cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Defective dopaminergic regulation of prolactin secretion in a rat pituitary tumour cell line.

IT is firmly established that certain rat1,2 and human3,4 pituitary tumours hypersecrete prolactin (PRL). Pituitary PRL secretion is probably under the dual control of hypothalamic prolactin-inhibiting and -releasing factors, and defective secretion in one or both of these factors could produce abnormal PRL secretion3. An alternative explanation for the in vivo PRL secretory defect of certain pituitary tumours is defective reception by the tumour of an appropriate hypothalamic endocrine signal. To test this latter hypothesis, we evaluated the effects of various catecholamines on PRL secretion in a cloned rat pituitary tumour cell line (GH3). Catecholamines are potent inhibitors of PRL secretion5, and it is postulated that the prolactin inhibiting factor may be a catecholamine6,7. We report here that dopamine failed to inhibit PRL secretion from the pituitary tumour cultures, whereas, other catechols added to our normal and pituitary tumour monolayer cultures suppressed prolactin release into the medium. In addition, apomorphine, which is postulated to be a specific dopaminergic agonist8–10, appropriately suppressed PRL secretion in the tumour monolayer cultures. Our results therefore provide evidence for an unusual dopaminergic defect in the GH3 rat pituitary tumour cell line.
National scientific facilities and their science impact on nonbiomedical research

The "h index" proposed by Hirsch [Hirsch JE (2005) Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 102:16569-16573] is a good indicator of the impact of a scientist's research and has the advantage of being objective. When evaluating departments, institutions, or laboratories, the importance of the h index can be further enhanced when it is properly calibrated for the size of the group. Particularly acute is the issue of federally funded facilities whose number of actively publishing scientists frequently dwarfs that of academic departments. Recently, Molinari and Molinari [Molinari JF, Molinari A (2008) Scientometrics, in press] developed a methodology that shows that the h index has a universal growth rate for large numbers of papers, allowing for meaningful comparisons between institutions. An additional challenge when comparing large institutions is that fields have distinct internal cultures, with different typical rates of publication and citation; biology is more highly cited than physics, for example. For this reason, the present study has focused on the physical sciences, engineering, and technology and has excluded biomedical research. Comparisons between individual disciplines are reported here to provide a framework. Generally, it was found that the universal growth rate of Molinari and Molinari holds well across the categories considered, testifying to the robustness of both their growth law and our results. The goal here is to set the highest standard of comparison for federal investment in science. Comparisons are made of the nation's preeminent private and public institutions. We find that many among the national science facilities compare favorably in research impact with the nation's leading universities.
Major- and trace-element composition of suspended matter in the north-east gulf of Alaska: Relationships with major sources☆

Abstract Seasonal variations of the distributions and chemical compositions of suspended particulate matter in the north-east Gulf of Alaska were studied during 1975–1976. Selected samples were analyzed for total suspended matter by gravimetry; particulate C and N by dry combustion gas chromatography; and particulate Al, Si, K, Ca, Ti, Cr, Mn, Fe, Ni, Cu and Zn by thin-film X-ray secondary emission spectrometry. The results showed that suspended material from the Copper River and the coastal streams which drain the Bering, Guyot, and Malaspina glaciers was carried westward along the coast and deposited in nearshore environments. However, near Kayak Island, significant quantities of suspended material of terrestrial origin were deflected to the south-west, past the edge of the outer shelf, by an anticyclonic gyre. The distribution patterns of the major and trace elements in the particulate matter and their elemental ratios with aluminum indicated that: K, Ti, Mn and Fe were primarily associated with aluminosilicate material and C and N with organic material in all samples; and Si, Ca, Cr, Ni, Cu and Zn were primarily associated with aluminosilicate material in near-shore surface and near-bottom samples and with organic material in offshore surface samples. Only C, N, Ca, Cu and Zn showed significant seasonal variations which appeared to be related to biological production of organic matter.
Fatigue crack fusion in thin-sheet aluminum alloys AA7075-T6 using low-speed fiber laser welding

Reinforcing cracked aluminum structures with composite patches have been recognized as an efficient and economical method to extend the service life of cracked aluminum components. To further enhance the effectiveness of composite patches, it is envisioned that the crack can be first fused by laser welding to remove the high stress concentration at the crack front before applying the composite patch. In this paper, the feasibility of the envisioned fusion repair is investigated. A systematic approach for the fusion process design is proposed to overcome challenges related to alloy strength recovery, crack tracing, focusing position, welding speed, plate flatness, shielding gas pressure, thin-sheet factors, and skewed cracks. A thick-sheet, partial penetration model is first used to determine the starting point of laser welding conditions. A systematic approach to transfer the thick-sheet condition to successful thin-sheet welding is then presented. Based on successfully fused crack samples of AA 7075-T6, the ultimate tensile strength tests show that in average 74% of the alloy's original strength was recovered for a single-pass repair and 68% for a double-pass repair and the results are highly repeatable. It should be clear to see the benefit of the crack fusion because without crack fusion, the composite patch is bonded to a part with zero UTS at the crack region and with a high stress intensity factor at the crack front.
Genetic Analysis of Soluble N-Ethylmaleimide-Sensitive Factor Attachment Protein Function in Drosophila Reveals Positive and Negative Secretory Roles

