cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Eastward Ho! The Beginnings of Ocean Steam Ship

In previous chapters we have seen how the Holt enterprise expanded after 1865 as new trades were steadily introduced, and we have seen, too, how critically important was the relationship built up between Blue Funnel and the various overseas agents. Beginning as a small-scale venture trading between Liverpool and China, the service widened at both ends, and by 1918 a world-wide network had come into being, served by a large modern fleet built to exacting standards.
Multiparametric Imaging Analysis: Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy

Magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) is a magnetic resonance-based imaging modality that allows noninvasive sampling of metabolic changes in normal and abnormal brain parenchyma. MRS is particularly useful in the differentiation of developmental or non-neoplastic disorders from neoplastic processes. MRS is also useful during routine imaging follow-up after radiation treatment or during antiangiogenic treatment and for predicting outcomes and treatment response. The objective of this article is to provide a concise but thorough review of the basic physical principles, important applications of MRS in brain tumor imaging, and future directions.
Web Data Extraction Based on Structure Feature

Most existing methods of Web data extraction realize goals based on DOM tree analysis or wrapper building. However, applicability and efficiency of these methods need to be further improved. According to the amount of information, Web pages will be divided into two structure types which are 1:1 and 1:N type respectively. As same type of Web pages has similar structure features, the paper proposes an approach of two-phase Web data extraction base on structure feature. In the phase of samples learning, structure feature and depository rules of Web pages are obtained according to the text feature of sample pages. In the phase of information extraction, Web data extraction is implemented by matching the page to be extracted with depository rules in knowledge base. Experimental results show that the approach proposed in the paper has well applicability and high efficiency.
Anticoagulant rodenticide exposure and toxicosis in four species of birds of prey in Massachusetts, USA, 2012-2016, in relation to use of rodenticides by pest management professionals.

Restrictions on second-generation anticoagulant rodenticides (SGARs) in the United States, which were partially implemented in 2011, prohibit the sale of SGAR products through general consumer outlets to minimize use by non-professional or non-agricultural applicators. This study analyzed liver tissue from four species of birds of prey admitted to a wildlife clinic in Massachusetts, USA, from 2012–2016 for residues of anticoagulant rodenticides (ARs). Ninety-four birds were analyzed; 16 were symptomatic for AR toxicosis, and 78 asymptomatic. Ninety-six percent of all birds tested were positive for SGARs: 100% of those diagnosed with AR toxicosis ante-mortem and/or post-mortem and 95% of subclinically exposed birds. Brodifacoum was found in 95% of all birds. Sixty-six percent of all birds contained residues of two or more SGARs. A significant increase in exposures to multiple SGARs occurred in later years in the study. Pesticide use reports (PURs) filed with the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources were reviewed to determine the frequency of use of different ARs by pest management professionals (PMPs) across five years. This study finds that the three SGARs favored by PMPs—bromadiolone, difethialone, brodifacoum—were present in combination in the majority of birds, with increases in multiple exposures driven by increased detections of bromadiolone and difethialone. Continued monitoring of AR residues in nontarget species following full implementation of sales and packaging restrictions in the US is needed in order to elucidate the role of PMP use of SGARs in wildlife exposures and to evaluate the effectiveness of current mitigation measures.
General and Direct Method for Preparing Oligonucleotide-Functionalized Metal-Organic Framework Nanoparticles.

Metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) are a class of modular, crystalline, and porous materials that hold promise for storage and transport of chemical cargoes. Though MOFs have been studied in bulk forms, ways of deliberately manipulating the external surface functionality of MOF nanoparticles are less developed. A generalizable approach to modify their surfaces would allow one to impart chemical functionality onto the particle surface that is independent of the bulk MOF structure. Moreover, the use of a chemically programmable ligand, such as DNA, would allow for the manipulation of interparticle interactions. Herein, we report a coordination chemistry-based strategy for the surface functionalization of the external metal nodes of MOF nanoparticles with terminal phosphate-modified oligonucleotides. The external surfaces of nine distinct archetypical MOF particles containing four different metal species (Zr, Cr, Fe, and Al) were successfully functionalized with oligonucleotides, illustrating the generality of ...
Human-Robot Collaborated Exploration and Wayfinding: Orientation Awareness and itS Enhancement:

Orientation awareness, being aware of heading direction, current location, and an object’s location relative to current location are all critical for wayfinding. Obtaining and maintaining the orien...
From no body to some bodies: forms of mourning and melancholia in Jenny Boully’s The Body and [one love affair]*

The essay explores footnotes and endnotes as poetic forms in Jenny Boully’s The Body and [one love affair]*. In The Body, Boully radically foregrounds the footnote by making it the sole textual com...
Diffuse Growth of Plant Cell Walls.

Structural and functional roles of cellulose, xyloglucan, and pectins in cell wall enlargement are reappraised with insights from mechanics, atomic force microscopy, and other methods.
The structural basis of PPHN

Discussed in this article are the three main anatomic types of persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn; (1) maladaptation of the pulmonary vascular bed; (2) excessive muscularization of the pulmonary vascular bed; and (3) underdevelopment of the pulmonary vascular bed.
Magnetic and electronic properties of the Cu-substituted Weyl semimetal candidate ZrCo2Sn.

