cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Quantifying solid waste and recycling employment in Florida, USA: Trends in public and private sectors

Measuring and tracking the numbers of jobs in solid waste management and recycling industries over time provide basic data to inform decision makers about the important role played by this sector in a state or region's 'green economy'. This study estimates the number of people employed in the solid waste and recycling industry from 1989 through 2011 in the state of Florida (USA), applying a classification scheme based on the Standard Industrial Code (SIC) and utilizing the National Establishment Time Series (NETS) database. The results indicate that solid waste and recycling jobs in the private sector steadily increased from 1989 to 2011, whereas government employment for solid waste management fluctuated over the same period.
Intraneuronal Amyloid and Inflammation

The numbers of neurotoxic consequences from the activated inflammatory cells in the AD brain make the point that in an effort to do well, they cause more harm. A proposed model shows the vicious cycle of events leading to additional cell death in the AD brain. Once the neurodegeneration cascade is initiated, microglial and astrocytes may play major roles directly and indirectly promoting self-sustaining neurodegeneration cycles.
Hypotheses to be Tested in the Starpower Simulation

The hypotheses that are presented in this chapter have been derived from theory that was presented in Chapter Three. They are intended to make sense for class systems in the real world as well as for those in STARPOWER.
Selective Dye and Ionic Permeability of Gap Junction Channels formed by Connexin37 and Connexin45

Human connexin37 (Cx37) and chick connexin45 (Cx45) gap junction proteins were functionally expressed in mouse neuro2A (N2A) blastoma cells and their respective gating, conductance and permeability properties were assessed by ion substitution and flourescent dye transfer assays. Cx45 forms the lowest unitary conductance channel, 30 pS, has a relative anion/cation permeability (Rp) of only 0.12, was not permeable to 6-carboxyfluorescein (6-CF, Mr = 376), but is permeable to 2',7' - dichlorofluorescein (diCl-F, Mr = 401). Cx37 forms the highest unitary conductance channel, 300 pS, has a Rp of only 0.43, is weakly permeable to both 6-CF and diCl-F, and undergoes a 24% decrease in unitary conductance during 6-CF dye transfer. Cx37 also exhibited 60-80 pS subconductance state activity at low transjunctional voltages with high probability whereas Cx45 exhibited 20 pS subconductance state activity at higher transjunctional potentials. These results have direct implications about the forms of intercellular signaling (electrical, chemical) that can occur depending on the expression and conformation of the connexin channel proteins.
A GHz-digital clock jitters in time and frequency

The GHz-digital clock jitter measurement capabilities in time and frequency domains are explored. A 101-stage inverter-based ring oscillator implemented in 65 nm SOI is used as a clock source. Both domains produce clock period jitters reliably. Cycle-to-cycle jitters are obtained in time, and confirmed In frequency domain. Time interval error jitters are calculated from phase noise, and time-domain results are matched with frequency-dependent jitters. The convergence and limitations of time and frequency-domain jitter measurements are presented.
In-database batch and query-time inference over probabilistic graphical models using UDA---GIST

To meet customers' pressing demands, enterprise database vendors have been pushing advanced analytical techniques into databases. Most major DBMSes use user-defined aggregates (UDAs), a data-driven operator, to implement analytical techniques in parallel. However, UDAs alone are not sufficient to implement statistical algorithms where most of the work is performed by iterative transitions over a large state that cannot be naively partitioned due to data dependency. Typically, this type of statistical algorithm requires pre-processing to set up the large state in the first place and demands post-processing after the statistical inference. This paper presents general iterative state transition (GIST), a new database operator for parallel iterative state transitions over large states. GIST receives a state constructed by a UDA and then performs rounds of transitions on the state until it converges. A final UDA performs post-processing and result extraction. We argue that the combination of UDA and GIST (UDA---GIST) unifies data-parallel and state-parallel processing in a single system, thus significantly extending the analytical capabilities of DBMSes. We exemplify the framework through two high-profile batch applications: cross-document coreference, image denoising and one query-time inference application: marginal inference queries over probabilistic knowledge graphs. The 3 applications use probabilistic graphical models, which encode complex relationships of different variables and are powerful for a wide range of problems. We show that the in-database framework allows us to tackle a 27 times larger problem than a scalable distributed solution for the first application and achieves 43 times speedup over the state-of-the-art for the second application. For the third application, we implement query-time inference using the UDA---GIST framework and apply over a probabilistic knowledge graph, achieving 10 times speedup over sequential inference. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first in-database query-time inference engine over large probabilistic knowledge base. We show that the UDA---GIST framework for data- and graph-parallel computations can support both batch and query-time inference efficiently in databases.
Monte Carlo Methods for Constrained Parameter Problems

