cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Lifetime Broadening in the Rotationally Resolved Electronic Spectra of Dibenzothiophene, 2,5-Diphenylfuran, and 2,5-Diphenyl-1,3,4-oxadiazole in the Gas Phase. Intersystem Crossing Dynamics in the Statistical Limit

The fluorescence lifetime of the zero point vibrational level of the first excited electronic state of dibenzothiophene (DBT) has been determined to be 1.0 ns by analysis of its rotationally resolved S1 <-- S0 fluorescence excitation spectrum. The S1 lifetime of DBT is substantially shorter than those observed for fluorene (FLU), carbazole (CAR), and dibenzofuran (DBF), analogs of DBT in which the heavy sulfur atom is replaced by lighter ones. The electronic origin bands through the series CAR, FLU, DBF, and DBT exhibit a monotonic increase in Lorentzian broadening in their Voigt line shape profiles. Two other heterocyclic molecules manifest similar photophysical properties; 2,5-diphenylfuran and 2,5-diphenyl-1,3,4-oxadiazole. Lorentzian line shape broadenings of approximately 76 MHz were observed in the high-resolution spectra of their origin bands. Possible reasons for the short fluorescence lifetimes of these heterocycles are discussed.
Mahatma Gandhi: A hold upon others

Abstract: Mahatma Gandhi (1869–1948) is the exemplar par excellence in our time of creativity in the moral domain. Through the invention and application of the subtle principles of satyagraha (nonviolent resistance to injustice) Gandhi led the Indian people to liberation from the British empire. Gandhi had learned much from the American, Henry David Thoreau; in his turn, he became a model for the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. For this special issue of the Creativity Research Journal we include excerpts from Howard E. Gardner's chapter on Gandhi, part of his next book, Creating Minds (Gardner, 1993). For our present excerpts we have chosen to emphasize three facets: Gandhi's early life, the principles of Satyagraha, and some of Gardner's thought on the relation between creativity and morality.—Editors
Sparse directional image representations using the discrete shearlet transform

Abstract In spite of their remarkable success in signal processing applications, it is now widely acknowledged that traditional wavelets are not very effective in dealing multidimensional signals containing distributed discontinuities such as edges. To overcome this limitation, one has to use basis elements with much higher directional sensitivity and of various shapes, to be able to capture the intrinsic geometrical features of multidimensional phenomena. This paper introduces a new discrete multiscale directional representation called the discrete shearlet transform. This approach, which is based on the shearlet transform, combines the power of multiscale methods with a unique ability to capture the geometry of multidimensional data and is optimally efficient in representing images containing edges. We describe two different methods of implementing the shearlet transform. The numerical experiments presented in this paper demonstrate that the discrete shearlet transform is very competitive in denoising applications both in terms of performance and computational efficiency.
WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO THE US LABOR MOVEMENT? Union Decline and Renewal

▪ Abstract For many years, US trade unions declined in union density, organizing capacity, level of strike activity, and political effectiveness. Labor's decline is variously attributed to demographic factors, inaction by unions themselves, the state and legal system, globalization, neoliberalism, and the employer offensive that ended a labor-capital accord. The AFL-CIO New Voice leadership elected in 1995, headed by John Sweeney, seeks to reverse these trends and transform the labor movement. Innovative organizing, emphasizing the use of rank-and-file intensive tactics, substantially increases union success; variants include union building, immigrant organizing, feminist approaches, and industry-wide non–National Labor Relations Board (or nonboard) organizing. The labor movement must also deal with participatory management or employee involvement programs, while experimenting with new forms, including occupational unionism, community organizing, and strengthened alliances with other social movements.
Useful yields of organic molecules under dynamic SIMS cluster bombardment

Useful yields have been measured for a series of organic compounds using Ar + , SF 5 + and Bi 3 + primary ion bombardment under high dose (>10 13 ions/cm 2 ) SIMS sputtering conditions on both magnetic sector and ToF-SIMS instruments. A precision inkjet deposition system was used to produce well defined arrays of microdrops on silicon with each deposit containing a known number of analyte molecules. The individual deposits were sputtered until consumed while monitoring the integrated characteristic molecular secondary ions for each analyte. The ratio of integrated counts to the number of molecules in the deposit defines the useful yield of the experiment. Measured useful yields varied from 1 × 10 -2 less than 1 × 10 -8 depending on the compound examined, the probe beam used and the instrument configuration.
A prospective test of the negative affect model of substance abuse: moderating effects of social support.

