cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Boundary-Functional Broadside and Skewed-Load Tests

Close-to-functional broadside tests are used for avoiding overtesting of delay faults that can result from non-functional operation conditions, while avoiding test escapes because of faults that cannot be detected under functional operation conditions. When a close-to-functional broadside test deviates from functional operation conditions, the deviation can affect the entire circuit. This article defines the concept of a boundary-functional broadside test where non-functional operation conditions are prevented from crossing a preselected boundary. Using the procedure described in this article, the boundary maintains the same values under a boundary-functional broadside test as under a functional broadside test from which it is derived. Indirectly, this ensures that the deviations from functional operation conditions throughout the entire circuit are limited. The concept of a boundary-functional broadside test is extended to skewed-load tests, and to partial-boundary-functional tests. Experimental results are presented for benchmark circuits to demonstrate the fault coverage improvements that can be achieved using boundary-functional broadside and skewed-load tests as well as partial-boundary-functional tests of both types.
Effects of steam conditioning temperatures on commercial phytases and subsequent broiler performance and tibia mineralization

ABSTRACT Objective Phytase enzymes support broiler phosphorus requirements and vary in thermal stability and manufacturer suggested protocols for determining activity. Our objective was to evaluate nutrient degradation, determined using phytase markers, broiler performance, and tibia mineralization from diets based on corn and soybean meal subjected to increasing steam conditioning temperatures. Materials and Methods Three commercial phytase products (B Trich, E Pichia, E Trich) were analyzed for activity at 2 laboratories. The lower obtained activity was used to include each product at 1,000 phytase units/kg of the diet. Each product was applied to a negative control (NC) diet before steam conditioning at 82, 88, or 93°C, pelleting, and crumbling. A 4 × 3 factorial arrangement in a randomized complete block design created 12 treatments fed to 8 replicate cages of 10 Hubbard × Cobb straight-run broilers for 20 d. Results and Discussion Phytase product effects demonstrated that NC-fed broilers had the lowest feed intake and live weight gain, whereas broilers fed E Trich had the greatest feed intake and live weight gain (P Implications and Applications Increased conditioning temperature may have decreased nutrient availability per se and denatured phytase products, or both factors may have contributed to performance detriment.
Sodium-Glucose Cotransporter-2 Inhibitors and the Risk for Severe Urinary Tract Infections: A Population-Based Cohort Study.

Background: Prior data evaluating risk of severe UTI infections with Sodium-Glucose Co-Transporter 2 inhibitors (SGLT2i) have reported conflicting findings.
Silicon: a Revenant Thermoelectric Material?

Before entering the world of superconductivity, Ted Geballe, in the 1950s, investigated the thermoelectric (TE) properties of doped crystalline silicon. Ted’s results indicated that Si has very poor thermoelectric properties, primarily because near room temperature most of the heat transport through Si is carried via phonons rather than electrons and holes. These findings ended the role of Si in TE technologies for a half-century. A decade ago, it was proposed that Si in nanowire form can have good TE properties owing to suppression of phonon heat transport by surface scattering. However, no TE device made of Si nanowires has shown useful performance characteristics. Here, we present work showing integrated circuit Si TE generators that can generate power per unit area per applied temperature difference that is competitive with the best existing TE technologies using more exotic TE materials. Our devices surpass previous Si TE work not by increasing silicon’s intrinsic TE efficiency but by exploiting modern Si processing technology to fabricate a very large number of heat harvesters per unit area. While Ted’s old work buried Si in the TE world, our results may resurrect it as a viable TE material.
Geriatric Anxiety Scale: Development and Preliminary Validation of a Long-Term Care Anxiety Assessment Measure.

Objectives: Anxiety is a significant problem for many individuals in various long-term care (LTC) settings and is often undetected and under-treated. This study examined the psychometric properties...
Seguaci americani della Scuola Romana di fotografia: Nathan Flint Baker, Leavitt Hunt e Richard Morris Hunt

In 1851, before embarking on a journey to Egypt and the Near East, Americans Leavitt Hunt (1831-1907) and Nathan Flint Baker (1820-1891) traveled to Rome to learn photography. There, they encountered members of the Roman School, an international group of practitioners of paper negatives. A year later, Leavitt’s brother Richard Morris Hunt (1827-1895) traveled to the same sites and collected photographs. This article explores the networks that connected them to Rome, illuminating a little-known American contribution to paper photography and providing further confirmation of the influence of the Roman School on the medium’s development.
Hurting less in the face of evil

Life is a journey toward death, and we are reminded of this fact when faced with tragedy. We avoid, silence, and neutralize the tragic to distance ourselves from seeing and naming the fragility of ...
NBIA: a network-based integrative analysis framework - applied to pathway analysis