Constraints on the parameters in Bayesian hierarchical models typically make Bayesian computation and analysis complicated. Posterior densities that contain analytically intractable integrals as normalizing constants that depend on the hyperparameters often lead to implementation of Gibbs sampling or Metropolis-Hastings algorithms difficult. In this chapter, we use simulation-based methods via the “reweighting mixtures” of Geyer (1994) to compute posterior quantities of the desired Bayesian posterior distribution.
“For Where Your Septic Tank is, There Your Heart Will Be Also”: Enterprise Cascadia and the Hood Canal Septic Loan Program

Jan Markham's team was currently considering Enterprise Cascadia as a potential awardee for her foundation's Community Investment Excellence Awards program. The program had been established to recognize and aid in the growth of community development financial institutions that achieved excellence in each of six areas: vision, use of funds, leadership, innovation, financial strength and performance, and impact and policy. Markham's task was to determine if Enterprise Cascadia met these requirements and if it would be a prudent investment for her foundation. Excerpt UVA-ENT-0180 Feb. 10, 2012 “FOR WHERE YOUR SEPTIC TANK IS, THERE YOUR HEART WILL BE ALSO”: ENTERPRISE CASCADIA AND THE HOOD CANAL SEPTIC LOAN PROGRAM Jan Markham made her way along the winding roads back to the Portland airport. The majestic trees emerging from the roadside mists intruded upon her thoughts as she reviewed her meetings with Enterprise Cascadia (EC). After two days of presentations and site visits in rural Oregon and Washington, she was headed home to decide with her foundation's Program-Related Investments (PRI) team whether the James A. Stonefield Foundation would be investing in EC, and if so, how the investment would be structured. Markham knew the team would likely accept her recommendation, so responsibility for the eventual decision lay with her. Markham set the rental car's cruise control and began to review the facts. Markham's team was currently considering EC as a potential awardee for the foundation's Community Investment Excellence Awards program. The program had been established to recognize and aid in the growth of community development financial institutions (CDFIs) that achieved excellence in each of six areas: vision, use of funds, leadership, innovation, financial strength and performance, and impact and policy (see Exhibit 1). Markham's task was to determine if EC met these requirements and if it would be a prudent investment for the Stonefield Foundation. The project that had captured the foundation's attention was EC's Hood Canal Regional Septic Loan Program, the result of a unique blending of public and private interests and resources. The loan program provided consumer loans for upgrading septic systems at income-adjusted (low) interest rates, and the loans were intended to benefit the homeowner, the local environment, and the local economy, which had strong ties to the health of waterways. After three years of service in the Hood Canal region of Washington, EC was seeking capital to expand the program beyond its current three-county footprint. In addition to determining whether the award's criteria were met, Markham needed to evaluate whether the firm was prepared to make the necessary financing, implementation, and managerial changes to fit a different market. . . .
Sirtuin Lipoamidase Activity Is Conserved in Bacteria as a Regulator of Metabolic Enzyme Complexes.

Lipoic acid is an essential metabolic cofactor added as a posttranslational modification on several multimeric enzyme complexes. These protein complexes, evolutionarily conserved from bacteria to humans, are core regulators of cellular metabolism. While the multistep enzymatic process of adding lipoyl modifications has been well characterized in Escherichia coli, the enzyme required for the removal of these lipoyl moieties (i.e., a lipoamidase or delipoylase) has not yet been identified. Here, we describe our discovery of sirtuins as lipoamidases in bacteria and establish their conserved substrates. Specifically, by using a series of knockout, overexpression, biochemical, in vitro, proteomic, and functional assays, we determined the substrates of sirtuin CobB in E. coli as components of the pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDH), α-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase (KDH), and glycine cleavage (GCV) complexes. In vitro assays provided direct evidence for this specific CobB activity and its NAD+ dependence, a signature of all sirtuins. By designing a targeted quantitative mass spectrometry method, we further measured sirtuin-dependent, site-specific lipoylation on these substrates. The biological significance of CobB-modulated lipoylation was next established by its inhibition of both PDH and KDH activities. By restricting the carbon sources available to E. coli, we demonstrated that CobB regulates PDH and KDH under several growth conditions. Additionally, we found that SrtN, the sirtuin homolog in Gram-positive Bacillus subtilis, can also act as a lipoamidase. By demonstrating the evolutionary conservation of lipoamidase activity across sirtuin homologs, along with the conservation of common substrates, this work emphasizes the significance of protein lipoylation in regulating central metabolic processes.IMPORTANCE Here, we demonstrate that sirtuin lipoamidase activity exists in both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria and establishing its conservation from bacteria to humans. Specifically, we discovered that CobB and SrtN act as lipoamidases in E. coli and B. subtilis, respectively. Intriguingly, not only is this sirtuin enzymatic activity conserved, but also the lipoylated substrates and functions are conserved, as bacterial sirtuins negatively regulate the lipoylation levels and activities of PDH and KDH. Considering that PDH and KDH regulate two carbon entry points into the tricarboxylic acid cycle, our finding highlights lipoylation as a conserved molecular toggle that regulates central metabolic pathways. Indeed, our findings from tests in which we limited nutrient availability support this. Furthermore, this study illustrates how the integration of technologies from different disciplines provides avenues to uncover enzymatic activities at the core of cellular metabolism regulation.
CCR5 mediates HIV-1 Tat-induced neuroinflammation and influences morphine tolerance, dependence, and reward.

