cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Education & Entrepreneurship: Implications for Contemporary Microfinance.

In world regions receiving direct foreign aid, beneficiaries of aid often lack the education required to remove themselves from poverty. Micro-lending refers to the initiation of small loans to the neediest of borrowers who are unable to secure traditional financing from financial intermediaries. In order for micro-lending to thrive as a viable alternative to traditional government aid, borrowers must not only receive a loan, but also an education in business to fully equip borrowers with necessary resources to establish and operate a prosperous business entity. The authors will argue for the provision of increased educational resources and discuss the disparities between the US model of education and that of third-world nations. Furthermore, the authors will prescribe steps to develop educational materials and train micro-credit borrowers to better guarantee the viability of microfinance.
Phylogenetic analysis in the anomaly zone.

The concatenation method has been widely used as a means of combining data to estimate phylogenetic trees (Huelsenbeck et al. 1996a, 1996b; Glazko and Nei 2003). However, simulation studies have shown that the maximum likelihood (ML) estimate of the species tree for concatenated sequences may be statistically incon sistent if the gene trees are highly heterogeneous (Ko laczkowski and Thornton 2004; Kubatko and Degnan 2007). Recently, Degnan and Rosenberg (2006) defined an "anomaly zone"?a set of short internal branches in species trees that will generate gene trees that are discor dant with the species tree more often than gene trees that are concordant. Kubatko and Degnan (2007) went on to show that when DNA sequences are generated from gene trees simulated from species trees in the anomaly zone, as well as from species trees slightly outside this zone but still with short internal branches, the ML esti mate of the species tree for the concatenated sequences can be inconsistent, resulting in increasing certainty in the wrong species tree. These studies were all performed with a molecular clock on rooted gene and species trees within the variation realized in stochastic simulations of DNA sequences under the Jukes and Cantor (1969) model of nucleotide substitution. They applied the ML method with a clock to recover phylogenetic trees from their simulated concatenated data sets.
Interactions between South American sea lions Otaria flavescens (Shaw) and salmon farms in southern Chile

By means of surveys in 48 salmon farms in Chile, and the analysis of fish mortality in 23, the results showed that attacks by the South American sea lion, Otaria flavescens, were periodical at a daily and seasonal scale, and because of their natural nocturnal feeding behaviour, were more frequent at night and in fall–winter seasons. The attacks varied markedly between the farms studied. No relation was found between the intensity of attacks, the distance to the nearest colony of sea lions and the population in the colony. Differences found between farms could be because of the different protective devices used, namely anti-predator nets, acoustic harassment devices (AHDs) and fibreglass models of killer whales, and the way in which they were used. Of these devices, only the anti-predator net achieved a permanent reduction in sea lion attacks. Both AHDs and fibreglass killer whales were inefficient in the short term.
Convergence performance of binary adaptive detectors

Convergence performance results associated with the transient of the performance measures (probabilities of false alarm and detection) for three multiple-observation binary adaptive detectors are presented. The multiple-observation binary adaptive detector consists of a selected single-observation adaptive detector followed by a binary integrator/detector (J out of M detector). Three types of single-observation adaptive detectors are considered: nonconcurrent mean level adaptive detection (MLAD), concurrent MLAD, and the generalized likelihood ratio test (GLRT). The desired input signal is modeled as a Swerling II target and the input noises as Gaussian random variables (RVs). Detection performance P/sub D/ of each binary adaptive detector is evaluated as a function of the number of input channels N, the number of independent input sample vectors-per-channel used to estimate the unknown input covariance matrix, the order of the binary detector M, the desired probability of false alarm P/sub F/, and the matched filter output signal-to-noise(SIN) power ratio. Tables of detection performance are provided that will aid in specifying the optimal J* for the J out of M detector and finding the number of input samples-per-channel K* necessary to achieve a 3 dB loss in optimal performance for a given P/sub D/, P/sub F/, M, N, and single-observation detector configuration. Significantly, it was found that K* and J* are relatively invariant of the single-observation detector configuration and the chosen P/sub D/. >
PATERNAL OCCUPATIONAL EXPOSURE TO ELECTROMAGNETIC FIELDS AND NEUROBLASTOMA IN OFFSPRING

