cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Second-order splitting schemes for a class of reactive systems

We consider the numerical time integration of a class of reaction-transport systems that are described by a set of ordinary differential equations for primary variables. In the governing equations, the terms involved may require the knowledge of secondary variables, which are functions of the primary variables. Specifically, we consider the case where, given the primary variables, the evaluation of the secondary variables is computationally expensive. To solve this class of reaction-transport equations, we develop and demonstrate several computationally efficient splitting schemes, wherein the portions of the governing equations containing chemical reaction terms are separated from those parts containing the transport terms. A computationally efficient solution to the transport sub-step is achieved through the use of linearization or predictor-corrector methods. The splitting schemes are applied to the reactive flow in a continuously stirred tank reactor (CSTR) with the Davis-Skodjie reaction model, to the CO+H"2 oxidation in a CSTR with detailed chemical kinetics, and to a reaction-diffusion system with an extension of the Oregonator model of the Belousov-Zhabotinsky reaction. As demonstrated in the test problems, the proposed splitting schemes, which yield efficient solutions to the transport sub-step, achieve second-order accuracy in time.
A Comparison of OpenURL Link Resolvers: the Results of a University of Connecticut Libraries Environmental Scan

Open URL link resolvers are emerging technological tools designed to increase use of library collections by automating the process of locating and accessing library holdings. This study examines the system architecture and capabilities of commercially available OpenURL link resolvers to assess viable options for the University of Connecticut Libraries. Data for the study, largely experiential feedback received from libraries employing OpenURL link resolvers, were gathered through a series of evaluative activities. These included a preliminary literature review, Web survey, follow-up e-mail survey, and on-site visits to libraries. Results were analyzed within the context of the University of Connecticut Libraries' resources and needs. Analysis revealed wide variation in library experiences with and perception of product functionality and performance, as well as requisite staff and financial investments.
Carbon monoxide inhalation ameliorates cold ischemia/reperfusion injury after rat liver transplantation.

Background Carbon monoxide (CO), a product of heme degradation by heme oxygenase, induces cytoprotection against ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury in a variety of organs such as the heart, lung, kidney, and small intestine. We examined whether CO would protect liver grafts against cold I/R injury associated with transplantation. Methods Orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) was performed in syngeneic Lewis rats with 18 hours preservation in cold University of Wisconsin solution. Recipients were exposed to air or CO (100 ppm) for 1 hour before and 24 hours after OLT. Recipients were sacrificed 0.5 to 48 hours post-transplant. Results CO inhalation significantly decreased serum aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase levels and suppressed hepatic necrosis formation and neutrophil accumulation at 6 to 48 hours after OLT, compared with air control. The expressions of tumor necrosis factor α, intercellular adhesion molecule 1, and inducible nitric oxide synthase messenger RNA in the liver graft were significantly inhibited in the CO-treated group at 1 hour after reperfusion. Hepatic nuclear factor-κB activation did not differ between the groups. Conclusions The results demonstrate that exogenous CO treatment suppresses early proinflammatory gene expression and neutrophil infiltration, and efficiently ameliorates hepatic I/R injury. The possible mechanism by which CO protects the liver against cold I/R does not seem to be associated with downregulation of the nuclear factor-κB–signaling pathway.
Phonic interference and the prefix effect

Forty-two Ss recalled 90 series of 8 consonant letters, 30 under control conditions and 60 under each of two prefix conditions. The prefix letter was either V or K. In each 8-letter series half of the letters were phonically similar to V (from the subset BDGTPZ) and half were not (from the subset HJLNRX). An account of the prefix effect based on retroactive inhibition predicts that (a) V as prefix should disrupt recall more than K, and (b) the difference between prefix effects of V and K should be larger in performance on the BDGTPZ subset than on the JHLNRX subset. Both predictions were supported by the results.
Michigan Purple: A Purple-Skinned Tablestock Variety

Michigan Purple is a purple-skinned tablestock variety. The tubers have an attractive round-ovoid shape and a strong iridescent purple skin. It has a medium set of bright purple-skinned tubers similar in shape to Norland. The tuber flesh is white; it has few internal defects and does not darken after cooking. Under irrigated conditions the yield is high and specific gravity intermediate. Michigan Purple has mid-early vine maturity.
The transmission of a longitudinal wave through a layer of spherical inclusions with a random or periodic arrangement

Abstract The transmission of a normally incident plane longitudinal wave through a single layer of spherical inclusions embedded in a polyester matrix is measured. Area fraction of inclusions is varied from 0.05 (a very dilute suspension) to 0.86 (densely packed). Two specimens are manufactured for each area fraction: in the first, the spheres are distributed in a random manner; in the second, they are arranged in a periodic (square) array; otherwise, the two are identical. The transmission spectra are measured at wavelengths that are large, equal or small compared to the two characteristic lengths of the composites, namely, the particle radius and, in the case of the periodic composites, the inter-particle distance. The transmission spectra are characterized by several resonances; the first of these corresponds to the excitation of the rigid-body translation resonance. It also happens to be the most dominant resonance for both the periodic and the random composites. In the case of the periodic composites, the transmission spectra are characterized by at least one additional resonance that can be unambiguously attributed to the periodicity of the lattice.
The properties of galaxies on the outskirts of clusters