The authors tested whether dimensions of negative affect—specifically, trait levels of negative emotionality and state levels of depressive symptoms—increased risk for substance abuse onset and whether perceived social support moderated this relation using data from a 5-year prospective study of 496 school-recruited adolescent girls. Initial negative emotionality, but not depressive symptoms, and deficits in parental, but not peer, support predicted future substance abuse onset in a multivariate hazard model. Tests of the interaction between negative affect dimensions and social support suggested that support did not moderate the relation of negative affect to risk for substance abuse onset. Results provide prospective support for the etiological role in the onset of substance abuse of trait-linked negative affect and of parental support.
Melatonin cycle in the fiddler crab Uca pugilator and influence of melatonin on limb regeneration

Tilden AR, Rasmussen P, Awantang RM, Furlan S, Goldstein J, Palsgrove M, Sauer A. Melatonin cycle in the fiddler crab Uca pugilator and influence of melatonin on limb regeneration. J. Pineal Res. 1997; 23:142–147. © Munksgaard, Copenhagen Abstract Melatonin was measured over 24 hr in the eyestalks of Uca pugilator by means of radioimmunoassay; crabs were acclimatized either to a LD 12:12 photoperiod or constant darkness. A significant peak occurred at 13.00 hr in the LD 12:12 crabs. A photophase peak in melatonin has only been reported in one other species, also a crustacean. In constant darkness, two melatonin peaks occurred, one at 16.00 hr and the other 12 hr later; these results suggest that the melatonin cycle is a true circadian rhythm. HPLC with ultraviolet-visible detection was used to confirm the identity of melatonin immunoactivity. The influence of melatonin on regeneration of the walking legs was also examined: eyestalks were either removed or left intact, and limb bud length was measured every other day for at least 17 days in control and melatonin-treated crabs (60 μg ml-1 seawater). Melatonin significantly increased the rate of limb regeneration in both eyestalk-intact and eyestalk-removed groups; this is contrary to results of regeneration studies in other phyla, in which similar melatonin concentrations inhibited regeneration.
Explanation of the Observed Dearth of Three-Coordinated Al on γ-Alumina Surfaces

NMR data have revealed that γ-alumina surfaces do not contain any three-coordinated Al atoms, despite the fact that their presence is expected on the basis of the bulk structure of the material. We report density-functional calculations of γ-alumina (110) surfaces that reveal a massive spontaneous reconstruction of the ideally terminated bulk. The three-coordinated Al atoms initially in the surface layer drop into vacant octahedral interstices in the second layer where they become six-coordinated. The predicted reconstruction is also fully consistent with IR studies of hydroxylated γ-alumina surfaces and reveals the physical origin of results obtained by earlier computational simulations.
The surprising discovery that TGF beta specifically induces the IgA class switch.

The two Pillars of Immunology articles in this issue ([1][1], [2][2]) were the first to demonstrate that IgA switching is induced by TGFβ. In 1989, when these two important papers were published, it was known that IL-4 directs LPS-activated B cells to switch to IgG1 and IgE ([3][3], [4][4], [5][5
Prediction of individualized therapeutic vulnerabilities in cancer from genomic profiles

Motivation: Somatic homozygous deletions of chromosomal regions in cancer, while not necessarily oncogenic, may lead to therapeutic vulnerabilities specific to cancer cells compared with normal cells. A recently reported example is the loss of one of the two isoenzymes in glioblastoma cancer cells such that the use of a specific inhibitor selectively inhibited growth of the cancer cells, which had become fully dependent on the second isoenzyme. We have now made use of the unprecedented conjunction of large-scale cancer genomics profiling of tumor samples in The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and of tumorderived cell lines in the Cancer Cell Line Encyclopedia, as well as the availability of integrated pathway information systems, such as Pathway Commons, to systematically search for a comprehensive set of such epistatic vulnerabilities. Results: Based on homozygous deletions affecting metabolic enzymes in 16 TCGA cancer studies and 972 cancer cell lines, we identified 4104 candidate metabolic vulnerabilities present in 1019 tumor samples and 482 cell lines. Up to 44% of these vulnerabilities can be targeted with at least one Food and Drug Administration-approved drug. We suggest focused experiments to test these vulnerabilities and clinical trials based on personalized genomic profiles of those that pass preclinical filters. We conclude that genomic profiling will in the future provide a promising basis for network pharmacology of epistatic vulnerabilities as a promising therapeutic strategy.
Disseminating the Results of Participant-Focused Research

Participant-focused research (PFR) includes the "subjects" as full partners in the research process. As such, participants share in the products or outcomes of research. PFR goes beyond the traditional research approach of disseminating findings to other scientists and clinicians and includes participants and community residents in sharing the skills, knowledge, and resources of the study with the objective of empowering the participants. This article demonstrates the use of PFR in disseminating the results or products of study to the participants through two examples of long-term research projects conducted in Los Angeles. The first example is a community-based study of HIV prevention with low-income Latina women. The second example is an ethnographic study of health concerns and risks among adolescents in juvenile detention. These examples provide two approaches to dissemination of research findings and benefits to the participants and the community.
ON WHETHER OR NOT VOYAGER 1 HAS CROSSED THE HELIOPAUSE