With the explosion of high-throughput data, effective integrative analyses are needed to decipher the knowledge accumulated in biological databases. Existing meta-analysis approaches in systems biology often focus on hypothesis testing and neglect real expression changes, i.e. effect sizes, across independent studies. In addition, most integrative tools completely ignore the topological order of gene regulatory networks that hold key characteristics in understanding biological processes. Here we introduce a novel meta-analysis framework, Network-Based Integrative Analysis (NBIA), that transforms the challenging meta-analysis problem into a set of standard pathway analysis problems that have been solved efficiently. NBIA utilizes techniques from classical and modern meta-analysis, as well as a network-based analysis, in order to identify patterns of genes and networks that are consistently impacted across multiple studies. We assess the performance of NBIA by comparing it with nine meta-analysis approaches: Impact Analysis, GSA, and GSEA combined with classical meta-analysis methods (Fisher's and the additive method), plus the three MetaPath approaches that employ multiple datasets. The 10 approaches have been tested on 1,737 samples from 27 expression datasets related to Alzheimer's disease, acute myeloid leukemia (AML), and influenza. For all of the three diseases, NBIA consistently identifies biological pathways relevant to the underlying diseases while the other 9 methods fail to capture the key phenomena. The identified AML signature is also validated on a completely independent cohort of 167 AML patients. In this independent cohort, the proposed signature identifies two groups of patients that have significantly different survival profiles (Cox p-value 2 × 10-6). The NBIA framework will be included in the next release of BLMA Bioconductor package (http://bioconductor.org/packages/release/bioc/html/BLMA.html).
Hypofractionated radiotherapy and surgery compared to standard radiotherapy in early glottic cancer.

Abstract Purpose Early-stage glottic laryngeal cancer is treated with surgery or radiotherapy (RT), but limited randomized data exists to support one modality over the other. This study evaluates survival differences in early glottic cancer patients treated with either surgery or RT. Materials and methods 14,498 patients with early glottic cancer diagnosed from 2004 to 2015 and treated with surgery or RT were identified in the National Cancer Database. Kaplan-Meier method was used to analyze differences in overall survival (OS) by treatment (surgery vs. RT) and radiation dose fractionation. Cox regression modeling and propensity score-matched (PSM) analysis were performed. Adjusted hazard ratios (aHR) with 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) were computed. Results Median follow-up and median OS for all patients were 49.5 and 118 months, respectively. The estimated 5-year OS for surgery and RT was 77.5% and 72.6%, respectively (P Conclusion In early glottic tumors, patients treated with surgery demonstrated improved survival compared to RT, but when hypofractionation was considered, there were no significant differences in OS between patients undergoing surgery or RT.
Association of Socioeconomic Characteristics With Where Children Receive Emergency Care.

Objective Outcomes of emergency care delivered to children vary by patient-level socioeconomic factors and by emergency department (ED) characteristics, including pediatric volume. How these factors intersect in emergency care-seeking patterns among children is not well understood. The objective of this study was to characterize national associations of neighborhood income and insurance type of children with the characteristics of the EDs from which they receive care. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional study of ED visits by children from 2014 to 2017 using the Nationwide Emergency Department Sample. We determined the associations of neighborhood income and patient insurance type with the proportions of visits to EDs by pediatric volume category, both unadjusted and adjusted for patient-level factors including urban-rural status of residence. Results Of 107.6 million ED visits by children nationally from 2014 to 2017, children outside of the wealthiest neighborhood income quartile had lower proportions of visits to high-volume pediatric EDs (57.1% poorest quartile, 51.5% second, 56.6% third, 63.5% wealthiest) and greater proportions of visits to low-volume pediatric EDs (4.4% poorest, 6.4% second, 4.6% third, 2.3% wealthiest) than children in the wealthiest quartile. Adjustment for patient-level factors, particularly urban-rural status, inverted this association, revealing that lower neighborhood income was independently associated with visiting higher-volume pediatric EDs. Publicly insured children were modestly more likely to visit higher-volume pediatric EDs than privately insured and uninsured children in both unadjusted and adjusted analyses. Conclusions Nationally, children in lower-income neighborhoods tended to receive care in pediatric EDs with lower volume, an association that appears principally driven by urban-rural differences in access to emergency care.
Uncertainty as a critical determinant of antibiotic prescribing in patients with an asthma exacerbation: a qualitative study.

