cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Finding reusable data structures

A big source of run-time performance problems in large-scale, object-oriented applications is the frequent creation of data structures (by the same allocation site) whose lifetimes are disjoint, and whose shapes and data content are always the same. Constructing these data structures and computing the same data values many times is expensive; significant performance improvements can be achieved by reusing their instances, shapes, and/or data values rather than reconstructing them. This paper presents a run-time technique that can be used to help programmers find allocation sites that create such data structures to improve performance. At the heart of the technique are three reusability definitions and novel summarization approaches that compute summaries for data structures based on these definitions. The computed summaries are used subsequently to find data structures that have disjoint lifetimes, and/or that have the same shapes and content. We have implemented this technique in the Jikes RVM and performed extensive studies on large-scale, real-world programs. We describe our experience using six case studies, in which we have achieved large performance gains by fixing problems reported by our tool.
Dynamics and control of a 25-meter aperture virtual structure Gossamer telescope in GEO

In this paper we conduct a feasibility analysis of a 25-meter aperture virtual-structure space telescope example concept based on formation control of separated free-flying optical modules orbiting the Earth at GEO. We develop a Formation Flying implementation approach, and design and analyze the dynamics, control, metrology and estimation methods.
Analysis of hepatitis C virus quasispecies transmission and evolution in patients infected through blood transfusion

Background & Aims: Studies on hepatitis C virus (HCV) quasispecies dynamics in the natural course of infection are rare owing to difficulties in obtaining samples from the early phase of infection. Methods: We studied 15 patients from the Transfusion-Transmitted Viruses Study who seroconverted to anti-HCV after receiving infected blood. Follow-up serum samples were collected every 2–3 weeks for 6 months, at 10 months, and at 11–16 years. Viral quasispecies in the second envelope hypervariable region 1 (E2/HVR1) and 5′ untranslated region (5′UTR) were analyzed with single-strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP) and heteroduplex mobility assay (HMA). Results: Seven patients cleared infection within 7–24 weeks (mean, 14.0 wk) and 3 patients eventually became anti-HCV negative. In 6 patients with resolving hepatitis the SSCP band pattern remained stable, whereas in one patient minor changes appeared before clearance. In contrast, in all 8 patients progressing to chronicity, major changes in the E2/HVR1 quasispecies developed at 8–22 weeks (mean, 13.1 wk). Shannon entropy and medium mobility shift values derived from HMA gels remained stable in patients with resolving hepatitis but changed in those who developed chronic infection. Only 2 patients showed minor changes in 5′UTR. A decrease in E2/HVR1 complexity at the time of transmission (bottleneck) was found in 5 patients altogether. Conclusions: Changes in E2/HVR1 quasispecies 8–22 weeks after infection, likely caused by mounting immune pressure, were predictive of ensuing chronic infection, whereas stability was associated with resolution. Our study also showed that composition of HCV quasispecies may be preserved during transmission from host to host.
Social Preferences in Rett Syndrome

Children with Rett syndrome manifest profound impairments in their ability to speak and use their hands, and exhibit a very limited repertoire of abilities to express themselves, to be neuropsychologically tested, and consequently to be understood. This study examined nonverbal cognitive abilities and visual preferences by analyzing the pattern of visual fixation in 49 girls with Rett syndrome, compared with a group of typical control subjects. The girls with Rett syndrome demonstrated a tendency toward socially weighted stimuli/social preferences. They looked at people, and into people’s eyes. Eye tracking represents a feasible method to assess cognition, and provide insights into the burden of isolation of these children and the mismatch between their social preferences and incompetence, caused by movement disorder and apraxia.
Regeneration responses in pea roots after tip excision at different levels

Root tips of Pisum sativum cv Alaska were excised at seven excision distances ranging from 250 to 5,000 ,um from the root cap/body junction. Three response types resulted: 1) Type AOne to three regenerated apices grew in the same plane as the root axis; 2) Type B-One to three regenerates emerged either longitudinally from a swollen wound site or at angles >900 from the root longitudinal axis; 3) Type C-One to three lateral roots emerged at 900 from the root axis. The response type was dependent on the excision distance: Type A response resulted after excisions of 250 and 500 ,m, Type B after excisions of 1,000 and 1,500 ,m, and Type C after excisions of > 1,500 ,m. The vascular patterns of the regenerated roots varied with excision distance. Most regenerates resulting after being excised at 250 Mm exhibited variations in xylem strand number. Most of those resulting after being excised at 500 Mm were "polystelic" and few of these showed variation in xylem strand number. With increasing excision distance the number of regenerates with variation in xylem stand number or with a "polystelic" condition decreased. Both the type of regeneration response and the vascular patterns within the regenerates correlated with the state of differentiation of cells at each excision distance.
Should Oral Contraceptives Be Sold Without a Prescription? An Analysis of Women’s Risk and Benefit Perceptions Regarding Nonprescription Birth Control Pills:

