cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Estimating School Proximity Effects on Housing Prices: the Importance of Robust Spatial Controls in Hedonic Estimations

The authors use a data set of over 20,000 residential housing sales in 2010 and 2011 in San Diego County to measure the school proximity effects on nearby residential housing. Prior research supports the existence of a “school proximity premium” for housing located near K-12 schools. However, since these investigations have lacked important spatial controls, the authors investigate whether their inclusion affects outcomes. In addition, the authors separate out the effects for proximity to public and private elementary schools, measure the distance from schools using a more precise distance measurement and utilize a very large data set on the West Coast of the US. Counter to prior investigations, the authors find strong evidence for a “school proximity penalty,” for public elementary schools suggesting that proximity is perceived to be a net negative for homebuyers in San Diego County. When spatially dividing the sample area into a coastal and inland region, the authors find the results for the inland region for public schools more closely resemble the results from prior investigations (with a “delayed” proximity premium) while the coastal results demonstrate a very strong “proximity penalty” effect. Results presented here indicate that failure to include robust spatial controls (including zip code and census tract fixed effects) could have important implications for hedonic housing price estimates of this kind.
Physical Property Modeling of Concentrated Cesium Eluate Solutions Part I - Derivation of Models

Both experimental and process simulation studies were performed to develop physical property models of the concentrated cesium ion-exchange eluate solutions in one of the Hanford Waste Treatment Pl...
Fear and Loathing in Mississippi

Abstract In 1993, the small rural community of Ovett, Miss., and a group of self-described radical lesbian feminists clashed over the establishment by the women of a feminist educational retreat known as Camp Sister Spirit. This dispute took the form of physical and psychological harassment of the women, wide-open public debate in the community, in the press, and on television, federal mediation efforts, and two lawsuits. This article analyzes this dispute using Mary Daly's seven patterns of the sado-ritual syndrome (Daly 1978). The analysis examines the ideological and moral standpoints of the participants, the issues of “blaming the victim” and scape-goating, the development of the conflict from a dispute between neighbors to the involvement of international media, national activists and the Clinton Administration, the transformation of the conflict from a political to legal dispute, the representations of the groups within the community and the media, the effect of public opinion on the dispute, and th...
The Floating World: Issues in International Trade Theory

In The Floating World, Emeritus Professor of Economics Wilfred Ethier collates 22 papers that delve deep into the study on International Trade Theory. These papers are grouped into six distinct sections. Each covers an overarching research program in trade theory — Factor-Endowments Theory, Economies of Scale, International Factor Markets, Regional Integration, the Political Economy of Trade Policy, and Administered Protection. An additional section for important papers outside of those programs is also included. With papers originally written in the 1970s all the way up to recent times, Ethier provides contemporary commentary for each section, referring to further sources, candid accounts on the state of international trade theory at the time and how each paper contributed to further improvements of their respective research program.
Distributional Effects of Crises : The Role of Financial Transfers

Financial crises affect income distribution by way of different channels. The authors argue that financial transfers are an important channel which has been overlooked by the literature. They study the role of financial transfers by analyzing some of the most severe Latin American crises during the past decades (Chile 1981-83, Mexico 1994-95, Ecuador 1998-2000, Argentina 2001-02, and Uruguay 2002). First, the authors investigate transfers to the financial sector-those from nonparticipants to participants of the financial sector. Second, they explore who receives these financial transfers by identifying the winners and losers within the financial sector. Their analysis suggests that financial transfers during crises are large and expected to increase income inequality.
A skin test for the diagnosis of pregnancy

T HE use of skin re’actions as an aid in clinical diagnosis of many conditions has long been recognized as a valuable proceldure. The Van Pirquet, Schick, Dick reactions and the use of various proteins intradermally for the purpose of detecting allergic sensitivity have all proved their clinical usefulness, There are so many biologic differences between pregnant and nonpregnant individuals that the possibility of being able to differentiate between these groups by means of a skin reaction to some antigen seemed not too remote. Falls and Bartlett,l in 1914, attempted to extract a protein from the placenta which might be used for this purpose. The results were unsatisfactory, due to the fact that the methods employed were not sufficiently refined to yield a pure protein as was hoped, but a mixture of proteins was obtained which led to nonspecific reactions. By using better methods of extraction and preparation of the placental proteins, Cohen and Freda attempted to produce precipitin reactions and specific skin reactions that might be useful diagnostically. When the precipitin reaction was tried, serum of known pregnant women reacted positively in about 7.5 per cent of the cases. The serum of males a,ud normal females did not react. Certain nonpregnant women with gynecologic pathology gave a rather high percentage of false positive reactions which nullified the usefulness of this method for practical diagnostic purposes. The use of placental tissue extracts in producing skin reactions was to some extent successful, since about 75 per cent of the patients tested by intradermal injections gave positive reactions if pregnancy existed and negative if no pregnancy were present. This result was in accord with the results reported by Esch,” Englehorn and Wintz,4 Gruskin5 and Schwartz6 who made similar tests have reported a higher percentage of correct diagnosis. The high percentage of false reactions (25 per cent) rendered the use of these procedures for diagnostic purposes useless, and so it was decided to try to find an antigen that would give more specific reactions. The possibility of using proteins extracted from breast tissue was suggested, since it was thought that during pregnancy the cells of the breast might secrete a protein of somewhat different compositiou than other body proteins. On further consideration this idea was rejected in favor of using colostrum which must contain the proteins produced by the breast in early pregnancy. By using this material the contamination of
Low‐Dose Extrapolation

