cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Simulation of phase noise generated by white noise in 1.7 GHz CMOS LC oscillator

The phase noise resulting from upconversion of white noise in a CMOS LC oscillator is investigated. HSPICE simulations of phase noise resulting from the random-phase white noise in a 1.7 GHz CMOS LC oscillator have been performed and demonstrate that the phase noise resulting from the upconversion of white noise has a 1/f-dependence on the offset frequency and becomes larger as the white noise increases. The results provide a confirmation by circuit simulations of Leeson's empirical formula, and provide a technique for the design of low noise oscillators.
Intergenerational income mobility among daughters

New evidence on daughters' intergenerational mobility in a framework that encompasses women not in the labor force, using broader measures of economic status than just the women's own earnings, is presented, and the role of husbands' earnings is highlighted. A parallel analysis of sons' mobility is performed. Intergenerational transmission of income status may be weaker for daughters than for sons, but is still quite substantial. Assortative mating is an important element in the intergenerational transmission process.
Estimates of Census Underenumeration Based on Genealogies

We have been studying the migrations of the descendants of nine men who came to Massachusetts before 1650 and have compiled a computerized database that includes all the people born before 1860 in the patrilines. Thus we have what the nine genealogists who studied these families thought was close to a complete list of family members alive in 1850. Here we focus on our attempts to find these individuals on the 1850 federal census. To facilitate our task, we made up a search list that contained all males alive in 1850, but we omitted females known to have married by 1850. The search list included both the last known place in each individual’s record before 1850 and the next known place after 1850. The list was deliberately over-inclusive. In the 30% or so of the cases in which we did not have death dates for individuals, we carried them on the list until they were 100 years old. Again, the census is supposed to have been taken as of 1 June, but we included anyone who was born or died in 1850, whether it was before or after that date. All told, we searched for 7,627 individuals, about two-thirds men and one-third unmarried women.
Early Communication, Symbolic Behavior, and Social Profiles of Young Males With Fragile X Syndrome

This study examined the communication and symbolic behavior profiles of 22 males with fragile X syndrome (FXS) developmentally younger than 28 months and the relationship of these profiles to the c...
Suboptimal Outcome of Management of Metabolic Cardiovascular Risk Factors in Hispanic Patients With Essential Hypertension

We studied outcome of management of metabolic cardiovascular risk factors in 155 randomly chosen Hispanic hypertensive patients (mean age, 63 +/- 1 years; 79% female) screened for dyslipidemia. Hypertriglyceridemia (n = 12) or high risk-adjusted low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) (n = 89) was found in 65%. Triglycerides did not change (6.16 +/- 0.58 to 7.44 +/- 2.34 mmol/L; P = NS) over 2.2 +/- 0.5 years. Only 58 patients with high LDL-C were treated, and 8 had no follow-up lipid tests. In the other 50, LDL-C decreased by 10 +/- 3% (P < .001) over 2.8 +/- 0.2 years but attained goal in only 12. In a subset of 24 patients with extended follow-up (3.8 +/- 0.2 years), there was an initial marked decline in LDL-C, followed by a rebound to baseline levels. In 29 of 54 patients with normal LDL-C, lipid testing was markedly overused compared with recommendations. Obesity (n = 94, 61%) did not improve in those with repeated data (+0.6 +/- 0.8 kg; P = NS; n = 40) over 2.7 +/- 0.3 years. Forty-four of 63 patients with type II diabetes had repeated measurement of glycosylated hemoglobin, with no change (10.5 +/- 0.5% to 11.2 +/- 0.5%; P = NS) over 2.2 +/- 0.3 years. Ten-year risk of coronary events (Framingham cohort parametric regression) calculated for 61 patients with known untreated blood pressures (169 +/- 3/98 +/- 1 mm Hg) was 21.0 +/- 1.7%, with a skewed distribution reaching high values (66%) and attributable in large part (72%) to modifiable risk factors.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Learning probabilistic motion models for mobile robots

Machine learning methods are often applied to the problem of learning a map from a robot's sensor data, but they are rarely applied to the problem of learning a robot's motion model. The motion model, which can be influenced by robot idiosyncrasies and terrain properties, is a crucial aspect of current algorithms for Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM). In this paper we concentrate on generating the correct motion model for a robot by applying EM methods in conjunction with a current SLAM algorithm. In contrast to previous calibration approaches, we not only estimate the mean of the motion, but also the interdependencies between motion terms, and the variances in these terms. This can be used to provide a more focused proposal distribution to a particle filter used in a SLAM algorithm, which can reduce the resources needed for localization while decreasing the chance of losing track of the robot's position. We validate this approach by recovering a good motion model despite initialization with a poor one. Further experiments validate the generality of the learned model in similar circumstances.
The Pichia pastoris Dihydroxyacetone Kinase is a PTS1-containing, but Cytosolic, Protein that is Essential for Growth on Methanol