The Voyager 1 spacecraft is currently in the vicinity of the heliopause, which separates the heliosphere from the local interstellar medium. There has been a precipitous decrease in particles accelerated in the heliosphere, and a substantial increase in galactic cosmic rays (GCRs), suggesting easy escape of the former across the heliopause, and entry of the latter. The question is, has Voyager 1 actually crossed the heliopause and is it now in the interstellar medium? We contend that the evidence is inconclusive. The direction of the magnetic field observed by Voyager 1 is unchanged from the direction of the heliospheric magnetic field, and different from the expected direction of the interstellar magnetic field. However, the plasma density, which is measured from observations of plasma waves, is similar to the expected interstellar density and much larger than the solar wind plasma density observed by Voyager 2 (which has a working plasma detector) at smaller heliocentric distances than Voyager 1. In this paper, an analytic model is presented that is based upon and is consistent with all Voyager observations, and in which the higher plasma densities measured by Voyager 1 are due simply to compressed solar wind. Thus both the magnetic field andmore » the plasma density observations are consistent with Voyager 1 still remaining well within the heliosheath. The model has a simple test: Voyager 1 should encounter a magnetic sector boundary crossing, where the behavior of particles accelerated in the heliosphere and the GCRs will be different from what Voyager 1 is now observing.« less
Prognostic value of incremental lactate elevations in emergency department patients with suspected infection.

Objectives: Previous studies have confirmed the prognostic significance of lactate concentrations categorized into groups (low, intermediate, high) among emergency department (ED) patients with suspected infection. Although the relationship between lactate concentrations categorized into groups and mortality appears to be linear, the relationship between lactate as a continuous measurement and mortality is uncertain. This study sought to evaluate the association between blood lactate concentrations along an incremental continuum up to a maximum value of 20 mmol ⁄L and mortality. Methods: This was a retrospective cohort analysis of adult ED patients with suspected infection from a large urban ED during 2007‐2010. Inclusion criteria were suspected infection evidenced by administration of antibiotics in the ED and measurement of whole blood lactate in the ED. The primary outcome was in-hospital mortality. Logistic and polynomial regression were used to model the relationship between lactate concentration and mortality. Results: A total of 2,596 patients met inclusion criteria and were analyzed. The initial median lactate concentration was 2.1 mmol ⁄L (interquartile range [IQR] = 1.3 to 3.3 mmol ⁄L) and the overall mortality rate was 14.4%. In the cohort, 459 patients (17.6%) had initial lactate levels >4 mmol ⁄L. Mortality continued to rise across the continuum of incremental elevations, from 6% for lactate <1.0 mmol ⁄L up to 39% for lactate 19‐20 mmol ⁄L. Polynomial regression analysis showed a strong curvilinear correlation between lactate and mortality (R = 0.72, p < 0.0001). Conclusions: In ED patients with suspected infection, we found a curvilinear relationship between incremental elevations in lactate concentration and mortality. These data support the use of lactate as a continuous variable rather than a categorical variable for prognostic purposes. ACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE 2012; 19:983‐985 a 2012 by the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine
SEA ICE RETREAT ALTERS THE BIOGEOGRAPHY OF THE BERING SEA CONTINENTAL SHELF

Seasonal ice cover creates a pool of cold bottom water on the eastern Bering Sea continental shelf each winter. The southern edge of this cold pool, which defines the ecotone between arctic and subarctic communities, has retreated approximately 230 km northward since the early 1980s. Bottom trawl surveys of fish and invertebrates in the southeastern Bering Sea (1982-2006) show a coincident reorganization in community composition by latitude. Survey catches show community-wide northward distribution shifts, and the area formerly covered by the cold pool has seen increases in total biomass, species richness, and average trophic level as subarctic fauna have colonized newly favorable habitats. Warming climate has immediate management implications, as 57% of variability in commercial snow crab (Chionoecetes opilio) catch is explained by winter sea ice extent. Several measures of community distribution and structure show linear relationships with bottom temperature, suggesting warming climate as the primary cause of changing biogeography. However, residual variability in distribution not explained by climate shows a strong temporal trend, suggesting that internal community dynamics also contribute to changing biogeography. Variability among taxa in their response to temperature was not explained by commercial status or life history traits, suggesting that species-specific responses to future warming will be difficult to predict.
Lead Intoxication From Lead-contaminated Water Used to Reconstitute Infant Formula

The lead found in drinking water can be a source of lead poisoning to young children, particularly those who consume large amounts of water. The authors describe a 13-month-old infant who was discovered to have plumbism during routine evaluation. The lead source was ultimately traced to the daily administration of powdered formula which was prepared with home tap water having a first-draw lead content of 130 parts per billion. This case suggests that whenever infants are fed powdered formula, consideration should be given to analysis of the home tap water for lead content.
CD21-Positive Follicular Dendritic Cells: A Possible Source of PrPSc in Lymph Node Macrophages of Scrapie-Infected Sheep

Natural sheep scrapie is a prion disease characterized by the accumulation of PrP Sc in brain and lymphoid tissues. Previous studies suggested that lymph node macrophages and follicular dendritic cells (FDC) accumulate PrP Sc . In this study, lymph nodes were analyzed for the presence of PrP Sc and macrophage or FDC markers using dual immunohistochemistry. A monoclonal antibody (mAb) to the C-terminus of PrP reacted with CD172a+ macrophages and CD21+ FDC processes in secondary follicles. However, a PrP N-terminus-specific mAb reacted with CD21+ FDC processes but not CD172a+ macrophages in secondary follicles. Neither the PrP N-terminus nor C-terminus-specific mAb reacted with CD172a+ macrophages in the medulla. These results indicate that lymph node follicular macrophages acquire PrP Sc by phagocytosis of CD21+ FDC processes. The results also suggest that follicular macrophages have proteases that process full-length PrP Sc to N-terminally truncated PrP Sc .
Mobile Phones and Economic Development: Evidence from the Fishing Industry in India