Issues of extrapolation in risk analytic studies are reviewed for cases where the design of a study requires the data to be taken at fairly high-dose levels, but where decisions on occupational or environmental exposure standards to a toxic agent must be extrapol ated from the high-dose exposure data to low-dose levels of the agent. Keywords: benchmark dose; low-dose estimation; low-dose linearity; low-effect extrapolation
Safety and efficacy of hepatectomy for colorectal metastases in the elderly.

Background and Objectives The aim of this study was to determine the safety and efficacy of hepatic metastasectomy in elderly patients with colorectal liver metastases (CLM). Methods A retrospective review of a hepatobiliary database was performed on consecutive patients treated with metastasectomy for CLM. Patients were stratified by age (<70 years old vs. ≥70). Patient and tumor characteristics as well as operative factors were compared, as were morbidity, mortality, and length of stay. Logistic regression and Cox proportional hazards were used to evaluate the association of age and postoperative outcomes. Results There were 59 elderly (median age 75) and 220 non-elderly (median age 58) patients analyzed over a 13 year period. The Charlson comorbidity index was higher in the elderly group (mean 4.7 vs. 4.4 P = 0.005). Postoperative morbidity and mortality were 52.5 and 0% vs. 48.2 and 4.1% in the elderly and non-elderly groups, respectively (P = 0.56 and P = 0.21). There were no differences in median DFS (21.8 months vs. 28.9 months; P = 0.157) or OS (36 months vs. 47.7 months; P = 0.070) between the elderly and non-elderly groups, respectively. Conclusions Age itself does not appear to be a significant contraindication to liver resection, including major hepatectomy, when patients are appropriately selected. J. Surg. Oncol. 2011; 104:804–808. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
On the complexity of computing prime tables

Many large arithmetic computations rely on tables of all primes less than n. For example, the fastest algorithms for computing n! takes time \(\mathcal {O}(\mathrm {M}(n\log n) + \mathrm {P}(n))\), where \(\mathrm {M}(n)\) is the time to multiply two n-bit numbers, and \(\mathrm {P}(n)\) is the time to compute a prime table up to n. The fastest algorithm to compute \(\left( {\begin{array}{c}n\\ n/2\end{array}}\right) \) also uses a prime table. We show that it takes time \(\mathcal {O}(\mathrm {M}(n) + \mathrm {P}(n))\).
Liquid helium and liquid neon: Sensitive, low background scintillation media for the detection of low-energy neutrinos

The use of liquid helium and neon as scintillators for neutrino detection is investigated. Several unique properties of these cryogens make them promising candidates for real-time solar neutrino spectroscopy: large ultraviolet scintillation yields from ionizing radiation, transparency to their own scintillation light, and low levels of radioactive impurities. When neutrinos scatter from electrons in liquid helium or neon, ultraviolet light is emitted. The ultraviolet scintillation light can be efficiently converted to the visible with wavelength shifting films. In this way the neutrino-electron scattering events can be detected by photomultiplier tubes at room temperature. We conclude that the solar neutrino flux from the p+p→e++d+ν e reaction could be characterized and monitored versus time using a 10 ton mass of liquid helium or neon as a scintillation target.
Integrated optical approach to trapped ion quantum computation

Recent experimental progress in quantum information processing with trapped ions havedemonstrated most of the fundamental elements required to realize a scalable quantumcomputer. The next set of challenges lie in realization of a large number of qubits andthe means to prepare, manipulate and measure them, leading to error-protected qubitsand fault tolerant architectures. The integration of qubits necessarily require integratedoptical approach as most of these operations involve interaction with photons. In thispaper, we discuss integrated optics technologies and concrete optical designs needed forthe physical realization of scalable quantum computer.
Estimating Jones and Homfly polynomials with one clean qubit

The Jones and HOMFLY polynomials are link invariants with close connections to quan-tum computing. It was recently shown that finding a certain approximation to the Jonespolynomial of the trace closure of a braid at the fifth root of unity is a complete problemfor the one clean qubit complexity class[18]. This is the class of problems solvable inpolynomial time on a quantum computer acting on an initial state in which one qubitis pure and the rest are maximally mixed. Here we generalize this result by showingthat one clean qubit computers can efficiently approximate the Jones and single-variableHOMFLY polynomials of the trace closure of a braid at any root of unity.
Toward a Political Supreme Court

