cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Subgrid corrections in finite-element modeling of storm-driven coastal flooding

Abstract Coastal flooding models are used to predict the timing and magnitude of inundation during storms, both for real-time forecasting and long-term design. However, there is a need for faster flooding predictions that also represent flow pathways and barriers at the scales of critical infrastructure. This need can be addressed via subgrid corrections, which use information at smaller scales to ‘correct’ the flow variables (water levels, current velocities) averaged over the mesh scale. Recent studies have shown a decrease in run time by 1 to 2 orders of magnitude, with the ability to decrease further if the model time step is also increased. In this study, subgrid corrections are added to a widely used, finite-element-based, shallow water model to better understand how they can improve the accuracy and efficiency of inundation predictions. The performance of the model, with and without subgrid corrections, is evaluated on scenarios of tidal flooding in a synthetic domain and a small bay in Massachusetts, as well as a scenario with a real atmospheric forcing and storm surge in southwest Louisiana. In these tests we observed that the subgrid corrections can increase model speed by 10 to 50 times, while still representing flow through channels below the mesh scale to inland locations.
ORGANIZED CRIMES AGAINST NATURE: ELEPHANTS IN SOUTHERN AFRICA

Poaching of elephants in Southern Africa is now dominated by international groups following a model of organized crime. This shift, from poaching conducted by small, local groups; with limited mobility, weapons, and technology, to individuals who organize, finance, equip, and transport well-armed poaching units to previously scouted locations, has made the protection of elephants in Southern Africa much more difficult and dangerous. This paper develops a model of high-tech criminal poaching. A poaching organization makes a decision on the number of “planned poaching expeditions.” If a poaching unit is intercepted the entire organization is destroyed, but is replaced by a new organization in the next year. The operating life of a poaching organization is a stochastic process, which in turn induces a stochastic evolution in the elephant population. Under plausible conditions, the number of planned poaching expeditions is highly sensitive to the probability of interception by anti-poaching patrols, but is nonresponsive to reductions in the black-market ivory price. Thereby it might be better to focus conservation efforts on increasing the probability of intercepting poaching units rather than trying to control black market ivory prices. A benchmark value of poaching expeditions is identified—above which elephants may slowly decline to extinction.
Poverty-Pimping CDCs: The Search for Dispersal's Next Bogeyman

There are three points made by Orfield et al. that I will address in my comments. The first is the authors' contention that housing policy should be driven by the obligation to integrate. Second, the authors suggest that higher costs of building affordable housing in Minneapolis and Saint Paul is due to the particular characteristics of the ”poverty housing” industry in the two cities. Finally, the authors conduct an analysis of a specific affordable housing development in Minneapolis and purport to show that the project has produced no community level benefits.
Socioeconomic Status, Measurement

Socioeconomic status (SES) is utilized in a broad range of sociological research and refers to the relative placement of individuals within the hierarchical social structure of a given society. An individual's SES is correlated with behavior and lifestyle, and SES has been one of the most robust and consistent variables in explicating variations among social groups in health status. SES is a multidimensional construct and has traditionally been measured by occupational prestige, educational attainment, and/or income. More recently, researchers have used area- based measures, such as neighborhood SES, and some have proposed that utilizing a life course perspective is crucial to more accurately understanding the relation between SES and health. Critics claim that researchers should seek to account for as many of the socioeconomic variables as possible while considering how differences in social groups may play a role in the interpretation of findings. Keywords: methods in sociology; socioeconomic status; sociology of health and illness; stratification and inequality; Max Weber
Edward Ardizzone Revisited: Lucy Brown and the Moral Editing of Art.

Edward Ardizzone (1900–1979), a British painter and illustrator, authored a successful set of children's books known as the “Tim” series, which began in 1936. One of the picture books, however, Lucy Brown and Mr. Grimes (1937), went out of print and was not reissued for 33 years. This article discusses the possibility that the implications of the story line provoked controversy among American librarians in the 1930s. A comparison of the two editions includes these issues. What is a quality picture book and are they just for children? Do revisions meant to modernize a classic make it a stronger work?
Computational studies of spatially constrained DNA

Closed loops of double stranded DNA are ubiquitous in nature, occurring in systems ranging from plasmids, bacterial chromosomes, and many viral genomes, which form single closed loops, to eu-karyotic chromosomes and other linear DNAs, which appear to be organized into topologically constrained domains by DNA-binding proteins [1,2]. The topological constraints in the latter systems are determined by the spacing of the bound proteins along the contour of the double helix along with the imposed turns and twists of DNA in the intermolecular complexes [3,4]. As long as the duplex remains unbroken, the linking number Lk, or number of times the two strands of the DNA wrap around one another, is conserved [5–8]. If one of the strands is nicked and later re-sealed, the change in overall folding that accompanies DNA-protein interactions leads to a change in Lk. The supercoiling brought about by such protein action, in turn, determines a number of key biological events, including replication, transcription, and recombination [9].
Exploring fractionation models for Martian magmas

