cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Heterosis and recombination effects on pig reproductive traits

The objective was to estimate breed, heterosis, and recombination effects on pig reproductive traits in two different four-breed composite populations. Breeds included Yorkshire, Landrace, Large White, and Chester White in Exp. 1 and Duroc, Hampshire, Pietrain, and Spot in Exp. 2. Data were recorded on purebred pigs, two-breed cross pigs, and pigs from generations F1 through F6, where F1 pigs were the first generation of a four-breed cross. Litter traits were considered a trait of the gilt. There were 868 first parity litters in Exp. 1 and 865 in Exp. 2. Direct heterosis significantly increased sow weight at 110 d of gestation and litter weight at 14 and 28 d (weaning) in both experiments. Direct heterosis significantly increased number of nipples, weight at puberty, lactation weight loss, litter size, and litter birth weight in Exp. 2. Gestation length in Exp. 1 and age at puberty in Exp. 1 and Exp. 2 were significantly decreased by direct heterosis. Maternal heterosis significantly increased age at puberty in Exp. 2 and decreased sow weight at 110 d of gestation in Exp. 1. Recombination significantly increased sow weight at 110 d of gestation and tended to increase total number born and litter birth weight in Exp. 1. Recombination significantly decreased age at puberty in Exp. 2. Litter heterosis significantly increased number of pigs at 14 and 28 d; litter weights at birth, 14, and 28 d; and tended to increase lactation weight loss in Exp. 1. Litter heterosis decreased litter size in Exp. 2. Maternal heterosis and recombination effects had a sampling correlation of -0.97 in Exp. 1 and -0.91 in Exp. 2 for number of fully formed pigs. Therefore, maternal heterosis and recombination effects were summed, and their net effect was tested. This net effect tended to increase number of nipples, lactation weight loss, and litter birth weight and significantly increased number of fully formed pigs in Exp. 1. Direct, maternal, and litter heterosis and recombination effects significantly influenced reproductive traits.
Genetics of Maturational Processes

The genetics of human maturational events, like the conventional genetics of dimensional development, has long been inferred from two different, quasi-experimental procedures. The first of these is the population comparison. The second of these involves family-line analysis. Together, under optimal conditions, they provide a partial indication of the extent to which specific maturational events differ in timing, between natural populations, on a primarily genetic basis.
Employing Emotion Regulation Strategies in Tracking Personal Fitness Progress

This study examined the effect of adding an emotion regulation feature into fitness trackers. Applying the theoretical framework of emotion regulation, we argue that such feature can mitigate track...
Modeling And Simulation Of Doubly-Fed Induction Generator Based On ADPSS

In this paper, the aerodynamic model, machine model, converter model and control model of Doubly-Fed Induction Generator (DFIG) are introduced. The simulation model of DFIG system is established in ADPSS by a self-defined mathematics module. The simulation results show that the control target is achieved and the best speed of rotor can still be maintained under the change of wind speed. The constructed simulation model can accurately reflect the electromagnetic dynamic characteristics of the DIFG wind power generation system and provide an effective simulation platform for the control system design and analysis of the DIFG.
Modeling of Roll-Heave-Pitch Motions of a Ram Wing Translating over Non-uniform Surface

Ground-effect vehicles flying close to water or ground often employ ram wings which generate aerodynamic lift primarily on their lower surfaces. The subject of this paper is the 3-DOF modeling of roll, heave, and pitch motions of such a wing in the presence of surface waves and other ground non-uniformities. The potential-flow extreme-ground-effect theory is applied for calculating unsteady pressure distribution under the wing which defines instantaneous lift force and moments. Dynamic simulations of a selected ram wing configuration are carried out in the presence of surface waves of various headings and wavelengths, as well as for transient flights over a ground obstacle. The largest amplitudes of the vehicle motions are observed in beam waves when the periods of the encounter are long. Nonlinear effects are more pronounced for pitch angles than for roll and heave. The present method can be adapted for modeling of air-supported lifting surfaces on fast marine vehicles.
RRx-001 is a phase III aerospace-derived small molecule that immunonormalizes the tumor microenvironment.

156Background: Tumor associated macrophages (TAMs) with M2-like phenotypes produce angiogenic factors and cytokines which lead to vascular immaturity. M2 cytokines also impair immune cell activity....
18F-Choline PET/mpMRI for Detection of Clinically Significant Prostate Cancer: Part 2. Cost-Effectiveness Analysis.