Obviously the Supreme Court is more than the nine individuals gowned in black and ensconced in the marble palace in Washington. Like the Presidency and the Congress, the Court must be viewed as an institution separate and apart from those who temporarily occupy the offices. It is important to examine the Court's actions and to evaluate its use of power not just for today. Like Mlaitland, one must take a deep account of yesterday in order that today not paralyze tomorrow. The ardent advocates of enhancement of presidential power when John F. Kennedy occupied the White House seem to have lost most of their ardor during the more recent tenures of Presidents Johnson and Nixon. Those prepared to have the congressional role in foreign affairs and the Senate's power to review treaty commitments bypassed for more efficient methods have begun to recognize the values inherent in such checks on the executive will, as the Viet Nam tragedy becomes ever more tragic. And, now, with a radical change of personnel on the Supreme Court already begun, there must be at least some advocates of judicial power prepared to think in more institutional terms. For, just as the power flowing to the national government from the states became irreversible at some point in our history; just as the accretion of executive authority and the reduction of legislative authority has become intractable; so, too, the authority that the Court might assert-and the manner of its assertion-could become fixed for use by Justices who succeed those who first utilize it. I do not mean that these trends cannot be reversed. Certainly they can, but only at the cost of weathering a constitutional crisis with all its correlative consequences and dangers. The proper question about the Court today-before the crisis is upon us-is not whether we should reverse the flow of authority, but whether it should be slowed or speeded. The question is whether the essential
E-Finance: An Introduction

E-finance is defined as “The provision of financial services and markets using electronic communication and computation”. In this paper we outline research issues related to e-finance that we believe set the stage for further work in this field. Three areas are focused on. These are the use of electronic payments systems, the operations of financial services firms and the operation of financial markets. A number of research issues are raised. For example, is the widespread use of paper-based checks efficient? Will the financial services industry be fundamentally changed by the advent of the Internet? Why have there been such large differences in changes to market microstructure across different financial markets?
Nature-Inspired Interconnects for Self-Assembled Large-Scale Network-on-Chip Designs

Future nanoscale electronics built up from an Avogadro number of components need efficient, highly scalable, and robust means of communication in order to be competitive with traditional silicon approaches. In recent years, the networks-on-chip (NoC) paradigm emerged as a promising solution to interconnect challenges in silicon-based electronics. Current NoC architectures are either highly regular or fully customized, both of which represent implausible assumptions for emerging bottom-up self-assembled molecular electronics that are generally assumed to have a high degree of irregularity and imperfection. Here, we pragmatically and experimentally investigate important design tradeoffs and properties of an irregular, abstract, yet physically plausible three-dimensional (3D) small-world interconnect fabric that is inspired by modern network-on-chip paradigms. We vary the framework's key parameters, such as the connectivity, number of switch nodes, and distribution of long- versus short-range connections, and measure the network's relevant communication characteristics. We further explore the robustness against link failures and the ability and efficiency to solve a simple toy problem, the synchronization task. The results confirm that (1) computation in irregular assemblies is a promising and disruptive computing paradigm for self-assembled nanoscale electronics and (2) that 3D small-world interconnect fabrics with a power-law decaying distribution of shortcut lengths are physically plausible and have major advantages over local two-dimensional and 3D regular topologies.
Patents on Human Genes: An Analysis of Scope and Claims

There is significant domestic and international opposition to gene patents based on the fact that gene patents deter medical research and health care, as well as the policy position that genes are an inherent product of nature. Yet, equally troubling is the fact that gene patents have been issued by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office that are problematic with respect to existing federal patent law. The authors of this Policy Forum describe their study, which examined issued gene patents covering a variety of genetic diseases and described ways in which many claims fell short of USPTO patentability requirements.
The Melting Curve and Premelting of MgO

The melting curve for MgO was obtained using molecular dynamics and a non-empirical, many-body potential. We also studied premelting effects by computing the dynamical structure factor in the crystal on approach to melting. The melting curve simulations were performed with periodic boundary conditions with cells up to 512 atoms using the ab-initio Variational Induced Breathing (VIB) model. The melting curve was obtained by computing ΔH m and ΔV m and integrating the Clapeyron equation so that we avoid all problems with nucleation and hysteresis of melting and crystallization. System size dependencies were also carefully checked and accuracy of our melting curve is not limited by small periodic cell sizes. Our ΔH m is in agreement with previous estimates and we obtain a reasonable ΔV m , but our melting slope dT/dP (114 K/GPa) is three times greater than the experimental determination of Zerr and Boehler (35 K/GPa), suggesting a problem with the experimental melting curve or an indication of exotic, non-ionic behavior of MgO liquid. We computed s(q, ω) from simulations of 1000 atom clusters using the Potential Induced Breathing (PIB) model. A low frequency peak in the dynamical structure factor s(q,ω) arises below the melting point which are related to the onset of bulk diffusion below the melting point. Diffusion rapidly increases to near liquid values below the melting point with a large activation energy, with a mechanism of many-atom exchanges and dynamical defect clusters. This destabilizes the crystalline state and leads to the melting transition.
Stabilization, Tracking, and Hierarchical Modeling of Discrete-event Dynamic Systems