Dihydroxyacetone kinase (DAK) is essential for methanol assimilation in methylotrophic yeasts. We have cloned the DAK gene from Pichia pastoris by functional complementation of a mutant that was unable to grow on methanol. An open reading frame of 1824 bp was identified that encodes a 65·3 kDa protein with high homology to DAK from Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Although DAK from P. pastoris contained a C-terminal tripeptide, TKL, which we showed can act as a peroxisomal targeting signal when fused to the green fluorescent protein, the enzyme was primarily cytosolic. The TKL tripeptide was not required for the biochemical function of DAK because a deletion
Optical Imaging of Bacterial Infection in Living Mice Using a Fluorescent Near-Infrared Molecular Probe

An optical imaging probe was synthesized by attaching a near-infrared carbocyanine fluorophore to an affinity group containing two zinc(II) dipicolylamine (Zn-DPA) units. The probe has a strong and selective affinity for the surfaces of bacteria, and it was used to image infections of Gram-positive S. aureus and Gram-negative E. coli bacteria in living nude mice. After intravenous injection, the probe selectively accumulates at the sites of localized bacterial infections in the thigh muscles of the mice.
Topography of ligand-induced binding sites, including a novel cation-sensitive epitope (AP5) at the amino terminus, of the human integrin beta 3 subunit.

Changes in ligand binding ability of the integrin alpha IIb beta 3 can be monitored by the concomitant expression of ligand-inducible binding sites (LIBS). A new LIBS, the hexapeptide sequence GPNICT (residues 1-6) at the amino terminus of beta 3 recognized by the murine monoclonal antibody (mAb) AP5, is sensitive both to the binding of ligand and to micromolar differences in divalent cation levels. Calcium or magnesium can completely inhibit the binding of AP5 to alpha IIb beta 3 on platelets, with ID50 values of 80 and 1500 microM, respectively. The inhibitory effect of calcium plus magnesium is cumulative. In the presence of 1 mM calcium plus 1 mM magnesium, the peptide RGDW overcomes this inhibition and induces maximal binding of AP5. Maximal AP5 binding is also induced by a molar excess of EDTA. The unique location of the AP5 LIBS was determined by comparing the binding of LIBS-specific mAb to recombinant human-Xenopus beta 3 chimeras produced in a baculovirus expression system. AP5 defines one region at the amino terminus beta 3 1-6. A second region, defined by mAb D3GP3, is probably located within beta 3 422-490, confirming the finding of Kouns et al. (Kouns, W. C., Newman, P.J., Puckett, K. J., Miller, A. A., Wall, C. D., Fox, C. F., Seyer, J. M., and Jennings, L. K. (1991) Blood 78, 3215-3223). The third region, encompassing at most residues 490-690, and perhaps more precisely located within 602-690 (Du X., Gu, M., Weise, J. W., Nagaswami, C., Bennett, J. S., Bowditch, R., and Ginsberg, M. H. (1993) J. Biol. Chem. 268, 23087-23092), is recognized by the four mAb, anti-LIBS2, anti-LIBS3, anti-LIBS6, and P41. Since its exposure is uniquely regulated by both divalent cations and ligand, the amino terminus of beta 3 may be involved in control of ligand binding by divalent cation mobilization.
Transition to classical chaos in a coupled quantum system through continuous measurement

Continuous observation of a quantum system yields a measurement record that faithfully reproduces the classically predicted trajectory provided that the measurement is sufficiently strong to localize the state in phase space but weak enough that quantum backaction noise is negligible. We investigate the conditions under which classical dynamics emerges, via a continuous position measurement, for a particle moving in a harmonic well with its position coupled to internal spin. As a consequence of this coupling, we find that classical dynamics emerges only when the position and spin actions are both large compared to ". These conditions are quantified by placing bounds on the size of the covariance matrix which describes the delocalized quantum coherence over extended regions of phase space. From this result, it follows that a mixed quantum-classical regime (where one subsystem can be treated classically and the other not) does not exist for a continuously observed spin- 1 2 particle. When the conditions for classicality are satisfied (in the large-spin limit), the quantum trajectories reproduce both the classical periodic orbits as well as the classically chaotic phase space regions. As a quantitative test of this convergence, we compute the largest Lyapunov exponent directly from the measured quantum trajectories and show that it agrees with the classical value.
Knowledge discovery in urban environments from fused multi-dimensional imagery

With all the exciting advances in sensor fusion and data interpretation technologies in recent years, including co-registration, 3-D surface reconstruction, object recognition, spatial reasoning, and more, high-quality detailed and precise segmentation of remote sensing spectral images remains a much needed key component in the comprehensive analysis and understanding of surfaces. Urban surfaces are no exception. In fact, urban surfaces can represent more challenge than many other types because of the very large variety of materials concentrated in relatively small areas. Segmentation (unsupervised clustering) or supervised classification based on spectral signatures from multi-and hyperspectral imagery, or based on other multidimensional signatures from stacked disparate (multi-source) imagery, provide delineation of materials with various compositional and physical properties in a scene. Such a cluster or classification map lends critical support to further reasoning for accurate identification of surface objects and conditions. It is, therefore, imperative to develop methods whose data exploitation power matches that of the discriminating power of the data acquisition instrument. We present a study of unsupervised segmentation, comparing the performances of ISODATA clustering and self-organized manifold learning on an urban image from a Daedalus multi-spectral scanner and on an AVIRIS hyperspectral image.
Tied boltzmann machines for cold start recommendations

