cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Introduction to Fisher (1922) On the Mathematical Foundations of Theoretical Statistics

This rather long and extraordinary paper is the first full account of Fisher’s ideas on the foundations of theoretical statistics, with the focus being on estimation. The paper begins with a sideswipe at Karl Pearson for a purported general proof of Bayes’ postulate. Fisher then clearly makes a distinction between parameters, the objects of estimation, and the statistics that one arrives at to estimate the parameters. There was much confusion between the two since the same names were given to both parameters and statistics, e.g., mean, standard deviation, correlation coefficient, etc., without an indication of whether it was the population or sample value that was the subject of discussion. This formulation of the parameter value was certainly a critical step for theoretical statistics [see, e.g., Geisser (1975), footnote on p. 320 and Stigler (1976)]. In fact, Fisher attributed the neglect of theoretical statistics not only to this failure in distinguishing between parameter and statistic but also to a philosophical reason, namely, that the study of results subject to greater or lesser error implies that the precision of concepts is either impossible or not a practical necessity. He sets out to remedy the situation, and remedy it he did. Indeed, he did this so convincingly that for the next 50 years or so almost all theoretical statisticians were completely parameter bound, paying little or no heed to inference about observables.
Chapter 4 The Brittle-Ductile Transition in Feldspar Aggregates: An Experimental Study

The micromechanical processes associated with the brittle-to-crystal plastic transition in anorthosite have been investigated. Axial compression experiments have been conducted on Bushveld anorthosite at a constant displacement rate of 10-5s-1 over a wide range of pressures (250-1500 MPa), temperatures (25-1200°C), and total strains (1-60% shortening). A combination of optical and transmission electron microscopic observations shows that there is a progression with increasing pressure and temperature from brittle faulting, to macroscopically ductile cataclastic flow, to dislocation creep. The style of faulting changes from a wide zone ∼30°C σ1 to at of obliquely connected more axial strands at lower pressures and temperatures, to a very sharp, planar surface at ∼40°C to σ1 at pressures > 750 MPa or temperatures > 500°C. The transition from faulting to distributed cataclastic flow depends on temperature, pressure, and water content; at pressures of 1000-1500 MPa it is fairly abrupt, occurring between 250 and 300°C. Unlike any other material described to date, this transition involves a change in the nature and distribution of the microcracks without any crystal plasticity. Cataclastic flow occurs by distributed cracking, primarily on cleavages, with a length and spacing down to <0.1 /mi, and formation of micro-crush zones. Optically this is manifested as multiple and commonly conjugate grain-scale faulting, with a very strong and patchy undulatory extinction. The transition from cataclastic flow to dislocation creep is quite broad; at a pressure of 1000 MPa mechanical twins are first noted at 600°C, dislocations are first activated at 700°C, and steady-state dislocation creep with no cracking requires temperatures ≥ 1100°C. Microstructures typical of cataclastic flow have been described in low-grade naturally deformed feldspathic rocks. The existence of a broad regime of cataclastic flow in feldspars is facilitated by the ease of cracking on the cleavages and the difficulty of dislocation glide and climb. The brittle-ductile transition in many portions of the crust where feldspars form the stress-supporting matrix may reflect the transition from faulting to cataclastic flow, and the grain size reduction and fluid influx resulting from this deformation mechanism may promote strain weakening.
Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug choice and adverse outcomes in clopidogrel users: A retrospective cohort study.

Objective To examine the comparative safety of individual NSAIDs when given concomitantly with clopidogrel. Methods We conducted a retrospective cohort study using Medicaid claims from five US states during 1999-2010, supplemented with Medicare claims for dual-enrollees. The exposure of interest was the first concomitant use of clopidogrel and one of the 10 selected NSAIDs after a 1-year baseline period. The outcomes were: all-cause mortality; acute myocardial infarction (AMI)/ischemic stroke; and gastrointestinal bleeding (GIB)/intracranial hemorrhage (ICH). We calculated the hazard ratio of each NSAID for each outcome, with ibuprofen as the reference drug, using high-dimensional propensity score-adjusted proportional-hazards regression models. Results Of 1,060,412 clopidogrel users, 268,114 concomitant NSAID users met inclusion/exclusion criteria, contributing 48,483 person-years. We observed 2,463 deaths, 2,822 AMI/ischemic stroke outcomes, and 2,620 GIB/ICH outcomes, for unadjusted incidence rates of 50.8, 58.6, and 54.3 per 1,000 person-years, respectively. Compared with ibuprofen and controlling for potential confounders, rofecoxib (hazard ratio [HR] = 1.22; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.04, 1.43) and valdecoxib (HR = 0.66; 95% CI: 0.48, 0.92) showed higher and lower hazards of mortality, respectively. Indomethacin showed an increased AMI/ischemic stroke hazard (HR = 1.38; 95% CI: 1.09, 1.74). For GIB/ICH, indomethacin (HR = 2.18; 95% CI: 1.74, 2.73), diclofenac (HR = 1.65; 95% CI: 1.39, 1.97), naproxen (HR = 1.47; 95% CI: 1.28, 1.70), and rofecoxib (HR = 1.26; 95% CI: 1.08, 1.48) showed higher hazards, and valdecoxib (HR = 0.73; 95% CI: 0.55, 0.98) showed a lower hazard. Conclusion The bleeding risks of individual NSAIDs varied more markedly than thrombotic risks when used concomitantly with clopidogrel. Moreover, bleeding risk and thrombotic risk among individual NSAIDs did not appear to be inversely related to each other in the presence of clopidogrel. Further studies are needed to elucidate underlying biological mechanisms and help clinical decision-making for a better NSAID choice in clopidogrel users.
Adolescents' First Tobacco Product: Results from a Nationally Representative Survey.