The N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive factor (NSF) and soluble NSF attachment protein (SNAP) are cytosolic factors that promote vesicle fusion with a target membrane in both the constitutive and regulated secretory pathways. NSF and SNAP are thought to function by catalyzing the disassembly of a SNAP receptor (SNARE) complex consisting of membrane proteins of the secretory vesicle and target membrane. Although studies of NSF function have provided strong support for this model, the precise biochemical role of SNAP remains controversial. To further explore the function of SNAP, we have used mutational and transgenic approaches in Drosophila to investigate the effect of altered SNAP dosage on neurotransmitter release and SNARE complex metabolism. Our results indicate that reduced SNAP activity results in diminished neurotransmitter release and accumulation of a neural SNARE complex. Increased SNAP dosage results in defective synapse formation and a variety of tissue morphological defects without detectably altering the abundance of neural SNARE complexes. The SNAP overexpression phenotypes are enhanced by mutations in other secretory components and are at least partially overcome by co-overexpression of NSF, suggesting that these phenotypes derive from a specific perturbation of the secretory pathway. Our results indicate that SNAP promotes neurotransmitter release and SNARE complex disassembly but inhibits secretion when present at high abundance relative to NSF.
Mechanisms for LTE coexistence in TV white space

This paper presents a high level description of an LTE system operating in license exempt bands. Since wireless networks potentially using different air interfaces may operate in these bands, coexistence is a challenge that needs to be addressed. This paper focuses on non-coordinated mechanisms for secondary users coexistence, and introduces a coexistence gap based method for LTE to dynamically share the spectrum with other secondary users. A simulation based analysis of the coexistence gap method is presented, and the results are compared with an energy based sensing channel access method.
Structure of repeat buying for new packaged goods

A prime concern of marketing managers in making decisions relating to the development and introduction of new packaged goods is the new product's ability to sustain a satisfactory level of repeat buying. This paper reports empirical findings from tests of hypotheses on the structure of repeat buying for new packaged goods set forth by Eskin and Malec. It extends their work by examining the theoretical justification for these hypotheses. A linkage is established between the discrete model underlying the hypotheses and a frequently used continuous time model based on gamma mixture of exponential interpurchase times. These postulates are tested for four new packaged goods using a maximum likelihood approach. Overall, the results obtained support the hypotheses and imply that for a new product, the penetration for various classes of repeat and hence total repeat sales, can be obtained from a knowledge of the cumulative proportion of first repeaters and their average interpurchase time.
Thoria-Based Cermet Nuclear Fuel: Sintered Microsphere Fabrication by Spray Drying

Cermet nuclear fuels have been demonstrated to have significant potential to enhance fuel performance because of low internal fuel temperatures and low stored energy. The combination of these benefits with the inherent proliferation resistance, high burnup capability, and favorable neutronic properties of the thorium fuel cycle produces intriguing options for advanced nuclear fuel cycles. This paper describes aspects of a Nuclear Energy Research Initiative (NERI) project with two primary goals: (1) Evaluate the feasibility of implementing the thorium fuel cycle in existing or advanced reactors using a zirconium-matrix cermet fuel, and (2) Develop enabling technologies required for the economic application of this new fuel form. Spray drying is a physical process of granulating fine powders that is used widely in the chemical, pharmaceutical, ceramic, and food industries. It is generally used to produce flowable fine powders. Occasionally it is used to fabricate sintered bodies like cemented carbides, but it has not, heretofore, been used to produce sintered microspheres. As a physical process, it can be adapted to many powder types and mixtures and thus, has appeal for nuclear fuels and waste forms of various compositions. It also permits easy recycling of process ''wastes'' and minimal chemical waste streams that canmore » arise in chemical sol/gel processing. On the other hand, for radioactive powders, it presents safety challenges for processing these materials in powder form and in achieving microspheres of high density and perfection.« less
A single phosphotyrosine residue of Stat91 required for gene activation by interferon-gamma

Interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) stimulates transcription of specific genes by inducing tyrosine phosphorylation of a 91-kilodalton cytoplasmic protein (termed STAT for signal transducer and activator of transcription). Stat91 was phosphorylated on a single site (Tyr701), and phosphorylation of this site was required for nuclear translocation, DNA binding, and gene activation. Stat84, a differentially spliced product of the same gene that lacks the 38 carboxyl-terminal amino acids of Stat91, did not activate transcription, although it was phosphorylated and translocated to the nucleus and bound DNA. Thus, Stat91 mediates activation of transcription in response to IFN-gamma.
Structurally conserved five nucleotide bulge determines the overall topology of the core domain of human telomerase RNA

Telomerase is a unique ribonucleoprotein complex that catalyzes the addition of telomeric DNA repeats onto the 3′ ends of linear chromosomes. All vertebrate telomerase RNAs contain a catalytically essential core domain that includes the template and a pseudoknot with extended helical subdomains. Within these helical regions is an asymmetric 5-nt internal bulge loop (J2a/b) flanked by helices (P2a and P2b) that is highly conserved in its location but not sequence. NMR structure determination reveals that J2a/b forms a defined S-shape and creates an ∼90 ° bend with a surprisingly low twist (∼10 °) between the flanking helices. A search of RNA structures revealed only one other example of a 5-nt bulge, from hepatitis C virus internal ribosome entry site, with a different sequence but the same structure. J2a/b is intrinsically flexible but the interhelical motions across the loop are remarkably restricted. Nucleotide substitutions in J2a/b that affect the bend angle, direction, and interhelical dynamics are correlated with telomerase activity. Based on the structures of P2ab (J2a/b and flanking helices), the conserved region of the pseudoknot (P2b/P3, previously determined) and the remaining helical segment (P2a.1–J2a.1 refined using residual dipolar couplings and the modeling program MC-Sym) we have calculated an NMR-based model of the full-length pseudoknot. The model and dynamics analysis show that J2a/b serves as a dominant structural and dynamical element in defining the overall topology of the core domain, and suggest that interhelical motions in P2ab facilitate nucleotide addition along the template and template translocation.
A Multi-Study Examination of Well-Being Theory in College and Community Samples

Well-being theory (WBT) proposes five indicators of well-being [i.e., positive emotion, engagement, relationships, meaning, achievement (PERMA)] that are, independently, empirically supported predictors of flourishing (i.e., an optimal level of well-being; Seligman in Flourish: a visionary new understanding of happiness and well-being. Free Press, NY, 2011). However, there is limited empirical support for the multidimensional model suggested by WBT. Two studies sought to test and validate the higher-order factor structure of the five components of PERMA and PERMA’s ability to predict concurrent and prospective flourishing outcomes (e.g., physical health, college success). In Study 1, a longitudinal examination of college students, participants completed measures of well-being (including four of the five PERMA indicators), physical health, and college success at the end of their sophomore, junior, and senior years. In Study 2, a larger, cross-sectional study was conducted online to further validate the PERMA model with a broader sample and all five PERMA indicators. Participants completed measures similar to those administered at Study 1 and other measures used to validate Study 1 measures. Results from Study 2 further validated the PERMA model by comparing Study 1 measures to established measures and by adding meaning to the model. Study 1 and Study 2 PERMA models predicted markers of well-being (e.g., vitality, life satisfaction) and flourishing (e.g., physical health). The two studies reported here provide cross-sectional and longitudinal support that WBT is useful for predicting flourishing.
Mixture models for the species apportionment of hydroacoustic data, with echo-envelope length as the discriminatory variable

For this side-looking, 200 kHz, split-beam sonar application, echo-envelope length has been shown to be predictive of fish size. In this study, this relationship is exploited to estimate the abundance of (large) chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) in the presence of (smaller) sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka). The echo-length to fish-size relationship is too imprecise to ascertain the species of individual fish in the classic sense. However, the frequency distribution of echo-length measurements contains information on the relative abundance of chinook and sockeye salmon. The use of echo-length measurements in a mixture model is explored in order to estimate the proportion of total fish passage that comprised chinook salmon. Inputs to the model include empirical estimates of the length– frequency distribution for each species, parameter estimates from the regression relationship of echo-length to fish-length, and echo-length measurements from individual, ensonified fish. Outputs are estimates of the proportions of chinook and sockeye salmon in the river. The advantages of the mixture-model approach over threshold-based discrimination are discussed. Conditional maximum likelihood and Bayesian versions of the model are described. The method can be generalized to other hydroacoustic measurements, including target strength and other discrimination problems. 2003 International Council for the Exploration of the Sea. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights
Finitely subadditive outer measures, finitely superadditive inner measures and their measurable sets

Consider any set X. A finitely subadditive outer measure on P(X) is defined to be a function v from P(X) to R such that v(ϕ)=0 and v is increasing and finitely subadditive. A finitely superadditive inner measure on P(X) is defined to be a function p from P(X) to R such that p(ϕ)=0 and p is increasing and finitely superadditive (for disjoint unions) (It is to be noted that every finitely superadditive inner measure on P(X) is countably superadditive).
Radio observations of the remnant of the supernova of AD 1006. II - Polarization observations