Abstract The HIV-1 regulatory protein, trans-activator of transcription (Tat), interacts with opioids to potentiate neuroinflammation and neurodegeneration within the CNS. These effects may involve the C-C chemokine receptor type 5 (CCR5); however, the behavioral contribution of CCR5 on Tat/opioid interactions is not known. Using a transgenic murine model that expresses HIV-1 Tat protein in a GFAP-regulated, doxycycline-inducible manner, we assessed morphine tolerance, dependence, and reward. To assess the influence of CCR5 on these effects, mice were pretreated with oral vehicle or the CCR5 antagonist, maraviroc, prior to morphine administration. We found that HIV-1 Tat expression significantly attenuated the antinociceptive potency of acute morphine (2–64 mg/kg, i.p.) in non-tolerant mice. Consistent with this, Tat attenuated withdrawal symptoms among morphine-tolerant mice. Pretreatment with maraviroc blocked the effects of Tat, reinstating morphine potency in non-tolerant mice and restoring withdrawal symptomology in morphine-tolerant mice. Twenty-four hours following morphine administration, HIV-1 Tat significantly potentiated (∼3.5-fold) morphine-conditioned place preference and maraviroc further potentiated these effects (∼5.7-fold). Maraviroc exerted no measurable behavioral effects on its own. Protein array analyses revealed only minor changes to cytokine profiles when morphine was administered acutely or repeatedly; however, 24 h post morphine administration, the expression of several cytokines was greatly increased, including endogenous CCR5 chemokine ligands (CCL3, CCL4, and CCL5), as well as CCL2. Tat further elevated levels of several cytokines and maraviroc pretreatment attenuated these effects. These data demonstrate that CCR5 mediates key aspects of HIV-1 Tat-induced alterations in the antinociceptive potency and rewarding properties of opioids.
Assessing the Relationships Among Forgiveness by God, God Images, and Death Anxiety:

Previous research suggests that people who feel forgiven by God may experience lower levels of death anxiety. The purpose of the current study is to contribute to this work by assessing whether the relationship between forgiveness by God and death anxiety varies according to how people view God. Three images of God are assessed: a pantheistic view of God, a theistic view of God, and a deistic view of God. Data from nationwide survey that was conducted in 2014 (N = 2,650) suggest that the relationship between forgiveness by God and death anxiety is strongest among people with a theistic view of God, significantly weaker among people with a pantheistic view of God, and not significant among individuals with a deistic view of God. The findings point to the importance of taking views of God into account when assessing the relationship between forgiveness by God and death anxiety.
Automatic detection of eloquent axonal pathways in diffusion tractography using intracanial electrical stimulation mapping and convolutional neural networks

Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) have been widely used to solve biomedical imaging tasks. In this paper, we investigate the classification performance of CNN models on Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) streamlines defined by Electrical Stimulation Mapping (ESM). To handle the extremely unbalanced dataset in our study, CNN with focal loss is proposed and compared with linear Support Vector Machine (SVM) and CNN with cross-entropy loss. Through extensive experiments on streamlines collected from 70 subjects, we demonstrate that CNN with focal loss has the ability to handle highly unbalanced data distribution and provides clinically acceptable accuracy on the classification of functionally-important white matter pathways.
Medicinal research: Retrospectives and perspectives

At the early part of last year the editor of this well-known series invited me to write a review chapter for an up-coming volume. In his invitation he allowed a generous latitude in the selection of topics and inferred that a review which would encompass my experience of a quarter of a century in the pharmaceutical industry, all of which was spent with CIBA and CIBA-GEIGY, would be most desirable. To this end and following several exchanges of letters with the editor, I have decided to present a review partly in the form of an autobiographical essay as it relates to the various influences in my background and train¬ing associated with the personalities and events which shaped some of the significant developments in medicinal research with which I was fortunate to be involved. My years in management will also permit me to comment retrospectively on the events of those times.
193. Bypass-Chirurgie der Coronararterien bei 95 Patienten über dem 70. Lebensjahr

Von den bis Juli 1974 am Texas Heart Institute durchgefuhrten 3780 aorto-coronaren Bypass-Operationen waren 95 Patienten 70 Jahre oder alter. Die anfanglich hohe Operationsmortalitat in dieser Altersgruppe mit 27% stand in klarem Gegensatz zur Gesamtmortalitat von 7,1% und konnte im letzten Jahr - hauptsachlich auf Grund von Verbesserungen in der Operationstechnik - von 27 % auf 4,8 % reduziert werden. Damit kann auch beim alten Patienten, im Einzelfall, eine coronare Bypass-Operation als Behandlungsmoglichkeit ins Auge gefast werden.
Remarks About Department of Energy Policy on High-Level Nuclear Waste Management

