cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Understanding Grain Movements for Demand Estimation: The Columbia-Snake River System in Washington State

Grain producers and handlers in Washington State have benefited from a multimodal transportation network of roads, railroads, and the Columbia-Snake River barge system to move large amounts of grain effectively in a timely and economic manner. The competitive environment of the grain industry brings many changes, including the number of firms and houses, mergers, and modal competitiveness. Additionally, marketing strategies are affected because choices of available transportation modes reflect the decision processes of warehouses or firm managers. This aggregate study of grain marketing and transportation in the Pacific Northwest helps lay the groundwork for subsequent estimates of empirical demand. Such subsequent modeling attempts may include revealed and stated preference analysis in discrete choice demand models. A thorough understanding of the industry and market characteristics should improve empirical estimation efforts and produce more defensible policy analysis. Based on a 90% shipment volume response rate, results show that in the Columbia-Snake River grain situation, one destination absorbs more than 90% of shipments. Modal competition is active; barge has a market share of more than 50%, down 12-16% from 10 years ago. Multiple-car shipments have increased, but not drastically. Rates are consistently competitive over the period. Finally, grain demand is seasonal but generally has been stable over time. The revealed preferences from this aggregate analysis suggest that price elasticity may vary across shippers, times of movement, and modal availability.
Cool-weather activity of the forensically important hairy maggot blow fly Chrysomya rufifacies (Macquart) (Diptera: Calliphoridae) on carrion in Upstate South Carolina, United States.

Abstract The hairy maggot blow fly Chrysomya rufifacies (Macquart) (Diptera: Calliphoridae) has expanded its range in the United States since its introduction into Texas (ca. 1980) and has been collected in 15 states. We investigated the bionomics of immature and adult C. rufifacies collected from carcasses of a raccoon Procyon lotor (Linnaeus) and white-tailed deer Odocoileus virginianus Zimmerman in Upstate South Carolina during November 2007, and used these insects to estimate the minimum period of insect activity. Puparia of C. rufifacies were collected from deer carrion; 28% were parasitized by Nasonia vitripennis (Walker) (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae). The mean daily ambient temperature during this study was 11.4 ± 1.02 °C, representing the lowest recorded mean temperature for adult activity of C. rufifacies; adults of C. rufifacies were observed flying among the carcasses at 9.0 °C. Although C. rufifacies is considered a warm-weather blow fly, researchers should be aware of its activity at suboptimal conditions, behavior that might aid its expansion into more northern areas.
A radiometric enzymic method for the direct measurement of phosphorylethanolamine in tissue extracts.

Abstract A simple, rapid and sensitive method for the determination of phosphorylethanolamine in the range of 2 to 12 nmol is described. The method is highly specific and as such can be used directly on perchloric acid extracts of tissue, eliminating the need for the preliminary concentration of the extracts and separation procedures required by previous methods. CTP:phosphorylethanolamine cytidylyltransferase (EC 2.7.7.14) required for the assay is partially pufified from rat liver post-microsomal supernatant by a one step gel filtration technique.
Acetylation of Polyethylenimine Enhances Gene Delivery via Weakened Polymer/DNA Interactions

We previously reported that gene delivery efficiency of 25-kDa, branched polyethylenimine (PEI) increased upon acetylation of up to 43% of the primary amines with acetic anhydride. In the present work, we investigated the effects of further increasing the degree of acetylation and elucidated the source of the higher gene delivery efficiency. Despite reduced buffering capacity, gene delivery activity continued to increase (up to 58-fold in HEK293) with acetylation of up to 57% of primary amines but decreased at higher degrees of acetylation. Characterization of polymer-DNA interactions showed that acetylated polymers bind less strongly to DNA. Further, a fluorescence resonance energy transfer assay showed that increasing acetylation causes polyplexes to unpackage inside cells to a higher degree than polyplexes formed with unmodified PEI. Overall, the data suggest that the increased gene delivery activity may be attributable to an appropriate balance between polymer buffering capacity and strength of polymer/DNA interactions.
Guided waves in a fluid-solid bilayer

Abstract Dispersion equations for an elastic isotropic fluid-solid bilayer are derived. Numerical results are presented for a water-aluminum bilayer. There are points in the dispersion diagram where two branches (one quasi-symmetric, the other quasi-antisymmetric) come very close but do not cross. The mode shapes in the vicinity of this point are examined in detail revealing a very interesting phenomenon: the mode shape evolves continuously from quasi-symmetric to quasi-antisymmetric along one branch, and from quasi-antisymmetric to quasi-symmetric along the other.
An Experimental Test of Mail Surveys as a Tool for Social Inquiry in Russia

We present an experiment conducted in Russia testing the effectiveness of mail surveys for collecting social scientific data. Our primary focus is on testing the social exchange and economic exchange theories of mail survey participation. In addition, we randomly vary several conditions which were found to impact mail response rates in Western studies. Our findings confirm the effectiveness of the social exchange model in a non-Western context. For those exposed to all conditions our response rates were >50%, indicating the viability of mail surveys from a comparative methods perspective. A rich sampling frame provides an opportunity to test for survey nonresponse bias. Our tests demonstrate only small differences between those who responded to the survey and those who did not.
Community Development Districts: An Innovative Institutional Framework for Financing and Managing Infrastructure in Florida?

