cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Gene therapy progress and prospects: cystic fibrosis

Our first review on progress and prospects in cystic fibrosis (CF) gene therapy was published in this series in October 2002. We now summarize the progress made since then and comment on the prospects for CF gene therapy over the next couple of years. Three clinical trials have been carried out, further supporting the proof-of-principle that gene transfer to the airway epithelium is feasible. Developments in viral and non-viral vectors, as well as recent alternative strategies such as gene repair, trans-splicing and stem cell therapy will be reviewed.
Full length article: Orthogonal Dirichlet polynomials with arctangent density

Let {@l"j}"j"="1^~ be a strictly increasing sequence of positive numbers with @l"1=1. We find a simple explicit formula for the orthogonal Dirichlet polynomials {@f"n} formed from linear combinations of {@l"j^-^i^t}"j"="1^n, associated with the arctangent density. Thus @!"-"~^[email protected]"n(t)@f"m(t)@[email protected](1+t^2)[email protected]"m"n. We obtain formulae for their Christoffel functions, and deduce their asymptotics, as well as universality limits, and spacing of zeros for their reproducing kernels. We also investigate the relationship between ordinary Dirichlet series, and orthogonal expansions involving the {@f"n}, and establish Markov-Bernstein inequalities.
Effect of Triangular Roughness Elements on Pressure Drop and Laminar-Turbulent Transition in Microchannels and Minichannels

Roughness elements affect internal flows in different ways. One effect is a transition from laminar to turbulent flow at a lower Reynolds number than the predicted Re=2300. Initial work at RIT in the subject area was performed by Schmitt and Kandlikar (2005) and Kandlikar et al. (2005), and this study is an extension of these efforts. The channel used in this study is rectangular, with varying separation between walls that have machined roughness elements. The roughness elements are saw-tooth in structure, with element heights of 107 and 117 µm for two pitches of 405 µm and 815 µm respectively. The resulting hydraulic diameters and Reynolds numbers based on the constricted flow area range from 424 µm to 2016 µm and 210 to 2400 respectively. Pressure measurements are taken at sixteen locations along the flow length of 88.9 mm to determine the local pressure gradients. The results for friction factors and transition to turbulent flow are obtained and compared with the data reported by Schmitt and Kandlikar (2005). The roughness elements cause an early transition to turbulent flow, and the friction factors in the laminar region are predicted accurately using the hydraulic diameter based on the constricted flow area.
Array beamforming for long code CDMA under carrier drift

We present a blind array beamforming method for the detection of aperiodic CDMA signals in the presence of an unknown carrier drift. This method employs a differential array beamforming algorithm (DABA), which utilizes the known spreading code of the desired user to estimate the signal subspace under carrier drift. Successful beamforming enables better carrier drift estimation before detecting user data symbols. Simulations are performed in order to compare this method with an existing subspace technique, as well as two baseline (Weiner filter and single element matched filter) detectors.
Secure dynamic adaptive traffic masking

As public internetworks are increasingly used for secure communications, the need grows for end-to-end protection fi'om traffic analysis. The additional protection of Traffic Flow Confidentiality can be detrimental to performance when padding is used to mask traffic patterns. Traffic masking policies that are responsive to system service requirements can improve performance, but secure adaptive traffic masking has to balance performance requirements with system protection requirements. This paper addresses the information leaks that result J~om adaptations in security mechanisms. Introduction and Background Traffic flow confidentiality (TFC) is concemed with hiding communication patterns that, if exploited, could reveal or compromise sensitive information. Sources of traffic flow information that need to be protected are frequency and length of transmittals, origin/destination traffic patterns, and protocol headers (6, 7). TFC is becoming more important as government agencies and private companies are moving away from private networks and using open data networks to meet their needs. While the security of open data networks is a concern, designers of network security are faced with an explosion of worldwide communications that includes increased data rates, universal connectivity, new services, and higher standards for performance. In such environments TFC can meet the growing need for protection from traffic analysis, but can be expensive because traffic masking involves the use of padding. Secure dynamic adaptive traffic masking (S- DATM) contributes to a global vision, providing the capability of operating in a commercial environment via traffic protected by appropriate levels of TFC with minimal impact on other traffic. Traditionally TFC has been provided by bulk encryption between protected sites on dedicated private networks that are no longer practical for wide scale internetwork use (3). Public networks are not only cheaper and more reliable, but have capabilities for end- to-end operational security, including confidentiality, integrity, authentication, and some privacy. Changing protection needs occur as secure hosts move outside of protective gateways, but still require operational security. Some internetwork users need the added privacy of TFC even though it is frequently considered too detrimental to performance to be considered practical (13).
A dual problem in ℌ 2 decentralized control subject to delays

