cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A layered media approach to photoacoustic tomography

Photoacoustic tomography is a rapidly emerging imaging technique that can benefit a wide range of biomedical applications. In this method, illumination of an object with a pulsed optical field induces an acoustic pressure wave related to the heating of the object (optical absorption). From knowledge of the resultant pressure wave measured in a region away from the acoustic source, the object's spatially varying optical absorption properties are estimated by use of an image reconstruction algorithm. Most existing analytic reconstruction algorithms for photoacoustic tomography assume the object of interest possesses homogeneous acoustic properties. In this work, photoacoustic tomography is considered in the case that the primary acoustic source is embedded in a planar layered medium whose speed of sound and densities are known. Exact propagation models valid for acoustic wave propagation in dispersive and absorptive layered media are presented that account for multiple reflections between the layers. Using the angular spectrum method, an inversion model is presented for acoustic data acquired on a plane parallel to the layered medium. The acquired data are shown to be simple linear combinations of plane waves generated at the source.
Communicating hydrocephalus induced by mechanically increased amplitude of the intraventricular cerebrospinal fluid pressure: Experimental studies

Abstract Acute and chronic hydrocephalus was induced in lambs by mechanically increasing the amplitude of the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) intraventricular pulse pressure without modifying the mean CSF pressure and without interfering with CSF circulation or absorption. The characteristics of the hydrocephalus so obtained, namely, the asymmetry of ventricular dilation, the dilation of the distal portions of the ventricular system, and the absence of obstructions in CSF pathways, indicated a direct role of high-amplitude intraventricular CSF pulsations in the genesis of ventricular enlargement. As no impairment in CSF circulation or absorption was induced nor variations in CSF mean pressure, this experimental model is proposed as a model for communicating hydrocephalus.
Understanding Solitons Algebraically

We describe techniques we have developed to analyze the physics of topological solitons in a model-independent way. Our central result is to show that topological solitons in generic field theories exhibit Bogomol’nyi bounds and Bogomol’nyi equations. Our methods turn the derivation of these Bogomol’nyi relationships into algebraic calculations and do not depend on the particular equations of motion. We present a discussion of the O(3) nonlinear σ-model as an example of our techniques.
Novel bis-arene (sandwich) complexes with NO+ acceptor. Isolation, X-ray crystallography and electronic structure

The unusual charge-transfer complexes of various arene donors (ArH) with the nitrosonium cation (NO+) resulting from bimolecular [1 ∶ 1] associations can be extended at suitably high ArH concentrations to termolecular processes leading to the analogous [2 ∶ 1] complexes. Spectral analyses of the intense color changes accompanying the arene interaction with NO+ provide optimum conditions for the isolation of pure crystalline ternary complexes. Single crystal X-ray crystallographic determinations establish the unique sandwich structure consisting of the NO moiety interposed (parallel) between a pair of cofacial arene donors—reminiscent of the well-known transition metal sandwich complexes with aromatic ligands. The electronic structure associated with the arene binding to NO in the ternary complex is analyzed by the application of the semi-empirical LCAO molecular-orbital methodology and the Mulliken (charge-transfer) formulation of the electronic (UV–VIS–NIR) transitions. The resultant evaluation of the electronic coupling (matrix) elements HAB indicates strong donor/acceptor interactions of the frontier orbitals of the arene donor (HOMO) and nitrosonium acceptor (LUMO) that are only slightly less than those extant in the corresponding binary [1 ∶ 1] complexes.
Houston Teaching Academy: Partnership in developing teachers

Abstract The need for excellent teachers to teach at-risk inner-city children is well documented. Too often new teachers who have received their field experience in the suburbs are hired to teach in multicultural inner-city schools with little preparation to serve this population of children and families. Changing the history of failure for this population of teachers and their students to an experience of success was the primary goal of the partnership between the Houston Independent School District and the University of Houston's College of Education. The structure of the Houston Teaching Academy (HTA) includes four collaborative decision-making councils. Representatives from the school and college serve on each of the councils. Shared weekly seminars for supervising teachers, student teachers, and college supervisors are led by school teachers or college supervisors. Methods courses are taught at the HTA, and the students serve as tutors in the classrooms. Several graduate college courses requested by teachers are offered at the HTA. Concurrent with the development of the HTA, a formative and summative evaluation has monitored the progress of the HTA toward its goals. The HTA graduates have been followed into their first years of teaching. Interviews with their principals indicate that 77% are effectively teaching in inner-city and multicultural settings.
A combined treatment of UV-light and radio frequency electric field for the inactivation of Escherichia coli K-12 in apple juice