To identify factors that influence providers’ decisions to prescribe antibiotics in patients presenting to the hospital with an asthma exacerbation. We performed semi-structured interviews with a p...
Strategy of Isolating 'Primed' Tumor Initiating Cells Based on Mitochondrial Transmembrane Potential

Various stem cells have been found to be dependent on mitochondrial energetics. The role of mitochondria in regulating the self-renewal of normal stem cells and stem-like tumor initiating cells (TICs) is increasingly being appreciated. We proposed that TIC populations have a sub population of cells that are "primed" by mitochondria for self-renewal. Using ovarian cancer model, we have developed a protocol to identify and isolate these "primed" cells using Fluorescence-Assisted Cell Sorting (FACS). We combined live cell stains for a functional marker of TICs and for mitochondrial transmembrane potential to enrich TICs with higher mitochondrial potential that form in vitro spheroids 10-fold more than the other TICs with lower mitochondrial potential. This protocol can be directly used or modified to be used in various cell types. Thus, this protocol is anticipated to be invaluable for the basic understanding of mitochondrial and energetic heterogeneity within stem cell population, and may also prove valuable in translational studies in regenerative medicine and cancer biology.
DEVS-scripting: A Black-Box Test Frame for Devs Models

Experimental frames have been used in DEVS-based simulations to drive scenarios through injecting inputs and interpreting outputs. This design has traditionally called for separate models with distinct roles: generator, acceptor, and transducer. In certain controlled experiments such as model testing, sequential programming offers a simpler design with many benefits, specifically: code reduction, test case development throughput, and diagnostics for failed tests. This research offers a test framework that is derived from atomic DEVS and facilitates testing through scripting. The challenge for this research is to prove DEVS semantics are maintained when the experimental frame is tightly controlled by a script. Our solution uses a separate thread for this script and synchronizes program execution switching with a nest lock. Synchronization is key in showing that this design maintains DEVS semantics by nesting script code within the state transition functions of DEVS modeling components.
Resident experiences with virtual education during the COVID-19 crisis.

Abstract Background Residency education has adapted to current social distancing recommendations by relying heavily on videoconferences. There is concern however, that this new paradigm may lead to over-saturation or burnout. Methods A 12-question survey investigating resident experiences with educational videoconferences was distributed to University of Washington plastic surgery residents. A modified Maslach Burnout Inventory was used to assess resident burnout from virtual conferences. Conference attendance and reasons for missing conferences were compared using paired two-tailed t-tests. Results A total of 24 residents were given the survey with 100% response rate. There was a significant decrease in the total number of weekly attended videoconferences (p Conclusion Videoconferences have become a valued means of resident education. The data suggests however that attendance has waned, largely due to what can be perceived as burnout. Residents remain interested in continuing educational videoconferences, although prioritizing quality over quantity will remain essential to prevent emotional fatigue and burnout.
Research on Spatio-Temporal Characteristics of Distribution Network Voltage Based on Big Data

The evaluation of the power supply voltage qualification rate of the distribution network adopts classification, sampling, and weighting to calculate the regional voltage qualification rate. There are problems such as point-to-surface, local and time-period characteristics. Integrate multi-source data such as power distribution SCADA system, marketing system, and geographic information system. It proposes the hierarchical aggregation of households-substations-lines-stations to analyze the spatial characteristics of the distribution network voltage; based on high-frequency sampling information, it is proposed to calculate the voltage qualification rate of feeders and substations in different periods, and to identify the warning period and analyze the time characteristics of local voltage. It can also realize the fine characterization of the spatiotemporal characteristics of the power supply voltage qualification rate of the distribution network. Data calculations of a distribution network in Guangxi show that the proposed voltage temporal and spatial characteristics analysis method can accurately reflect the voltage details of the distribution network, sort the unqualified rates of feeders and substation power supply voltages, and identify intermittent low voltages.
Leptin protects against the development and expression of cocaine addiction-like behavior in heterogenous stock rats

In addition to its pleasurable effects, weight control is a significant contributor to initiation, maintenance and relapse of cocaine use. This suggests that individual differences in bodyweight control and feeding hormones, such as leptin may contribute to the vulnerability to cocaine use disorder. While pre-clinical studies have shown a mutually inhibitory relationship between leptin and cocaine, they have used small sample sizes and did not investigate individual differences in a large heterogeneous population. Here, we tested if individual differences in bodyweight and blood leptin level is associated with high or low vulnerability to addiction-like behaviors using data from 500 heterogenous stock rats and 160 blood samples from the Cocaine Biobank, using a model of extended access to intravenous self-administration of cocaine. Finally, we tested a separate cohort to evaluate the causal effect of exogenous leptin administration on cocaine seeking. Bodyweight, while changing due to cocaine self-administration in males, was not related to the vulnerability to addiction-like behavior. Blood leptin levels after ~6 weeks of cocaine self-administration did not correlate with addiction-like behaviors, however, baseline blood leptin levels before any access to cocaine negatively predicted addiction-like behavior. Finally, administration of leptin reduced cocaine intake after acute withdrawal and cocaine seeking after 6 weeks of protracted abstinence. These results demonstrate that high blood leptin level before access to cocaine may be a protective factor against the development of cocaine addiction-like behavior, that exogenous leptin reduces the motivation to take and seek cocaine, but that blood leptin level and bodyweight changes in current users are not good biomarkers for addiction-like behaviors.
Smoking in the LGBT Community