Polarized flux observations of the SNR of AD 1006 made with the NRAO VLA are presented. The gross morphology in polarized intensity reveals two bright limbs across from each other. The SE quadrant, faintest in total intensity, shows significant polarized flux, while the extension of the NE, fairly bright in total intensity, appears almost unpolarized. Significant polarized flux is also seen in the SNR center. An integrated polarized fraction of about 13 percent is found; ratios as high as 30 percent may occur locally. The observations can be used to infer an intrinsic polarization position angle, and it is deduced that the ordered component of the magnetic field is primarily radial. The polarized fraction upper limits imply that the magnetic field is dominantly disordered, and it is estimated that the radial component contains only about 20 percent of the total magnetic energy density.
Polyaniline: characterization as a cathode active material in rechargeable batteries in aqueous electrolytes

An analytically pure form of chemically synthesized polyaniline having the emeraldine oxidation state has been used as a cathode active material together with a Zn anode in the fabrication of rechargeable cells in 1.0 M aqueous ZnCl2 electrolyte (pH∼4). The experimental capacity and energy density based only on the weight of polymer employed in constructing the cell are 151.5 Ah kg−1 and 159.1 Wh kg−1 respectively at a constant discharge current of 0.75 mA cm−2 (average discharge voltage 1.05V). The cell reactions in the charge and discharge processes have been determined. The modified capacity and energy density, when taking into account the calculated weights of Zn and HCl involved in the discharge reactions, are 109.3 Ah kg−1 and 114.8 Wh kg−1 respectively. The cell shows excellent recyclability and coulombic efficiency.
John Hewitt's allegorical imagination

John Hewitt (1907–1987), the Northern Irish poet from Belfast, is most famous for advocating the Regionalist project he helped start in the 1930's. Regionalism demanded something more than kinship: an allegiance to the smaller unit of land within a nation. In his poetry, Hewitt's pursuit of this ideal necessitated a concern with sectarian issues and the religious and cultural impasses that attended them. Consequently, he often examines his own complicity in the unhealthy relations between divided neighbors, and this opens the door to a couple of criticisms that have commonly been directed at Hewitt: that his negotiations with place are outdated and that his craft and imagination were superseded by a self-conscious attention to denominational questions. To a large degree this essay means to explore how Hewitt manages to overcome such difficulties in his best work, especially The Bloody Brae and ‘The Colony’. In these and other poems, he imagines an alternative time and place; such settings allow the poet t...
Synthesis and Stability of Thiocysteine

Abstract Synthesis of thiocysteine can be achieved by treating methoxycarbonylcysteine disulfide with potassium hydrosulfide. Thiocysteine rapidly decomposes in aqueous solutions to form cystine and sulfur.
The boundary of x-ray and electron tomography

                   ! "#    $%#        !      !    !  ! & '     !       (      &       & ! $(    )   &$*     &       + !     &    !         $ ,   +  )          $                         !"                 #$        % &    "     '( (      ) * %* + ' , , &             "        (-& .  &/  -'(.0  %  1  2   & "     &         3   "          ! * !  ,       2 "   &/    AE 01           3    &    "      &  0   4  1             0 " &1    (      5      (  & &/       0          1"       6   017& 84101            5     4(    /     /,& & 44&   447  9     &        " /      AE      (          -,   ! ."      * !  : ( /  ;  AE    ! /  ;  AE  (/        /                       "     "           "   %             6 < "   ?          (             6  @"      =
Alumina-catalyzed isotope exchange in CO☆

Abstract Catalytic isotope exchange in carbon monoxide has been found to occur over λ-alumina, 0.5% ruthenium/alumina, and molecular sieves. The exchange occurs readily at 400–500 °C with little or no carbon dioxide formation.
Modeling and Testing for Timing Faults in Synchronous Sequential Circuits

Even with proper design, integrated circuits and systems can have timing problems because of physical faults or variation of parameters. The authors introduce a fault model that takes into account timing related failures in both the combinational logic and the storage elements. Using their fault model and the system's requirements for proper operation, the authors propose ways to handle flipflop-to-flipflop delay, path selection, initialization, error propagation, race-around, and anomalous behavior. They discuss the advantages of scan designs like LSSD and the effectiveness of random delay testing.
A triple representation of the body surface in the sensorimotor cortex of the squirrel monkey