Community Development Districts (CDDs) are multipurpose, independent special districts, which are empowered to finance and manage infrastructure services in Florida. Since their authorization through a state statute in 1980, the CDDs have grown across many counties in the state. This article presents exploratory research evaluating the role of CDDs in financing and managing infrastructure services. CDDs finance infrastructure through tax-free bonds, which are paid by property owners. The arrangement is beneficial for city/county governments since infrastructure is not financed through general obligation bonds. Managerially, however, CDDs pose accountability problems, since developers rather than residents control them during their initial stage of existence.
Organic magnetoresistance and spin diffusion in organic semiconductor thin film devices

We review recent work in the field of organic spintronics, focusing on our own contributions to this field. There are two principle magnetoresistance effects that occur in organic devices. (i) Organic magnetoresistance (OMAR), which occurs in nonmagnetic organic semiconductor devices. For example, in devices made from the prototypical small molecule Alq3 OMAR reaches values of 10% or more at room temperature. (ii) Organic spin-valve effects that occur in devices that employ ferromagnetic electrodes for spin-polarized current injection and detection. We undertake an analysis of these two types of magnetoresistance with the goal of identifying the dominant spin-scattering mechanism. Analysis of OMAR reveals that hyperfine coupling is the dominant spin-coupling mechanism. Spin–orbit coupling, on the other hand, is important only in organic semiconductor materials containing heavy atoms. We explore the reasons why spin–orbit coupling is relatively unimportant in hydrocarbon materials. Next, we present a theory for spin diffusion in disordered organic semiconductors based on hyperfine coupling, taking into account a combination of incoherent carrier hopping and coherent spin precession in the random hyperfine magnetic fields. We compare our findings with experimental values for the spin-diffusion length. Finally, we demonstrate a criterion that allows the determination whether the organic spin-valves operate in the tunneling or injection regimes. (© 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Negotiated pleasures in health-seeking lifestyles of participants of a health promoting intervention

Using focus group discussion data the present article examines argumentation around pleasure from food and physical activity among participants of a health promoting intervention. The article analyses the conflicts produced by pleasure-seeking and health enhancement, and the pursuits to solve these conflicts. Due to the discrepancy between the pleasure-seeking and health enhancement, pleasure was constructed not simply as a spontaneous experience but often as a planned and disciplined event. In respect of food, it was considered as appropriate to negotiate with different sources of pleasure and discipline one's inclination to simply follow one's taste. However, the tastiness of food was seen to have a value of its own and the need for pleasurable tastes was often experienced as beyond the individual's control. We term food related pleasures 'negotiated pleasures' stressing the diverse strategies used by individuals while negotiating between food related pleasures and their overall health-seeking lifestyle. In respect of physical activity, life resembled more a mosaic where passivity was occasionally interrupted with disciplined physical activity that seldom produced pleasure. The scarcity of pleasures from physical activity as well as from healthy foods is a challenge for health promoters. Instead of building more self-controlling and self-denying individuals, it could be fruitful to focus health promoters' attention to the enhancement of the experiences of pleasure. No matter how self-disciplined individuals are, if the dilemma of pleasure and health is not disentangled, lifestyle change will not last long.
Bias and variance in model results associated with spatial scaling of measurements for parameterization in regional assessments

Models are central to global change analyses, but they are often parameterized using data that represent only a portion of heterogeneity in a region. This creates uncertainty in the results and constrains the reliability of model inferences. Our objective was to evaluate the uncertainty associated with differential scaling of parameterization data to model soil organic carbon stock changes as a function of US agricultural land use and management. Specifically, we compared analyses in which model parameters were derived from field experimental data that were scaled to the entire US vs. the same data scaled to climate regions within the country. We evaluated the effect of differential scaling on both bias and variance in model results. Model results had less variance by scaling data to the entire country because of a larger sample size for deriving individual parameter values, although there was a relatively large bias associated with this parameterization, estimated at 2.7TgCyr � 1 . Even with the large bias, resulting confidence intervals from the two parameterizations had considerable overlap for the estimated national rate of SOC change (i.e. 77% overlap in those intervals). Consequently, the results were relatively similar when focusing on the uncertainty rather than solely on the mean estimate. In contrast, large biases created less overlap in confidence intervals for the change rates within individual climate regions, compared with the national estimates. For example, the overlap in resulting intervals from the two parameterizations was only 32% for the warm temperate moist region, with a corresponding bias of 3.1TgCyr � 1 . These findings demonstrate that there is a greater risk of making erroneous inferences because of large biases if models are parameterized with broader scale information, such as an entire country, and then used to address impacts at a finer spatial scale, such as subregions within a country. In addition, the study demonstrates a trade-off between variance and bias in model results that depends on the scaling of data for model parameterization.
Fibroblast Growth Factor-23 and Outcomes: New Answers, New Questions