Radio frequency electric fields (RFEF) and UV-light treatments have been reported to inactivate bacteria in liquid foods. However, information on the efficacy of bacterial inactivation by combined treatments of RFEF and UV-light technologies is limited. In this study, we investigated the relationship between cell injury and inactivation of Escherichia coli K-12 in apple juice treated with a combination of RFEF and UV-light. Apple juice purchased from a wholesale distributor was inoculated with E. coli K-12 at 7.8 log CFU/ml, processed with a laboratory scale RFEF unit at 20 kHz, 15 kV/cm for 170 micros at a flow rate of 540 ml/min followed by UV-light treatment (254 nm) for 12s at 25, 30 and 40 degrees C. Treated samples were analyzed for leakage of UV-substances as a function of membrane damage and were plated (0.1 ml) on Sorbitol MacConkey Agar (SMAC) and Trypticase Soy Agar (TSA) plates to determine the viability loss and percent injury. At 40 degrees C, UV-light treatment alone caused 5.8 log reduction of E. coli in apple juice while RFEF caused only 2.8 log reduction. A combination of the two processing treatments did not increase cell injury or leakage of intracellular bacterial UV-substances more than that from the UV-light treatment. Similarly, the viability loss determined was not significantly (P 0.05) different than UV-light treated samples. The results of this study suggest that RFEF treatment causes more injury to the bacterial cells leading to more leakage of intracellular UV-substances than cells treated with UV-light alone. Also, the effect of the two processing treatment combination on bacterial inactivation was not additive.
God's Gift of Martyrdom: The Early Reformation Understanding of Dying for the Faith

“It is a special joy for me to hear that our good and pious table companion and house guest [Robert Barnes] has been so graciously called by God to pour out his blood for the sake of God's dear Son and to become a holy martyr.” Martin Luther's reflection on the death of this friend, the English churchman and diplomat, in 1540typified his attitude toward martyrdom as his followers experienced it at the hands of Roman Catholic opponents. He continued, “Thanks, praise, and honor be to the Father of our dear Lord Jesus Christ, who has let us see the same kind of times which were seen at the beginning [of the church], times in which his Christians, who had eaten and drunk with us (as the apostles said of Christ, Acts 4 ) … are taken away before our very eyes and from our eyes and our side to martyrdom (that is, to heaven) and become saints.”
Linkage of the gene for Wolfram syndrome to markers on the short arm of chromosome 4

Wolfram syndrome is an autosomal recessive disorder defined by the occurrence of diabetes mellitus and progressive bilateral optic atrophy. Wolfram syndrome homozygotes develop widespread nervous system abnormalities; in particular, they exhibit severe behavioural difficulties that often lead to suicide attempts or psychiatric hospitalizations. The Wolfram syndrome gene also predisposes heterozygous carriers to psychiatric disorders, and may contribute significantly to the overall burden of psychiatric illness. Based on a linkage analysis of 11 families segregating for this syndrome using microsatellite repeat polymorphisms throughout the human genome, we found the Wolfram syndrome gene to be linked to markers on the short arm of human chromosome 4, with Zmax = 6.46 at θ = 0.02 for marker D4S431.
Fluctuations and dissipation in the Kondo lattice

Abstract We present a model for the resistance in a Kondo lattice which employs the generalized Anderson model and computes resistance from the inelastic scattering off phase and amplitude fluctuations in the highly renormalized potential of the heavy quasiparticles.
Mathematics Learning and the Sexes: A Review

Are there really sex differences in mathematics achievement? Garai and Scheinfeld (1968), in a review basically of pre-1960 psychological literature, concluded that no significant sex differences were found in computational tasks, but "in arithmetical reasoning and mathematical ability males have consistently been observed to perform better than females as a group [p. 252]." Maccoby (1966, p. 26) in a review including both psychological and educational literature published before 1965 concluded that: (a) girls learn to count at an earlier age; (b) there are no consistent differences in computation throughout the grades; (c) during grade-school years some studies show boys beginning to forge ahead on tests of arithmetical reasoning although a number of studies reveal no difference on this dimension; and (d) boys excel at arithmetic reasoning in high school. Several authors directly related to the mathematics education profession have also drawn conclusions from the reported literature. Glennon and Callahan (1968) state that "the evidence would suggest to the teacher that boys will achieve higher than girls on tests dealing with mathematical reasoning while the girls will achieve higher than boys on tests of computational ability [p. 30]." An equally prestigious review of research (Suydam & Riedesel, 1969, p. 129) states that there are no significant differences between the sexes in arithmetic achievement before seventh grade, but boys surpass girls after seventh grade. Suydam and Weaver stated in 1970: "In general boys scored higher in mathematical reasoning and girls were better in fundamentals, though some conflicting evidence has been presented [p. 4]." Still other studies report no significant achievement differences associated with sex, and most researchers conclude that what little difference exists is not sufficient to influence curriculum decisions. Aiken (1971) states that "sex differences in mathematical abilities are, of course, present at the kindergarten level and undoubtedly earlier [p. 203]." One could conclude from these reviews that although some authors believe the sex difference in mathematical achievement has
Marketing research and the new product failure rate

Why has the rate of new product success not climbed as a result of the many advances in marketing research technology over the past 25 years?
Genetic evidence for extreme polyandry and extraordinary sex-role reversal in a pipefish