Objectives To inform targeted prevention efforts, it is important to understand which tobacco products are used first and associations by demographic characteristics. Methods We conducted a nationally-representative random digit-dial telephone survey of 1125 adolescents ages 13-17. Adolescents reported the first tobacco product they tried, and we analyzed associations with demographic variables. Results Two-hundred nineteen (18.6%) adolescents reported ever using a tobacco product. The most common first product tried was cigarettes (35.4%), followed by electronic nicotine delivery systems (24.3%), smokeless tobacco (17.7%), cigars (11.4%), and waterpipe (11.2%). Weighted multivariable logistic regression analyses showed girls were 2.7 times more likely than boys to report cigarettes as their first product, Hispanic/Latinos were 5.0 times more likely than non-Hispanic/Latinos to report cigarettes, and those whose mothers had at least a 4-year college degree were 6.1 times more likely to report waterpipe compared to those whose mothers had less than a 4-year college degree. Conclusions Nearly one in 5 adolescents had tried a tobacco product. Although cigarettes were the most frequently reported product, most youth initiated with a non-cigarette tobacco product, and demographic differences were found. These findings point towards potential regulatory policies, including targeted campaigns, which might deter adolescents from initiating tobacco use.
Charitable Giving and Utilitarianism: Problems and Priorities

Charitable giving is redistributive at heart. It is thus surprising that scholarship on the charitable tax subsidies focuses on the efficient and pluralistic production of public goods while largely ignoring distributive justice concerns. Existing scholarship and current law leave crucial questions unanswered: How should we prioritize among charities? Should subsidized groups be required to help the poor? Are criticisms that charities do too little to help the poor valid? This Article is part of a series that examines how each common theory of distributive justice would answer these questions. More specifically, this Article explores utilitarianism and the charitable tax subsidies using the definitions of “utility” most common in legal scholarship: income, happiness, preference satisfaction, and objective-list well-being. It demonstrates that a careful application of utilitarianism as used by tax scholars (which equates income with utility) suggests that charities assisting the underprivileged deserve special treatment. This contrasts with the current structure, which does not prioritize such organizations, and contradicts the conventional wisdom concerning utilitarianism and charitable giving. Initially, other interpretations of utilitarianism common in the legal literature (focusing on preference satisfaction, subjective well-being, and objective lists) appear to support the conventional wisdom that groups assisting the poor are not special. Each of these approaches, however, has intrinsic drawbacks when it comes to prioritizing among organizations and answering the recurring distributional questions facing the non-profit sector. But viewing these approaches together highlights a commonality: donative organizations that help the poor likely enhance welfare under all of the common welfare-based theories of justice. This is also true of traditional income-based utilitarianism, the leximin, and the most common equality of opportunity theories. This overlap suggests that tax policy should favor such groups, thus reconciling distributional concerns with pluralism by emphasizing what various moral theories have in common.
Intravascular Hematopoiesis in Chorionic Villi

Mitotic figures can be found in the immature blood cells in the fetal vessels of placental tissue in abortion specimens. Intravascular mitoses were noted only in the absence of degenerative changes and during the first trimester of gestation. This finding suggests that the vascular component is a normal site of hematopoiesis during this stage of development.
Bar dissolution and bulge formation

We discuss the general classification of secular evolution in galaxies into terms of stellar dynamics. We present two-dimensional N-body simulations of a disk galaxy in which a central mass concentration is imposed after the formation of a strong bar. We show that the bar dissolves almost completely if the central mass concentration exceeds approximately 5% of the combined disk and bulge mass. This behavior can be understood in terms of previous work on single particle orbits (Hasan & Norman 1990, Hasan et al. 1993); the sustaining orbits aligned with the bar become stochastic as the Inner Lindblad resonance moves out past the minor axis of the bar. We present arguments that bar formation and subsequent thickening and dissolution will create a bulge-like stellar distribution from the central part of the disk. We discuss the predictions of such a model including the point that barred Ses with sufficient central mass concentrations should be building bulges now. We emphasize that bulges can come from a number of different mechanisms and we discuss the current evidence at both high and low redshift.
A Theoretical Study of the Unimolecular Dissociation of Diborane