At the request of Dr. C. Northrup, it is a pleasure to make a few impromptu remarks about the Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) policy on nuclear waste management and about this meeting.
A Coarse-to-Fine Indoor Layout Estimation (CFILE) Method

The task of estimating the spatial layout of cluttered indoor scenes from a single RGB image is addressed in this work. Existing solutions to this problem largely rely on hand-crafted features and vanishing lines, and they often fail in highly cluttered indoor scenes. The proposed coarse-to-fine indoor layout estimation (CFILE) method consists of two stages: (1) coarse layout estimation; and (2) fine layout localization. In the first stage, we adopt a fully convolutional neural network (FCN) to obtain a coarse-scale room layout estimate that is close to the ground truth globally. The proposed FCN combines the layout contour property and the surface property so as to provide a robust estimation in the presence of cluttered objects. In the second stage, we formulate an optimization framework that enforces several constraints such as layout contour straightness, surface smoothness and geometric constraints for layout detail refinement. Our proposed system offers the state-of-the-art performance on two commonly used benchmark datasets.
Exploring ceramide metabolism as a potential target in dedifferentiated liposarcoma.

e22558Background: Dedifferentiated liposarcomas (DDLPS) are highly aggressive mesenchymal tumors characterized by MDM2 amplification. Elevated MDM2 amplification levels are associated with tumor gr...
Pipe-Cleaning Plugged Portacaths: How to Unclog an Implanted Port After Development of a Fibrin Sheath:

Industry has long fought the battle to design a vascular catheter that is less thrombogenic. Indwelling catheters provide long-term central venous access, but they develop fibrin sheaths as the vascular system recognizes them as foreign bodies. Peripheral catheters and central catheters can be changed over a guidewire when they form a fibrin sheath or otherwise malfunction. However, totally implantable venous access devices such as a port cannot be easily exchanged over a wire. Therefore, when a port malfunctions, thrombolytics are usually the only option attempted before the port is explanted and a new site is prepared for access. We present a minimally invasive technique demonstrating port salvage that does not require explant.
Screen Memories: Trauma, Repetition, and Survival in Sidney Lumet’s The Pawnbroker

Sidney Lumet’s Hollywood production of The Pawnbroker in the early sixties based upon a novel of the same name (and released during the same period the Eichmann trial gained traction in Europe and Israel) significantly exceeded films of the preceding decade in America where the Holocaust was commonly presented more swiftly and obliquely. Few historians of the treatment of the Holocaust in American cinema would deny its endurance as an icon of America’s engagement with the European past. This chapter argues that Lumet’s post war “screening of the Holocaust” acquires a new depth and urgency today in the post 9/11 era where liberal democracy would once again appear trumped (if not entirely banished) by private devastations and shifting local and global cultural alignments.
La economía después del neoliberalismo

Ante las evidentes desigualdades economicas que existen en los Estados Unidos y el mundo, surge la necesidad de repensar la economia desde nuevas perspectivas. De esta manera, para las circunstancias actuales, el mercado ya no puede ser el eje central de la economia, ni el neoliberalismo, el fundamento unico en el que se base. Los autores proponen abrir el estudio de la economia mas alla de los economistas y de lo cuantitativo, destacan la democracia y la equidad con el fin de lograr una prosperidad inclusiva.
Evaluation of Virtual Synchronous Generator Compared to Synchronous Generator

Virtual synchronous generator (VSG) can be designed to aid the integration of large-scale distribution generation (DG) such as photovoltaic into the power grid. Through this concept, it is plausible for the DG to exhibit the characteristics and behavior of synchronous generators (SG) such as inertia, droop functions and damping. These factors make it possible for the DG to contribute to the control and stability of the power grid. In this paper, VSG model was designed and study was conducted using it in order to demonstrate that the VSG does have quite similar structure to conventional SG. The responses of both the SG and VSG to changes in varying operating conductions are compared and the results presented in this paper. These models are designed and implemented in an electromagnetic transient program (RMTP).
A New View of the Relationship between Creativity and Intelligence

One hundred and fourteen youths involved in a juvenile justice system, half of whom were included because of potential giftedness, were administered the age appropriate Weschler Intelligence Scales...
SARS-CoV-2 Viral Load Predicts Mortality in Patients with and Without Cancer Who are Hospitalized with Coronavirus Disease 2019

Patients with cancer may be at increased risk of severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), but the role of viral load on this risk is unknown We measured SARS-CoV-2 viral load using cycle threshold (CT) values from reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction assays applied to nasopharyngeal swab specimens in 100 patients with cancer and 2914 without cancer admitted to three New York City hospitals Overall, the in-hospital mortality rate was 39 5% among patients with a high viral load (CT25), 25 6% among patients with a medium viral load (CT 25-30), and 15 7% among patients with a low viral load (CT30;P0 001) Similar findings were observed in patients with cancer (high, 45 0% mortality;medium, 29 2%;low, 13 9%;P=0 003) Patients with hematologic malignancies had higher median viral loads (CT=25 0) than patients without cancer (CT=29 2;P=0 0039) SARS-CoV-2 viral load results may offer vital prognostic information for patients with and without cancer who are hospitalied with COVID-19
Exploring the health of families with a child with autism.