Due to the phenomenon of male pregnancy, the fish family Syngnathidae (seahorses and pipefishes) has historically been considered an archetypal example of a group in which sexual selection should act more strongly on females than on males. However, more recent work has called into question the idea that all species with male pregnancy are sex-role reversed with respect to the intensity of sexual selection. Furthermore, no studies have formally quantified the opportunity for sexual selection in any natural breeding assemblage of pipefishes or seahorses in order to demonstrate conclusively that sexual selection acts most strongly on females. Here, we use a DNA-based study of parentage in the Gulf pipefish Syngnathus scovelli in order to show that sexual selection indeed acts more strongly on females than on males in this species. Moreover, the Gulf pipefish exhibits classical polyandry with the greatest asymmetry in reproductive roles (as quantified by variances in mating success) between males and females yet documented in any system. Thus, the intensity of sexual selection on females in pipefish rivals that of any other taxon yet studied.
Analysis issues for cyclone

Cyclone [1, 2] is an experimental, type-safe programming language based upon the syntax, semantics, and spirit of C. The primary goal of the language is to provide a type-safe environment that is close enough to C in both appearance and functionality, that systems programmers will find it attractive and useful.The most challenging aspect of the design is capturing the spirit of C without compromising type-safety. In particular, systems programmers expect to have good control over data representations, memory management, and performance. Yet, these features are usually absent from high-level, type-safe languages (e.g., Java). Another challenge is validating a sufficiently wide set of idioms that are in fact type-safe, but which conventional type systems reject.To address these issues, we have used a novel combination of typing features in conjunction with some interesting inference and dataflow techniques. The most novel typing feature is the support for region-based memory management which was summarized in an earlier paper [1]. However, this paper did not discuss the inference techniques we use to validate the regions and effects.In this talk, I will briefly summarize the Cyclone type system and then focus on the analysis issues that arise in its implementation, including (a) kind and type inference, (b) region and effect inference, and (c) dataflow analysis for validating initialization, array subscripts, and linear pointers.
The Applications of Neutron Scattering Methods to the Study of High-Temperature Protonic Conductors

Perovskite-based high-temperature protonic conductors have generated increased interest because of their potential use in such areas as solid-oxide fuel-cell technology. In this paper, we outline the utility of neutron scattering methods in conjunction with first-principles total-energy calculations for characterizing the proton dynamics in these materials.
Quantitative assessment of atypical birefringence images using scanning laser polarimetry with variable corneal compensation.

Purpose To define the clinical characteristics of atypical birefringence images and to describe a quantitative method for their identification. Design Prospective, comparative, clinical observational study. Methods Normal and glaucomatous eyes underwent complete examination, standard automated perimetry, scanning laser polarimetry with variable corneal compensation (GDx-VCC), and optical coherence tomography (OCT) of the macula, peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL), and optic disk. Eyes were classified into two groups: normal birefringence pattern (NBP) and atypical birefringence pattern (ABP). Clinical, functional, and structural characteristics were assessed separately. A multiple logistic regression model was used to predict eyes with ABP on the basis of a quantitative scan score generated by a support vector machine (SVM) with GDx-VCC. Results Sixty-five eyes of 65 patients were enrolled. ABP images were observed in 5 of 20 (25%) normal eyes and 23 of 45 (51%) glaucomatous eyes. Compared with eyes with NBP, glaucomatous eyes with ABP demonstrated significantly lower SVM scores ( P R 2 = .75 vs .27). ABP images were significantly correlated with older age ( R 2 = .16, P = .001). The SVM score was the only significant ( P Conclusions ABP images exist in a subset of normal and glaucomatous eyes, are associated with older patient age, and produce an artifactual increase in RNFL thickness using GDx-VCC. The SVM score is highly predictive of ABP images.
The emergence and characterization of macrophage-tropic SIV/HIV chimeric viruses (SHIVs) present in CD4+ T cell-depleted rhesus monkeys.

Highly pathogenic simian immunodefi- ciency virus/human immunodeficiency virus type 1 chimeric viruses (SHIVs) induce an extremely rapid, systemic, and irreversible depletion of CD4 T lymphocytes following their inoculation into rhesus macaques. Confocal fluorescence mi- croscopy was used to demonstrate that high levels of viremia in infected animals were sustained by virus-producing tissue macrophage (m) following the irreversible elimination of CD4 T lympho- cytes by highly pathogenic SHIVDH12R. The enve- lope glycoproteins carried by plasma virus in CD4- depleted animals were found to contain specific alterations affecting the V2 region of gp120; sim- ilar V2 changes were observed during independent monkey infections. The altered V2 loops contained double amino acid deletions and the loss of a highly conserved N-linked glycosylation site. In contrast to the starting highly pathogenic SHIV, which is exclusively T cell-tropic, some m-phase SHIVs, bearing altered V2 regions, were able to establish spreading infections of cultured alveolar m. J. Leu- koc. Biol. 74: 772-780; 2003.
ATAD5 regulates the lifespan of DNA replication factories by modulating PCNA level on the chromatin