We describe a novel statistical model, the tied Boltzmann machine, for combining collaborative and content information for recommendations. In our model, pairwise interactions between items are captured through a Boltzmann machine, whose parameters are constrained according to the content associated with the items. This allows the model to use content information to recommend items that are not seen during training. We describe a tractable algorithm for training the model, and give experimental results evaluating the model in two cold start recommendation tasks on the MovieLens data set.
Evaluation and Management of Laryngopharyngeal Reflux

ContextLaryngopharyngeal reflux (LPR) is a major cause of laryngeal inflammation and presents with a constellation of symptoms different from classic gastroesophageal reflux disease.ObjectiveTo provide a practical approach to evaluating and managing cases of LPR.Evidence AcquisitionThe PubMed database and the Ovid Database of Systematic Reviews were systematically searched for laryngopharyngeal reflux, laryngopharyngeal reflux fundoplication, laryngopharyngeal reflux PPI treatment, and gastroesophageal reflux AND laryngitis. Pertinent subject matter journals and reference lists of key research articles were also hand-searched for articles relevant to the analysis.Evidence SynthesisReflux of gastric contents is a major cause of laryngeal pathology. The pathophysiology and symptom complex of LPR differs from gastroesophageal reflux disease. Laryngeal pathology results from small amounts of refluxate—typically occurring while upright during the daytime—causing damage to laryngeal tissues and producing localized symptoms. Unlike classic gastroesophageal reflux, LPR is not usually associated with esophagitis, heartburn, or complaints of regurgitation. There is no pathognomonic symptom or finding, but characteristic symptoms and laryngoscopic findings provide the basis for validated assessment instruments (the Reflux Symptom Index and Reflux Finding Score) useful in initial diagnosis. There are 3 approaches to confirming the diagnosis of LPR: (1) response of symptoms to behavioral and empirical medical treatment, (2) endoscopic observation of mucosal injury, and (3) demonstration of reflux events by impedance and pH-monitoring studies and barium swallow esophagram. While pH monitoring remains the standard for confirming the diagnosis of gastroesophageal reflux, the addition of multichannel intraluminal impedance technology improves diagnostic accuracy for describing LPR events. Ambulatory multichannel intraluminal impedance assessment allows for identification of gaseous as well as liquid refluxate and detection of nonacid reflux events that are likely significant in confirming LPR. Although some patients respond to conservative behavioral and medical management, as is the case with gastroesophageal reflux, most require more aggressive and prolonged treatment to achieve regression of symptoms and laryngeal tissue changes. Surgical intervention such as laparoscopic fundoplication is useful in selected recalcitrant cases with laxity of the gastroesophageal sphincter.ConclusionsLaryngopharyngeal reflux should be suspected when the history and laryngoscopy findings are suggestive of the diagnosis. Failure to respond to a 3-month trial of behavioral change and gastric acid suppression by adequate doses of proton pump inhibitor medication dictates need for confirmatory studies. Multichannel intraluminal impedance and pH-monitoring studies are most useful in confirming LPR and assessing the magnitude of the problem.
Placebos in 19th century medicine: a quantitative analysis of the BMJ

Objective To provide the first quantitative data on the use of the term “placebo” in the 19th century. Design Computer search of BMJ’s archival database from January 1840 (the first issue) through December 1899 for uses of the words “placebo(s).” Grounded theory was used to categorise the implications of uses of the term. Results 71 citations contained the term “placebo(s).” Of these, 22 (31%) used the term to mean “no effect” or as a general pejorative term, 18 (25%) portrayed placebo treatment as permitting the unfolding of the natural history (the normal waxing and waning of illness), 14 (20%) described placebo as important to satisfy patients, 7 (10%) described it as fulfilling a physician’s performance role, 3 (4%) described its use to buy time, 3 (4%) described its use for financial gain, 2 (3%) used it in a manner similar to a placebo control, and only one implied that placebo could have a clinical effect. Only one citation mentioned telling the patient about his placebo treatment. Conclusion Nineteenth century physicians had diverse a priori assumptions about placebos. These findings remind us that contemporary medicine needs to use rigorous science to separate fact from its own beliefs concerning the “provision of care.” As in previous generations, ethical issues concerning placebos continue to challenge medicine.
Failed emergency transtracheal ventilation through a 14-gauge intravenous catheter

Abstract We encountered two patients who could be neither ventilated nor intubated after induction of anesthesia. In both cases, transtracheal ventilation failed after emergent cricothyroid membrane puncture with a 14-gauge intravenous (IV) catheter. In the first case, two catheters placed in rapid succession kinked, preventing gas exchange. In the second case, absence of a plunger on the needle-over-catheter assembly prevented confirmation of intratracheal placement. Both patients required emergent tracheal access by the surgeon. We suggest that transtracheal ventilation via standard IV catheters as a primary emergent rescue technique be reassessed.
Lessons to Be Learned from the History of Anatomical Teaching in the United States: The Example of the University of Michigan.

