cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Neuropsychology of Lexical Ambiguity Resolution: The Contribution of Divided Visual Field Studies

Publisher Summary This chapter proposes a tentative model of lexical ambiguity resolution that integrates the different lexical access patterns of the two cerebral hemispheres, and discusses this model in the context of the current understanding of lexical access and contextual constraints. It describes the divided visual field method, suggesting a frequency-coded multiple access model of lexical retrieval. The chapter also discusses the role of the left and right cerebral hemispheres in the access of ambiguous word meanings. The single access model proposes that the meanings of an ambiguous word are retrieved serially, according to their frequency.The most frequent meaning is retrieved first, and the search stops if that meaning is appropriate in context. If it is not, then the next most frequent meaning is selected. This serial self-terminating search continues until it fits with the context. In the absence of context, retrieval favors the dominant. The multiple access model states that all word meanings are retrieved upon the presentation of an ambiguous word, after which context influences the selection of the appropriate meaning.
Primate short-wavelength cones share molecular markers with rods.

Macaca, Callithrix jacchus marmoset monkey, Pan troglodytes chimpanzee and human retinas were examined to define if short wavelength (S) cones share molecular markers with L&M cone or rod photoreceptors. S cones showed consistent differences in their immunohistochemical staining and expression levels compared to L&M cones for “rod” Arrestin1 (S-Antigen), “cone” Arrestin4, cone alpha transducin, and Calbindin. Our data verify a similar pattern of expression in these primate retinas and provide clues to the structural divergence of rods and S cones versus L&M cones, suggesting S cone retinal function is “intermediate” between them.
A Book Review of the Very First Historical Mexican Classic: Hernan Cortes. Letters from Mexico

The conquest of Mexico and the Aztecs by Hernan Cortes in 1521 is one of the classic chapters in any world history textbook. And, wow, what a classic turning point in history. One of the most power...
Color postprocessing of conventional CT images: preliminary results in assessment of nondisplaced proximal femoral fractures

The purpose of this study was to demonstrate the diagnostic performance and effect on reader confidence of a custom computed tomography (CT) color postprocessing algorithm for assessment of nondisplaced proximal femoral fractures. Four radiologists, including two PGY-3 radiology residents and two emergency radiologists, independently interpreted 30 CT examinations of the hip and/or pelvis performed for trauma, consisting of a total of 15 cases positive for nondisplaced hip fracture and 15 age and sex-matched controls. Images were reviewed first with conventional CT images and after at least 8 weeks, all images were reviewed again with the addition of coronal color postprocessed images. Sensitivity and specificity were compared with McNemar’s test, and diagnostic confidence was compared with paired t tests. There was no significant difference in diagnostic performance between conventional and postprocessed images, although there was nominally increased sensitivity and decreased specificity with the postprocessed images: for all readers, the sensitivity and specificity for conventional images was 88.3 and 95.0%, compared to 93.3% (p = 0.25) and 88.3% (p = 0.14) for postprocessed images. Three of four readers (including both attending radiologists) reported an increase in confidence with postprocessed images for cases negative for fracture (10-point confidence scale of 7.25 for conventional images, compared to 8.2 for postprocessed images for all readers, p = 0.0053). There was no difference in diagnostic confidence for cases positive for fracture. A custom color CT postprocessing algorithm did not demonstrate a significant difference in diagnostic performance for assessment of nondisplaced proximal femoral fractures within the limitations of a relatively small sample size; however, postprocessing increases confidence of experienced readers in cases negative for fracture.
A mild capping method for SPPS on the N-methyl diaminobenzoyl linker: synthesis of an N-acyl urea appended C. elegans neuropeptide.

Abstract In this manuscript, we establish the susceptibility of the N-methyldiaminobenzoyl linker to undergo undesired acylation during standard peptide capping with acetic anhydride. Successive capping treatments led to problematic levels of linker incapacitation. We describe a mild, inexpensive alternative capping strategy that is completely selective for the N terminus with no acylation of the linker detected for any of the substrates evaluated. The utility of this protocol is demonstrated via the synthesis of the CAPA-PVK-1 consensus sequence of the C. elegans neuropeptide-like protein precursor peptide NLP-44.
Path Orthogonal Matching Pursuit for Sparse Reconstruction and Denoising of SWIR Maritime Imagery

We introduce an extension that may be used to augment algorithms used for the sparse decomposition of signals into a linear combination of atoms drawn from a dictionary such as those used in support of, for example, compressive sensing, k-sparse representation, and denoising. Our augmentation may be applied to any reconstruction algorithm that relies on the selection and sorting of high-correlation atoms during an analysis or identification phase by generating a "path" between the two highest-correlation atoms. Here we investigate two types of path: a linear combination (Euclidean geodesic) and a construction relying on an optimal transport map (2-Wasserstein geodesic). We test our extension by performing image denoising and k-sparse representation using atoms from a learned overcomplete kSVD dictionary. We study the application of our techniques on SWIR imagery of maritime vessels and show that our methods outperform orthogonal matching pursuit. We conclude that these methods, having shown success in our two tested problem domains, will also be useful for reducing "basis mismatch" error that arises in the recovery of compressively sampled images.
Speech-based markers for posttraumatic stress disorder in US veterans