Temporal and spatial regulation of the replication factory is important for efficient DNA replication. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms are not well understood. Here, we report that ATAD5 regulates the lifespan of replication factories. Reduced expression of ATAD5 extended the lifespan of replication factories by retaining proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) and other replisome proteins on the chromatin during and even after DNA synthesis. This led to an increase of inactive replication factories with an accumulation of replisome proteins. Consequently, the overall replication rate was decreased, which resulted in the delay of S-phase progression. Prevalent detection of PCNA foci in G2 phase cells after ATAD5 depletion suggests that defects in the disassembly of replication factories persist after S phase is complete. ATAD5-mediated regulation of the replication factory and PCNA required an intact ATAD5 ATPase domain. Taken together, our data imply that ATAD5 regulates the cycle of DNA replication factories, probably through its PCNA-unloading activity.
Interactions between Wingless and DFz2 during Drosophila wing development

Drosophila Wingless (Wg) is a secreted signaling protein of the Wnt family. Mutations in the wg gene disrupt the patterning of embryonic segments and their adult derivatives. Wg protein has been shown in cell culture to functionally interact with DFz2, a receptor that is structurally related to the tissue polarity protein Frizzled (Fz). However, it has not been determined if DFz2 functions in the Wg signaling pathway during fly development. Here we demonstrate that overexpression of DFz2 increases Wg-dependent signaling to induce ectopic margin bristle formation in developing Drosophila wings. Overexpression of a truncated form of DFz2 acts in a dominant-negative manner to block Wg signaling at the wing margin, and this block is rescued by co-expression of full-length DFz2 but not full-length Fz. Our results suggest that DFz2 and not Fz acts in the Wg signaling pathway for wing margin development. However, a truncated form of Fz also blocks Wg signaling in embryo and wing margin development, and the truncated form of DFz2 affects ommatidial polarity during eye development. These observations suggest that a single dominant-negative form of Fz or DFz2 can block more than one type of Wnt signaling pathway and imply that truncated proteins of the Fz family lose some aspect of signaling specificity.
NON-ABELIAN GAUGE FIELDS. COMMUTATION RELATIONS

The question is raised for non-Abelian vector gauge fields whether gauge invariance necessarily implies a massless physical particle. The action principle is used to discover the independent dynamical variables of such gauge fields and to construct their commutation relations. (auth)
Modeling guidance and recognition in categorical search: Bridging human and computer object detection

Search is commonly described as a repeating cycle of guidance to target-like objects, followed by the recognition of these objects as targets or distractors. Are these indeed separate processes using different visual features? We addressed this question by comparing observer behavior to that of support vector machine (SVM) models trained on guidance and recognition tasks. Observers searched for a categorically defined teddy bear target in four-object arrays. Target-absent trials consisted of random category distractors rated in their visual similarity to teddy bears. Guidance, quantified as first-fixated objects during search, was strongest for targets, followed by target-similar, medium-similarity, and target-dissimilar distractors. False positive errors to first-fixated distractors also decreased with increasing dissimilarity to the target category. To model guidance, nine teddy bear detectors, using features ranging in biological plausibility, were trained on unblurred bears then tested on blurred versions of the same objects appearing in each search display. Guidance estimates were based on target probabilities obtained from these detectors. To model recognition, nine bear/nonbear classifiers, trained and tested on unblurred objects, were used to classify the object that would be fixated first (based on the detector estimates) as a teddy bear or a distractor. Patterns of categorical guidance and recognition accuracy were modeled almost perfectly by an HMAX model in combination with a color histogram feature. We conclude that guidance and recognition in the context of search are not separate processes mediated by different features, and that what the literature knows as guidance is really recognition performed on blurred objects viewed in the visual periphery.
Corrosion Initiation Projection for Reinforced Concrete Exposed to Chlorides: Part 2—Corrosion-Resistant Bars

Abstract A companion paper (Part 1) introduced a protocol whereby time-to-corrosion, Ti, of reinforcing steel in concrete exposed to chlorides is calculated as a distributed, rather than discrete, parameter. The method consists of, first, considering that identically exposed, electrochemically independent elements comprise the concrete of interest and, second, inputting distribution functions for surface Cl− concentration (Cs), the effective diffusion coefficient (D), concrete cover over the reinforcement (x), and the critical Cl− concentration threshold to initiate corrosion (CT) into a governing equation from which the fraction of elements that have initiated corrosion is calculated for a specific exposure time. Upon repeating the calculation for different times, a cumulative distribution function (CDF) plot of Ti is constructed. In the Part 1 paper, the protocol was applied to black bar (BB) reinforcement; however, with advent of life-cycle cost considerations and specified bridge design lives of 75 ye...
SOURCE CREDIBILITY AND PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGNS: GOVERNOR CLINTON AND THE ALLEGATION OF MARITAL INFIDELITY