Although traditional departments of anatomy are vanishing from medical school rosters, anatomical education still remains an important part of the professional training of physicians. It is of some interest to examine whether history can teach us anything about how to reform modern anatomy. Are there lessons to be learned from the history of anatomical teaching in the United States that can help in the formulation of contents and purposes of a new anatomy? This question is explored by a review of US anatomical teaching with special reference to Franklin Paine Mall and the University of Michigan Medical School. An historical perspective reveals that there is a tradition of US anatomical teaching and research that is characterized by a zeal for reform and innovation, scientific endeavor, and active, student-driven learning. Further, there is a tradition of high standards in anatomical teaching through the teachers' engagement in scientific anatomy and of adaptability to new requirements. These traditional strengths can inform the innovation of modern anatomy in terms of its two duties--its duty to anatomy as a science and its duty toward anatomical education.
Preclinical Evaluation of Robotic-Assisted Sentinel Lymph Node Fluorescence Imaging

An ideal substance to provide convenient and accurate targeting for sentinel lymph node (SLN) mapping during robotic-assisted surgery has yet to be found. We used an animal model to determine the ability of the FireFly camera system to detect fluorescent SLNs after administration of a dual-labeled molecular imaging agent. Methods: We injected the footpads of New Zealand White rabbits with 1.7 or 8.4 nmol of tilmanocept labeled with 99m Tc and a near-infrared fluorophore, IRDye800CW. One and 36 h after injection, popliteal lymph nodes, representing the SLNs, were dissected with the assistance of the FireFly camera system, a fluorescence-capable endoscopic imaging system. After excision of the paraaortic lymph nodes, which represented non-SLNs, we assayed all lymph nodes for radioactivity and fluorescence intensity. Results: Fluorescence within all popliteal lymph nodes was easily detected by the FireFly camera system. Fluorescence within the lymph channel could be imaged during the 1-h studies. When compared with the paraaortic lymph nodes, the popliteal lymph nodes retain greater than 95% of the radioactivity at both 1 and 36 h after injection. At both doses (1.7 and 8.4 nmol), the popliteal nodes had higher (P , 0.050) optical fluorescence intensity than the paraaortic nodes at the 1- and 36-h time points. Conclusion: The FireFly camera system can easily detect tilmanocept labeled with a near-infrared fluorophore at least 36 h after administration. This ability will permit image acquisition and subsequent verification of fluorescence-labeled SLNs during robotic-assisted surgery.
III. Federal-State-Local Relations.

Like all other aspects of public administration, intergovernmental relations are undergoing constant readjustment to the times and conditions. War so alters conditions in public affairs that federal-state-local realignments are taking place from month to month. Never before have so many administrative operations at the local level been guided by so many directives out of Washington. Cooperative government by federal-state-local authorities has become a by-word in the prodigious effort to administer civilian defense, rationing, and other war-time programs. The first year of war brought new forces into the field of administration, but developments have followed an evolutionary rather than a revolutionary pattern. Intergovernmental administration, while it is a part of all levels of government, is turning into something quite distinct from them all.The states have cooperated in passing war-time legislation; in ironing out transportation problems created by diverse state regulations; in controlling aliens and relocating Japanese-Americans; in foregoing construction of new public works; in building public works in war-affected communities where in-migration has resulted from concentrations of war industries and military personnel. New programs affecting the lives of all Americans, such as civilian defense, price control, and rationing, are making demands upon localities and states for intergovernmental action. In the absence of any complete overhauling of the federal-state-local tax systems, the Bureau of the Budget has written a new chapter in the intergovernmental field by giving a set of directives for state and local governments to follow or to ignore at their own risk.
The Garden City, Kansas, Storm during VORTEX 95. Part II: The Wall Cloud and Tornado

Abstract On 16 May 1995, a supercell storm produced an F1 tornado near Garden City, Kansas, during VORTEX (Verification of the Origins of Rotation in Tornadoes Experiment). This event provided the first opportunity to synthesize data collected by a new airborne radar platform called ELDORA (Electra Doppler radar) developed by the National Center for Atmospheric Research. The evolution of the low- and midlevel mesocyclone was presented in a companion paper. In this paper, the sequence of events that triggered tornadogenesis within the mesocyclone circulation is shown. The occlusion downdraft, documented in Part I, appears to promote “vortex breakdown” resulting in the generation of multiple vorticity centers. It is one of these centers that intensifies into the Garden City tornado. The structural relationship between the observed wall cloud and the radar reflectivity associated with the developing hook echo and the kinematic wind field is also presented. Although the wall cloud appears to be uniform there ...
Human Settlements in National Development Policy: The Year 2000 Agenda

