cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Are temporal variations of leaf traits responsible for seasonal and inter‐annual variability in ecosystem CO2 exchange?

Summary 1. Seasonal and inter-annual variability in ecosystem carbon dioxide (CO2) exchange is attributed to numerous climate drivers. However, climate effects on metabolism often override ecological functions. This study seeks insight into which biological and ecological processes influence temporal patterns of ecosystem productivity in natural ecosystems. 2. The specific objectives of this study are to (i) identify seasonal and inter-annual patterns of ecosystem-level photosynthesis in relation to climatic conditions, (ii) examine and compare seasonal and inter-annual variations in leaf traits for annual grasses and oak trees across multiple years, and (iii) explore interactions among leaf traits and ecosystem-level photosynthesis across multiple seasons and years. 3. We conducted this study in a woody savanna and open grassland in California, USA. Ecosystem-level photosynthetic rates of annual grasses (Agrass) and oak tree canopy (Acanopy) were deduced from eddy covariance measurements over a 7-year period (2001 and 2007). In conjunction, we sampled grass and oak leaves at weekly to monthly intervals and constructed a multiyear time series of leaf nitrogen concentration (N), leaf mass per unit area (LMA), leaf carbon concentration (C), and leaf carbon stable isotope discrimination (D). 4. Given the same grass community age or tree canopy age, inter-annual variations of the photosynthetic rates were up to 1–2 gC m )2 day )1 for annual grasses and oak trees while the two types of vegetation were exposed to different, wide ranges of inter-annual climate fluctuations: up to 5 � C in daily mean soil temperature, 15% in soil moisture, and 10 mol m )2 day )1 in photosynthetically active radiation. 5. While both grass and oak leaf traits varied seasonally and inter-annually, they experienced temporal patterns and seasonal peaks that were distinct from one another. Multi-year means of grass leaf N, C, D, and LMA were 2AE3%, 40AE8%, 22AE6& and 71AE 3gm )2 , respectively; multi-year means of oak leaf N, C, D, and LMA were 1AE9%, 45AE1%, 20AE5& and 132 g m )2 , respectively. 6. Based on the analysis of variance, seasonal and inter-annual terms were associated with Agrass or Acanopy up to 90% or 81%. On the other hand, variations in leaf N, LMA, C, D, and their interactions could statistically explain about 53% and 26% of variations in Agrass and Acanopy, respectively. 7. We discussed possible biological and ecological processes involved in regulating seasonal and inter-annual variability in ecosystem-level photosynthesis. Clearly, seasonal and inter-annual variation in ecosystem photosynthesis was strongly associated with the dynamics of leaf traits.
Discontinuity of Value Functions of Certain Options with Barriers

In this note we prove the following statements, conjectured by Sergei Levendorskii (private communication). Consider a first-touch digital option in a L'evy-driven model, where the underlying Levy process has finite variance and drifts away from the barrier (in other words, we assume that the drift is strictly positive in the case of a down-and-in option, and strictly negative in the case of an up-and-in option). The value function of this option has a discontinuity at the barrier. A similar result is valid for a knock-out barrier option under certain assumptions on the terminal payoff function (these assumptions hold in all examples that arise in practice). Both perpetual and finite-lived options are considered in this article.
Ethics of Human Enhancement and its Relevance to Disability Rights

The prospect of biotechnological enhancement has provoked opposing and sometimes ambivalent responses from scholars concerned with the interests and rights of people with disabilities. The divergence is particularly sharp with respect to radical enhancement, which would raise human functions above current species norms. Disability scholars and activists fall on both sides of this debate. Critics regard radical enhancement as a threat to people with disabilities, increasing their comparative disadvantage and exacerbating their stigmatisation. Proponents regard radical enhancement as potentially liberating for people with disabilities, enabling them to dramatically improve their practical functioning and freeing them from the oppressive sway of species norms. Both sides of the debate have legitimate concerns; both may oversimplify the complex and varied effects of biotechnological enhancement on disability interests and rights. Key Concepts: There is a sharp disagreement about the impact of enhancement, especially radical enhancement, on the rights and interests of people with disabilities. Proponents of radical enhancement argue that it would dramatically increase the opportunities and reduce the stigmatisation of most people with disabilities. Critics of radical enhancement argue that it would worsen the comparative disadvantage of people with disabilities and increase the proportion of people stigmatised as disabled. The claims of proponents may be more plausible with respect to physical disabilities; the claims of critics with respect to intellectual disabilities. Disability scholars and advocates are on both sides of this complex debate. Keywords: enhancement; disability; transhumanism; radical enhancement; species-typicality; species norms; stigma; ableism
Interpreting Science in Informal Settings: Opportunities and Challenges for Technical Communicators