There is considerable speculation about the correlation between investments in telecommunications and economic development. Mobile phones, by virtue of their role as carriers and conduits of information, ought to lessen the information asymmetries in markets, thereby making rural and undeveloped markets more efficient. This research tests this assumption using a case-study from India, where the fishing community in the south-western state of Kerala has adopted mobile phones in large numbers. We find that with the wide-spread use of mobile phones, markets become more efficient as risk and uncertainty are reduced; there is greater market integration; there are gains in productivity and in the Marshallian surplus (sum of consumer and producer surplus); and price dispersion and price fluctuations are reduced. The potential efficiencies are, however, subject to easy access to capital, without which the market remains less efficient than it could be. Finally, the quality of life of the fishermen improves as they feel less isolated, and less at risk in times of emergencies.
Effects of Raw Material Source, Ash Content, and Assay Length on Protein Efficiency Ratio and Net Protein Ratio Values for Animal Protein Meals

Experiments were conducted to determine the protein efficiency ratio (PER) and net protein ratio (NPR) of meat and bone meals containing 24 or 34% ash, poultry by-product meals containing 7 or 16% ash, lamb meals containing 15 or 24% ash, a lamb meal analog containing 19% ash (mixture of lamb meal and turkey meal), and two meat and bone meals processed at either a low or a high temperature. The PER values (weight gain per unit of protein intake) and NPR values (PER corrected for maintenance) were determined using a chick growth assay in which chicks were fed a N-free diet or 10% CP diets containing one of the animal meals as the only source of dietary protein for 6, 9, or 13 d. The PER of the lamb meal analog was greater (P < 0.05) than that of the other meals, and the PER values of the poultry by-product meals were generally greater than those for the lamb and meat and bone meals. The PER values for the lamb meals were higher than those for most of the meat and bone meals. The PER of the 34% ash meat and bone meal was lower (P < 0.05) than the PER of the 24% ash meat and bone meal (1.03 vs 1.63, respectively, at 9 d). Further experiments showed that the lower PER of the high ash meat and bone meal was not due to its high Ca and P content. Ash content had no significant effect on PER of the poultry by-product and lamb meals. The PER of the low-temperature meat and bone meal was higher (P < 0.05) than the PER of the high-temperature meat and bone meal. The relative differences in NPR values among the animal meals were similar to those observed for PER values. Decreasing the length of the assay from 13 to 6 d increased the PER and NPR of all meals but had little or no effect on the ranking of values among meals. The results of this study indicated that PER and NPR values of animal meals were influenced by raw material source, and that ash content and processing temperature affected the PER and NPR of meat and bone meal. The results also indicated that PER and NPR assays could be reduced to 6 d without reducing sensitivity.
Coxiella burnetii Inhibits Apoptosis in Human THP-1 Cells and Monkey Primary Alveolar Macrophages

Coxiella burnetii, the cause of human Q fever, is an aerosol-borne, obligate intracellular bacterium that targets host alveolar mononuclear phagocytic cells during infection. In all cell types examined, C. burnetii establishes a replicative niche in a lysosome-like parasitophorous vacuole where it carries out a lengthy infectious cycle with minimal cytopathic effects. The persistent and mild nature of C. burnetii infection in vitro suggests that the pathogen modulates apoptosis to sustain the host cell. In the current study, we examined the ability of C. burnetii to inhibit apoptotic cell death during infection of human THP-1 monocyte-derived macrophages and primary monkey alveolar macrophages. C. burnetii-infected cells demonstrated significant protection from death relative to uninfected cells following treatment with staurosporine, a potent inducer of intrinsic apoptosis. This protection correlated with reduced cleavage of caspase-9, caspase-3, and poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP), all proteolytic events that occur during apoptosis. Reduced PARP cleavage was also observed in cells treated with tumor necrosis factor alpha to induce extrinsic apoptosis. Apoptosis inhibition was a C. burnetii-driven process as infected cells treated with rifampin or chloramphenicol, inhibitors of bacterial RNA and protein synthesis, respectively, showed significantly reduced protection against staurosporine-induced apoptosis. C. burnetii infection affected the expression of multiple apoptosis-related genes and resulted in increased synthesis of the antiapoptotic proteins A1/Bfl-1 and c-IAP2. Collectively, these data suggest that C. burnetii modulates apoptotic pathways to inhibit host cell death, thus providing a stable, intracellular niche for the course of the pathogen's infectious cycle.
The Influence of Oceanic Swell on Flows Over an Estuarine Intertidal Mudflat in San Francisco Bay