High population growth rate and rapid urbanization are the twin forces accentuating the crisis of human settlements in many developing countries. Soon the population of our planet is expected to surpass the five billion mark. Most of these five billion people are already living in the developing countries and in substandard settlement conditions from which there are not easy prospects of escape. At the same time, the process of urbanization is currently transforming settlement patterns in developing countries at an unprecedented pace. In 1950 less than 300 million people lived in towns and cities in developing countries: by 1985 this number had swollen to 1.1 billion and by the year 2000 there will be approximately two billion urban inhabitants in the developing countries, with a sizeable proportion concentrated in a number of agglomerations of tens of millions of people, the so-called mega-cities.
Education Game to Blind People

Blind people have limitations because of partial or full visual impairment. This can affect their development like cognitive development and academic development. In order to do their social roles, blind people have obstacles. Even in education side, blind people still find it difficult to get their full access to study because their physic limitation makes them difficult to study like normal people. Now there are blind people who have their formal and informal education. Even though they cannot see, they can take benefit from another sense, like sense of hearing, palpability, smell, and taste. Their senses can be a modal to study. Developer games have their build game in audio to blind people too. Their game is variation between audio games and online games, so games can be used for blind people as an education tools. In this paper, there will be an explanation about how to facilitate blind people to study with paper.
Social stress buffering by friends in childhood and adolescence: Effects on HPA and oxytocin activity

Previous research has demonstrated that before puberty, parents are able to buffer, and often completely block, cortisol responses to social evaluative stressors (e.g., Trier Social Stress Test; TSST). However, after puberty, parents no longer provide a powerful buffer of the HPA axis from a social-evaluative stressor. The current study investigates whether friends can buffer the HPA axis in both children and adolescents compared to parents and whether similar stress-ameliorating patterns can also be observed in oxytocin activity. A total of 109 participants (54 children aged 9-10 and 55 adolescents aged 15-16; half of each sex) completed the TSST and were randomly assigned to prepare for their speech with their parent or friend for 5 minutes beforehand. Salivary cortisol and urinary oxytocin were measured before and after the TSST. For children, cortisol responses were comparable regardless of who helped the child prepare the speech. For adolescents, however, friends actually amplified the cortisol response compared to parents. In addition, adolescents produced less oxytocin than children, as did males compared to females. Notably, for boys, oxytocin levels decreased across the session if participants prepared with a friend rather than their parent. The mean change was in the same direction but not significant for girls. These results indicate that friends do not take over the social buffering role by age 15-16, which may inform interventions in at-risk children and adolescents.
New lower bounds for the coil-in-the-box problem: using evolutionary techniques to hunt for coils

The coil-in-the-box problem is a variation of a difficult problem in mathematics and computer science, known as the snake-in-the-box problem, that was first described by Kautz in the late 1950's [7]. Coil-in-the-box codes have many applications in electrical engineering, coding theory, and computer network topologies. Generally, the longer the coil for a given dimension, the more useful it is in these applications [9]. By applying a relatively recent evolutionary search algorithm known as a population-based stochastic hill-climber, new lower bounds were achieved for the longest-known coil in each of the dimensions nine through eleven.
Intent-based Abstraction for Formal Verification of Flight Deck Mode Confusion

ion of domain: To succinctly describe the aircraft’s motion for the purpose of mode confusion detection, the hybrid states X ×Q are mapped to the intent domain I. The flight intent of the automation I k ∈ I is defined based on the sign of the continuous state derivatives (i.e., ẋ , where is a small positive number to account for uncertainties) for each discrete flight mode qk. This is mathematically given by z : X ×Q→ I as: I k = z(xk, qk), I ∈ I (4) For example, if (ḣk > 0) ∧ (qk := V/S mode), then I k = climb, where ∧ is the logical and operator. Thus, the abstracted model for the hybrid system M is described in the intent domain I, which is much smaller compared to the original infinite-dimensional domain. Thus, the state space explosion problem is effectively addressed. Abstraction of transition: It should however be noted that in addition to the above abstraction of domain, the transition relations must also be abstracted to obtain an intent-based FSM. Such an abstracted intent-based FSM model M of the automation describes the evolution of flight intents of the automation, governed by the aircraft’s continuous states and the control inputs satisfying the guard condition as in Eq. (2), and can be verified using a discrete model-checker such as the NuSMV. The abstracted transitionion of transition: It should however be noted that in addition to the above abstraction of domain, the transition relations must also be abstracted to obtain an intent-based FSM. Such an abstracted intent-based FSM model M of the automation describes the evolution of flight intents of the automation, governed by the aircraft’s continuous states and the control inputs satisfying the guard condition as in Eq. (2), and can be verified using a discrete model-checker such as the NuSMV. The abstracted transition
Chronic pelvic pain in women of childbearing age.