Even after taking into account comorbidities, such as a diabetes and hypertension, that often accompany CKD, patients are plagued by a high risk of early mortality, particularly because of cardiovascular disease (CVD).[1][1] Focus on traditional risk factors from the general population, such as
IL-4, IgE, and Interferon-γ Production in Pulmonary Blastomycosis: Comparison in Mice Untreated, Immunized, or Treated with an Antifungal (SCH 39304)

Abstract The purpose of this study was to determine if there is a correlation between production of certain lymphokines in progressive blastomycosis in untreated mice, resistance to infection in immunized mice, and cure in antifungal triazole (SCH 39304)-treated mice. Infection was measured by colony-forming units of Blastomyces dermatitidis in lungs. Serum level of IgE was used as a marker for in vivo IL-4 activity. Serum IgE levels rose in untreated mice from 6 μg/ml at 3 weeks to 24 μg/ml by the fourth week as their infection progressed. This corresponded to a peak in vitro production of IL-4 (147 pg/ml) by antigen-stimulated spleen cells at Week 4. By contrast, there was an inverse relationship between serum IgE- and antigen-stimulated production of IFN-γ in vitro , e,g., 80 U/ml at the third week and 4 U/ml at Week 4. In mice undergoing cure with SCH 39304, serum IgE decreased from 12 μg/ml at the third week to 2 μg/ml at Week 4. This correlated with a drop in IL-4 and an increase in IFN-γ production in in vitro assays. As cure proceeded over the next 4 weeks, IgE and IFN-γ measurements were near background levels. In immunized mice a low-grade chronic blastomycosis emerged after 3 weeks of infection. Chronic infection was associated with inverse cycles of elevated IgE in serum and IFN-γ production as assayed in vitro . IL-4 production cycled directly with increased IgE levels in serum. Although spleen cells from untreated mice produced IFN-γ and IL-4 when stimulated with antigen, they did not mount significant proliferative responses. By contrast, spleen cells and lymph node cells from immunized and SCH 39304-treated mice made good proliferative responses to antigen and this correlated with resistance and clearing of the infection, respectively. These data indicate that in pulmonary blastomycosis, serum IgE levels correlate directly with IL-4 and inversely with IFN-γ production. Clearing of the infection by the antifungal agent SCH 39304 reduces lymphokine production to background levels but sensitizes lymphocytes for proliferative responses to antigen.
Deep Wound Infections After Pediatric Scoliosis Surgery

Abstract Study Design Retrospective clinical and radiographic review. Objective The purpose of this study was to evaluate the characteristics of deep wound infection, as well as the potential factors that correlate to surgical site infection (SSI) in spine deformity surgery. Summary of Background Data Preventing SSIs in pediatric spinal deformity surgery is a crucial task. Recent data have shown that antibiotic-loaded allograft and properly timed preoperative antibiotic administration decrease SSIs. However, there remain controversies over the appropriate preoperative antibiotic selection. Methods We reviewed 851 spinal deformity surgeries that took place at a single institution from 2006 to 2010. In particular, preoperative and postoperative characteristics of the deep wound infections were evaluated. Results Twenty-four patients had SSIs. The mean age at surgery in the infected cohort was 14 years, mean length of surgery was 8 hours, and median estimated blood loss was 2,482 mL (%EBV: 66%). Approximately 67% of the infected patients had bowel/bladder incontinence, and 71% had prolonged intravenous access perioperatively. According to culture results, the most effective antibiotic to treat the infections was vancomycin. Preoperative antibiotics were administered within 30 minutes of incision (hospital protocol) in only 12.5% (p = .001) and within 1 hour of incision in 54% of the cases. The wound status within 3 days of surgery is as follows: 38% intact, 29% significant wound drainage, and 33% wound dehiscence. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and oxacillin-resistant Staphylococcus epidermidis were associated with intact wounds, whereas gram-negative pathogens were seen in dehisced or draining wounds (p Conclusions The authors showed that their cohort of patients with infection had a high rate of draining wounds, MRSA infections, administration of antibiotics more than 1 hour ahead of incision, and prolonged need for intravenous access after surgery. Efforts to mitigate these associations by using vancomycin prophylactically, doing meticulous wound closure to prevent drainage or dehiscence, and delivering antibiotics at an optimal time ahead of incision may lead to a decrease in infection rates in pediatric spinal surgery. Future prospective studies will be needed to validate this.
Dynamics of the discovery process of protein-protein interactions from low content studies