In this study, we examine the role that remotely forced ocean waves play in the hydrodynamics of an intertidal, estuarine mudflat. The observations indicate that long-period (10–20 s) ocean waves are a potentially important source of near-bed energy and shear stress in this environment. Over a two-week period in February 2001, we deployed an autonomous SonTek Hydra system on a mudflat in Central San Francisco Bay, and measured velocity and sediment concentration approximately 10 cm from the bed using an acoustic Doppler velocimeter (ADV) and an optical backscatter sensor (OBS). The experiment continued through wet (high tide) and dry (low tide) periods over an entire spring–neap cycle, and thus included the variation of near-bed velocity over a range of timescales. Results show that during large ebb tides, tidally forced flows dominate the near-bed dynamics during calm conditions. Wind waves dominate whenever the wind direction exposes the mudflat to wind coming off the bay (from the south and southwest), as occurs during winter storms. During periods when tidal forcing is limited and wind waves are small, remotely forced ocean swells become an important energy source. These motions appear in the burst samples at frequencies between 0.1 and 0.04 Hz and their energy correlates well ðq > 0:8Þ with ocean swell measured from a buoy offshore of San Francisco. Spectral analysis of data shows that the average energy of ocean waves per tide varied between 2 and 15% of total energy load. Moreover, extreme values in the distribution of ocean waves bring episodic bursts of greater energy onto the estuarine mudflat, which may influence local suspension of sediments. 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Quantum-mechanical effects on the threshold voltage of undoped double-gate MOSFETs

Quantum-mechanical (QM), or carrier energy-quantization, effects on the subthreshold characteristics, including the threshold voltage (V/sub t/), of generic undoped double-gate (DG) CMOS devices with ultrathin (Si) bodies (UTBs) are physically modeled. The analytic model, with dependences on the UTB thickness (t/sub Si/), the transverse electric field, and the UTB surface orientation, shows how V/sub t/ is increased, and reveals that 1) the subthreshold carrier population in higher-energy subbands is significant, 2) the QM effects in DG devices with {110}-Si surfaces, common in FinFETs, are comparable to those for {100}-Si surfaces for t/sub Si/>/spl sim/4 nm, 3) the QM effects can increase the gate swing, and (iv) the QM effects, especially for t/sub Si/</spl sim/4 nm in nMOSFETs with {110}-Si surfaces and in pMOSFETs, will strongly influence DG CMOS design and scalability.
Human liver expression of CYP2C8: gender, age, and genotype effects.

Research investigating CYP2C8 as a drug-metabolizing enzyme has gained momentum over the past few years. CYP2C8 is estimated to oxidatively metabolize approximately 5% of therapeutically prescribed drugs. It is polymorphically expressed, and several single nucleotide polymorphisms have been identified with varying effects on the clearance of CYP2C8 substrates. However, the human liver expression of CYP2C8 and effects of genetic variation, age, and gender on mRNA and protein levels have not been fully explored. In this report, interindividual variation in CYP2C8 mRNA and protein expression in 60 livers from white individuals was examined. The livers were genotyped for CYP2C8*3 and CYP2C8*4 polymorphisms. The effects of genotype, age, and gender on hepatic CYP2C8 expression and the correlation of CYP2C8 mRNA expression with CYP3A4 and other CYP2C members were evaluated. The mean ± S.D. protein levels in CYP2C8*1/*1 livers was 30.8 ± 17.5 pmol/mg protein, and a trend for decreased protein levels was observed for CYP2C8*1/*4 livers (15.8 ± 9.7 pmol/mg, p = 0.07). The mean expression levels of CYP2C8 was comparable in males and females (p = 0.18). The mRNA expression of CYP2C8, CYP2C9, CYP2C19, and CYP3A4, but not CYP2C18, was highly correlated (p
GridMAT-MD: a grid-based membrane analysis tool for use with molecular dynamics.

GridMAT-MD is a new program developed to aid in the analysis of lipid bilayers from molecular dynamics simulations. It reads a GROMACS coordinate file and generates two types of data: a two-dimensional contour plot depicting membrane thickness, and a polygon-based tessellation of the individual lipid headgroups. GridMAT-MD can also account for proteins or small molecules within the headgroups of the lipids, closely approximating their occupied lateral area. The program requires no installation, is fast, and is freely available. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comput Chem, 2009
A Numerical Investigation of a Convectively Generated, Inertially Stable, Extratropical Warm-Core Mesovortex over Land. Part I: Structure and Evolution

Abstract A 36-h nested-grid numerical simulation of the life cycle of a convectively generated, inertially stable, warm-core mesovortex is presented. The vortex evolved from a mesoscale convective complex that developed from a squall line over Oklahoma during 7–8 July 1982. A modified version of the Pennsylvania State University /National Center for Atmospheric Research mesoscale hydrostatic model with a fine-mesh grid resolution of 25 km is utilized for this study. The model simultaneously incorporates parameterized convection and a grid-resolved convective scheme containing the effects of hydrostatic water loading, condensation (evaporation), freezing (melting) and sublimation. Genesis, intensification and maintenance of a low- to midtropospheric closed meso-β scale cyclone as well as the associated surface pressure perturbations, the evolution of moist convection, and the distribution and magnitude of total rainfall are simulated by the model. Similarly, the observed amplification of a 700-mb meso-α sc...
An O(n log n) projection operator for weighted ℓ 1 -norm regularization with sum constraint.