Presently, we are involved in a theoretical study of the thermal pyrolysis of diborane (B2H6), with an emphasis on the early stages of the reaction. It is generally agreed that the first three elementary reactions which occur in this process are $$ {{\rm{B}}_2}{{\rm{H}}_6} \to 2{\rm{B}}{{\rm{H}}_3} $$ (1) $$ {\rm{B}}{{\rm{H}}_3} + {{\rm{B}}_2}{{\rm{H}}_6} \to {{\rm{B}}_3}{{\rm{H}}_9} $$ (2) $$ {{\rm{B}}_3}{{\rm{H}}_9} \to {{\rm{B}}_3}{{\rm{H}}_7} + {{\rm{H}}_2} $$ (3) Kinetic studies have shown that the initial reaction rate is 3/2 order in diborane [1], implicating (2) or (3) as the rate-determining step. Results of early investigations by Clark and Pease [2] and by Bragg et al. [3] favored assignment of step (2) as rate limiting. Enrione and Schaeffer [4], however, studied the isotopic dependence of the rate, and found that it was substantially decreased when perdeuterated diborane was used (k H/k D = 5). On the basis of this result, and calculations which indicated that B2D6 was dissociated to a far greater extent than B2H6 under the reaction conditions, it was predicted that (3) represented the rate-limiting process. Preliminary calculations [5], however, have predicted that the activation energy for reaction (2) is larger than that for (3). Efforts to calculate these barriers at very high levels of theory are currently underway. If the results of the more primitive calculations are substantiated in these studies, it is conceivable that (2) represents the true slow step in the reaction sequence.
On the Complexity of Min-Max Optimization Problems and their Approximation

The computational complexity of optimization problems of the min-max form is naturally characterized by ∏ 2 P , the second level of the polynomial-time hierarchy. We present a number of optimization problems of this form and show that they are complete for the class ∏ 2 P . We also show that the constant–factor approximation versions of some of these optimization problems are also complete for ∏ 2 P .
The Architecture of Functional Neural Circuits in the Cat Retina

The cat retina has been a model retina for anatomical, physiological and pharmacological studies to elucidate its functional organization for at least a quarter of a century now. Over most of this time Hisako Ikeda has been at the forefront of research on ganglion cell function in this retina in both normal, abnormal and developmental conditions. Thus, it is fitting that in this paper which is to be amongst contributions from colleagues and friends of Hisako Ikeda I describe my research on the anatomical organization of the cat retina. This research fits very well with her physiological findings and represents our mutual interests in understanding how cat ganglion cell receptive fields are organized.
Micromechanics of Brittle Deformation Processes

The present study recapitulates author’s work on the micromechanical modelling of the brittle deformation processes in materials such as ceramics and concrete. The essential aspects of the deformation process, i.e. the nucleation and growth of microcracks, are related to the microstructural fabric. The effectiveness of the proposed modelling is illustrated on several examples. A close fit of experimentally measured stress-strain curves is obtained without introduction of physically unidentifiable “fitting” parameters.
Heterologous expression of the human polybromo-1 protein in the methylotrophic yeast Pichia pastoris

The human polybromo-1 protein (BAF180) is a known driver mutation in clear cell renal cell carcinoma, where it is mutated in approximately 40% of cases. BAF180 is the chromatin-targeting subunit of the PBAF complex. BAF180 has six bromodomains, two BAH domains, and one HMG box. Bromodomains are known to recognize acetylated-lysines on histones and play a role in nucleosome recognition. BAH domains are required for ubiquitination of PCNA, a key regulator of DNA damage. The putative HMG box, if functional, may be involved in DNA-binding. While the binding specificities of individual bromodomains have been studied by our lab and others, the results have failed to reach a consensus. The acetyl-histone binding features of the full-length protein is unknown and is the motivation for this work. The hypothetical HMG and BAH domains have not been studied and the actual function of these regions is currently unknown. Thus, the precise interactions of this large and complex protein are not well-studied. Advances in understanding this large protein have been hindered by the inability to express and purify recombinant full-length BAF180 protein. Currently, only phenomenological studies using BAF180 expressed in mammalian cells have been conducted. Here, we report the successful expression, purification of full-length biologically active BAF180 protein using the GAP promoter in the heterologous host Pichia pastoris. The ability to express full-length and mutated BAF180 will allow for biophysical binding studies. Knowledge of the binding interactions is critical for us to understand the role of BAF180 in cancer development and its progression.
Microstructure design using graphs

Thin films with tailored microstructures are an emerging class of materials with applications such as battery electrodes, organic electronics, and biosensors. Such thin film devices typically exhibit a multi-phase microstructure that is confined, and show large anisotropy. Current approaches to microstructure design focus on optimizing bulk properties, by tuning features that are statistically averaged over a representative volume. Here, we report a tool for morphogenesis posed as a graph-based optimization problem that evolves microstructures recognizing confinement and anisotropy constraints. We illustrate the approach by designing optimized morphologies for photovoltaic applications, and evolve an initial morphology into an optimized morphology exhibiting substantially improved short circuit current (68% improvement over a conventional bulk-heterojunction morphology). We show optimized morphologies across a range of thicknesses exhibiting self-similar behavior. Results suggest that thicker films (250 nm) can be used to harvest more incident energy. Our graph based morphogenesis is broadly applicable to microstructure-sensitive design of batteries, biosensors and related applications. Representing microstructures with graphs, and mapping their properties mathematically, can help improve material properties. Morphogenesis is the process of optimizing performance in devices; representing the candidate structure with an appropriate mathematical framework in order to probe their properties and then mapping the structure to a property. Current approaches rely on computationally heavy methods for both stages, but now a team from Iowa State University and University at Buffalo simplify the process by representing the structures with labelled, weighted, undirected graphs. On this basis, one can create a “surrogate” model through generic physics graph descriptors (e.g. path lengths, domain sizes) and weighting functions for the particular property of interest. This approach reveals new designs for improved organic solar cells, but could expanded to other devices.
Evaluation of cerebrovascular reserve in patients with cerebrovascular diseases using resting-state MRI: A feasibility study.