Background The diagnosis of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is usually based on clinical interviews or self-report measures. Both approaches are subject to under- and over-reporting of symptoms. An objective test is lacking. We have developed a classifier of PTSD based on objective speech-marker features that discriminate PTSD cases from controls. Methods Speech samples were obtained from warzone-exposed veterans, 52 cases with PTSD and 77 controls, assessed with the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale. Individuals with major depressive disorder (MDD) were excluded. Audio recordings of clinical interviews were used to obtain 40,526 speech features which were input to a random forest (RF) algorithm. Results The selected RF used 18 speech features and the receiver operating characteristic curve had an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.954. At a probability of PTSD cut point of 0.423, Youden's index was 0.787, and overall correct classification rate was 89.1%. The probability of PTSD was higher for markers that indicated slower, more monotonous speech, less change in tonality, and less activation. Depression symptoms, alcohol use disorder, and TBI did not meet statistical tests to be considered confounders. Conclusions This study demonstrates that a speech-based algorithm can objectively differentiate PTSD cases from controls. The RF classifier had a high AUC. Further validation in an independent sample and appraisal of the classifier to identify those with MDD only compared with those with PTSD comorbid with MDD is required.
Perspectives on Chemical Signals Conveying Information in Rodents

Social cues must be detectable by receivers or bystanders before they can respond to the information contained in the cue. Information about conspecifics and heterospecifics can be extracted from social cues. At that point, the information in the cue becomes a fact and the cue becomes a signal. Chemical signals, such as scent marks, provide accurate information that can be used by conspecifics in sexual and social contexts. Scent marks of many conspecifics distributed in an area may be akin to a chemical bulletin board that provides information about the identity of senders and how recently they were in that area. These scent marks deposited by senders can provide both private and public information to receivers. The manner in which receivers use this information to make decisions will depend on the context and manner in which it encounters these scent marks. Thus, a learned rule of thumb that will allow the animal to respond in a predictable way to a scent mark and when to scent mark would not suffice. The sender and the receiver must identify the phenotype and genotype of their counterparts, recollect interactions with them, be aware of their own condition and the context of the communication. Higher level cognitive processing would likely be required for receivers and senders to make potentially informed decisions that reflect tradeoffs in their survival and fitness.
Spinal cord infarction in a young adult: What is the culprit?

Context: Non-traumatic spinal cord infarction in the young adult is usually associated with a single or multiple genetic mutations. There are certain gene mutations that are more commonly associate...
Suggestions for Selecting Appropriate Career Assessment Instruments

(1988). Suggestions for Selecting Appropriate Career Assessment Instruments. Measurement and Evaluation in Counseling and Development: Vol. 20, No. 4, pp. 181-186.
Effects of lorcaserin on oxycodone self-administration and subjective responses in participants with opioid use disorder.

Abstract Background Lorcaserin, a high-affinity 5-HT2C receptor agonist approved for treating obesity, decreased self-administration of oxycodone and cue-induced reinstatement of drug-seeking behavior in preclinical studies. The current investigation is the first clinical trial to evaluate the ability of lorcaserin to alter the reinforcing and subjective effects of oxycodone. Methods In this 7-week inpatient trial, 12 non-treatment-seeking volunteers (11 males) with moderate-to-severe opioid use disorder were detoxified from opioids. In a randomized cross-over fashion, participants were first stabilized on lorcaserin (10 mg BID) or placebo (0 mg BID). Participants underwent a two-week testing period during which the reinforcing and subjective effects of intranasal oxycodone were examined in verbal choice, cue-exposure, and progressive-ratio choice sessions. The two testing weeks were identical with the exception that during the first week, active oxycodone (10 mg) was available during verbal choice (self-administration) sessions, and during the second week placebo oxycodone was available. Subsequently, participants were stabilized on the other medication condition (placebo or lorcaserin) and underwent the same testing procedures again. Results Lorcaserin did not alter oxycodone self-administration. However, lorcaserin had a trend to increase “wanting heroin” when oxycodone was available, and to accentuate oxycodone-induced miosis. Conclusion Under the current experimental conditions, lorcaserin at a dose of 10 mg BID did not reliably decrease the abuse liability of oxycodone, even though the study was sufficiently powered (≥80 %) to detect clinically meaningful differences in the main outcome variables between the placebo and active lorcaserin condition. Future research could explore a wider dose range of lorcaserin and oxycodone.
Olfactory receptor 78 participates in carotid body response to a wide range of low O2 levels but not severe hypoxia