Despite expert opinions favoring a switch of oral contracepwho were surveyed, 37% favored the acquisition of OCs with-tives (OCs) from prescription to over-the-counter (OTC) staout a prescription. Women associated the OTC system for obtus, limited empirical evidence currently exists for indicating taining OCs with increased likelihood of adverse medical a consumer preference for nonprescription OCs. The objec-consequences and the prescription-only system with an intive of this study was to measure perceptions of women re-creased likelihood of pregnancy avoidance. Women who pregarding nonprescription OCs and to assess their preference ferred nonprescription pills reported more favorable attifor acquiring OCs without a prescription. A cross-sectional tudes toward their use and stronger intentions to buy them survey research design employing a combination of mail and without a prescription. Perceptions of OC benefits seem to telephone survey methodologies was used to measure per-play a more significant role ...
Effects of acute and repeated administration of N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) into the ventral tegmental area: locomotor activating effects of NMDA and cocaine

Abstract Repeated, intermittent administration of psychostimulants produces an enhancement of the subsequent behavioral effects of these drugs. This behavioral sensitization has been implicated in maintenance of and relapse to drug-taking. As a result, there has been great interest in elucidating the mechanisms underlying both the development and expression of sensitization. An accumulation of data from studies of stimulant-induced locomotor activity has implicated excitatory amino acids in the development of behavioral sensitization. In the present study, N -methyl- d -aspartate (NMDA) (0.6, 1.25 or 2.5 μg) infused bilaterally into the ventral tegmental area (VTA) produced dose-dependent locomotor activation. The locomotor activating effect of NMDA was increased following repeated NMDA administration (two exposures to intra-VTA NMDA), suggesting sensitization. However, repeated intra-VTA NMDA failed to sensitize rats to the locomotor activating effects of systemically administered cocaine (5.0, 10.0 or 20.0 mg/kg). These findings are consistent with the notion that repeated activation of NMDA receptors is sufficient for the development of behavioral sensitization to NMDA. Other neuroadaptations produced by repeated psychostimulant administration are required in order for the development of sensitization to the behavioral effects of those drugs.
Construction of accurate acrylic resin provisional restorations

A technique has been described for making accurate fitting acrylic resin provisional restorations with attention to marginal adaptation and ease of fabrication.
Probing vortex unbinding via dipole fluctuations

We develop a numerical method for detecting a vortex-unbinding transition in a two-dimensional system by measuring large-scale fluctuations in the total vortex dipole moment $\stackrel{\ensuremath{\rightarrow}}{P}$ of the system. These are characterized by a quantity $\mathcal{F}$ that measures the number of configurations in a simulation for which either ${P}_{x}$ or ${P}_{y}$ is half the system size. It is shown that $\mathcal{F}$ tends to a nonvanishing constant for large system sizes in the unbound phase, and vanishes in the bound phase. The method is applied to the $\mathrm{XY}$ model both in the absence and in the presence of a magnetic field. In the latter case, the system size dependence of $\mathcal{F}$ suggests that there exist three distinct phases, one unbound vortex phase, a logarithmically bound phase, and a linearly bound phase.
Time-dependent BASE performance and power degradation in AMTEC

Abstract During extended testing at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the Air Force Research Laboratory, it has been found that maximum power output of the PX-3A AMTEC cell decreases with time. Starting with a peak maximum power output of 2.45 W it decreases almost continuously to 1.27 W at the end of 18 000 h. In this paper, the factors contributing to this power loss have been investigated. The cell uses a β″-alumina solid electrolyte (BASE) whose material degrades with time due to changes in the chemical and thermal conditions within the cell during operation. The analysis shows that the β″-alumina degradation manifests itself as an increase in its ionic resistance which reduces power output. The β″-alumina is responsible most of the power degradation in the first 7000 h of operation. Thereafter, though β″-alumina degradation continues to cause power loss, other components and their materials in the cell also contribute to power loss. Some suggestions are made that will help reduce the rate of power degradation and extend the useful and functional time of the cell which primarily deal with reducing the chemical contamination of the BASE, use of β-alumina instead of β″-alumina and keeping the electrode current density below a certain critical value.
Contrast and complementarity in three theories of criminal behavior

A major question faced by those who wish to understand criminal behavior is why and how the decision to commit a crime is made. The explanations offered by various scholars and the paradigms they represent have grown into full‐fledged schools of thought: labeling, economic rationality, and social control and deterrence to name three. It is the purpose of this paper to examine one of the earliest criminal decisions a person might make, an adolescent's decision to shoplift. This behavior is examined in the light of three conflicting theoretical orientations and the paradigms they represent. The ways in which this conflict is more apparent than real is exposed to permit comparison of the power of each theoretical orientation in the explanation of shoplifting behavior. Parallel tests of the data are made for each of the three perspectives. Finally, in the light of these tests ways to exploit the complementarity of these theories is explored and a unified theoretical form of explanation is developed. Each of t...
Summary of MYCROFT: A System for Understanding Simple Picture Programs