[1] Martian primary compositions, i.e., magmas that did not experience fractionation and/or contamination after extraction from the mantle, occur as a subset of Martian meteorites and a few lavas analyzed on the planet's surface by rovers. Eruptions of primary magmas are rare on Earth and presumably on Mars. Previous studies of fractional crystallization of Martian primary magmas have been conducted under isobaric conditions, simulating idealized crystallization in magma chambers. Polybaric fractionation, which occurs during magma ascent, has not been investigated in detail for Martian magmas. Using the MELTS algorithm and the pMELTS revision, we present comprehensive isobaric and polybaric thermodynamic calculations of the fractional crystallization of four primary or parental Martian magmas (Humphrey, Fastball, Y-980459 shergottite, and nakhlite parental melts) using various pressure-temperature paths, oxygen fugacities, and water contents to constrain how these magmas might evolve. We then examine whether known Martian alkaline rock compositions could have formed through fractional crystallization of these magmas under the simulated conditions. We find that isobaric and polybaric crystallization paths produce similar residual melt compositions, but given sufficient details, we may be able to distinguish between them. We calculate that Backstay (Gusev Crater) likely formed by fractionation of a primary magma under polybaric conditions, while Jake_M (Gale Crater) may have formed through melting of a metasomatized mantle, crustal assimilation, or fractional crystallization of an unknown primary magma. The best fits for the Backstay composition indicate that consideration of polybaric crystallization paths can help improve the quality of fit when simulating liquid lines of descent.
Still no flying cars

Why, after less than two centuries of almost incomprehensible technological progress has progress in so many areas seemed to slow almost to a halt.
Early Reading Intervention for Urban Learners: Implications for Practice

In this article the authors review the reading status of urban learners and examine the role of phonemic awareness in reading acquisition. Their review indicates that phonemic awareness alone is not sufficient for reading acquisition, and that phonemic awareness in combination with alphabetic principle is needed to promote reading competence. The article reports existing findings on phonemic awareness and alphabetic principle as they relate to outcomes for urban learners. Because one of the greatest challenges in today's schools is putting research-based reading instruction into practice, a challenge greatly multiplied in urban settings, this article provides a focused discussion of practical implications for teachers, educators, and administrators.
An information-processing model of the aircraft accident investigator

Verbal reports elicited from accident investigators and motion pictures of the investigators' activities during 16 investigations of light aircraft accidents were used as the empirical basis for a computer model of the aircraft accident investigator. The model simulates the major processes apparent in the investigators' reports, including the selection of aircraft and terrain features to be observed and the generating and testing of kinematics hypotheses. The computer program accepts a description of aircraft damage and gouge marks and generates a series of kinematics hypotheses. The effects of variations in investigator parameters on the outputs of the model were studied in a series of 40 simulation runs. A preliminary comparison was made between the output of the model and the conclusions of a human investigator working with the same data.
Automated initialization and automated design of border detection criteria in edge-based image segmentation

An automated model-based image segmentation method is presented. Information for image segmentation is automatically derived from a training set provided in a form of segmentation examples. In the first step, an approximate location of the object of interest is determined. In the second step, accurate border segmentation is performed. The method was tested in five different segmentation tasks that included 489 objects to be segmented. The final segmentation was compared to manually defined borders with good results. Two major problems of current edge-based image segmentation algorithms were addressed: strong dependence on a close-to-target initialization, and necessity for manual redesign of segmentation criteria whenever a new segmentation problem is encountered.
THE CIRCATIDAL RHYTHM IN VERTICAL SWIMMING OF FEMALE BLUE CRABS, CALLINECTES SAPIDUS, DURING THEIR SPAWNING MIGRATION: A RECONSIDERATION

Ovigerous blue crabs, Callinectes sapidus Rathbun, undergo ebb-tide transport (ETT) during the spawning migration from estuaries to coastal areas where they release larvae. An initial field study found that only females with mature embryos underwent the spawning migration and that postspawned females switched to flood-tide transport for movement back into and up estuaries. Alternatively, a more recent field study found ETT occurred in females throughout embryo development and continued after larval release. An endogenous rhythm in vertical migration underlies ETT during the spawning migration. A past study found the circatidal rhythm was only present in females with mature embryos but not in females with immature embryos or after larval release. The present study reinvestigates this rhythm in vertical migration. Both females with early embryos and postlarval release females entrained in the field have circatidal rhythms, in which they swim vertically at the time of consecutive ebb tides at the collection site or on alternate ebb tides. These results support the field study that ovigerous females undergo ETT throughout embryo development and after larval release. Thus, females will be transported seaward and release subsequent larval clutches in coastal areas that increase the likelihood that larvae will be transported to offshore developmental areas.
HUME AND THE SECOND-QUALITY ANALOGY

In this paper I consider Hume's position on the analogy between moral qualities and secondary qualities. Although some have suggested that Hume's use of the analogy is important to his moral philosophy, others have disputed its significance to Hume. My position in this paper is that Hume believes there are indeed similarities between moral and secondary qualities that illuminate the nature of virtue. This paper is divided into two parts. In the first, I consider Hume's point(s) in raising the analogy by arguing for four similarities between moral qualities and secondary qualities that he likely had in mind; and in the second, I respond to various objections alleging that Hume did not, and indeed, could not, rely on the analogy in any substantial way.
Backcalculation of Dynamic Modulus Mastercurve from Falling Weight Deflectometer Surface Deflections