To evaluate the cost-effectiveness of 18F-choline PET/mpMRI vs. multi-parametric prostate MRI (mpMRI) alone for detection of primary Gleason ≥3+4 prostate cancer in men with elevated prostate specific antigen (PSA). Methods: A Markov model of prostate cancer onset and progression was used to estimate health and economic consequences of 18F-choline PET/mpMRI for primary detection of Gleason ≥3+4 prostate cancer in men with elevated PSA. Multiple simultaneous hybrid 18F-choline PET/mpMRI strategies were evaluated using Likert or Prostate Imaging – Reporting and Data System version 2 (PI-RADSv2) scoring: 1) biopsy Likert 5 mpMRI lesions or Likert 3-4 lesions with 18F-choline target-to-background-ratio (TBR) ≥1.58, 2) biopsy PI-RADS 5 mpMRI lesions or PI-RADS 3-4 mpMRI lesions with 18F-choline TBR ≥1.58. These strategies were compared to universal standard biopsy, mpMRI alone with biopsy only for PI-RADS 3-5 lesions, and mpMRI alone with biopsy only for Likert 4-5 lesions. For each mpMRI strategy, either no biopsy or standard biopsy could be performed after a negative mpMRI. Deaths averted, quality-adjusted life years (QALYs), cost, and incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs) were estimated for each strategy. Results: When 18F-choline PET/mpMRI was negative, standard biopsy was more expensive and had lower QALYs than performing no biopsy. The best screening strategy among those considered in this study performed hybrid 18F-choline PET/mpMRI with Likert scoring ($22,706/QALY gained relative to mpMRI alone), recommended standard and targeted biopsy for men with positive imaging and no biopsy for men with negative imaging, and reduced the number of biopsies by 35% compared to mpMRI alone. When comparing the same policies using PI-RADS, hybrid 18F-choline PET/mpMRI cost $46,867/QALY gained relative to mpMRI alone. In threshold analysis, the best strategy among those considered remained cost-effective when sensitivity and specificity of PET/mpMRI and combined biopsy were simultaneously reduced by 20 percentage points. Conclusion:18F-choline PET/mpMRI for detection of Gleason ≥3+4 primary prostate cancer is cost-effective and can reduce the number of unneeded biopsies compared to mpMRI alone.
EAP from 1999 to 2020: highlights from chairing the EAPAD conference for 22 years

The acronym, EAP (Electroactive polymers), and the synonymous term, artificial muscles, are now well recognized among scientists and engineers worldwide. Prior to 1999, development of such materials has been done at few research institutes in the US, Japan, Italy and Australia and had with minimal visibility and limited cooperation. The EAPAD Conference has been the first major international forum of communicating the development in the field of EAP. At the opening of the first Conf. that was held in 1999, the author posed an arm-wrestling challenge in an effort to promote worldwide advances towards the realization of the potentials of these materials. In posing the challenge, he sought to see EAP activated robotic arms win against human in wrestling match and thus provide a gauge to the technology state. In the contests that were held in 2005 and 2006, the arms lost against the high school female student who wrestled with them - their measured speed and force were about two orders of magnitude lower that the student. Even though no other contest was held since then, the progress in the field indicates that winning the challenge is becoming increasingly more likely. The improvements have led to many applications and many of them were presented at the annual EAPAD conferences and demonstrated at their EAP-in-Action Session. The applications included soft robots, steering mechanisms, brail displays, miniature grippers, loudspeakers, active diaphragm and pumps, toys as well as many others. This manuscript provides a brief review of the advances that were reported since the first EAPAD Conference, including the state of the art, challenges and the expectations for the field.
Optimal open-loop desynchronization of neural oscillator populations

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is an increasingly used medical treatment for various neurological disorders. While its mechanisms are not fully understood, experimental evidence suggests that through application of periodic electrical stimulation DBS may act to desynchronize pathologically synchronized populations of neurons resulting desirable changes to a larger brain circuit. However, the underlying mathematical mechanisms by which periodic stimulation can engender desynchronization in a coupled population of neurons is not well understood. In this work, a reduced phase-amplitude reduction framework is used to characterize the desynchronizing influence of periodic stimulation on a population of coupled oscillators. Subsequently, optimal control theory allows for the design of periodic, open-loop stimuli with the capacity to destabilize completely synchronized solutions while simultaneously stabilizing rotating block solutions. This framework exploits system nonlinearities in order to strategically modify unstable Floquet exponents. In the limit of weak neural coupling, it is shown that this method only requires information about the phase response curves of the individual neurons. The effects of noise and heterogeneity are also considered and numerical results are presented. This framework could ultimately be used to inform the design of more efficient deep brain stimulation waveforms for the treatment of neurological disease.
College-Age Millennials' Preferences for Food Supplied by Urban Agriculture

Millennials are the largest generation, yet. As a result, their preferences are critical when it comes to evaluating success of urban agriculture. Using two online choice experiments, this paper investigates the preferences and willingness to pay of college student millennials for unprocessed (fresh) or processed (typically come in a container) food products sold at urban farms. We also examine whether competing points of sale and other attributes, such as organic, affect preferences and willingness to pay for urban farm food. We find that, on average, college-age millennials are willing to pay a premium for local food. However, they are not willing to pay premiums for local food that is sold at farmers markets, and discount it when it is purchased directly from an urban farm. Our findings suggest that, if the goal is to increase the sales of urban farm food, targeted promotions are needed. Urban farms have to show the value from purchasing products through their channels to college-age millennials or seek the means to supply their food through grocery stores.
Fe-oxides in jasperoids from two gold districts in Nevada: Characterization, geochemistry, and (U-Th)/He dating