The primary potentials evoked by brief electrical stimulation of the digits were examined in the cerebral cortex immediately surrounding the central fissure. Two distinct areas of the cortex were found which produced large amplitude primary potentials to digital stimulation. One was located postcentrally at somatosensory cortical area SI, the other was located precentrally in the somatomotor cortex. These two foci of activity were easily differentiated and spacially well separated from each other in all animals and under all anesthetic conditions—each region being entirely surrounded by cortex which yielded only small amplitude responses to digital stimulation. A third responsive region was defined as that area of cortex which produced the shortest latency responses to digital stimulation. This area of short-latency responses was found to occupy the region of cortex at or slightly anterior to the central fissure, a region which is immediately posterior to, and overlaps the posterior portion of the precentral area mentioned above. The responses in all three areas were found to be topographically organized with digit 5 most medially and digit 1 most laterally represented. In addition to the maps derived by means of electrical stimulation of the digits the cortical organization as revealed by natural stimulation was also investigated.
Big Data Analytics in Financial Statement Audits

SYNOPSIS: Big Data analytics is the process of inspecting, cleaning, transforming, and modeling Big Data to discover and communicate useful information and patterns, suggest conclusions, and support decision making. Big Data has been used for advanced analytics in many domains but hardly, if at all, by auditors. This article hypothesizes that Big Data analytics can improve the efficiency and effectiveness of financial statement audits. We explain how Big Data analytics applied in other domains might be applied in auditing. We also discuss the characteristics of Big Data analytics, which set it apart from traditional auditing, and its implications for practical implementation.
Polydisperse aerosol condensation with heat and mass conservation: I. Model description with applications to homogeneous systems

Abstract A computational solution of the coupled heat and mass transport equations for aerosols, which may be either single component or multicomponent, in a finite volume is developed under nonsteady state and nonisothermal conditions. It is capable of computing the temperature and vapor density profile around the droplets. Both mass and heat are conserved effectively in the volume, which enables this computational model to describe time-dependent, competitive, aerosol condensation and evaporation. Calculations for pure water particles and sodium nitrate particles in the presence of water vapor are performed. By comparing the particle growth for different number densities at various initial supersaturation conditions, both the initial saturations and particle number concentrations are shown to have great impact on the aerosol condensational growth. Detailed discussions on the change of bulk temperature, bulk relative humidity (RH), total surface area and volume are given.
The balance of mechanical and environmental properties of a multielement niobium-niobium silicide-based in situ composite

This article describes room-temperature and high-temperature mechanical properties, as well as oxidation behavior, of a niobium-niobium silicide basedin situ composite directionally solidified from a Nb-Ti-Hf-Cr-Al-Si alloy. Room-temperature fracture toughness, high-temperature tensile strength (up to 1200 °C), and tensile creep rupture (1100 °C) data are described. The composite shows an excellent balance of high- and low-temperature mechanical properties with promising environmental resistance at temperatures above 1000 °C. The composite microstructures and phase chemistries are also described. Samples were prepared using directional solidification in order to generate an aligned composite of a Nb-based solid solution with Nb3Si- and Nb5Si3-type silicides. The high-temperature mechanical properties and oxidation behavior are also compared with the most recent Ni-based superalloys. This composite represents an excellent basis for the development of advanced Nb-based intermetallic matrix composites that offer improved properties over Ni-based superalloys at temperatures in excess of 1000 °C.
Cytonuclear Evolution of Rubisco in Four Allopolyploid Lineages

Allopolyploidization in plants entails the merger of two divergent nuclear genomes, typically with only one set (usually maternal) of parental plastidial and mitochondrial genomes and with an altered cytonuclear stoichiometry. Thus, we might expect cytonuclear coevolution to be an important dimension of allopolyploid evolution. Here, we investigate cytonuclear coordination for the key chloroplast protein rubisco (ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase), which is composed of nuclear-encoded, small subunits (SSUs) and plastid-encoded, large subunits. By studying gene composition and diversity as well as gene expression in four model allopolyploid lineages, Arabidopsis, Arachis, Brassica, and Nicotiana, we demonstrate that paralogous nuclear-encoded rbcS genes within diploids are subject to homogenization via gene conversion and that such concerted evolution via gene conversion characterizes duplicated genes (homoeologs) at the polyploid level. Many gene conversions in the polyploids are intergenomic with respect to the diploid progenitor genomes, occur in functional domains of the homoeologous SSUs, and are directionally biased, such that the maternal amino acid states are favored. This consistent preferential maternal-to-paternal gene conversion is mirrored at the transcriptional level, with a uniform transcriptional bias of the maternal-like rbcS homoeologs. These data, repeated among multiple diverse angiosperm genera for an important photosynthetic enzyme, suggest that cytonuclear coevolution may be mediated by intergenomic gene conversion and altered transcription of duplicated, now homoeologous nuclear genes.
I Am the Cheesehead

Abstract A law librarian describes her humorous route to law librarianship and a reference position at the University of Wisconsin.
Multiple UV reflectance peaks in the iridescent neck feathers of pigeons