Abstract A collection of powerful ideas—description, plans, linearity, insertions, global knowledge and imperative semantics—are explored which are fundamental to debugging skill. To make these concepts precise, a computer monitor called MYCROFT is described that can debug elementary programs for drawing pictures. The programs are those written for LOGO turtles.
Enhancing your practice with small mammals and reptiles

Small mammals and reptiles are certainly more popular as pets than they ever have been. For a dog and cat practice, it is not a difficult transition to start seeing other small mammals and or reptiles in the practice. Important questions to ask before starting this new venture are: how do I have to modify the practice, what do I have to buy, what are the economics of exotic animals, and how does one become competent in this area of small mammals and reptiles? One very quick way to jump start your practice is to bring on a recent graduate from a veterinary school that educates its students about exotic animal medicine. Before you start seeing reptiles or small mammals as patients, evaluate your physical plant. If there is any area of the hospital that will likely require modification for small mammal and reptile patients, it is the ward area. Most medications for small mammal and reptile patients will already be in your hospital. Depending on your level of commitment to these pets, you may need to buy instruments specifically for small mammals and reptiles. Finally, if one is going to start seeing small mammals and reptiles, it makes sense to have a few small mammals or reptiles as hospital teaching animals and as blood donors.
The Adversary Method in Law and Philosophy

Comparaison de l'utilisation de la methode adversaire de l'argumentation et de la contre-argumentation dans le domaine du droit et de la philosophie. Soulignant l'echec de l'analogie entre le debat dialectique propre au monde academique et le systeme adversaire mis en place au cours des proces, l'A. montre que le processus juridique des avocats est une methode inappropriee a la philosophie en ce sens qu'elle constitue une pratique vicieuse du sophisme, contraire a la nature cooperative du debat philosophique oriente vers la recherche rigoureuse de la verite
Elastic constants of orthotropic composite materials using plate resonance frequencies, classical lamination theory and an optimized three-mode rayleigh formulation

Abstract This paper shows how the four independent elastic constants (longitudinal and transverse Young's moduli, in-plane shear modulus and major Poisson's ratio) of an orthotropic material may be extracted from the modal resonance data of a freely-supported rectangular thin plate made from the material, using the classical lamination theory and an optimized three-mode Rayleigh formulation with a suitably formed least-squares objective function. Results are obtained for orthotropy ratios of unity (aluminum), about three (unidirectional E-glass/vinylester) and about 13 (graphite/epoxy), and plate aspect ratios of unity and about two. The results suggest that the method proposed has potential for rapid characterization of elastic properties of advanced composites.
Demonstration of the adenosine reservoirs with nitrobenzylthioinosine in liver and diaphragm by high-performance liquid chromatography.

Purine nucleotides, nucleosides, nucleobases, dinucleotides and nucleosides derivatives from acid-extracted rat liver and diaphragm were separated and quantitated by reversed-phase ion-pair high-performance liquid chromatography with a mobile phase composed of 90 mM potassium phosphate, 15 mM tetrabutylammonium hydroxide and a 1–30% methanol gradient. During 5 min of ischemia, adenine and guanine nucleotides decreased along with significant declines in NAD and increases in adenosine, inosine, hypoxanthine, xanthine, NADP and adenylosuccinate. Nitrobenzylthioinosine by gavage (5 mg/kg per day for five days) increased adenosine levels but without any alteration in nucleobase levels. Adenosine was shuttled to every available intracellular reservoir which included in declining order of magnitude GDP > adenosylhomocysteine > adenosine > ADP > AMP > IMP = XMP = GMP.
6 Diseases of the Thyroid Gland

Advances in the measurement of thyroid gland function have often introduced new concepts which led to the development of analogous diagnostic procedures in other areas of clinical endocrinology. The qualitative clinical assessment of patients with hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism was first buttressed by quantification of target tissue responses to thyroid hormone with the basal metabolic rate (BMR) (Magnus-Levy, 1895) and later the Achilles tendon reflex time (Lawson, 1958). Thyroid hormones were initially measured indirectly by bioassay in the tadpole metamorphosis test, and subsequently by chemical analysis with protein-bound iodine (PBI) and butanol-extractable iodine (BEl) determinations (Barker, 1948). Assessment of thyroid gland function was among the earliest uses of radionuclide agents (Cassen, 1975). The competitive protein-binding assay was first applied to hormonal diagnostic studies in the measurement of circulating thyroxine concentration by the Murphy-Pattee method (Murphy and Pattee, 1964), and subsequently by specific L-thyroxine immunoassay (Chopra et al, 1971). Over the past two decades, many additional techniques have been developed for the determination of serum total and free iodothyronine concentrations, the assessment of in vivo feedback on hypothalamicpituitary control, the detection of circulating markers for specific thyroidal diseases, and the quantification of peripheral responses to thyroid hormones in target tissues. These tools now permit the recognition of subtle thyroid dysfunction which previously escaped laboratory detection, the more accurate differential diagnosis of the underlying disease processes, and the description of entirely novel thyroid disorders, e.g., thyroid hormone resistance. At the same time, this proliferation of thyroid function tests has created confusion concerning their terminology, methodology, and interpretation. In particular, a challenge is posed by the patient with multiple thyroid laboratory test abnormalities attributable entirely to non-thyroidal illness and/or pharmacological agents.
A linear hexapeptide somatostatin antagonist blocks somatostatin activity in vitro and influences growth hormone release in rats.

