cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Identifying Competitive Boundaries: An Analysis of the Impact of Competitive Situations on Consumer’S Perceptions of Retail Stores

This paper reports the results of a survey designed to assess how consumers’ perception of a retail store is affected by its competitive position. Specifically, two questions were addressed: (1) does the traditional assumption that retail competition tends to be intertype appear to be true in practice? and (2) what advantages are gained by a retailer positioned in a "competition free" environment? Managerial implications are presented.
Structure-Based resilience metrics for service-oriented networks

Many governmental agencies and businesses organizations use networked systems to provide a number of services. Such a service-oriented network can be implemented as an overlay on top of the physical network. It is well recognized that the performance of many of the networked computer systems is severely degraded under node and edge failures. The focus of our work is on the resilience of service-oriented networks. We develop a graph theoretic model for service-oriented networks. Using this model, we propose metrics that quantify the resilience of such networks under node and edge failures. These metrics are based on the topological structure of the network and the manner in which services are distributed over the network. Based on this framework, we address two types of problems. The first type involves the analysis of a given network to determine its resilience parameters. The second type involves the design of networks with a given degree of resilience. We present efficient algorithms for both types of problems. Our approach for solving analysis problems relies on known algorithms for computing minimum cuts in graphs. Our algorithms for the design problem are based on a careful analysis of the decomposition of the given graph into appropriate types of connected components.
Beta-thalassemia due to two novel nucleotide substitutions in consensus acceptor splice sequences of the beta-globin gene.

We have identified two novel RNA-splicing mutations affecting a critical nucleotide (nt) in the acceptor consensus sequences at both the IVS-1/exon 2 and IVS-2/exon 3 junctions of the human beta-globin gene. Both mutations are single nt substitutions, T to G and C to A, at position -3 adjacent to the invariant AG dinucleotide. For the IVS- 2/exon 3 mutation abnormal splicing into the cryptic splice site at IVS- 2 nt 579 is documented. Identification of these two mutations provides further support for the importance of the location of specific nucleotides within the consensus sequences in splice site selection and RNA processing.
The Story of Narmada Bachao Andolan: Human Rights in the Global Economy and the Struggle Against the World Bank

This Chapter describes the struggle of India's Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA), a social movement that arose in response to the building of a World Bank-funded dam project along the Narmada River. The project - which has displaced hundreds of thousands and has imposed stunning environmental costs without reaping the promised benefits of modernization - has been the source of constant controversy. In response, the government has maintained that large dams are essential for achieving the common good, reflecting the dominance of a "balancing" or "cost-benefit" approach to development over an approach that puts human rights at the center of the debate. Controversy surrounding the dam led to the World Bank's withdrawal from the project and to the creation of the World Bank Inspection Panel in 1993 - a milestone for the human rights movement, and the first mechanism established to enable local groups to challenge World Bank projects. The Chapter analyzes how a local, grassroots social movement was able to influence human rights discourse at the international level and create a forum for those most affected by development-led displacement. Prior to the Panel's creation, local groups had no formal way of challenging development schemes conceived and financed in faraway capitals. Fifteen years after its creation, the Panel remains increasingly important to human rights advocacy worldwide and despite its mixed record, represents a major milestone in integrating international human rights norms into the practice of development aid. The Chapter also reviews the efficacy of various litigation and non-litigation strategies deployed by the NBA in an attempt to halt construction of the dam and ensure appropriate resettlement and rehabilitation of those displaced by the project.
A Research Note on the Two Faces of Informal Mentoring: Diminishing and Enhancing Role Conflict

Prior research has reported inconsistent results regarding whether public accounting mentoring diminishes or enhances protege role conflict. The current study develops theoretical propositions identifying the contradictory effects of informal mentors on protege role conflict: diminishing overall role conflict, but enhancing (increasing) mentor-based inter-sender role conflict. The hypotheses are tested using responses from 552 practicing CPAs. The results from structural equation modeling suggest that public accounting informal mentoring has both positive and negative attributes. While informal mentors provide information that clarifies proteges' organizational roles, informal mentors also impose role demands that conflict with other role senders. Further statistical tests show the relevance of mentor-based inter-sender role conflict: an association with negative job outcomes, including lower job satisfaction and higher turnover intentions.
Dynamics and quantum noise in photon-photon scattering

Summary form only given. Processes such as self-focusing and degenerate four-wave mixing, which classically can be described in terms of an intensity-dependent refractive index (the optical Kerr effect), appear at the microscopic level to involve momentum exchange among photons, as if there were a photon-photon interaction potential. Within this picture, Kerr optical systems are collections of weakly interacting Bose particles and can be used to investigate a number of interesting problems in condensed matter physics. The nonlinear Schrodinger equations which describe both temporal and spatial solitons are formally equivalent to second quantized /spl phi//sup 4/ field theories. To determine the domain of validity of this analogy, we consider the similarities and differences between an effective photon-photon interaction potential and the atom-mediated photon-photon interaction near the D2 resonance in rubidium vapor. The photon-photon interaction is characterized in terms of scattering amplitudes, and the duration of the photon-photon interaction is shown to depend in an essential way upon inhomogeneous broadening. We present the results of experimental measurements on large-angle photon-photon scattering in a colliding-wave geometry in rubidium vapor. In particular, angular and time correlations are compared to theory. Connections to the theory of quantum noise in phase conjugate reflection are explored.
How social ties influence metal resource flows in the Bangladesh ship recycling industry