We report that the partial substitution of Cu for Co has a significant impact on the magnetic properties of the Heusler-phase Weyl fermion candidate ZrCo2Sn. Polycrystalline samples of ZrCo2-x Cu x Sn (x = 0.0-1.0) exhibited a linearly decreasing ferromagnetic transition temperature and similarly decreasing saturated magnetic moment on increasing Cu substitution x. Materials with Cu contents near x = 1 and several other quaternary materials synthesized at the same x (ZrCoT'Sn (T' = Rh, Pd, Ni)) display what appears to be non-ferromagnetic magnetization behavior with spin glass characteristics. Electronic structure calculations suggest that the half-metallic nature of unsubstituted ZrCo2Sn is disrupted significantly by the Cu substitutions, leading to the breakdown of the magnetization versus electron count guidelines usually followed by Heusler phases, and a more typical metallic non-spin-polarized electronic structure at high x.
Effect of ultrasonic nanocrystal surface modification on elevated temperature residual stress, microstructure, and fatigue behavior of ATI 718Plus alloy

Abstract Ultrasonic Nanocrystal Surface Modification (UNSM) is a mechanical surface treatment that induces large compressive residual stresses and near-surface microstructural changes in the material by using repetitive impacts at ultrasonic frequencies with a WC tip. In this study, we investigate the use of UNSM to improve the fatigue life of ATI 718 Plus (718Plus) at high temperature of 650 °C. UNSM induced severe surface plastic deformation which led to nano-sized crystallites, twins, and high dislocation density in the near surface regions, coupled with an increase in surface hardness and high magnitude of compressive residual stresses. This change in the near-surface microstructure remained stable at elevated temperatures. In addition, UNSM retained ∼−680 MPa near-surface residual stress (56% of its initial residual stress) even after 140 h exposure to 650 °C. The retained near-surface residual stresses and the stable microstructure from the UNSM increased the yield strength by ∼11% (∼105 MPa) and endurance limit by ∼8% (∼70 MPa) in corresponding tests at 650 °C. This improvement in fatigue life was attributed to near-surface microstructure changes, material hardening and high compressive residual stress induced by UNSM. The estimated crack growth rates were ∼60% lower for UNSM-treated 718Plus as compared with untreated material. The thermal-mechanical residual stress relaxation indicates the effectiveness of UNSM in improving the fatigue life of 718Plus at 650 °C.
A Systematic Approach toward Designing Functional Ionic Porphyrin Crystalline Materials

Synthetic ionic porphyrin self-assembled structures possess remarkable optoelectronic properties that are useful for energy and sensor related technological application, and there is a continued interest in tailoring their molecular structure and interactions in order to control their various functions. Central to these efforts is the fundamental understanding of the structure, the chemical and physical properties, and the relationship between the structural organization of the chromophores and their functions. In this Feature Article, we demonstrate the capability of a nucleation and growth algorithm to reproducibly synthesize nano- to millimeter size single crystals of several different ionic binary porphyrin (BP) systems under chemically controlled conditions. Single crystal X-ray diffraction analysis, morphology, sensing, and mechanical measurements are presented. UV–vis and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy of these materials is also discussed. The crystalline porphyrin assemblies have varying degrees...
LARGE-SCALE MICROBIAL DEGRADATION OF REFRACTORY ORGANIC COMPOUNDS

Abstract Landfarming is a technique which utilizes microorganisms in soils to biodegrade municipal and industrial wastes and sludges. Many examples of large-scale landfarming of industrial wastes are known in the oil refining, petrochemicals, woodtreating chemicals, and tannery industries in the United States. Biodegradation processes for refractory (environmentally persistent) organic compounds are generally regarded as being limited by the inherent resistance of these compounds to attack by naturally occurring microorganisms, insolubility, and other factors. This research describes the successful biodegradation of an apparently refractory organic compound, 2,4,6-trichlorophenol (TCP), in large-scale lysimeters containing agricultural soils amended with sewage sludge. Thus, within 2 months the levels of TCP in certain agricultural soils contained in lysimeters decreased from an initial 1,000 ppm to 100-10 ppm and the inorganic chloride concentration in the leachate increased from a nominal 50 ppm to 300-700 ppm. In one soil sample the concentration of TCP decreased to 0.5 ppm after 7 months elapsed time.
Abnormalities of Rhythm

The key to reaching the correct diagnosis of an arrhythmia is a systematic approach to the problem—a dissection of the electrocardiogram (ECG) until the relationships become clear. For very complex problems ladder diagrams may be useful but are beyond the scope of this text, as are some of the more unusual rhythm problems. The more common problems in the diagnosis of the cardiac rhythm are discussed here.
Detecting Demyelination by PET: The Lesion as Imaging Target

Noninvasive imaging of demyelination and remyelination is critical for diagnosis and clinical management of demyelinating diseases. Positron emission tomography (PET) has the potential to complemen...
Retailers' Perceptions of FDA Tobacco Regulation Authority.