The need to characterize the structural condition of existing pavements accurately has increased with the recent development, release, and ongoing implementation of the new Mechanistic-Empirical Pavement Design Guide (MEPDG). There is a strong need to identify and evaluate the way that falling weight deflectometer (FWD) testing is operated and integrated into the new design procedure. One of the key inputs in the MEPDG for asphalt pavements is the dynamic modulus (|E*|) master-curve. If the damaged |E*| mastercurve of the asphalt concrete in an existing pavement can be obtained from FWD deflections, a more accurate prediction of its remaining service life can be achieved. A methodology backcalculates the |E*| mastercurve of the asphalt pavement layer by using the time history of FWD surface deflections. The method uses a layered viscoelastic forward algorithm in an iterative backcalculation procedure for linear viscoelastic characteristics of asphalt pavements. With deflection time histories from a typica...
Preconditioned time differencing for stiff ODEs in diurnal atmospheric kinetics

The equations of atmospheric chemical kinetics are often very stiff. It is, in large part, due to the computational expense involved with solving these equations, that extended integrations of three-dimensional chemical-radiative-transport models are still not economically feasible. The problem with stiff equations is the severe limitation placed on the stepsize of an explicit scheme due to stability, which forces the use of an implicit scheme. The problem with the implicit scheme, however, is that a non-linear system must be solved at each step. In this paper, we examine a methodology that yields unconditionally stable, explicitly computable methods for a class of chemical kinetics equations without requiring the use of a Jacobian matrix. These methods are variants of a fixed point iterative method and are called preconditioned time differencing methods. We show that these methods are significantly faster than the counterpart methods in widespread use with chemical-radiative-transport models. This result lays the groundwork for further research that promises to significantly improve the performance of these vital research models.
Residential perspectives: the value of Floodplain‐ buyout open space

This mixed-methods case study identifies how floodplain property acquisition—a buyout—impacts an urban environment at the neighborhood scale while considering the role of individual residents in formal and informal land-use decision making. In floodplain buyouts, the reopening of urban space is enabled by federal structural drivers, primarily Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), but it is repurposed as a cultural landscape constructed and produced by individuals. This research explores how residents perceive and ascribe values to the buyout landscape in Lexington, Kentucky. Enabled by federal funds, but left largely to their own devices, residents in Lexington adopted uses, ascribed values, and produced their own land-use norms in each buyout neighborhood.
Two approaches to optimal routing and admission control in systems with real-time traffic

This paper addresses the problem of routing and admission control of real-time traffic in a queueing system where customers must begin service within given deadlines (or complete service within given deadlines), otherwise they are considered lost. Performance in such systems is measured by the probability a customer is lost. For a system ofK parallel servers with a probabilistic routing and admission control scheme, the problem of the optimal routing and admission control is considered and two approaches are presented. Assuming the availability of a closed-form expression for the probability of loss at each server, the problem is solved under general conditions and properties of the optimal flow allocation are given. However, such closed-form expressions are often unavailable. This motivates a second approach, which involves a gradient-based stochastic optimization algorithm with on-line gradient estimation. The gradient estimation problem for loss probabilities is solved through a recently-developed smoothed perturbation analysis (SPA) technique. The effectiveness of on-line stochastic optimization using this type of gradient estimator is demonstrated by combining the SPA algorithm with a sampling-controlled stochastic optimization algorithm for the aforementioned routing and admission control problem.
Okhotsk-Chukotskiy Belt and Problem of Volcanic Arcs in Northeast Asia: ABSTRACT