Tobacco use is the single most preventable cause of cancer. Smoking prevalence among lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) persons is significantly higher than in the general U.S. population. This health disparity likely originates during sexual minority adolescence, when smoking initiation occurs earlier and maintains at higher rates than for their heterosexual peers. Among youth, identifying as bisexual and being female, and experiencing more victimization increase risk for smoking. For LGBT adults, alcohol, substance use, and depression are often associated with smoking. One hypothesis proposes that disparate LGBT tobacco use is driven by sexual minority stress resulting from externally imposed and internally incorporated stigma and victimization. If true, does engagement in a validating LGBT community protect against the risk of smoking? Research findings suggest a more complex question, depending upon age of the person, number and type of LGBT organizations, and perhaps whether they have active tobacco control programs. Definitive answers await further research. LGBT tobacco control advocates have developed community-based smoking cessation programs, such as The Last Drag, tailored to LGBT persons, held in LGBT-serving venues, and assuring a supportive context for smoking cessation. Evaluations of community-based programs are encouraging. A marked paucity of LGBT-tailored or targeted randomized controlled cessation trials exist, and some studies not tailored or limited to LGBT smokers show cessation rates equivalent for LGBT and heterosexual persons. Multi-site studies encompassing different regions of the country beyond the two coasts could address the likely complex efficacy issues of tailored vs. non-tailored smoking cessation interventions for LGBT smokers.
Does Perceived Risk Mediate the Relationship of Product Involvement and Information Search

The relationship of the importance and hedonic dimensions of product involvement to information search is analyzed in this study. It is postulated that perceived risk mediates the effect of the dimensions of product involvement on information search. Previous investigations have used individual consumers as the units of observation and have, therefore, limited the generalizability of their results to a few products at best. In contrast, the study reported in this paper attempted to determine the relationships of interest with products as the units of observation. Data for the study were gathered through two independent surveys. In the first survey, an aggregate data set was compiled for the product involvement dimensions using a field survey of 30 actual users for each of 146 products, which were randomly selected from the SIC manual. In the second survey, the variables of perceived risk and information search were measured and the mean of 30 responses was again used as the aggregate score for each variable for a total of 89 products from the original set. It is found that perceived risk fully mediates the effect of the importance dimension of product involvement on information search but not of the hedonic dimension. The effect of hedonic involvement on information search is direct.
Outcomes of Cancer Patients Undergoing Percutaneous Pericardiocentesis for Pericardial Effusion

AbstractBackground: Pericardial effusion (PE) is common in cancer patients, but the optimal therapeutic approach is not well defined. Percutaneous pericardiocentesis is less invasive than surgery, ...
Deflationism (About Theories of Truth)

In this article, I provide a general account of deflationism. After doing so, I turn to truth-deflationism, where, after first describing some of the species, I highlight some challenges for those who wish to adopt it.
Quantifying degradation of XLPE insulated distribution cables

This work quantifies the degradation of XLPE insulated distribution cables in terms of electrical breakdown voltage using a needle plane geometry and area for FTIR spectroscopy. These identified parameters can be used to estimate the remaining useful life of cables and to optimize the cable replacement schedules. Significance of parameters is determined using regression analysis and analysis of variance.
Acute and Chronic Graft-Versus-Host Disease After Allogeneic Peripheral-Blood Stem-Cell and Bone Marrow Transplantation: A Meta-Analysis

PURPOSE: Controversy exists as to whether the incidence of graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) is increased after peripheral-blood stem-cell transplantation (PBSCT) when compared with bone marrow transplantation (BMT). We performed a meta-analysis of all trials comparing the incidence of acute and chronic GVHD after PBSCT and BMT reported as of June, 2000. Secondary analyses examined relapse rates after the two procedures. METHODS: An extensive MEDLINE search of the literature was undertaken. Primary authors were contacted for clarification and completion of missing information. A review of cited references was also undertaken. Sixteen studies (five randomized controlled trials and 11 cohort studies) were included in this analysis. Data was extracted by two pairs of reviewers and analyzed for the outcomes of interest. Meta-analyses, regression analyses, and assessments of publication bias were performed. RESULTS: Using a random effects model, the pooled relative risk (RR) for acute GVHD after PBSCT was 1.16 ...
The Sodium Nightglow

Abstract The chemiluminescent reaction responsible for the nightglow in the sodium D lines is embedded in the complex kinetics of an oxygen-hydrogen atmosphere. Various possibilities of identifying this reaction from observational studies are considered. It is suggested that an important clue may be found in the time-variations of the height-integrated glow-intensity.
Cross-contamination of cells in culture

Lists are presented of references to all known publications describing cell properties that serve to characterize (i) known strains of HeLa and purported human cell lines indicated as HeLa contaminants, (ii) strains of human cell lines contaminated with human but non-HeLa cells, and (iii) strains of cells contaminated by cells from one or more other species. Frequencies of cell cross-contaminations are cited and references are presented to relatively simple techniques that could serve to detect such contamination.
TRANSPORT OF HIGH BOILING POINT FIRE SUPPRESSANTS IN A DROPLET-LADEN HOMOGENEOUS TURBULENT FLOW PAST A CYLINDER