Thousands of biological and biomedical investigators study of the functional role of single genes and their protein products in normal physiology and in disease. The findings from these studies are reported in research articles that stimulate new research. It is now established that a complex regulatory networks's is controlling human cellular fate, and this community of researchers are continually unraveling this network topology. Attempts to integrate results from such accumulated knowledge resulted in literature-based protein-protein interaction networks (PPINs) and pathway databases. These databases are widely used by the community to analyze new data collected from emerging genome-wide studies with the assumption that the data within these literature-based databases is the ground truth and contain no biases. While suspicion for research focus biases is growing, a concrete proof for it is still missing. It is difficult to prove because the real PPINs are mostly unknown. Here we analyzed the longitudinal discovery process of literature-based mammalian and yeast PPINs to observe that these networks are discovered non-uniformly. The pattern of discovery is related to a theoretical concept proposed by Kauffman called “expanding the adjacent possible”. We introduce a network discovery model which explicitly includes the space of possibilities in the form of a true underlying PPIN. Our model strongly suggests that research focus biases exist in the observed discovery dynamics of these networks. In summary, more care should be placed when using PPIN databases for analysis of newly acquired data, and when considering prior knowledge when designing new experiments.
Regulation of Tarsal Taste Threshold in the Blowfly, Phormia Regina

SUMMARY The nutritional condition of adult blowflies (Phormia regina Meigen) affects their readiness to respond with proboscis extension when their tarsi contact food stimuli. Thresholds are high in sated flies (100-lOOOmmolP 1 sucrose) and low in starved flies (l-lOmmolP 1 sucrose). Two feeding regimes employing aqueous sucrose were used to reveal factors regulating tarsal taste threshold in this insect: long-term feeding {ad libitum) and single meals administered to starved flies. A positive logarithmic relationship was found between crop weight and tarsal taste threshold, expressed as mean acceptance threshold, in flies fed aqueous sucrose ad libitum for 4 days. Threshold changes after a single meal were positively correlated to both concentration and volume of the sugar solution fed. Thresholds observed in flies fed a single meal were not as high as those in ad libitum-ied flies having the same crop volume. Nerve-transection experiments demonstrated that the median abdominal nerve plays no direct role in threshold regulation in either single-meal-fed or ad libitutn-ied flies. Transection of the recurrent nerve (RN), however, significantly attenuated the post-feeding rise in tarsal threshold in starved flies fed a single meal and markedly reduced threshold in sated flies fed ad libitum. Thresholds for RN-transected flies subjected to either feeding regime were still significantly higher than thresholds for starved flies. Haemocoel-injected D-glucose did not significantly elevate threshold in starved flies. These observations establish that the RN plays an important role in the regulation of tarsal taste threshold in blowflies. The effect of the RN on threshold depends largely on the prior feeding activity of the flies. It appears, however, that other factors, in addition to the recurrent nerve, affect taste threshold after feeding.
Spatial structure and nutrients promote invasion of IncP-1 plasmids in bacterial populations

In spite of the importance of plasmids in bacterial adaptation, we have a poor understanding of their dynamics. It is not known if or how plasmids persist in and spread through (invade) a bacterial population when there is no selection for plasmid-encoded traits. Moreover, the differences in dynamics between spatially structured and mixed populations are poorly understood. Through a joint experimental/theoretical approach, we tested the hypothesis that self-transmissible IncP-1 plasmids can invade a bacterial population in the absence of selection when initially very rare, but only in spatially structured habitats and when nutrients are regularly replenished. Using protocols that differed in the degree of spatial structure and nutrient levels, the invasiveness of plasmid pB10 in Escherichia coli was monitored during at least 15 days, with an initial fraction of plasmid-bearing (p+) cells as low as 10−7. To further explore the mechanisms underlying plasmid dynamics, we developed a spatially explicit mathematical model. When cells were grown on filters and transferred to fresh medium daily, the p+ fraction increased to 13%, whereas almost complete invasion occurred when the population structure was disturbed daily. The plasmid was unable to invade in liquid. When carbon source levels were lower or not replenished, plasmid invasion was hampered. Simulations of the mathematical model closely matched the experimental results and produced estimates of the effects of alternative experimental parameters. This allowed us to isolate the likely mechanisms most responsible for the observations. In conclusion, spatial structure and nutrient availability can be key determinants in the invasiveness of plasmids.
Kelvin probe force microscopy on surfaces: Investigation of the surface potential of self-assembled monolayers on gold