The role of olfactory receptor 78 (Olfr78) in carotid body (CB) response to hypoxia was examined. BL6 mice with global deletion of Olfr78 manifested an impaired hypoxic ventilatory response (HVR), a hallmark of the CB chemosensory reflex, CB sensory nerve activity, and reduced intracellular Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i) response of glomus cells to hypoxia (Po2 ~ 40 mmHg). In contrast, severe hypoxia (Po2 ~ 10 mmHg) depressed breathing and produced a very weak CB sensory nerve excitation but robust elevation of [Ca2+]i in Olfr78 null glomus cells. CB sensory nerve excitation evoked by Olfr78 ligands, lactate, propionate, acetate, and butyrate were unaffected in mutant mice and were smaller than that evoked by hypoxia (Po2 ~ 40mmHg). Similar results were obtained in Olfr78 null mice on a JAX genetic background. These results demonstrate a role for Olfr78 in CB responses to a wide range of hypoxia, but not severe hypoxia, and do not require either lactate or any other short-chain fatty acids.NEW & NOTEWORTHY The current study demonstrates that olfactory receptor 78 (Olfr78), a G protein-coupled receptor, is an integral component of the hypoxic sensing mechanism of the carotid body to a wide range of low oxygen levels, but not severe hypoxia, and that Olfr78 participation does not require either lactate or any other short-chain fatty acids, proposed ligands of Olfr78.
Progress on molecular biological techniques in detecting Japanese encephalitis virus

Japanese encephalitis vires can cause a severe central nervous system disease with a high fatality in human beings.Thus.it is essential to develop a rapid and accurate diagnositic method of Japanese encephalitis.Several advances of Japanese encephalitis virus detection with molecular biological technique are discussed in this paper. Key words: Encephalitis,Japanese; Diagnositic methods; Molecular biologiy
Internal and external quantum yields enhancement in BDMO-PPV by intense illumination

Abstract Poly-2,5-bis(3′,7′-dimethyloctyloxy)-1,4-phenylenevinylene (BDMO-PPV) is a photoluminescent semiconducting polymer related to others in the well-studied polyphenylene vinylene family such as poly-2-methoxy-5-(2-ethylhexyloxy)-1,4-phenylenevinylene (MEH-PPV). These materials are known for their instability, degradation, and low efficiency in device operations. We report increased internal and external quantum yield in BDMO-PPV during continuous illumination photodegradation through variations in absorbance, scattering, reflectance, and transmittance of the BDMO-PPV solution. We propose the creation of a highly emissive intermediate photoluminescent state responsible for these increased quantum yields.
Developing a new radiomics-based CT image marker to detect lymph node metastasis among cervical cancer patients.

Abstract Background and Objective In diagnosis of cervical cancer patients, lymph node (LN) metastasis is a highly important indicator for the following treatment management. Although CT/PET (i.e., computed tomography/positron emission tomography) examination is the most effective approach for this detection, it is limited by the high cost and low accessibility, especially for the rural areas in the U.S.A. or other developing countries. To address this challenge, this investigation aims to develop and test a novel radiomics-based CT image marker to detect lymph node metastasis for cervical cancer patients. Methods A total of 1,763 radiomics features were first computed from the segmented primary cervical tumor depicted on one CT image with the maximal tumor region. Next, a principal component analysis algorithm was applied on the initial feature pool to determine an optimal feature cluster. Then, based on this optimal cluster, the prediction models (i.e., logistic regression or support vector machine) were trained and optimized to generate an image marker to detect LN metastasis. In this study, a retrospective dataset containing 127 cervical cancer patients were established to build and test the model. The model was trained using a leave-one-case-out (LOCO) cross-validation strategy and image marker performance was evaluated using the area under receiver operation characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC). Results The results indicate that the SVM based imaging marker achieved an AUC value of 0.841 ± 0.035. When setting an operating threshold of 0.5 on model-generated prediction scores, the imaging marker yielded a positive and negative predictive value (PPV and NPV) of 0.762 and 0.765 respectively, while the total accuracy is 76.4%. Conclusions This study initially verified the feasibility of utilizing CT image and radiomics technology to develop a low-cost image marker to detect LN metastasis for assisting stratification of cervical cancer patients.
Draft genome assembly of Passalora sequoiae a needle blight pathogen on Leyland cypress.

Passalora sequoiae (family Mycosphaerellaceae) causes a twig blight on Leyland cypress that requires numerous fungicide applications annually to minimize economic losses for ornamental plant nursery and Christmas tree producers. The objective was to generate a high-quality draft assembly of the genome of P. sequoiae as a resource for primer development to investigate genotype diversity. We report here the genome sequence of P. sequoiae 9LC2 that was isolated from Leyland cypress ‘Leighton Green’ in 2017 in southern Mississippi, USA. The draft genome was obtained using Pacific Biosciences (PacBio) SMRT and Illumina HiSeq 2500 sequencing. Illumina reads were mapped to PacBio assembled contigs to determine base call consistency. Based on a total of 44 contigs with 722 kilobase (kb) average length (range 9.4 kb to 3.4 Mb), the whole genome size was estimated at 31,768,716 bp. Mapping of Illumina reads to PacBio contigs resulted in a 1000 × coverage and were used to confirm accuracy of the consensus sequences.
A Hubble Space Telescope Imaging Survey of Nearby Active Glactic Nuclei