The outskirts of clusters are dynamically complex regions populated by galaxies falling into the cluster potential for the first time as well as some which have already visited the cluster core. Addressing the properties of galaxies in these transition regions requires the integration of cluster dynamics, an understanding of environmental influences on galaxies at both high and low densities and hierarchical scenarios of cluster formation and growth. In this review I describe some recent observational results on galaxies in the outskirts of clusters, and the evolution of galaxies in clusters as a function of local density and radius. To search for other articles by the author(s) go to: http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abstract_service.html
Interest Group Influence in City Policy-Making: the Views of Administrators:

T _ HERE IS conflicting evidence regarding the degree of influence which interest groups exert on the formulation and implementation of public policies in American cities. The proximity of councilpersons to their constitutents is said (Morlan and Hardy 1968) to make them more responsive to interest groups than legislators at any other level of government. Yet, institutional features of the municipal reform movement are believed (Clark 1971; Grimes et al. 1976; Lineberry and Fowler 1967) to have made city governments somewhat resistant to interest group influence. In particular, Lineberry and Fowler (1967: 716) noted that "by muting the demands of private regarding groups, the electoral institutions of reformed governments make public policy less responsive to the demands arising out of social conflicts in the population." On the other hand, Northrop and Dutton (1978) concluded that chief executives in reformed cities are more vulnerable to group influence than chief executives in cities without the institutions of the reform
Hydrothermal germanium over the southern East pacific rise.

Germanium enrichment in the oceanic water column above the southern axis of the East Pacific Rise results from hydrothermal solutions emanating from hot springs along the rise crest. This plume signature provides a new oceanic tracer of reactions between seawater and sea floor basalts during hydrothermal alteration. In contrast to the sharp plumes of 3He and manganese, the germanium plume is broad and diffuse, suggesting the existence of pervasive venting of low-temperature solutions off the ridge axis.
Charge recombination reactions in self-assembled porphyrin-based ion-pair complexes

Abstract The dynamics of charge recombination (CR) reactions after photoinduced charge separation (CS) in self-assembled ion pairs of charged porphyrins and oppositely charged electron acceptors were studied in aqueous solution. In most cases the CS reaction occurs in times less than 0.1 ps after the photoexcitation event, whereas the CR reaction is slower, on the multipicosecond time scale. The CR reactions show an invariance of rate constant (ca. 1012 s−1) with driving force at Δ G ⪅ 1.2 eV. Moreover, the CR processes exhibited a strongly inverted dependence on driving force when Δ G > 1.3 eV. The rate constants of CR reactions in the region independent of driving force were insensitive to changes in the longitudinal relaxation time of the solvent, as determined by changing the solvent from neat water to alcohol-water mixtures, which may indicate that the CR reaction rate in the driving force independent region is limited by vibrational relaxation in the ground state of the complex.
Animal Models of Action Tremor

This article is devoted to animal models of tremors that emerge from lesions in the Guillain-Mollaret triangle. Cerebellar intention tremor is caused by lesions in the brachium conjunctivum or in the interpositus nucleus, possibly in combination with damage to the dentate nucleus. Impaired feed-forward motor control delays the braking of rapid movements, resulting in target overshoot and subsequent oscillation. Transcortical and transcerebellar sensorimotor loops undergo oscillation at a frequency that depends on the mechanical properties of the limb and the length of the sensorimotor loop (mechanical reflex oscillation). The crescendo quality of intention tremor may be a result of amplification of tremor in reverberating brain stem-cerebellar or thalamocortical loops. So-called rubral or midbrain tremor is caused by a combination of damage to the brachium conjunctivum and nigrostriatal pathways in the vicinity of the red nucleus. Secondary compensatory changes in the motor system are probably involved because midbrain tremor in people usually begins weeks or months after a midbrain stroke or trauma. Harmaline causes enhanced neuronal synchrony and rhythmicity in the inferior olive; this animal model, although as yet unproven, is the most popular one for essential tremor (ET). Additional studies in laboratory animals are needed to define the seemingly universal involvement of the cerebellum and ventrolateral thalamus (ventralis intermedius [Vim]) in virtually all human tremor disorders.
Diagnosis of metastatic carcinoma to the cavernous sinus by computed tomograpy-guided fine-needle aspiration.