1. The East Asian volcanic belt system is between the circum-Pacific zone of Cenozoic folding in the northeast and the interior, more ancient, mainly Mesozoic tectonic zones. The size of the East Asian system is comparable to that of recent volcanic arc systems. 2. The largest element of the East Asian system, the Okhotsk volcanic belt, is characteristic of marginal-volcanic belt structures. The basic features of the belt were formed during the Aptian-Albian and Cenomanian-Turonian Stages. Andesite volcanism prevailed during these stages. In addition, granitoid magmatism was widespread and accompanied by the formation of large-volume ignimbrite fields. 3. Comparative structural, petrologic, and historic-geologic analyses reveal a considerable difference between the Okhotsk-Chukotskiy belt, on the west, and the Kuriles-Kamchatka arc, on the east. 4. Subaerial, mainly andesitic volcanism formed a well-defined zone--now widely exposed--in the basement structures of the Okhotsk-Chukotskiy belt. The zone developed simultaneously with a system of deep faults, which during the Mesozoic separated the Verkhoyansk-Chukotskiy belt (west of the Okhotsk-Chukotskiy belt) and the Anadyr-Koryak-Kamchatka geosyncline (east of the Okhotsk-Chukotskiy belt). During the Late Jurassic and the first half of the Early Cretaceous, the Okhotsk-Chukotskiy volcanic belt (in relation to other belts mentioned) played the same role as does the Kuriles-Kamchatka volcanic arc today. The Kuriles-Kamchatka arc separates western Kamchatka, the Sea of Okhotsk, and Hokkaido on one side from the Kuriles-Kamchatka Trench on the other. 5. The Late Jurassic and Early Cretaceous Okhotsk-Chukotskiy volcanic arc was a peculiar bordering structure, which separated the Anadyr-Koryak-Kamchatka geosyncline system (a trench on the east), then at the early stage of its development, from the Verkhoyansk-Chukotskiy region of Mesozoides which was in a more advanced stage of development (stage of epigeosyncline orogenesis). Development of the Okhotsk-Chukotskiy marginal volcanic belt began during the Aptian-Albian when the Anadyr-Koryak-Kamchatka system entered a stage when there was a large terrigeneous sedimentary accumulation, whereas the Verkhoyansk-Chukotskiy area was a consolidated continental block tending to rise. The volcanic belt developed on the site of the volcanic arc and extended far beyond the limits of the original arc--covering Mesozoides structures, even older massifs, and the peripheral zone of the Anadyr-Koryak-Kamchatka geosyncline system. 6. Gradual migration of volcanic arcs toward the Pacific did not occur in northeast Asia. Instead, the appearance and development of northeast Asian arcs were somewhat irregular in time and space. The structure and tectonic development of these belts and structures are important in considerations of the general problem of andesite volcanism. End_of_Article - Last_Page 2468------------
Abstract B11: An empirical evaluation of array normalization for Agilent microRNA expression arrays

Introduction: Array normalization is an essential component of array data preprocessing, which removes array effects resulting from the experimental process. Methods for array normalization have been developed in the context of mRNA expression arrays, such as median normalization and quantile normalization. These methods assume few or symmetric differential expression of markers on the array. These assumptions are likely to be appropriate for mRNA expression arrays that consist of tens of thousands of markers with only a small fraction of these generally associated with the disease under study. In contrast, microRNA expression arrays consist of a few hundred markers and a reasonable fraction of them are anticipated to have disease-relevance; further, the numbers of over- and underexpressed microRNAs are not likely to be the same in studies involving tumors. Consequently, the performance of the existing normalization methods need to be reevaluated when applied to microRNA arrays of tumors. Methods: In this study, we empirically examined sources of variations in microRNA array data using a set of Agilent microRNA arrays in liposarcoma (n=56) and evaluated methods for normalization using Solexa sequence data on a subset of these tumors (n=29) as the gold standard in the following three aspects: (1) correlation of the target-sequence-specific data on each array; (2) selection of significant microRNAs; (3) estimated direction of change for the significant microRNAs. Results: We found that there is minimum variation between replicate probes for the same target sequence and moderate variation between multiple target sequences for the same microRNA. There is moderately high correlation between Agilent data and Solexa data on the same tumors, with the Pearson correlation coefficient ranging from 0.517 to 0.794. Quantile normalization has slightly improved the correlation with Solexa data, as well as the detection of differentially expressed microRNAs both in terms of statistical significance and the direction of change. Conclusions: The number of replicate probes for each target sequence ranges from 4 to 16, which is unnecessarily high and can be reduced. Target sequences for the same microRNA need to be analyzed separately. Quantile normalization improves the accuracy of the analysis. Further investigations with other disease types are needed to validate this finding. Citation Information: Clin Cancer Res 2010;16(14 Suppl):B11.
Do anesthesiologists die at a younger age than other physicians? Age-adjusted death rates.

UNLABELLED I designed this study to determine whether anesthesiologists are susceptible to premature death. Three specialty groups were studied: anesthesiologists, internists, and all other physicians. Records were examined of all American physicians who died in the years 1989, 1990, 1995, 2000, and 2001, and those who were alive at the end of 1989, 1995, 2000, and 2001. Anesthesiologists had a statistically significant younger mean age at death (crude mortality) (68.98 +/- 15.55 yr) (n = 723) than did internists (74.41 +/- 14.24 yr) (n = 2285) and all other physicians (75.21 +/- 13.3 yr) (n = 18,328) (P < 0.001). However, by factoring in the ages of the living members of the study populations, there was no statistical difference in age-specific mortality. IMPLICATIONS It has been suggested that one of the potential occupational hazards of the practice of anesthesiology is premature death. This study disproves the notion that anesthesiologists die at a younger age than other physicians.
Cherry-Picking Customers by Party Size in Restaurants

This paper examines the phenomenon of cherry-picking customers—serving the high value customers and denying service to low value customers. These actions are fundamental to revenue management, but have received essentially no attention in the context of restaurants. Two common characteristics of restaurants make them a logical environment in which to implement cherry-picking—compared to smaller parties, larger parties typically take longer to dine and spend less per person. A short example provides motivation and the author reports on an international survey of restaurant managers, which indicates that cherry-picking actions are not uncommon. The author also reports on a simulation study to explore the factors affecting the level of excess demand necessary to justify cherry-picking. Important factors are customers’ willingness to wait for tables, the length of the peak-demand window, and the proportionality of space required by different size tables. The author also evaluates two heuristics for predicting...
Bicuspid aortic valve disease: the role of oxidative stress in Lrp5 bone formation