Families provide a critical context for the overall growth and development of a child. The health of a family is foundational to the everyday life in which a child and family can flourish. For fami...
Fluorinated aluminum(III) porphyrins: Synthesis, spectroscopy, electrochemistry and photochemistry

A series of fluorinated free-base porphyrins (H2TPPFn, n = 0, 8, 12, 20, 24) and the corresponding aluminum(III) porphyrin (AlTPPFn-Ph, n = 0, 8, 12, 20, 24) derivatives have been synthesized and t...
Bempedoic Acid (Nexletol) for the Treatment of Hyperlipidemia and Familial Hypercholesterolemia.

Bempedoic acid is labeled as add-on therapy to diet and maximally tolerated statin for the treatment of familial hypercholesterolemia or atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.
The Logic of Violence in Civil War

Introduction 1. Concepts and definitions 2. Pathologies 3. Barbarism 4. A theory of irregular war I: collaboration 5. A theory of irregular war II: control 6. The logic of indiscriminate violence 7. A theory of selective violence 8. Empirics I: comparative evidence 9. Empirics II: microcomparative evidence 10. Intimacy 11. Cleavage and agency Conclusion.
Adapting Virtual Patient Interviews for Interviewing Skills Training of Novice Healthcare Students

The purpose of this paper is to explore the potential of using a selection-based interaction method to adapt virtual patient interviews for training novice healthcare students in interviewing skills. We outline a method for identifying topics about which novices are likely to ask by reviewing previous transcripts of novice interactions, and results indicate that the method was successful in such identification. Additionally, we examine the possibility of using a selection-based virtual patient as a modeling tool for learning interviewing skills. Our initial results support the possibility of such question modeling and reveal that healthcare students already view selection-based virtual patient interactions as modeling opportunities.
Molecular genetic analysis of myoF, a new Dictyostelium myosin I gene

Several new members of the Dictyostelium myosin family have been identified by physical mapping techniques in combination with PCR. Here we describe the initial molecular genetic characterization of one of these, myoF. A 1-kb segment of the myoF gene was obtained by the PCR and used as a specific probe for Northern analysis and as a vehicle for gene-targeting studies. The myoF gene is expressed as a 3.7-kb message, a size consistent with it encoding a myosin I class unconventional myosin, bringing the total of myosin is present in Dictyostelium to six. Analysis of strains in which the myoF gene has been disrupted reveals that loss of the myoF protein does not result in obvious defects either in cellular translocation, or in other readily assayed actin-based processes. The results of our investigation indicate that the myosin I family is quite large in Dictyostelium, and that several members, including myoF, may either be functionally redundant or play roles in as yet undescribed actin-based processes.
Progressive Comparison of the Effects of Computer-Assisted Instruction on the Academic Achievement of Secondary Students.

AbstractThis study employed a meta-analytic technique to compare the academic achievement during a 12-year period of secondary students across a broad latitude of academic areas who were instructed through traditional methodology, traditional methodology supplemented with computer-assisted instruction (CAI), or CAI alone. Moreover, the study compared more recent with earlier research findings. An overall mean effect size of 0.187 was calculated, indicating that, on the average, students receiving traditional instruction supplemented with CAI attained higher academic achievement than did 57.2% of those receiving only traditional instruction. However, a –0.762 correlation between effect size and years indicates that the effect of CAI on academic achievement has declined during this period.
Abolition: Reversion in Europe

The centenary of British colonial slave emancipation in 1933, was celebrated as a national and imperial triumph. The city of Hull, the home town of Wilberforce, was the designated site of celebration. A great civic procession led by Hull's Lord Mayor and a host of dignitaries and descendants of the liberator filed past his birthplace, his grammar school, and its assembled students. The Archbishop of York consecrated the proceedings, accompanied by the hymns and spirituals of black and white choruses. The flags of fifty nations were simultaneous unfurled before tens of thousands of spectators. The Times headlined the events at Hull as the “Centenary of Wilberforce.” For the reigning historians of England, emancipation had raised all of mankind to a higher moral plane. Antislavery's expansion to global proportions was the purest evidence of human progress. The historians never wearied of repeating William Lecky's designation of the fight against slavery as “among the three or four virtuous pages in the history of nations.” The beneficiaries were also evoked: West Indian slaves who had devoutly assembled on the hilltop during the night before liberation awaiting the sunrise of freedom and the natives of Africa, as yet unaware in 1833 that British imperial expansion would entail the slow death of the institution in their own “heart of darkness.” Here, if anywhere, in the historiography of slavery lay the watershed event in the progressive interpretation of history.
Basic Concepts of Insurance