As technical communicators, most of us work within some kind of formal institutional setting. Perhaps we are employed by a university, which has particular rituals and conventions concerning how research results should be communicated. More typically, we work at a scientific or technical institution; but these organizations, too, commonly communicate in formalized ways: through research reports, annual reports, administrative reports, technical articles, manuals, proposals, journal articles, and so on. Wherever we may work, the communications we produce have two major characteristics. First, our communications are most often documents. Obviously we also communicate through other media, such as video, film, computer presentations, poster sessions, exhibits, and the spoken word, but it is safe to say that text produced on paper is still the dominant medium used to communicate science and technology by our institutions, and the training considered appropriate for technical communicators reflects this situation. Second, established conventions regulate how the documents we produce for our various institutions are “consumed” by our audiences. The process is so automatic we are rarely aware of it, but every person who picks up and reads a document follows unwritten rules that tell where the beginning is to be found, which way to proceed to get from beginning to end, and the direction words will flow on a page. To put the matter another way, as people who communicate principally through documents, we don’t have to worry about how our readers will behave when confronted with our written words. We how what they will do because the opportunities for variation are small. Further, we can generally assume that people who pick up our document do so with the intent to learn something about its subject.
The Impact of an Interactive Multimedia System on the Quality of Learning in Educational Psychology

AbstractA problem-solving approach with an emphasis on the concepts of situated cognition and anchored instruction was used to guide the creation of an interactive multimedia learning environment for an introductory educational psychology course. Classroom analyses produced by students who participated in the course using this environment were compared with papers from students who took a traditional course on the same material. Students from the multimedia course used more research and theory to support their analyses and integrated their presentations of observation and theory better than those in the traditional course. Students’ responses to the multimedia environment were gathered through individual interviews. Though preliminary in nature, this study provides evidence of the potential for using interactive multimedia environments to develop analytic problem-solving ability in a specific content domain.
Community Collaborative Partnerships: The Foundation for HIV Prevention Research Efforts, by Mary M. McKay and Roberta L. Paikoff (Eds.)

A recently released report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, 2005) on estimates of new HIV infections in the United States underscores the crisis faced in communities o...
Variability in the organizational structure of contemporary campus law enforcement agencies: A national‐level analysis

Descriptive analyses of campus police agencies reveal that agencies’ tactical and operational features are similar to those found in municipal agencies. The problem is that none of these studies have examined, using multivariate models, the structural characteristics of these organizations. Using LEMAS data collected in 1995, this study answered two main questions: what are the organizational characteristics of campus police agencies; and what factors, both internal and external, explain variation in the structural dimensions of the agencies. The results indicated that campus police agencies possess the same structural characteristics of municipal police agencies identified by 40 years of police organizational research, and internal agency characteristics were most important in explaining variation in the organizations’ structural dimensions. The degree to which campus agencies have adopted organizational structures that are similar to those of municipal police is discussed and framed within an institutional perspective.
Arrhythmias in rat hearts exposed to pulsed ultrasound after intravenous injection of a contrast agent.

Objective. To develop an animal model suitable for characterizing electrocardiographic arrhythmias in hearts exposed to ultrasound after injection of a microbubble contrast agent. Methods. Conduction complex and heart lesion data were recorded from 20 rats that received intravenous injections of 0.25 mL of a contrast agent and were exposed to pulsed ultrasound (frequency, 3.1 MHz; pulse duration, 1.3 microseconds; pulse repetition frequency, 1700 Hz; and in situ peak rarefactional pressure, 15.9 MPa). The volume of the contrast agent based on body weight and the mechanical index (ultrasonic pressure) exceeded those used in echocardiography by 14 to 345 and 3 to 29 times, respectively Results. Premature atrial complexes, premature ventricular complexes, or polymorphic ventricular tachycardia occurred in 10 rats. When ultrasound exposure was halted, arrhythmias ceased but reoccurred in 4 of the 10 rats when exposure resumed. Myocardial degeneration identified by histochemical staining (hematoxylin-basic fuchsinpicric acid) was observed in 16 rats; however, only 10 rats had arrhythmias. There was no significant difference in the amount of histochemical staining in hearts from rats with arrhythmias when compared with rats without arrhythmias. Conclusions. An animal model suitable for characterizing electrocardiographic arrhythmias in rat hearts exposed to ultrasound after injection of a microbubble contrast agent was developed. Because arrhythmias were induced principally when the contrast agent interacted with ultrasound during exposure, the presence of myocardial degeneration alone was not a sufficient explanation for ectopic electrical activity. Under these extreme exposure conditions, the data suggest that pulsed ultrasound through its biomechanical interactions with contrast agents has the potential to induce arrhythmias.
The internal communication role of the chief executive officer: : Communication channels, style, and effectiveness