Liquid agent transport was investigated around unheated and heated horizontal cylinders (to a near-surface temperature of approximately 423 K, i.e., well above the water boiling point) under ambient conditions. Experimental results are presented for a well-characterized, droplet-laden homogenous turbulent flow field, using water, methoxy-nonafluorobutane (i.e., HFE-7100, C4F9OCH3, with a boiling point of 334 K), and 1-methoxyheptafluoropropane (i.e., HFE-7000, C3F7OCH3, with a boiling point of 307 K). Phase Doppler interferometry and visualization techniques were used to explore the thermal effects on spray surface impingement, vaporization, and transport around and downstream behind the cylinder by providing information on droplet size and velocity in the vicinity of the cylinder. For water, results indicated that impinging droplets larger than about 35 µm generally coat the unheated cylinder surface, with few droplets rebounding back into the free stream. Downstream, in the wake region of the cylinder, smaller size droplets (generally, of less than 35 µm) are entrained into the recirculation zone. Heat transfer reduces droplet mean size and velocity significantly in the vicinity of the heated cylinder. For the two HFE agents, liquid coating and dripping (observed for water) were eliminated due to vaporization. Droplet mean size increases and velocity decreases with increasing agent boiling point. These variations may also be explained by the changes in agent physical properties. It is improbable that shattering occurs for the droplet sizes and velocities encountered for the given operating conditions, although it could conceivably occur for a few individual impinging droplets.
In vivo method for quantitation for anti-platelet potency of drugs.

Aortic strips from atherosclerotic rabbits or Achilles tendons from healthy rabbits were superfused with blood (3 ml/min) from anaesthetized and heparinized cats, while blood was returned to the venous system of animals. The superfused tissues gained in weight because of deposition of platelet thrombi on their surface. This gain in weight was continuously monitored and quantified. Forty minutes after intravenous administration of indomethacin (14 mg/kg), aspirin (7 mg/kg) or nictindole (2 mg/kg) the formation of platelet deposits was reduced by half. Three hours after i.v. administration of each drug at a dose of 20 mg/kg the remaining anti-platelet activities were 92% for aspirin, 59% for indomethacin and 18% for nictindole as compared to their antithrombotic action, which was recorded 40 min after their administration. Thrombogenesis was also prevented by a direct infusion of nictindole (50 ng/ml) or indomethacin (2000 ng/ml) into a stream of superfusing blood. Thereby our method enables us to quantify in vivo anti-aggregating potency of drugs, to estimate the duration of this action, and to compare their in vitro and in vivo aggregation-inhibitory activities.
Trait aggression is related to anger-modulated deficits in response inhibition

Abstract The goal of the present study was to investigate the role of emotion-modulated response inhibition in individual difference in the disposition towards aggressive behavior (i.e. trait aggression). One hundred and twelve undergraduate participants completed a behavioral measure of emotion modulated response inhibition (an emotional go/no-go task), self-report measures previously shown to predict aggression (Big-5 traits, impulsivity), and the Aggression Questionnaire (AQ) as a measure of trait aggression. Results show that deficient inhibition to angry, but not happy, faces were related to trait aggression but not to other traits. These findings provide support for the role of specific top down executive control mechanisms in the regulation of aggressive tendencies and highlight the importance of examining these mechanisms in an emotional context.
Study of Sn-Coated Graphite as Anode Material for Secondary Lithium-Ion Batteries

Tin-graphite composites have been developed as an alternate anode material for Li-ion batteries using an autocatalytic deposition technique. The specific discharge capacity, coulombic efficiency, rate capability behavior, and cycle life of Sn-C composites has been studied using a variety of electrochemical methods. The amount of tin loading and the heating temperature have a significant effect on the composite performance. The synthesis conditions and Sn loading on graphite have been optimized to obtain the maximum reversible capacity for the composite electrode. Heating the composite converts it from amorphous to crystalline form. Apart from higher capacity, Sn-graphite composites possesses higher coulombic efficiency, better rate capability, and longer cycle life than the bare synthetic graphite. Current studies are focused on reducing the first cycle irreversible capacity loss of this material.
Two-dimensional charge transfer and space charge effects in extended surface solid oxide fuel cell electrodes

Abstract The microstructural morphology of solid oxide fuel cell electrodes has been noted to impact electrode performance, particularly with respect to charge transfer. Drawing on thermal fin analysis, an analytical modeling concept has been applied to charge transport within the SOFC electrode microstructure. This approach has the ability to account for variable cross-section solid geometry and replicates experimentally observed behavior related to SOFC electrode sintering quality. Microstructural geometries simulated by periodic structures composed of iterated base units with variable cross-section are investigated using two approaches: an axisymmetric one-dimensional analytical model and an axisymmetric two-dimensional finite element model. The one-dimensional analytical approach can account for the role of microstructural geometry without space charge effects that arise at particle contacts within the microstructure. The finite element model has been developed to enable consideration of the effects of two-dimensional transport and space charge regions near particle contact points. This more detailed model is used to benchmark the one-dimensional axisymmetric approach. Comparison of the one-dimensional and two-dimensional results demonstrates the predictive capabilities of the simplified approach.
Adaptive interpolation of images with application to interlaced-to-progressive conversion