We obtained 500-second F606W WFPC2 images of 256 of the nearest (z<0.035) Seyfert 1,Seyfert 2, and starburst galaxies. Less than 10% show tidal features or multiple nuclei. The incidence of inner starburst rings is about 10% in both classes of Sy galaxies. In contrast, galaxies with H II region emission line spectra appear substantially more irregular because of their much higher specific rates of star formation. An unresolved central continuum source in our HST images is a virtually perfect indicator of a Sy1 spectrum. 52% of these Sy1 point sources are saturated in our images; we use their wings to estimate their magnitudes. The converse is not however true, as over a third of Sy's with direct spectroscopic evidence for broad Balmer wings show no nuclear point source. Like the Sy2's, they have central surface brightnesses consistent with those expected for the bulges of normal galaxies. The frequency of bars in Sy1's and 2's and non-Sys are the same. The Sy2 galaxies are significantly more likely to show nuclear dust absorption, especially in lanes and patches which are irregular or reach close to the nucleus. The difference cannot be explained by different average redshifts or selection techniques. This is confirmed by our morphology classifications, which show that Sy1 nuclei reside in earlier type galaxies than Sy2 nuclei. This intrinsic difference in host galaxy properties may undermine the strong unification hypothesis for Sy galaxies that they appear different due to the orientation of their central engine. The excess galactic dust we see in Sy2's may cause substantial absorption which obscures their hypothesized broad emission-line regions and central nonstellar continua. This galactic dust could produce much of the absorption in Sy2 nuclei which had instead been attributed to a thick dusty accretion torus.
An Analysis of How Characteristics of Local Health Department Jurisdictions Influence Involvement in PHAB Accreditation: Implications for Health Equity.

Objective To explore how characteristics of local health department (LHD) jurisdictions impact involvement in Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB) accreditation and to characterize the implications for health equity. Methods Data from the 2016 National Profile of LHDs survey were linked with data from the American Community Survey, National Center for Health Statistics, Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, and the 2016 presidential election. Outcome measures included LHDs that were formally engaged in PHAB accreditation and LHDs that planned to apply for PHAB accreditation but were not formally engaged. Logistic regression was used to assess for the impact LHD jurisdictions' socioeconomic position, demographics, population health status, political ideology, and LHD organizational characteristics have on PHAB accreditation. Results Approximately 37% of the participants were formally engaged (n = 297) and planned to apply (n = 337) for PHAB accreditation. Involvement in PHAB accreditation was equal among LHDs based on poverty and income inequality, but median household income was negatively associated. Diverse jurisdictions were more likely to be involved in PHAB accreditation but less likely to be involved after controlling for covariates. Jurisdictions with worse population health status were either as likely or more likely to be involved in PHAB accreditation. Jurisdictions with a greater conservative political ideology were less likely to be involved. Conclusion LHD involvement in PHAB accreditation varies by their jurisdiction's characteristics. This has implications for health equity based on socioeconomic, racial, and population health status. Policies and practices are needed to improve the uptake of PHAB accreditation in LHD jurisdictions impacted most by health inequities.
Benefit from Photon Recycling at the Maximum-Power Point of State-of-the-Art Perovskite Solar Cells

Self-absorption of internally radiated photons (``photon recycling'') is common in high-quality, direct-gap semiconductors, and can yield increased photovoltage in solar cells and enhanced emission efficiency in LEDs. For perovskite semiconductors, photon recycling is relatively unexplored, especially for devices under operating conditions. The authors develop a model to quantify the extent of photon recycling in state-of-the-art perovskite solar cells of varying nonradiative loss and geometry. They present clear experimental targets for material optoelectronic quality to harness photon recycling in solar cells, with major implications for achieving low-threshold lasing and efficient LEDs.
Adaptive responses to mTOR gene targeting in hematopoietic stem cells reveal a proliferative mechanism evasive to mTOR inhibition.

The mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) is a central regulator of cell growth and an attractive anticancer target that integrates diverse signals to control cell proliferation. Previous studies using mTOR inhibitors have shown that mTOR targeting suppresses gene expression and cell proliferation. To date, however, mTOR-targeted therapies in cancer have seen limited efficacy, and one key issue is related to the development of evasive resistance. In this manuscript, through the use of a gene targeting mouse model, we have found that inducible deletion of mTOR in hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) results in a loss of quiescence and increased proliferation. Adaptive to the mTOR loss, mTOR−/− HSCs increase chromatin accessibility and activate global gene expression, contrary to the effects of short-term inhibition by mTOR inhibitors. Mechanistically, such genomic changes are due to a rewiring and adaptive activation of the ERK/MNK/eIF4E signaling pathway that enhances the protein translation of RNA polymerase II, which in turn leads to increased c-Myc gene expression, allowing the HSCs to thrive despite the loss of a functional mTOR pathway. This adaptive mechanism can also be utilized by leukemia cells undergoing long-term mTOR inhibitor treatment to confer resistance to mTOR drug targeting. The resistance can be counteracted by MNK, CDK9, or c-Myc inhibition. These results provide insights into the physiological role of mTOR in mammalian stem cell regulation and implicate a mechanism of evasive resistance in the context of mTOR targeting.
Tactical Asset Allocation with the Relative Total Return CAPE