Abstract Purpose To demonstrate the feasibility of mapping cerebrovascular reactivity (CVR) using resting-state functional MRI (fMRI) data without gas or other challenges in patients with cerebrovascular diseases and to show that brain regions affected by the diseases have diminished vascular reactivity. Materials and methods Two sub-studies were performed on patients with stroke and Moyamoya disease. In Study 1, 20 stroke patients (56.3 ± 9.7 years, 7 females) were enrolled and resting-state blood‑oxygenation-level-dependent (rs-BOLD) fMRI data were collected, from which CVR maps were computed. CVR values were compared across lesion, perilesional and control ROIs defined on anatomic images. Reproducibility of the CVR measurement was tested in 6 patients with follow-up scans. In Study 2, rs-BOLD fMRI and dynamic susceptibility contrast (DSC) MRI scans were collected in 5 patients with Moyamoya disease (32.4 ± 8.2 years, 4 females). Cerebral blood flow (CBF), cerebral blood volume (CBV), and time-to-peak (TTP) maps were obtained from the DSC MRI data. CVR values were compared between stenotic brain regions and control regions perfused by non-stenotic arteries. Results In stroke patients, lesion CVR (0.250 ± 0.055 relative unit (r.u.)) was lower than control CVR (0.731 ± 0.088 r.u., p = 0.0002). CVR was also lower in the perilesional regions in a graded manner (perilesion 1 CVR = 0.422 ± 0.051 r.u., perilesion 2 CVR = 0.492 ± 0.046 r.u.), relative to that in the control regions (p = 0.005 and 0.036, respectively). In the repeatability analysis, a strong correlation was observed between lesion CVR (r2 = 0.91, p = 0.006) measured at two time points, as well as between control CVR (r2 = 0.79, p = 0.036) at two time points. In Moyamoya patients, CVR in the perfusion deficit regions delineated by DSC TTP maps (0.178 ± 0.189 r.u.) was lower than that in the control regions (0.868 ± 0.214 r.u., p = 0.013). Furthermore, the extent of reduction in CVR was significantly correlated with the extent of lengthening in TTP (r2 = 0.91, p = 0.033). Conclusion Our findings suggested that rs-BOLD data can be used to reproducibly evaluate CVR in patients with cerebrovascular diseases without the use of any vasoactive challenges.
Student Network Analysis: A Novel Way to Predict Delayed Graduation in Higher Education

We present a prediction model to detect delayed graduation cases based on student network analysis. In the U.S. only 60% of undergraduate students finish their bachelors’ degrees in 6 years [1]. We present many features based on student networks and activity records. To our knowledge, our feature design, which includes conventional academic performance features, student network features, and fix-point features, is one of the most comprehensive ones. We achieved the F-1 score of 0.85 and AUCROC of 0.86.
Increased risk of hematoma with uninterrupted warfarin in patients undergoing implantation of subcutaneous implantable cardioverter defibrillator.

BACKGROUND The perioperative management of anticoagulation with the use of subcutaneous implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (S-ICD) implantation is still evolving. OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study was to assess whether it is safe to perform S-ICD implantation with uninterrupted warfarin. METHODS This is a multi-center retrospective review of patients undergoing S-ICD implantation between October 1, 2012 and June 30, 2017. Forty-eight patients underwent successful S-ICD implantation during the study period. The most common indication for implantation was primary prevention of sudden cardiac death. In 23 (47.9%) patients, warfarin was continued without any interruption. In 25 (52.1%) patients, warfarin was interrupted prior to implantation. The incidence of clinically significant lateral pocket hematoma was compared in the two groups. RESULTS The mean international normalized ratio was 2.0 ± 0.4 in the uninterrupted group and 1.4 ± 0.4 for the interrupted group. A total of seven patients developed a hematoma at the lateral pocket. No patient developed a hematoma at the parasternal pockets. Six patients in the uninterrupted group (26.1%) and one patient in the interrupted group (0.04%) developed a significant lateral pocket hematoma (P = .04). The concomitant use of dual antiplatelet therapy did not increase the risk of hematoma. There was no significant difference between HASBLED and CHA2 DS2 VASc scores between the groups. None of the patients with a hematoma developed infection or required hematoma evacuation. CONCLUSIONS The uninterrupted use of warfarin in the perioperative period of S-ICD implantation is associated with an increased risk of lateral pocket hematoma.
Noninvasive quantitative magnetization transfer MRI reveals tubulointerstitial fibrosis in murine kidney.