We propose a novel method for image interpolation which adapts to the local characteristics of the image in order to facilitate perfectly smooth edges. Features are classified into three categories (constant, oriented, and irregular). For each class we use a different zooming method that interpolates this feature in a visually optimized manner. Furthermore, we employ a nonlinear image enhancement which extracts perceptually important details from the original image and uses these in order to improve the visual impression of the zoomed images. Our results compare favorably to standard lowpass interpolation algorithms like bilinear, diamond- filter, or B-spline interpolation. Edges and details are much sharper and aliasing effects are eliminated. In the frequency domain we can clearly see that our adaptive algorithm not only suppresses the undesired spectral components that are folded down in the upsampling process. It is also capable of replacing them with new estimates, which accounts for the increased image sharpness. One application of this interpolation method is spatial interlaced-to- progressive conversion. Here, it yields again more pleasing images than comparable algorithms.© (1993) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Image restoration of line-scanned x-ray images

Six specific defects in images captured on line-scan x-ray machines are discussed and software corrections are addressed. The corrections are intended to optimize the machine for the inspection of food products for hidden defects or contaminants. The defects include effects due to time constants in the preamplifier, decays (short and long term) of the phosphor in the detectors, gaps in the images at detector module boundaries, analog to digital converter (ADC) clipping of the photodiode signal, varying response between detectors to the low-energy end of the incident energy spectrum, and x-ray scattering. Of these, all but the long-term phosphor decay and scattering are corrected with software. While the long-term phosphor decay is of little consequence for food inspection, effects due to scattering are serious and must be addressed in the design of the detectors. The restored image is more suitable for image processing and thus for real-time sorting than the original image.
Response to Correspondence Re: Sharifi S, Peterson MK, Baum JK, Raza S, Schnitt SJ. Assessment of Pathologic Prognostic Factors in Breast Core Needle Biopsies. Mod Pathol 1999;12:941–5

Response to Correspondence Re: Sharifi S, Peterson MK, Baum JK, Raza S, Schnitt SJ. Assessment of Pathologic Prognostic Factors in Breast Core Needle Biopsies. Mod Pathol 1999;12:941–5
Pattern formation, contrast control, and oscillations in the short term memory of shunting on-center off-surround networks

The transformation of spatial patterns and their storage in short term memory by shunting neural networks are studied herein. Various mechanisms are described for real-time regulation of the amount of contrast with which a pattern will be stored. Parametric studies are described for the amount of contrast in the network responses to patterns presented at variable background or overall activity levels. Mechanisms for removing spurious peak splits and other disinhibitory responses are described. Furman's (1965) results on processing of patterns by shunting networks are generalized and reanalysed. Periodic responses (stable and unstable) corresponding to the time scale of slow cortical waves can be generated if a tonic input is set between two threshold activity levels. Their frequency as a function of tonic input size is unimodal. Order-preserving limit cycles are never found in STM; hence sustained slow oscillations as a mechanism for storing a pattern in STM are ruled out in favor of steady states (i.e., fast oscillations) with spatially graded activity levels. Such slow oscillations can, nonetheless, continuously retune the network's responsiveness to the patterns that perturb it.
The Consequences of Appointment Methods and Party Control for Telecommunications Pricing

While the economic approach to the politics of regulation emphasizes the importance of organized economic interests in shaping policies, political institutions in which regulatory agencies are embedded may also have significant effects. By including both economic influences and characteristics of political institutions in a model of price setting by state regulators, this paper demonstrates that both shape regulatory behavior in the telecommunications industry. Whether commissioners are elected or appointed, whether they face confirmation by a legislature, and whether a single party controls both executive and legislative branches of state governments influence the level of prices charged for basic services.
GeometryEditor: a web-based interactive geometry manipulative authoring system (abstract only)

GeometryEditor (previous code name: GeoSVG) is a Web-based environment for authoring interactive geometry manipulatives. Users may create on-line manipulatives to illustrate mathematical concepts for a hands-on learning environment. GeometryEditor provides standard authoring features, such as sketching, measurements, calculation, macros, iteration, loci, animation and coordinate systems. GeometryEditor also offers several its own authoring features, such as synchronized copy, parametric color and visibility, and mouse click events. The GeoSite provides the GeometryEditor authoring environment and a corresponding page authoring environment to assist in creating lessons around the manipulatives. Other people via the Internet can immediately view completed manipulatives and pages.
Creating a conditional mutation of Wnt-1 by antisense transgenesis provides evidence that Wnt-1 is not essential for spermatogenesis