Investigators in Texas have reported an association between paternal employment in jobs linked with exposure to electromagnetic fields and risk of neuroblastoma in offspring. In an attempt to replicate this finding, the authors conducted a case-control study in Ohio. A total of 101 incident cases of neuroblastoma were identified through the Columbus (Ohio) Children's Hospital Tumor Registry. All cases were born sometime during the period 1942-1967. From a statewide roster of birth certificates, four controls were selected for each case, with individual matching on the case's year of birth, race, and sex, and the mother's county of residence at the time of the (index) child's birth. Multiple definitions were employed to infer the potential for paternal occupational exposure to electromagnetic fields from the industry/occupation statements on the birth certificates. Case-control comparisons revealed adjusted odds ratios ranging in magnitude from 0.5 to 1.9. For two of the exposure definitions employed--both of which are similar to one used by the Texas investigators--the corresponding odds ratios were modestly elevated (odds ratios = 1.6 and 1.9). Notably, the magnitude of these odds ratios is not inconsistent with the Texas findings, where the exposure definition referred to yielded an odds ratio of 2.1. Because the point estimates in this study are imprecise, and because the biologic plausibility of the association is uncertain, the results reported here must be interpreted cautiously. However, the apparent consistency between two independent studies suggests that future evaluation of the association is warranted.
Assembling a distributed fused information-based human-computer cognitive decision making tool

A human presented with a variety of displays is expected to fuse data to obtain information. An effective presentation of information would assist the human in fusing data. This paper describes a multisensor-multisource information decision making tool designed to augment human cognitive fusion.
Complex Event Processing for Financial Services

Complex event processing (CEP) is an emerging technology for extracting information from distributed message-based systems. CEP is software used to create and deploy applications that process large volumes of incoming messages or events, analyze those messages or events in various ways, and respond to conditions of interest in real-time. This technology allows users of a system to specify the information that is of interest to them. This paper presents an over-view of Complex Event Processing applied to the domain of Financial Services demonstrated using a CEP product called AMiT (Active Middleware Technology). Two case studies (in the banking and the Insurance industries) are introduced in order to demonstrate the special use of the CEP concept in the Financial Services domain and the advantages both on built-time and run-time. The various usages of CEP for BAM, messaging, decision-making in Financial Services applications express the increasing role of CEP in intelligent event-driven Financial Services solutions.
Proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy reveals neuroprotection by oral minocycline in a nonhuman primate model of accelerated NeuroAIDS.

Background: Despite the advent of highly active anti-retroviral therapy (HAART), HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders continue to be a significant problem. In efforts to understand and alleviate neurocognitive deficits associated with HIV, we used an accelerated simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) macaque model of NeuroAIDS to test whether minocycline is neuroprotective against lentiviral-induced neuronal injury. Methodology/Principal Findings: Eleven rhesus macaques were infected with SIV, depleted of CD8+ lymphocytes, and studied until eight weeks post inoculation (wpi). Seven animals received daily minocycline orally beginning at 4 wpi. Neuronal integrity was monitored in vivo by proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy and post-mortem by immunohistochemistry for synaptophysin (SYN), microtubule-associated protein 2 (MAP2), and neuronal counts. Astrogliosis and microglial activation were quantified by measuring glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) and ionized calcium binding adaptor molecule 1 (IBA-1), respectively. SIV infection followed by CD8+ cell depletion induced a progressive decline in neuronal integrity evidenced by declining N-acetylaspartate/creatine (NAA/Cr), which was arrested with minocycline treatment. The recovery of this ratio was due to increases in NAA, indicating neuronal recovery, and decreases in Cr, likely reflecting downregulation of glial cell activation. SYN, MAP2, and neuronal counts were found to be higher in minocyclinetreated animals compared to untreated animals while GFAP and IBA-1 expression were decreased compared to controls. CSF and plasma viral loads were lower in MN-treated animals. Conclusions/Significance: In conclusion, oral minocycline alleviates neuronal damage induced by the AIDS virus.
Prospects for Containing Conflict in the Former Second World

The authors wish to thank Antonia Handler Chayes and Abram Chayes for the challenge to develop this argument for a working group on conflict prevention in Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union.
Osmotic volume flow in the proximal tubule of Necturus kidney.

Volume changes due to osmotic flow in the distal portion of proximal tubules of Necturi were measured by the split oil drop technique. In agreement with previous findings no volume flow was induced by NaCl concentrations close to 60 mM. The tubule wall was found to be permeable to plasma electrolytes, which have an apparent reflection coefficient of 0.69. The mean apparent hydraulic conductivity was 0.33 x 10-11 cm3/dyne sec, comparable with other epithelia. A number of lipid-insoluble nonelectrolytes of widely varying molecular size had apparent reflection coefficients of about 0.5. In view of the insensitivity to molecular size it seems likely that apparent reflection coefficients determined from tubular volume changes depend primarily on the porosity of the intercellular barrier closest to the lumen and give little information about the subsequent fate of the test substances.
Accuracy assessment of georectified aerial photographs: Implications for measuring lateral channel movement in a GIS