Purpose To describe a case of metastatic lung carcinoma to the cavernous sinus and orbital apex diagnosed by fine-needle aspiration guided by computed tomography. Design Case report. Method A 52-year-old man who presented with right-sided ptosis and ophthalmoplegia was found to have an enhancing mass of the right orbital apex and cavernous sinus extending into the temporal fossa on magnetic resonance imaging. Chest computed tomography revealed hilar adenopathy and a lesion of the right lower lobe of the lung. Bronchial washings and transbronchial needle biopsies of the lung were nondiagnostic. Computed tomography–guided fine-needle aspiration of the temporal fossa portion of the mass was performed. Result Biopsy of the mass showed malignant cells consistent with metastatic non–small cell lung carcinoma. Conclusion Computed tomography–guided fine-needle aspiration can be useful in the diagnosis and management of some masses involving the cavernous sinus.
Determination of Dimensionality of Pool Boiling on a Thin Horizontal Disk Under Subcooled Conditions Using Thin-Film Thermocouples

Subcooled pool boiling experiments are conducted at subcooling levels of 10 °C on a thin silicon disk (∼ 400μm thickn, 3 – inch diameter) with in situ micro-machined K-type thin film thermocouples (TFT) using a perfluorocarbon liquid refrigerant (PF-5060) with a boiling point of 56 °C. The experimental apparatus is of constant heat flux type. Surface temperature (from TFT) and heat flux data is obtained at each steady state condition to generate the pool boiling curve. The time – delay embedding technique is used to re-construct higher dimensional vectors with the optimal delay being estimated from the first minimum of mutual information. The correlation dimension measure is then estimated from the delay re – constructed phase space vectors. In this preliminary study correlation dimension measures are seen to vary from ∼ 12 in nucleate boiling, to ∼ 7 – 9 near Critical Heat Flux (CHF) condition, and ∼ 7 – 8 in film boiling. The results suggest that the attractors underlying thermal transport mechanisms in nucleate boiling are affected by a greater number of parameters than that at CHF. The dimension of the attractor is reduced further in the film boiling regime.© 2008 ASME
Antidot tunneling between quantum Hall liquids with different filling factors

We consider tunneling through two point contacts between two edges of quantum Hall liquids of different filling factors ${\ensuremath{\nu}}_{0,1}=1∕(2{m}_{0,1}+1)$ with ${m}_{0}\ensuremath{-}{m}_{1}\ensuremath{\equiv}mg0$. Properties of the antidot formed between the point contacts in the strong-tunneling limit are shown to be very different from the ${\ensuremath{\nu}}_{0}={\ensuremath{\nu}}_{1}$ case, and include the vanishing average total current in the two contacts and quasiparticles of charge $e∕m$. For $mg1$, quasiparticle tunneling leads to nontrivial $m$-state dynamics of effective flux through the antidot, which restores the regular ``electron'' periodicity of the current in flux despite the fractional charge and statistics of quasiparticles.
A Comparison of Inquiry and Worked Example Web-Based Instruction Using Physlets

This paper compares two protocols for web-based instruction using simulations in an introductory physics class. The Inquiry protocol allowed students to control input parameters while the Worked Example protocol did not. Students in the Worked Example group performed significantly higher on a common assessment. The ramifications of this study are discussed in relation to Scientific Discovery Learning and Cognitive Load Theory.
Mechanisms of Enhanced β-Adrenergic Reserve From Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy

Background— Cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) is the first clinical heart failure treatment that improves chamber systolic function in both the short-term and long-term yet also reduces mortality. The mechanical impact of CRT is immediate and well documented, yet its long-term influences on myocyte function and adrenergic modulation that may contribute to its sustained benefits are largely unknown. Methods and Results— We used a canine model of dyssynchronous heart failure (DHF; left bundle ablation, atrial tachypacing for 6 weeks) and CRT (DHF for 3 weeks, biventricular tachypacing for subsequent 3 weeks), contrasting both to nonfailing controls. CRT restored contractile synchrony and improved systolic function compared with DHF. Myocyte sarcomere shortening and calcium transients were markedly depressed at rest and after isoproterenol stimulation in DHF (both anterior and lateral walls), and CRT substantially improved both. In addition, β1 and β2 stimulation was enhanced, coupled to increased β1 r...
Improving Epicentral and Magnitude Estimation of Earthquakes from T Phases by Considering the Excitation Function