Objectives Research is limited on tobacco retailers' perceptions of the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) tobacco regulatory authority overall, and less exists related to retailers in predominantly African-American or other racial/ethnic neighborhoods. We assessed differences in perceptions of the FDA's tobacco regulatory authority and barriers to compliance among retailers in African-American and non-African-American neighborhoods in Los Angeles, California. Methods Overall, 700 tobacco retailer interviews assessed demographic characteristics and perceptions of the FDA. Results Retailers in African-American neighborhoods self-identified as Hispanic/Latino (43.9% vs 39.6% non-African-American), African-American (21.2% vs 2.6% non-African-American) or Asian (19.7% vs 19.5% non-African-American). Retailers in African-American neighborhoods were significantly less likely to perceive the FDA as a trustworthy source (p = .03; vs non-African-American), but more likely to report that they do not know the federal rules (p = .002), do not understand the federal rules (p = .004), and that tobacco companies encourage them not to follow the federal rules (p = .04). Conclusions Tobacco control agencies can use this information about retailer perceptions to design education/training materials in order to increase trust, mitigate barriers, and enhance compliance.
Impact of Traumatically Brain-Injured Donors on Outcomes After Heart Transplantation.

Abstract Background Heart transplant recipients of traumatically brain-injured (TBI) donors have been reported to have inferior survival and increased rates of cardiac allograft vasculopathy in single-center studies. This study sought to examine the impact of TBI donors on outcomes after heart transplantation across all transplantation centers. Methods We identified all adult heart transplants performed during 2007-2016 in the OPTN database. Recipients were dichotomized based on donor cause of death (TBI versus non-TBI), propensity-scored across 22 variables with known associations with mortality, and matched 1:1 without replacement. The primary endpoint was all-cause mortality. Secondary endpoints were conditional survival and rates of cardiac allograft vasculopathy. Results In total, 20,244 patients underwent heart transplantation. TBI was the primary cause of death in 53.4% of donors (10,816/20,244), and among TBI donors, blunt injury (59.6%; 6443/10,816) and gunshot wound (35%; 3781/10,816) were the most common mechanisms of injury. Propensity matching generated 6919 pairs (all absolute mean differences Conclusions In the largest analysis of TBI donors in heart transplantation, we found similar survival and rates of cardiac allograft vasculopathy to those who received hearts from non-TBI donors out to 5 y. These findings should allay concerns over continued transplantation with this unique donor population.
Early-Life Circumstances and Their Effects Over the Life Course

The idea that early-life circumstances shape people’s health, development, and well-being over the life course has gained renewed centrality in the last two decades. This renewed interest has been informed by new approaches that emphasize sensitive and critical periods during the first years of life, offer an understanding of human development as a hierarchical and cross-fertilizing process, suggest plausible mechanisms for the persistent effect of early exposures, and explore heterogeneity in effects based on environmental and biological factors. The articles included in this special issue of Population Research and Policy Review advance the field of early-life circumstances in several important dimensions. They examine the determinants and effects of noxious exposures at different developmental stages—ranging from the prenatal period to adolescence—in a variety of national settings. They offer an understanding of early-life circumstances that moves from discrete outcomes to a dynamic life-course approach, and consider diverse sources of heterogeneity in the effects of early exposures.
Role of Multiplex Molecular Diagnosis for Acute Gastroenteritis

To understand the role of multiplex nucleic acid enteric pathogen panels in the diagnosis and care of patients with acute gastroenteritis. The ability to give a comprehensive result in 1 to 3 hours, depending on the enteric panel, has helped clinicians to administer appropriate medical care promptly. However, the syndromic panels for enteric pathogens have only been available for the past 4–5 years, and it is still not always clear when and how the enteric molecular panels should be incorporated into the management of patients with acute infectious gastroenteritis. The introduction of platforms that permit testing simultaneously for the most common pathogens responsible for specific infectious entities directly from a single specimen has reformed the way acute gastroenteritis is diagnosed. This novel approach has pros and cons, and clear criteria, algorithms, and guidelines for ordering need to be put in place by each institution to guide clinicians on how to utilize these expensive assays best.
The Effect of Extracranial-to-Intracranial Bypass on Cerebral Vasoreactivity: A 4D Flow MRI Pilot Study.