Excessive tissue scarring, or fibrosis, is a critical contributor to end stage renal disease, but current clinical tests are not sufficient for assessing renal fibrosis. Quantitative magnetization transfer (qMT) MRI provides indirect information about the macromolecular composition of tissues. We evaluated measurements of the pool size ratio (PSR, the ratio of immobilized macromolecular to free water protons) obtained by qMT as a biomarker of tubulointerstitial fibrosis in a well-established murine model with progressive renal disease. MR images were acquired from 16-week-old fibrotic hHB-EGFTg/Tg mice and normal wild-type (WT) mice (N = 12) at 7 T. QMT parameters were derived using a two-pool five-parameter fitting model. A normal range of PSR values in the cortex and outer stripe of outer medulla (CR + OSOM) was determined by averaging across voxels within WT kidneys (mean ± 2SD). Regions in diseased mice whose PSR values exceeded the normal range above a threshold value (tPSR) were identified and measured. The spatial distribution of fibrosis was confirmed using picrosirius red stains. Compared with normal WT mice, scattered clusters of high PSR regions were observed in the OSOM of hHB-EGFTg/Tg mouse kidneys. Moderate increases in mean PSR (mPSR) of CR + OSOM regions were observed across fibrotic kidneys. The abnormally high PSR regions (% area) detected by the tPSR were significantly increased in hHB-EGFTg/Tg mice, and were highly correlated with regions of fibrosis detected by histological fibrosis indices measured from picrosirius red staining. Renal tubulointerstitial fibrosis in OSOM can thus be assessed by qMT MRI using an appropriate analysis of PSR. This technique may be used as an imaging biomarker for chronic kidney diseases.
Cognitive Impairment and the Right to Vote: Rethinking the Meaning of Accessible Elections

Persons with cognitive disabilities can face formidable barriers to voting as a result of their disabilities. While some of these barriers are the unavoidable result of those disabilities, others are constructed by third parties. Given the deleterious effects that these constructed impediments may have on the civil rights of the cognitively disabled and on the democratic system of governance, democracies should take affirmative steps to increase the cognitive accessibility of voting systems. Just as democracies have found ways to make voting more accessible to persons with physical disabilities, democracies can and should design voting systems that make voting more accessible to those with cognitive impairments. This article identifies several approaches to doing so and recommends further research to guide such reforms.
Experimental analysis of the effects of bistatic target scattering on synthetic aperture sonar imagery

Downward looking synthetic aperture sonar (SAS) systems, such as those used to detect surficial and buried unexploded ordinance, may use arrays with large spatial extent compared to the depth of the targets they are imaging. With such systems the targets are in the near field of the physical array formed by the projector and receiver. Beamforming algorithms, data representation schemes, and automated target recognition algorithms can benefit from considering the bistatic scattering patterns of targets in this geometry. In downward looking SAS systems, resonant scattering behavior may be used to discriminate targets from clutter because scattering from the sediment-water interface may obscure the geometric scattering response of targets. An experimental analysis of the effects on SAS imagery due to bistatic collection geometries was conducted using an in-air laboratory setup with resonant targets. This data was used to develop a signal processing algorithm that may help improve target localization, detection, and identification by focusing re-radiated resonant energy from targets. Results from the application of this algorithm are compared for an approximately monostatic and a truly bistatic SAS collection geometry using an aluminum pipe target.
Distinct Regulatory and Effector T Cell Metabolic Demands during Graft-Versus-Host Disease

Despite graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) prophylactic agents, the success and wider utilization of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) is limited by GVHD. Increasing donor graft regulatory T cell (Treg):effector T cell (Teff) ratios can substantially reduce GVHD in cancer patients, but pre-HSCT conditioning regimens and GVHD create a challenging inflammatory environment for Treg stability, persistence, and function. Metabolism plays a crucial role in T cell and Treg differentiation, and development of effector function. Although glycolysis is a main driver of allogeneic T cell-driven GVHD, oxidative phosphorylation is a main driver of Treg suppressor function. This review focuses on recent advances in our understanding of Treg metabolism in the context of GVHD, and discusses potential therapeutic applications of Tregs in the prevention or treatment of GVHD in cancer patients.
Poultry genetics and breeding

Abstract Poultry breeding has been one of the most impactful advances in the last 100 years. The role that improved global production of eggs and poultry meat have in reducing global hunger and food insecurity is difficult to overstate. The vast majority of these improvements have come from genetic selection for improved feed efficiency, along with streamlining of the overall production system, and better understanding of poultry nutrition. While the industrial approach to poultry production has created a highly consistent and dependable food source the world over, several problems threaten the long term sustainability of this model - including musculoskeletal and metabolic disorders, welfare concerns, and the need to adapt to a changing climate. In this chapter we trace the history of the poultry genetics enterprise, and how that model provides a platform for adapting to challenges of the future. We also assess the status of the latest technologies available for poultry breeding and discuss the scope of these technologies to counter emerging and future challenges.
The Mughal Past and the Politics of Memorialization in Ahmed Ali's "Twilight in Delhi"