A standard technique for locating events with T phases is to pick the peak energy of T phases as the arrival time, then proceed as if it was an unscattered phase originating at the epicenter. The peak energy arrival time, however, can shift to different parts of the wave train due to incoherent scattering. We show that a 50% reduction in variance relative to picks of peak arrival times can be achieved by fitting an assumed functional shape to the log of the entire envelope of the T phase. We test the stability of this approach by comparing relative event locations based on this method with those determined by cross-correlating waveforms of Rayleigh and Love surface waves recorded teleseismically using a swarm of earthquakes at the northern end of the Easter microplate as an example. Relative event locations show that there is no systematic bias in T-phase locations. The T-phase location and detection can be extended to much smaller events than are detectable by surface waves. We estimate T-phase maximum amplitudes of about 50 events within the swarm from the amplitude of the fitted functions rather than directly from the seismograms. Twenty-four of these events are large enough to estimate their magnitudes by surface- wave analysis. The empirical analysis shows the log of T-phase maximum amplitude and surface-wave magnitude (MS) exhibit a relatively uniform linear relationship with much less scatter than in previously published studies of T-phase amplitude versus magnitude. The reduction in scatter is due to both the stability of the functional estimate of amplitude and the use of a swarm of earthquakes with similar depth, mechanism, and source-receiver geometry. The observed T-phase coda for shallow earthquakes can be synthesized using a simple model of multiple-reverberation seafloor scattering. The results show that scattering of energy at a rough seafloor from multiple reverberations in the water column is significant in T-phase generation even where the water depths are relatively uniform.
BREMSSTRAHLUNG EMISSION FROM LOW-ENERGY ELECTRONS ON ATOMS.

General expressions are given for the bremsstrahlung cross section resulting from electron-neutral-atom collisions at energies comparable to or lower than the excitation energies of the atom and for the bremsstrahlung emission from an electron-neutral-atom gas. These quantities have been evaluated for oxygen and nitrogen, and appear to be consistent with shock-tube data. Electron scattering is treated by Hartree-Fock equations which contain neutral-atom bound orbitals and a semiempirical polarization potential. Elastic-scattering data are fitted by the adjustment of a single parameter in the polarization potential. The bremsstrahlung cross section is derived from a distorted-wave theory. The dipole-acceleration form of the matrix element is used for numerical convenience. Because each angular-momentum state has different direct and exchange potentials, the conventional bremsstrahlung formula must be generalized. Approximate analytical expressions for the bremsstrahlung cross section are also obtained from the dipole-length form of the matrix element. From two sorts of resonance phenomena exhibited by the bremsstrahlung cross section---one associated with maxima and minima in the elastic scattering, and one with the relative proportion of $p$-wave $s$-wave scattering---it may be concluded that an accurate treatment of the electron scattering is necessary for the reliable prediction of bremsstrahlung.
The Zeno (Z = 1) Behavior of Equations of State: An Interpretation across Scales from Macroscopic to Molecular

The regularity exhibited by fluids along the contour of the unit compressibility factor in the temperature−density plane, where Z ⋮ PV/RT = 1, is explored as a means for testing and improving the volumetric equations of state. For a wide range of pure fluids, this contour, known as the Zeno line, has been empirically observed to be nearly linear from the Boyle temperature of the low-density vapor to around the triple point in the liquid region. The Z = 1 contour thus offers a quantitative criterion for interpreting intermolecular interactions. For H2O, CH4, and CO2, experimental results are compared with predictions from macroscopic PVT equations of state and with predictions from NVT molecular simulations. Reasonably straight Zeno lines result from commonly used macroscopic EOS models, such as the Redlich−Kwong−Soave (RKS) and the Peng−Robinson (PR). Although quantitative agreement between predicted and experimental Zeno behavior was not exact, the general trends suggest that these macroscopic models ade...
Statistical Analysis of Damper Seal Clearance Divergence and Impact Upon Rotordynamic Stability

Rotordynamic stability in a high-speed, high-pressure centrifugal compressor is achieved through introducing stabilizing forces and managing destabilizing forces. It becomes the original equipment manufacturer’s (OEM) responsibility to provide sufficient stabilizing influence to ensure acceptable operational behavior. A variety of mechanisms exist to provide stability: damper bearings, de-swirl elements on seals, shunt holes and damper seals are commonly provided by the compressor manufacturer to combat instability. The application of damper seals provides a significant increase in rotordynamic stability if designed properly. A previous case study (Camatti, et. al. [1]) presented the detrimental effect of damper seal clearance divergence and seal gas pre-swirl upon predicted stability. Accurate prediction of rotordynamic stability requires knowledge of the destabilizing influences, and evaluation of the variation possible in the stability promoting elements. In particular, the damper seal can be strongly influenced by the presence of divergence in the seal-to-rotor clearance and can result in unexpected at-load behavior. One approach to ensure stable operation is to perform a “worst case” evaluation. However, this often results in excessive compromise (large seal clearance and impact on aerodynamic performance) to “eliminate” the possibility of unstable operation. A different and new approach is to define an acceptable envelope of probability. This study presents a statistical evaluation of the impact of damper seal clearance divergence, along with other compressor design parameters, and provides a method for ensuring stable operation regardless of manufacturing or operational variation. The logarithmic decrement is evaluated as a function of compressor design values and a statistical response surface is created. From the response surface and defined variation in design values, a measure of probability for instability can be obtained. Allowable parameter variation can be restricted to ensure stable operation. Three case studies will be presented where the potential for instability exists and the risk quantified using this statistical technique. Additionally, in one of these cases, test results are presented to support the analytical work.Copyright © 2004 by ASME
Nearly perfect sets in graphs