Aerial photographs are commonly used to measure planform river channel change. We investigated the sources and implications of georectification error in the measurement of lateral channel movement by testing how the number (6–30) and type (human versus natural landscape features) of ground-control points (GCPs) and the order of the transformation polynomial (first-, second-, and third-order) affected the spatial accuracy of a typical georectified aerial photograph. Error was assessed using the root-mean-square error (RMSE) of the GCPs as well as error in 31 independent test points. The RMSE and the mean and median values of test-point errors were relatively insensitive to the number of GCPs above eight, but the upper range of test-point errors showed marked improvement (i.e., the number of extreme errors was reduced) as more GCPs were used for georectification. Using more GCPs thus improved overall georectification accuracy, but this improvement was not indicated by the RMSE, suggesting that independent test-points located in key areas of interest should be used in addition to RSME to evaluate georectification error. The order of the transformation polynomial also influenced test-point accuracy; the second-order polynomial function yielded the best result for the terrain of the study area. GCP type exerted a less consistent influence on test-point accuracy, suggesting that although hard-edged points (e.g., roof corners) are favored as GCPs, some soft-edged points (e.g., trees) may be used without adding significant error. Based upon these results, we believe that aerial photos of a floodplain landscape similar to that of our study can be consistently georectified to an accuracy of approximately F5 m, with ~10% chance of greater error. The implications of georectification error for measuring lateral channel movement are demonstrated with a multiple buffer analysis, which documents the inverse relationship between the size of the buffers applied to two channel centerlines and the magnitude of change detected between them. This study demonstrates the importance of using an independent test-point analysis in addition to the RSME to evaluate and treat locational error in channel change studies. D 2005 Published by Elsevier B.V.
The Vectorcardiographic Diagnosis of Myocardial Infarction

1. The initial, early, and terminal forces associated with ventricular depolarization can be studied in greater detail and more accurately by spatial vectorcardiography than by electrocardiography. 2. The initial, early, and terminal forces are stereotyped in the normal heart, right and left ventricular hypertrophy, and right and left bundle branch block, and are altered in a characteristic way by changes in heart position and rotation. The initial and/or terminal forces help in establishing the position and degree of rotation of the heart. 3. Changes in the initial forces which cannot be explained on the basis of heart position and rotation are diagnostic of septal disease. 4. Changes in the early forces indicate infarction of the free wall of the left ventricle. Localization of infarction is established in reference to the three natural coordinate axes of the body. The abnormal vectors are oriented posteriorly and down in anterior infarction, anteriorly and down in high posterior infarction, up and posteriorly in infero-posterior wall lesions, to the left in lesions close to the interventricular septum, and to the right in lateral wall involvement. Reversal in the direction of inscription of the vectorcardiographic projections frequently results from displacement of the forces, and furnishes valuable additional help in the diagnosis of infarction. Clockwise inscription of the posteriorly placed horizontal projection is diagnostic of anterior infarction, and clockwise inscription of the horizontally placed frontal loop is diagnostic of posterior wall infarction. Download full-size image Figure 1B . Electrocardiogram from same patient. 5. The QRS loop is open in acute infarction, and the position of the end to the beginning of the loop is characteristic in anterior infarction, posterior infarction, acute pericarditis, and right and left ventricular hypertrophy. The T loop is long and narrow in acute, and small and round in healing or old myocardial infarction. 6. Comparison of vectorcardiographic and electrocardiographic interpretation in 50 cases studied at autopsy indicates unqualified superiority of the vectorcardiogram in the diagnosis of myocardial infarction, and right and left ventricular hypertrophy, singly or combined. The vectorcardiogram is superior for localization, and for detecting multiple areas of infarction. This superiority is evident in relation to anterior, posterior, and septal infarction. False vectorcardiographic diagnosis of infarction did not occur in this series. 7. Spatial vectorcardiography is a useful method of examination and its use should be extended.
DISPERSAL OF TRILLIUM SEEDS BY DEER: IMPLICATIONS FOR LONG-DISTANCE MIGRATION OF FOREST HERBS

Theoretical models of plant range expansion require the assumption of occasional long-distance seed-dispersal events to explain post-glacial migration rates. For the many forest herbs whose seeds are dispersed primarily by ants, there are few documented mechanisms of occasional long-distance dispersal, so models of forest-herb migration have been largely phenomenological. Here we show that viable seeds of Trillium grandiflorum, an ant-dispersed forest herb in eastern North America, are dispersed via ingestion and defecation by white-tailed deer. We also use data from the literature on movement patterns and gut retention times to model a deer-generated seed shadow, showing that most seeds dispersed by deer should travel at least several hundred meters from parent plants, and occasionally >3 km. Our results provide a mechanism of long-distance dispersal that has likely contributed to rates of post-glacial migration and post-agricultural forest colonization. Corresponding Editor: M. L. Cain
Clinical Reasoning: A 73-year-old man with diplopia and ataxia