Abstract This study examines the whole-rock geochemistry, Fe-oxide texture and crystal morphology, and Fe-oxide (U-Th)/He date variation of jasperoids, as well as the relationships between these characteristics, in order to evaluate jasperoids as an indicator for gold mineralization. Jasperoid samples with a range of textures, appearances, and expected gold concentrations were collected from two gold districts in Nevada: the northern Carlin trend (Gold Quarry Mine), and the Battle Mountain district (Marigold Mine; Battle Mountain prospect). In our jasperoid samples, whole-rock concentrations of Au are positively correlated with As, Ag, Pb, Sb, U, W, and Tl. The following Fe-oxide textures are associated with anomalous gold concentrations: disseminated, submicron crystals; feathery and acicular crystal morphologies; concentric zonation from hematite to goethite; and botryoidal textures. Calculated closure temperatures for the (U-Th)/He system in observed jasperoid Fe-oxide morphologies within our dataset range from 26 to 136 °C, indicating variable susceptibility to He diffusion at near-surface conditions. Fe-oxide (U-Th)/He dates range from 29.4 ± 0.5 Ma to 0.11 ± 0.01 Ma, displaying intra- and intersample variation. We attribute the date variation to multiple factors including He implantation, parent isotope exchange, and He loss through closure temperature sensitivity and alpha-ejection. The intra- and intersample variation within the Fe-oxide (U-Th)/He dates limits our ability to make geologic interpretations. Our case study identifies important limitations of the (U-Th)/He method in jasperoids and provides insight on how He date variation might be avoided in future studies.
What COVID-19 has brought us to: Art, activism, and changes in social work education

This essay is a reflection about the COVID-19 pandemic from the vantage point of being on a sabbatical. As a result of the virus and global shut down, people are experiencing widespread suffering a...
Role of anticoagulation in the management of tumor thrombus: A 10-year single-center experience.

Background Children with cancer diagnosis are overall at a higher risk of thrombosis. For a newly diagnosed blood clot, patients are commonly started on anticoagulants to prevent further extension and embolization of the clot. In the rare instance that a pediatric patient has a tumor thrombus, role of anticoagulation is less clear. Procedure/methods Patients under 21 years of age with a finding of tumor thrombus on imaging from 2010 to 2020 at Texas Children's Hospital were identified and their medical records were reviewed. Results A total of 50 patients were identified. Most thrombi were incidental findings at diagnosis; however, two patients presented with pulmonary embolism (PE). Inferior vena cava extension was noted in 36% of the patients, and 24% patients had an intracardiac tumor thrombus. Anticoagulation was initiated in 10 patients (20%). There was no difference in the rate of bland thrombus formation and/or embolization in patients who did or did not receive anticoagulation. However, three of the six patients with asymptomatic tumor thrombus who were started on anticoagulation had bleeding complications compared to only two patients in the no anticoagulation cohort (p Conclusion Children with intravascular extension of solid tumors were not commonly started on anticoagulation at the time of diagnosis, irrespective of the extent of tumor thrombus. Furthermore, we observed a significant trend toward higher incidence of bleeding complications after initiation of anticoagulation for asymptomatic tumor thrombus. There is inadequate evidence at this time to support routine initiation of anticoagulation in pediatric patients with intravascular extension of solid tumors.
Discrimination and Leukocyte Telomere Length by Depressive Symptomatology: The Jackson Heart Study

Background: Psychosocial stressors, such as perceived discrimination and depressive symptoms, may shorten telomeres and exacerbate aging-related illnesses. Methods: Participants from the Jackson Heart Study at visit 1 (2000–2004) with LTL data and Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression (CES-D) scores (n = 580 men, n = 910 women) were utilized. The dimensions of discrimination scores (everyday, lifetime, burden of lifetime, and stress from lifetime discrimination) were standardized and categorized as low, moderate, and high. Coping responses to everyday and lifetime discrimination were categorized as passive and active coping. Multivariable linear regression analyses were performed to estimate the mean difference (standard errors-SEs) in LTL by dimensions of discrimination and coping responses stratified by CES-D scores < 16 (low) and ≥ 16 (high) and sex. Covariates were age, education, waist circumference, smoking and CVD status. Results: Neither everyday nor lifetime discrimination was associated with mean differences in LTL for men or women by levels of depressive symptoms. Burden of lifetime discrimination was marginally associated with LTL among women who reported low depressive symptoms after full adjustment (b = 0.11, SE = 0.06, p = 0.08). Passive coping with lifetime discrimination was associated with longer LTL among men who reported low depressive symptoms after full adjustment (b = 0.18, SE = 0.09, p < 0.05); and active coping with lifetime discrimination was associated with longer LTL among men who reported high depressive symptoms after full adjustment (b = 1.18, SE = 0.35, p < 0.05). Conclusions: The intersection of perceived discrimination and depressive symptomatology may be related to LTL, and the effects may vary by sex.
Storing sunlight at low temperatures