The recent dominance of Hindu nationalist politics has emboldened many in India and the diaspora to call for the realization of an essentially Hindu nation-state, intensifying concerns about the future of the country’s espoused secular ideals and sizeable Muslim minority. In light of ongoing controversies surrounding the status of Mughal-era markers and monuments in the Indian public sphere, this essay argues for renewed attention to Ahmed Ali’s Twilight in Delhi (1940), the first major English-language novel by an Indian Muslim writer, which presciently mourned the saffronization of Indian society and attendant erasure of Muslims from the national imaginary. While Twilight has often been read as an excessively maudlin text about elapsed Mughal hegemony and decaying ashraf [noble] Muslim culture, the essay argues that the novel was invested in the futurity of Delhi and India more broadly. Close examination of Ali’s portrayal of Mughal monuments and the city of Delhi reveals them to be evocative sites of composite Indian belonging, locations that are understood to be both Hindu and Muslim in character. The essay contends that Ali’s novel stands as a corrective to ongoing assertions that Muslims lack an authentic claim to the country—a poignant monumentalization of a plural India when independence was on the horizon.
A Framework for Exploring Small Group Learning in High School Science Classrooms: The Triple Problem Solving Space.

Classroom activities using an inquiry approach often feature students working in small groups to reduce teacher-centeredness and maximize student autonomy. Within science classrooms, group work may mirror modern scientific research: successful interaction among team members (social/relational) that engages probing questioning and creativity (cognitive/content) with emotional attachment to their work (affective). Previous research on small group work in school science focused either on single dimensions of group work—mostly on needed cognitive resources, e.g., knowledge and skills for understanding and addressing the problem—or on the interplay between cognitive and social resources (e.g., science knowledge and capacity to foster group interactions), while the role of affects is relatively unexplored. We propose that group work demands the collective construction of a “triple problem solving space” in which all three dimensions—cognitive/content (the problem to be solved), social/relational (the challenges based on social interactions within the group), and affective (the emotional life of the group)—are developed on a moment-by-moment basis. Assessing whether and to what extent students collectively construct a positive triple problem solving space, we videotaped small groups’ interactions (3–4 students per group) during inquiry-based activities in three ninth grade science classes. Results showed that when a group collectively positions itself positively in terms of social and affective dynamics, it tends to engage effectively in the cognitive aspects of the assigned tasks. The qualitative analysis further highlights the socially-shared regulation processes that involve an ongoing negotiation between intra- and inter-individual resources and which are the result of each group member deploying individual resources along each dimension, monitoring and evaluating their peers’ processes, and adjusting their processes accordingly through integration of information from self and others.
Chapter 28 – Diffusion Imaging of Brain Tumors

Magnetic resonance (MR) diffusion imaging is one of the more recent imaging techniques that have been added to the palette of routinely applied techniques for diagnostic MR imaging of the brain. This chapter discusses the added value of diffusion imaging in diagnostic imaging of brain tumors. First, the most basic and most commonly utilized approach to diffusion imaging is discussed. This approach provides images of tissue-specific, single diffusion coefficients that reflect the aggregate random motion of intra- and extracellular water. Such measurement of the water diffusion coefficient within the tumor permits an approximate categorization of tumor type and, for some tumor types, even definitive diagnosis. These tumor-specific diffusion coefficients are compared with diffusion coefficients of normal brain tissues, secondary changes, stroke, abscess, and fluid-filled cysts. Furthermore, it is discussed how serially obtained diffusion data are useful to document and even predict response to drug or radiation therapy within different areas of a tumor. Then, it is described how the monoparametric description of the MR diffusion signal with a single diffusion coefficient is incomplete and how additional diffusion parameters derived from the analysis of highly diffusion-weighted image data can contribute to the characterization of tumor tissue. Finally, it is reviewed how diffusion tensor imaging, which can measure the orientational dependence of restricted diffusion in white matter, can be gainfully applied to determine white matter integrity in brain tumor patients. Nerve fiber tract visualization based on diffusion tensor data promises to become indispensable for therapy planning and for intraoperative monitoring of surgical procedures. While diffusion imaging provides truly new and different information, it is plagued by low signal-to-noise ratio, coarse spatial resolution, and sometimes geometric deformation. More advanced applications are limited by extraordinarily long scan times.
Palmitic acid accumulation limits methane production in anaerobic co-digestion of fats, oils and grease with municipal wastewater sludge