Purpose of reviewThe purpose of this article is to summarize new findings in the area of chronic pelvic pain in women of childbearing age.Recent findingsParticular attention over the past few years has been paid to the multidisciplinary approach in diagnosing and treating chronic pelvic pain, becaus
Two nutritional labeling systems1

Will the FDA proposal for nutritional labeling really make better informed buyers and hence raise the nutritional status of Americans? Two systems of labelingone using the FDA proposal, the other an alternate system—were compared in a market test and results are reported here.
Fracture of Polycrystals

In many crystalline solids, the fracture event is intimately related to plastic deformation processes. In polycrystalline materials, the localized internal stresses generated by slip at grain boundaries depend on dislocation distribution and the ability to cross slip, i.e., slip character. The importance of deformation behavior, as influenced by solute elements and temperature, is discussed in relation to the ductile-to-brittle transition of single-phase solids.
MAESTrO-a software tool for the design and evaluation of advanced automotive electrical power systems

The electrical load and fuel efficiency requirements of the next generation of automobiles are challenging the capabilities of the 12-V point-to-point architecture. It is quite possible that the automotive industry will undergo a transition to a new standard in the near future. However, selecting the new standard requires a rigorous comparison of the available options. MAESTrO is a software tool designed specifically for this purpose. This paper describes the features of MAESTrO and the models it uses to calculate the cost, weight and efficiency of automotive electrical power systems. To demonstrate the utility of the tool, a family of remote-switching dual-voltage architectures is analyzed.
The Effects of Integrated and Intentional Parenthood on Children

This paper makes a case for an integrated family, and more specifically for the formal, legally recognized statuses of husband/wife and parent/child. Children do better both in the short and long term if they live with married parents and if they are biological or adopted children of these parents. Children are particularly affected by the stability and permanence of their relationships, although they are famously resilient. Under any circumstances, parental warmth affects children significantly and positively. One of the more dramatic ways to see the influence of parental relationships involves mixed race marriages because they tend to be of shorter duration. The mixed race case, where children do fine only so long as their parents stay together, reveals the importance of community as well as intentions of parents for children's outcomes. Community includes the formal community denoted by legal status, the family's religious community (especially important for African-American families), and the peer community, which particularly influences older children. Stable marriages may provide a kind of buffer for fathers, who on their own may prefer sons to daughters.
Cyber Crime Investigators: Pathways from High School to Cybersecurity Careers for First Generation College-Bound Students (Abstract Only)

During summer 2016, John Jay College of Criminal Justice piloted Cyber Crime Investigators -- a 4-week pre-college program that aimed to expand the pipeline of NYC public high school students who enter college ready to pursue a path toward a profession in cybersecurity. The program was designed by a team of educators with expertise in academic skill preparation, college access, career guidance, student learning, and computer science. Using IDEO's Design Thinking for Educators as a learning framework, 42 rising high school seniors engaged in a six-stage process to understand and create solutions for complex problems in cybersecurity. To understand the many real-world applications of cybersecurity, students worked in teams as consultants for Floor Plan, a fictitious non-profit organization (modeled after Housing Works) that provides housing and healthcare services to homeless LGBTQIA teenagers. They employed Design Thinking protocols to develop a cybersecurity plan for the organization, guided by the NSA's First Principles of Cybersecurity. They worked on the challenge daily in "Lab." During this time, they learned technical skills, such as operating a command line and principles of networking, and they practiced other academic skills, such as writing, project planning, and public speaking -- all part of a foundational skill set for college success. They conducted interview and observation research during field trips and speaker visits and presented their final plans at a public competition judged by industry professionals during the program's last week.
Food Allergy and Anxiety and Depression among Ethnic Minority Children and Their Caregivers.

Objective To investigate the relationship between food allergy and symptoms of anxiety and depression among ethnic minority, low socioeconomic status (SES) children and their caregivers. Study design Pediatric patients ages 4-12 years with and without food allergy and their caregivers were recruited from urban pediatric outpatient clinics. Statistical analyses were used to examine the prevalence of symptoms of anxiety and depression among patients and their caregivers with and without food allergy, adjusting for asthma. Results Eighty patients ranging from ages 4 to 12 years, with a mean age of 8.1 years, and their caregivers participated in the study. Food allergy was associated with significantly higher t scores on the Multidimensional Anxiety Scale for Children (MASC) Total (P = .007), MASC Humiliation Rejection, (P = .02) and MASC Social Anxiety (P = .02) among pediatric patients, adjusting for asthma. Food allergy was not associated with child depression symptoms, nor was there a significant difference in anxiety or depression symptoms among caregivers of patients with and without food allergy. Conclusions Food allergy appears to be associated with increased symptoms of social anxiety and higher levels of anxiety overall, but not depression, in ethnic minority children of lower socioeconomic status. This finding was not due to confounding by asthma. Food allergy was not associated with higher levels of depression or anxiety symptoms among caregivers of pediatric patients with food allergy. Future studies should investigate potential pathways between food allergy and anxiety that may be unique to children in underserved populations, and develop interventions to reduce anxiety in children with food allergy.
Information Literacy Skills Are Positively Correlated with Writing Grade and Overall Course Performance