Abstract The ship recycling industry in Bangladesh provides critical metal resources for construction and consumer products in the country, which has no native metal sources. This industry illustrates how industrial recycling can arise in a self-organized manner and be maintained through social embeddedness. Information provided through interviews with shipyard owners, traders, and blacksmiths illustrate the importance of historical, cognitive, structural, and cultural embeddedness to maintaining the flow of metals from the ships beached in the coastal city of Chittagong to the capitol city of Dhaka, more than 300 km away. The industry began through small scale metal scavenging; the early scavengers developed the major metal trading businesses operating today, maintained by family relationships. The metalworking community maintains a balance between the strong family ties and weak social ties, ensuring an optimum flow of information among the businessmen in the community. The engagement with scrap handling produces a sense of pride and a pleasure of innovation that binds this community with waste recycling. Thus, the embeddedness of this community through self-recruitment and trade information via social ties directs the resource flows in the community.
Logic programs with abstract constraint atoms

We propose and study extensions of logic programming with constraints represented as generalized atoms of the form C(X), where X is a finite set of atoms and C is an abstract constraint (formally, a collection of sets of atoms). Atoms C(X) are satisfied by an interpretation (set of atoms) M, if M ∩ X ∈ C. We focus here on monotone constraints, that is, those collections C that are closed under the superset. They include, in particular, weight (or pseudo-boolean) constraints studied both by the logic programming and SAT communities. We show that key concepts of the theory of normal logic programs such as the one-step provability operator, the semantics of supported and stable models, as well as several of their properties including complexity results, can be lifted to such case.
Water quality and antibiotic resistance at beaches of the Galápagos Islands

Tourism and residential population growth are increasing on the Galapagos Islands, yet the effects of this growth on environmental quality are not well understood. The goal of this study was to characterize recreational water quality on one of the inhabited islands of the Galapagos (Isla San Cristobal). Five beaches were sampled to allow a comparison between beaches with and without discharge of human sewage, and to help elucidate the effects of human activities in this unique environment. Enterococcus concentrations were quantified using IDEXX Enterolert® and antibiotic resistance testing was performed on Escherichia coli isolated by membrane filtration. All study beaches sometimes exceeded international guidelines for recreational water quality, and significantly higher Enterococcus concentrations were found near sites subjected to sewage discharge (p < 0.01). These sewage-impacted sites also had higher levels of antibiotic resistant E. coli, suggesting that human activities are increasing the levels of resistance that would occur naturally. Future studies should characterize the extent of this impact both spatially and temporally. The results of this study demonstrate that sewage can contribute antibiotic resistant bacteria to marine waters and suggest that human impacts in the Galapagos Islands extend to the environmental resistome. This impact is likely common in areas across the globe wherever tourists frequently carry and use antibiotics.
Updating and Recoding Enamel Microstructure in Mesozoic Mammals: In Search of Discrete Characters for Phylogenetic Reconstruction

The previously unknown enamel microstructure of a variety of Mesozoic and Paleogene mammals ranging from monotremes and docodonts to therians is described and characterized here. The novel information is used to explore the structural diversity of enamel in early mammals and to explore the impact of the new information for systematics. It is presently unclear whether enamel prisms arose several times during mammalian evolution or arose only once with several reversals to prismless structure. At least two undisputed reversions or simplifications are known—in the monotreme clade from Obdurodon to Ornithorhynchus (via Monotrematum?), and (perhaps more than once) within the clade from archaeocete to a variety of odontocete whales. Similarly, both prismatic and nonprismatic enamel is present among docodonts. Seven discrete characters showing enough morphological diversity to be of potential importance in phylogenetic reconstructions may be identified as a more appropriate summary of enamel microstructural diversity among mammaliaforms than the single character “prismatic enamel-present/absent” employed in recent matrices. Inclusion of five of these characters in the matrix of Luo et al. (2002) modifies the original topology by collapsing several nodes involving triconodonts and other nontribosphenic taxa. There is considerable support for prismatic enamel as a synapomorphy of trithelodonts plus Mammaliamorpha, and multituberculates appear to have small or “normal” sized prisms as the ancestral condition, with some (as yet) enigmatic changes to nonprismatic structure in some basal members of the group and the appearance of “gigantoprismatic” structure as an autapomorphic state of less inclusive clades. Other potential qualitative characters and the need for attaining appropriate methods to incorporate quantitative features may be important for future analyses.
A simple procedure for price break models

Abstract This note deals with the problem of determining the economic order quantity of an inventory item having quantity discounts. A simple procedure is suggested which very often reduces the number of computations required for obtaining the economic operating policy.
The cAMP-dependent signalling cascade in the two luteal cell types of the pregnant rat corpus luteum.