It has been shown that the decentralized ℌ2 model matching problem subject to delay can be solved by decomposing the controller into a centralized, but delayed, component and a decentralized FIR component, the latter of which can be solved for via a linearly constrained quadratic program. In this paper, we derive the dual to this optimization problem, show that strong duality holds, and exploit this to further analyze properties of the control problem. Namely, we determine a priori upper and lower bounds on the optimal ℌ2 cost, and obtain further insight into the structure of the optimal FIR component. Furthermore, we show how the optimal dual variables can be used to inform communication graph augmentation, and illustrate this idea with a routing problem.
Distributing Internet services to the network's edge

In the context of industrial information technology, the Internet and World Wide Web increasingly are seen as a solution to the problem of providing "anywhere, anytime" services. In the classical view of an Internet-enabled IT infrastructure, services are requested and consumed by a user (e.g., a human requesting plant production data from his or her desktop) and data are provided by an origin server (e.g., a Web server located in a plant that can authenticate users, implement encryption, serve data, and source multimedia streams). This rather simplistic view works well if the number of users is small, the complexity of services required is modest, and the real-time response requirements are lax. However, it fails to scale when one accounts for the complexities of modern networking: many simultaneous users, potentially operating in multiple languages; many complex data types, including incompatible display formats; many differing schemes for implementing privacy and security through many combinations of authentication and encryption. In this paper we propose an alternative-a client/edge server/origin server architecture that can distribute some complex data processing and device interface tasks to a network edge device, the NetEdge. We show how this device can support services thought to be useful to the industrial environment, such as language translation, image transcoding, access device adaptation, virus scanning, content assembly, local content insertion, and caching. The proposal is a win-win situation for all participants: industrial content providers need maintain only one copy of their content, yet consumers are provided with richer services and device-independent interfaces. Although the services provided define the utility of the product, the heart of the NetEdge is its rule engine. Rules specify which service requests, crossing specified processing points, invoke which service callouts. We explore how a proxylet interface connects the rule engine, through Java and C APIs, to the callout engine. We close with performance measurements of the NetEdge throughput and latency characteristics.
Shape analysis in the absence of pointers and structure

Shape analyses (Chase et al. 1990, Sagiv et al. 2002) discover properties of dynamic and/or mutable structures. We ask, “Is there an equivalent to shape analysis for purely functional programs, and if so, what ‘shapes’ does it discover?” By treating binding environments as dynamically allocated structures, by treating bindings as addresses, and by treating value environments as heaps, we argue that we can analyze the “shape” of higher-order functions. To demonstrate this, we enrich an abstract-interpretive control-flow analysis with principles from shape analysis. In particular, we promote “anodization” as a way to generalize both singleton abstraction and the notion of focusing, and we promote “binding invariants” as the analog of shape predicates. Our analysis enables two optimizations known to be beyond the reach of control-flow analysis (globalization and super-β inlining) and one previously unknown optimization (higher-order rematerialization).
Mixed Modes Fracture and Fatigue Evaluation for Lithium-Ion Batteries

Lithium ion batteries have become a widely known commodity for satisfying the world’s mobile energy storage needs. But these needs are becoming increasingly important, especially in the transportation industry, as concern for rising oil prices and environmental impact from fossil fuels are pushing for deployment of more electric vehicles (EV) or plug in hybrid-electric vehicles (PHEV) and renewable energy sources. The objective of this research is to obtain a fundamental understanding of degradation mechanisms and rate-capacity loss in lithium-ion batteries through fracture mechanics and fatigue analysis approaches. In this study we follow empirical observations that mechanical stresses accumulate on electrode materials during the cycling process. Crack induced fracturing will then follow in the material, degrading the electrical contact surface area and reducing the capacitance of the battery. A fatigue analysis simulation is applied using ANSYS finite element software coupled with analytical models to alleviate these parameters that play the most pivotal roles in affecting the rate-capacity and cycle life of the lithium-ion battery. Our results have potential to provide new models and simulation tools for clarifying the interplay of structure mechanics and electrochemistry while offering an increased understanding of fatigue degradation mechanisms in rechargeable battery materials. These models can aid manufacturers in the optimization of battery materials to ensure longer electrochemical cycling life with high-rate capacity for improved consumer electronics, electric vehicles, and many other military or space applications.
Network management architecture for the objective airborne network