Abstract This paper is concerned with the development of a regulator theory for discrete-event dynamic systems (DEDS), which we model using finite state automata with partially controllable and observable events. We describe a notion of stability that focuses on the ability of the system to recover from errors. This leads to a theory of feedback stabilization. In addition, we develop a theory of observability and observer design for DEDS in which only certain key events are observed. Our results on stability and observers lead to a theory of stabilization via dynamic output feedback. We also briefly describe results on tracking capabilities of DEDS, i.e. on the ability of a DEDS to follow prescribed event trajectories. This involves the introduction of the notion of resiliency, i.e. of the ability of the DEDS to resume correct tracking after an error. Finally, a crucial issue in the analysis of DEDS is computational complexity. We describe some aspects of our work on this and in particular describe a theory of hierarchical modeling in which sequences of events at a low level are mapped into a single event (a “task”) at a higher level.
Hill's Criteria of Causation†

The term criteria of causation (or causal criteria) is often applied to Sir Austin Bradford Hill's (8) list of factors to consider before inferring causation from an observed association. This list is widely taught and cited, despite widespread cautions about the limitations of the list, by Hill and others, and despite lack of evidence that invoking such criteria is useful. This entry describes Hill's views on assessing causation and what others have since said on the subject of causal criteria. Keywords: causal inference; causation; causality; criteria of causation epidemilology
On self-stabilizing search trees

We introduce a self-stabilizing data structure, which we call either a min-max search tree or a max-min search tree (both abbreviated M2ST), depending on whether the root has the minimum or the maximum value in the tree. Our structure is a refinement of the standard min-max heap (or max-min heap), with additional property that every value in the left subtree of a node is less than or equal to every value in the right subtree of that node. The M2ST has all the power of a binary search tree and all the power of a min-max heap, combined; with the additional feature that maintaining balance is easy. We give a self-stabilizing algorithm for reorganizing the values of an asynchronous network with a binary tree topology into an M2ST in O(n) rounds. We then give an algorithm for reorganizing an asynchronous network with a binary tree topology, which is already in M2ST order, into binary search tree order in O(h) rounds. This result answers an open problem posed in [3].
Oscillations during thermonuclear X-ray bursts: A new probe of neutron stars

Observations of thermonuclear (also called Type I) X-ray bursts from neutron stars in low mass X-ray binaries (LMXB) with the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) have revealed large amplitude, high coherence X-ray brightness oscillations with frequencies in the 300–600 Hz range. Substantial spectral and timing evidence point to rotational modulation of the X-ray burst flux as the cause of these oscillations, and it is likely that they reveal the spin frequencies of neutron stars in LMXB from which they are detected. Here I review the status of our knowledge of these oscillations and describe how they can be used to constrain the masses and radii of neutron stars as well as the physics of thermonuclear burning on accreting neutron stars.
The Design of a Carbon Tax

We consider the design of a tax on greenhouse gas emissions for a developed country such as the United States. We consider three sets of issues: the optimal tax base, issues relating to the rate (including the use of the revenues and rate changes over time) and trade. We show that a well-designed carbon tax can capture about 80% of U.S. emissions by taxing fewer than 3,000 taxpayers and up to almost 90% with a modest additional cost. We recommend full or partial delegation of rate setting authority to an agency to ensure that rates reflect new information about the costs of carbon emmissions and of abatement. Adjustments should be made to the income tax to ensure that a carbon tax is revenue neutral and distributionally neutral. Finally, we propose an origin-based system for trades with countries that have an adequate carbon tax. We suggest a system that imposes presumptive border tax adjustments with the ability of an individual firm to prove that a different rate should apply. The presumptive tax could be based either on average emissions for production of the item by the exporting country or by the importing country.
The Formation of the Hubble Sequence

Understanding when galaxies form via star formation histories and stellar mass assembly rates is becoming known with some certainty, yet the connection between high redshift and low redshift galaxy populations is not yet clear. By identifying and studying individual massive galaxies at high-redshifts, z > 1.5, we can uncover the physical effects that drove galaxy formation. Using the structures of high-z galaxies, as imaged with the Hubble Space Telescope, we argue that it is now possible to directly study the progenitors of ellipticals and disks. We also briefly describe early results that suggest many massive galaxies are forming at z>2 through major mergers.
Educated Preferences: Explaining Attitudes Toward Immigration in Europe