Abstract Corpora lutea of rats, like those of many other species, contain two sub-populations of luteal cells. In this report we sought to determine whether the luteinizing hormone (LH)- and β-adrenergic cAMP signal transduction pathways known to be present in rat corpora lutea were segregated into separate luteal cell types. Results showed that large rat luteal cells, obtained on day 3 of pregnancy, exhibited elevated LH- and most notably epinephrine-stimulated adenylyl cyclase activities but equivalent cAMP-dependent catalytic protein kinase and total regulatory subunit cAMP binding activities compared to small luteal cells. Progesterone production by the large cell was greater than that by the small cell but both cells were equally sensitive to stimulation of progesterone by LH. However, neither the large nor the small rat luteal cell produced significant progesterone in response to epinephrine despite a marked epinephrine-stimulated adenylyl cyclase in both cell populations. The LH-stimulated progesterone synthetic response of the two sub-populations of rat luteal cells is more similar to that of the developing monkey corpus luteum and contrasts sharply with that of ruminants.
A Self-Assembled Supramolecular Optical Sensor for Ni(II), Cd(II), and Cr(III)

A new chromogenic supramolecular sensor for transition metals is reported. It is based on a newly designed phenanthroline-containing molecule that self-assembles via an organometallic “clip” into a supramolecular optical sensor for metals.
Hepatitis C therapy before and after liver transplantation

1. Pretransplant therapy, using a low-accelerating-dose regimen, is an option for patients with mildly decompensated liver disease and low laboratory Model for End-Stage Liver Disease scores. Achievement of an on-treatment virologic response is the goal of therapy. Preliminary data suggest that up to two-thirds of patients who become hepatitis C virus RNA-negative on treatment will be hepatitis C virus infection-free post-transplantation. 2. Effective prophylactic therapies are not available. Hepatitis C antibody therapy has been ineffective in preventing hepatitis C virus infection in studies to date. 3. Preemptive antiviral therapy started within weeks of transplantation is limited by tolerability, particularly in patients with high Model for End-Stage Liver Disease scores pre-transplantation. Rates of sustained virologic response vary from 8% to 39%. Histological benefits in virologic nonresponders have been demonstrated. 4. Posttransplant antiviral therapy in those with evidence of recurrent disease is the mainstay of management. A combination of pegylated interferon and ribavirin is the treatment of choice, and sustained virologic response is achieved with 48 weeks of treatment in approximately 30% of treated patients. Attainment of early loss of hepatitis C virus RNA is highly predictive of sustained virologic response. Histologic improvements are seen in responders. Survival is prolonged among those achieving a sustained virologic response. 5. Posttransplant antiviral therapy is limited by poor tolerability and the frequent need for dose reductions and/or discontinuation. Immunologic complications, including acute rejection, chronic rejection, and autoimmune-like hepatitis, occur in association with therapy, albeit at low rates. 6. Hepatitis C virus-infected liver transplant recipients represent an important patient population in need of new therapeutics options to prevent patient and graft losses due to recurrent hepatitis C virus disease.
Phonemic microtomy: The minimum duration of perceptible speech sounds

(1942). Phonemic microtomy: The minimum duration of perceptible speech sounds. Speech Monographs: Vol. 9, No. 1, pp. 75-90.
The High Stakes of Sweepstakes: Too Much of a Good Thing Can Demotivate Digital Consumers

ABSTRACT In preference-matching contexts—specifically, where people enter hoping to find some particular product or service they already know themselves to prefer—more choices should increase the likelihood that they will be successful in their search. Increasing the number of choices, however, actually increases the cognitive workload of consumers, and they may decide consciously or unconsciously simply to apply heuristics—such as clicking the delete button on complex e-mails. This study tested these two alternative theories in a large-field experiment focusing on advertising an experience brand (France as a vacation destination) to Americans under multiple treatment conditions. The findings supported the theory that fewer choices increase behavioral responses, but this effect reversed when an e-mail included a sweepstakes offer. Consequently, the authors found that “it depends on what is offered in conjunction with the direct-sales offers” may be the more accurate perspective than the “less-is-more” proposition.
Determination of wavelength and excitation voltage for X-ray lithography