The bicuspid aortic valve is a common congenital cardiac anomaly, having a prevalence of 0.9% to 1.37% in the general population and a male preponderance ratio of 2:1. The recognition of a bicuspid aortic valve is clinically relevant because of its association with aortic stenosis or regurgitation, aortic aneurysm or dissection, and infective endocarditis. Although some patients with a bicuspid aortic valve may go undetected without clinical complications for a lifetime, the vast majority will require intervention, most often surgery, at some point. In fact, the natural history of bicuspid aortic valve is that of valve calcification and progressive stenosis that typically occur at a faster rate than in tricuspid aortic valves. This pattern of presentation supports the hypothesis that shear stress in patients with congenitally abnormal aortic valves may contribute to an earlier leaflet calcification. However, there is emerging research data showing that the valve calcification process might have a similar pathophysiologic process to that of vascular atherosclerosis. This review focuses on the current knowledge of the cellular mechanisms of bicuspid aortic valve.
Regional Brain Metabolism in a Murine Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Model

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is characterized by multiorgan inflammation, neuropsychiatric disorders (NPSLE), and anti-nuclear antibodies. We previously identified a subset of anti-DNA antibodies (DNRAb) cross-reactive with the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor, present in 30% to 40% of patients, able to enhance excitatory post-synaptic potentials and trigger neuronal apoptosis. DNRAb+ mice exhibit memory impairment or altered fear response, depending on whether the antibody penetrates the hippocampus or amygdala. Here, we used 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) microPET to plot changes in brain metabolism after regional blood–brain barrier (BBB) breach. In DNRAb+ mice, metabolism declined at the site of BBB breach in the first 2 weeks and increased over the next 2 weeks. In contrast, DNRAb− mice exhibited metabolic increases in these regions over the 4 weeks after the insult. Memory impairment was present in DNRAb+ animals with hippocampal BBB breach and altered fear conditioning in DNRAb+ mice with amygdala BBB breach. In DNRAb+ mice, we observed an inverse relationship between neuron number and regional metabolism, while a positive correlation was observed in DNRAb− mice. These findings suggest that local metabolic alterations in this model take place through different mechanisms with distinct time courses, with important implications for the interpretation of imaging data in SLE subjects.
Effects of forced alcohol drinking on alcohol-water choice in three pairs of rat lines selectively bred for differences in alcohol preference.

Three pairs of Indiana University rat lines (inbred alcohol-preferring and nonpreferring rat lines [P/NPs], high- and low-alcohol-drinking rat lines [HAD/LAD1s and HAD/LAD2s]) were bred in the School of Medicine colony to drink high versus low daily amounts of a 10% vol/vol alcohol test solution (>5.0 g/kg body weight vs. 2:1 vs. <0.5:1) by the end of a 3-week alcohol-water choice condition. This choice phase was always preceded by four days of a forcing procedure with alcohol as the only fluid. The present study examined the contribution of the forcing procedure to the alcohol intake of animals in each pair of lines by comparing daily alcohol intake of rats housed in experimental chambers in a forced group (4 days with only alcohol solution to drink followed by 22 choice days) versus a choice group (both alcohol and water available all 26 days). As expected, under the initial alcohol exposure, high-drinking line rats drank more alcohol than low-drinking line rats, and all forced groups drank more alcohol than choice groups. At the start of the choice phase, all low-drinking line forced groups immediately dropped their alcohol intake to the level of their choice groups. In contrast, all high-drinking line forced groups maintained a high level of alcohol intake under choice, whereas all high-drinking line choice groups slowly increased average alcohol intake across the 22-day choice phase, ending near the average intake of their forced groups. However, a small subset of each high-drinking line choice animals failed to increase alcohol intake until subsequently forced with alcohol for 4 days and tested again in choice. These results indicate that the alcohol-forcing procedure used in deriving these lines resulted in the selection of more than one pathway to a high-drinking phenotype. In addition, high-drinking line animals appeared more sensitive to the differences between laboratory- and colony-testing environments than low-drinking line animals. These data suggest that these high-drinking lines may represent an unexpectedly appropriate complex model of how multiple factors may contribute to the genesis of human alcoholism.
Nanostructured amorphous manganese oxide cryogel as a high-rate lithium intercalation host

Amorphous manganese oxides have received increasing attention in recent years as high-capacity intercalation cathodes for rechargeable lithium batteries. Nanostructured electrodes have been shown to exhibit enhanced rate capabilities. In this paper, a nanostructured amorphous manganese oxide cryogel is reported that combines the advantages of the amorphous structure and the nano-architecture, leading to high lithium intercalation capacity and high rate capability. The cryogel is prepared by freeze-drying a Mn(IV) oxide hydrogel formed in situ via reduction of sodium permanganate solution with solid fumaric acid. The cryogel exhibits a nanoporous structure and a specific surface area of 350 m2/g. X-ray and electron diffraction reveals the amorphous nature of this freeze-dried gel. The material exhibits specific capacities of 289, 217 and 174 mAh/g at C/100, C/5 and 2C rates, respectively, demonstrating high capacity and excellent rate capability. This work shows the feasibility of the freeze-drying method for obtaining manganese oxides with nano-architecture and high specific surface area, and suggests the promise of the synthesis route to nanostructured amorphous manganese oxides via a hydrogel.
Sodium and strontium extraction from sodium nitrate solutions by n-octane solutions of a branched aliphatic monocarboxylic acid: Mechanisms and equilibria