A Review of: Shao, X., & Purpur, G. (2016). Effects of information literacy skills on student writing and course performance. The Journal of Academic Librarianship, 42(6), 670-678. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.acalib.2016.08.006 Abstract Objective – To measure the correlation of tested information literacy skills with individual writing scores and overall course grade. Design – Online, multiple-choice survey. Setting – Public research university in North Carolina, United States of America. Subjects – Freshmen students enrolled in either first-year seminar (UCO1200) or basic English writing course (ENG1000). Methods – A 25-question, forced-choice test was piloted with 30 students and measured for internal consistency using Cronbach’s Alphas. The survey instrument was slightly revised before being administered online via SelectSurvey, to 398 students in 19 different sections of either UCO1200 or ENG1000, during class sessions. The test measured students’ information literacy skills in four areas: research strategies, resource types, scholarly vs. popular, and evaluating websites. The preliminary questions asked for each student’s name, major (by category), number of library instruction sessions attended, and the names of library services utilized. The students’ information literacy scores were compared to their writing scores and overall course grades, both of which were obtained from course instructors. The information literacy scores were also analyzed for correlation to the number of library instruction sessions attended or the types of library services utilized. Main Results – Information literacy skills positively correlated with writing scores (n=344, r=-.153, p=0.004) and final course grades (n=345, r=0.112, p=0.037). Pearson’s Correlation Coefficients results demonstrated relationships between writing scores and the information literacy test section “Scholarly versus Popular Sources” (n=344, r=0.145, p=0.007), and final grade and information literacy test sections “Types of Sources” (n=345, r=0.124, p=0.021) and “Website Evaluation” (n=345, r=0.117, p=0.029). The impact of using other library services or of attending multiple information literacy sessions was not statistically significant. Conclusion – Students’ mastery of tested information literacy skills directly correlates to their writing and final course grades. The study confirms the need for faculty and library collaboration to create well-integrated library instruction and services, and advocates for librarians to become integral to campus initiatives for student learning and success.
The Narrative Identity Structure Model (NISM)

In this article, I provide an overview of the Narrative Identity Structure Model (NISM). NISM offers a framework for understanding how life stories are represented internally (cognitively) and how ...
2008 George L. Duff Memorial Lecture—Cardiovascular Disease: From Genetics to Systems Biology

Cardiovascular disease involves hundreds of genes, many environmental factors, and myriad interactions. Although studies of Mendelian traits and transgenic mice have been very informative, analyzing the individual components of a system is not sufficient. We would like to know how these components interact with each other and how these interactions differ in disease states. Toward this end, we have over the last several years attempted to develop an approach that integrates common DNA variations, global gene expression array analyses, and clinical phenotypes. The approach uses segregating populations of mice or randomized populations of human subjects that are typed for genetic markers as well as clinically relevant traits. In addition, we carry out global expression array analyses of tissues or cells from the subjects. This approach greatly facilities gene discovery, since one can examine correlations between transcript levels and clinical traits. It also permits the construction of gene coexpression networks that underlie cardiovascular disease. We have applied the approach in different ways to examine clinically relevant traits. First, we used knowledge of loci controlling transcript levels to help identify genes for vascular calcification and high-density lipoprotein levels. Second, we used probabilistic modeling to predict several novel genes involved in metabolic syndrome. Third, we used primary endothelial and smooth muscle cell lines from human subjects to construct gene networks for inflammatory responses.
Oxidative stress in critically ill ventilated adults: effects of vitamin D3 and associations with alveolar macrophage function.

Disruptions in redox balance lead to oxidative stress, a promoter of morbidity in critical illness. This study aimed to: (1) characterize the plasma and alveolar thiol/disulfide redox pools, (2) examine their associations with alveolar macrophage phagocytosis, and (3) determine the effect of high dose vitamin D3 on plasma thiol/disulfide redox. Subjects were 30 critically ill, ventilated adults in a double-blind randomized trial of high-dose (250 000 or 500 000 IU) vitamin D3 or placebo. Baseline bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) samples were analyzed for determination of alveolar phagocytosis index (PI) and for concentrations of glutathione (GSH), glutathione disulfide (GSSG), cysteine (Cys), cystine (CySS), and their respective redox potentials (EhGSSG and EhCySS). Plasma redox outcomes were assessed at baseline and days 7 and 14. Baseline plasma Cys was inversely associated with alveolar PI (ρ = −0.69, P = 0.003), and EhCySS was positively associated with PI (ρ = 0.61, P = 0.01). Over time, among all subjects there was an increase in plasma GSH levels and a decrease in EhGSSG (P < 0.01 for both), with no difference by treatment group. Vitamin D3 decreased oxidized plasma GSSG to a more normal state (P for group x time = 0.009). Oxidative stress indicators were positively associated with alveolar macrophage phagocytic function in acutely ill ventilated adults. High-dose vitamin D3 decreased plasma GSSG concentrations, which suggests that vitamin D can possibly improve the oxidative stress environment.
Investigational drugs for the treatment of infections caused by multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria

ABSTRACTIntroduction: Infections caused by multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria (MDR-GNB) are associated with significant mortality and costs. New drugs in development to combat these difficult-to-treat infections primarily target carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae, MDR Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and MDR Acinetobacter baumannii.Areas covered: The authors summarize in vitro and in vivo efficacy studies, as well as available clinical trial findings, for new agents in development for treatment of infection caused by MDR-GNB. Information regarding dosage regimens utilized in clinical trials and key pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic considerations are provided if available. A summary of recently approved agents, delafloxacin and meropenem/vaborbactam, is also included.Expert opinion: The development of multiple novel agents to fight MDR-GNB is promising to help save the lives of patients who acquire infection, and judicious use of these agents is imperative once they come to market to prevent the dev...
School Location, Social Ties, and Perceived Neighborhood Boundaries

Local organizations can serve as landmarks that orient residents’ understanding of space and foster social ties through regular and repeated interaction. Depending on their location, schools can se...
Policy structure, output supply and input demand for US crops

In this study a crop sector model for the United States was constructed. A theoretical framework incorporating agricultural producers decisions on whether to comply with the volunteer commodity programs was developed. Unlike previous studies, policy variables are directly incorporated in a structural framework. A multioutput-multiinput technology in a dual framework was used for the present study. Crop supply and input demand equations were derived from a normalized quadratic profit function. The crop sector module consisted of thirteen crops (wheat, rice, corn, other coarse grains, soybeans, hay, cotton, peanuts, flaxseed and sunflower, sugarcane and sugarbeet, tobacco, vegetables, and fruits and nuts), four variable inputs (land, fertilizer, operating capital, and labor) and one fixed input (durable farm machinery);Thirteen product supply and four variable input demand equations were estimated simultaneously using full information maximum likelihood methods maintaining all the theoretical restrictions. Additionally, commodity program participation rates equations, as implied by the theoretical model, were econometrically estimated. This combination of microeconomic theory and structural policy implementation represent a contribution to the areas of applied production analysis and quantitative policy analysis. Empirical results are very encouraging and consistent with the theoretical model. The elasticity estimates are within a reasonable range. Results further indicated that microeconomic theory can be fruitfully combined with structural policy representations to yield a crop sector module that can be used for policy evaluation in a general equilibrium analysis.
MEDICARE MANAGED CARE: Why Is It Coming?

The fear that managed care is making inroads into Medicare, the last bastion of predominantly fee-for-service medicine in the United States, has struck a note of near panic in the minds of many American physicians. Making more options available to seniors, including many types of managed care plans, and reforming the way Medicare makes payments to such plans, however, may be more attractive to physicians than the continued reliance on the direct control system that has been traditionally associated with Medicare.
Fitting models to distributed representations of vision

Many representations in early vision can be constructed by performing orientation analysis along several sampling dimensions. Texture is often oriented in space, motion is oriented in space-time, and stereo is oriented in space-disparity. In these modalities, we can construct distributed representations with oriented energy measures used in models of biological vision. Surface models of orientation, velocity, and disparity can easily be fit to distributed representations of texture, motion, and stereo by combining tools of orientation analysis and regularization. We describe base representation construction and model fitting processes in these domains.
Inadequate Decompression of the Upper Tracts Using a Foley Catheter in the Valve Bladder

Catheter drainage has been advocated for initial diversion in children who present with posterior urethral valves and concomitant urinary tract infection or metabolic derangement. We report a case in which a well placed and functioning Foley catheter provided inadequate upper tract decompression. However, excellent upper tract decompression was accomplished when the catheter was replaced with a feeding tube. It appears that physiological upper tract obstruction was promoted by the Foley catheter, which may have been a manifestation of the valve bladder syndrome.
The immunobiology of the T cell response to Mls locus disparate stimulator cells.

The Mls locus described by Festenstein (1973) is a murine locus at which polymorphism leads to unidirectional stimulation in mixed lymphocyte reactions (MLR). Initially, four alleles were described, but recent analysis has shown that these original assignments probably reflect two segregating loci, each with two alleles (Abe et al, 1987). In describing the immunobiology of the T cell response to Mls locus disparities, I will consider only those mapping to chromosome 1, originally termed Mls a and Mls b for the stimulating and responding alleles respectively. Disparities at this locus stimulate the most potent and reproducible responses in primary MLR, and are consequently the most interesting for immunobiological analysis.