Somatostatin (SRIF) is the main inhibitory peptide regulating growth hormone (GH) secretion. It has been difficult to establish the role of endogenous SRIF release in the absence of pure SRIF antagonists. Although several SRIF antagonists have recently been described, none have been shown to possess in vivo activity in the absence of added SRIF. Here, an SRIF antagonist with no detectable agonist activity has been identified from a synthetic combinatorial hexapeptide library containing 6.4 3 10 7 unique peptides. Each peptide in the library is amino-terminally acetylated and carboxyl-terminally amidated and consists entirely of D-amino acids. A SRIF-responsive yeast growth assay was used as a primary screening tool, and cAMP accumulation, competitive binding, and microphysiometry also were used to confirm and further characterize SRIF antagonist activity. The hexapeptide library was screened in stepwise iterative fashion to identify AC-178,335, a pure SRIF antagonist of the sequence Ac-hfirwf-NH2. This D-hexapeptide bound SRIF receptor type 2 with an affinity constant (Ki )o f 1726 12 nM, blocked SRIF inhibition of adenylate cyclase in vitro (IC50 5 5.1 6 1.4 mM), and induced GH release when given alone (50 mg intravenously) to anesthetized rats with or without pretreatment with a long-acting SRIF agonist.
Topological Characteristics of Two-Dimensional Grain Growth-Simulation and Analysis

A two-dimensional (2-D) grain growth simulation, using a curvature-driven vertex model applied to an initially Monte Carlo (MC)–generated microstructure, has been developed for analysis of the topological characteristics of the process, including the rates of different topological events and the effect of these event frequencies on the evolving grain structure. Findings include a constant ratio of the number fraction of disappearing grains to the area fraction swept by the grain boundary of 4/3; constant fractions of boundary sweeping due to grain disappearance (~2 pct), boundary-switching events (~8 pct), and simple boundary motion (~90 pct); and a constant ratio of 1.34 boundary-switching events per grain disappearance. An affinity term was developed to describe the tendency of grains of different edge classes to contact each other or to be involved in different topological events, relative to random behavior. The highest and lowest edge classes, 3 and 12, respectively, exhibited the highest affinity for mutual contact, a 16 times random occurrence, but an affinity of ~0 for contact with themselves. Intermediate edge classes showed an affinity of ~1, random contact, with other classes or with themselves. Few-edged grains showed ~0 affinity for contacting a disappearing trigon or gaining an edge in an edge-switching event, but had a high affinity, approaching 6, for losing an edge in a switching event. Many-edged grains showed the opposite trends and intermediate edge classes showed a random or less tendency for participation in any topological event. It was shown statistically that the growth rate of individual grains is controlled solely by the edge class, with essentially no direct effect from the grain size. The evolution of the grain area and edge class distributions were monitored throughout the transition from transient to steady-state grain growth, with a steady state achieved after loss of approximately 1/3 of the initial grains. The steady-state values of the coefficients of variation (CVs) of the edge class and grain area distributions were ~0.2 and 0.7, respectively.
Antidepressants and brain monoaminergic systems: a dimensional approach to understanding their behavioural effects in depression and anxiety disorders

There is extensive comorbidity between depression and anxiety disorders. Dimensional psychiatric and psychometric approaches have suggested that dysregulation of a limited number of behavioural dimensions that cut across diagnostic categories can account for both the shared and unique symptoms of depression and anxiety disorders. Such an approach recognizes that anxiety, the emotional response to stress, is a key element of depression as well as the defining feature of anxiety disorders, and many antidepressants appear to be effective in the treatment of anxiety disorders as well as depression. Therefore, the pharmacological actions of these drugs must account for their efficacy in both. Brain noradrenergic and serotonergic systems, and perhaps to a more limited extent the dopaminergic system, regulate or modulate many of the same behavioural dimensions (e.g. negative or positive affect) that are affected in depression and anxiety disorders, and that are ameliorated by drug treatment. Whereas much recent research has focused on the regulatory effects of antidepressants on synaptic function and cellular proteins, less emphasis has been placed on monoaminergic regulation at a more global systemic level, or how such systemic alterations in monoaminergic function might alleviate the behavioural, cognitive, emotional and physiological manifestations of depression and anxiety disorders. In this review, we discuss how chronic antidepressant treatment might regulate the tonic activity and/or phasic reactivity of brain monoaminergic systems to account for their ability to effectively modify the behavioural dimensions underlying improvement in both depression and anxiety disorders.
In vitro evaluation of the marginal degradation of dental composites under simulated occlusal loading