The exposure time of an X-ray lithography system is minimized by the appropriate choice of X-ray wavelength and target excitation voltage, within the constraints of a specified resolution and contrast in the exposed resist pattern. The factors that must be considered in making this choice are the X-ray source brightness of various target materials, the continuum emission spectrum of the target, the wavelength-dependent transmission of the X-ray mask and the vacuum window, and the wavelength-dependent absorption in the resist. The relative exposure time, as a function of wavelength, is predicted for a system using a 25-µm-thick beryllium window and PMMA resist with three choices of mask substrate: 12.5- µm-thick Mylar, 4.0-µm-thick silicon, and 8.5-µm-thick beryllium. A new mask substrate, 0.2-µm-thick aluminum oxide, is presented and shown to be suitable for exposure in vacuum with a 2.5-µm-thick aluminum filter at 13.3-A wavelength (copper target). X-ray emission spectra from an aluminum target were measured at electron energies of 4.5, 7.9, 10.4, 12.5, 15.5, 19.5, and 28.5 keV. These spectra showed that the continuum radiation contributes little to the degradation of contrast with a gold-on-silicon X-ray mask. Thus a 20-kV electron beam may be used for maximum X-ray production efficiency.
Effect on eye development of dominant mutations in Drosophila homologue of the EGF receptor

The compound eye of the adult fruitfly, Drosophila melanogaster, comprises about 800 identical ommatidia, or unit eyes, each containing 20 distinct cells. We have used histological and immunocytochemical methods to study the development of the compound eye in Ellipse (Elp) mutants. In Elp/Elp, most ommatidia do not initiate differentiation. We present genetic evidence that Elp alleles are mutations of the Drosophila homologue of the epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor, and suggest that activity of the EGF receptor may determine the spacing pattern of ommatidia in the eye.
Automated mobile systems for multidimensional well-being sensing and feedback

In recent years, we have seen a prolific rise of mobile and wearable sensing in healthcare and fitness. Although the data generated is incredibly useful, state-of-the-art feedback technologies are often limited to either providing an overall status or serving large volume of multi-dimensional sensor data with little processing. My research falls into filling this gap. I work on developing systems that use sensors to understand different dimensions of well being, and subsequently devise interventions through personalized and actionable suggestions. Using simple machine learning techniques, my systems automatically mine user behaviors that influence specific well-being dimensions. Then utilizing decision theory and behavioral psychology theory, my systems create personalized actionable suggestions that are related to existing user's behaviors. In this proposal, I describe how I realize such automated systems for sensing and providing feedback.
A preliminary investigation of phonological encoding skills in children who stutter

Purpose The present study investigated phonological encoding skills in children who stutter (CWS) and those who do not (CNS). Participants were 9 CWS (M = 11.8 years, SD = 1.5) and 9 age and sex matched CNS (M = 11.8 years, SD = 1.5).
Dynamic solid-solid transitions with phase characterized by an order parameter

Abstract We develop a thermodynamically consistent continuum theory for the study of solid-solid phase transitions where deformation dominates heat and mass transfer. We use an order parameter to characterize the notion of phase and identify phase interfaces with thin transition zones within which the strain and order parameter exhibit large gradients. To model the growth of one phase at the expense of another we introduce configurational forces, subject to their own balance, that work against changes in the order parameter. By studying traveling waves and the asymptotics of a transition layer, we establish connections between our theory and more standard approaches that identify phase interfaces with surfaces of strain discontinuity.
Volume of interest CT implemented with a dynamic bowtie filter

Often in clinical CT imaging situations, a clinician only requires a small volume of interest (VOI) within aCT slice to be imaged. Unfortunately, due to some fundamental constraints in CT image reconstruction, the entire slice must be irradiated even when a small VOI is all that is clinically required. This produces excess dose for the patient, excess scatter which degrades image quality and increases clinician dose, and may effect patient care because clinicians may limit their use of CT in the interventional setting due to the previous two factors. This paper shows experimental results in which a digital beam attenuator (DBA) is used to modulate the patient dose as a function of view and gantry angle to enhance the SNR in a small VOI relative to the surrounding areas. It was found that the noise was lower by 50% inside the VOI for DBA enabled VOL This promising result was obtained while providing an incident fluence reduction of 13 times on average for all regions not corresponding to the VOI relative to a non-VOI scan.
Sex differences on the Wechsler preschool and primary scale of intelligence

Abstract Male-female differences on the Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence were examined for 1200 children aged 4–6.5 yr. Results provided fundamental support for previous work with older children showing better female performance on memory and psychomotor tasks and better male performance on spatial tasks, although the distinctions in performance were not as clear as with older children.
Excimer Laser Processing of Crystalline Iron-Boron Alloys

Crystalline Fe-B alloys in the concentration range of 5–25 at. pct. boron were processed by slightly (∼5%) overlapping single pulse XeCl excimer laser. The influence of the initial microstructure and phases upon the structure that results after laser processing (LP) were studied. The specimens were made by a rapid solidification procedure that permits readily glass-forming alloys to be obtained with structures ranging from fully amorphous to fully crystalline. The technique is briefly described. Two crystalline specimens of Fe-20 pct. boron, one in the as-cast condition and the other annealed, were laser treated. While the melted layer of the former was amorphous, the latter remained crystalline, exhibiting a similar phase content as before irradiation. Observations of both samples by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) prior to LP revealed a difference in particle size of one order of magnitude. A mathematical model of diffusion is developed for studying the homogenization process. It is concluded that the time for diffusion in the liquid state in the sample containing the larger particles is insufficient for homogenization to occur. Similar results regarding the influence of particle size were obtained with all the other samples.
Interaction of hydrogen atoms with small magnesium clusters doped with aluminum and 3d transition metals