Summary.-The McCroskey and Jenson source credibility scale was administered to a sample of 178 colIege students before and after watching Governor Clinton, candidate for the Democratic Presidential nomination, answer questions relating to charges of marital infidelity on a nationally televised program. Four source credibility attributes showed no statistically significant changes in scores before and after the program on competency, character, sociability, and extroversion.
Domain-enhanced analysis of microarray data using GO annotations

Motivation: New biological systems technologies give scientists the ability to measure thousands of bio-molecules including genes, proteins, lipids and metabolites. We use domain knowledge, e.g. the Gene Ontology, to guide analysis of such data. By focusing on domain-aggregated results at, say the molecular function level, increased interpretability is available to biological scientists beyond what is possible if results are presented at the gene level. Results: We use a ‘top–down’ approach to perform domain aggregation by first combining gene expressions before testing for differentially expressed patterns. This is in contrast to the more standard ‘bottom–up’ approach, where genes are first tested individually then aggregated by domain knowledge. The benefits are greater sensitivity for detecting signals. Our method, domain-enhanced analysis (DEA) is assessed and compared to other methods using simulation studies and analysis of two publicly available leukemia data sets. Availability: Our DEA method uses functions available in R ( http://www.r-project.org/) and SAS (http://www.sas.com/). The two experimental data sets used in our analysis are available in R as Bioconductor packages, ‘ALL’ and ‘golubEsets’ (http://www.bioconductor.org/). Contact: jliu6@stat.ncsu.edu Supplementary information: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Evolution of diversity in epidemics revealed by analysis of the human bacterial pathogen group A Streptococcus

Advancements in high-throughput, high-volume data generating techniques increasingly present us with opportunities to probe new areas of biology. In this work we assessed the extent to which four closely related and genetically representative strains of group A Streptococcus causing epidemic disease have differentiated from one another. Comparative genome sequencing, expression microarray analysis, and proteomic studies were used in parallel to assess strain variation. The extent of phenotypic differentiation was unexpectedly large. We found significant associations between genetic polymorphisms and alterations in gene expression allowing us to estimate the frequency with which specific types of polymorphisms alter gene transcription. We identified polymorphisms in the gene (ropB) encoding the RopB regulator that associate with altered transcription of speB and production of the SpeB protein, a critical secreted protease virulence factor. Although these four epidemic strains are closely related, a key discovery is that accumulation of modest genetic changes has rapidly resulted in significant strain phenotypic differentiation, including the extracellular proteome that contains multiple virulence factors. These data provide enhanced understanding of genetic events resulting in strain variation in bacterial epidemics.
Payments for debts associated with exercise can become higher as we age and limit exercise capacity.

When one considers the oxygen cost of exercise, the body’s rate of oxygen consumption (Vo2) in excess of that in the basal state while the exercise is being performed initially comes to mind. But Woo et al. ([1][1]), in a paper appearing in this issue of the Journal , remind us that for several
The Case Against Changing the Aggregate Settlement Rule in Mass Tort Lawsuits

While mass torts were initially considered inappropriate for some forms of collective treatment, including class actions, a consensus has emerged calling for substantial modifications in traditional court processes in mass tort lawsuits, including the availability of the class action device. The early enthusiasm for the use of class actions in mass tort litigation has waned in the wake of numerous criticisms, including faulty incentive mechanisms for class action lawyers. Nevertheless, commentators continue to advocate the use of class actions and other collective mechanisms in mass tort lawsuits, urging the adoption of various reforms. Among the reform proposals are those focusing on lawyer ethics, rather than procedure. In particular, commentators urge flexibility in the application of ethical rules that appear to limit either the availability or efficacy of aggregate lawsuits, i.e., those in which individual lawyers or law firms represent numerous individuals whose claims arise out of the same incident or series of incidents. According to some of these commentators, the aggregation of individual claims, unlike class actions, involves the formation of consensual relationships between tort victims and their lawyers, thereby giving victims the ability to exercise more control than is possible in the class action context. While these commentators concede that group lawsuits are far from ideal, they claim they are better than either class actions or individual lawsuits, but only if various obstacles in the form of ethical rules are eliminated. This paper challenges the view that any widespread reform of traditional law ethics is either necessary or desirable. The author concludes first, that commentators label as "mass torts" too many cases in which the stated rationale for proposed special exemptions is totally lacking. Second, these commentators fail to recognize that the traditional rules are already more flexible than is often suggested and that t his flexibility can do much to accommodate the legitimate needs of clients. Finally, where existing rules do pose insurmountable obstacles to aggregate representation (including aggregate settlements), the author argues that the case has not yet been made that these rules should be changed in order to further facilitate collective action in mass tort litigation.
Interface Design for Mobile Army Commanders