Abstract Sodium and strontium are extracted from 5·0 M NaNO3 solutions by n-octane solutions of a highly branched aliphatic carboxylic acid (RR′R″CCOOH), a fraction distilled from a developmental mixture “Versatic Acid 1519”. From the dependence of the extraction on pH and extractant concentration, from extractant and extract aggregation in the organic phase and from i.r. absorption studies of the complexes present in the extract, the most probable extraction reactions are Na + +1·5( H A) 2 ⇌ Na A·2 H A+ H + Na + +2( H A) 2 ⇌ Na A·3 H A+ H + Sr 2+ +2( H A) 2 ⇌ Sr 2 ·2 H A+ 2H + Sr 2+ +2·5( H A) 2 ⇌ Sr A 2 ·3 H A+ 2H + The carboxylic acid extraction of sodium and strontium from sodium-salted systems is, in several ways, similar to di(2-ethylhexyl)phosphoric acid (HDEHP) extraction of these ions. Similar salt-plus-coordinated-acid complexes are formed, thus resulting in the curves of strontium extraction coefficient vs. pH having the same general shapes and well defined maxima. The maximum strontium extraction coefficients and separation factors from sodium are almost 100 times greater with this carboxylic acid than with HDEHP. Maximum extraction with the carboxylic acid occurs, however, at pH 8·5–9·5 while with HDEHP it occurs in the pH range 5–6. Thus, the advantage in extraction coefficient may be limited to the more basic ions.
The solubilities of selected elements in liquid plutonium II. Titanium, vanadium, chromium, manganese, zirconium, niobium, molybdenum and thulium

Abstract The solubilities of Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Zr, Nb, Mo and Tm in liquid Pu have been measured individually over the temperature range 700 to 1000 °C. At 700 °C the atomic fractions are 0.0544 Ti, 0.0102 V, 0.0162 Cr, 0.0210 Zr, 0.0110 Nb, 0.0157 Mo, and 0.0235 Tm. The solubilities increase to 0.372 Ti, 0.0446 V, 0.0858 Cr, 0.0371 Nb, and 0.0848 Tm at 1000 °C. At 850 °C, the atomic fraction of Mn is 0.308, and at 950 °C the atomic fraction solubilities of Mn, Zr, and Mo are 0.457, 0.180, and 0.0458, respectively. The data fit empirical equations of the form log 10 N i = A −( B T ) , where Ni is the solubility of the element i expressed as the atomic fraction and T is the temperature in °K.
Probability of Detecting Caribbean Fruit Fly, Anastrepha suspensa (Loew) (Diptera: Tephritidae), Populations with McPhail Traps

A trapping study was conducted to determine the probability of detecting moderate to low populations of Anastrepha suspense (Loew) in citrus groves in central Florida in June and July 1982. Flies were released at rates of 9, 90, and 900 per 0.4 ha and were re trapped in a grid work of 168 McPhail traps (18.2 traps per 0.4 hal. The percent recovery of flies released in the two tests was 14.4 and 12.9%, respectively. The sex ratio of flies recovered averaged 0.35 males per female from a release ratio of 1:1. From the percentage of traps that contained flies of each population, we determined the probability of detecting different population levels of a uniform distribution and age class with various numbers of traps per unit area.
PROPERTIES OF MBE-GROWN SUPERLATTICES AND ULTRA-THIN FILMS

We have used Molecular Beam Epitaxy (MBE) to grow single-crystal Co/Pd superlattices and Co/TM (TM=Cu, Pd, Ag) bilayers and sandwiches along the three high-symmetry crystal directions; [001], [110], and [111]. In the case of Co/Pd superlattices, we previously reported from x-ray diffraction measurements that for small Co thicknesses the (001) oriented superlattices are coherently strained in-plane to near the bulk Pd lattice spacing. This strain leads to a very large in-plane magnetoelastic volume anisotropy for these superlattices. Here we report quantitative in situ RHEED measurements of Co deposited on Pd (001) that confirm this coherently strained growth. We have also used in situ polar Kerr ellipticity measurements to study the perpendicular magnetic behavior of Pd/Co/TM (111) sandwich structures, where TM is the non-magnetic transition metal overlayer Ag, Cu or Pd. We observed perpendicular loops with coercive fields of Hc ≤ 200 Oe for the uncovered Co films for tco ≤ 6 A, becoming in-plane above th...
Retrieving good, better, and best answers to questions in advertisements