The extant literature documents an inverse long-term relationship between the cyclically adjusted price/earnings ratio (CAPE) and 10-year S&P 500 forward returns. This article shows that a different price/earnings ratio—the relative total return CAPE (RTRC)—has short-term signaling value. During 1901Q1–2019Q4, tactically shifting from the S&P 500 to 10-year Treasury notes yields a 79% increase in terminal wealth relative to buy-and-hold. Several RTRC filters yield positive and statistically significant alphas and superior Sharpe and Treynor measures. From a time-series perspective, the RTRC is indistinguishable from a level stationary series, whereas the CAPE appears to have a unit root. TOPICS:Security analysis and valuation, fundamental equity analysis, portfolio construction, performance measurement Key Findings ▪ The article demonstrates the feasibility of tactically switching from the S&P 500 index to 10-year Treasury notes using the RTRC. ▪ The historical simulation yields a 79% increase in terminal wealth relative to buy-and-hold during 1901Q1–2019Q4. ▪ Several filters yield positive and statistically significant alphas and superior Sharpe and Treynor measures.
Fate of preoperative moderate mitral regurgitation following left ventricular assist device implantation.

Objective We examined for improvements in preoperative moderate mitral regurgitation following continuous-flow left ventricular assist device (cfLVAD) implantation. Methods From 2006 to 2020, 190 patients with moderate MR underwent cfVLAD implant without concomitant mitral valve (MV) surgery. Cardiac dimensions and contractility, as well as valve function, were assessed with an echocardiogram (echo) pre-cfLVAD, and at approximately 1 month post-cfLVAD. Outcomes were determined by retrospective chart review. Results Median echo follow-up was 0.94 (0.53, 1.38) months. Residual significant moderate or greater MR was present in 30/190 (15.8%) on follow-up. Patients with significant residual MR had larger preoperative left ventricular internal diameters in diastole (74.4 ± 8.7 vs. 71.1.0 ± 9.1 mm, p = .034). Significant residual MR was associated with higher preoperative mean pulmonary artery pressures (OR = 1.055, p = .035) and pulmonary capillary wedge pressures (OR = 1.060, p = .034). Significant residual MR on echo was not associated with any survival difference (p = .325). The 1, 5, and 10 year survival were 89.9%, 55.2%, and 34.2%, respectively. Conclusions For patients with moderate MR undergoing LVAD implantation, the likelihood of significant residual MR is low and mitral intervention in this population is not recommended. However, select patients with larger preoperative left heart dimensions and pulmonary vascular pressures may be at risk for persistent residual MR.
36.5 An Automatic Self-Checking and Healing Physically Unclonable Function (PUF) with -8 Bit Error Rate

Physically unclonable functions (PUF) have emerged as a promising solution for secure and low-cost key storage and hardware authentication. A key challenge in PUF designs is ensuring the reliability, or reproducibility of PUF keys under environmental variations. While error correction codes (ECC) could help achieve 100% reliable keys [7], [9], [10], the overhead of the design grows with the worst-case bit-error rate (BER), which will become intractable in mass production (Fig. 36.5.1). Thus, physically more reliable PUF designs are highly desired to alleviate the burden on ECC. State-of-the-art PUF circuit topologies [1] could reduce the native BER to less than 0.5%, but have not shown the potential for another order of magnitude BER reduction. Meanwhile, temporal/spatial majority voting [4], [5], [8] and burn-in [7] are common physical stabilization methods, but with limited efficacy. Dark (unstable) bit masking, on the other hand, has shown great potential to suppress BER before ECC. Finding potential dark bits across the full operating range is nontrivial. Extensive testing across temperatures is expensive and does not completely remove error bits when the evaluations is insufficient [10]. Recently, a few dark bit detection techniques at nominal conditions were proposed. By perturbing a PUF cell in opposite directions, cells with small native mismatch and high flip probability can be identified. Sweeping body biasing has no area overhead and improves BER by 98%, but suffers from low detection accuracy and thus a large number of falsely discarded cells [1]. The latest capacitive tilting in SRAM PUFs [2] and ground resistance insertion in EE SRAM PUFs [3] could detect all unstable bits in the experiments, but still suffer from low detection accuracy.
What Makes Mathematics Teacher Coaching Effective? A Call for a Justice-Oriented Perspective:

Mathematics teacher coaching is a promising but largely overlooked form of professional development (PD) for supporting mathematics teachers’ learning of justice-oriented teaching. In this article,...
Metropolis-Hastings Random Walk along the Gradient Descent Direction for MIMO Detection