Abstract Model calculations based on extended Huckel molecular orbital theory are presented for the approach of hydrogen atoms to Mg3-M-Mg3 clusters, where M ≡ Mg, Al, Ti, V, Cr and Mn. The resulting double-welled potential curves serve as a basis for qualitative speculation on the rates of hydriding and dehydriding and the thermal properties of doped magnesium metal hydrides. The stabilities of isolated Mg3-M-Mg3 metal clusters, with magnesium atoms fixed at distances characteristic of the magnesium metal lattice, are examined for M ≡ Mg, Al, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni and Cu. Clusters for which M ≡ Mg, Ti, V, Cr, Mn and Fe are found to be stable with respect to the isolated atoms, while clusters for which M ≡ Co, Ni and Cu are unstable in this particular geometry. The presence of the doping atom in all cases decreases the work function of the magnesium cluster (as estimated by Koopmans' theorem). In contrast, the presence of hydrogen in most cases increases the work function of the metal cluster.
Uric acid storage in the epidermal cells of Manduca sexta: localization and movement during the larval-pupal transformation.

Abstract In the integument of Manduca sexta (L.) larvae, uric acid is shown to be preferentially stored within the white pigmented epidermal cells. Uric acid concentrations in the epidermal tissues are higher in the dorso-lateral white stripes (>500 nmol/mg) than in adjacent blue-green pigmented regions (30 nmol/mg). The distribution and temporal movements of uric acid were determined by feeding larvae artificial diet containing [ 14 C]hypoxanthine for the first 48 h of the fifth instar. Day-3 larvae (86 h after larval ecdysis) contained label mainly in the white-pigmented epidermal tissues with only small quantities in the gut and no radioactivity in the fat body or haemolymph. For day-4 larvae, about 80% of the label in the epidermis was either translocated to storage within fat body or excreted before the onset of wandering. HPLC analysis and reactivity with uricase confirmed that the labelled material in the tissues was urica acid. Ultrastructurally, the white-pigmented epidermal cells contain an abundance of lightly-stained urate granules, that coalesce into large accumulations toward the basal side of cells during the initial stages of metamorphosis. By day 4 these cells are essentially devoid of urate granules. The possibility of hormonal control of uric acid movement is discussed.
Diffraction order control in overlay metrology: a review of the roadmap options

Resolution enhancement in advanced optical lithography will reach a new plateau of complexity at the 32 nm design rule manufacturing node. In order to circumvent the fundamental optical resolution limitations, ultra low k1 printing processes are being adopted, which typically involve multiple exposure steps. Since alignment performance is not fundamentally limited by resolution, it is expected to yield a greater contribution to the effort to tighten lithographic error budgets. In the worst case, the positioning budget usually allocated to a single patterning step is divided between two. A concurrent emerging reality is that of high order overlay modeling and control. In tandem with multiple exposures, this trend creates great pressure to reduce scribeline target real estate per exposure. As the industry migrates away from metrology targets formed from large isolated features, the adoption of dense periodic array proxies brings improved process compatibility and information density as epitomized by the AIM target1. These periodic structures enable a whole range of new metrology sensor architectures, both imaging and scatterometry based, that rely on the principle of diffraction order control and which are no longer aberration limited. Advanced imaging techniques remain compatible with side-by-side targets while scatterometry methods require grating-over-grating targets. In this paper, a number of different imaging and scatterometry architectures are presented and compared in terms of random errors, systematic errors and scribespace requirements. It is asserted that an optimal solution must combine the TMU peak performance capabilities of scatterometry with the cost of ownership advantages of target size and multi-layer capabilities of imaging.
A Competitive and Experiential Assignment in Search Engine Optimization Strategy.

Despite an increase in ad spending and demand for employees with expertise in search engine optimization (SEO), methods for teaching this important marketing strategy have received little coverage in the literature. Using Bloom's cognitive goals hierarchy as a framework, this experiential assignment provides a process for educators who may be new to SEO while helping students engage competitively in SEO marketing strategies. Assessment results indicate that the majority of students successfully learned how to conduct SEO.
Nine Things Every Teacher Should Know about Words and Vocabulary Instruction.