The local contact potential difference (CPD) between different linear alkanethiols self-assembled as monolayers on Au substrates was investigated with Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM). Our results demonstrate that KPFM simultaneously provides information on the sample topography and its contact potential down to a lateral resolution of 100 nm. The reported CPD measurements allow the distinction between regions in the monolayer comprising thiol molecules with chemically different terminal head groups down to a resolution of 3 meV. Furthermore, the CPD values measured in monolayers having one type of functionality vary with the chain length of the molecules in the film, which is consistent with a dipole-layer model. Variations in the length of the alkyl chain reveal a linear dependence as a function of the (−CH2−) units in the chain, with an increase in the CPD potential of 14.1 ± 3.1 mV per (−CH2−) unit.
Identification of multiple nitrobenzylthioinosine binding sites in guinea pig platelets : comparison with binding in guinea pig erythrocytes

The novel existence of multiple binding sites for the potent nucleoside transporter Probe, [3H]nitrobenzylthioinosine, was identified in guinea pig platelet membranes and the binding characteristics compared to those of guinea pig erythrocyte membranes. Scatchard analysis of the binding in platelets reveled two high affinity binding sites with affinity constant (KD) of 0.94 ± 0.07 nM and 83 ± 13 nM with corresponding maximal binding capacities (Bmax) of 21 ± 7 and 110 ± 25 fmol/mg protein, respectively. In comparison, guinea pig erythrocyte membranes revealed a homogeneous population of the binding sites with KD of 0.17 ± 0.04 nM and a Bmax value of 73 ± 11 fmol/mg protein. Biphasic semi-log plots of the binding site heterogeneity in erythrocytes not reveled by Scatchard plots. Determination of the potencies of selected drugs in inhibiting the binding showed evidence of differential interacitons with the binding sites by various agents which may be exploited pharmacologically. © 1993 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Yield of Retinal Examination in Suspected Physical Abuse With Normal Neuroimaging

Objective: In some centers, dedicated ophthalmologic examination is performed for all children who are evaluated for potential physical abuse. Although retinal hemorrhages have been reported in rare cases of abused children with normal neuroimaging results, the utility of ophthalmologic examination in this group is currently unknown. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of retinal hemorrhages in children younger than 2 years who were evaluated for physical abuse and who had no evidence of traumatic brain injury (TBI) on neuroimaging. Patients and Methods: We performed retrospective analysis of data obtained from 1676 children younger than 5 years who were evaluated for potential physical abuse as a part of the Using Liver Transaminases to Recognize Abuse research network. We reviewed results of dedicated ophthalmologic examination in all children younger than 2 years with no evidence of TBI on neuroimaging. Results: Among 282 children who met inclusion criteria, only 2 (0.7% [95% confidence interval: 0.1%-2.5%]) had retinal hemorrhages considered "characteristic" of abuse. Seven other children (2.5% [95% confidence interval: 1.0%-5.1%]) had a nonspecific pattern of retinal hemorrhages. Both children with characteristic retinal hemorrhages in the absence of TBI showed evidence of head or facial injury on physical examination and/or altered mental status. Conclusions: In children younger than 2 years being evaluated for physical abuse without radiographic evidence of brain injury, retinal hemorrhages are rare. Dedicated ophthalmologic examination should not be considered mandatory in this population. Language: en
Systematic Variation of Metal–Metal Bond Order in Metal–Chromium Complexes

In the field of metal–metal bonding, the occurrence of stable, multiple bonds between different transition metals is uncommon, and is largely unknown for different first-row metals. Adding to a rec...
LC/DC: Lockless Containers and Data Concurrency a Novel Nonblocking Container Library for Multicore Applications

Exploiting the parallelism in multiprocessor systems is a major challenge in modern computer science. Multicore programming demands a change in the way we design and use fundamental data structures. The standard collection of data structures and algorithms in C++11 is the sequential standard template library (STL). In this paper, we present their vision for the theory and practice for the design and implementation of a collection of highly concurrent fundamental data structures for multiprocessor application development with associated programming interface and advanced optimization support. Specifically, the proposed approach will provide a familiar, easy-to-use, and composable interface, similar to that of C++ STL. Each container type will be enhanced with internal support for nonblocking synchronization of its data access, thereby providing better safety and performance than traditional blocking synchronization by: 1) eliminating hazards such as deadlock, livelock, and priority inversion and 2) by being highly scalable in supporting large numbers of threads. The new library, lockless containers/data concurrency, will provide algorithms for handling fundamental computations in multithreaded contexts, and will incorporate these into libraries with familiar look and feel. The proposed approach will provide an immense boost in performance and software reuse, consequently productivity, for developers of scientific and systems applications, which are predominantly in C/C++. STL is widely used and a concurrent replacement library will have an immediate practical relevance and a significant impact on a variety of parallel programming domains including simulation, massive data mining, computational biology, financial engineering, and embedded control systems. As a proof-of-concept, this paper discusses the first design and implementation of a wait-free hash table.
The cerebrocerebellar system: anatomic substrates of the cerebellar contribution to cognition and emotion