Abstract Anaerobic co-digestion of fats, oils and grease (FOG) with municipal wastewater sludge offers the opportunity to increase methane yields; yet the impact of FOG on overall process dynamics and the associated microbial communities is not well understood. This study employed lab-scale batch anaerobic co-digestion assays to advance the understanding of the co-digestion process through studying the dynamics of formation and consumption of intermediates along the anaerobic digestion pathway and correlating these to temporal analysis of methanogenic activity as well as end-point microbial community structure. Methane production was delayed during sludge co-digestion with FOG, but not during digestion of sludge alone. Palmitic acid, a long-chain fatty acid (LCFA), accumulated during co-digestion to concentrations above 16 mM, resulting in a lag in methane production. Acetate, hydrogen, and formate, carbon and/or energy sources for methanogens during methane production, did not accumulate during the lag-phase. Expression of the mcrA gene, which encodes the methyl coenzyme M reductase alpha subunit necessary for catalyzing the final step of methanogenesis, increased when co-digesters were spiked with acetate during the lag-phase, indicating no direct total inhibition from palmitic acid to methanogenic activity in assays with a 23% FOG loading (based on total g VS). End-point microbial community analyses revealed distinct community structure and composition differences between co-digestion assays and controls, and between biological replicates with variable responses. The hydrogenotrophic methanogen genus Methanoculleus dominated adapted co-digesters, but not inhibited co-digesters suggesting its importance for adapting to FOG loadings. Palmitic acid accumulation resulting from distinct microbial community composition and structure thus characterizes stalled or inhibited FOG co-digesters.
Impact of disaster exposure severity: Cascading effects across parental distress, adolescent PTSD symptoms, as well as parent-child conflict and communication.

Abstract Rationale Natural disasters are common and have potentially deleterious impacts on individuals, as well as on the relationships among family members (Adams et al., 2015; Paul, 2015). Additionally, caregiver-, offspring-, and family-level outcomes are often correlated following disaster. Objective Thus, longitudinal work is needed to clarify the prospective associations among such constructs following severe disasters. Method The current study included 1,271 adolescents and investigated whether disaster exposure impacted adolescent posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, parent distress, and family parent-child conflict and communication, as well as whether/how these factors influenced one another over time. This study used a dynamic cascade model and included adolescents (ages 12-17) and caregivers present for tornadoes in Missouri and Alabama in 2011. These participants were part of a larger study involving a web-based intervention. Results Over and above covariates (i.e., adolescent age, gender, race, treatment, prior trauma, adolescent alcohol use and depressive symptoms, and household income), families who experienced greater severity of disaster exposure had adolescents who reported more baseline PTSD symptoms and caregivers who reported more distress at baseline. Conclusions Providing tangible resources (e.g., housing, food, transportation, essential possessions) to families post-disaster may reduce parent distress and adolescent PTSD symptoms. Additionally, reducing adolescent PTSD symptoms may prospectively improve relationships between parents and adolescents.
Integrated on-site collection and detection of airborne microparticles for smartphone-based micro-climate quality control

The rapid emergence of air-mediated diseases in a micro-climate demands on-site monitoring of airborne microparticles. The on-site detection of airborne microparticles becomes more challenging as the particles are highly localized and change dynamically over time. However, most existing monitoring systems rely on time-consuming sample collection and centralized off-site analysis. Here, we report a smartphone-based integrated microsystem for on-site collection and detection that enables real-time detection of indoor airborne microparticles with high sensitivity. The collection device, inspired by the Venturi effect, was designed to collect airborne microparticles without requiring an additional power supply. Our systematic analysis showed that the collection device was able to collect microparticles with consistent negative pressure, regardless of the particle concentration in the air sample. By incorporating a microfluidic-biochip based on inertial force to trap particles and an optoelectronic photodetector into a miniaturized device with a smartphone, we demonstrate real-time and sensitive detection of the collected airborne microparticles, such as Escherichia coli, Bacillus subtilis, Micrococcus luteus, and Staphylococcus with a particle-density dynamic range of 103–108 CFU mL−1. Because of its capabilities of minimal-power sample collection, high sensitivity, and rapid detection of airborne microparticles, this integrated platform can be readily adopted by the government and industrial sectors to monitor indoor air contamination and improve human healthcare.
Active Reprioritization of the Reading Worklist Using Artificial Intelligence Has a Beneficial Effect on the Turnaround Time for Interpretation of Head CT with Intracranial Hemorrhage.

Implementation of an algorithm for the detection of intracranial hemorrhage on non–contrast-enhanced head CT studies into the clinical workflow reduced wait time, and thus overall turnaround time, ...
To Lien Strip or Not to Lien Strip: Fourth Circuit Blesses Controversial 'Chapter 20' Valueless Lien Stripping in In re Davis

The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit became the first circuit court to hold that a debtor can “strip off” a wholly valueless lien in a “Chapter 20” bankruptcy in Branigan v. Davis (In re Davis). Addressing an issue that has divided bankruptcy courts, district courts, and bankruptcy appellate panels across the country, the Fourth Circuit armed debtors with a powerful (and controversial) tool to restructure (or avoid) debt — even if the debtor is ineligible for a bankruptcy discharge. The Davis decision, moreover, brings into the crosshairs the Supreme Court’s infamous interpretation of “allowed secured claim” from Dewsnup v. Timm. This article therefore examines Chapter 20 lien stripping and the Davis decision. Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 lien stripping are also evaluated. The article concludes with an analysis demonstrating how Davis may allow the Supreme Court to revisit its much-maligned statutory interpretation from Dewsnup v. Timm.
Open momentum space method for the Hofstadter butterfly and the quantized Lorentz susceptibility