Recent studies of individual attitudes toward immigration emphasize concerns about labor-market competition as a potent source of anti-immigrant sentiment, in particular among less-educated or less-skilled citizens who fear being forced to compete for jobs with low-skilled immigrants willing to work for much lower wages. We examine new data on attitudes toward immigration available from the 2003 European Social Survey. In contrast to predictions based on conventional arguments about labor-market competition, which anticipate that individuals will oppose immigration of workers with similar skills to their own but support immigration of workers with different skill levels, we find that people with higher levels of education and occupational skills are more likely to favor immigration regardless of the skill attributes of the immigrants in question. Across Europe, higher education and higher skills mean more support for all types of immigrants. These relationships are almost identical among individuals in the labor force (that is, those competing for jobs) and those not in the labor force. Contrary to the conventional wisdom, then, the connection between the education or skill levels of individuals and views about immigration appears to have very little, if anything, to do with fears about labor-market competition. This finding is consistent with extensive economic research showing that the income and employment effects of immigration in European economies are actually very small. We find that a large component of the link between education and attitudes toward immigrants is driven by differences among individuals in cultural values and beliefs. More educated respondents are significantly less racist and place greater value on cultural diversity than do their counterparts; they are also more likely to believe that immigration generates benefits for the host economy as a whole.The authors would like to thank Beth Simmons, Shigeo Herano, Mike Tomz, James Alt, Jeffry Frieden, Ron Rogowski, Ken Scheve, Torben Iversen, Andy Baker, and Peter Gourevitch for helpful comments on earlier drafts.
PLANNING FOR THE BROADCASTING-SATELLITE SERVICE IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

ABSTRACT The 1983 Regional Administrative Radio Conference (RARC-83) for Region 2 is the next in a series of International Telecommunications Union (ITU) meetings which will shape the Broadcasting-Satellite Service (BSS) in the western hemisphere. This paper provides insight into some opportunities and associated problems presented by BSS in the United States, and mechanisms by which the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is integrating advice from the private sector into its planning for RARC-83. Eight proposals, to provide Direct Broadcast Satellite (DBS) service in the 12.2 – 12.7 GHz band, were accepted for filing by the FCC in October 1981, and provide important inputs to the RARC-83 preparations.
Understanding the impact of economic shocks on labor market outcomes in developing countries : an application to Indonesia and Mexico

In this paper the authors use a search and matching model of multi-sector labor markets, to understand the channels through which economic shocks affect labor market outcomes in developing countries. In the model workers can be employed in agriculture, formal or informal urban jobs, or unemployed. Economic shocks are manifested as either increased turbulence in the formal/informal sectors or a decrease in overall sectoral productivity. By calibrating the model to Indonesia and Mexico, the authors are able to understand how the 1998 Indonesian crisis and the 2001 Mexican recession translated into labor market outcomes. They then venture to simulate how the current financial crisis might affect the allocation of labor and earnings across sectors, in these countries. The results suggest that in both countries past crises have increased the degree of turbulence of the formal sector, increasing job destruction. However, while in Indonesia the crisis affected the overall formal sector productivity, this was not the case in Mexico. This explains the larger blow to formal wages -- relative to the size of the shock- witnessed by Indonesian workers. The response of the informal sector was also different: In both countries the informal sector was able to act as a buffer, as relative earnings increased. However, while in Mexico it became much harder to find informal sector opportunities and easier to keep the job once found; in Indonesia turbulence in the informal sector increased substantially increasing the job destruction rate of informal jobs and limiting the cushioning role that the informal sector might have played. The agricultural sector was spared from the shock in both countries. In Indonesia, it actually benefited from an unusual exogenous increase in the price of rise. The simulations show that if either the informal or agricultural sectors are spared from the shocks, large reallocations of labor might occur, and the overall effect of the shock is smaller. Instead, if these sectors cant buffer the shock, the reallocation of labor is much smaller, but earnings in the formal sector drop substantially. The authors also explore the impact of alternative policies. They find that in relatively flexible markets where informality can be seen more as a choice rather than as queuing, unemployment benefits and informal employment subsidies may have paradoxical effects, by discouraging formal search. Instead, policies targeted at creating informal employment and boosting formal TFP growth have the desired effects.
On the Edgeworth‐Kuiper Belt dust flux to Saturn

[1] Dust grains originating from the Edgeworth-Kuiper Belt (EKB) are believed to be the dominant species of dust in the outer solar system. These grains, evolving inward from the EKB under the influence of a variety of forces, will encounter the giant planets or their ring and moon systems. At Saturn, this influx drives several physical processes including the generation of tenuous dusty exospheres and rings, the spatial and compositional evolution of Saturn's main planetary ring system, and the generation of ionospheric and neutral gas layers in the atmospheres of Saturn and Titan. Recent comparisons between in-situ dust density measurements in the outer solar system and a dynamical dust grain tracing model have placed experimental limits on the mass production rate and power-law exponent of EKB-generated grains. Using this model and the experimental constraints, we make predictions for the influx of micron-sized, EKB-generated grains into the saturnian system, where the Cosmic Dust Analyzer onboard the Cassini mission is currently making measurements of both endogenous and exogenous dust populations.
Developing innovative technologies for commercial grids