The progress in developing and evaluating a prototype interface for mobile, forward-positioned Army commanders is reported. This interface currently includes novel representations of friendly and enemy combat resources and control mechanisms to re-focus granularity of attention. Army domain experts contributed substantially to design and evaluation activities: existing and proposed interfaces were reviewed, iterative design feedback was provided, a simulated combat scenario was designed, and three empirical evaluations have been performed with Army officers as participants. The evaluations have compared the RAPTOR interface with a simulated version of the Army's current computerized interface (FBCB2); the RAPTOR interface has generally produced better performance. The next step is to incorporate graphical representations of plans into the interface. These representations will include information regarding time, space, objectives, and resources. The design goal is to facilitate comparisons between pre-plan...
Winning the West to Municipal Reform

In the 20 years after 1900, municipal reformers celebrated triumph after triumph as cities across the country adopted commission and city-manager charters. The cities of the Southwest were prominent in the movement for municipal reform. In this article, the author shows how the West was won to municipal reform and argues that the adoption of reform charters was not the product of conducive local political culture but, rather, the result of region understood as strategic location and of manipulations of the rules that advantaged advocates of charter revision.
Stethorus punctum and Pest-Population Responses to Pesticide Treatments on Apple Trees

In 1970, 1971, and 1972, 32 pesticide treatments were tested for their effect on the predatory coccinellid Stethorus punctum (LeConte) and apple pests. Outstanding treatments with commercially satisfactory effectiveness on lepidopterous pests and only slight effect on S. punctum were: 0.0625 lb AI dinocap + 0.125 lb AI azinphosmethyl + 1.341 lb AI lead arsenate/100 gal; the same amounts of dinocap and azinphosmethyl + 0.125 AI Imidan® ( O, O -dimethyl S-phthalimidomethyl phosphorodithioate)/100 gal; and the same amounts of dinocap and azinphosmethyl + 0.125 lb AI phosalone/100 gal. The last-mentioned treatment was more effective than the former 2 treatments on the white apple leafhopper, Typhlocyba pomaria McAtee. These 3 treatments demonstrate the dinocap + S. punctum interaction with the European red mite, Panonychus ulmi (Koch). Phosvel® ( O -(4-bromo-2,5-dichloropheynl) O -methyl phenylphosphonothioate) at 1 lb AI/100 gal was effective on the lepidopterous pests, and at 0.5 lb AI/acre it is effective on the white apple leafhopper. At these rates, Phosvel is only slightly toxic to S. punctum. Phosvel was not effective on the apple aphid, Aphis pomi De Geer. Hercules 16801 (Phenyl N-dimethoxyphosphinodithioacethyl N-methylcarbamate) was more effective on the lepidopterous pests at 1 lb AI/100 gal than at 0.5 lb AI. It was not effective on the apple aphid or the white apple leafhopper, and it had low toxicity to S. punctum .
1H, 15N, and 13C chemical shift assignments of the human Sulfiredoxin (hSrx).

Electronic supplementary material Electronic supplementary material is available for this article at http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10858-005-0472-6 and accessible for authorised users.
Disentangling fathers’ absences from household remittances in international migration: The case of educational attainment in Guatemala

Estimating the effects of international migration on left-behind children's educational attainment is complicated by the potential offsetting effects of fathers' absences and household remittances. Most research has not separated these aspects of international migration on children's human capital outcomes. We address this deficiency by using instrumental variables to isolate the effects of fathers' international migration absences from international household remittances on student enrollment and grade progression in Guatemala. Results indicate that fathers' absences and household international remittances are negatively related to enrollment, providing evidence for a culture of migration effect. For students who remain in school, household international remittances neutralize the harmful influence of fathers' absences on grade progression.
Management of the Rh-sensitized mother.

The goal of obstetrics with regard to Rh isoimmunization is prevention. Once isoimmunization has occurred, the perinatolo-gist can use ultrasonography and amniocentesis to estimate, and percutaneous umbilical blood sampling to precisely define, the degree of fetal anemia. Previously, D typing of fetuses has been accomplished using fetal blood obtained after 18 weeks of gesta-tion. Recent advances in molecular genetics using amniocytes now provide a less invasive and earlier method of identifying the potentially affected fetus.
Presidential Address: The Nature of Inequality

What is economic inequality? At one level, economic inequality is a very obvious thing. It is a state of the world in which some people are poor, perhaps thoroughly deprived, while others lead affluent lives -even roll in luxury. Caviar for some, and starvation for others. But the contrasts are often far more subtle and much harder to identify.
“Iowa Comfort” and Doing the “Full Grassley”

This chapter presents a qualitative analysis of 26 interviews conducted with political elites, including two former governors, insiders, and reporters in the state. This chapter introduces the concept of “Iowa comfort” and focuses on how the incumbency bias in Iowa is less a function of having a good economy or sharing party affiliation with a popular president, and more about personal factors, particularly being viewed as someone who “works hard” and is willing to visit all 99 counties in the state. Governors who are perceived as working hard not only have a better connection with Iowans, but also establish a level of trust and comfort among voters such that they are less likely to be punished at the polls when times are bad.
Toward online virtual network function placement in Software Defined Networks