Abstract This study explores the internal communication role of chief executive officers (CEOs) by examining their communication channels, style, and quality, as well as their influence on employee–organization relational outcomes. Results showed that CEOs most frequently use email and face-to-face channels to communicate with employees. The social media presence of CEOs positively and strongly correlates with their communication responsiveness and quality, as well as employee–organization relational outcomes. The responsive communication style of CEOs positively influences the quality of CEO communication, which subsequently affects employee relational outcomes. The assertive communication style of CEOs demonstrates a small significant positive effect on the quality of employee–organization relationships but nonsignificant effect on the quality of CEO communication. The significant theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed.
An Initial Investigation of the Relationship Between Insomnia and Hoarding

Objective Insomnia has been shown to have profound negative consequences on multiple aspects of daily functioning. Despite increased interest in the association between insomnia and psychopathology, no research has examined the relationships between insomnia and hoarding. The aim of the current investigation was to examine the associations between insomnia and hoarding severity. Methods Participants consisted of patients with hoarding disorder (n = 24). Results Results revealed that insomnia was a significant predictor of increased hoarding severity. In addition, when examining the relationships among insomnia and specific hoarding symptoms, sleep difficulties were associated with increased acquiring and difficulty discarding behaviors. Conclusions These findings add to a growing body of literature on insomnia and various forms of psychopathology, as well as research on symptoms related to hoarding. Reducing insomnia symptoms among hoarders may help to reduce hoarding-related behaviors and increase treatment efficacy.
Far-infrared spin and combination resonances of the holes in bismuth

Abstract With the aid of far infrared transmission measurements on thick samples of bismuth in the Faraday geometry we have identified both the spin and combination resonance of the holes.
Effects of Surface Properties on Radiative Transfer in a Cylindrical Tube With a Nonparticipating Medium

Radiative heat transfer inside a cylindrical tube is modeled using a statistical method called the discrete probability function (DPF) method. The DPF method involves solution of the equation of radiative heat transfer using Lagrangian simulations of representative photon trajectories on a discrete spatial grid. The DPF method is different from the Markov Chain method in terms of associating a probability with each state of the photon rather than a transition from one state to another. The advantages and disadvantages of the DPF method in comparison to the Markov Chain method are demonstrated in this paper using two practical applications of the cylindrical tube radiative heat transfer problem. The cylindrical tube has a hot source at one end and a detector at the other end. The cylindrical wall absorbs and reflects (both diffusely and specularly) the radiation incident on it. The present calculations have applications in: (1) intrusive pyrometry with collimating light guides, and (2) measurement of the spectral absorption and reflection coefficients of coatings using two, coated cylindrical tubes as specimen.
Constitution of the lead- and antimony-rich regions of the antimony-lead-tellurium ternary system

Abstract The lead- and antimony-rich regions of the ternary system antimony-lead-tellurium have been determined by using a combination of thermal analysis, X-ray and micrographic techniques. A eutectic melting at 252.3° is located in this system at 88.9 wt.% lead, and 11.1 wt.% antimony, which is practically the same as the antimony-lead binary eutectic. Lead telluride is the phase of primary precipitation in over 90% of the region bounded by Pb-Sb-PbTe. Antimony is the primary phase precipitating out over most of the remaining area and alpha (lead-rich solid solution) is the primary phase in a very small portion of the system. No evidence of ternary intermetallic compounds was encountered, and only very small terminal solid solubilities were found.
Resolution of ribosomal complexes and RNA isolated from bacterial and mammalian sources

A method has been described for the resolution of polyribosomes and RNA prepared from both mammalian and bacterial sources. Although numerous studies have shown the presence of the components we have studied, our results demonstrate a unique resolution of ribosomal complexes that are closely related in size by automatic density gradient fractionation. The fractionation of RNA by this method is not appreciably improved over those which have been previously published. However, this automatic method is rapid and reproducible and presents a convenient means for the analytical determination of various complexes of ribosomes and RNA. Furthermore, the amounts resolved may be sufficient in quantity for in vitro amino acid incorporation or sRNA-ribosome binding studies.
Active LC filters on silicon

The paper deals with research toward the design of active LC filters on silicon. Subjects such as negative resistors, Q enhancement, dynamic range, filter synthesis, and automatic tuning are discussed.
A comparison of length of stay, readmission rate, and facility reimbursement after lobectomy of the lung.

Background Readmission to the hospital has become a focus for payers with the threat of nonpayment for preventable readmissions and a global penalty for excessive readmissions rates. This study compares readmission rates with lengths of stay (LOS) for patients undergoing lobectomy of the lung and the potential impact on reimbursement. Methods The Premier database for a single health system's hospitals was used to identify patients undergoing lobectomy for non-small cell lung cancer by cardiothoracic surgeons over a 5-year period. Charlson comorbidity scores were also calculated. Regression analysis was used to study the relationship between length of stay and readmission rates. A comparison of the effects of LOS and readmission on reimbursement was also performed. Results During the study period, 4,296 lobectomies were performed in 61 hospitals within the healthcare system that met the study's inclusion criteria. A readmission was recorded for 289 patients (7%). Factors associated with readmission were length of stay less than 5 days or more than 16 days and age more than 78 years ( p = 0.001). An analysis of the effects of LOS and readmission on reimbursement found an extension of LOS was more cost effective than a readmission. Conclusions This review found that mean LOS after lobectomy is negatively associated with readmission rates, with the maximal effect being before postoperative day 5. Furthermore, facility reimbursement was optimized when LOS was extended to minimize the risk of readmission.
Sulfated Trihexosylceramide from Gastric Mucosa Containing N‐Acetylglucosamine