Grid computing, in the commercial space, builds upon a set of management disciplines, which aims at mapping available resource capabilities to application workloads, according to requirements these workloads depend upon and to business goals they must fulfill. This paper illustrates innovative technologies, developed at IBM Research, that address key issues found in commercial grid environments. These technologies fall into four main areas, workload virtualization, information virtualization, provisioning and orchestration, and application development.
Automated Discovery of Numerical Approximation Formulae via Genetic Programming

This paper describes the use of genetic programming to perform automated discovery of numerical approximation formulae. We present results involving rediscovery of known approximations for Harmonic numbers, discovery of rational polynomial approximations for functions of one or more variables, and refinement of existing approximations through both approximation of their error function and incorporation of the approximation as a program tree in the initial GP population. Evolved rational polynomial approximations are compared to Pade approximations obtained through the Maple symbolic mathematics package. We find that approximations evolved by GP can be superior to Pade approximations given certain tradeoffs between approximation cost and accuracy, and that GP is able to evolve approximations in circumstances where the Pade approximation technique cannot be applied. We conclude that genetic programming is a powerful and effective approach that complements but does not replace existing techniques from numerical analysis.
Optimal sampling-based motion planning under differential constraints: The driftless case

Motion planning under differential constraints is a classic problem in robotics. To date, the state of the art is represented by sampling-based techniques, with the Rapidly-exploring Random Tree algorithm as a leading example. Yet, the problem is still open in many aspects, including guarantees on the quality of the obtained solution. In this paper we provide a thorough theoretical framework to assess optimality guarantees of sampling-based algorithms for planning under differential constraints. We exploit this framework to design and analyze two novel sampling-based algorithms that are guaranteed to converge, as the number of samples increases, to an optimal solution (namely, the Differential Probabilistic RoadMap algorithm and the Differential Fast Marching Tree algorithm). Our focus is on driftless control-affine dynamical models, which accurately model a large class of robotic systems. In this paper we use the notion of convergence in probability (as opposed to convergence almost surely): the extra mathematical flexibility of this approach yields convergence rate bounds &#x2014; a first in the field of optimal sampling-based motion planning under differential constraints. Numerical experiments corroborating our theoretical results are presented and discussed.
Development Dimensions of High Food Prices

Measures were taken by many developing country governments to mitigate consequences of high international agricultural commodity prices from mid 2006 until mid 2008, and to block their transmission to domestic markets, with varying degrees of success and cost. A significant international response has focused on emergency relief and renewed efforts to invest in agricultural development. This paper describes and contrasts the approaches taken by national governments versus international organizations and donors to respond to this food crisis, and their consequences. It also explores approaches already underway to enhance aid effectiveness and achieve more rapid agricultural development for smallholder farmers, identifying potential and past roadblocks.
The Effects of Unilateral Reduction of Greenhouse Gas Emissions on the U.S. Agriculture

This study analyses potential adverse effects of unilateral increase in GHG emission standards. The single good two regions partial equilibrium model of international trade is used to derive and interpret the conditions under which such an increase will lead to a reduction in a total level of GHG emission. We found that improvement in the global GHG emission level will be observed if the response of the home country abatement level is more elastic than that of the foreign country by the factor of the ratio of initial foreign to domestic marginal emission intensities. It is also shown that in the large industry case, the appropriate factor is adjusted by the measure of the relative market influence of two industries. The study concludes that a unilateral reduction in GHG emissions will unlikely lead to the reduction in the total GHG emissions level and may worsen the environmental situation in other regions. An appropriate multilateral agreement that involves producers from the major emitting countries is required to achieve the goal.
Coil tolerance impact on plasma surface quality for NCSX

The successful operation of the NCSX machine will require producing plasma configurations with good flux surfaces, with a minimum volume of the plasma lost to magnetic islands or stochastic regions. The project goal is to achieve good flux surfaces over 90% of the plasma volume. NCSX is a three period device designed to be operated with iota ranging from /spl sim/0.4 on axis to /spl sim/0.7 at the edge. The field errors of most concern are those that are resonant with 3/5 and 3/6 modes (for symmetry preserving field errors) and the 1/2 and 2/3 modes (for symmetry breaking field errors). In addition to losses inherent in the physics configuration itself, there will be losses from field errors arising from coil construction and assembly errors. Some of these losses can be recovered through the use of trim coils or correction coils. The impact of coil tolerances on plasma surface quality is evaluated herein for the NCSX design. The methods used in this evaluation are discussed. The ability of the NCSX trim coils to correct for field errors is also examined. The results are used to set coils tolerances for the various coil systems.
Smooth manifolds with prescribed rational cohomology ring