In this paper, we present a gradient descent and Metropolis-Hastings (MH) principle based low-complexity, highly parallelizable, near-optimal MIMO demodulation framework. The optimal maximum-likelihood (ML) demodulation is a discrete optimization problem and is computationally infeasible for large MIMO dimensions. Many continuous-relaxed versions of ML, such as least-squares (LS) demodulation, have closed-form solutions but are highly suboptimal to ML. However, the continuous surface of, for example, LS cost function can serve as a proxy for the discontinuous staircase-like surface of the ML cost function. The key idea in this work is to search for the ML solution by performing an MH random walk around the gradient-descent direction of the LS surface (scheme referred hereafter as MHGD). In MH algorithm, a Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) technique, first a random perturbation over the previous state is proposed. Then, the proposal is accepted/rejected with non-zero probability. In MHGD, gradient-descent and MH work synergistically-gradient-descent shows the likely directions to MH making it very efficient and MH navigates the discrete space, which the gradient-descent alone cannot. To achieve near-ML performance, MHGD uses a preconditioner on the gradient and channel-matrix based covariance for the MH random step. The complexity of MHGD algorithm is comparable or lower than the well-known low-complexity, near-ML algorithms. But more importantly, MHGD is highly parallelizable, has simple vectorizable operations, scalable to very large MIMO due to the use of gradients, and can also be extended to distributed computing paradigm. Simulations demonstrate the aforementioned strengths and salient features of near-ML MHGD algorithm.
Quid Quidditism Est

Over the last decade or so, there has been a renewed interest in a view about properties known as quidditism. However, a review of the literature reveals that ‘quidditism’ is used to cover a range of distinct views. In this paper I explore the logical space of distinct types of quidditism. The first distinction noted is between quidditism as a thesis explicitly about property individuation and quidditism as a principle of unrestricted property recombination. The distinction recently drawn by Dustin Locke between extravagant quidditism and austere quidditism is a distinction between quidditisms of the first type. It is then argued that austere quidditism may itself be further sub-divided into what I call ‘extremely austere quidditism’ and ‘moderately austere quidditism’. Moderately austere quidditism is argued to be preferable to extremely austere quidditism and further to be able to address many of the arguments leveled against quidditism in general.
COURTS Magistrate Courts: Provide for an Optional No Contest Bond Forfeiture Procedure for Misdemeanor Bad Check Violations as a Final Disposition and Provide for Bench Warrants When Forfeiture Is Not Final Disposition

The Act provides that chief magistrates may establish no contest cash bond schedules, allows persons arrested or accused of misdemeanor bad check violations to post a no contest cash bond, and deems failure to appear for trial to be a guilty plea and forfeiture of the bond, unless the court provides otherwise. When the court rejects the guilty plea and forfeiture, the Act instructs the court to issue a bench warrant for the defendant's arrest for subsequent default.
Methionine and its derivatives increase bladder excitability by inhibiting stretch‐dependent K+ channels

Background and purpose: During the bladder filling phase, the volume of the urinary bladder increases dramatically, with only minimal increases in intravesical pressure. To accomplish this, the smooth muscle of the bladder wall must remain relaxed during bladder filling. However, the mechanisms responsible for the stabilization of bladder excitability during stretch are unclear. We hypothesized that stretch-dependent K+ (TREK) channels in bladder smooth muscle cells may inhibit contraction in response to stretch. Experimental approaches: Bladder tissues from mouse, guinea pig and monkey were used for molecular, patch clamp, mechanical, electrical, Ca2+ imaging and cystometric responses to methionine and its derivatives, which are putative blockers of stretch-dependent K+ (SDK) channels. Key results: SDK channels are functionally expressed in bladder myocytes. The single channel conductance of SDK channels is 89pS in symmetrical K+ conditions and is blocked by L-methionine. Expressed TREK-1 currents are also inhibited by L-methioninol. All three types of bladder smooth muscle cells from mouse, guinea pig and monkey expressed TREK-1 genes. L-methionine, methioninol and methionine methyl ester but not D-methionine increased contractility in concentration-dependent manner. Methioninol further increased contractility and depolarized the membrane in the presence of blockers of Ca2+-activated K+ conductance. L-methionine induced Ca2+ waves that spread long distances through the tissue under stretched conditions and were associated with strong contractions. In cystometric assays, methioninol injection increased bladder excitability mimicking overactive bladder activity. Conclusions and implications: Methioninol-sensitive K+ (SDK, TREK-1) channels appear to be important to prevent spread of excitation through the syncitium during bladder filling. British Journal of Pharmacology (2008) 153, 1259–1271; doi:10.1038/sj.bjp.0707690; published online 21 January 2008
Guide to CAT scanning in hospital psychiatry: Overview of clinical practice and criteria for use

Advances in imaging techniques have resulted in increasing use of computed axial tomography (CAT) in clinical psychiatry. Treatable brain lesions predominantly manifesting as emotional and behavioral symptoms can be detected with relative ease and safety by CAT scanning. Criteria to select these high-risk psychiatric patients for CAT exam are vague and sparse compared to more abundant guidelines for scanning neurologic and medical patients with focal signs of physical abnormality. The few existing surveys of inpatient psychiatry CAT scanning reveal a 65-70% range of normal findings. As more and more patients are scanned, such an obviously large group of "normals" should not be exposed to current CAT exam costs and risks; at the same time, it is necessary to ensure that those psychiatric patients warranting the procedure are not neglected in referral. This article highlights clinical aspects of CAT brain imaging, summarizes the existing literature on inpatient psychiatry CAT scanning, and recommends initial criteria for CAT brain examination of hospitalized patients.
Adichie, Okigbo, and African Poetry