A new sulfated glycosphingolipid containing N-acetylglucosamine has been isolated from hog gastric mucosa by extraction with sodium acetate. Based on the results of partial acid hydrolysis, sequential degradation with specific glycosidases, and methylation analysis of the native and desulfated compound, the structure of this glycolipid is proposed to be: SO3H(leads to 6)GlcNAc-(beta 1 leads to 3)Gal(beta 1 leads to 4)Glc(1 leads to 1)Cer(GlcNAc, N-acetylglucosamine; Cer, ceramide).
Droplet growth by coalescence in binary fluid mixtures.

The evolution of the drop-size distribution in immiscible fluid mixtures following well-specified shear histories is investigated by in situ microscopy, allowing determination of the shear-induced coalescence efficiency $\ensuremath{\varepsilon}$. At small capillary number Ca, $\ensuremath{\varepsilon}$ is constant, whereas at larger values of Ca, $\ensuremath{\varepsilon}$ decreases, in agreement with theory accounting for slight deformation of the drops in close approach. Coalescence causes the drop-size distribution to broaden in general, but greater deformation of the larger drops at high shear rates causes the drop-size distribution to remain narrow.
Malignant rectal carcinoid: a sequential multidisciplinary approach for successful treatment of hepatic metastases.

Summary A malignant rectal carcinoid metastatic to the liver presents a formidable challenge. The uniformly fatal course in patients with liver metastases (average survival of 2 years) justifies an aggressive approach. Although in an occasional patient the tumor is resectable, most are managed by chemotherapy, which generally is of limited effectiveness. Although certain drug combinations such as 5-fluorouracil and streptozotocin have achieved higher response rates, these responses are often brief (3 to 4 months) and poorly documented. Surgical hepatic dearterialization and, more recently, hepatic intraarterial embolization are quite effective in inducing regression in a variety of hepatic neoplasms, including metastatic carcinoids, but these are usually temporary. We have been timely instructed on the value of combined therapy by a patient who is a long-term survivor of a metastatic carcinoid to the liver. She is the only survivor among a group of 14 patients who had an average survival of 17 months. This patient emphasizes the benefit of combined hepatic dearterialization and chemotherapy in patients with metastatic carcinoid to the liver. She initially had intrahepatic infusion of 5-fluorouracil and streptozotocin through the surgically placed hepatic artery and portal vein catheters, but this was curtailed after 2 months because of catheter sepsis. She then had four sequential selective hepatic intraarterial embolizations with Gelfoam over a 16 month period. She also received systemic therapy with 5-fluorouracil and streptozotocin during a major portion of this period (10 months). Significant tumor regression was documented radiologically. Although she had another trial with intrahepatic chemotherapy infusion using surgically placed catheters, this was again discontinued because of catheter sepsis, and systemic chemotherapy was resumed. Currently, the patient is asymptomatic, has excellent performance status, and continues to show objective tumor regression on a program of systemic therapy with fluorodeoxyuridine amd doxorubicin. She has survived more than 7 years with liver metastases from a rectal carcinoid.
Coping trajectories in later life: A 20-year predictive study

Objectives and method: Information about aging-related change in coping is limited mainly to results of cross-sectional studies of age differences in coping, and no research has focused on predictors of aging-related change in coping behavior. To extend research in this area, we used longitudinal multilevel modeling to describe older adults’ (n = 719; baseline M = 61 years) 20-year, intraindividual approach and avoidance coping trajectories, and to determine the influence of two sets of predictors (threat appraisal and stressor characteristics; gender and baseline personal and social resources) on level and rate of change in these trajectories. Results: Over the 20-year study interval, participants declined in the use of approach coping and most avoidance coping strategies, but there was significant variation in this trend. In simultaneous predictive models, female gender, more threat appraisal, stressor severity, social resources, and depressive symptoms, and fewer financial resources were independently ...
The LEF-1 High-Mobility Group Domain Undergoes a Disorder-to-Order Transition upon Formation of a Complex with Cognate DNA †