Network function virtualization (NFV) and Software Defined Networks (SDN) separate and abstract network functions from underlying hardware, creating a flexible virtual networking environment that reduces cost and allows policy-based decisions. One of the biggest challenges in NFV-SDN is to map the required virtual network functions (VNFs) to the underlying hardware in substrate networks in a timely manner. In this paper, we formulate the VNF placement problem via Graph Pattern Matching, with an objective function that can be easily adapted to fit various applications. Previous work only considers off-line VNF placement as it is time consuming to find an appropriate mapping path while considering all software and hardware constraints. To reduce this time, we investigate the feasibility and effectiveness of path-precomputing, where paths are calculated prior to placement. Our approach enables online VNF placement in SDNs, allowing VNF requests to be processed as they arrive. An online placement approach (OPA) is proposed to place VNF requests on substrate networks. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first work in the literature that considers the online chaining VNF placement in SDNs. In addition, we present an application of OPA over cost minimization. Simulation results demonstrate that our online approach provides competitive performance compared with off-line algorithms.
Quantitative estimation of a ratio of intracranial cerebrospinal fluid volume to brain volume based on segmentation of CT images in patients with extra-axial hematoma.

BackgroundDiminishing volume of intracranial cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in patients with space-occupying masses have been attributed to unfavorable outcome associated with reduction of cerebral perfusion pressure and subsequent brain ischemia.ObjectiveThe objective of this article is to employ a ratio of CSF volume to brain volume for longitudinal assessment of space-volume relationships in patients with extra-axial hematoma and to determine variability of the ratio among patients with different types and stages of hematoma.Patients and methodsIn our retrospective study, we reviewed 113 patients with surgical extra-axial hematomas. We included 28 patients (age 61.7 +/− 17.7 years; 19 males, nine females) with an acute epidural hematoma (EDH) (n = 5) and subacute/chronic subdural hematoma (SDH) (n = 23). We excluded 85 patients, in order, due to acute SDH (n = 76), concurrent intraparenchymal pathology (n = 6), and bilateral pathology (n = 3). Noncontrast CT images of the head were obtained using a CT scann...
Canonical and non-canonical aryl hydrocarbon receptor signaling pathways

Decades of research on the Aryl hydrocarbon Receptor (AhR) has unveiled its involvement in the toxicity of halogenated and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and a myriad of normal physiological processes. The molecular dissection of AhR biology has centered on a canonical signaling pathway in an effort to mechanistically reconcile the diverse pathophysiological effects of exposure to environmental pollutants. As a consequence, we now know that canonical signaling can explain many but not all of the AhR-mediated effects. Here we describe recent findings that point to non-canonical signaling pathways, and focus on a novel AhR interaction with the Kruppel-like Factor 6 protein responsible for previously un-recognized epigenetic changes in the chromatin affecting gene expression.
New Insights from Rheo-small-angle Neutron Scattering

Rheo-small angle neutron scattering (rheo-SANS) methods combine microstructural SANS measurements with an applied deformation field in order to measure flow-induced structures in complex fluids. Such methods enable a robust characterization of the microstructure and flow properties of surfactant wormlike micelle (WLM) solutions. The development of new sample environments now enables the flow-induced microstructure to be measured in the three planes of shear: the flow–vorticity (1–3), flow–gradient (1–2), and gradient–vorticity (2–3) planes. Advances in neutron collection and data analysis have improved the temporal resolution of time-dependent responses, significantly reducing the time required to perform such measurements. Theoretical advances in constitutive modelling and the stress-SANS rule now permit the development and testing of structure–property relationships. Such methodologies have allowed flow instabilities, such as shear and vorticity banding, and shear-induced structural transitions to be identified in WLM solutions. Additional sample environments have enabled the study of WLMs under extensional and Poiseuille flows, in addition to flows in microfluidic devices.
Biomedical signal recovery: Genomic variant detection in family lineages

Structural variations (SVs) — genomic rearrangements such as insertions, deletions and duplications — represent an important class of genomic variation. These mutations have been associated with both genetic diseases (e.g., cancer) and promoting genetic diversity. The common approach to detecting SVs in an unknown genome involves sequencing fragments of the genome, comparing them to a reference genome, and predicting SVs based on identified discordant fragments. However, detecting SVs from traditional DNA sequencing is challenging due to the presence of errors and biases in the DNA sequencing process as well as problems aligning sequences to a reference genome. The majority of existing methods use hierarchical relationships to detect these genetic changes, but often post-process this information. Our work aims to improve on existing SV detection methods in three ways: First, we use a continuous relaxation of admissible solutions to apply gradient-based optimization techniques. Second, since SVs are rare, we incorporate an l\ sparsity-promoting penalty term. Third, we improve on our previous work by using a block-coordinate descent approach to predict variants in families of individuals. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our method on a variety of simulated datasets and real genomes of a two parent-two child family.
Infection rates of MRSA in complicated pediatric rhinosinusitis: An up to date review.