The Hirzebruch signature formula provides an obstruction to the following realization question: given a rational Poincare duality algebra \({\mathcal {A}}\), does there exist a manifold M such that \(H^*(M;\mathbb {Q})={\mathcal {A}}\)? When \({\mathcal {A}}\) is the truncated polynomial algebra \(\mathbb {Q}[x]/\langle x^3\rangle \), we prove there exists a realizing closed smooth manifold \(M^n\) only if \(n=8(2^a+2^b)\). We also eliminate any existence between dimension 32 and 128. For \(n=32\), we show that such a realizing manifold does not admit a Spin structure, and therefore is not 2-connected. In the case that \({\mathcal {A}}=\mathbb {Q}[x]/\langle x^{m+1}\rangle , |x|=8\), we apply the rational surgery realization theorem to conclude that a rational octonionic projective space exists for m odd. Similar technique is applied to study if the Milnor \(E_8\) manifold has the rational homotopy type of a smooth manifold. The “Appendix” presents a recursive algorithm for efficiently computing the coefficients of the \({\mathcal {L}}\)-polynomials, which arise in the signature formula.
Comments on N=2 AdS orbifolds

We discuss twisted states of AdS orbifolds which couple to N = 2 chiral primary operators not invariant under exchange of the gauge factors. Kaluza-Klein reduction on the fixed circle gives the correct conformal dimensions of operators in the superconformal theory and involves some aspects of monopole dynamics in the non-trivial background. As a byproduct we found evidence for decoupling of U(1) factors in the four-dimensional gauge theory.
Ubiquitous Data Management in a Personal Information Environment

This paper presents a novel research work on Personal Information Environment (PIE), which is a relatively new field to get explored. PIE is a self managing pervasive environment. It contains an individual’s personal pervasive information associated within user’s related or non-related contextual environments. Contexts are vitally important because they control, influence and affect everything within them by dominating its pervasive content(s). This paper shows in depth the achievement of Personal Information Environment, which deals with a user’s devices, which are to be spontaneous, readily self-manageable on autonomic basis. This paper shows an actual implementation of pervasive data management of a PIE-user, which contains append and update of PIE’s data from the last device used by the user to another PIE devices for further processing and storage needs. Data recharging is utilized to transmit and receive data among PIE devices.
Epipelagic representations and rigid local systems

We construct automorphic representations for quasi-split groups G over the function field $$F=k(t)$$ one of whose local components is an epipelagic representation in the sense of Reeder and Yu. We also construct the attached Galois representations under the Langlands correspondence. These Galois representations give new classes of conjecturally rigid, wildly ramified $${}^{L}{G}$$ -local systems over $$\mathbb {P}^{1}-\{0,\infty \}$$ that generalize the Kloosterman sheaves constructed earlier by Heinloth, Ngo and the author. We study the monodromy of these local systems and compute all examples when G is a classical group.
Random walk loop soup

The Brownian loop soup introduced by Lawler and Werner (2004) is a Poissonian realization from a σ-finite measure on unrooted loops. This measure satisfies both conformal invariance and a restriction property. In this paper, we define a random walk loop soup and show that it converges to the Brownian loop soup. In fact, we give a strong approximation result making use of the strong approximation result of Komlos, Major, and Tusnady. To make the paper self-contained, we include a proof of the approximation result that we need.
Invest in Information or Wing It? A Model of Dynamic Pricing with Seller Learning

Pricing products such as used cars, houses, and artwork is often challenging, because each item is unique, and the seller, ex ante, lacks information about the demand for individual items. This pap...
Nuclear waste disposal utilizing a gaseous core reactor

The feasibility of a gaseous core nuclear reactor designed to produce power to also reduce the national inventories of long-lived reactor waste products through nuclear transmutation was examined. Neutron-induced transmutation of radioactive wastes is shown to be an effective means of shortening the apparent half life.
Partners in Forest Conservation: ”Willingess-to-Work” (WTW) to Protect Local Forest Resources in Calakmul, Campeche, México

Recently the number of contingent valuation studies conducted in developing countries has increased. Many have been done to value access to clean water, but there are still very few applications to tropical forest resources. In light of the fact that tropical forests cover a mere 7% of the earth's land surface, yet provide estimates of up to half the world's biota, there is a distinct need for more information pertaining to the value of tropical forests. An important consideration in protecting tropical forests is local participation. This paper uses an application of the discrete-choice contingent valuation method to estimate the willingness of farmers in southeastern Mexico to participate in forest conservation efforts. Results suggest farmers are willing to work slightly less than three days per month in order to conserve an area of community forest.
The MJO-Kelvin wave transition