Recent studies of colorful plumage signals in birds have been aided by the finding that birds can see ultraviolet (UV) light and thus may communicate using colors invisible to humans. Some of the pioneering and more pivotal work on avian color vision was performed with domestic pigeons (Columba livia), yet surprisingly there have been few detailed reports of the UV-reflecting properties of pigeon feathers. Here, I use UV-VIS fiber- optic spectrometry to document the full-spectrum re- flectance characteristics of iridescent purple and green neck plumage in pigeons. Neck feathers that appear purple to the human eye exhibit four reflectance peaks— two in the UV and one in the blue and red regions—and thus exhibit a UV-purple hue. Neck feathers that appear green to the human eye are characterized by five spectral peaks: two in the UV (UVA and UVB), a predominant green peak, and secondary violet and red peaks, confer- ring a UV-purple-green color. Such elaborate UV color- ation suggests that birds may use an even more complex and 'hidden' UV signaling system than previously thought.
Occupational Exposure of Health Care Personnel to Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C: Prevention and Surveillance Strategies

Ensuring the safety of personnel working in health care environments can be challenging and requires a multifaceted approach to target reductions in occupational exposures to blood-borne pathogens, such as hepatitis B or hepatitis C. This article reviews the epidemiology of occupational exposures to hepatitis B and hepatitis C in health care personnel in hospital settings. The nature and likelihood of risk to health care personnel are evaluated along with estimates of seroconversion risk. The review focuses on prevention programs and available surveillance programs to aid in monitoring and reducing occupational exposures to blood-borne pathogens.
A Proposed Talent Management Model for Leader-Managers in State-Owned Enterprises in China

14.00 800x600 Due to the continued reform of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) in China, SOE leaders face many challenges competing in a rapidly changing global marketplace. Not only are leaders tasked to manage change, but they must also deliver results and increase revenue through human capital. The need for stronger human capital and human resources (HR) must play a stronger role in SOEs by adopting new strategies for talent management. The purpose of this study explores the experiences and perceptions of leader-managers as it relates to talent management in SOEs in China. Upon conducting phenomenological interviews with 11 state-owned companies and 17 leader-manager participants, analysis was completed to determine themes related to leadership-management selection, development, and practices in SOEs in China. Themes emerged from the data analysis including organizational structure and its influence on leader-manager selection; an overview of the leadership pipeline present in SOEs including the recruitment and selection process and succession planning strategies; HR’s role within the recruitment and selection process; leadership-management development through experience and other development strategies; influence of Chinese and Western culture and on talent management and leader-manager practices. The findings were synthesized to introduce a proposed talent management model for SOEs in China. The proposed model provides HR practitioners a framework to manage talent within their organizations, in particular in the areas of recruiting, developing, and retaining successful leader-managers within SOEs in China. Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";}
Modeling the Commute Activity-Travel Pattern of Workers: Formulation and Empirical Analysis

This paper proposes a methodological framework to analyze the activity and travel pattern of workers during the evening commute. The framework uses a discrete-continuous econometric system to model jointly the decision to participate in an activity during the evening commute and the following attributes of the participation: activity type, activity duration, and travel time deviation to the activity location relative to the direct travel time from work to home. The model parameters are estimated using a sample of workers from the 1991 Boston Household Activity Survey. The paper also presents mathematical expressions to evaluate the effect of changes in sociodemographic variables and policy-relevant exogenous variables on the temporal pattern of trips and cold starts attributable to commute stops. The application of the model indicates that failure to accommodate the joint nature of the activity decisions during the evening commute can lead to misdirected policy actions for traffic congestion alleviation and for mobile-source emissions reduction.
A virtual environment for simulating manufacturing operations in 3D

This paper presents a method for simulating basic manufacturing operations (unload, load, process, move, and store) in a 3D virtual environment. The virtual environment provides a framework for representing a facility layout in 3D, which encapsulates the static and the dynamic behavior of the manufacturing system. The 3D manufacturing objects in the facility are mapped with the nodes in the framework. The framework, a modified scenegraph structure, is a tree structure, which can be manipulated by updating the parent-child relationships and the transformation matrix to simulate the basic manufacturing operations. The method can be easily extended to represent more specific manufacturing operations.
Event‐specific chorus wave and electron seed population models in DREAM3D using the Van Allen Probes