Vocabulary knowledge contributes to comprehension, fluency, and student achievement. The goal of vocabulary instruction should be to build students' independent word-learning strategies. This article provides research and theory in support of nine key ideas about words and vocabulary instruction. These ideas are important for middle and secondary teachers to know and understand in order to provide sound vocabulary teaching across the content areas. Topics discussed include •The English language and the consistency of its rules •How language competence grows from oral to written •How words are learned •Multiple meanings •Multisyllabic words •The importance of teachers' modeling word consciousness and their own excitement about learning new words For each key idea, the author provides several practical suggestions for classroom instruction, including strategies for individuals, small groups, and the whole class. Several websites for developing vocabulary as well as professional resources for teachers are suggested. This article is also the source for a Class Acts podcast. Download “Teaching vocabulary in middle and high school” from •www.reading.orgresourcespodcastsindex.html
A comparative study of presence in virtual reality vs. presence in the real world

The main objective of this project was to study and compare the relationship between the sense of presence in the virtual environment and the sense of presence in the physical world while experiencing the virtual world. The study consisted of two parts, each experimenting with thirty-five subjects. A virtual plane environment was experienced using a head-tracking system and a head-mounted display. After completing fifteen minutes in the simulation, participants were given a sense of presence questionnaire. The Parts I and II results lead to a preliminary and interesting theory that a person's overall sense of the world actually increases slightly when put into a virtual environment.
Evaluating warm-season grass production in temperate-region pastures: A simulation approach

Abstract The pasture submodel of the Integrated Farm System Model (IFSM) was modified to simulate the biomass production and nutritive dynamics of a warm-season (C 4 ) grass monoculture. Predictions of yield and nutritive value were calibrated and evaluated with 5 years of field data from grazed switchgrass ( Panicum virgatum ) pastures in Pennsylvania, USA. Uncertainty analysis of biomass at the beginning of each growth cycle showed that each estimated yield was sensitive to the amount of biomass that started its growth cycle but not to those of previous growth cycles. Sensitivity analysis showed that predicted yield was most sensitive to physiological parameters such as proportion of photosynthate partitioned to shoots, specific leaf area, structural growth per unit carbohydrate, leaf photosynthetic efficiency, and the light extinction coefficient. Sensitivity of yield to maximum rooting depth increased during periods of drought. For 10 of 13 simulated sampling dates, confidence intervals of field-observed and predicted mean yield overlapped, and half of predicted mean annual yields were within ±32% of observed values. The model predicted seasonal crude protein (half of predictions within ±25%), neutral detergent fiber (all within ±12%), and in vitro true digestibility (all within ±16%) more accurately. Refining the model’s representation of warm-season grass phenology and calibrating it to simulate other field experiments may improve predictions of seasonal biomass production. The whole-farm model with a warm-season grass component will provide a useful research and teaching tool for evaluating the long-term economic and environmental sustainability of dairy and beef production systems in warm temperate regions.
Ethnic differences in arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia/cardiomyopathy

The recent report by Fung and Sanderson [1] on Therefore, it is extremely important in future international trials that more attention should be paid the clinical profile of Chinese patients with arto the ethnic make-up and racial background of the rhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia /carpatients enrolled in order to achieve a meaningful diomyopathy (ARVD/C) is indeed welcome news. result. Contrary to the common belief that ARVD/C is a serious disease responsible for 20% of sudden cardiac deaths in the young [2], Fung and Sanderson found R eferences the incidence of sudden cardiac death in ARVD/C to be low in Chinese patients.
SESAME STREET FOR DECISION SCIENCES

In Part I, several problems confronting learning and teaching in Decision Sciences are examined and possible solutions presented. Students dislike and fear mathematics, treat it as a foreign language (a dead one at that), and are subjected to archaic teaching methods. Teachers suffer from poor training, incongruent goals, and inadequate models. As the popularity of the Decision Sciences dwindles, teaching becomes even more critical in our profession. In Part II, three designs for teaching operations research or statistics with organizational behavior are presented. These have all been implemented during the last three years. These designs attempt to take advantage of principles learned in organizational behavior to enhance the learning situation in the quantitative courses in decision sciences.
Hyporeninemic hypoaldosteronism with diabetic glomerulosclerosis

Abstract Several investigations have indicated that lack of renin may be the cause of selective hypoaldosteronism and hyperkalemia in man. We found this syndrome in eight diabetic hyperkalemic subjects by evaluating their renin-angiotensin-aldosterone systems. Their urinary aldosterone, plasma aldosterone, and plasma renin activity showed blunted responses to various provocative stimuli, but their plasma cortisols were normal. Normalization of the serum potassium (cation exchange resin) produced no increase in renin. Infusion of angiotensin II or ACTH raised the aldosterone level, which indicates a responsive adrenal cortex and relatively normal aldosterone biosynthesis. Since the serum potassium level returned to normal with 9 α-fluorohydrocortisone, the distal tubule evidently responds normally to mineralocorticoid. Light and electron microscopy of renal needle biopsies showed, within the juxtoglomerular (JG) areas, nodular sclerosis of the basement membrane of the macula densa, peritubular infiltrates, and a decrease in renin granules. We concluded that the membrane changes and nodular infiltrates present in certain diabetic kidneys produce a barrier which blocks the signals from the macula densa to the JG cells, reduces the amount of renin generated, and thus causes hyporeninemic hypoaldosteronism.
Loss analysis of two kinds of flexible HVDC converters