Question-Answering (QA) service is a growing area of research study, and commercial QA systems have recently been developed. We are motivated to provide complementary QA service that answers questions in advertisements (ads). These days with almost all businesses online, potential buyers who search for merchandises to purchase through the Internet are also flourishing. When a Web user looks for products online, he may have many questions on his mind for which he would be eager to receive answers prior to finalizing his purchasing decision. Although some ads Web sites are complemented with FAQs, their QA services either are non-existent or do not provide answers to inquires in real time automatically. We address these problems by answering user's questions such as "Which is the cheapest car?", "Are there any entry-level, software developer positions?", etc., spontaneously in real time. Existing general-purpose QA systems, such as Ask.com, provide answers to a user's question Q in a list format. A more sophisticated approach is to order the answers to Q according to their degrees of relevance to Q. We propose a QA system which deals with the challenge of interpreting users' questions and retrieves correct, as well as partially-matched ranked, answers. Experimental results have verified that the proposed QA system is highly accurate in answering users' questions on car ads.
Measuring fluorescence decay times by phase-shift and modulation techniques using the high harmonic content of pulsed light sources

In the present work we discuss the possibility to measure fluorescence lifetimes by coupling pulsed excitation with phase-shift and amplitude-modulation detection techniques. We show that, because of the high harmonic content of narrow light pulses, the sample may be considered as simultaneously excited with a set of modulation frequencies up to the GHz region with noticeable power. By measuring then the phase-shift and modulation ratio of fluorescence with respect to the exciting light in the high-frequency region, impressive time resolutions may be achieved. On the other hand, since we dispose of a wide range of modulation frequencies, the problem of the multiexponential decay may be easily handled and has an exact analytical solution, provided the signal-to-noise ratio is good enough. We anticipate the possibility to introduce cross-correlation methods in order to perform the experiment in the very-low-frequency region. A short discussion about the notion of time resolution for this kind of measurement is also included.
Automated segmentation of brain lesions by combining intensity and spatial information

Quantitative analysis of brain lesions in large clinical trials is becoming more and more important. We present a new automated method, that combines intensity based lesion segmentation with a false positive elimination method based on the spatial distribution of lesions. A Support Vector Regressor (SVR) is trained on expert-defined lesion masks using image histograms as features, in order to obtain an initial lesion segmentation. A lesion probability map that represents the spatial distribution of true and false positives on the intensity based segmentation is constructed using the segmented lesions and manual masks. A k-Nearest Neighbor (kNN) classifier based on the lesion probability map is applied to refine the segmentation.
Modeling Virtual Footprints

Entities interacting on the web establish their identity by creating virtual personas. These entities, or agents, can be human users or software-based. This research models identity using the Entity-Persona Model, a semantically annotated social network inferred from the persistent traces of interaction between personas on the web. A Persona Mapping Algorithm is proposed which compares the local views of personas in their social network referred to as their Virtual Signatures, for structural and semantic similarity. The semantics of the Entity-Persona Model are modeled by a vector space model of the text associated with the personas in the network, which allows comparison of their Virtual Signatures. This enables all the publicly accessible personas of an entity to be identified on the scale of the web. This research enables an agent to identify a single entity using multiple personas on different networks, provided that multiple personas exhibit characteristic behavior. The agent is able to increase the trustworthiness of on-line interactions by establishing the identity of entities operating under multiple personas. Consequently, reputation measures based on on-line interactions with multiple personas can be aggregated and resolved to the true singular identity.
It's Over, Over There: The Coming Crack-up in Transatlantic Relations

Euro-American ties — and NATO — have been ruptured, and never again will be the same. Of course, as the historian Lawrence S. Kaplan correctly observed, ‘The idea of NATO being in a terminal state has been a topic for pundits since the 1950s’ (Kaplan, 1992, 16). It still is. However, today those who argue that the Alliance is in terminal decline have a very strong case to make. There are four reasons for this. First, the Cold War's end has deprived NATO of its essential raison d’etre. Second, the European Union has not only taken huge strides toward attaining political and economic unity but now also has taken significant steps to creating the capacity to act independently of the United States in the security arena. Third, the structural effects of unipolarity are pushing the EU in the direction of counter-balancing American preponderance. Fourth, the Iraq war has highlighted the divergent geopolitical interests of the US and the EU.
Observations of the Crab Pulsar during an Occultation by the Solar Corona

WE have measured the difference in time of arrival between individual pulses from NP 0532 (refs. 1 and 2) in frequency bands at 112, 142 and 170 MHz with the 300 foot telescope of the National Radio Astronomy Observatory. Observations were made between June 12 and June 23, 1969, when the pulsar had heliocentric angular distances in the range 1.5 to 8.7 degrees.
A Proof of a Conjecture on Egyptian Fractions

(2000). A Proof of a Conjecture on Egyptian Fractions. The American Mathematical Monthly: Vol. 107, No. 1, pp. 62-63.
Long-term monitoring of brain tumors: When is it necessary'

Summary Tumors, particularly low grade glioma and glioneuronal tumors, account for 25–35% of patients who are undergoing epilepsy surgery for intractable seizures. A comprehensive epilepsy evaluation including video–electroencephalography (EEG) monitoring is useful for most of these patients, to determine the optimal extent of resection for the achievement of seizure-free outcome without causing postoperative deficits. Video-EEG monitoring for patients with brain tumor should also be considered in specific situations, such as patients with new postoperative seizures or advanced tumors with unexplained mental status change.
Modeling of Terabit Geostationary Terahertz Satellite Links From Globally Dry Locations