Artificial leaves that convert sunlight to fuels could provide a sustainable energy future. But several challenges must be overcome to improve their economic viability. Publishing in Energy & Environmental Science, Kolbach, Rehfeld, and May describe the potential of decentralized hydrogen production using thermally integrated architectures that operate under sub-freezing temperatures.
The Pandemic as a Catalyst for Reimagining the Foundations of Location-Based Games

Mainstream location-based games (LBGs) highlight three foundations-exercise, exploration, and social interaction-which were hugely disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. This genre has already had access issues depending on the player's region, identity, ability, and technology, which the pandemic also amplified. Thus, the pandemic provided a unique opportunity to re-imagine the design of LBGs to preserve player benefits while challenging these foundations. We conducted a two-week diary study with 11 LBG players coping with difficult life circumstances, followed by remote co-design sessions. Participants continued to play primarily to maintain community connection while adjusting the mode of socialization, finding meaning through virtual exploration, and support mental health and personal growth. Participants discussed ways to enhance the experience by expanding the range of physical activities during social distancing, reimagining proximity-based social interactions, and exploring via social construction of places while expanding beyond how the three foundations are currently supported in LBGs.
Teaching Personal Finance

ABSTRACT Using popular literature and the results of a survey of 476 undergraduates enrolled at two CCCU schools, I propose that the personal financial education of Christian college students is lacking. While students have a good understanding of the Scriptural basis of money, their knowledge is not realized in practice. Christian colleges and universities can address this deficiency by requiring all undergraduates to complete a course in personal finance. This requirement may have secondary benefits for the institution in the form of increased alumni participation and giving, lower student default rates, and increasing enrollments.
Performance Modeling for 3D Visualization in a Heterogeneous Computing Environment

The visualization of large, remotely located data sets necessitates the development of a distributed computing pipeline in order to reduce the data, in stages, to a manageable size. The required baseline infrastructure for launching such a distributed pipeline is becoming available, but few services support even marginally optimal resource selection and partitioning of the data analysis workflow. We explore a methodology for building a model of overall application performance using a composition of the analytic models of individual components that comprise the pipeline. The analytic models are shown to be accurate on a testbed of distributed heterogeneous systems. The prediction methodology will form the foundation of a more robust resource management service for future Grid-based visualization applications.
Characterizing the role of Blimp-1 in regulating encephalitogenic T cells in CNS autoimmunity (IRC8P.483)

Effector and recall responses of T cells play an important role in the pathogenesis of Multiple Sclerosis and EAE. B lymphocyte induced maturation protein-1 (Blimp-1) is a transcription factor that plays important roles in regulating immunity. However, its role in regulating encephalitogenic T cells in EAE has not been characterized. Using YFP/Blimp-1 reporter mice, we analyzed Blimp-1 expression in myelin-specific CD4 T cells in vitro and in vivo. Blimp-1 expression correlates with the encephalitogenicity of myelin-specific CD4 T cells, which is highly expressed in encephalitogenic Th1 and Th17 cells, but not in non-encephalitogenic Th17 cells. Moreover, Blimp-1 is highly expressed in myelin-specific CD4 T cells in the draining lymph nodes, spleen and CNS during EAE development, specifically in activated CD44+IL7Rα+CD4 T cells. As IL-23 significantly enhances the encephalitogenicity of myelin-specific CD4 T cells, we determined if IL-23 upregulates Blimp-1 expression. Our data showed that exogenous IL-23 significantly enhances Blimp-1 expression in myelin-specific CD4 T cells and Blimp-1 is highly expressed in IFNγ+, IL-17+ and IFNγ+ and IL-17 double positive cells in draining LN cells, splenocytes and CNS infiltrating cells. In addition, we determined the role of Blimp-1 in regulating T cell migration and EAE development. Together, our findings suggest that Blimp-1 might play an important role in regulating autoreactive T cells and the development of CNS autoimmunity.
ACCESS Issues in School Library Media Centers: Examining Library Schedules, Library Closures, and Poverty

A hallmark of best practice in school libraries is for students and faculty to have maximum access to library resources and services. However, findings from a recent quantitative study indicate that this is not always the case. The researchers surveyed school librarians in North Carolina and Virginia to determine the effects that scheduling, library closures, and poverty had on access to school libraries. There were three major findings from the study. First, the results revealed a direct relationship between flexible scheduling and an increase in per-pupil book circulation in elementary schools. Next, the findings showed that school libraries were closed, while students were in session, an average of 17 full days in an academic year. Finally, the study demonstrated that K-12 school libraries serving large proportions of children living in poverty were open fewer days and had fewer resources than schools that served small proportions of students living in poverty.
The Ecology of Morphology: The Ecometrics of Locomotion and Macroenvironment in North American Snakes