The contribution of the cerebellum to the modulation of cognition and emotion is facilitated by the connections between the cerebellum and brain structures known to be associated with a wide array of non-motor behaviors. The cerebellum has interconnections with brainstem and thalamic reticular systems that subserve arousal. Autonomic activity is supported by the reciprocal interconnections with the hypothalamus. Limbic and paralimbic connections include the hypothalamus, septal region, hippocampus,and cingulate gyrus. Associative connections consist of both feedforward and feedback limbs.The basilar pons receives inputs from the prefrontal, posterior parietal, superior temporal, parahippocampal, and cingulate cortices, as well as from the sensorimotor cortices. This information is conveyed from the pons to cerebellum, before it is relayed back via thalamus to the associative and paralimbic regions of the cerebral cortex. The anatomical arrangement of segregated loops of cerebral cortical connections stand...
Retail land use, neighborhood satisfaction and the urban forest : an investigation into the moderating and mediating effects of trees and shrubs

Abstract This paper examines the relationship between retail land use and neighborhood satisfaction along with the moderating and mediating effects of trees and shrubs. Neighborhood satisfaction has been related to a number of environmental factors including land uses. However, no other research has reported the potential moderating and mediating effects of trees on these relationships. This study included residents living in single-family housing located in typical suburban-type subdivisions with adjacent commercial strip development. Mail-in survey responses were geo-referenced to land parcel centroids, and compared to the amount of retail land use, and tree and shrub cover existing within 1500 feet. Tree and shrub cover was measured using multi-spectral satellite imagery classified with a normalized differences vegetation index (NDVI). Existing land use and parcel data were acquired from the local city planning agency. Results indicate that the amount of tree and shrub cover within a 1500 ft radius of single-family households significantly moderates and mediates the negative relationship between the amount of nearby retail land use and neighborhood satisfaction. These results have important implications for urban planners and landscape architects. Specifically, the findings suggest that communities should increase provisions for protecting and establishing trees and shrubs in neighborhoods near retail land uses.
Analysis of a deployed software

Analyzing a deployed software provides a means to characterize and leverage the software's runtime behavior as it is employed by its intended users. Preliminary studies have shown that leveraging the information obtained from the field provides engineers an opportunity to improve their software testing activities. The analysis of a deployed software can be performed in three stages: (1) the analysis to determine, before the software is deployed, where the instrumentation probes should be inserted into the software and what information that they should capture, (2) the analysis to determine when the field data should be sent back to the company during deployment, and (3) the analysis to leverage the field information after deployment. To make the analysis activities more feasible, we need to take into consideration that there are distinct characteristic differences between the development and the deployed environment. Deployed environment allows for less overhead, provides less control for the engineers, and requires highly scalable techniques due to the high volume of information. Hence, the existing approaches for in-house analysis may become ineffective, inefficient, or even useless when they are directly applied to the deployed environment. Existing approaches for analyzing deployed software also need to be more aware that a technique in one analysis stage may affect the performance of a technique in other analysis stage. This research proposal details the challenges that arise when analyzing a deployed software and seeks to develop a set techniques to address these challenges that can be applied to each stage or across the analysis stages.
The Moral Status of Nonresponsible Threats

Most people believe that it is permissible to kill a nonresponsible threat, or someone who threatens one's life without exercising agency. Defenders of this view must show that there is a morally relevant difference between nonresponsible threats and innocent bystanders. Some philosophers, including Jonathan Quong and Helen Frowe, have attempted to do this by arguing that one who kills a bystander takes advantage of another person, while one who kills a threat does not. In this paper, I show that the proposals offered by Quong and Frowe have unacceptable implications. I then argue that those who claim that nonresponsible threats may be killed face a dilemma generated by the possibility of a stationary threat, or someone who endangers another person's life without moving. Unless we arbitrarily distinguish between stationary and moving nonresponsible threats, it is unclear how the permission to kill nonresponsible threats is to be explicated. I conclude that nonresponsible threats are not legitimate targets of self-defence. Language: en
Clinical Assessment in Forensic Settings

The above cross-examination is typical of what a forensic expert witness can expect to face when testifying to the conclusions about a person’s behavior being consistent with what is expected for someone with a particular type of mental illness. If you only used a standard clinical evaluation as your data source, which may be appropriate in an initial clinical interview to develop a treatment plan, a forensic examiner is at a disadvantage. If you also administered several clinical tests to assess for mental illness, the forensic examiner can more effectively deal with the obvious question of the client’s inconsistent behavior, such as outright lying or pretending to feign psychopathology. However, if you also review documents such as police reports and witness statements that describe the client’s behavior at the time of the incident, then you can make statements that support your opinion. The more data sources you have, the more credible is the forensic opinion.
Differences in antipredator behaviour between wild and hatchery-reared juvenile Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) under seminatural conditions