Abstract In a graph G =( V , E ), a set of vertices S is nearly perfect if every vertex in V - S is adjacent to at most one vertex in S . Nearly perfect sets are closely related to 2-packings of graphs, strongly stable sets, dominating sets and efficient dominating sets. We say a nearly perfect set S is 1-minimal if for every vertex u in S , the set S - u is not nearly perfect. Similarly, a nearly perfect set S is 1-maximal if for every vertex u in V - S , S ∪ u is not a nearly perfect set. Lastly, we define n p ( G ) to be the minimum cardinality of a 1-maximal nearly perfect set, and N p ( G ) to be the maximum cardinality of a 1-minimal nearly perfect set. In this paper we calculate these parameters for some classes of graphs. We show that the decision problem for n p ( G ) is NP-complete; we give a linear algorithm for determining n p ( T ) for any tree T ; and we show that N p ( G ) can be calculated for any graph G in polynomial time.
The Impact of Early Intervention Legislation Local Perceptions

Local interagency coordinating council (LICC) coordinators from one state were interviewed regarding their perceptions of the implementation of early intervention legislation in their locality. From a larger study addressing many questions, the data reported in this article focus on the impact of early intervention legislation at the local level. Study participants reported positive local impact in the areas of family-centered services and service coordination, improved childfind and referral for services, funding, networking, and developmental outcomes. Negative effects included difficulty in negotiating system bureaucracies, increased paperwork, reduction in “at-risk” services, increased financial responsibility for parents, and budget impacts from nonreimbursable services. Study participants also reported a discrepancy between the vision of the legislation and the reality of local implementation in the areas of comprehensive services, interagency collaboration, and family involvement in system change.
Chemical Softening and Wear of Dental Composites

The purpose of this work was to determine the influence of chemical food-simulating liquids on the wear of various commercial dental composite restoratives. In many cases, pre-conditioning the restoratives in these liquids for one week produced swelling of the polymer matrix and considerable surface damage. The resulting degradation reduced the hardness and enhanced the wear as measured by a pin-and-disc apparatus. Four kinds of commercial composites were investigated: a conventional quartz-filled, a strontium-glass-filled, a visible-light-activated, and a micro filled composite. The liquids employed were heptane and several aqueous solutions of ethanol with solubility parameters, 8, ranging from δ = 1.5 to 4.8 × 104 J1/2m-3/2. With all restoratives, the decline in hardness during pre-conditioning maximized at about δ = 3 × 104, which corresponds to a 75% ethanol solution. The wear behavior was considerably more complicated and variable, as discussed in the text. For the most part, the increase in wear ra...
Dissipative design, lossless dynamics, and the nonlinear TORA benchmark example

Issues of dissipative design, including the balance of dissipative and lossless dynamics and effects of inherent limitations on internal power flow rates are illustrated both by the nonlinear translational oscillator/rotational actuator (TORA) benchmark and by the linear double integrator. In particular, it is demonstrated that the use of a fixed structure, damper type compensator, optimized near steady state may lead to inferior performance and to actuation requirements that are two orders of magnitude larger than what is achievable by a compensator that is structurally tuned to internal power flow. An observer-based design is also presented.
Experimental evaluation using 16 × 16 multiuser MIMO testbed in an actual indoor scenario

This paper describe MU-MIMO testbed which can deal with 16 times 16 MIMO-OFDM transmission based on the IEEE802.11a signal format. This testbed can be used to evaluate various antenna configurations, transmission schemes, scheduling algorithms, and so on, because the software and the antennas in this testbed can be flexibly changed. By using this testbed, we have evaluated the frequency utilization for a downlink transmission in the MU-MIMO channel in an actual indoor environment. We clarified that the MU-MIMO transmission using a block diagnarization algorithm achieved a frequency utilization of over 30 bits/s/Hz. The frequency utilization of the MU-MIMO transmission with two users is 2.1 to 3.3 times higher compared with the eigenvector beamforming method in SU-MIMO, when the number of transmit antenna is fixed to 16 and the number of receive antennas is changed from 2 to 4.
Exception analysis in the Java Native Interface

A Foreign Function Interface (FFI) allows one host programming language to interoperate with another foreign language. It enables effi cient software development by permitting developers to assemble components in different languages. One typical FFI is the Java Native Interface (JNI), through which Java programs can invoke native-code components developed in C, C++, or assembly code. Although FFIs bring convenience to software development, interface code developed in FFIs is often error prone because of the lack of safety and security enforcement. This paper introduces a static-analysis framework, TurboJet, which finds exce ption-related bugs in JNI applications. It finds bugs of inconsistent excep tion declarations and bugs of mishandling JNI exceptions. TurboJet is carefully engineered to achieve both high effi ciency and accuracy. We have applied TurboJet on a set of benchmark programs and identified many errors. We have also implemented a practi cal Eclipse plug-in based on TurboJet that can be used by JNI programmers to find errors in their code.
Can state tax policies be used to promote entrepreneurial activity