Lymphoid enhancer-binding factor-1 (LEF-1), a member of the high-mobility group (HMG) family of proteins, functions as an architectural transcription factor. In complex with its cognate DNA, the LEF-1 domain is highly ordered, and its NMR spectra are characteristic of a folded globular protein. In contrast, the uncomplexed protein exhibits NMR evidence of substantial conformational heterogeneity, although circular dichroism spectra indicate that much of the α-helical secondary structure of the DNA-bound state is retained in the free protein. Heteronuclear NMR experiments performed on the free LEF-1 domain reveal that helix II and helix III of the HMG domain are folded, although helix III is truncated at its C-terminal end relative to the DNA-bound protein. The major hydrophobic core between helices II and III appears to be formed, but the minor core near the C-terminus of helix III is unstructured in the free protein. Backbone resonances of helix I are undetectable, probably as a result of exchange broade...
Optimal ensemble control of stochastic linear systems

We consider the optimal guidance of an ensemble of independent, structurally identical, finite-dimensional stochastic linear systems with variation in system parameters between initial and target states of interest by applying a common control function without the use of feedback. Our exploration of such ensemble control systems is motivated by practical control design problems in which variation in system parameters and stochastic effects must be compensated for when state feedback is unavailable, such as in pulse design for nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and imaging. In this paper, we extend the notion of ensemble control to stochastic linear systems with additive noise and jumps, which we model using white Gaussian noise and Poisson counters, respectively, and investigate the optimal steering problem where the terminal mean square error is minimized. The optimal controls are generated for several example ensemble control problems, and Monte Carlo simulations are used to illustrate their performance.
Nanoclusters of gold on a high-area support: almost uniform nanoclusters imaged by scanning transmission electron microscopy

Highly dispersed supported gold offers unprecedented catalytic properties. Determination of the dependence of the catalytic properties on the gold nanocluster size requires the preparation of size-controlled gold nanoclusters on support surfaces with a high degree of uniformity. Starting from site-isolated mononuclear gold complexes on high-area MgO, we demonstrate the preparation of gold clusters consisting of <10 atoms. These samples have been imaged with atomic resolution by aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy. The images show that treatment of the supported mononuclear complexes at 318 K in flowing helium caused aggregation of the gold into clusters of 2-6 atoms, present with unconverted individual site-isolated mononuclear gold species and in the absence of any larger nanoparticles. Treatment of the sample at a higher temperature (373 K) in flowing helium resulted in the formation of gold clusters with diameters of 0.58 +/- 0.15 nm (containing roughly 10 Au atoms), again in the absence of larger nanoparticles. Upon exposure of the supported nanoclusters to the electron beam, they underwent aggregation to gold clusters approximately 1 nm in average diameter, as shown in consecutive STEM images.
Mobile social network based trust authentication

With the spread of mobile phones, through Wi-Fi and 3G communications, users have increased opportunities to retrieve messages and files posted by others while on the move, e.g. walking in the Mall, driving the car, etc. For safety, messages are often encrypted and the source is authenticated via PKI, preventing repudiation. Yet, at times the mobile may issue a message that is not accurate either innocently or maliciously. For example, the driver may report rocks on the pavement when there are crossing animals. Or he may maliciously report heavy traffic ahead to get other vehicles out of his way. The credibility of mobile report can be judged using a social network where the member is ranked by his friends. In this paper we review the construction of a trust graph in a social network like Facebook. We review popular ways of establishing the credibility of mobile user reports applying “transitivity” on single paths computed on the trust graph. We then argue for the importance of exploiting multiple paths in order to detect more subtle attacks not revealed by single paths. The methods are illustrated on artificial social trust networks (offering easily tunable parameters) and are then validated on real social network data.
Democratic Institutional Design: The Powers and Incentives of Venezuelan Politicians and Interest Groups. By Brian F. Crisp. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2000. 294p. $100.00 cloth, $34.95 paper.

Venezuelan politics attracted little attention from political scientists for thirty years after the defeat of the fidelista guerrillas in the 1960s, but there has been a surge of interest in recent years. The country retained civilian, elected govern- ment through a dark period of authoritarianism in Latin America, which seemed to make it a good candidate for deriving lessons about transitions to democracy. In the 1990s, however, the democratic system entered into crisis. Venezu- ela experienced urban riots, two unsuccessful coups, removal of a president from office before completion of his term, rising electoral abstention, collapse of the traditional parties at the heart of the system, and the election of a coup leader to the presidency. Attention shifted from what went right to what went wrong. These books help us understand the limitations of the Venezuelan democratic model.
Instructional Feedback III: How Do Instructor Facework Tactics and Immediacy Cues Interact to Predict Student Perceptions of Being Mentored?