We provide a simple and efficient algorithm for the projectionoperator for weighted l1-norm regularization subject to a sum constraint, together with an elementary proof. The implementation of the proposed algorithm can be downloaded from the author’s homepage.
Fx Policy Revisited: Strategy & Tactics

USD movement against the EUR, the Japanese Yen, and CAD/USD fluctuations are forcing CEOs & CFOs to think strategically about FX and revisit old policies and practices. Long Term Equilibrium Exchange Rates Why Hedge? What to Hedge? How to Hedge? FX Hedging in Cross Border M&A Corporate FX Hedging Practices
AIDSCAP Nepal: A Case Study

This case study, written for classroom use, describes the marketing actions undertaken by a USAID-funded project to control the spread of HIV/AIDS in Nepal. It details the communication strategy used to achieve the program’s objectives. The focus of the case analysis requires students to evaluate the results of a preliminary research study conducted to assess the program’s effectiveness and to decide whether to undertake a larger-scale assessment and if so, identify the specific data needs
Self-report measures that do not produce gender parity in intimate partner violence: A multi-study investigation.

OBJECTIVE: Gender patterns in intimate partner violence (IPV) remain a controversial topic. Some self-report measures produce gender "parity" in IPV rates. However, other self-report surveys do not produce gender parity, nor do arrests, reports to law enforcement, homicide data, helpseeking data, or witness reports. This methodological inconsistency is still poorly understood. The objective of these studies is to explore the effects of item wording on gender patterns for victimization reports in a range of samples. METHOD: In Study 1, 238 undergraduates were randomly assigned either the standard Conflict Tactics Scales (CTS) physical victimization items or a version which changed the partner-specific wording to generic wording ("Someone" instead of "My partner"), with perpetrator information collected in follow-up. Studies 2 and 3 compared the standard approach to items with stems intended to reduce false positives (either "Not including horseplay or joking around. . ." or "When my partner was angry. . ."), among 251 college students and 98 agency-involved women, respectively. Study 4 implemented the "not joking" alternative from Study 3 in a large rural community sample (n = 1,207). RESULTS: In Studies 1 and 2, significant Wording × Gender analyses indicated that some item wordings yielded higher rates of female than male victimization. Study 3 showed similar patterns across forms for highly victimized women. Study 4 found higher female than male victimization for a new scale and every item. CONCLUSION: The CTS and similar behavioral checklists are unusual in their inattention to false positives. Self-report measures designed to minimize false positives produce results consistent with other IPV methodologies; that is, they do not demonstrate gender parity. The Partner Victimization Scale, described here, can be used when a scale that has multimethod convergence with other IPV methodologies is desired. ©2016 American Psychological Association Language: en
Temperature and density measurements of carbon dioxide using electron beam fluorescence

The Electron Beam Fluorescence (EBF) technique has been applied to carbon dioxide as a diagnostic to obtain temperature and density measurements, with application to the atmosphere of Mars. A spectroscopic model, which is a function of rotational temperature, for the CO2* Anu -» Xng emission between 337 nm and 339 nm has been developed, including the 100 000, 200 100 and 300 200 symmetric-stretch and four 110 010 Renner-Teller vibrational bands. From the ratio of fluorescence signals of filters centered at 337 nm and 338 nm, temperatures from 200 K to 700 K can be measured with an accuracy of 5 K. A photometric equation is developed which can be used with collected signal levels to measure CO2 densities, which was demonstrated to yield accurate density measurements (S/N = 100) in the atmosphere of Mars below 40 km with acquisition times on the order of 1 msec.
Does Required Participation Eliminate Volunteer Differences

Summary.-Making participation in experiments part of beginning psychology requirements may obviate volunteer-nonvolunteer differences as all students must participate. Since students are free to select experiments, biases may be inuodaced into any on: by virtue of its kind and/or the time of the semester in which it is offered. In this study differences between those who sign up for the first experiment of the term and those who decline it were examined. Results indicate that those who sign up for the first experiment resemble volunteer Ss-especially on variables which appear rather likely to affect experimental results, viz., authoritarianism and conformity. Some feel the requirement that all students participate in one or more experiments to fulfill course requirements minimizes artifacts due to volunteer differences, since all students must participate. However, though individual differences may be included in all of the experiments conducted curing a single term, the sample used in any one experiment can still be biased. Consequently, the same experiment may yield different resuIts depending upon when it was conducted. This study investigates the hypothesis that Ss who sign up early in the term differ from those who choose to wait. Students (182 males, 72 females) from four sections of beginning psychology were administered a questionnaire package, after which they were requested to volunteer for a "psychological experiment." Ss were told that they must participate in two experiments and that this experiment was but one of many to be offered during the semester. They could sign up for ir or wait to select from the others. Measures corresponded to those used previously (2) and are representative of those included in studies of volunteer behavior. Data were analyzed by two-way analyses of variance (Sex and Early vs Late Signup) and x2, as appropriate. Corresponding to voluntzer-nonvolunteer differences (2),".'.' those who signed up were less authoritarian (F Scale; 3) than those who were not willing (Ms = 11.52 and 13.03; F = 5.09, df = 1/250, p < .03), and were less conforming on an Asch-type conformity scale (2) than those who refused (Ms = 9.37 and 10.53; F = 6.39, df =
The Decision To Divide Germany and The Origins of the Cold War