We have used mice transgenic for an antisense construct for Wnt-1 to study the role of this gene in post-meiotic sperm development. The human PGK-2 promoter provided levels of Wnt-1 antisense mRNA in testes in 5 transgenic lines greatly in excess of Wnt-1 mRNA concentrations, and Wnt-1 mRNA levels were greatly decreased in the lines, by 98% in three of them. There was a general correlation between copy number of the insert, levels of antisense RNA, and decreases in mRNA. There was little effect of the antisense transgene on fertility or testicular histology suggesting that normal levels of Wnt-1 transcript are not essential for spermatogenesis.
The Difference between Earnings and Operating Cash Flow as an Indicator of Financial Reporting Fraud

This paper examines the relation between earnings and operating cash flow to derive and test an indicator of financial statement fraud. Accrual measurement concepts indicate that financial statement fraud should be associated with high levels of earnings relative to operating cash flow. We demonstrate that the excess of earnings over operating cash flow is extreme in most fraud cases in years immediately prior to the fraud discovery based on a sample of 56 fraud cases from 1978 to 1991. We compare the distribution of the earnings minus operating cash flow variable for fraud firms with that for a sample of 60,453 firm-years for firms listed on COMPUSTAT. We test a logistic regression model in which the discovery/nondiscovery of fraud is the dependent variable, and earnings minus operating cash flow is the explanatory variable. Other control variables are included in the model based on prior studies. Results are consistent with expectations derived from accrual measurement theory. We then examine the predictive ability of the model using our sample of fraud firms and a sample of nonfraud firms in the same four-digit SIC code industries. Observations for the fraud firms are for the fiscal year prior to the discovery of fraud. Observations for the nonfraud firms are for the same fiscal years as the fraud firms in the same industries. The predictive ability of the model, including the excess of earnings over operating cash flow, is substantially higher than the predictive ability of the model omitting this variable. We conclude that the earnings-operating cash flow relation provides important information for those interested in identifying financial statement fraud, especially when considered in conjunction with other factors associated with fraud risk.
A mathematical model of material removal with application to CNC finishing

In this paper, we present a mathematical model for the Computer Numerically Controlled (CNC) finishing of surfaces by grinding and polishing. Given the kinematic parameters defining a finishing tool, we determine the associated material removal rate. We then derive expressions for the amount of material removed at a point on the workpiece by the tool during the finishing process. The final phase of the analysis centers on the determination of a strategy for achieving a desired pattern of material removal. We formulate a strategy that involves the notion of a mollifier or smoothing function, and derive estimates for the resulting error. The results of some computational experiments are included.
INTRAMOLECULAR LIGAND EXCHANGE OF PENTACOORDINATED ANIONIC SILICATES, R2SiF3 −, VIA 29Si AND 19F NMR SPECTROSCOPY. SOLUTION- AND SOLID-STATE STRUCTURES

Abstract New pentacoordinated anionic diorganotrifluorosilicates, RR'SiF3 −, were synthesized as potassium 18-crown-6 salts, where RR'= (t-Bu)Ph, (CH2)4, biphenyl-2-yl, and bibenzyl-2-yl. The tetra fluorosilicate [t-BuSiF4][K-18-crown-6], results from a Si-C cleavage reaction of (t-Bu)2SiF2, Dynamic 29Si and 19F NMR measurements for the trifluorosilicates provided definitive evidence establishing the occurrence of intramolecular ligand exchange. A ligand-exchange barrier is determined for the first time for a cyclic pentacoordinated anionic silicate. The exchange pathway is represented by the Berry pseudorotational coordinate. Molecular structures are reported for [Xyl2SiF3][K-18-crown-6] (1), [(t-Bu)PhSiF3][K-18-crown-6] (2), and [(o-Tol)2SiF3][K-18-crown-6] (3) and yield a steric parameter for the pentacoordinated fluorosilicates useful in correlating their reactivity. The xylyl derivative 1 crystallizes in the monoclinic space group P21/c with a =11.069 (3) A, b =16.615 (6) A, c = 17.328 (4) A, β = 100...
EPD, a novel technology for drug delivery

Abstract The electronic pulse delivery (EPD) technology has demonstrated a great potential in gene therapy applications. Recent studies show that the therapeutic genes can be effectively, efficiently, safely and economically transferred into a variety of target cells. Optimized EPD protocols have demonstrated high transfer efficiency (80–90% of the target cells received the desired DNA construct) and good cell viability (90% of EPD treated target cells are viable). This non-viral-mediated DNA delivery technology is being directed to medical problems amenable to therapeutic or prophylactic gene therapy treatment by engineering various types of somatic cells including hematopoietic stem cells and potentially other types of stem cells.
Periodically forced linear oscillator with impacts: Chaos and long-period motions