The two-level voltage source converter (2Level-VSC) with IGBTs directly in series and the modular multi-level converter (MMC) are two kinds of the most mainstream converters used in flexible HVDC, the external features of both of the converters are similar, however, their characteristics of losess are different and that affacts their economy and applicable workplace. Based on the device parameters provided by the manufacturer, a general loss calculation model is proposed which is applicable to estimate the losses of both of the converters. Through analyzing the working status of devices of the two kinds of converters, loss calculation procedures of the two are analyzed detailedly. Finally, loss characteristics of 2Level-VSC and MMC are analyzed quantitatively through examples, the results show that the loss characteristics of the two kinds of converters are different, and the efficiency of MMC is higher than 2Level-VSC with IGBTs directly in series under different conditions.
Polarization contributions to the vacancy binding energy in doped oxides

Abstract An effective medium theory due to Onsager is generalized to yield the macroscopic dielectric constant of a random assembly of associated vacancy-dopant bound pairs embedded in a dielectric host. The model is then further developed to give the vacancy-dopant binding energy, employing concepts long-established in electrolyte theory. The results of this analysis are used to compute the activation enthalpy for electrical conduction in the ionic conduction regime. The values so found are in reasonable accord with experimental data from various sources on Ce 1− x Ca x O 2− x , with x ⩽0.02, assuming a vacancy migration enthalpy of 0.71 eV. The latter is the only adjustable parameter in the theory here developed. With this same value, the predicted variation of the low-temperature conduction activation enthalpy in Ce 1−2 x Y 2 x O 2− x and Ce 1−2 x Gd 2 x O 2− x (again at small x ) are acceptably reproduced, although more experimental data would be desirable. The dielectric constant of the yttria-doped material is also described by the present model, again with no adjustable parameters. Several different features of the theory lead to its loss of validity in more concentrated mixtures. These are examined in detail.
The stress state of elastic fluids in viscometric flow

A new method of instrumentation for normal-stress determinations was developed, making possible accurate unsteady state as well as steady state measurements, eliminating errors arising from fluid-filled pressure-tap holes, and permitting the determination of the complete stress state in a single cone-and-plate shearing-geometry experiment. Sensitive, nonflow semiconductor pressure transducers mounted at several radial positions with their pressuresensing diaphragms flush with the plate surface provide data for the normal-stress distribution. The normal-stress distribution, together with the total normal force from the single-geometry experiment, enables determination of the primary and secondary normal-stress differences by two independent methods of analysis while the transmitted torque enables determination of the viscosity, each as a function of shear rate. Only the normal-stress distribution is required if an independent check on the normal-stress determination is not desired. Similar advantages arise in the application of the instrumentation to a parallel-plate shearing geometry, The new instrumentation was used in the determination of the complete rheological stress state of three aqueous and two “Tetralin” solutions of polymers in a cone-and-plate shearing geometry shear rates of 0.02 to 450 s−1 on a Model R-17 Weissenberg Rheogoniometer. The normalstress differences computed by means of two methods of analysis are in surprisingly good agreement. The ratio of the secondary to the primary normal-stress difference was negative. The absolute values of this ratio decreased with increases in the shear rate, the maximum observed value being 0.4.
Gas adsorption on heterogeneous single-walled carbon nanotube bundles.

Optimization of carbon nanotube bundles containing a distribution of nanotube diameters always gives structures with packing defects that form relatively large interstitial channels. Experimental data for ${\mathrm{C}\mathrm{H}}_{4}$, Ar, and Xe adsorption are compared with simulations. Low coverage experimental isosteric heats are in excellent agreement with simulations of gases adsorbing into interstitial channels of defective nanotube bundles, whereas adsorption onto perfect bundles does not agree with experiments. Thus, an accurate description of adsorption on nanotube bundles must account for interstitial adsorption.
Temporal profiles of juvenile hormone titers and egg production in virgin and mated females of Heliothis virescens (Noctuidae).