The division of Germany between East and West was in itself a sufficient condition for the emergence of what came to be known as the Cold War in Europe. Most of the literature on the origins of the Cold War regards the division of Germany as the consequence of a deepening conflict between the United States and the Soviet Union. This article argues that an inability to agree on the future of Germany was not the consequence of this conflict, but its cause, and that this inability to agree was simply the result of the fact that the four former Allies believed the risks associated with letting go of Germany, once it had been divided among their occupation forces, were greater than the risks associated with nonagreement. This conclusion is supported both by a general analysis of the interdependent choice situation posed by the occupation of Germany and by reference to the published diplomatic record. The article also argues that the diplomatic record has been widely misunderstood in several important respects.
Harnessing electricity storage for systems with intermittent sources of power: Policy and R&D needs

Abstract A central challenge for grid operators is matching electricity supply to demand, especially when the electricity supply is composed in part of intermittent resources. Several system options could help balance electricity supply and demand given different mixes of intermittent, baseload and load-following generation capacity; of these, electricity storage is especially interesting. If electricity storage could be deployed widely, grids of any size could sustain a wide range of profiles of intermittent and baseload power. Currently, most installed electricity storage worldwide is pumped hydro. Flywheels, compressed air and batteries represent interesting technologies that could provide grid-scale storage, especially if technology costs come down. A significant amount of storage R&D worldwide is appropriately focused on lowering these costs, but more is needed. Ultimately, storage will only achieve high levels of penetration if it can compete for service provision in electricity markets, and policy adjustments are needed in many countries to ensure this is the case.
Non-monotonic assembly sequence planning method based on knowledge rule and geometric reasoning

As the traditional assembly sequence planning does not consider non-monotone issue, a non-monotonic assembly sequence planning method based on knowledge rule and geometric reasoning has been proposed. Firstly, the non-monotonic assembly process and its characteristics have been analyzed. The figure hierarchy correlation which contains the status information and assembly knowledge has been used to express the non-monotone assembly process information. Based on the assembly information model, a non-monotonic assembly sequence planning method based on knowledge rule and geometric reasoning has been presented, which implements the non-monotone assembly sequence planning.
1,25-Dihydroxyvitamin D3 induces monocytic differentiation of the PLB-985 leukemic line and promotes c-fgr mRNA expression.

1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [1 ,25(OH)2DJ is known to stimulate maturation of the human promyelocytic line HL-60 and murine bone marrow precursor cells along a monocyte/ macrophage pathway. In this study, the steroid’s effects on the PLB-985 leukemic line were examined. We found that 1,25(OH)2D induces monocytic differentiation of PLB-985 as manifested by morphological appearance, histochemical staining, and changes in cell surface antigen expression. Additionally, there was acquisition of functional monocyte characteristics including phagocytic activity and superoxide anion production via the respiratory burst pathway. Steady state levels of mRNA derived from the leukocytespecific proto-oncogene c-fgr were also increased by the steroid. Thus, 1,25(0H2)D effectively differentiates PLB-985 cells along a monocytic pathway, providing a useful model of macrophage differentiation.
The Fair and Impartial Spectator

Adam Smith’s metaphor of the impartial spectator is an essential element in understanding his model of the maturation process whereby people learn to follow general rules that honor the human sentiments of gratitude and resentment in others. Through the impartial spectator human action, subject to error, is governed by self-command. Smith’s model is presented in the form of a series of propositions.
Profile-based traffic characterization of commercial web sites

The problems of workload characterization, performance modeling, workload and performance forecasting, and capacity planning are fundamental to the growth of Web services and applications. Previous studies have primarily focused on the complexity of Web traffic at the level of low-order characteristics such as object-hits or page-views. In contrast, our study focuses on higher-order characteristics, and introduces techniques for profiling, clustering and classifying commercial Web sites based on these higher-order traffic characteristics. Specifically, we devise a methodology for the extraction of Web traffic patterns from access logs, the clustering of such traffic patterns, and the classification of Web traffic based on this extraction and clustering of traffic templates. Our methodology has been successfully applied to accurately capture and characterize the complexities of traffic exhibited at more than 25 production commercial Web sites. These methods provide new solutions that can then be exploited to address challenging problems such as workload and performance prediction, and short-term and long-term capacity planning.
Reducing Retirement Savings Leakage