Morphological traits that have a functional relationship with the environment can be used to study relationships between organisms and environments through time and across space. Dynamics of the trait-environment complex can be studied with ecometrics in individuals, in populations, and in communities. We explored how closely correlated three skeletal traits are with substrate use, and thus macrohabitat, among communities of snakes with the goal of better understanding how climate and macrovegetation might affect snake assemblages. Substrate use explained a large part of the variance in mean length-to-width ratio of vertebrae (R 2 = 0.66), PC1 of vertebral shape of a mid trunk vertebra (R 2 = 0.46), and relative tail length (R 2 = 0.71). Furthermore, mean relative tail length in snake assemblages across North America is strongly associated with ecoregions and vegetation cover (R 2 = 0.65 and 0.47, respectively). The close relationship with macrovegetation makes relative tail length a useful tool for predicting how snake assemblages will change as climates and biomes change across space or through time. This “ecometric” approach provides a medium-scale link between data collected from ecological studies over decades to data assembled from the fossil record over thousands, tens of thousands, or even millions of years. We show how historical vegetation changes between the early twentieth and twenty-first centuries at five preserves in North America resulted in ecometric changes that parallel the geographic distribution of relative tail length in snake communities across North America.
Sustaining Outdoor Recreation and Forests in the United States

The key words in forest management for the 21st century are “sustainable management”. In this paper we present an overview of the nature of outdoor recreation demand growth in the United States and its significance in light of the need to sustain the nation’s forests. We show that outdoor recreation demand is growing faster now than at any time in the last five decades. Accelerated management of forest settings to meet the rising demand for recreation will provide substantial benefits for American society. At the same time, unprecedented levels of demand may challenge our abilities as a nation to sustain forest health and productivity into thefuture, as we have not been challenged before. We identify hot spots in the United States where recreation demands are greatest, and hot spots where future recreation pressures are likely to intensify. These hot spots are the places where serious and prompt attention to planning the future of our forest resources is needed if we are tobe successful in sustaining them. Demand growth in other countries raises similar concerns about sustaining forests.
GDNF Selectively Protects Dopamine Neurons over Serotonin Neurons Against the Neurotoxic Effects of Methamphetamine

Repeated methamphetamine (METH) administration to animals can result in long-lasting decreases in striatal dopamine (DA) and serotonin (5-HT) levels. Glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) has pronounced effects on dopaminergic systems in vivo , including partial neuroprotective effects against 6-hydroxydopamine and 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine -induced lesions. The present study examined the ability of GDNF to prevent METH-induced reductions in potassium-evoked overflow of DA, and DA and 5-HT content, in striatum. GDNF (10 μg) or vehicle was injected into the right striatum of anesthetized rats. Twenty-four hours later, the rats were injected four times at 2 hr intervals with METH (5 mg/kg, s.c.) or saline. One week later, in vivo electrochemistry was used to monitor the overflow of DA evoked by local potassium application. Evoked overflow of DA was dramatically decreased in the striatum of METH-treated animals. GDNF prevented the reduction in evoked overflow of DA in the right striatum of the METH-treated animals. After each experiment, the animals were killed, and striatal DA and 5-HT levels determined by HPLC. The METH treatment produced significant decreases in both neurotransmitters. GDNF administration prevented the reduction in striatal DA levels on the treated side of the brain, whereas levels on the contralateral side were still decreased. In dose–response studies, 1 μg of GDNF was as protective as 10 μg, whereas 0.1 μg was only partially protective. In contrast, 5-HT levels were only minimally protected by previous administration of GDNF. These results suggest that GDNF can selectively protect DA neurons, compared with 5-HT neurons, against the neurotoxic effects of METH.
Empirical Comparison of Approaches to Forming Strata: Using Classification Trees to Adjust for Covariates

Abstract In medical studies, the computation of a meaningful incidence rate frequently demands adjustment for covariates. One means for achieving such adjustment is standardization. The (directly) standardized rate is calculated by using the appropriate weighted average of rates over strata determined by the covariates. Thus strata formation is crucial in obtaining good results. This article compares three competing methods for stratification using data from a drug study in which the incidence rate of a certain side effect is of interest. The techniques examined are (a) contingency-table cell aggregation, (b) classification trees, and (c) logistic regression. The relative merits of the three methods are discussed.
Pressure dependence of the photoabsorption of polyacetylene