Mentoring is a trusting, developmental supervisory relationship whose success largely depends on participants' interpersonal abilities. Feedback interventions with mentees commonly present interactional challenges to maintaining that relationship, yet are integral to any teaching–learning context. In this study we examined whether and how two key, trainable teacher communication abilities—face-threat mitigation (FTM) and nonverbal immediacy—predicted students' perceptions of being mentored by a teacher. Levels of actual FTM tactics and teacher nonverbal immediacy (TNI) cues were manipulated in a feedback intervention situation on video and analyzed across a 2 × 2 design. Factorial MANCOVA analysis of perceived mentoring detected significant multivariate main effects for FTM tactics and for TNI cues, no significant two-way interaction effect between those two interpersonal variables, and differences in how TNI and FTM each contributed to predicting mentoring's four measured dimensions. Theoretical and peda...
Effects of racial stereotypes on eyewitness performance: Implications of the real and the rumoured Allport and Postman studies

The Allport and Postman (1945, 1947) study of rumour has been widely cited in support of the claim that expectations based upon racial stereotypes can cause eyewitnesses to make dramatic errors in perceiving or remembering an event. However, this claim is founded on inaccurate accounts of the study that have appeared throughout the eyewitness testimony literature. In this article we explore the implications of the actual Allport and Postman study, and the study as erroneously described, for questions about eyewitness performance.
Scintillation compensation for laser beam projection using segmented deformable mirrors

A two deformable mirror concept for correcting scintillation effects in laser beam projection through the turbulence atmosphere has been previously studied. This system uses a deformable mirror and a Fourier transforming mirror to adjust the amplitude of the wave front in the telescope pupil. A second deformable mirror is used to correct the phase of the wave front before it leaves the aperture. The phase applied to the deformable mirror used for controlling the beam amplitude is obtained using a technique based on the Fienup phase retrieval algorithm. In the earlier work pointwise control of the wave front phase was assumed. In this paper we explore the consequences of using realistic finite degree of freedom segmented deformable mirrors to implement the two deformable mirror-based scintillation compensation technique. Our results show that under nearly all conditions of interest single deformable mirror branch point-based phase reconstruction provides equal or superior performance in this laser beam projection paradigm.
Teacher quality and earnings

Abstract The effect of cognitive ability as indicated by a vocabulary test score on earnings by teachers and selected other occupations is estimated. Although test scores increase earnings for non-teacher occupations, the effect of test scores on teacher earnings is zero.
Modeling Transmission Time of Silicon Nanophotonic Waveguides

We propose a simple computational model for silicon nanophotonic waveguides which simulates the full spectral distribution function of propagation time (group delay), including the role of interfaces and roughness. Experimental validation is shown using complex field measurements of light transmission on fabricated waveguides.
Richard Pearson Strong and the Manchurian Epidemic of Pneumonic Plague, 1910-1911

HE Chinese winter of 1910-1911 was one of death and discontent: an epidemic of pneumonic plague—the greatest since the Black Death of the fourteenth century—scourged China's three Eastern Provinces (Manchuria), and famine afflicted the Central Provinces. The Manchurian plague claimed some fifty thousand lives in four months, and the famine took thousands more. Not all the hungry died, but no one sick with plague survived; there were, claimed one source, 43,942 cases and 43,942 deaths. While famine neither affected the foreigners in China nor menaced international frontiers, plague threatened to do both. World powers held privileged positions in a backward China, and some, especially Russia and Japan, feared that the plague would endanger their resident populations, compromise commercial interests, and spread to contiguous national territories. The epidemic also provided Russia and Japan with a potential excuse to take over plague control—and perhaps more—in Chinese territory, incursions
A relationship between certain colored generalized Frobenius partitions and ordinary partitions

Ramanujan's congruence p(5n + 4) ≡ 0 (mod 5) for ordinary partitions is well-known. This congruence is just the first in a family of congruences modulo 5; namely, p(5nn + δα) ≡ 0 (mod 5α) for α ≧ 1 where δα represents the reciprocal of 24 modulo 5α. A similar family of congruences exists for ordinary partitions modulo 7. In this paper we prove the corresponding congruences for generalized Frobenius partitions with 5 and 7 colors modulo 5 and 7, respectively, by establishing an equality between these two classes of generalized Frobenius partitions and certain ordinary partitions. The proofs are based on some elegant identities of Ramanujan.
Cavity Depth, Not Experience, Determines Nest Height In Eastern Bluebirds

Abstract The functional consequences of nest size variation in cavity nesting birds have been thoroughly investigated in recent years. However, it is unknown whether recent nest-building experience influences subsequent nest architecture. By providing Eastern Bluebirds (Sialia sialis) with either deep or shallow nest boxes for their initial nest of the breeding season, we tested whether the height of their subsequent nest in the same breeding season reflected the height of their initial nest or whether they built nests to match their current nest cavity regardless of their previous nest height. We found that second nests built in deep boxes were significantly taller than first nests built in shallow boxes by the same females. This difference could be because of nest date, cavity depth, or experience. We tested each possible driver and found that cavity depth better explains variation in nest height than either nest date or prior experience. We conclude that, for this multi-brooded secondary cavity nesting...
The power of obfuscation techniques in malicious JavaScript code: A measurement study