Insurance is an economic institution that allows the transfer of financial risk from an individual to a pooled group of risks by means of a two-party contract. Insurance markets can exist because of the law of large numbers, which states that, for a series of independent and identically distributed random variables (such as automobile insurance claims), the variance of the average amount of a claim payment decreases as the number of claims increases. However, natural hazards-such as earthquakes, floods, and hurricanes—are classified as catastrophic risks. There is a high probability that many structures would be damaged or destroyed at the same time. One way that insurers reduce the magnitude of their catastrophic losses is by employing high deductibles. The use of coinsurance, whereby the insurer pays a fraction of any loss that occurs, produces an effect similar to a deductible. Another way of limiting potential losses is for the insurer to place caps on the maximum amount of coverage on any given piece of property. An additional option is for the insurer to buy reinsurance. Keywords: the law of large numbers; catastrophic risks; deductible; reinsurance
Correlates of Sex Trading among Drug-Involved Women in Committed Intimate Relationships: A Risk Profile

Abstract Background Despite a slight decline in new human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infections in New York, marked increases and concentrated epidemics continue among subsets of the population, including women engaged in sex trading. We examined the prevalence and correlates of sex trading among 346 low-income, HIV-negative women in HIV-concordant intimate relationships. Methods Women and their long-term main partners were recruited to participate in an HIV prevention intervention. Baseline data were used in this article. Findings Of the 346 women in the study, 28% reported sex trading during the prior 90 days. Multivariate analyses showed increased relative risk of sex trading by lifetime experience of severe intimate partner violence (IPV), drug, and alcohol use, and marginal significance for mental health hospitalization, partner drug dependency, and homelessness. Conclusions These findings suggest an urgent need for HIV prevention and intervention efforts targeted toward women in intimate relationships who trade sex for money or drugs, with an emphasis on IPV, mental health, history of incarceration, and substance abuse.
Mechanical design of negative stiffness honeycomb materials

A mechanical system exhibits negative stiffness when it requires a decrease in applied force to generate an increase in displacement. Negative stiffness behavior has been of interest for use in vibro-acoustic damping materials, vibration isolation mechanisms, and mechanical switches. This non-intuitive mechanical response can be elicited by transversely loading a curved beam structure of appropriate geometry, which can be designed to exhibit either one or two stable positions. The current work investigates honeycomb structures whose unit cells are created from curved beam structures that are designed to provide negative stiffness behavior and a single stable position. These characteristics allow the honeycomb to absorb large amounts of mechanical energy at a stable plateau stress, much like traditional honeycombs. Unlike traditional honeycombs, however, the mechanism underlying energy-absorbing behavior is elastic buckling rather than plastic deformation, which allows the negative stiffness honeycombs to recover from large deformations. Accordingly, they are compelling candidates for applications that require dissipation of multiple impacts. A detailed exploration of the unit cell design shows that negative stiffness honeycombs can be designed to dissipate mechanical energy in quantities that are comparable to traditional honeycomb structures at low relative densities. Furthermore, their unique cell geometry allows the designer to perform trade-offs between density, stress thresholds, and energy absorption capabilities. This paper describes these trade-offs and the underlying analysis.
Flipping the Script: Contra Proferentem and Standard Form Contracts

Virtually all modern contracts are standard forms. Although courts have long interpreted ambiguities in such agreements strictly against the drafter, they have struggled to explain why they do so. Under sustained academic fire, states are beginning to abandon the strict against-the-drafter doctrine. Recent cases have even refused to certify class actions on the grounds that a corporate defendant's non-negotiated, unilaterally-dictated contract is ambiguous and thus cannot be construed without individualized extrinsic evidence. This Article claims that the rejection of the strict against-the-drafter rule stems from confusion about its normative foundation. Judges and commentators have offered three rationales for the doctrine: that it discourages ambiguity, corrects unfairness, and redistributes wealth. These theories share the goal of improving the quality and legibility of standard form terms. But even if they succeed, the resulting gains are unclear: most consumers ignore the fine print, and those that do not are cognitively biased and thus cannot value terms accurately. Thus, this Article contends that the doctrine is better understood as encouraging uniformity of meaning in mass-produced contracts. Firms cannot reap the benefits of standardization - institutional, informational, and agency savings - if homogeneous terms lack a single, overarching meaning. At the same time, firms have powerful incentives to use ambiguity strategically and retain confusing terms. The strict against-the-drafter rule counterbalances these enticements. In addition, it prevents the absurd consequences that would result if the meaning of identical terms could fluctuate with the particulars of each transaction.
Charging and accounting system design for the multi-service Internet

This paper is a tutorial about Internet accounting and charging and discusses current works for designing and implementing a next-generation accounting and charging system in the multi-service Internet. We recognize that the multi-service Internet is becoming practical and available, and the currently deployed accounting and charging system in the network is not appropriate in the multi-service Internet environment, such as E-commerce and multimedia services. So, further research for multi-service Internet accounting and charging will lead us to develop the accounting and charging in the next-generation network.
The effect of complete vagisection and vagal stimulation on pancreatic secretion in man.