[1] As the Madden-Julian oscillation (MJO) moves eastward from the Indian to the Pacific ocean, it typically accelerates, becomes less strongly coupled to convection, and becomes more similar to a dry Kelvin wave. This transition is analyzed using observations of outgoing longwave radiation and ERA Interim reanalyses of surface pressure and 850 hPa zonal wind. Two individual example events as well as composites are shown. The transitions are well defined, with distinct disturbances on either side of the transition whose identities as MJO or Kelvin waves are clear. In some cases there appears to be a pre-existing Kelvin wave passing through the MJO from the west to the east, but this feature is not apparent in the composites. The transitions occur at different longitudes in different events, over a wide range from the eastern Indian to the central Pacific oceans.
The Archive of the Amateur Observation Network of the International Halley Watch

The International Halley Watch (IHW) was organized for the purpose of gathering and archiving the most complete record of the apparition of a comet, Halley's Comet (1982i = 1986 III = 1P/Halley), ever compiled. The redirection of the International Sun-Earth Explorer 3 (ISEE-3) spacecraft, subsequently renamed the International Cometary Explorer (ICE), toward Comet Giacobini- Zinner (1984e = 1985 XIII = 21P/Giacobini-Zinner) prompted the initiation of a formal watch on that comet. All the data collected on P/Giacobini-Zinner and P/Halley have been published on CD-ROM in the Comet Halley Archive. This document contains a printed version of the archive data, collected by amateur astronomers, on these two comets. Volume 1 contains the Comet Giacobini-Zinner data archive and Volume 2 contains the Comet Halley archive. Both volumes include information on how to read the data in both archives, as well as a history of both comet watches (including the organizing of the network of astronomers and lessons learned from that experience).
The human mu opioid receptor: modulation of functional desensitization by calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase and protein kinase C

Opioids are some of the most efficacious analgesics used in humans. Prolonged administration of opioids, however, often causes the development of drug tolerance, thus limiting their effectiveness. To explore the molecular basis of those mechanisms that may contribute to opioid tolerance, we have isolated a cDNA for the human mu opioid receptor, the target of such opioid narcotics as morphine, codeine, methadone, and fentanyl. The receptor encoded by this cDNA is 400 amino acids long with 94% sequence similarity to the rat mu opioid receptor. Transient expression of this cDNA in COS-7 cells produced high-affinity binding sites to mu-selective agonists and antagonists. This receptor displays functional coupling to a recently cloned G-protein-activated K+ channel. When both proteins were expressed in Xenopus oocytes, functional desensitization developed upon repeated stimulation of the mu opioid receptor, as observed by a reduction in K+ current induced by the second mu receptor activation relative to that induced by the first. The extent of desensitization was potentiated by both the multifunctional calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase and protein kinase C. These results demonstrate that kinase modulation is a molecular mechanism by which the desensitization of mu receptor signaling may be regulated at the cellular level, suggesting that this cellular mechanism may contribute to opioid tolerance in humans.
Rescue of the abnormal skeletal phenotype in Ts65Dn Down syndrome mice using genetic and therapeutic modulation of trisomic Dyrk1a

Trisomy 21 causes skeletal alterations in individuals with Down syndrome (DS), but the causative trisomic gene and a therapeutic approach to rescue these abnormalities are unknown. Individuals with DS display skeletal alterations including reduced bone mineral density, modified bone structure and distinctive facial features. Due to peripheral skeletal anomalies and extended longevity, individuals with DS are increasingly more susceptible to bone fractures. Understanding the genetic and developmental origin of DS skeletal abnormalities would facilitate the development of therapies to rescue these and other deficiencies associated with DS. DYRK1A is found in three copies in individuals with DS and Ts65Dn DS mice and has been hypothesized to be involved in many Trisomy 21 phenotypes including skeletal abnormalities. Return of Dyrk1a copy number to normal levels in Ts65Dn mice rescued the appendicular bone abnormalities, suggesting that appropriate levels of DYRK1A expression are critical for the development and maintenance of the DS appendicular skeleton. Therapy using the DYRK1A inhibitor epigallocatechin-3-gallate improved Ts65Dn skeletal phenotypes. These outcomes suggest that the osteopenic phenotype associated with DS may be rescued postnatally by targeting trisomic Dyrk1a.
State/Event-Based Software Model Checking

We present a framework for model checking concurrent software systems which incorporates both states and events. Contrary to other state/event approaches, our work also integrates two powerful verification techniques, counterexample-guided abstraction refinement and compositional reasoning. Our specification language is a state/event extension of linear temporal logic, and allows us to express many properties of software in a concise and intuitive manner. We show how standard automata-theoretic LTL model checking algorithms can be ported to our framework at no extra cost, enabling us to directly benefit from the large body of research on efficient LTL verification.