This paper summarizes discussion on new ways to reduce retirement plan “leakage,” presented at the Employee Benefit Research Institute’s 78th policy forum in Washington, DC, on May 12, 2016. A recurring issue with defined contribution (DC) savings plans such as the 401(k) is the risk of “leakage” -- pre-retirement reductions in plan savings by workers, either through loans, hardship withdrawals, or payouts at job change. There have been widely varying estimates of how big of a problem leakage actually is, and what the potential reactions may be by both retirement plan sponsors and participants if new pre-retirement access restrictions were imposed. For instance, for many workers the option of being able to take a loan from their 401(k) account is seen as a major incentive for them to participate. A 2014 analysis by EBRI found that approximately two-thirds of the impact of diminished retirement savings due to leakage was associated with the cashouts that sometimes occur at job change. Others have pointed out that 401(k) loans, which sometimes are criticized as a significant source of retirement savings leakage, actually account for the smallest amount of pre-retirement savings loss. To highlight new work on leakage, the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) devoted part of its 78th policy forum to the topic of “Retirement Challenges and Reforms,” focusing in particular on “Reducing Leakage and Incubating Savings.” The May 12 event in Washington, DC, brought together about a hundred benefits-related experts to discuss a variety of retirement and health topics. The leakage-focused session involved the presentation of a simulation model by the Retirement Clearinghouse (RCH) concerning outcomes of “Auto Portability,” or automated and presumptive plan-to-IRA and plan-to-plan transfers of retirement savings as workers change jobs. Based on research and actual experience with employers, RCH has developed a fairly simple engagement model with both incoming and departing employees -- aimed in particular at those with small 401(k) balances ($5,000 or less, which collectively amount to about $8.8 billion a year) -- that would apply both a pro-rollover/transfer presumption and a near-automatic process that, together, is projected to reduce retirement plan leakage by 50 percent. It was noted that “Auto Portability” has an opt-out mechanism so that individuals can opt out if they need the money.
Famine and Scarcity in Late Medieval and Early Modern England: The Regulation of Grain Marketing, 1256–1631

Surveying government and crowd responses ranging from the late Middle Ages through to the early modern era, Buchanan Sharp's illuminating study examines how the English government responded to one of the most intractable problems of the period: famine and scarcity. The book provides a comprehensive account of famine relief in the late Middle Ages and evaluates the extent to which traditional market regulations enforced by thirteenth-century kings helped shape future responses to famine and scarcity in the sixteenth century. Analysing some of the oldest surviving archival evidence of public response to famine, Sharp reveals that food riots in England occurred as early as 1347, almost two centuries earlier than was previously thought. Charting the policies, public reactions and royal regulations to grain shortage, Sharp provides a fascinating contribution to our understanding of the social, economic, cultural and political make-up of medieval and early modern England.
Efficient parameter estimation for anatomy deformation models used in 4D-CT

A critical feature of radiation therapy for cancerous tumors located in the thorax and abdomen is addressing tumor motion due to breathing. To achieve this goal, a CT study (ordinarily denoted as 4D-CT) showing tumor loca-tion, size, and shape against time is essential. Several 4D-CT reconstruction methods have been proposed that employ anatomy deformation models. The proposed method estimates temporal parameters for these models using an ap-proach that does not require markers or manual designation of landmark anatomical features. A neural network is trained to estimate the parameters based on simple statistical features of the CT projections. The proposed method achieves an average estimation error of less than 0.02 seconds, corresponding to a spatial error of less than 1.3 mm. The accuracy of the proposed method is evaluated in the presence of several limiting constraints such as computational complexity and noise.
A sequential transmission scheme for the multiple access channel with noiseless feedback

In this paper we study transmission of information over a multiple access channel (MAC) with noiseless feedback. We formulate this problem as a decentralized stochastic control problem, the three controllers being the decoder and the two encoders who, in the presence of limited information about each other, decide what to transmit at each time instance, in order to jointly achieve a common goal. Our contribution is two-fold. First, we identify structural properties of the optimal communication system that result in considerable simplification of the encoding/decoding process. The derived structural properties make it possible to consider transmission schemes that are akin to the posterior-matching scheme (PMS) for the point-to-point channel. Since the optimal communication system has this structure, we need only restrict attention to the study of those simplified systems, even when the optimal one is not known. Second, the aforementioned structural results allow us to view the original MAC system as an equivalent point-to-point communication system over a Markov channel with perfect state observation and delayed state feedback. Based on this equivalence, we derive a single-letter expression for the capacity of the original channel.
Guidelines for antiretroviral therapy

Progress in the treatment of HIV infection over the past decade has resulted in dramatic reductions in morbidity, mortality and health care utilization as more effective treatment regimens have been developed and simpler schedules of drug administration have been devised [1, 2]. As more effective regimens have provided durable suppression of viral replication, it has become clear that reversal of disease progression can be achieved even in persons with advanced HIV infection [3]. It is now possible to achieve at least transient interruption of disease progression in almost all patients who have received no prior antiretroviral therapy, and who are therefore responsive to most available antiretroviral drugs [4].
Training for a Career in Industrial Microbiology: Academic Viewpoint

The remarks which I make concerning the academic point of view for the training program for a career in industrial microbiology are based both on my experience as the Chairman of the Department of Bacteriology in a typical Midwestern state university and also on my prior experience as an industrial microbiologist.