Despite a recent flurry of empirical research on the effects of taxes on small business activity, state-level taxes faced by entrepreneurs have been overlooked by most of the existing literature. Using a 50-state panel of tax policy information spanning the years 1989 through 2002, our analysis reveals that state tax policies generally do not appear to have quantitatively important effects on entrepreneurial activity. When we find statistically important effects, we find that higher individual income tax rates, the existence of a state-level estate, inheritance or gift tax, and a higher weight on the sales factor in the state corporate income tax apportionment formula all slightly reduce a state’s share of the national entrepreneurial stock. Results also indicate that states with more progressive personal income tax structures and states that have more aggressive corporate income taxes through the imposition of a combined reporting requirement both tend to have slightly higher entrepreneurship rates. The composition of state tax portfolios is not found to be a significant determinant of state entrepreneurship.
Tactile recognition of algebraic shapes using differential invariants

This paper studies the recognition and localization of 2-D shapes bounded by low-degree polynomial curve segments based on minimal tactile data. We have derived differential invariants for quadratic curves and two special classes of cubic curves. Such an invariant, independent of translation and rotation, is computed from the local geometry at any two points on the curve. Recognition of a curve class becomes verifying the corresponding invariant with more than one pairs of data points. Next, the actual curve is determined in its canonical parametric form using the same tactile data. Finally, the contact locations on the curve are computed, thereby localizing the shape completely relative to the touching hand. Simulation results support the working of the method in the presence of small noise, although real experiments need to be carried out in the future to demonstrate its applicability. The presented work distinguishes from traditional model-based recognition in its ability to simultaneously recognize as well as localize a shape from one of several classes, each consisting of a continuum of shapes.
Composition of the Lunar Highlands - Possible Implications for Evolution of the Earth's Crust

Lunar highlands composition compared to earth mantle for evolution of terrestrial continents and ocean basins
Scale-invariant contour completion using conditional random fields

We present a model of curvilinear grouping using piece-wise linear representations of contours and a conditional random field to capture continuity and the frequency of different junction types. Potential completions are generated by building a constrained Delaunay triangulation (CDT) over the set of contours found by a local edge detector. Maximum likelihood parameters for the model are learned from human labeled ground truth. Using held out test data, we measure how the model, by incorporating continuity structure, improves boundary detection over the local edge detector. We also compare performance with a baseline local classifier that operates on pairs of edgels. Both algorithms consistently dominate the low-level boundary detector at all thresholds. To our knowledge, this is the first time that curvilinear continuity has been shown quantitatively useful for a large variety of natural images. Better boundary detection has immediate application in the problem of object detection and recognition
Ecosystems of the Great Plains: Scales, Kinds, and Distributions

Perceptions about the Great Plains of the United States and Canada have varied widely through the historical development of the region. Emerging from the forests of Appalachia, early settlers initially noted the absence of trees in the Prairie Peninsula, where grassland extended into Wisconsin, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio. Because they viewed this as evidence of infertility, the settlers avoided the open prairies in favor of the scattered oak openings and floodplain forests of that area. In fact, some of the former glacial lake basins of the Prairie Peninsula were not drained and plowed until the early twentieth century, and draining of pothole lakes in the Northern Plains continues even now (Van der Valk 1989). As early as 1820, explorers of the western Great Plains perceived the region west of the 100th meridian as The Great American Desert and did not suppose that it would ever support much of a civilization (Frazier 1989; Lewis 1979). But, around mid-century, the Great Plains west of the Mississippi was settled rapidly, especially after the extension of railroads. As part of the commercial development by the railroads, the Great Plains was extolled as an agricultural paradise (Frazier 1989). But in the 1930s, the great drought and resulting dust storms recast the Great Plains as a dubious environment for agriculture after all—perhaps a kind of desert lurking between seductively good precipitation years.
Creep and Creep Rupture of Structural Ceramics

Structural ceramics are often two phase materials, in which rigid refractory grains, fibers, or whiskers are bonded by a less refractory matrix. At elevated temperatures, creep occurs by deformation of the matrix, resulting in the localization of stresses along grain boundaries, followed by cavitation and eventually by structural failure of the ceramic. The sequence of events prior to failure depends on the grain size and the amount of bonding matrix within the solid. Large amounts of matrix phase reduce constraints at grain boundaries, and thus the stresses that cause cavitation. Large grains, fibers or whiskers provide easy paths for crack growth, so that, once initiated, cracks readily propagate to failure. In structural ceramics, failure time can be expressed as a power function of the creep rate; the coefficient and exponent of the power function are determined by the failure mechanism. In this paper, models for creep rupture of ceramics are presented for cavity coalescence and for crack growth as primary failure processes. The model for cavity coalescence, in particular, is used to rationalize creep rupture data for a two phase ceramic that fails by cavity coalescence.
Dual dopamine–5-HT releasers: potential treatment agents for cocaine addiction