Background and purpose Extracranial-to-intracranial (EC-IC) surgical bypass improves cerebral blood flow (CBF) and cerebrovascular vasoreactivity (CVR) for patients with carotid occlusion. Bypass graft patency and contribution of the graft to the postoperative increase in CVR are challenging to assess. To assess the effectiveness of 4D flow magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to evaluate bypass graft patency and flow augmentation through the superficial temporal artery (STA) before and after EC-IC bypass. Methods Three consecutive patients undergoing EC-IC bypass for carotid occlusion were evaluated pre- and postoperatively using CVR testing with pre- and poststimulus 4D flow-MRI for assessment of the bypass graft and intracranial vasculature. Results Preoperatively, 2 patients (patients 1 and 3) did not augment flow through either native STA. The third, who had evidence of extensive native EC-IC collateralization on digital subtraction angiography (DSA), did augment flow through the STA preoperatively (CVR = 1). Postoperatively, all patients demonstrated CVR > 1 on the side of bypass. The patient who had CVR > 1 preoperatively demonstrated the greatest increase in resting postoperative graft flow (from 40 to 130 mL/minute), but the smallest CVR, with a poststimulus graft flow of 160 mL/minute (CVR = 1.2). The 2 patients who did not demonstrate augmentation of graft flow preoperatively augmented postoperatively from 10 to 20 mL/minute (CVR = 2.0) and 10-80 mL/minute (CVR = 8.0), respectively. Intracranial flow was simultaneously interrogated. Two patients demonstrated mild reductions in resting flow velocities in all interrogated vessels immediately following bypass. The patient who underwent CVR testing on postoperative day 48 demonstrated a stable or increased flow rate in most intracranial vessels. Conclusion Four-dimensional flow MRI allows for noninvasive, simultaneous interrogation of the intra- and extracranial arterial vasculature during CVR testing, and reveals unique paradigms in cerebrovascular physiology. Observing these flow patterns may aid in improved patient selection and more detailed postoperative evaluation for patients undergoing EC-IC bypass.
Missed work, lost income, and job loss in survivors of colorectal cancer and their partners: A dyadic study.

145Background: Many survivors of colorectal cancer face long-term job loss stemming from their diagnosis. However, little is known about employment outcomes among their partners and virtually nothi...
Just as electable: Black Democratic candidates in swing districts

Considerable debate exists in the literature about whether white voters are willing to support Black candidates for office, particularly in electorally competitive, non-majority minority districts....
Free, appropriate, public, and educational? Screen-schooling U.S. children with disabilities during the 2020 pandemic

I was born in 1969, the year Sesame Street debuted. I love and respect educational screen media. However, screens exist in environments that modify the effectiveness of screen-delivered education f...
Machine Learning for Accurate Intraoperative Pediatric Middle Ear Effusion Diagnosis.

OBJECTIVES: Misdiagnosis of acute and chronic otitis media in children can result in significant consequences from either undertreatment or overtreatment. Our objective was to develop and train an artificial intelligence algorithm to accurately predict the presence of middle ear effusion in pediatric patients presenting to the operating room for myringotomy and tube placement. METHODS: We trained a neural network to classify images as “ normal” (no effusion) or “abnormal” (effusion present) using tympanic membrane images from children taken to the operating room with the intent of performing myringotomy and possible tube placement for recurrent acute otitis media or otitis media with effusion. Model performance was tested on held-out cases and fivefold cross-validation. RESULTS: The mean training time for the neural network model was 76.0 (SD ± 0.01) seconds. Our model approach achieved a mean image classification accuracy of 83.8% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 82.7–84.8). In support of this classification accuracy, the model produced an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve performance of 0.93 (95% CI: 0.91–0.94) and F1-score of 0.80 (95% CI: 0.77–0.82). CONCLUSIONS: Artificial intelligence–assisted diagnosis of acute or chronic otitis media in children may generate value for patients, families, and the health care system by improving point-of-care diagnostic accuracy. With a small training data set composed of intraoperative images obtained at time of tympanostomy tube insertion, our neural network was accurate in predicting the presence of a middle ear effusion in pediatric ear cases. This diagnostic accuracy performance is considerably higher than human-expert otoscopy-based diagnostic performance reported in previous studies.
Clinical effectiveness of shockwave therapy in lateral elbow tendinopathy: systematic review and meta-analysis:

Objective:To evaluate the effectiveness of extracorporeal shockwave therapy compared with other interventions on pain, grip strength and disability in patients with lateral elbow tendinopathy.Data ...
Integrative Radiomics Models To Predict Biopsy Results For Negative Prostate MRI

Multi-parametric MRI (mpMRI) is a powerful non-invasive tool for diagnosing prostate cancer (PCa) and is widely recommended to be performed before prostate biopsies. Prostate Imaging Reporting and Data System version (PIRADS) is used to interpret mpMRI. However, when the pre-biopsy mpMRI is negative, PI-RADS 1 or 2, there exists no consensus on which patients should undergo prostate biopsies. Recently, radiomics has shown great abilities in quantitative imaging analysis with outstanding performance on computer-aid diagnosis tasks. We proposed an integrative radiomics-based approach to predict the prostate biopsy results when pre-biopsy mpMRI is negative. Specifically, the proposed approach combined radiomics features and clinical features with machine learning to stratify positive and negative biopsy groups among negative mpMRI patients. We retrospectively reviewed all clinical prostate MRIs and identified 330 negative mpMRI scans, followed by biopsy results. Our proposed model was trained and validated with 10-fold cross-validation and reached the negative predicted value (NPV) of 0.99, the sensitivity of 0.88, and the specificity of 0.63 in receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. Compared with results from existing methods, ours achieved 11.2% higher NPV and 87.2% higher sensitivity with a cost of 23.2% less specificity.
Climate Resilience and Private Law's Duty to Adapt