The optical-absorption spectra of pure cis- and trans-polyacetylene at various hydrostatic pressures, in the region 0-13 kbar, are reported. We find a large red shift of the absorption edge indicating a reduction of the energy gap ${E}_{g}$ as a function of increasing pressure in both isomers. At 13 kbar, ${E}_{g}$ is reduced in trans-${(\mathrm{CH})}_{x}$ by about 0.17 eV (i.e., \ensuremath{\sim} 10%). In addition, a decrease in the peak height and a broadening of the leading edge of the interband absorption coefficient are observed at high pressures. These changes result from an increase in the interchain transfer integral ${t}_{\ensuremath{\perp}}$. Comparison of the data with the result of tight-binding calculations leads to estimates of the transverse bandwidth, ${W}_{\ensuremath{\perp}}\ensuremath{\simeq}0.3$ eV, and a ratio of about 30 between ${W}_{\ensuremath{\perp}}$ and the total bandwidth. The resolved structure in the absorption spectrum of cis-${(\mathrm{CH})}_{x}$ is observed to red-shift with the absorption edge, to decrease in magnitude, and to broaden at high pressures. These secondary peaks are interpreted as vibronic transitions associated with the interband absorption in the solid. Their behavior with pressure is accounted for by a model for vibronic transitions which takes into account the band structure.
The Danger of Self-Evident Truths*

evident truths in public policy making. The presumption that large numbers of small governmental units serving a metropolitan area produce inadequate, inefficient, and inequitable services has been widespread throughout this century. Its converse--that big, centralized governments are more professional and offer economies of scale in the production of public goods and services--has been considered to be similarly obvious. But are these assumptions correct? For much of this century, few questioned this common-sense wisdom. Consequently, lacking systematic empirical evidence to substantiate this belief, local governments throughout the U.S. and West Europe adopted proposals to reform their structure by consolidating local governments. In general, these reforms have failed to generate predicted benefits. A second example illustrates the way in which self-evident truths can be
The Development and Application of a Computerized Information-Processing Test Battery:

To bridge the gap between computerized testing and information-processing-based measurement, a battery of computerized information-processing-based ability and preference measures was developed. The information-processing and preference measures and a battery of paper-and-pencil tests were administered to 64 college students. Although the internal-consistency reliabilities of the computerized information-processing measures were adequate, test-retest reliabilities were lower than desirable for ability measures. The computerized information-processing measures possessed moderate convergent validity but had low correlations with traditional paper-and-pencil measures. Of the computerized preference measures, the most promising results were obtained with the Stimulus Pace measure. A major problem with the use of the computerized information-processing measures in applied settings would be administration time, as the battery took approximately 4 hours. In addition, problems with the stability of results over t...
Partitioning techniques for partially protected caches in resource-constrained embedded systems

Increasing exponentially with technology scaling, the soft error rate even in earth-bound embedded systems manufactured in deep subnanometer technology is projected to become a serious design consideration. Partially protected cache (PPC) is a promising microarchitectural feature to mitigate failures due to soft errors in power, performance, and cost sensitive embedded processors. A processor with PPC maintains two caches, one protected and the other unprotected, both at the same level of memory hierarchy. The intuition behind PPCs is that not all data in the application is equally prone to soft errors. By finding and mapping the data that is more prone to soft errors to the protected cache, and error-resilient data to the unprotected cache, failures induced by soft errors can be significantly reduced at a minimal power and performance penalty. Consequently, the effectiveness of PPCs critically hinges on the compiler's ability to partition application data into error-prone and error-resilient data. The effectiveness of PPCs has previously been demonstrated on multimedia applications—where an obvious partitioning of data exists, the multimedia data is inherently resilient to soft errors, and the rest of the data and the entire code is assumed to be error-prone. Since the amount of multimedia data is a quite significant component of the entire application data, this obvious partitioning is quite effective. However, no such obvious data and code partitioning exists for general applications. This severely restricts the applicability of PPCs to data caches and instruction caches in general. This article investigates vulnerability-based partitioning schemes that are applicable to applications in general and effectively reduce failures due to soft errors at minimal power and performance overheads.Our experimental results on an HP iPAQ-like processor enhanced with PPC architecture, running benchmarks from the MiBench suite demonstrate that our partitioning heuristic efficiently finds page partitions for data PPCs that can reduce the failure rate by 48p at only 2p performance and 7p energy overhead, and finds page partitions for instruction PPCs that reduce the failure rate by 50p at only 2p performance and 8p energy overhead, on average.
Web-cam's potential for collaborative activities in the Earth sciences

We report here our experiences from using easily acquired web-cam components for collaborative ventures in the Earth sciences. We have used a variety of hardware and different software. We demonstrate from various locations in the U.S.A. the feasibility of using web-cam in multitudinous activities, relevant for conducting research and knowledge dissemination. We summarize the quality of the connections from the various combinations of communicating parties. Today, web-cams can be utilized as an economical and viable means of point-to-point communication in the Earth science community. Greater bandwidth is sorely needed for activities such as multi-party conferencing on the present internet network. We propose that web-cam can be readily deployed as a web-service for facilitating collaborative research over the GRID infrastructure, using the middleware Narada-Brokering. Web-cam will play an important role in the emerging field of geoinformatics.
Mutation of essential Hsp90 co-chaperones SGT1 or CNS1 renders yeast hypersensitive to overexpression of other co-chaperones