A 73-year-old right-handed man with a history of hypertension and hyperlipidemia presented with an 18-month history of diplopia and unsteady gait. He also noted oscillating vision when turning his head to the left. The diplopia was horizontal and was worse looking at objects on his right or at a distance. Over a year, his balance worsened to the point where he required a walker due to recurrent falls. Six months prior to presentation, he developed dysphagia (liquids more than the solids). He was also noted to have short-term memory problems in the last 3 months. On examination, he had moderate cognitive impairment with a Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) score of 20/30 with predominant deficits in visuospatial functions and language. Glabellar, bilateral palmomental, and snout reflexes were present. The left pupil was surgical and nonreactive to light, and there was mechanical ptosis on the left. He had left exotropia with full eye movements, bilateral horizontal gaze-evoked nystagmus, and upbeat nystagmus on upgaze. Motor strength and tone were normal. He was diffusely hyperreflexic with bilateral extensor plantar responses. Detailed sensory examination was normal. Dysmetria was present bilaterally, more prominent on the left compared to right, with finger to nose testing and finger chase. His gait was ataxic with wide base and a tendency to fall toward the left side. He was unable to tandem walk (video on the Neurology ® Web site at [Neurology.org][1]). Systemic examination was unremarkable. [1]: http://neurology.org/lookup/doi/10.1212/WNL.0000000000001975
The effects of proteins on the proton N.M.R. transverse relaxation times of water: I. Native bovine serum albumin

The major features of N.M.R. transverse water proton relaxation in solutions of native bovine serum albumin can be quantitatively interpreted in terms of fast chemical exchange between water and protein protons. Transverse proton relaxation dispersions are observed as a function of CPMG pulse spacing and spectrometer frequency and are shown to be consistent with the fast exchange of water with NH and OH protons of the amino acid side chains in the protein. The mean first order exchange rate is about 5 × 103 s-1. Although there is evidence that proteins influence the state of the water around them (the so called ‘bound’ water concept) the results obtained suggest that this influences the proton relaxation in a minor way compared to the potent effect of the chemical exchange mechanism.
Comparison of Hertz-Knudsen and Ytrehus Carbon Ablation Rates using a Reactive-Riemann Solver

A mathematical model for ablation via sublimation is developed that combines solid heat transfer, gas dynamics, and phase change processes into a unified set of equations. A Reactive-Riemann solver is developed to solve this system of equations. Two different methods for calculating the ablative mass flux, namely the Hertz-Knudsen equation and the method of Ytrehus, are compared for a simple one-di mensional test case. A two-dimensional axisymmetric case of ablation of a circular-tipped cone is then simulated using the Ytrehus method. A description of the parallel computing a lgorithm is also provided.
Trimetallic Oxygen Carriers CuFeMnO4, CuFeMn2O4, and CuFe0.5Mn1.5O4 for Chemical Looping Combustion

Several trimetallic ferrites with different ratios of Cu, Fe, and Mn were synthesized by direct decomposition method and tested for chemical looping combustion of methane, synthesis gas, and carbon. For comparison, several bimetallic ferrites were also tested, and NiFe2O4 and CuFe2O4 showed the best performance. During a 55-cycle test, trimetallic CuFeMnO4 showed better overall performance than both NiFe2O4 and CuFe2O4, which had shown the best performance among the bimetallic ferrites for CLC of methane. From all the trimetallic oxygen carriers with different atomic ratios of Cu, Fe, and Mn, CuFeMnO4, CuFeMn2O4, and CuFe0.5Mn1.5O4 showed the best performance for CLC of methane. The oxygen carriers CuFeMnO4, CuFeMn2O4, and CuFe0.5Mn1.5O4, even without a support, showed very stable performance during a 100-cycle TGA test. The CuFeMnO4 oxygen carrier also showed excellent performance during a multicycle CLC test with synthesis gas. CuFeMnO4 is also suitable for CLC of a solid fuel, such as carbon, which sho...
Epidermoid cancer of anus and perianus.

Epidermoid or squamous cell cancer is the most frequently encountered of the anoperianal malignant lesions. Perianal epidermoid cancer does not readily metastasize to the regional lymph nodes and responds to conservative treatment—local excision, irradiation and electrocoagulation. However, anal epidermoid cancer may metastasize early and widely. The treatment of choice is radical proctectomy.
Effect of Mg ++ on the reactivity of ribonucleic acid

Die Nukleinsaure des Tabakmosaikvirus kann in zwei Formen vorliegen. In salzfreiem Milieu sind samtliche Aminogruppen frei und reagieren mit Formaldehyd, wahrend in Gegenwart von Mg++ nur etwa 35% reaktionsfahig bleiben. Diese Veranderung, die parallel mit dem hypochromen Effekt einhergeht, deutet darauf hin, dass unter dem Einfluss von Mg++ die Basen gegenseitige Beziehungen eingehen und dadurch dem Molekul eine geordnete raumliche Konfiguration geben.
Retraining investment for U.S. transition from coal to solar photovoltaic employment