Abstract Juvenile hormones (JH) I, II, and III were monitored in hemolymph of virgin and mated females of various ages in Heliothis virescens. JH I was the predominant homologue followed by JH II, but JH II was present at a higher level in young virgin females. JH III was detectable only at a low level. In virgin females, hemolymph JH titers were low at emergence (2.2 ng/ml-total amount of JH I and JH II), but increased thereafter and reached a maximum at 24 h of age (53.5 ng/ml). At 30 h and 36 h of age, JH titers dropped to a low level, but increased again in older virgin females. After mating, JH titers increased significantly. JH titers at 0 h after uncoupling (137.4 ng/ml) were nearly 3 times as high as those in 24-h-old virgin females. Within 6 h after uncoupling, JH titers decreased slightly, but titers increased with age of mated females and reached a level of 320.2 ng/ml hemolymph at 72 h after uncoupling. The titer of JH I and JH II was correlated highly with total number of eggs produced (r2=0.70, P
Starfruit-Shaped Gold Nanorods and Nanowires: Synthesis and SERS Characterization

Recently, branched and star-shaped gold nanoparticles have received significant attention for their unique optical and electronic properties, but most examples of such nanoparticles have a zero-dimensional shape with varying numbers of branches coming from a quasi-spherical core. This report details the first examples of higher-order penta-branched gold particles including rod-, wire-, and platelike particles which contain a uniquely periodic starfruitlike morphology. These nanoparticles are synthesized in the presence of silver ions by a seed-mediated approach based on utilizing highly purified pentahedrally twinned gold nanorods and nanowires as seed particles. The extent of the growth can be varied, leading to shifts in the plasmon resonances of the particles. In addition, the application of the starfruit rods for surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) is demonstrated.
The impact of positive soft tissue surgical margins following radical cystectomy for high-grade, invasive bladder cancer

We evaluate the incidence and risk factors associated with positive soft tissue surgical margins (STSM) and determine the association with various surgical and pathological characteristics and clinical outcomes in patients undergoing radical cystectomy (RC) for bladder cancer. From November 1971 to December 2005, 1,591 patients with primary transitional cell carcinoma (TCC) of the bladder underwent RC, with an extended bilateral pelvic lymphadenectomy and urinary diversion. A positive STSM was defined as tumor identified at the inked perivesical soft tissue surrounding the cystectomy specimen. Data were analyzed according to various clinical and pathologic variables, and survival analysis was performed. A total of 18 patients (1%) demonstrated pathologic evidence of a positive STSM following RC. Positive STSM were significantly associated with lymphovascular invasion, advanced pathologic stage, lymph node involvement, extent of nodal involvement and lymph node density. No patient with an organ-confined primary bladder tumor had a positive STSM, while 3% with extravesical tumor extension demonstrated a positive STSM. Recurrence-free and overall survival at 5 and 10 years for patients with a positive STSM was 29 and 22%, and 29 and 11%, respectively (p < 0.001). A positive STSM increased the risk of recurrence by threefold and the overall risk of death by 2.6 times. Only nine patients (1%) without evidence of nodal involvement had a positive STSM with a worse survival compared to those same pathologic subgroup and negative STSM. Nine patients (2%) with lymph node tumor involvement had positive STSM and also demonstrated significantly worse survival. Although a positive STSM was present in only 1% of patients undergoing a RC for TCC of the bladder, it was found to be an independent risk factor for advanced disease, lymph node involvement and tumor progression with worse survival. A dedicated effort should be made to avoid a positive STSM at the time of RC.
Ultrafast solitary waves sustained through induced phase modulation by a copropagating pump.

Ultrafast pulses, with an energy lower than that required to self-sustain a soliton shape in the anomalous dispersion regime, may preserve their shape if an intense copropagating pump of a different color (i.e., in the normal dispersion regime) and a longer duration is present.
A circulating shock protein depolarizes cells in hemorrhage and sepsis.

OBJECTIVE: A study to determine if both septic and hemorrhagic shock lead to the appearance of a substance that depolarizes cells in plasma was performed. SUMMARY BACKGROUND DATA: Transmembrane potential decreases in skeletal muscle, hepatocytes, and red blood cells early in the development of both hemorrhagic and septic shock. The associated movement of ions and water into cells leads to extracellular fluid loss and exacerbates shock. METHODS: Adult male Sprague-Dawley rats with indwelling arterial and venous cannulae were bled 20 mL/kg or received intravenously 2 x 10(10) Escherichia coli suspended in 400 mL of 0.9% saline. Blood samples were taken after hemorrhage and induction of sepsis to determine the presence of a plasma factor that depolarized red blood cells. Control rats were not injected with E. coli or bled. Plasma from bled and septic rats was processed by sequential precipitation with ammonium sulfate and subjected to gel filtration. RESULTS: Depolarizing activity was highest 20 minutes after hemorrhage and 60 minutes after E. coli injection, decreasing to control levels by 2 (hemorrhage) and 4 (sepsis) hours. Control rats showed no significant change in depolarizing activity. Tryptic and chymotryptic digestion eliminated the depolarizing activity, indicating that the active substance is, at least in part, a protein. Depolarizing activity from bled and septic processed plasma was confined essentially to the 70% ammonium sulfate fraction and the activity migrated with an apparent molecular mass of 200 kD after gel filtration. Separation of the complex by sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) produced an identical pattern of bands in both bled and septic animals. CONCLUSIONS: A circulating plasma protein complex of high molecular weight causes cellular depolarization in both hemorrhage and sepsis and may be responsible for the associated increases in cell sodium and water seen in both hemorrhagic and septic shock.