The essential molecular chaperone Hsp90 functions with over ten co-chaperones in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, but the in vivo roles of many of these co-chaperones are poorly understood. Two of these co-chaperones, Cdc37 and Sgt1, target specific types of clients to Hsp90 for folding. Other co-chaperones have general roles in supporting Hsp90 function, but the degree of overlapping or competing functions is unclear. None of the chaperones, when overexpressed, were able to rescue the lethality of an SGT1 disruption strain. However, overexpression of SBA1, PPT1, AHA1 or HCH1 caused varying levels of growth defects in an sgt1-K360E strain. Negative effects of CPR6 overexpression were similarly observed in cells expressing the temperature-sensitive mutation cns1-G90D. In all cases, alterations within co-chaperones designed to disrupt Hsp90 interaction relieved the negative growth defects. Sgt1-K360E and Cns1-G90D were previously shown to exhibit reduced Hsp90 interaction. Our results indicate that overexpression of other co-chaperones further disrupts the essential functions of Cns1 and Sgt1. However, the specificity of the negative effects indicates that only a subset of co-chaperones competes with Sgt1 or Cns1 for binding to Hsp90. This provides new evidence that co-chaperones selectively compete for binding to subpopulations of cellular Hsp90 and suggest that changes in the relative levels of co-chaperones may have dramatic effects on Hsp90 function.
Divergent Tumor Necrosis Factor Receptor–Related Remodeling Responses in Heart Failure Role of Nuclear Factor-κB and Inflammatory Activation

Background— Although preclinical data suggested that tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF) neutralization in heart failure (HF) would be beneficial, clinical trials of TNF antagonists were paradoxically negative. We hypothesized that TNF induces opposing inflammatory and remodeling responses in HF that are TNF-receptor (TNFR) specific. Methods and Results— HF was induced in wild-type (WT), TNFR1−/−, and TNFR2−/− mice via coronary ligation. Compared with WT HF, 4-week postinfarction survival was significantly improved in both TNFR1−/− and TNFR2−/− HF. Compared with sham, WT HF hearts exhibited significant remodeling with robust activation of nuclear factor (NF)-κB, p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase, and JNK2 and upregulation of TNF, interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-6, and IL-10. Compared with WT HF, TNFR1−/− HF exhibited (1) improved remodeling, hypertrophy, and contractile function; (2) less apoptosis; and (3) diminished NF-κB, p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase, and JNK2 activation and cytokine expression. In contra...
Resilience to Stress and Disturbance, and Resistance to Bromus tectorum L. Invasion in Cold Desert Shrublands of Western North America

Alien grass invasions in arid and semi-arid ecosystems are resulting in grass–fire cycles and ecosystem-level transformations that severely diminish ecosystem services. Our capacity to address the rapid and complex changes occurring in these ecosystems can be enhanced by developing an understanding of the environmental factors and ecosystem attributes that determine resilience of native ecosystems to stress and disturbance, and resistance to invasion. Cold desert shrublands occur over strong environmental gradients and exhibit significant differences in resilience and resistance. They provide an excellent opportunity to increase our understanding of these concepts. Herein, we examine a series of linked questions about (a) ecosystem attributes that determine resilience and resistance along environmental gradients, (b) effects of disturbances like livestock grazing and altered fire regimes and of stressors like rapid climate change, rising CO2, and N deposition on resilience and resistance, and (c) interacting effects of resilience and resistance on ecosystems with different environmental conditions. We conclude by providing strategies for the use of resilience and resistance concepts in a management context. At ecological site scales, state and transition models are used to illustrate how differences in resilience and resistance influence potential alternative vegetation states, transitions among states, and thresholds. At landscape scales management strategies based on resilience and resistance—protection, prevention, restoration, and monitoring and adaptive management—are used to determine priority management areas and appropriate actions.
Social competence and head injury: a practical approach

Social competence assessment and training has long focused on specific skills within the clinical setting. In addition, emphasis has been placed on identifying deficits relative to an arbitrary, often idiosyncratic metric. In this article, we discuss the importance of the principles that underlie communication and which are reflected in the range of behaviours described as 'social competence'. We review methods we have found productive in the training of these principles with persons who have suffered traumatic brain injuries.
NOVEL TELECOMMUNICATIONS SOFTWARE FOR TWO-WAY INTERACTION DURING STEMI MANAGEMENT IMPROVES DOOR-TO-BALLOON TIMES

Pre-hospital electrocardiograms (ECG) improve the management of patients with ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). Current telecommunication systems do not permit real-time interaction with first responders in the field or care providers at referring hospitals. Our institution has
Thin‐film dye laser with etched cavity