Abstract Objectives: Our objective was to use an in vitro oral wear simulator to compare the susceptibility to marginal breakdown of different classes of dental composites. Methods: Two microfill composites (Silux Plus, 3M and Heliomolar, Vivadent), two minifills (Z100, 3M and Herculite, Kerr) and two midifills (Fulfil, Caulk and Clearfil, Kuraray) were placed in two increments (40 s cure) into class I cavities (5×3.5×2 mm 3 deep) cut into the facial enamel surfaces of bovine incisors treated with an adhesive (Scotchbond MP, 3M). The restored teeth were aged 1 day in water, mounted in the OHSU oral wear simulator, covered with a slurry of poppy seeds/PMMA beads and subjected to 50 K cycles of wear against an enamel stylus [J.R. Condon, J.L. Ferracane, Evaluation of composite wear with a new multi-mode oral wear simulator, Dent. Mater. 12 (1996) 218–226). The specimens ( n =10) were positioned to produce abrasive wear (load=20 N] across one margin and attrition wear (load=70 N) across the second margin. Volume loss of material (mm 3 ×1000) was estimated from 10 profilometric tracings perpendicular to the attrition margin, and then differentiated into composite and enamel degradation. Fracture toughness of the composites was measured in bending with the single-edge notch technique. Results were compared with ANOVA and Tukey's test at p Results: Signficant wear of the composite was produced at the attrition margin. Enamel degradation at the margin paralleled the composite results. The microfills, and to a lesser extent the minifills, showed more marginal breakdown than the midifill composites. Marginal breakdown shows an excellent inverse correlation with fracture toughness for these composites. Significance: These results are in general agreement with clinical studies showing greater marginal degradation for microfill composites and suggest that the OHSU oral wear simulator may be a useful adjunct for the study of the marginal degradation of dental composites.
Quality factory and quality notification service in data warehouse

Many modern organizations operate in a dynamic and large-scaled web-based environment that involves critical and frequent interactions with external organizations. Within this context, the associated data warehousing environment is often dynamic and evolutionary, with sometimes frequent changes in the quality of various resources (e.g. source systems, processes, metadata), and also in the users' quality requirements. There is thus the need to not only capture quality changes on-the-fly, but also provide automated quality notifications to relevant end users. Managing data warehousing systems in such environment imposes many new challenges for DW design, management and maintenance. In this paper, we propose an extended data warehousing systems architecture that incorporates and extends the concepts of the Quality Factory (QF) and the Quality Notification Service (QNS) that were previously presented in the Cooperative Information Systems (CIS) literature.
General medical and specialty mental health service use for major depression.

Objective:While major depression is common, many depressed persons receive, at best, inadequate treatment. A first step in remedying inadequate detection and treatment of major depression requires understanding the pathways into treatment—from situations of no care, to disease recognition, to referral and appropriate treatment—as well as identifying factors associated with movement between these several stages.Methods:Using the Epidemiologic Catchment Area sample, we identified factors associated with treatment in the general medical or mental health specialist section, or no treatment in a subsample of individuals with current major depression.Results:Strikingly, one-fourth of the sample received no services, over half received care in the general medical sector, and only one-fifth accessed a mental health specialist. Among those receiving any health services (general or mental), men and respondents reporting suicidal symptoms were at risk of receiving no care, while perceived poor health and a cluster o...
EFFECTS OF RADIO-TRANSMITTERS ON FECAL GLUCOCORTICOID LEVELS IN CAPTIVE DICKCISSELS

Abstract We determined the effects of a leg-harness transmitter on fecal glucocorticoid levels of wild male Dickcissels (Spiza americana) in captivity. During the postbreeding season of 2001, we captured 10 male Dickcissels in central Missouri and housed them in individual pens of an outdoor aviary. We radio-tagged five birds; the other five were captured and handled, but were not radio-tagged. We collected fecal samples every other day prior to attachment (31 July–21 August) and after attachment (24 August–20 September). Body condition and morphology were similar between control and transmitter-equipped birds. We observed a significant interaction between transmitter attachment and time since attachment. Compared to baseline levels, fecal glucocorticoid metabolites were significantly lower in control (6.1 ± 13.7 ng g−1) than transmitter-equipped (102.3 ± 13.7 ng g−1) birds during the first 24 hr after attachment. Although transmitter-equipped birds showed elevated fecal glucocorticoid levels, the respons...
Mutual information-based template matching scheme for detection of breast masses: From mammography to digital breast tomosynthesis