The DREAM3D diffusion model is applied to Van Allen Probes observations of the fast dropout and strong enhancement of MeV electrons during the October 2012 “double-dip” storm. We show that in order to explain the very different behavior in the two “dips,” diffusion in all three dimensions (energy, pitch angle, and L*) coupled with data-driven, event-specific inputs, and boundary conditions is required. Specifically, we find that outward radial diffusion to the solar wind-driven magnetopause, an event-specific chorus wave model, and a dynamic lower-energy seed population are critical for modeling the dynamics. In contrast, models that include only a subset of processes, use statistical wave amplitudes, or rely on inward radial diffusion of a seed population, perform poorly. The results illustrate the utility of the high resolution, comprehensive set of Van Allen Probes' measurements in studying the balance between source and loss in the radiation belt, a principal goal of the mission.
Effect of γ‐irradiation on slow crack growth in a copolymer of polyethylene

The effect of y-irradiation on slow crack growth (SCG) in a medium density polyethylene (MDPE) was measured and compared with behavior of high density polyethylene (HDPE) and a recrystallized HDPE (RCHDPE). The three materials exhibited the same dependence on dose up to 3 Mrd. The HDPE became brittle above 50 Mrd. The resistance to SCG of MDPE and RCHDPE increased very rapidly with dose above 3 Mrd, until at 50-80 Mrd their resistance to SCG became extraordinarily high. This high resistance to SCG was accompanied by a transition from crazing to shear deformation at the root of a notch. It was found that for the same concentration, crosslinks are more effective than short chain branches for increasing resistance to SCG.
A Case of Acute Eosinophilic Pneumonia Associated with Intramuscular Administration of Progesterone Following In Vitro Fertilization

Acute eosinophilic pneumonia (AEP) is characterized by idiopathic acute febrile illness, diffuse pulmonary infiltration, severe hypoxemia, and pulmonary eosinophilia. We report a case of AEP associated with intramuscular administration of progesterone as luteal phase support after in vitro fertilization. A 33-year-old woman presented to our emergency room with tachypnea and hypoxemia, complaining of fever and cough for 4 days, and dyspnea for 2 days. The symptoms began 9 days after the first injection of progesterone. Chest radiograph showed bilateral infiltrates, located predominantly in the periphery of the lungs, with blunting of the costophrenic angle. Symptoms and chest radiograph dramatically improved after corticosteroid therapy and shifting the progesterone from an intramuscular form of administration to a vaginal form of administration.
Convergence Speed of the Consensus Algorithm With Interference and Sparse Long-Range Connectivity

We analyze the effect of interference on the convergence rate of average consensus algorithms, which iteratively compute the measurement average by message passing among nodes. It is usually assumed that these algorithms converge faster with a greater exchange of information (i.e., by increased network connectivity) in every iteration. However, when interference is taken into account, it is no longer clear if the rate of convergence increases with network connectivity. We study this problem for randomly placed consensus-seeking nodes connected through an interference-limited network. We investigate the following questions: 1) How does the rate of convergence vary with increasing communication range of every node? 2) How does this result change when every node is allowed to communicate with a few selected far-off nodes? When nodes schedule their transmissions to avoid interference, we show that the convergence speed scales with r2-d , where r is the communication range and d is the number of dimensions. This scaling is the result of two competing effects when increasing r: increased schedule length for interference-free transmission versus the speed gain due to improved connectivity. Hence, although one-dimensional networks can converge faster with a greater communication range despite increased interference, the two effects exactly offset one another in two-dimensions. In higher dimensions, increasing the communication range can actually degrade the rate of convergence. Our results thus underline the importance of factoring in the effect of interference in the design of distributed estimation algorithms.
Design of intelligent fault diagnosis system for energy remote terminal unit based on agent technology

In recent years, Guangdong Power Grid Corporation has built the largest scale electric energy telemetering system in China. More than 400,000 field units had been put into use in Guangdong province. With the scale of system becoming larger, the municipal power supply bureau faces more impression of maintenance work load. In order to decrease the maintenance work load, we have designed and implemented the intelligent fault diagnosis system for field terminal unit based on multi-agent. By using multi-agent technology, the flexible intelligent communication protocol interface and optimal load balancing policy are designed to tackle the problems of various communication protocols and heavy network loads. The production rule knowledge representation is used to build diagnosis knowledge database. The system realized the function of communication monitor and on-line fault-diagnosis, which decreased maintenance work load a lot.
Impact of Positive Nodal Metastases in Patients with Thymic Carcinoma and Thymic Neuroendocrine Tumors.

