The enzyme is solubilized and inactive proteins removed by digestion with pancreatic enzymes and the cholate is removed by dialysis and gel filtration. Preparative electrophoresis yields a major and a minor enzyme fraction. Chromatography of the major fraction on DEAE-Sephadex yields three fractions. The major fraction from this column can be purified further by precipitation of impurities at pH 5. An overall apparent increase in specific activity of over 300-fold could be obtained, with apparent yield of 27%. While the crude enzyme was rather stable to storage, exposure to ion exchange made it unstable. It was found that 50% glycerol at −20° preserved the cerebrosidase fairly well. The purified enzyme still exhibited hydrolytic activity toward ceramide and nitrocatechol sulfate. Cerebrosidase activity was found in very young as well as in adult rats.
The intersection of a bicubic Be´zier patch and a plane

Abstract Let S be an arbitrarily given bicubic Bezier patch and P an arbitrarily given plane. In this paper, a necessary and sufficient condition for S ∩ P to be non-empty is given, and some properties of S ∩ P , if non-empty, are included. Furthermore an efficient and robust algorithm for finding S ∩ P is described, and many interesting examples are shown.
A fast algorithm for cellular logic operations on sequential machines

This paper describes an algorithm to efficiently realize repeated Cellular Logic operations. These Cellular Logic operations include erosions and dilations as well as skeletonization (topology-preserving shrinking) and propagation procedures. In the proposed method only those image pixels which might change in an iteration are processed, based on the changed pixels in the previous iteration. Processing times for solid objects (maximum diameter 40 to 200 pixels, 256 x 256 image) on a 10 Mhz Motorola 68000 system range from 250 ms to 400 ms per iteration. A simpler suboptimal method is also described which is 2 to 3 times slower.
Restoration Of Linear-Motion-Blurred Images Using A Joint Transform Processor

Although joint Fourier transform processor is effective for the application to correlation operation, it can also be used as a generalized coherent image processor. In this paper we shall show that blurred photographic images due to linear motion can be restored with a joint transform processor. The major advantage of using the joint transform processor (JTP) for the image deblurring must be the avoidance of spatial filter synthesis. In other words, the deconvolution function for the image deblurring can be directly implemented at the input plane of a JTP, and the difficulty caused by the singularities of an inverse filter can be avoided. To generate a bipolar deconvolution function, we have encoded two sets of π phase shifted sinusoidal grating of the same spatial frequency. Computer simulation for restoration of linear-motion-blurred images are given to test the feasibility of the scheme.