Development of a computational decision aid for a new medical imaging modality typically is a long and complicated process. It consists of collecting data in the form of images and annotations, development of image processing and pattern recognition algorithms for analysis of the new images and finally testing of the resulting system. Since new imaging modalities are developed more rapidly than ever before, any effort for decreasing the time and cost of this development process could result in maximizing the benefit of the new imaging modality to patients by making the computer aids quickly available to radiologists that interpret the images. In this paper, we make a step in this direction and investigate the possibility of translating the knowledge about the detection problem from one imaging modality to another. Specifically, we present a computer-aided detection (CAD) system for mammographic masses that uses a mutual information-based template matching scheme with intelligently selected templates. We presented principles of template matching with mutual information for mammography before. In this paper, we present an implementation of those principles in a complete computer-aided detection system. The proposed system, through an automatic optimization process, chooses the most useful templates (mammographic regions of interest) using a large database of previously collected and annotated mammograms. Through this process, the knowledge about the task of detecting masses in mammograms is incorporated in the system. Then, we evaluate whether our system developed for screen-film mammograms can be successfully applied not only to other mammograms but also to digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) reconstructed slices without adding any DBT cases for training. Our rationale is that since mutual information is known to be a robust inter-modality image similarity measure, it has high potential of transferring knowledge between modalities in the context of the mass detection task. Experimental evaluation of the system on mammograms showed competitive performance compared to other mammography CAD systems recently published in the literature. When the system was applied ''as-is'' to DBT, its performance was notably worse than that for mammograms. However, with a simple additional preprocessing step, the performance of the system reached levels similar to that obtained for mammograms. In conclusion, the presented CAD system not only performed competitively on screen-film mammograms but it also performed robustly on DBT showing that direct transfer of knowledge across breast imaging modalities for mass detection is in fact possible.
On Cathars, Albigenses, and good men of Languedoc

This essay proposes a re-evaluation of how Cathars, Albigenses, and the heresy of the good men are studied. It argues that some commonplace notions about the Cathars, virtually unaltered for over a hundred years, are far from settled — especially when inquisition records from Languedoc are taken into account. It is this historiography, supported by a tendency to see heresy in idealist and intellectualist bias, suggests how the history of the Cathars and the good men might be rethought. ☆ This essay condenses, refines, and occasionally expands, some of the arguments made in M.G. Pegg, The corruption of angels: The great inquisition of 1245–1246 (Princeton, 2001), esp. 15–19, 141–151.
Developing an error prevention methodology based on cognitive error models

A long-term program is in progress at JPL to reduce cost and risk of flight mission operations through a defect/error prevention program. The goal of this program is the reduction and ultimately the prevention of human errors. The main thrust of this program is to create an environment in which the performance of both the human operator and the computer system is optimized. Systems must be designed to enhance normal human performance; training programs must be designed to alleviate likely errors; and functions that are human-error prone should be automated. To successfully design and implement this program requires a theoretically motivated model of human problem solving and decision making based on current theories of human cognition. Further, such a model must be data-validated to ensure its ultimate applicability. Principles of cognitive psychology, human-computer interaction, and Total Quality Management (TQM) are used to analyze past errors and make changes to end-user applications and training requirements to prevent these errors in the future.
TE scattering by an inhomogeneously filled aperture in a thick conducting plane

The electromagnetic characterization of the transmission and scattering properties of an aperture in a thick conducting plane filled with an inhomogenous composite material for transverse electric polarization is discussed. Of particular interest in this analysis is the introduction of a new technique that combines the finite element and boundary integral methods. To allow the treatment of large apertures, the conjugate gradient method (CGM) and fast Fourier transform (FFT) are also incorporated for the solution of the resulting system. Numerical examples that demonstrate the validity, versatility, and capability of the technique are presented. >
A new approach for 3D cloud-resolving simulations of large-scale atmospheric circulation

[1] We present a computationally efficient new method for simulating the interactions of large-scale atmospheric circulations with deep convection in a 3D cloud-resolving model. This is accomplished by reducing the scale difference between the large-scale and convective circulations. Our method, Diabatic Acceleration and REscaling (DARE), consists of accelerating all diabatic processes, reducing the planetary radius and increasing its rotation rate. A second useful interpretation of this rescaling, Reduced Acceleration in the VErtical (RAVE) is also presented briefly. The DARE/RAVE approach is expected to be useful for a wide range of problems involving interactions between large-scale circulation, deep convection, and associated cloud and radiation processes, whose investigation has long been plagued by deficiencies in cumulus/cloud parameterizations. Initial results from a near-global scale equatorial β-plane simulation using the DARE approach are briefly presented.
Two NAC domain transcription factors, SND1 and NST1, function redundantly in regulation of secondary wall synthesis in fibers of Arabidopsis