JavaScript based attacks have been reported as the top Internet security threats in recent years. Since most of the Internet users rely on anti-virus software to protect themselves from malicious JavaScript code, attackers exploit JavaScript obfuscation techniques to evade the detection of anti-virus software. To better understand the obfuscation techniques adopted by malicious JavaScript code, we conduct a measurement study. We first categorize observed JavaScript obfuscation techniques. Then we conduct a statistic analysis on the usage of different categories of obfuscation techniques in real-world malicious JavaScript samples. We also study the detection effectiveness of 20 most popular anti-virus software against obfuscation techniques. Based on the results, we analyze the cause of the popularity of obfuscation in malicious JavaScript code; the reason behind the choice of obfuscation techniques and the difference between benign obfuscation and malicious obfuscation. Moreover, we also provide suggestions for designing effective obfuscation detection approaches in future.
Effect of pyruvate upon nucleated and enucleated fragments of Amoeba proteus.

THE detection of metabolic differences between nucleated and enucleated fragments of Amoeba proteus suffers from the fact that the amounts involved are often minute1. In a search for the effect of enucleation upon cellular metabolism, the sensitivity of nucleated and enucleated fragments, respectively, towards selected metabolites may serve as a guide.
A tunable dual-band miniaturized monopole antenna

The rapid growth of the market for wireless communication devices demands more flexibility in coordinating different wireless standards and devices while maintaining a small device profile. This has produced a need for compact antennas with frequency tunability across multiple operating bands. Many techniques have been developed to produce miniaturized antennas, including the use of slots and high-permittivity dielectrics. At the same time, techniques for producing tunable multi-band antennas have been devised. These include the loading of a multi-resonance structure, such as a multi-branch monopole or a planar inverted F antenna, with varactor diodes. However, such tuning techniques typically result in limited size reduction or increased manufacturing complexity.
Acquired right ventricular outflow tract obstruction

It is not unusual for complicated aneurysms of the ascending aorta to affect left ventricular function. Processes causing or associated with an aneurysm may narrow the coronary artery ostia and produce myocardial ischemia or infarction; the aneurysm may distort the aortic valve ring and produce aortic insufficiency with subsequent left ventricular hypertrophy, dilatation, and failure. However, an unusual manner in which an aortic aneurysm can lead to heart failure is by right ventricular outflow tract obstruction. Here, the clinical picture often resembles that of pulmonic stenosis. This report describes such a complication of an aortic aneurysm and focuses attention on the variety of mechanisms by which acquired right ventricular outflow tract obstruction may be produced
Can High Stakes Testing Leverage Educational Improvement? Prospects from the Last Decade of Testing and Accountability Reform.

This article examines major trends in testing and accountability reform in the United States over the past decade. The review covers the apex and decline of the national experimentation with a range of alternative assessments and the rise of test-based accountability as a central policy initiative. These trends signify that testing has become a widely utilized instrument for educational reform in America. Research on these trends indicates that high stakes testing does motivate teachers and administrators to change their practices, yet the changes they motivate tend to be more superficial adjustments in content coverage and test preparation activities rather than promoting deeper improvements in instructional practice. Further, the information provided by large scale assessments is primarily useful to measure school and system progress, but of more limited utility for instructional guidance. Most problematic is that the high stakes testing system in America has been repeatedly promoted as a substantive reform in itself. However, high stakes testing is a relatively weak intervention because, while it reveals shortcomings, it does not contain the guidance and expertise to inform response. The article concludes with suggestions on how to capitalize on the strengths of high stakes testing while minimizing its shortcomings.
Social failures of EU enlargement: a case of workers voting with their feet

Social failures of EU enlargement: a case of workers voting with their feet, by Guglielmo Meardi, New York and London, Routledge, 2012, 229 pp., $125.00 (hardback), ISBN 978-0-415-80679-4 This book...
Benefits, constrainsts and the evolution of the family

Families form when offspring delay dispersal and remain associated with their parents into adulthood. What are the ultimate causes of such philopatry and prolonged association? Two schools of thought have emerged, providing seemingly opposing answers to this question - the 'benefits of philopatry' and the 'ecological constraints' schools. A recent threshold model for delayed dispersal helps clarify the confused semantics of these arguments and demonstrates the complimentarity of the two approaches. Many of the current advantages of family living may have evolved secondarily, however, suggesting that the initial origin of families occurred under conditions of severe competition for breeding vacancies.
Measure of Despair: the Syndicate for Commerce and Industry, the London Tribune, and German Foreign Policy, 1906–8

Based on fresh archival sources in Germany and Britain, this article offers new insight into the mindest of the German Foreign Ministry in the aftermath of the First Morocco Crisis of 1905/06. Eager to arrest the deterioration in the Anglo-German relationship and concerned about its fallout for US-German relations, the German Foreign Ministry, in league with twenty of the country's top financiers, took a radical initiative which resulted in Germany's largest expenditure, before the First World War, on influencing the press. The article closes with a transnational comparison, detailing a similar influence-buying scheme masterminded by a high-level British political wire-puller.
Squamous cell carcinoma of the sinonasal cavity arising as a second primary in individuals with head and neck cancer.