Abstract Although coal remains the largest source of electricity in the U.S., a combination of factors is driving a decrease in profitability and employment in the coal-sector. Meanwhile, the solar photovoltaic (PV) industry is growing rapidly in the U.S. and generating many jobs that represent employment opportunities for laid off coal workers. In order to determine the viability of a smooth transition from coal to PV-related employment, this paper provides an analysis of the cost to retrain current coal workers for solar photovoltaic industry employment in the U.S. The current coal industry positions are determined, the skill sets are evaluated and the salaries are tabulated. For each type of coal position, the closest equivalent PV position is determined and then the re-training time and investment are quantified. These values are applied on a state-by-state basis for coal producing states employing the bulk of coal workers as a function of time using a reverse seniority retirement program for the current American fleet of coal-powered plants. The results show that a relatively minor investment in retraining would allow the vast majority of coal workers to switch to PV-related positions even in the event of the elimination of the coal industry.
Doppler Radar Measurements of Turbulence

A first-principle analysis of Doppler radar measurements of turbulence is presented. A set of limited, though practical, conditions are assumed to make the problem more tractable, with the primary condition being the discrete and finite temporal sampling of the radar signals. A theoretical derivation of the Doppler spectrum under these conditions is performed, and the distinction between what the radar actually measures and what results after a theoretical ensemble averaging is delineated. This is an important consideration, as all of the theoretical development in the literature is based upon ensemble averaging. It is shown that in the limit of an infinite number of samples, and after ensemble averaging, the Doppler spectrum can be represented by a sum of Dirac delta distributions and furthermore that the normalized spectrum will equal the probability distribution of the scatterer velocities. We show that the correlation structure of the velocity field manifests itself primarily in the square of the first moment. That is, a correlated field will have a certain degree of patchiness, which leads to variations in the first moments from realization to realization. These theoretical considerations are then studied via simulation. Parameters for a typical airborne X-band Doppler radar are used, and correlated von Karman and uncorrelated random fields are employed. Energy dissipation rate estimates are calculated from the simulated Doppler spectra, and the performance based on moment averaging and spectral averaging is presented. Real-world application of the turbulence measurement methods is then shown with airborne X-band detection of convective turbulence.
Optimal Conformal Cooling Channels in 3D Printed Dies for Plastic Injection Molding

Abstract Reducing the cycle time in plastic injection molding is of significant importance to industry. One approach that has been proposed is to use conformal cooling channels, made possible by 3D printing which allows for greater geometric freedom. In this paper, a systematic approach is proposed to replace traditionally designed straight cooling channels in dies (for plastic injection molding) with optimally designed conformal cooling channels. First, a numerical model is developed to represent the thermal behavior and predict the cycle time. Next, the model is validated experimentally and used in conjunction with DOE (Design of Experiments) to study the effect of different design parameters of the channels on the die performance. Based on this study, an optimal design is identified. Future work includes using DMLS (Direct Metal Laser Sintering) additive manufacturing to print dies with optimal conformal cooling channels for testing and validation.
On the Estimation of Angle Rate in Radar

The direct measurement of the angle rate of moving objects using a radar with a spatially diverse electric field pattern, a measurement analogous to the measurement of the range rate of a moving objects, represents, along with the measurements of range, range rate, and angle, a fourth basic radar measurement. Recently introduced and experimentally demonstrated, the theoretical accuracy of the direct measurement of angle rate is derived in this paper, and it is compared to the measurements of range, range rate, and angle in the context of the optimal signal forms for the best measurement accuracy. Signal forms achieving optimal accuracy for each measurement are discussed; example implementations of high-accuracy measurements are compared to the optimal forms; and the limitations of simultaneous measurements of pairs of measurements are derived. Combining the angle rate measurement with the three other standard radar measurements may provide future radar systems the capability to simultaneously and instantaneously measure the position and 3-D trajectory of moving objects without compromising the accuracy of any individual measurement.
Oxidation of K+ Channels in TBI