While terahertz (THz) communication systems, operating from 100 GHz to 1 THz, have the potential to exploit wide swaths of unused spectrum for ultra-high bitrate communication, there are significant challenges. Particularly, the strong absorption of water vapor can result in very high atmospheric attenuation. We modeled a ground to geostationary satellite link and found that using large aperture THz stations, patterned after the 12.5 m Atacama Large Microwave Array dish and the 3.5 m Herschel Space Observatory optics, worst 10th percentile data rates in excess of one terabit per second in the THz bands are possible. The key is to site ground stations in dry regions. We locate these by coupling our link model, which selects optimum modulation and carrier bandwidth, with global, high-resolution satellite water vapor measurements. We present detailed maps showing modeled link performance over the surface of the Earth. Smaller apertures on aircraft and balloons are also able to exceed 1 terabit/second due to their location above nearly all water vapor. Compared to free-space optical links, evidence suggests THz systems are superior where fog, cloud cover and clear-air turbulence are of concern.
Detection of Alpher-Rubin attenuation and a search for nuclear acoustic resonance of surface waves in tantalum films

The first observation of Alpher-Rubin attenuation of surface acoustic waves is reported. The surface waves were propagated on an {ital ST}-cut quartz substrate, and absorption occurred in a 10-{mu}m tantalum film due to the surface-wave-driven oscillation of conduction electrons in an external 24-kG magnetic field. A scaling law is derived that relates attenuation coefficients of bulk and surface waves. Unsuccessful searches were made for nuclear acoustic resonance (NAR) of surface waves due to electric quadrupole transitions of {sup 181}Ta and magnetic dipole transitions of {sup 1}H. Theoretical estimates of the attenuation of surface waves agree with the observed Alpher-Rubin effect and indicate that the NAR signal was less than the noise.
Mössbauer effect study of tight spin coupling in oxidized chloro-5,10,15,20-tetra(mesityl)porphyrinatoiron(III)

Mossbauer spectra of a polycrystalline form of oxidized chloro‐5,10,15,20‐tetra(mesityl)porphyrin‐ atoiron(III) [Fe(TMP)Cl], compound A, were recorded over a range of temperatures (4.2–195 K) and magnetic fields (0–6 T). These spectra of compound A exhibit magnetic features which are markedly different from those of the analogous protein complexes, horse radish peroxidase compound I (HRP‐I) and compound ES of cytochrome c peroxidase, even though chemical evidence and optical spectroscopy indicate that compound A is similar to the others in comprising a Fe(IV) complex within a porphyrin cation radical. We interpret the data by employing a spin Hamiltonian model in which the central Fe(IV) complex, with S=1, is tightly coupled to a S=1/2 system of the oxidized porphyrin to yield a net S=3/2 system as suggested by the susceptibility measurements. The theoretical treatment yields information on the d‐electron energies which is similar to that more directly available in the peroxidase spectra. The strength of ...
Generating an internally 4-connected binary matroid from another

Abstract We prove that if N is an internally 4-connected proper minor of a weakly 4-connected binary matroid M with | E ( N ) | ≥ 7 , then either there exists a weakly 4-connected minor M ′ of M such that M ′ has an N -minor and 1 ≤ | E ( M ) | − | E ( M ′ ) | ≤ 2 , or one of M and M ∗ is isomorphic to D n , D n ∖ f 1 , D n , or D n ∖ f 1 .
A Novel Regulation of Expression of the α‐Subunit of the G Stimulatory Protein by Dopamine via D1 Dopamine Receptors

Exposure of human neuroblastoma SK-N-MC cells to 100 microM dopamine (DA) for 72 h caused 70% loss of immunodetectable membrane-bound levels of the alpha-subunit of Ga. The loss in Gs alpha was accompanied by reduced (64.3 +/- 0.35% of control values) NaF-mediated stimulation of adenylyl cyclase and was independent of accumulated cyclic AMP (cAMP) levels, because neither forskolin nor dibutyryl cAMP treatment of cells mimicked the DA-induced effects. The reduction in Gs alpha content was manifest at the transcriptional level; Gs alpha mRNA levels were attenuated to 56.5 +/- 10% of control values after a 24-h treatment of cells with 100 microM DA. The concentration of DA required to produce the half-maximal decrease of Gs alpha mRNA content was 20 nM, similar to the high-affinity binding value (8.5 nM) of DA to D1 sites. Gs alpha mRNA levels were also attenuated (52 +/- 3.5% of control values) by the D1-selective agonist SKF R-38393 but not by forskolin or dibutyryl cAMP. Attenuation of Gs alpha mRNA levels by agonists was blocked by the D1-selective antagonist SCH 23390. Stimulation of adenylyl cyclase-inhibitory DA receptors, which are coexpressed in these cells, failed to down-regulate Gs alpha mRNA, indicating that regulation of Gs alpha mRNA expression occurs specifically through chronic stimulation of D1 DA receptors.