This Article presents a historical, evidentiary, and normative case for a private tort against public utilities for failure to adjust operational and planning decisions to new conditions brought about by climate change. As an extension of the traditional utility duty to serve, the tort duty to adapt includes obligations of reasonable notice of service interruption, avoidance of unnecessary power outages, and updating technologically available standards in operations and planning to encompass the foreseeable risks of climate change. Modern examples of extreme weather service outages, hurricanes, and wildfires are surveyed to demonstrate an evidentiary basis for judicial recognition of a tort duty for public utilities to take reasonable safety precautions to reduce adaptation risks. A private law duty to adapt for public utilities complements existing regulation in addressing rapidly emerging risks presented by climate change.
Opioid Prescribing after Carpal Tunnel Release: Analysis from the Michigan Collaborative Hand Initiative for Quality in Surgery.

BACKGROUND Little is known regarding the national practice patterns for postoperative opioid prescribing after carpal tunnel release, which is one of the most common surgical procedures performed. The authors sought to assess the rate of opioid prescribing after carpal tunnel release and patient-, surgeon-, and practice-level predictors of opioid prescriptions after surgery. METHODS The authors conducted a cohort study from the Michigan Collaborative Hand Initiative for Quality in Surgery, a national consortium of nine practices with 33 surgeons who prospectively collect data for the purpose of quality improvement. Patients were included who underwent carpal tunnel release between July 1, 2019, and December 31, 2019. Multilevel logistic regression was used to determine practice and surgeon variation in postoperative opioid prescribing related to patient characteristics. RESULTS Of the 648 patients with 792 operative hands, 52.9 percent were prescribed a postoperative opioid. After controlling for patient, surgeon, and practice characteristics, endoscopic carpal tunnel releases were associated with a decreased odds of receiving a postoperative opioid prescription compared to open carpal tunnel releases (OR, 0.19; 95 percent CI, 0.07 to 0.52). However, 57.4 percent of the variation in opioid prescribing was explained at the practice level, and 4.1 percent of the variation was explained at the surgeon level. CONCLUSIONS Practice-level prescribing patterns play a substantial role in opioid prescribing. National efforts should consider development of evidence-based opioid prescribing recommendations for carpal tunnel release that target all prescribers, including trainees and advanced practice providers. In addition, endoscopic carpal tunnel release may offer an opportunity to minimize opioid prescribing. The authors recommend that providers encourage the use of nonopioid analgesia and limit opioid prescriptions after carpal tunnel release. CLINICAL QUESTION/LEVEL OF EVIDENCE Risk, III.
A 100 /spl mu/W, 1.9GHz oscillator with fully digital frequency tuning

A 1.9GHz CMOS digitally controlled oscillator (DCO) is designed in a standard 0.13/spl mu/m process, targeting ultra low power frequency synthesizers for wireless sensor network transceivers. The oscillator exploits subthreshold device operation and a low 0.5V supply to achieve power consumption of only 100/spl mu/W. A novel switched capacitor configuration is employed to realize a frequency resolution of 200 kHz with a tuning range of 150MHz. High quality bondwire inductors also reduce power consumption. The phase noise is -114dBc/Hz at 1MHz offset, achieving performance competitive with other published work.
Quality impacts on JIT performance measures: a factory simulation

The authors first present a rationale for understanding JIT (just-in-time) as an interdependent set of elements which must be properly meshed into a coherent system. They then document the interaction between the JIT-K (JIT with kanban) system and the level of quality by measuring the system characteristics as the level of quality changes. These system characteristics include system output, utilization rates, and in-process inventory at work stations and buffers. In addition, the authors measure the effect of the number of kanbans per stage on the system. The results of this study can provide a strategy for the implementation of JIT allowing for small, but continuing quality improvements over time. >
Malignant retroperitoneal fibrosis, congenital hepatic fibrosis and massive ascites in a young adult—a diagnostic dilemma

Malignant retroperitoneal fibrosis, congenital hepatic fibrosis and massive ascites in a young adult—a diagnostic dilemma
U.S. Cotton Subsidies: Drawing a Fine Line on the Degree of Decoupling

The impact of the U.S. cotton policy depends on several interrelated factors: how input subsidies interact with producer price supports, producer price expectations, and the extent to which price supports are decoupled from production. Cotton subsidies have a direct impact on world cotton prices, depending on the extent to which price supports are coupled to production. At one extreme, there is a price impact of 12.4% when producers make decisions at the loan rate, but the average price impact is 20.9% when producers make decisions based on the target price. Results are presented for intermediate cases of decoupling.
Textile Characteristics Affecting the Release of Soil during Laundering1 Part II: Fluorochemical Soil-Release Textile Finishes

The behavior of fluorochemical surface finishing agents is examined with reference to several of the parameters which govern the ease with which soil is removed from textiles by laundering. Special...
Energy demand and interfuel substitution in India