The delayed rectifier potassium (K+) channel KCNB1 (Kv2.1), which conducts a major somatodendritic current in cortex and hippocampus, is known to undergo oxidation in the brain but whether this can cause neurodegeneration and cognitive impairment is not known. Here, we used transgenic mice harboring human KCNB1 wild type (Tg-WT) or non-oxidable C73A mutant (Tg-C73A) in cortex and hippocampus, to determine whether oxidized KCNB1 channels affect brain function. Animals were subjected to moderate traumatic brain injury (TBI), a condition characterized by extensive oxidative stress. Dasatinib, an FDA-approved inhibitor of Src tyrosine kinases was used to impinge on the pro-apoptotic signaling pathway activated by oxidized KCNB1 channels. Thus, typical lesions of brain injury, namely inflammation (astrocytosis), neurodegeneration and cell death were markedly reduced in Tg-C73A and dasatinib-treated non-Tg animals. Accordingly, Tg-C73A mice and non-Tg mice treated with dasatinib exhibited improved behavioral outcomes in motor (rotarod) and cognitive (Morris Water Maze) assays compared to control. Moreover, the activity of Src kinases, along with oxidative stress, were significantly diminished in Tg-C73A brains. Together, these data demonstrate that oxidation of KCNB1 channels is a contributing mechanism to cellular and behavioral deficits in vertebrates and suggest a new therapeutic approach to TBI.
How Meyer v. Kalanick Could Determine How Uber and the Sharing Economy Fit into Antitrust Law

Recently, Uber driver (and CEO) Travis Kalanick has been sued under antitrust laws with the plaintiffs arguing that he and the other drivers have engaged in a price-fixing arrangement that violates §1 of the Sherman Act. The case, Meyer v. Kalanick, has not yet been decided. This article will analyze the potential arguments from each side, and eventually make the case for the best reasoning the court should offer for not finding Uber drivers in violation of the Sherman Act. This determination will be based on the merits of the various arguments, how such a decision would fit within the history of antitrust law, and how it would be good precedent for the future. Additionally, there will be an analysis as to why Uber’s place in the sharing economy distinguishes it from previous antitrust violators that the plaintiffs will likely try to analogize it to.
Animal Models of Neonatal Stroke/Ischemia

Perinatal ischemic stroke occurs as frequently in term newborns as in the elderly. Key concepts in adult stroke models have been developed but it was not until establishment of age-appropriate animal models of perinatal hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy and perinatal ischemic stroke that it became apparent that brain immaturity markedly affects mechanisms of ischemic injury and recovery. Studies using these models have revealed that the stage of maturation of excitatory, oxidative, and immune mechanisms, and of the blood–brain barrier, plays a central role in age-specific responses of an immature brain to cerebral ischemia and hypoxia. In this chapter, we will describe relevant stroke rodent models and highlight the impact of maturation on injury subtypes, severity, and evolution.
Using Practical Examples to Motivate the Study of Product Development and Systems Engineering Topics

Most undergraduate mechanical engineering curricula contain one or more courses that provide an introduction to the product design and development process. These courses include some topics that, without the proper motivation, may be perceived by students as being of low relevance. In addition, they also cover topics that may seem to be somewhat abstract and difficult to apply unless they are preceded by examples that clearly illustrate their practical value.The tasks of identifying customer needs and setting target specifications are typical examples of the first scenario described above. In general, engineering students have the notion that the activities of the detailed design phase are the ones that really matter and that those activities are the ones that determine the ultimate success of a product. They are so concerned with designing the physical components of the product correctly that they spend little time and effort in other steps that are necessary to make sure that they are designing the right product.The tasks of concept generation and defining the architecture of a product are good examples of the second scenario mentioned in the first paragraph. Most students quickly proceed to pick a concept that they think is viable without carefully exploring the entire solution space. In addition, when considering relatively complex products, many students don’t spend enough time considering aspects such as defining the interfaces between different components. As a result, student teams end up with a collection of components that are individually well-designed but integrate poorly, and the end product suffers accordingly.Short, introductory examples demonstrating the importance of tasks like the ones mentioned above were created in order to get the attention of students and spark their interest in learning about such topics. These presentations were also created with the intent that they would motivate students to apply what they had learned when designing their own product or system.Through the examples, which corresponded to real-world product development efforts, students were exposed to not just well-designed and well-made products or systems that turned out to be successful, but also to products or systems that failed in the marketplace or experienced significant problems because the designers failed to adequately perform a task such as identifying customer requirements. The latter clearly showcased the importance of such tasks and conveyed the fact that good technical design work can be rendered moot by failing to put the required effort into the early stages of the development of a product or system.This paper presents the general criteria used and the approach followed to select and develop short introductory examples for the topics of identifying customer needs, setting target specifications, concept generation, and systems architecture. It briefly describes the examples selected and presents the results of a pilot assessment that was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of one of those examples.Copyright © 2016 by ASME
A spectral CT denoising algorithm based on weighted block matching 3D filtering