Biogenic amine transporters (BATs) are integral membrane proteins that translocate biogenic amine neurotransmitters [norepinephrine, dopamine (DA) and 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT)] across cell membranes. BATs are the principal sites of action for many psychotropic drugs, including abused stimulants such as cocaine and methamphetamine. Preclinical and human data demonstrate that withdrawal from long-term cocaine administration produces a dual deficit of synaptic DA and 5-HT in the brain, indicating the advantage of developing medications that normalize impairments in both neurotransmitter systems. In this article, we review data supporting the notion that stimulant effects normally produced by increased levels of extracellular DA can be antagonized by concurrent increases in levels of extracellular 5-HT. Accordingly, nonselective BAT substrates that can release both DA and 5-HT, such as the novel compound PAL287, have low abuse potential while maintaining the ability to suppress drug-seeking behavior. The collective findings indicate that such drugs will provide neurochemical normalization therapy for cocaine addiction and might also be useful for treating depression, obsessive–compulsive disorder, attention deficit disorder and obesity.
An approximate dynamic programming approach to a communication constrained sensor management problem

Resource management in distributed sensor networks is a challenging problem. This can be attributed to the fundamental trade-off between the value of information contained in a distributed set of measurements versus the energy costs of acquiring measurements, fusing them into a model of uncertainty, and transmitting the resulting model. Communications is commonly the highest contributor among these costs, typically by orders of magnitude. Failure to consider this trade-off can significantly reduce the operational lifetime of a sensor network. While a variety of methods have been proposed that treat a subset of these issues, the approaches are indirect and usually consider at most a single time step. In the context of object tracking with a distributed sensor network we propose an approximate dynamic programming approach which integrates the value of information and the cost of transmitting data over a rolling time horizon. We formulate this trade-off as a dynamic program, and use an approximation based on a linearization of the sensor model about a nominal trajectory to simultaneously find a tractable solution to the leader node selection problem and the sensor subset selection problem. Simulation results demonstrate that the resulting algorithm can provide similar estimation performance to that of the common most informative sensor selection method for a fraction of the communication cost.
Orthogonal Surface-Grafted Polymer Gradients: A Versatile Combinatorial Platform

Orthogonal polymer brush gradients are assemblies of surface- anchored macromolecules, in which two material properties of the grafted chains (e.g., grafting density, molecular weight) vary independently in orthogonal directions. Here, we describe the formation and applications of two such orthogonal assemblies, involving: (1) molecular weight and grafting density (MW/r) gradients of a given polymer and (2) molecular weight gradients (MW1/MW2), of two different polymers. Each point on orthogonal gradient substrate represents a unique combination of the two surface prop- erties being varied, thus facilitating systematic investigation of a pheno- menon that depends on the two said properties. We illustrate this point by employing orthogonal structures to study systematically: (1) formation of polymer brush-nanoparticle composite assemblies, (2) protein adsorption and cell adhesion, and (3) chain conformations in tethered diblock copolymers ex- posed to selective solvents. V C 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym
Combined equalization and coding with finite-length decision feedback equalization

Finite-length constraints are applied to the feedforward, feedback, and transmit filters for a minimum-mean-square-error decision-feedback equalizer (MMSE-DFE), and the structure and performance of the finite-length MMSE-DFE are derived using a combination of estimation-theoretic and information-theoretic principles. The theory of finite-length MMSE-DFE that is derived parallels and extends results that were previously known only in the infinite-length case. Canonical finite-length transmitter/receiver combinations for the combination of equalization and coding are thereby established. >
The relationship between treatment outcomes and the underlying cognitive deficit: Evidence from the remediation of acquired dysgraphia

Background : It is unclear to what extent treatment outcomes are significantly influenced by the specific cognitive deficits that underlie an individual's language impairment. That is, it is not well understood if treatment benefits such as item-specific relearning, generalisation to untreated items, and long-term maintenance vary according to deficit type. Aims : The aim of this investigation was to look at the relationship between deficit type and responsiveness to treatment by examining the results of applying the same remediation protocol to individuals suffering from deficits affecting different components of the spelling process. Methods & Procedures : Three adults with acquired dysgraphia were identified as suffering from deficits to either the orthographic lexicon or the graphemic buffer. They were administered the same spell-study-spell treatment protocol during bi-weekly sessions for periods of 7–11 weeks with periodic follow-up evaluations that continued for 40–112 weeks after the end of treatm...
Self-consistent GTD formulation for conducting cylinders with arbitrary convex cross section