Adichies Half of a Yellow Sun recalls a grim chapter in African history, re-memorying a time scarcely forty years earlier now largely obscured by more recent progress and atrocity in human rights. This epic novel offers many readers their first sustained encounter with the Biafran War. An ancillary gift is Adichies re-introduction of the poet Christopher Okigbo, one of that wars singularly tragic casualties, now also hardly known to most students or a general readership. How does Adichies fictional Okeoma recreate/resonate Okigbos idiom to inform the novels tragic narrative? Does poetry address issues of conflict and human rights differently than do modes of fiction or memoir? How does the poet Okeoma teach the other characters struggling to write (Richard, Ugwu)? Such observations raise larger questions about African literature: why are so few poets in English among the major writers read and taught? is there a difference for francophone poets? with some exceptions (Brutus, Okot pBitek, J.P. Clark-Bekederemo, Awoonor, Anyidoho, Serote, Mapanje), must a writer of poetry first be acclaimed for work in other forms (Achebe, Aidoo, Soyinka, Laing)? Is conventional poetry the neglected, unlucrative literary step-sister in the academy and society, eclipsed by a multinational culture of rap and pop music that flows across boundaries of language and nations?
Hathaway, Starke R. (1903–84)

Starke Rosencrans Hathaway (1903–84) played a significant role in reifying “dust bowl” empiricism through the development, with his colleague J. Charnley McKinley (1891–1950), of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI), which became the most widely used broadband measure of personality and psychopathology in the world. Although the MMPI was his most recognized accomplishment, Starke Hathaway had a varied career, making significant contributions across a range of subareas within the broader context of applied clinical psychology. Hathaway was by nature an experimentalist, a theoretical skeptic, and a well-informed agnostic with regard to the then-current theoretical systems within psychology. He often challenged conventional wisdom and questioned the utility of established practice. These attributes allowed him to collaborate across disciplines and make significant contributions to psychological assessment, physiological psychology, and experimental psychology over the span of his highly productive career. Keywords: MMPI; personality assessment; practice in clinical psychology; psycholgical assessment; psychometric testing; testing in psychology
The effect of varying phytoplankton concentration on submarine light transmission in the Gulf of California1

Beam transmission and phytoplankton fluorescence were measured simultaneously in the Gulf of California. In each profile the depth distribution of the volume attenuation coefficient, a, corrected for the attenuation by particle-free water, paralleled the distribution of phytoplankton fluorescence. For most open water profiles the correlation coefficient, T, between a and fluorescence was greater than 0.96. The covariation of the two parameters was quantitatively similar for profiles separated by large distances, so that a single linear regression adequately described the correlation for all open water profiles. When considered in terms of particle scattering theory, the correlation indicated that nonphytoplankton material in seawater consisted of two components: one which remained constant with depth and locale and one whose optical cross section covaried with that of phytoplankton,
College Alcohol Abuse: A Review of the Problems, Issues, and Prevention Approaches

Underage drinking and alcohol abuse by college students are of major concern both for the individuals and for all those in the campus community. This paper reviews the extent of the problem currently and in an historical perspective. It also reviews research concerning the immediate and long-term health and social outcomes of binge drinking, along with the “second hand” effects for those around the drinkers. Profiles of those individuals and groups most at risk for problem drinking are suggested. It also provides examples of efforts to prevent or reduce collegiate drinking, including campus-community coalitions, environmental management and social marketing campaigns. Additional resources and further suggestions for a comprehensive prevention effort are included.
Silicon Detectors for the sLHC

The luminosity upgrade of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN to the Super LHC (sLHC) will increase the radiation dose at the experiments by roughly an order of magnitude. The elevated radiation levels require the LHC experiments to upgrade their tracking systems with extremely radiation hard detectors. Recent results on defect characterization of silicon materials and radiation hard technologies developed by the RD50 Collaboration for sLHC use are reported. Studies on n - and p -type silicon with Float Zone (FZ) and Czochralski technologies as well as 3D silicon detector designs are presented. Properties such as charge collection efficiency, electron signal, effective doping concentration (N eff ) and full depletion voltage (V fd ) after radiation exposure are compared to assess the performance of the different technologies.
A Preliminary Study of Bully and Victim Behavior in Old-for-Grade Students: Another Potential Hidden Cost of Grade Retention or Delayed School Entry

Mounting evidence suggests that being an old-for-grade student, as a result of grade retention or delayed school entry, is related to negative outcomes across various domains of functioning. No known study has examined the relations between old-for-grade status and specific childhood/adolescent bully and victim behaviors. The first purpose of this preliminary study was to determine whether old-for-grade students engage in significantly more relational bullying, verbal bullying, and physical bullying compared with age-appropriate-for-grade peers. The second purpose was to establish whether old-for-grade students are more likely to play passive or aggressive/provocative victim roles compared with age-appropriate-for-grade students. A total of 16 public and private school teachers completed a bullying behavior questionnaire regarding each of their students. The authors analyzed data from 276 students; of these, 67 were old-for-grade students and 209 were age-appropriate-for-grade students. Findings suggest t...
Three-Phase Liquid−Liquid−Vapor Equilibria of the Binary Mixture Carbon Dioxide + 1-Methylnaphthalene