Captive rearing may elicit experiential or genetically based changes to salmonid antipredator behaviour, which may reduce survival of hatchery-reared fishes when they are released into the wild. Nevertheless, few studies have compared the behaviour between local wild-caught and local hatchery-reared fish (two generations or less), and none have done so under natural conditions. We conducted a seminatural field study comparing the antipredator behaviour of wild-caught, F1 (offspring of wild-caught adults) with that of F2 (second generation) hatchery-reared young-of-the-year Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar, from the same source population) in response to standardized chemical alarm cues. Wild-caught salmon exhibited the strongest antipredator response to a standardized threat (conspecific alarm cues), while F2 salmon exhibited the weakest response. F1 salmon were intermediate in their behavioural response. The observed differences between wild-caught and F1 salmon suggests that differential experience may play...
Two-dimensional isobutyl acetate production pathways to improve carbon yield

For an economically competitive biological process, achieving high carbon yield of a target chemical is crucial. In biochemical production, pyruvate and acetyl-CoA are primary building blocks. When sugar is used as the sole biosynthetic substrate, acetyl-CoA is commonly generated by pyruvate decarboxylation. However, pyruvate decarboxylation during acetyl-CoA formation limits the theoretical maximum carbon yield (TMCY) by releasing carbon, and in some cases also leads to redox imbalance. To avoid these problems, we describe here the construction of a metabolic pathway that simultaneously utilizes glucose and acetate. Acetate is utilized to produce acetyl-CoA without carbon loss or redox imbalance. We demonstrate the utility of this approach for isobutyl acetate (IBA) production, wherein IBA production with glucose and acetate achieves a higher carbon yield than with either sole carbon source. These results highlight the potential for this multiple carbon source approach to improve the TMCY and balance redox in biosynthetic pathways.
The Unitary Executive and the Clinton Administration

Much has been written about the unitary executive theory and presidential power and its connection to Republican presidents, in particular the George W. Bush administration. What has not gotten a lot of attention is how the theory was extended by and through the Clinton administration.While Clinton promised a break from the way his Republican predecessors governed, once in office he grabbed a hold of the powers provided by the unitary executive and implemented them through a series of executive orders and OLC opinions.
Number of Brain Metastases Treated With Radiosurgery Is Not Associated With Long-term Survival

followed by adjuvant RT but without TMZ (19.5 months vs. 15.6 months; p<0.0005). However, in patients receiving surgery and adjuvant RT, either with concurrent TMZ or without TMZ, the MS was not significantly affected by the interval between surgery and adjuvant RT. Interestingly, patients with tumors at the frontal lobe had better survival outcome than those with tumors at other locations(2-year survival 26% vs. 21%; pZ0.01). This observation was more apparent in the subgroups with patients receiving surgery and adjuvant RT (40% vs. 29%; pZ0.0002), and with patients receiving TMZ concurrently with adjuvant RT (54% vs. 35%; pZ0.0048). The tumor location-dependent difference in survival time was not significantly observed in patients who did not receive both surgery and RT. Conclusion: Within the constraint of 8 weeks, the time interval between surgery and adjuvant radiation therapy may not affect survival outcomes in patients with GBM. This study therefore does not recommend the effort aiming to shorten the time to initiation of adjuvant RT after surgery. Patients with tumors locating at the frontal lobe may have better survival outcomes, particularly when surgery and adjuvant RT are both given as a standard treatment. Author Disclosure: C. Lee: None. Y. Wang: None. Y. Wang: None. C. Wang: None.
Flame Propagation Experiments of Non-gas-Generating Nanocomposite Reactive Materials

Nanoenergetic composites are being examined for their use as energy storage and delivery materials. For this application, non-gas-generating mixtures that produce enough energy to sustain reaction propagation are ideal. A potentially promising formulation for this application is comprised of manganese (Mn) powder mixed with manganese dioxide (MnO2) because thermoequilibrium calculations predict that the Mn/MnO2 reaction is non-gas-generating and highly exothermic. The objectives of this study were to examine the flame propagation behavior of various mass percentages of Mn and MnO2 and evaluate the influence of fuel particle size. Results showed that conduction is the dominant energy-transfer mechanism for the reaction even in the loose powder configuration, regardless of the fuel particle size. Combustion wave speed (CWS) was measured as a function of the composition and Mn particle diameter. Nanometric Mn particles (referred to as nano-Mn) produced higher CWS than micrometric Mn particles (referred to as...
Amorphization and Recrystallization in MeV Ion Implanted InP Crystals

A comprehensive study of MeV-^(15)N-ion-implanted InP by a variety of analytical techniques has revealed the physical processes involved in MeV ion implantation into III-V compound semiconductors as well as the influence of post-implantation annealing. It provides a coherent picture of implant distribution, structural transition, crystalline damage, and lattice strain in InP crystals induced by ion implantation and thermal annealing. The experimental results from the different measurements are summarized in this report. Mechanisms of amorphization by implantation and recrystallization through annealing in MeV-ion-implanted InP are proposed and discussed in light of the results obtained.
Tracking the relationship between children's aerobic fitness and cognitive control.