Secondary walls are the major component of wood, and studies of the mechanisms regulating secondary wall synthesis is important for understanding the process of wood formation. We have previously shown that the NAC domain transcription factor SECONDARY WALL-ASSOCIATED NAC DOMAIN PROTEIN1 (SND1) is a key regulator of secondary wall synthesis in fibers of Arabidopsis thaliana stems and dominant repression of SND1 leads to a reduction in secondary wall thickening in fibers. However, T-DNA knockout of the SND1 gene did not cause an alteration in secondary wall thickness, suggesting that other SND1 homologs may compensate for the loss of SND1 expression. Here, we studied the effects of simultaneous inhibition of SND1 and its homolog, NAC SECONDARY WALL THICKENING PROMOTING FACTOR1 (NST1), on secondary wall synthesis in fibers. We show that simultaneous RNA interference (RNAi) inhibition of the expression of both SND1 and NST1 genes results in loss of secondary wall formation in fibers of stems. The fiber cells in the stems of SND1/NST1-RNAi plants lack all three major secondary wall components, including cellulose, xylan, and lignin, which is accompanied by a severe reduction in the expression of genes involved in their biosynthesis. In addition, inhibition of SND1 and NST1 leads to down-regulation of several fiber-associated transcription factor genes. Double T-DNA knockout mutations of SND1 and NST1 genes cause the same effects, as does simultaneous RNAi inhibition of SND1 and NST1. Our results provide first line evidence demonstrating that SND1 and NST1 function redundantly in the regulation of secondary wall synthesis in fibers.
A constrained two-dimensional adaptive digital filter with reduced computational complexity

An adaptive 2-D digital filter is presented in which the filter is determined by a 1-D FIR (finite-impulse-response) prototype filter, and hence the computational complexity of the coefficient-update algorithm has an order of complexity that is similar to a 1-D adaptive filter. The convergence rate of the proposed structure is much faster than that of a direct-form 2-D LMS (least-mean-square) filter. Results of the hardware realization of the filter are presented that show its learning curve to be considerably less noisy than that of the 2-D direct-form LMS filter. >
Can China Keep Rising in the Age of Globalization?: Chinese Students’ Learning and Living Experience at Two “World-Class” Research Universities in East Asia:

“World-class” research universities have long been a priority in the educational, corporate, and political spheres in China. With the establishment of the Outline of China’s National Plan for Medium and Long Term Education Reform and Development (20102020), China seeks to develop globally competitive research universities that are based on position in the global rankings. In this article, the author examines the role of college environment (e.g., academic, campus, interpersonal) on college student’s learning and development relative to China’s quest for “world-class” universities. Utilizing Jamil Salmi’s (2009) theoretical framework of ‘world-class universities,’ this article introduces Chan’s conceptual framework of ‘Environment-Learning-Resources (ELR)’ to suggest how the college environments influence the imposition of structure, processes, and student learning at emerging global research universities in mainland China.
Event recognition from photo collections via PageRank

We propose a method of mining most informative features for the event recognition from photo collections. Our goal is to classify different event categories based on the visual content of a group of photos that constitute the event. Such photo groups are typical in a personal photo collection of different events. Visual features are extracted from the images, yet the features from individual images are often noisy and not all of them represent the distinguishing characteristics of an event. We employ the PageRank technique to mine the most informative features from the images that belong to the same event. Subsequently, we classify different event categories using the multiple images of the same event because we argue that they are more informative about the content of an event rather than any single image. We compare our proposed approach with the standard bag of features method (BOF) and observe considerable improvements in recognition accuracy.
“Like being in a cage”: stigma as experienced by adolescents whose mothers are living with HIV

Stigma affects not only the person living with HIV, but also, by association, their family members. Stigma-by-association may contribute to adverse outcomes for children of parents living with HIV. We interviewed 27 African-American adolescents, 13–18 years old, who were not HIV-positive but whose mothers were living with HIV. As part of a broader study, adolescents responded to four open-ended questions regarding their experience of HIV stigma-by-association. Their responses were analyzed using ATLAS.ti to identify themes. About half of the teens had not told anyone their mother’s HIV status but had heard peers make fun of or insult people with HIV. Anticipating stigma, teens used a range of strategies from being silent and vigilant to brushing off insults as ignorance and refusing to feel shame. In some instances, these strategies strained peer interactions and reinforced the mother/teen connection. With guidance, mothers may be well positioned to coach children and teens to identify stigma situations, ...
Role of Law in Close Cases: Some Evidence from the Federal Courts of Appeal

This article is an empirical study of the voting behavior of 30 federal appellate judges in criminal cases that weren't decided unanimously. The cases were divided into two sets: those that involved disputes over constitutional law and those that involved disputes over other kinds of legal materials (e.g., statutes and rules). The basic results are that (a) judges vary widely in how often they vote for the government in non-unanimous cases, but (b) any given judge votes for the government about as often in such cases regardless of whether they involve debates over the Constitution or other sources of law. The most plausible reason for the tight correlation is that in close cases of any kind judges use the same policy preferences or views of human behavior as their sources of decision.
Systematics and Biology of Cremastobombycia chromolaenae, New Species (Gracillariidae), a Natural Enemy of Chromolaena odorata (L.) King and H. Robinson (Asteraceae)