A user-oriented computer program has been developed for high frequency radiation and scattering from infinitely-long perfectly. conducting convex cylinders. The analysis is based on the self-consistent geometrical theory of diffraction (GTD). The cylinder is modeled as an N -sided polygon. Two cylindrical waves with unknown amplitudes are assumed to travel in opposite directions on each face of the polygon. The boundary conditions for the corners are applied to set up a matrix equation for 2N unknowns (the amplitudes associated with the traveling cylindrical waves). Crout's method is used to solve the matrix equation. Once the amplitudes for the traveling waves are determined, the radiation or scattered field is readily obtained via the usual GTD techniques. Numerical results are presented for radiation and scattering from rectangular, semi-circular, circular, and elliptic cylinders for both principal polarizations. The results show excellent agreement with GTD, moment, and eigenfunction solutions.
Effector Triggered Immunity: NLR Immune Perception and Downstream Defense Responses

Plants have evolved sophisticated surveillance systems to recognize conserved microbial patterns or secreted pathogen effector proteins. Research in Arabidopsis has significantly advanced our understanding of plant immune perception and signaling. Intracellular immune receptors possessing central nucleotide binding and C-terminal leucine rich repeat domains (NLR) recognize pathogen effector proteins delivered inside host cells during infection. Characterized NLRs can either directly or indirectly recognize corresponding pathogen effector proteins. Despite the conserved domain architecture of NLRs, no unified model exists for induction of downstream signaling. NLRs have diverse subcellular localizations, including targeting to the endoplasmic reticulum, plasma membrane, nucleus, and cytosol. This review will focus on our current understanding of NLR biology, from signal perception to downstream immune outputs.
Doubly excited states in some light atoms

Abstract We have identified a singlet transition in doubly excited helium: 2p2 1D-2p3d 1D, at 3298±2 A with a full width of 54 A or 0.061±0.005 eV. This width is in good agreement with a previous measurement and theory for the width of the 2p2 1D2 state. We have remeasured the decay rate of 1s22p 2P-1s2p2 2P in Li I and find it is in good agreement with theory. Several transitions in doubly excited Li II have been identified in the 1000 A region. No evidence was found for doubly excited quartet transitions in Li I in the vacuum ultraviolet. We present measurements of wavelengths and fine structure of the 1s2s2p2 5P-1s2p3 5S transitions in C III, N IV and O V.
alpha-Aminoadipate pathway for the biosynthesis of lysine in lower eukaryotes.

(1985). α-Aminoadipate Pathway for the Biosynthesis of Lysine in Lower Eukaryotes. CRC Critical Reviews in Microbiology: Vol. 12, No. 2, pp. 131-151.
A Massacre at Hopi

Thirty Hopi Indians of both sexes and all ages were killed, crudely dismembered, violently mutilated, and probably cannibalized about 370 years ago. This massacre occurred on the left bank of Polacca Wash ten miles south of the Hopi villages. The location of, dismemberment of bodies in, and radiocarbon age of this mass burial suggest the bodies were once the few live villagers, taken captive by other Hopi warriors, referred to in the legendary account of the destruction of Awatobi pueblo that occurred ten to twelve generations ago.
Piezoelectrochemical Effect: A New Mechanism for Azo Dye Decolorization in Aqueous Solution through Vibrating Piezoelectric Microfibers

A newly discovered piezoelectrochemical (PZEC) effect for the direct conversion of mechanical energy to chemical energy is applied for the mechanically induced degradation of a dye of C.I. Acid Orange (AO7) from aqueous solution in the presence of BaTiO3 microdendrites. The mechanism of the PZEC degradation of the dye depends on the ultrasonic vibration used, in which the formation of the strain-induced electric charges on the dendrite surface is due to the deformation and local charge accumulation on the BaTiO3. With sufficient applied electric potential, strained piezoelectric dendrites in AO7 aqueous solution triggered the decomposition reaction. The process is monitored by following the decolorization rate of AO7. The effects of pH, catalyst loading, and initial dye concentration on dye degradation were also studied. Kinetic analyses reveal that the PZEC degradation rates of AO7 can be approximated in terms of the Langmuir–Hinshelwood model. The value of the adsorption equilibrium constant, KAO7, was ...
Giant and universal magnetoelectric coupling in soft materials and concomitant ramifications for materials science and biology.

Magnetoelectric coupling---the ability of a material to magnetize upon application of an electric field and, conversely, to polarize under the action of a magnetic field---is rare and restricted to a rather small set of exotic hard crystalline materials. Intense research activity has recently ensued on materials development, fundamental scientific issues, and applications related to this phenomenon. This tantalizing property, if present in adequate strength at room temperature, can be used to pave the way for next-generation memory devices such as miniature magnetic random access memories and multiple state memory bits, sensors, energy harvesting, spintronics, among others. In this Rapid Communication, we prove the existence of an overlooked strain mediated nonlinear mechanism that can be used to universally induce the giant magnetoelectric effect in all (sufficiently) soft dielectric materials. For soft polymer foams---which, for instance, may be used in stretchable electronics---we predict room-temperature magnetoelectric coefficients that are comparable to the best known (hard) composite materials created. We also argue, based on a simple quantitative model, that magnetoreception in some biological contexts (e.g., birds) most likely utilizes this very mechanism.