Abstract Introduction Published studies have reported a rise in MRSA isolates in head and neck infections, but the microbiology of complicated pediatric rhinosinusitis is unclear. One study of such patients showed that MRSA isolates were seen only in the last three years of data collection, suggesting a possible recent increased prevalence. Given the public health concerns of increasing rates of antimicrobial resistance, the goal of this study was to investigate the microbiologic patterns and outcomes of complicated pediatric rhinosinusitis. Methods Retrospective cohort of pediatric patients admitted to our children's hospital with complicated acute rhinosinusitis from 2004 to 2014. Results The mean age of 250 hospitalized children with complicated rhinosinusitis was 7.6 ± 4.9 years; 109 of these (43%) underwent surgical procedures. Although MRSA prevalence was highest in 2014, no significant trend in overall MRSA prevalence occurred when considering the entire study period. No significant relationship was identified between MRSA and intra-orbital versus intra-cranial complications. Interestingly, 22.7% of patients with anaerobes detected by culture had persistent abnormal physical examination (PE) findings versus 6.1% of patients without anaerobes (p = 0.025). Furthermore, multivariate analysis also revealed that detection of anaerobes or MRSA was associated with persistent PE findings being 21.8 and 14.8 times more likely, respectively, when compared to other detected pathogens. Discussion Our data indicate modest variability in the annual rates of MRSA associated pediatric rhinosinusitis, however there was no statistically significant pattern of change in MRSA prevalence during 2004–2014. Although detection of MRSA was not significantly associated with either intraorbital or intracranial complications of sinusitis, a significant association with a poorer outcome was observed by multivariate analysis for patients from whom MRSA or anaerobes were detected. These data raise the question as to whether clindamycin is adequate for MRSA and anaerobic coverage.
Low-pressure solid-state bonding technology using fine-grained silver foils for high-temperature electronics

A solid-state bonding technique using fine-grained silver (Ag) foils is presented. The Ag foils are manufactured using many runs of cold rolling and subsequent annealing processes to achieve the favorable microstructure. X-ray diffraction and pole figure measurement are performed to examine the crystal structure and grain orientations. Si chips are bonded to bare Cu substrates using the Ag foil as the bonding medium at 300 °C in 0.1 torr vacuum assisted by 6.9 MPa static pressure, which is much lower than that used in conventional thermal compression bonding. Cross sections prepared by focus ion beam show clear bonding interfaces with only a few voids smaller than 100 nm. The bonded structures do not crack after cooling down to room temperature, indicating that the ductile Ag layer is able to manage the strain induced by the large coefficient of thermal expansion mismatch between Si and Cu. The average shear strength of as-bonded samples is 29 MPa. High-temperature storage tests are conducted, and slight increase in strength can be observed after 300 °C aging. Fracture analyses show that the breakage occurs within the Ag foil rather than on the bonding interface. Transmission electron microscopy and energy-dispersive spectroscopy (TEM/EDX) are conducted for Ag/Cu interface after 200-h aging, and the result shows that slight diffusion proceeds during the aging. Since Ag has the highest electrical and thermal conductivities among metals, therefore the bonded structures reported in this paper probably represent the best possible design for high-temperature and high-power electronic packaging applications.
Increasing early childhood preservice teachers’ intercultural sensitivity through the ABCs

While the early childhood student population has become increasingly diverse in the U.S., its teaching force remains primarily European American. The diverse student population demands that early c...
High-Voltage, Multiphasic, Nanosecond Pulses to Modulate Cellular Responses

Nanosecond electric pulses are an effective power source in plasma medicine and biological stimulation, in which biophysical responses are governed by peak power and not energy. While uniphasic nanosecond pulse generators are widely available, the recent discovery that biological effects can be uniquely modulated by reversing the polarity of nanosecond duration pulses calls for the development of a multimodal pulse generator. This paper describes a method to generate nanosecond multiphasic pulses for biomedical use, and specifically demonstrates its ability to cancel or enhance cell swelling and blebbing. The generator consists of a series of the fundamental module, which includes a capacitor and a MOSFET switch. A positive or a negative phase pulse module can be produced based on how the switch is connected. Stacking the modules in series can increase the voltage up to 5 kV. Multiple stacks in parallel can create multiphase outputs. As each stack is independently controlled and charged, multiphasic pulses can be created to produce flexible and versatile pulse waveforms. The circuit topology can be used for high-frequency uniphasic or biphasic nanosecond burst pulse production, creating numerous opportunities for the generator in electroporation applications, tissue ablation, wound healing, and nonthermal plasma generation.
A New Look at Flaked Stone Projectiles from the Mixter Site (33-ER-4), Erie County, Ohio, USA

The Mixter site (33-ME-4), Erie County, Ohio, is a multicomponent site first reported in 1967. We re-examined the Mixter site projectile point assemblage to understand which types were present, whe...