We describe a thin‐film laser with a Fabry‐Perot cavity. The cavity is chemically etch into a (100) ‐cut silicon substrate and filled with rhodamine 6G doped polyurethane. Overfilling of the cavity provides the passage for the output. A nitrogen laser serves as pump source.
Carotid endarterectomy in a patient with anterior ischemic neuropathy

A case of anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (AION) associated with 90% stenosis of the ipsilateral internal carotid artery (ICA) and diminished blood flow through the ophthalmic artery was studied. After carotid endarterectomy (CEA), the patient showed subjective and measurable improvement in vision and increased ophthalmic artery flows. This observation supports the role for screening carotid duplex scanning and transcranial Doppler in patients with AION. Early CEA in patients with associated ipsilateral ophthalmic artery hypoperfusion may improve visual outcome. (J Vasc Surg 1998;28:1107-11.)
Intermolecular methyl group transfers in the xylene and xylene-benzene systems by means of anhydrous HF

Abstract Treatment of xylene with anhydrous HF (200 wt.%) at 180°C for 2 h in a sealed bomb gives disproportionation to toluene ( A , 42%) and trimethylbenzenes ( B , 32%). Extension to use of xylene—benzene mixtures for the hydrocarbon component gives transmethylation wherein yields of A and B (maxima of 30% and 27%, respectively) are found to vary with hydrocarbon composition, weight percentage of HF used, reaction temperature, reaction pressure, and addition of inorganic salts.
Numerical Study of Fuel Composition Effects on Low Temperature Diesel Combustion With a Discrete Multi-Component Vaporization Model

A numerical investigation of fuel composition effects on diesel engine combustion is presented. A new discrete multi-component (DMC) fuel model was used to represent the properties and composition of multi-component diesel fuels. A multi-dimensional CFD code, KIVA-ERC-Chemkin, that is coupled with improved sub-models and the Chemkin library, was employed for the simulations. A small-bore, high-speed DI diesel engine operating in a low temperature combustion (LTC) regime was simulated with four different diesel fuels using a 6-component fuel model. The oxidation chemistry was calculated using a reduced mechanism for primary reference fuel, with the reaction rate coefficients adjusted to account for the Cetane number (CN) variation of the fuels of interest. The major property differences of the fuels include volatility, viscosity, and autoignitability. The predicted pressure, heat release rate, and emissions are compared with experimental data available in the literature. The results show that the present multi-component fuel model performs reliably, and captures the effects of fuel composition differences on combustion. The emissions trends for the different fuels were also in good agreement with the corresponding experimental measurements. The results also indicate that, in addition to more realistic predictions of the fuel physical properties, further improvements of the chemical characteristics of the fuel components is desirable.Copyright © 2009 by ASME
SU‐EE‐A1‐03: The Neutron Dose Evaluation and Shielding at the Maze Entrance of the Varian Clinac 2300EX

Purpose: After the installation of a Varian Clinac 2300EX accelerator, neutron and photon doses at the outer maze entrance were measured and compared with several empirical calculations. The measurements were taken before and after borated polyethylene (BPE) boards were installed on the maze wall as neutron absorption material. Method and Materials: The accelerator delivered an 18 MV photon beam at 600 cGy/min dose rate. An NRC NP‐2 type neutron REM‐meter and a Ludlum 14C survey meter with a 44‐6 type of probe were used to measure the neutron dose and photon dose, respectively. The measurements were taken at the center axis of the maze, 0.8 m above the floor, 0.3 m away from the maze door. Results: With the gantry head tilted close to the inner maze entrance with closed jaws, both neutron dose and photon dose reach their maximum. The measurement data were compared with empirical calculation results obtained by Kersey's method, modified Kersey's method and a newly proposed method by R.C. Falcao el al. The estimation from Kersey's method is about 2 – 4 times of the measurement (Ratio ≈ 2.4–3.8). Falcao's method has estimation about 22 times of the measurement (Ratio ≈ 21.9). The modified Kersey's method has the best prediction of the dose (Ratio ≈ 1.0). The McGinley's photon dose equation gives estimation about 80% of the measurement. After applying borated polyethylene boards as lining on maze wall, the neutron dose and the photon dose at maze entrance were decreased by 41% and 58%, respectively. Conclusion: This work indicates that Kersey's method overestimates the neutron dose by about 2 to 4 times for this study. Falcao's method largely overestimates the neutron dose. The modified Kersey's method is recommended to be used in neutron shielding calculation for the 2300EX accelerator.
Factors influencing women's decision to leave an organization following childbirth

The purpose of this study was to understand the reasons why college-educated women leave organizations after childbirth. Results from 228 women who participated in a study of intention to work following childbirth indicated specific work and family factors that differentiated mothers who returned to work from mothers who stayed home after childbirth. Comparisons were also made between women who had a child and those who anticipated having a child. The findings are discussed in terms of their implications for organizational policy makers.