The frequent use of vagotomy in the treatment of duodenal ulcer1o, regional ileitis6 • 7, and ulcerative colitisSIO has brought up the question of possible undesirable side effects of vagal interruptionu14• This problem has been adequately studied for gastric1o-17 and biliary secretion1S22 but the results of vagisection on pancreatic secretion in man remain to be elucidated. Indeed, the vagal mechanism of pancreatic secretion and its significance in human digestion is still obscure2329 • 33 i most of what is accepted today has been inferred from animal experimentation. The following is a report of an investigation of the influence of vagal stimulation on pancreatic secretion in man, with and without prior vagal interruption.
Expression of Oct-4 and lack of gap junctional intercellular communication as “hallmarks” for human adult stem cells and cancer cells

Proc Amer Assoc Cancer Res, Volume 45, 2004 2787 The stem cell theory has been one of the oldest concepts in the genesis of cancers. This study presents evidence that adult human stem cells are target cells for initiating the carcinogenesis process. In addition, the inhibition of gap junctional intercellular communication (GJIC) by chemicals or oncogenes plays an important role in the promotion/progression phases of carcinogenesis, while the prevention of this inhibition in pre-malignant cells is correlated with chemoprevention and the reversal of inhibited GJIC is correlated with chemotherapy. Adult human stem cells, that have been isolated from the kidney, breast, pancreas, liver and the adipose (mesencyhmal) tissues, were characterized for two markers found in these cells (absence of GJIC function and the expression of Oct-4 gene). The role of GJIC in the carcinogenic process has been previously measured in normal cells [GJIC+], tumor promoter-treated cells [GJIC-], in cells treated with both tumor promoters and chemopreventive agents [GJIC+], in oncogene-activated cells [GJIC-] and in oncogene-chemotherapeutic agent-treated cells [GJIC+]. Normal human adult stem cells from these tissues showed no GJIC and expressed the Oct-4 transcription factor gene, whereas the normal derivative, differentiated cells showed functional GJIC and no expression of Oct-4. In addition, immortalized but non-tumorigenic cells, as well as the tumorigenic cells derived from breast epithelial stem cells in vitro, showed Oct-4 expression, with or without expressed connexin genes but with no functional GJIC. Oct-4 expression was not seen in histological sections of normal tissues, while Oct-4 was expressed in all the tumor cells examined. It has been indicated in the literature that most, if not all tumor cells, have been found to be defective in either homologous or heterologous GJIC. The absence of functional GJIC, either due to no expressed connexins or expressed connexins that are non-functional, and the expression of Oct-4 appear to be common markers for adult human stem cells and tumor cells. The results are consistent with the “stem cell theory” of carcinogenesis. Research supported by a gift from Dr. Barnett Rosenberg to JET and a grant, Michigan Life Science Corridor Fund # GR178, to LKO.
Contextualized Personality, Beyond Traits

Personality psychologists have become increasingly interested in how personality varies across social roles. Within this ‘contextualized’ approach, researchers almost invariably focus on assessing ...
Investigating the tradeoffs between spatial resolution and diffusion sampling for brain mapping with diffusion tractography: Time well spent?

Interest in mapping white matter pathways in the brain has peaked with the recognition that altered brain connectivity may contribute to a variety of neurologic and psychiatric diseases. Diffusion tractography has emerged as a popular method for postmortem brain mapping initiatives, including the ex-vivo component of the human connectome project, yet it remains unclear to what extent computer-generated tracks fully reflect the actual underlying anatomy. Of particular concern is the fact that diffusion tractography results vary widely depending on the choice of acquisition protocol. The two major acquisition variables that consume scan time, spatial resolution, and diffusion sampling, can each have profound effects on the resulting tractography. In this analysis we determined the effects of the temporal tradeoff between spatial resolution and diffusion sampling on tractography in the ex-vivo rhesus macaque brain, a close primate model for the human brain. We used the wealth of autoradiography-based connectivity data available for the rhesus macaque brain to assess the anatomic accuracy of six time-matched diffusion acquisition protocols with varying balance between spatial and diffusion sampling. We show that tractography results vary greatly, even when the subject and the total acquisition time are held constant. Further, we found that focusing on either spatial resolution or diffusion sampling at the expense of the other is counterproductive. A balanced consideration of both sampling domains produces the most anatomically accurate and consistent results.
AN EQUIVALENT DOMAIN INTEGRAL METHOD FOR COMPUTING CRACK-TIP INTEGRAL PARAMETERS IN NON-ELASTIC, THERMO-MECHANICAL FRACTURE