Abstract This paper applies a translog price possibility frontier to a pooled sample in order to measure the extent of energy substitution effects in the commercial sector in India. The results indicate that relative changes in energy prices have significant effects on energy consumption.
Easy partial fraction expansion with multiple poles

A rational function with multiple poles is expanded via an auxiliary function. Such an expansion is easy, and in its successive steps it is done by inspection, with residues that occur in negative pairs.
Spectral change space representation for invariant material tracking in hyperspectral images

An invariant material tracking algorithm requires a representation that is unaffected by environmental factors. An airborne hyperspectral sensor measures a radiance spectrum that, in general, will vary with atmospheric conditions and the scene geometry. Material tracking algorithms that directly match hyperspectral sensor measurements are therefore limited under general conditions. In this paper, we develop a low- dimensional subspace representation that can be used for material tracking over wide variation in environmental parameters. The material subspace is constructed using a single radiance spectrum from an unknown target material measured under unknown conditions. We demonstrate the subspace representation with a set of material identification experiments on HYDICE imagery from the Forest Radiance I and Desert Radiance II collections.
Dosimetric verification of intensity-modulated fields

The optimization of intensity distributions and the delivery of intensity‐modulated treatments with dynamic multi‐leaf collimators(MLC) offer important improvements to three‐dimensional conformal radiotherapy. In this study, a nine‐beam intensity‐modulated prostate plan was generated using the inverse radiotherapy technique. The resulting fluence profiles were converted into dynamic MLC leaf motions as functions of monitor units. The leaf motion pattern data were then transferred to the MLCcontrol computer and were used to guide the motions of the leaves during irradiation. To verify that the dose distribution predicted by the optimization and planning systems was actually delivered, a homogeneous polystyrene phantom was irradiated with each of the nine intensity‐modulated beams incident normally on the phantom. For each exposure, a radiographicfilm was placed normal to the beam in the phantom to record the deposited dose. The films were calibrated and scanned to generate 2‐D isodose distributions. The dose was also calculated by convolving the incident fluence pattern with pencil beams. The measured and calculated dose distributions were compared and found to have discrepancies in excess of 5% of the central axis dose. The source of discrepancies was suspected to be the rounded edges of the leaves and the scattered radiation from the various components of the collimation system. After approximate corrections were made for these effects, the agreement between the two dose distributions was within 2%. We also studied the impact of the ‘‘tongue‐and‐groove’’ effect on dynamic MLCtreatments and showed that it is possible to render this effect inconsequential by appropriately synchronizing leaf motions. This study also demonstrated that accurate and rapid delivery of realistic intensity‐modulated plans is feasible using a dynamic multi‐leaf collimator.
Trends and Characteristics of Ph.D. Degrees in Agricultural Economics in the United States

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the trends that have occurred in the number of and some of the characteristics of recipients of Ph.D. degrees in agricultural economics in the United States in recent years. It includes an updating of work I initiated five years ago (Schrimper 1981a,b,c, 1982). The latest information used in the previous work included degrees awarded through 1980. This paper is based on an additional three years of information. This allows a detailed examination of changes over the last nine years as well as comparison with the earlier tabulations. Also, information for three more institutions, Arizona, Rhode Island, and Yale, has been included. As previously, the major source of information is listings of Ph.D. recipients for the previous year in the May issues of this Journal. The cooperation of several individuals contacted to obtain missing information and answer questions about data for various years is gratefully acknowledged. Without their help, the information would have been incomplete and comparisons over time would have been meaningless. The latest data available for developing this paper was the list of 1983 graduates. Even this information is somewhat dated, however, since it reflects admission, financial assistance, and enrollment decisions made at least five years ago. The first part of this paper summarizes changes that have occurred in total output of Ph.D. degrees in agricultural economics as well as distributional adjustments among regions, individual institutions, and between domestic and foreign students. The second part focuses on some characteristics of domestic students who received Ph.D. degrees in agricultural economics. It contains information about where individuals received their undergraduate training, and geographical and institutional migration for graduate training. Similar types of information about foreign Ph.D. students is included in the third section of the paper. Finally, a short summary and conclusions section is provided.
Induction of apoptosis and necrosis following pulsed laser irradiation of intracellular pigment microparticles

Absorbing microparticles can be used for targeted cell killing when irradiated by short laser pulses. The physical mechanism of cell killing is the generation of transient microcavitation bubbles around the heated particles.
Activity patterns of yellow baboons (Papio cynocephalus) in the amboseli National Park, Kenya

Abstract Quantitative data on the ways in which adult yellow baboons ( Papio cynocephalus ) distribute their time among various activities are presented. Baboons spend approximately three-quarters of their time feeding or moving. Interseasonal variability in the proportions of time spent feeding and socializing is statistically significant, as are individual differences in the proportions of time spent feeding and moving. Although males and females spend approximately equal proportions of time in each of the activity states, the distributions of the durations of activity bouts show significant intersexual differences in central tendency and dispersion that are consistent with a model of intersexual differences in overall foraging strategies. Consistent diurnal patterns are conspicuously absent, and the relationship between this finding and other ecological variables is discussed.
Massively parallel feature selection: an approach based on variance preservation