A simple model is discussed for a periodically forced oscillator with a constraint which leads to motions with impacts. For "perfectly plastic" impacts the dynamics is represented by a discontinuous map defined on the circle. The map is shown to undergo perioddoubling bifurcations followed by complex sequences of transitions, due to the discontinuities, in which arbitrarily long superstable periodic motions occur.
The case for integrating ethical and social impact into the computer science curriculum

I invite all of you to join me on the “high moral frontier” of computer science as we consider the case for integrating ethical and social impact issues into the computer science curriculum. I have to warn you, however, that there tends to be a lot of crossfire on this new frontier! In this paper I will develop the rationale for curricula change and then I will present a case study of a recent issue, content labeling and blocking on the Internet, as a compelling example to illustrate why this change i s necessary.
What choices have renal patients with learning disabilities

Summary This paper will look at how our haemodialysis unit educates selected patients with their self-care regimen. Each patient has their own level of understanding and compliance in maintaining their own lifestyle. This provides renal nurses with challenges when pursuing patient education. This paper will highlight some of the problems encountered when teaching patients with learning difficulties.
Symmetrical bending of circular plates using finite elements

Abstract The symmetrical bending of circular plates using the finite element method is discussed. The primary contribution of the present note is the introduction of “interpolation” or “shape functions” which identically satisfy the governing equilibrium equation for circular plates. Using these shape functions and the appropriate force-deformation relations for circular plates, the stiffness matrices for a circular and annular element are presented. With a minimal of programming effort, any continuous beam program can be modified to include the analysis of circular plates by simply coding the appropriate stiffness and load coefficients given in the note. Several representative problems are included to indicate the accuracy of the proposed method.
Sizing-up the Competition: Factors Modulating Male Display Behavior During Mate Competition

When competing for mates, males of many species use cues from their rivals to evaluate their chances of success. Signaling behavior is a vital component of male–male contests and courtship, and may inform males of a rival's quality or intentions. We used eastern fence lizards (Sceloporus undulatus) to investigate how the time a male spent signaling during mate competition is influenced by his quality, his rival's quality relative to his own, and the value of a contested female. Furthermore, we examined how a male's behavioral response to a competitor's signals would be mediated by his relative quality. We simulated natural encounters by allowing two males to compete over a single female in the laboratory. We measured the time males spent performing two types of displays (pushups and shudders) and categorized male behavioral responses to rival pushup and shudder displays. Time spent signaling was not related to a male's absolute quality (body and head size, condition, and badge sizes), or his quality relative to that of his rival, although males did spend more time performing pushups when competing over females in better condition. Male behavior was also influenced by his rival's signals, such that males of relatively lower quality than their opponents were more likely to aggressively respond to rival pushups and shudders. We discuss these results with respect to the evolution and function of signaling behavior in courtship and male–male contests.
Fluvial network analysis on Titan: Evidence for subsurface structures and west-to-east wind flow, southwestern Xanadu

[1] Data of Titan’s surface from the Cassini-Huygens mission show inferred fluvial networks interpreted as products of liquid alkane flow. Using synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data, we delineated drainage networks, measured network parameters, and used these measurements in a simplified algorithm for classifying terrestrial drainage patterns. The results show a variety of patterns, indicating that a variety of factors control fluvial drainage on Titan. Drainage network patterns in southwestern Xanadu are classified as rectangular, suggesting control by a subsurface tectonic structural fabric. Link orientations also suggest that thissubsurfacetectonicfabricisorientedpredominantlyeastwest. Spatial variations in drainage networks are consistent with a west-to-east precipitation pattern, supporting inferences from aeolian dune morphology. These results illustrate how fluvial landform analysis can yield new information on both atmospheric and subsurface processes. Citation: Burr, D. M., R. E. Jacobsen, D. L. Roth, C. B. Phillips, K. L. Mitchell, and D. Viola (2009), Fluvial network analysis on Titan: Evidence for subsurface structures and west-to-east wind flow, southwestern Xanadu, Geophys. Res. Lett., 36, L22203,
Graduate Student Outreach: Model of a One-Day “Chemistry Camp” for Elementary School Students

One-day chemistry camps, managed by graduate students from the Departments of Chemistry at the Universities of Virginia (UVA) and Vermont (UVM), have proven successful as an outreach initiative. The camp model engages kindergarten through fifth grade elementary school students in hands-on, inquiry-based science experiments to educate and excite them about science. Chemistry Camp is unique in that it is organized and run by graduate students, providing an opportunity for volunteer experience and professional development. Camps have been used as an effective way to raise funds for the Chemistry LEAD (Learning through Experiments and Demonstrations) Program at UVA and for graduate student travel grants at UVM. The first camp was held at UVA in March 2012 with 75 participants, and a second camp, with more than 90 children, was organized in March 2013. Following a similar model, 60 students participated in the first camp at UVM in April 2013. Herein, the authors describe the planning and execution of chemistry...