Abstract The crack-tip parameters, such asJ; T ∗ , ΔT ∗ etc, which quantify the severity of the stress/strain fields near the crack-tip in elastic-plastic materials subject to thermo-mechanical loading, are often expressed as integrals over a path that is infinitesimally close to the crack-tip (front). The integrand in such integrals involves the stress-working density, stress, strain and displacement fields arbitrarily close to the crack-tip. In a numerical analysis, such data near the crack-tip are not expected to be very accurate. This paper describes simple approaches and attendant computational algorithms, wherein, the “crack-tip integral” parameters may be evaluated through “equivalent domain integrals” (EDI) alone. It is also seen that the present (EDI) approaches form the generic basis for the popular “virtual crack extension” (VCE) methods. Several examples of thermo-mechanical fracture, including: (i) thermal loading of an elastic material, (ii) arbitrary loading/unloading/reloading of an elastic-plastic material, containing a single dominant crack, are presented to illustrate the present approach and its accuracy.
How Rational Is “The Rational Public”?: Evidence from U.S. Public Opinion on Military Spending

Specialists on U.S. public opinion and foreign policy have rejected the Almond-Lippmann consensus, which implied public attitudes were dangerously erratic, and have moved in varying degrees toward ...
Changing pattern of perinatal brain injury in term infants in recent years

Perinatal brain injury in term infants remains a significant clinical problem. Recently a change appears to have occurred in the pattern of such injuries. We sought to characterize the incidence, etiology, clinical manifestations, and outcomes of these injuries. A retrospective chart review identified clinical characteristics of neuroimaging, electroencephalography, and placental pathologic findings. Perinatal depression was defined as hypotonia and the need for respiratory support. From January 2004-December 2009, 29,597 term deliveries occurred. Brain injuries in 33 infants (live term births) included hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (n = 8; 0.27/1000), subdural hemorrhage (n = 10; 0.34/1000), intraventricular/intraparenchymal hemorrhage (n = 5; 0.17/1000), and focal cerebral infarctions (n = 4; 0.14/1000). Thirteen of 33 infants (39%) were triaged to a regular nursery. Delayed presentations included apnea (n = 6), desaturation episodes (n = 3), and seizures (n = 4). Twenty of 33 (61%) were admitted directly to the neonatal intensive care unit because of perinatal depression or evolving hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy. Clinical signs included seizures (n = 12) and apnea (n = 2). Nine of 19 manifested electroencephalographic seizures. Pathology included chorioamnionitis (n = 7) and fetal thrombotic vasculopathy (n = 5). The latter was associated with focal cerebral infarctions in 3/4 cases. Most cases attributable to perinatal brain injury, except for evolving hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, are not identified according to any perinatal characteristics until the onset of signs, limiting opportunities for prevention.
Effect of the amino acid histidine on the uptake of cadmium from the digestive system of the blue crab, Callinectes sapidus

The digestive tract functions in the storage, metabolism, and excretion of heavy metals in invertebrates. The importance of the digestive tract and the processes governing digestion and absorption of nutrients in heavy metal uptake is becoming increasingly clear. The results of this study suggest that in order to understand the processes controlling heavy metal uptake in invertebrates, it will be necessary to investigate the role that digestion and absorption play in determining the transport rate of metals across the gut wall into the blood. For example, some amino acids increase metal absorption rates, whereas other compounds, such as phytate, decrease metal absorption rates. The results also suggest that experimental designs to investigate metal absorption must include an appreciation of the significant role that the feeding state of the animal (e.g. fed or starved) and the role chelators, particularly those produced by the organisms themselves during digestion, may play in the observed uptake rates of metal ions.
A biogenetic proposal for the simaroubaceous bitter principles.

Ein biogenetischer Vorschlag fur Simaruba-Bitterstoffe, welcher ihre chemische Struktur, Stereochemie und ihre Entstehung in der Pflanze erklart, wird vorgelegt.
A note on estimating parameters in two-parameter Pareto distributions

Pareto distributions are used extensively in modelling income distributions. Estimation of parameters is revisited in two-parameter Pareto distributions. The method of quantile estimates using the elemental estimates and the method of product spacings are applied to the two-parameter Pareto distributions. A comparative study between the maximum likelihood method, the unbiased estimates which are functions of the maximum likelihood method, the minimum mean squared error method, the method of moments, the method of quantile estimation, the method of quantile estimation using the elemental estimates and the method of product spacings is presented.
Statistical tests for whether a given set of independent, identically distributed draws comes from a specified probability density.

We discuss several tests for determining whether a given set of independent and identically distributed (i.i.d.) draws does not come from a specified probability density function. The most commonly used are Kolmogorov–Smirnov tests, particularly Kuiper’s variant, which focus on discrepancies between the cumulative distribution function for the specified probability density and the empirical cumulative distribution function for the given set of i.i.d. draws. Unfortunately, variations in the probability density function often get smoothed over in the cumulative distribution function, making it difficult to detect discrepancies in regions where the probability density is small in comparison with its values in surrounding regions. We discuss tests without this deficiency, complementing the classical methods. The tests of the present paper are based on the plain fact that it is unlikely to draw a random number whose probability is small, provided that the draw is taken from the same distribution used in calculating the probability (thus, if we draw a random number whose probability is small, then we can be confident that we did not draw the number from the same distribution used in calculating the probability).