Objective To investigate if changes in aerobic fitness over a 3-year period are associated with modulations in children's cognitive control. Method A sample of 2nd/3rd-grade children (N = 290) completed baseline measures in Fall of 2011, and again in Spring of 2014 at the end of 4th/5th grade. Children completed the Progressive Aerobic Cardiovascular Endurance Run (PACER) test to measure aerobic capacity, a flanker task to evaluate inhibitory control, and an n-back task to assess working memory. Aerobic fitness was included as an independent variable in hierarchical regression analyses conducted at both time points, in addition to analyses examining changes in cognition over time. Results At baseline, higher fit children exhibited shorter overall flanker reaction time (RT), as well as superior accuracy and d' scores (i.e., target discrimination) for both 1- and 2-back conditions. Approximately 3 years later, higher levels of fitness were associated with better performance for only the most difficult conditions of each task, including greater incongruent flanker accuracy and less interference during the compatible condition, as well as better accuracy and target discrimination for the 2-back condition of the n-back task. Importantly, increases in fitness were independently related to improvements in incongruent flanker accuracy and 2-back d' scores. Conclusions The current findings indicate that both higher aerobic fitness levels as well as increases in children's fitness are associated with better performance for task conditions eliciting greater cognitive demand. Such evidence is vital for implementing future health recommendations intended to foster improved cognitive performance in children. (PsycINFO Database Record
Acute effects of whole-body vibration with resistance exercise on postexercise blood pressure and oxygen consumption in prehypertensive adults

Abstract Background/Objective Research on the acute health effects of whole-body vibration with resistance exercise (WBV + RE) for clinical populations is limited. This randomized crossover trial evaluated postexercise hypotension and excess postexercise oxygen consumption (EPOC) in response to three conditions: WBV + RE, RE alone, and control (CON) in 11 prehypertensive (systolic/diastolic blood pressure: 120–139/80–89 mmHg) adults. Methods Following a 12-hour fast with no exercise for the previous 24 hours, resting VO 2 and blood pressure (BP) were measured. WBV + RE was performed while standing barefoot on a vibration platform (Pneumex Pro-Vibe) and lifting a bar of 10% body weight. Fifteen repetitions of nine exercises were performed using a 1-minute–to-30-second exercise:rest ratio. RE was identical to WBV + RE but without vibration. During CON, participants remained seated for 15 minutes. Following exercise, VO 2 was measured continuously and BP every 15 minutes for 3 hours. Results Postexercise hypotension and EPOC were significantly different for WBV + RE compared with RE and CON ( p p p Conclusion Compared with RE alone, a single bout of WBV + RE resulted in a greater postexercise hypotension response and higher EPOC.
How to Solve the Problems in the Employment of Our College Students in the New Situation

Directed at some problems in the employment of our college students,this article puts forward some suggestions on how to solve these problems in the new situation.
Reducing Cost and Intravenous Duration of Nicardipine in Intracerebral Hemorrhage Patients via an Interdisciplinary Approach

Background The mainstay of acute management of intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) is blood pressure reduction. Intravenous (IV) nicardipine is an effective but costly intervention for blood pressure reduction in the intensive care unit (ICU). Earlier transition to oral (PO) antihypertensive agents may reduce ICU length of stay (LOS) and associated costs. We sought to study the effectiveness of an interdisciplinary intervention to start earlier transition to PO antihypertensives. Methods From July 2011 to July 2012, patients with ICH who received IV nicardipine were reviewed and screened for eligibility by an interdisciplinary team including physicians and pharmacists. These patients were compared to a control group 1 year prior to this intervention. The duration of nicardipine treatment (median hours), estimated costs, and ICU LOS were measured. Results A total of 35 patients and 44 controls were studied. The median hours of IV nicardipine use were significantly decreased from a baseline mean of 118 to 30 hours ( P P Conclusion A physician and pharmacist-led project to initiate oral antihyperintensive medications earlier was successful in reducing the duration of IV nicardipine treatment in patients with ICH while leading to substantial cost savings.
Persistence In Mutual Fund Returns Revisited: An Examination Of Growth Mutual Funds From 1988-1996

There has been much debate about mutual fund performance - especially about the persistence of excess returns. Prior research on persistence in performance has examined samples of mutual funds in various ways. This study examines the returns on a sample of growth equity mutual funds over the period 1988-1996. The determination of winning/losing is based on a fund outperforming/underperforming the S&P 500 as the market benchmark. The sample of mutual funds examined over the study period shows both significant positive performance as well as persistence in performance. Persistence in positive performance outweighs persistence in negative performance.