The liquid−liquid−vapor (llg) partial miscibility behavior of the mixture carbon dioxide + 1-methylnaphthalene was experimentally studied by use of a visual cell (stoichiometric) technique. Pressur...
A Practical Method for Rapid Measurement of Skin Condition

Abstract Maintaining skin integrity is important because of the skin's role in protecting the infant and providing innate immunity. Achievement of this goal requires constant vigilance and awareness of factors that can negatively impact the skin. The task can be particularly challenging for patients in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Key to optimizing skin condition is methods to quantify the extend of skin compromise. Implementation of such methods allows caregivers to monitor effectiveness of treatments and practices to prevent skin damage. This paper briefly reviews skin breakdown in hospitalized patients and describes a validated, visually based method for rapid measurement of skin condition. Application of the method in the NICU setting is discussed.
Applying Statistical Methods for Further Improvement of High-Performance Concrete for New York State Bridge Decks

A new concrete mixture designated “Class HP” for high-performance has been developed for bridge decks in New York State. A modification of the state's standard Class H concrete, it has better handling and workability characteristics, reduced permeability, and greater resistance to cracking and displays little or no surface scaling. These improvements have potential to result in twice the previously expected concrete service life. The mixture incorporates substitutions for cement of 20 percent Class F fly ash and 6 percent microsilica. It has now been established as the required concrete mixture for all decks built by the New York State Department of Transportation. Its successful implementation has triggered further research toward an even better mixture. An experiment was designed and performed to investigate the effects on cracking and permeability of microsilica and fly ash content, as well as the effects of total weight of cementitious materials. Experimental designs allowed investigation of a broad r...
Effects of intense low frequency sound (sonic boom) on the cochlea.

Abstract The effect of sonic boom on hearing was studied by exposing guinea pigs to intense low-frequency tones. Low frequencies were found to affect cochlear function and structure; however, it was concluded that the typical sonic boom does not contain low frequencies of sufficient intensity to damage the cochlea.
A web-based troubleshooting tool to help customers self-solve color issues with a digital printing workflow

Current printing technologies enable customers to reproduce high quality, realistic, and colorful hard copies of their digital documents. Although the activity of printing is transparent to the customers, the progression of a customer's document through the color printing workflow (CPW) is a complex process that may alter the colors in the print job. Given the complexity of the CPW, it is a difficult problem to diagnose the source of the color issue. Novel tools and methods that address this challenge are beneficial for both the manufacturer and its customers. We propose a Web-based troubleshooting tool that helps customers to self-solve color issues with electrophotographic laser printers when printing solid colors in graphics and text. The tool helps the customer to reconfigure his/her CPW following printing best practices. If the issue is still unresolved, the tool guides the user to search the gamut of the printer for his/her color preference. The usability of the tool was carefully evaluated with human subject experiments. Also, the description and organization of the troubleshooting tasks were continuously reviewed and improved in regular meetings of the development team. In this paper, we describe the troubleshooting strategy, the color preference search algorithm, and the results of the usability experiments.
The stable isotopic composition of photosynthetic pigments and related biochemicals

The stable carbon and nitrogen isotopic composition of bulk organic matter, lipids, chlorophylla, chlorophyllb and β,β-carotene were determined for selected photosynthetic plants. Lipids are depleted in13C (∼ − 6‰) compared to bulk organic matter. C4- and C3-type biosynthesis can be differentiated at the compound class and individual compound level by their stable carbon isotope ratios. The stable carbon isotopic ratios of chlorophylls isolated from C3 and C4 plants differ by ∼ 10ℵ.. The stable nitrogen isotope ratios of lipids vary over an ∼ 15‰ range, excluding one very positive sample. Various sources of carbon and nitrogen, differing assimilation mechanisms, and nutrient limitation contribute to the observed isotopic compositions. The stable isotopic composition of chlorophyllf and bulk organic matter are linearly correlated. Based on this relationship it is possible to resolve the assimilation of carbon and nitrogen by algae within complex mixture of detritus, bacteria and phytoplankton. The isotopic record of photosynthetic fixation of carbon and nitogren in chlorophylls suggests that geoporphyrins do retain information on paleo-productivity. The stable isotopic composition of chlorophylla, chlorophyllb and β,β-carotene, and their breakdown products provide unique insight into a wide range of biogeochemical processes.
Partonic effects on the elliptic flow at relativistic heavy ion collisions

The elliptic flow in heavy ion collisions at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider is studied in a multiphase transport model. By converting the strings in the high energy density regions into partons, we find that the final elliptic flow is sensitive to the parton scattering cross section. To reproduce the large elliptic flow observed in Au+Au collisions at $\sqrt{s}=130 A\mathrm{GeV}$ requires a parton scattering cross section of about 6 mb. We also study the dependence of the elliptic flow on the particle multiplicity, transverse momentum, and particle mass.
EXAFS: A new tool for the study of battery and fuel cell materials

Abstract Extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) is a powerful technique for probing the atomic structure of battery and fuel cell materials. The major