Advances in computer technologies have enabled corporations to accumulate data at an unprecedented speed. Large-scale business data might contain billions of observations and thousands of features, which easily brings their scale to the level of terabytes. Most traditional feature selection algorithms are designed and implemented for a centralized computing architecture. Their usability significantly deteriorates when data size exceeds tens of gigabytes. High-performance distributed computing frameworks and protocols, such as the Message Passing Interface (MPI) and MapReduce, have been proposed to facilitate software development on grid infrastructures, enabling analysts to process large-scale problems efficiently. This paper presents a novel large-scale feature selection algorithm that is based on variance analysis. The algorithm selects features by evaluating their abilities to explain data variance. It supports both supervised and unsupervised feature selection and can be readily implemented in most distributed computing environments. The algorithm was implemented as a SAS High-Performance Analytics procedure, which can read data in distributed form and perform parallel feature selection in both symmetric multiprocessing mode (SMP) and massively parallel processing mode (MPP). Experimental results demonstrated the superior performance of the proposed method for large scale feature selection.
Can Medicaid Long-term Care Expenditures for the Elderly Be Reduced?

During 1995 and 1996 Congress debated numerous proposals that would dramatically reduce the rate of growth in Medicaid spending, initiatives that inevitably would affect long-term care for the elderly. There are three broad strategies that states might use to control long-term care spending-bring more private resources into the long-term care system to offset Medicaid's expenditures, reform the delivery system so that care can be provided more cheaply, and reduce Medicaid eligibility, reimbursement, and service coverage. Based on the available research evidence, there is little evidence to suggest that large savings are possible without adversely affecting beneficiaries' eligibility, access to services, and quality of care received.
Staggered prices in a utility-maximizing framework

Abstract We develop a model of staggered prices along the lines of Phelps (1978) and Taylor (1979, 1980), but utilizing an analytically more tractable price-setting technology. ‘Demands’ are derived from utility maximization assuming Sidrauski-Brock infinitely-lived families. We show that the nature of the equilibrium path can be found out on the basis of essentially graphical techniques. Furthermore, we demonstrate the usefulness of the model by analyzing the welfare implications of monetary and fiscal policy, and by showing that despite the price level being a predetermined variable, a policy of pegging the nominal interest rate will lead to the existence of a continuum of equilibria.
Orientation-Independent Atomization Heat Transfer Cell for Thermal Management of Microelectronics

This paper describes a new gravity-independent version of a two-phase cooling, closed heat transfer cell, similar to a thermosyphon. The cooling method is based upon a Vibration-Induced Droplet Atomization, or VIDA, process that can generate small liquid droplets inside a closed cell and propel them onto a heated surface. The VIDA technique involves the violent break-up of a liquid film into a shower of droplets by vibrating a piezoelectric actuator and accelerating the liquid film at resonant conditions. A piezoelectric diaphragm pump is used to supply a constant stream of liquid to the VIDA atomizer enabling gravity-independent operation. The atomized secondary droplets continually coat the heated surface with a thin liquid film that evaporates. The resulting vapor is condensed on internal surfaces of the heat transfer cell as well as the liquid working fluid. The condensed liquid is collected and returned to the atomizing driver by the piezoelectric diaphragm pump. A small-scale gravity independent VIDA atomizer generating spherical droplets of relatively uniform diameter and having sufficient momentum to reach the remotely located heated source has been constructed. Initial test data described in this study include the operating characteristics of the VIDA spray and heat transfer capabilities. Heat dissipation levels as high as 195 W have been measured from an evaporation surface held below 120°C at atmospheric pressure.Copyright © 2003 by ASME
VKORC1 polymorphisms, haplotypes and haplotype groups on warfarin dose among African–Americans and European–Americans

Background: Although the influence of VKORC1 and CYP2C9 polymorphisms on warfarin response has been studied, variability in dose explained by CYP2C9 and VKORC1 is lower among African–Americans compared with European–Americans. This has lead investigators to hypothesize that assessment of VKORC1 haplotypes may help capture a greater proportion of the variability in dose for this under-represented group. However, the inadequate representation of African–Americans and the assessment of a few VKORC1 polymorphisms have hindered this effort. Methods: To determine if VKORC1 haplotypes or haplotype groups explain a higher variability in warfarin dose, we comprehensively assessed VKORC1 polymorphisms in 273 African–Americans and 302 European–Americans. The influence of VKORC1 polymorphisms, race-specific haplotypes and haplotype groups on warfarin dose was evaluated in race-stratified multivariable analyses after accounting for CYP2C9 (*2, *3, *5, *6 and *11) and clinical covariates. Results: VKORC1 explained 18% ...
Theoretical and Experimental Jet Mixing of an Eccentric Primary Jet in a Constant Area Duct