We develop a generic $\mathbf{k}\ifmmode\cdot\else\textperiodcentered\fi{}\mathbf{p}$ open momentum space method for calculating the Hofstadter butterfly of both continuum (moir\'e) models and tight-binding models, where the quasimomentum is directly substituted by the Landau level (LL) operators. By taking a LL cutoff (and a reciprocal lattice cutoff for continuum models), one obtains the Hofstadter butterfly with in-gap spectral flows. For continuum models such as the moir\'e model for twisted bilayer graphene, our method gives a sparse Hamiltonian, making it much more efficient than existing methods. The spectral flows in the Hofstadter gaps can be understood as edge states on a momentum space boundary, from which one can determine the two integers (${t}_{\ensuremath{\nu}},{s}_{\ensuremath{\nu}}$) of a gap $\ensuremath{\nu}$ satisfying the Diophantine equation. The spectral flows can also be removed to obtain a clear Hofstadter butterfly. While ${t}_{\ensuremath{\nu}}$ is known as the Chern number, our theory identifies ${s}_{\ensuremath{\nu}}$ as a dual Chern number for the momentum space, which corresponds to a quantized Lorentz susceptibility ${\ensuremath{\gamma}}_{xy}=eB{s}_{\ensuremath{\nu}}$.
Plant Nutrient Losses from Soils by Water Erosion

Publisher Summary The chapter reviews the pertinent data relating to water erosion, losses of organic matter and plant nutrients from cultivated soils. Several conclusions can be drawn from the foregoing review. Significant losses of organic matter occurs with the concomitant removal of nitrogen and phosphorus. Large amounts of potassium are removed, but only a small percentage of this is in an exchangeable or plant-available form. Available data indicate that calcium and magnesium losses are of minor importance. Sulfur loss data are meager, but there is an indication that relatively significant amounts of sulfur may be carried in solution by runoff water. Data reporting losses of soluble salts of applied nutrients are insufficient for evaluation of the true economic importance of these losses under modern practices of high-level fertilization.
Thermal Conductivities for Sintered and Sphere-Pac Li2O and γ-LiAlO2 Solid Breeders with and Without Irradiation Effects

Thermal conductivities (k,keff) have been estimated for sintered and sphere-pac Li2O and γ-LiAlO2 with and without neutron irradiation effects. The estimation is based on (a) data from unirradiated...
Path Analysis Models Of An Autonomous Agent In A Complex Environment

We seek explanatory models of how and why AI systems work in particular environments. We are not satisfied to demonstrate performance, we want to understand it. In terms of data and models, this means we are not satisfied with descriptive summaries, nor even with predictive models. We want causal models. In this brief abstract we will present descriptive, predictive and causal models of the behavior of agents that fight simulated forest fires. We will describe the shortcomings of descriptive and predictive models, and summarize path analysis, a common technique for inducing causal models.
Robust Control for Power System Transient Stability

The complexity of power system transients as well as a wide range of operating regimes are beyond practical limitations of modeling techniques used in control design. Thus, in order to provide reliable system operation, a controller must be insensitive to modelling errors. A study of control design for transient stabilization of interconnected power systems is presented here as viewed by the power system engineer. The initial design phase is based on a simplified two machine equivalent model of the original multimachine Western North American Power System. Kharitonov polynomial approach is employed for the initial parameter tuning. This controller is next tested and "fine-tuned" on the 2nd order swing equation with time-varying parameters, numerically implemented using MAT-LAB. Final controller performance evaluation takes place in the original network using the power industry standard: Electro-Magnetical Transient Program.
Learning for Another: From Self-Interest to Altruism:

This qualitative study offers an examination of the learning experiences of six individuals, each of whom initially learned for self-interested purposes, but later experienced a shift in their desire and pursued learning to benefit others. We conducted interviews that described this phenomenon and provided insight into the following question: What is the experience of a learner who transitions from learning out of self-interest to learning for the sake of another? Findings of this study include narrative case summaries for each participant and a cross-case analysis that includes six major themes regarding participants’ transition to altruistic forms of learning: humility as a prerequisite, communal learning, emphasis on the success of others, becoming more self-confident, becoming a more effective learner, and becoming more other centered. Overall, participants in this study found the most meaning by helping recipients achieve their own growth and development rather than by merely accomplishing tasks.
Integrating automated diagnosis into the testing and failure analysis operations

The authors have integrated an AD system into the manufacturing flow for several key semiconductor products at Texas Instruments and have found the results to be both accurate and beneficial. The number of devices diagnosed to date remains relatively small, and further work will be required in order to perform AD on a larger scale. It is believed that AD system accuracy could be further improved through the use of nonclassical fault models such as bridging faults. Another useful feature would be the addition of a capability to generate patterns specifically for the purpose of distinguishing between faults, and to be able to generate those patterns "on the fly" as a device is being diagnosed. Finally, diagnosis based on IDDQ testing may prove to be an effective isolation technique.