ABSTRACT. A new species, Cremastobombycia chromolaenae, is described from Florida and Texas, USA. The larva is a leaf miner on Chromolaena odorata (L.) King and H. Robinson, a 2–3 m tall perennial shrub of the family Asteraceae, whose native range extends from southern Florida south to northern Argentina (Fig. 1). The plant is also known to occur in Africa, Asia, and Australia where it is considered exotic and in some countries has become a major weed. The larvae of C. chromolaenae are hypometamorphic and possess two distinct larval body forms and feeding behaviors—an early stage sap-feeding form with a flattened body and prognathous mouthparts and a later stage tissue-feeding form with a more cylindrical body and possessing hypognathous mouthparts. Based on head capsule counts and measurements, the larvae undergo five instars, with the first three instars being of the sap-feeding form and the last two tissue-feeding instars. The larval mine begins as a short, serpentine track which enlarges to a rounded,...
Conditioned Insulin Secretion in the Albino Rat

SummaryAlthough the phenomenon of conditioned hypoglycemia is now well established, little is known about its mechanism. The present experiments lead to the conclusion that the mechanism involves a release of insulin: Experiment 1 showed that rats given an injection of streptozotocin, a drug which destroys the beta cells of the islets of Langerhans, did not show a conditioned hypoglycemia, whereas rats given only the vehicle for the streptozotocin did; and in experiment 2, blood drawn from conditioned rats just before the conditioned hypoglycemia would normally occur showed greater insulinlike activity than blood drawn from control rats. These results demonstrate a conditioned release of some hypoglycemic agent that depends upon the integrity of the beta cells. A neural control over release of insulin must be inferred to explain them.This study was supported by the USPHS Training Grant No. 5TO1 GM 00666. Thanks are due to Dr. Clara A. Muehlbaecher and to Dr. Daniel Porte, Jr. for their helpful comments; t...
In-Situ Pulsed Laser Deposition of High-TC Yba2Cu3O7 Superconducting Thin Films on (100) LaAlO3 Substrates

The formation of superconducting thin films on lanthanum aluminate substrates is very important for high-frequency applications. In this paper, we discuss the fabrication of epitaxial superconducting YBa2Cu3O7 thin films on (100)LaAlO3 substrates, which exhibit excellent dielectric properties required for high frequency applications. The films were deposited by the biased pulsed laser evaporation technique (PLE) at substrate temperatures between 500-650°C and exhibit excellent crystallinity with best minimum ion channeling yields corresponding to approximately 3%. The superconducting transition temperatures varied from 88-92 K with critical current densities at 77K and zero magnetic field greater than 4 - 5 x 106 Amps/cm2.
Some Highlights in Relation to Smart Grid

The smart grid is a hot topic recently. In this paper the hot topics in this field,such as the definition and features of smart grid,its impetus and goal as well as the guidelines and development,key technical problems to be adopted such as new system elements,new types of transducers and measurement technique,advanced interfaces,accident-starting fast simulation decision-making and coordinated and adaptive control etc.,and difficulties,are analyzed and discussed.
The effects of three serotypes of Ureaplasma urealyticum on spermatozoal motility and penetration in vitro

The effects of incubation of spermatozoa with three serotypes of Ureaplasma urealyticum on spermatozoal motility and penetration in vitro were investigated. Using computer-assisted videomicroscopy, three parameters of motility were determined: individual path lengths, individual vectorial distances, and percentage motility. Polyacrylamide gels were used as a medium for assessment of spermatozoal penetration. Ureaplasma-infected spermatozoa did have significantly greater path lengths and individual distances than did uninfected controls, but Ureaplasma infection had no significant effect on percentage motility. Overall, there were no significant differences in penetration distances between Ureaplasma-infected spermatozoa and their corresponding uninfected controls. Our conclusion is that the Ureaplasmas did not adversely affect motility or penetration when spermatozoa were incubated with Ureaplasmas for 45 minutes at Ureaplasma:sperm ratios as high as 100:1.
Effects of Gender and Family on Earnings and Career Paths: A Cross-Cultural Study of Europe, the USA and Japan

This study takes a cross-cultural approach to the examination of gender-based pay differentials and career paths, particularly comparing Europe, the USA and Japan. Results indicate that despite increased participation of women in the workforce and their substantial inroads into managerial and professional jobs, gender-based pay gaps persist across borders. However, patterns of the work—family relationship and the impact of gender on earnings differ considerably among industrial societies. Data show that the magnitude of gender-based pay differentials is unrelated to a country’s degree of economic development among the Western industrial societies. Factors that influence pay equity and career paths range from contextual and organizational variables such as cultural norms, types of welfare state regimes and corporate practices related to individual differences in gender, family, education and career choices. The “business case” argument for gender equity and family-friendly policies is linked to the national context. Cultural norms about gender roles and types of welfare state regimes pertaining to the role of the state in statutory provisions help explain trends and developments in gender-based pay adjustments and variations at the firm level. Gender pay gaps are likely to be larger — and to be narrowed more slowly — in masculinity-oriented societies than in femininity-oriented societies.