Objectives/Hypothesis: Second primary tumors occur frequently in patients with head and neck carcinoma. This may be caused by generalized exposure to carcinogens resulting in "field cancerization" or to the individuals' generalized susceptibility to cancer. The paranasal sinuses are not commonly included in the sites considered at risk for this process. We therefore sought to assess the overall risk of contracting a primary cancer in this region after having a tumor elsewhere in the upper aerodigestive tract. Study Design: Retrospective. Methods: Two thousand four hundred seventy-five patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the upper aerodigestive tract were analyzed using a tumor registry at a tertiary care institution. Results: Five (0.2%) patients were identified as having a second primary in the sinonasal tract. The average interval between the index and second primary tumors was 28.4 (range 8-60) months. All five patients presented with symptoms typical of sinus inflammatory disease and had advanced sinus lesions at the time of diagnosis. These findings are typical of those with sinonasal carcinoma in that they present with nonspecific signs and symptoms and were diagnosed with locally advanced disease despite being in a surveillance program for their index cancer. Conclusions: Although uncommon, the data reported here support inclusion of the sinonasal tract in these surveillance programs. This could result in earlier detection and greater opportunity for curative intervention.
KDOQI US Commentary on the 2009 KDIGO Clinical Practice Guideline for the Care of Kidney Transplant Recipients

In response to recently published KDIGO (Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes) guidelines for the care of kidney transplant recipients (KTRs), the National Kidney Foundation's Kidney Disease Outcomes Quality Initiative (KDOQI) organized a working group of transplant nephrologists and surgeons to review these guidelines and comment on their relevance and applicability for US KTRs. The following commentaries on the KDIGO guidelines represent the consensus of our work group. The KDIGO transplant guidelines concentrated on aspects of transplant care most important to this population in the posttransplant period, such as immunosuppression, infection, malignancy, and cardiovascular care. Our KDOQI work group concurred with many of the KDIGO recommendations except in some important areas related to immunosuppression, in which decisions in the United States are largely made by transplant centers and are dependent in part on the specific patient population served. Most, but not all, KDIGO guidelines are relevant to US patients. However, implementation of many may remain a major challenge because of issues of limitation in resources needed to assist in the tasks of educating, counseling, and implementing and maintaining lifestyle changes. Although very few of the guidelines are based on evidence that is strong enough to justify their being used as the basis of policy or performance measures, they offer an excellent road map to navigate the complex care of KTRs.
Pseudoelastic Hinges Promoting Muscle “Creep” as Opposed to Relaxation for the Rehabilitation of Spastic Syndromes

The evolution of spastic pathologies as a consequence of brain damage is a complex phenomenon involving disuse, immobility and brain tissue remodeling [1]. The vicious circle leading to a worsening of the patients’ status proceeds through muscle shortening by contractures, disruption of the normal reflex behaviour and sensory disturbances. A way to prevent chronicity of major consequences could be to favour mobility and any residual use of the affected limb.Copyright © 2012 by ASME
Hypotension and thirst in rats after isoproterenol treatment

Abstract Drinking induced in rats by systemic isoproterenol treatment is markedly attenuated after bilateral nephrectomy. The present experiments demonstrate that the hypotension produced by iso-proterenol treatment was more profound, and lasted much longer, in nephrectomized rats than in intact animals. When arterial blood pressure was partially elevated by central administration of angiotensin II or carbachol (Experiment 1) or by intraarterial infusion of epinephrine (Experiment 2), drinking behavior was restored in the nephrectomized animals and their water intakes approximated the amounts consumed by intact rats given isoproterenol. In general, an inverted U-shaped curve was found to define the relation between blood pressure and water intake in rats after isoproterenol treatment. Drinking was most probable when mean arterial blood pressures were in the range of 70–85 mm Hg, whereas rats were unlikely to drink when blood pressures were much below or above this range. These findings indicate that isoproterenol-induced thirst is not dependent on a renal dipsogen, and suggest instead that the hypersecretion of renin that occurs in intact rats is simply permissive of drinking behavior by modulating the hypotensive effects of the drug treatment.
The application of cognitive dissonance theory to consultation

Abstract Despite the importance of the consultation role for the school psychologist, the current literature on consultation has little to offer the practitioner in terms of empirically-based consultation strategies. This paper views consultation as, at least in part, a persuasive process. Cognitive dissonance theory is an extensively researched social psychological theory that predicts when a particular persuasive attempt will be successful and which has implications for consultation. This article summarizes those aspects of dissonance theory that are most relevant to consultation, reviews the corresponding experimental support, and suggests practical applications of dissonance research and theory to consultation. Because these applications are extrapolations from research outside of consultation, they are viewed as hypotheses.