In spectral CT, an energy-resolving detector is capable of counting the number of received photons in different energy channels with appropriate post-processing steps. Because the received photon number in each energy channel is low in practice, the generated projections suffer from low signal-to-noise ratio. This poses a challenge to perform image reconstruction of spectral CT. Because the reconstructed multi-channel images are for the same object but in different energies, there is a high correlation among these images and one can make full use of this redundant information. In this work, we propose a weighted block-matching and three-dimensional (3-D) filtering (BM3D) based method for spectral CT denoising. It is based on denoising of small 3-D data arrays formed by grouping similar 2-D blocks from the whole 3-D data image. This method consists of the following two steps. First, a 2-D image is obtained using the filtered back-projection (FBP) in each energy channel. Second, the proposed weighted BM3D filtering is performed. It not only uses the spatial correlation within each channel image but also exploits the spectral correlation among the channel images. The proposed method is evaluated on both numerical simulation and realistic preclinical datasets, and its merits are demonstrated by the promising results.
Evaluation of alternative approaches for landscape-scale biomass estimation in a mixed-species northern forest

Abstract There is growing interest in estimating and mapping biomass and carbon content of forests across large landscapes. LiDAR-based inventory methods are increasingly common and have been successfully implemented in multiple forest types. Asner et al. (2011) developed a simple universal forest carbon estimation method for tropical forests that reduces the amount of required field measurements. We tested this approach, along with standard regression and Random Forest modeling techniques, in a northern hardwood-dominated watershed in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Additional objectives included assessing the effects of different inventory plot designs and GPS accuracy. The universal model performed poorly in this forested landscape due to the lack of a clear relationship between canopy height and stand basal area. Simple regression modeling also produced poor model fits; the Random Forest models produced somewhat better biomass predictions than either the universal or regression models, and had low predictive power as measured by R2 but root mean squared errors were comparable to those from other studies in complex forests. Effects of positional accuracy from survey vs. resource grade GPS units were slight, as were the effects of varying plot designs, although errors generally increased when larger basal area factors were used.
Noise Analysis of Stable Oscillators

In Chapter 3 we developed a new perturbation analysis technique suitable for stable oscillators. We showed that it is not mathematically consistent to view the perturbed oscillator response as the sum of pure tones (unperturbed oscillator response) and a small deviation. Rather, the perturbed oscillator output should be viewed as a sum of two signals: unperturbed oscillator output phase shifted by α(t) along the limit cycle (Definition 3.4) and a small deviation away from the limit cycle. In case of stochastic perturbations, the oscillator output is a stochastic process which can also be viewed as a sum of two stochastic processes: phase noise and amplitude noise process. Since phase noise is the dominant effect in the oscillator response we will not concentrate on amplitude noise at present. We begin by obtaining a stochastic characterization of the phase deviation α(t) which we use to obtain the time domain and frequency domain characterization of the output of noisy oscillator. We give efficient numerical techniques, both in time and frequency domain for characterization of the output of a noisy oscillator. We conclude this chapter with some examples of electrical circuits which have been analyzed with this technique.
Colorectal cancer prevention: Immune modulation taking the stage.

Abstract Prevention or early detection is one of the most promising strategies against colorectal cancer (CRC), the second leading cause of cancer death in the US. Recent studies indicate that antitumor immunity plays a key role in CRC prevention. Accumulating evidence suggests that immunosurveillance represents a critical barrier that emerging tumor cells have to overcome in order to sustain the course of tumor development. Virtually all of the agents with cancer preventive activity have been shown to have an immune modulating effect. A number of immunoprevention studies aimed at triggering antitumor immune response against early lesions have been performed, some of which have shown promising results. Furthermore, the recent success of immune checkpoint blockade therapy reinforces the notion that cancers including CRC can be effectively intervened via immune modulation including immune normalization, and has stimulated various immune-based combination prevention studies. This review summarizes recent advances to help better harness the immune system in CRC prevention.
Nonhuman primate breath volatile organic compounds associate with developmental programming and cardio-metabolic status

Rodent and nonhuman primate studies indicate that developmental programming by reduced perinatal nutrition negatively impacts life course cardio-metabolic health. We have developed a baboon model in which we feed control mothers (CON) ad libitum while nutrient restricted mothers are fed 70% of ad libitum global feed in pregnancy and lactation. Offspring of nutrient restricted mothers are intrauterine growth restricted (IUGR) at term. By 3.5 years IUGR baboons showed signs of insulin resistance, indicating a pre-diabetic phenotype, in contrast to healthy CON offspring. We hypothesized that a novel breath analysis approach would provide markers of the altered cardio-metabolic state in a non-invasive manner. Here we assess whether exhaled breath volatile organic compounds (VOCs) collected from this unique cohort of juvenile baboons with documented cardio-metabolic dysfunction resulting from in utero programming can be detected from their breath signatures. Breath was collected from male and female CON and IUGR baboons at 4.8 ± 0.2 years (human equivalent ~13 years). Breath VOCs were quantified using a two-dimensional gas chromatography mass spectrometer. Two-way ANOVA, on 76 biologically relevant VOCs identified 27 VOCs (p < 0.05) with altered abundances between groups (sex, birthweight, and sex x birthweight). The 27 VOCs included 2-pentanone, 2-octanone, 2,2,7,7-tetramethyloctane and 3-methyl-1-heptene, which have not previously been associated with cardio-metabolic disease. Unsupervised principal component analysis of these VOCs could discriminate the four clusters defining males, females, CON and IUGR. This study, which is the first to assess quantifiable breath signatures associated with cardio-metabolic programing for any model of IUGR, demonstrates the translational value of this unique model to identify metabolites of programmed cardio-metabolic dysfunction in breath signatures. Future studies are required to validate the translatability of these findings to humans.
Rethink potential risks of toxic emissions from natural gas and oil mining