Introduction Thymic carcinomas and thymic neuroendocrine tumors are rare diseases often treated with surgical resection. currently, there are no guidelines regarding nodal dissection at the time of tumor resection. Moreover, the prognostic significance of nodal metastases is unclear. The goal of this study was to define the incidence and prognostic relevance of nodal metastases in patients with thymic carcinoma and thymic neuroendocrine tumors. Methods The Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results database was queried for patients who underwent surgical resection of thymic carcinoma or a thymic neuroendocrine tumor with documented pathological examination of lymph nodes. The incidence of nodal metastases and the impact on survival were examined. Results We identified 176 patients with thymic carcinoma and 53 with thymic neuroendocrine tumors. A median of three lymph nodes was sampled per patient. Positive metastasis to at least one lymph node was identified in 92 patients (40.2%). Nodal metastasis was more common in patients with thymic neuroendocrine tumors than in patients with thymic carcinoma (62.3% versus 33.5%). In multivariate analysis, nodal metastasis was more likely in patients with thymic neuroendocrine tumors and with more advanced tumors. The presence of nodal metastases had significant, independent, adverse impact on survival (hazard ratio, 2.933, 95% confidence interval, 1.903–4.521, p = 0.001). Median survival was 47 months in patients with nodal metastasis and 124 months in patients without nodal metastases (p Conclusions Nodal status seems to be an important prognostic factor in patients with thymic carcinoma and thymic neuroendocrine tumors. Nodal sampling should be performed during resection of these thymic malignancies.
Modern polymers from natural products

Modern man was not “born yesterday”. At the time man evolved, the only materials about him were inorganics such as rocks, water, and air, and what are called today the “renewable resources” or “natural products”. Amazingly, most of these materials are in service still today. These include wool, cotton, animal glue, and natural rubber. This last was used by the American Indians long before Columbus. Other natural products served as important monomers, such as linseed oil; and an early crosslinker for animal skins was tannin, forming leather. More recently, natural product polymers were chemically modified, as in the esterification of cellulose.
Anomalous Near-Surface Low-Salinity Pulses off the Central Oregon Coast

From mid-May to August 2011, extreme runoff in the Columbia River ranged from 14,000 to over 17,000 m3/s, more than two standard deviations above the mean for this period. The extreme runoff was the direct result of both melting of anomalously high snowpack and rainfall associated with the 2010–2011 La Nina. The effects of this increased freshwater discharge were observed off Newport, Oregon, 180 km south of the Columbia River mouth. Salinity values as low as 22, nine standard deviations below the climatological value for this period, were registered at the mid-shelf. Using a network of ocean observing sensors and platforms, it was possible to capture the onshore advection of the Columbia River plume from the mid-shelf, 20 km offshore, to the coast and eventually into Yaquina Bay (Newport) during a sustained wind reversal event. Increased freshwater delivery can influence coastal ocean ecosystems and delivery of offshore, river-influenced water may influence estuarine biogeochemistry.
Feedback effects of estradiol and progesterone on ovulation and fertility of dairy cows after gonadotropin-releasing hormone-induced release of luteinizing hormone.

An experiment was conducted with the objective to determine the effects of estradiol, progesterone, presence of a corpus luteum (CL), and size of a dominant follicle on the characteristics and patterns of GnRH-induced LH release and subsequent ovulation during a timed artificial insemination (TAI) program, or a combination of these. In 70 lactating dairy cows, a total of 163 blood collection periods resulting in a GnRH-induced LH release were analyzed. Concentrations of LH were measured in hourly samples (0 through 6 h after GnRH) during each of the blood collection periods, whereas concentrations of progesterone and estradiol were measured in the sample before GnRH treatment (0 h). Measures of LH included time to LH peak concentration during the 6-h blood collection period, the 2 largest concentrations of LH, mean, and variance of the 6 LH concentrations under each LH curve. Individual and combination effects of CL presence and a dominant follicle ≤ or >13.5mm, in addition to individual and combination effects of progesterone: low ( 13.5mm. In cows with or without a CL, the presence of a follicle >13.5mm did not increase mean LH concentration or incidence of ovulation. We conclude that when progesterone concentration exceeded 0.5 ng/mL at the time of GnRH treatment, subsequent LH concentrations and ovulation were suppressed. At that same concentration of progesterone or when concentrations of estradiol were ≥4 pg/mL, TAI pregnancy outcomes were improved in the face of similar incidences of ovulation suggesting greater progesterone or lesser estradiol at the time of AI may inhibit pregnancy establishment by other mechanisms.
How Condom Discontinuation Occurs: Interviews With Emerging Adult Women

We have almost no data on how and when couples stop using condoms. This qualitative study investigated the process of condom discontinuation. From November 2013 to April 2014, a total of 25 women living in a college town in the Midwest, ages 18 to 25, participated in semistructured interviews centered around three domains: partner interactions, contraceptive use, and sexually transmitted infection (STI) prevention. Analysis followed a critical qualitative research orientation. Participants described actively seeking the best options to prevent pregnancy, perceiving condom discontinuation in favor of hormonal methods as a smart decision, and reported wanting to discontinue using condoms due to physical discomfort. Oftentimes, nonverbal communication around contextual instances of condom unavailability paved the way for discontinuation. Participants indicated the decision to stop using condoms was neither deliberate nor planned. Condom discontinuation rarely occurred at one point in time; instead, it was pr...