Abstract : The problem of turbulent mixing between two compressible streams in a constant duct area and with eccentric primary flow jet is analyzed. A theoretical analysis is presented for the velocity profiles. It was found that these profiles with or without eccentricity are almost the same if they are referred to the axis of the primary flow jet. An experimental investigation for the case of eccentricity ratio (e/R) equal to 0.25, given area ratios 3 and 7.16 and with a velocity ratio ranging from 1.2 to 2.9 was performed. The theoretical analysis shows good agreement with the experimental results, especially for cases with high area ratios and with low velocity magnitudes. (Author)
Multivalent Interactions of Calcium/Calmodulin-dependent Protein Kinase II with the Postsynaptic Density Proteins NR2B, Densin-180, and α-Actinin-2

Dendritic calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII) is dynamically targeted to the synapse. We show that CaMKIIalpha is associated with the CaMKII-binding proteins densin-180, the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor NR2B subunit, and alpha-actinin in postsynaptic density-enriched rat brain fractions. Residues 819-894 within the C-terminal domain of alpha-actinin-2 constitute the minimal CaMKII-binding domain. Similar amounts of Thr286-autophosphorylated CaMKIIalpha holoenzyme [P-T286]CaMKII bind to alpha-actinin-2 as bind to NR2B (residues 1260-1339) or to densin-180 (residues 1247-1495) in glutathione-agarose cosedimentation assays, even though the CaMKII-binding domains share no amino acid sequence similarity. Like NR2B, alpha-actinin-2 binds to representative splice variants of each CaMKII gene (alpha, beta, gamma, and delta), whereas densin-180 binds selectively to CaMKIIalpha. In addition, C-terminal truncated CaMKIIalpha monomers can interact with NR2B and alpha-actinin-2, but not with densin-180. Soluble alpha-actinin-2 does not compete for [P-T286]CaMKII binding to immobilized densin-180 or NR2B. However, soluble densin-180, but not soluble NR2B, increases CaMKII binding to immobilized alpha-actinin-2 by approximately 10-fold in a PDZ domain-dependent manner. A His6-tagged NR2B fragment associates with GST-densin or GST-actinin but only in the presence of [P-T286]CaMKII. Similarly, His6-tagged densin-180 or alpha-actinin fragments associate with GST-NR2B in a [P-T286]CaMKII-dependent manner. In addition, GST-NR2B and His6-tagged alpha-actinin can bind simultaneously to monomeric CaMKII subunits. In combination, these data support a model in which [P-T286]CaMKIIalpha can simultaneously interact with multiple dendritic spine proteins, possibly stabilizing the synaptic localization of CaMKII and/or nucleating a multiprotein synaptic signaling complex.
Structural domains of endogenous murine leukemia virus gp70s containing specific antigenic determinants defined by monoclonal antibodies.

Abstract Eight distinct antigenic determinants, or epitopes (labeled a-h) were identified on endogenous ecotropic murine leukemia virus (MuLV) gp70s using a series of murine and rat monoclonal antibodies. These epitopes were characterized by their distribution patterns in a panel of cloned MuLVs, and by their localization in fragments of gp70 generated either by spontaneous breakdown of purified gp70, or by controlled proteolysis of gp70 in solubilized virions. A major 32K carboxy terminal fragment was formed which contained epitopes b, c, and f. This fragment also possessed the p15(E) disulfide linkage site, and contained approximately four complex (type 1) carbohydrate chains. An amino terminal 35K fragment contained epitopes a, d, g, and h, and possessed two glycosylated sites, including a site which occasionally retained an endoglycosidase H-sensitive oligosaccharide chain. A related 49K fragment was also obtained which included the entire 35K region and contained an additional sequence bearing epitope e. In a series of dual-tropic MCF-type viruses studied, only those epitopes located in the 32K fragment were ever retained, indicating that for these recombinant viruses at least a portion of that domain was derived from the ecotropic parent. A model is presented indicating the likely orientation of these fragments and their structural characteristics.
AC instrumentation amplifier for bioimpedance measurements

The input impedance and common-mode rejection ratio requirements for an amplifier for bioimpedance measurements are analyzed, considering the capacitive components of the electrode-skin contact impedance. An AC-coupled instrumentation amplifier that fulfills those requirements, and provides both interference and noise reduction and a zero phase shift over a wide frequency band without using broadband operational amplifiers, is described. >
Degenerate Evidence and Rowe’s New Evidential Argument from Evil

Critique de la forme simplifiee de l'argument anti-theiste et evidentiel du mal developpe par W. Rowe. Denoncant l'inconsistance de la conclusion et des structures formelles de cette nouvelle version de l'argument, l'A. met en evidence la petitition de principe qui consiste a deduire la premisse de la conclusion qu'il s'agit de defendre, ainsi que l'utilisation d'un principe proportionnel faible concernant la probabilite de l'information. L'A. rejette l'evidence degeneree sur laquelle repose l'argument et deplore l'absence d'une demonstration de la preference de l'atheisme sur le theisme. C'est sur ce dernier point en particulier que se concentre la reponse de W. Rowe a l'A. dans l'article suivant intitule «Reponse a Plantinga» (in «Nous», XXXII, 4, 1998, pp. 545-22)