Studies have showed the increasing environmental and public health risks of toxic emissions from natural gas and oil mining, which have become even worse as fracking is becoming a dominant approach in current natural gas extraction. However, governments and communities often overlook the serious air pollutants from oil and gas mining, which are often quantified lower than the significant levels of adverse health effects. Therefore, we are facing a challenging dilemma: how could we clearly understand the potential risks of air toxics from natural gas and oil mining. This short study aims at the design and application of simple and robust methods to enhance and improve current understanding of the becoming worse toxic air emissions from natural gas and oil mining as fracking is becoming the major approach. Two simple ratios, the min-to-national-average and the max-to-national-average, are designed and applied to each type of air pollutants in a natural gas and oil mining region. The two ratios directly indicate how significantly high a type of air pollutant could be due to natural gas and oil mining by comparing it to the national average records, although it may not reach the significant risks of adverse health effects according to current risk screening methods. The min-to-national-average and the max-to-national-average ratios can be used as a direct and powerful method to describe the significance of air pollution by comparing it to the national average. The two ratios are easy to use for governments, stakeholders, and the public to pay enough attention on the air pollutants from natural gas and oil mining. The two ratios can also be thematically mapped at sampled sites for spatial monitoring, but spatial mitigation and analysis of environmental and health risks need other measurements of environmental and demographic characteristics across a natural gas and oil mining area.
Phase Entrainment and Predictability of Epileptic Seizures

Epilepsy is one of the most common disorders of the nervous system, second only to strokes. We have shown in the past that progressive entrainment between an epileptogenic focus and normal brain areas results to transitions of the brain from chaotic to less chaotic spatiotemporal states, the well-known epileptic seizures. The entrainment between two brain sites can be quantified by the T-index between measures of chaos (e.g., Lyapunov exponents) estimated from the brain electrical activity (EEG) at these sites. Recently, by applying optimization theory, and in particular quadratic zero-one programming, selecting the most entrained brain sites 10 minutes before seizures and subsequently tracing their entrainment backward in time over at most 2 hours, we have shown that over 90% of the seizures in five patients with multiple seizures were predictable [23]. In this communication we show that the above procedure, applied to measures of angular frequency in the state space (average rate of phase change of state) estimated from EEG data per recording brain site over time in one of our patients with 24 recorded seizures, produces very similar results about the predictability of the epileptic seizures (87.5%). This finding implies an interrelation of the phase and chaos entrainment in the epileptic brain and may be used to refine procedures for long-term prediction of epileptic seizures as well as to generate a model of the disorder within the framework of dynamical nonlinear systems.
The Future of Human Rights

This essay summarizes the author’s argument for the recent genesis of international human rights and asks what implications for the future that argument has. The essay lays emphasis on the mobilizational origins of current human rights, and insists on the need to reorient them away from the historically specific and politically minimalist compromise between Utopianism and realism that human rights current represent.
Upper Bound of Ruin Probability for an Insurance Discrete-Time Risk Model with Proportional Reinsurance and Investment

Two upper bounds for ruin probability under the discrete time risk model for insurance controlled by two factors: proportional reinsurance and surplus investment are presented. The latter is of interest because of the assumption that insurers invest some or their entire financial surplus on both the stock and bond markets, for which bond interest rates follow a time – homogeneous Markov chain. In addition, the control of reinsurance and stock investment in each time period are assumed to be constant values. The first upper bound for finite time ruin probability and ultimate ruin probability was derived under the condition that the Lundberg coefficient exists. The second upper bound is for finite time ruin probability and was developed from a new worse than used function. Numerical examples are used to illustrate these results, and the upper bound of ruin probability using real-life motor insurance claims data from a broker is also presented.
Abstract P145: The Bacterial Metabolite Trimethylamine (TMA), but Not Trimethylamine N-Oxide (TMAO), Causes Vascular Contraction

Circulating levels of TMAO are elevated in humans with cardiometabolic diseases. The gut microbiota-initiated TMA/flavin-containing monooxygenase 3 (FMO3)/TMAO pathway has been identified as a pote...