The objective airborne network (AN) of the future uses a heterogeneous set of physical links (RF, optical/laser, and SATCOM) to interconnect terrestrial, space and highly mobile airborne platforms. The primary communications resources of the network is the air-borne platforms themselves, which self-forms into a network with a dynamic topology - i.e. a mobile ad hoc network. As a war-fighting asset, the objective AN should provide commanders the capability to ascertain the net-work's operational health and status, i.e. network situational awareness. Additionally, AN communications resources should be configurable to meet the commanders' operational objectives. These operational requirements are typically satisfied in terrestrial, wire-line networks by network management (NM) capabilities. However, network management of mobile ad hoc networks is an emerging research area facing many challenges. This paper identifies the management challenges of the AN and outlines an architecture to address these challenges. The proposed architecture is then used to frame the critical research and technology needs the military communications community should address to enable network management of the future AN. This paper was invited for the airborne networking session by Kenneth Stranc, session organizer.
Rapid Simulation of Concentration Profiles in Pulsed Column Contactors Using the Purex Process

AbstractThe mathematical basis for two new computer codes, PULSER and PULMAT, is described. The PULSER code simulates the temporal and steady-state concentration profiles in pulsed column contactors using the Purex process. The CPU times needed for these calculations are at least 50 times less than those using the previously described CUSEP code. This is obtained by recognizing that effects due to pulsing occur on a much faster time scale than those due to steady flow and they can be approximated as occurring instantaneously. Separation of the time scales allows the formulation of simple flow equations for pulsed column contactors. In addition, a matrix method can be devised that makes possible direct calculation of the steady-state concentration profiles, resulting in very short CPU times. The code that performs these calculations is called PULMAT. Both codes have been used to generate concentration profiles in several extraction (A-type) and stripping (E-type) contactors and in a partitioning (B-type) c...
Cost and Its Relation to Value

I. Cost not to be identified with entrepreneur expenses, 531. — Classification of costs, 532. — The objective factor in cost, 534. — II. Cost of production does not govern value, 535. — The function of cost of production, 539. — III. Cost of acquisition underlies demand, 540. — IV. Two factors in decline of price-offers for additional units, 542. — Marshall's objection to the second, 544. — The derived demand schedule, 545. — V. Apparent circuity of the value system, 546. — Multiple valuation the escape, 547. — VI. The value of scarcity-products, 549. — Three cases, 550. — VII. The influence of variations in the objective factors, 554. — Marshall's cost curves, 555. — VIII. Efficiency cost in using labor, 556. — Land, 557. — Professor Bye's reasoning, 558. — Savings, 559. — IX. Special relation of the entrepreneur to market values, 561. — The r61e of profits, 562.
Surface representation using geodesic morphology

A symmetrical axis transform (SAT) using geodesic morphology for 3-D object representation is proposed. The SAT has been previously defined using Euclidean morphological operations. An extension of the SAT to represent arbitrary non-Euclidean surfaces using geodesic operators is described. The concept of a surface skeleton is defined. Initial experimental results are also provided. >
Functional consequences of lidocaine binding to slow-inactivated sodium channels.

Na channels open upon depolarization but then enter inactivated states from which they cannot readily reopen. After brief depolarizations, native channels enter a fast-inactivated state from which recovery at hyperpolarized potentials is rapid ( 1 s). The slow-inactivated state therefore assumes particular importance in pathological conditions, such as ischemia, in which tissues are depolarized for prolonged periods. While use-dependent block of Na channels by local anesthetics has been explained on the basis of delayed recovery of fast-inactivated Na channels, the potential contribution of slow-inactivated channels has been ignored. The principal (alpha) subunits from skeletal muscle or brain Na channels display anomalous gating behavior when expressed in Xenopus oocytes, with a high percentage entering slow-inactivated states after brief depolarizations. This enhanced slow inactivation is eliminated by coexpressing the alpha subunit with the subsidiary beta 1 subunit. We compared the lidocaine sensitivity of alpha subunits expressed in the presence and absence of the beta 1 subunit to determine the relative contributions of fast-inactivated and slow-inactivated channel block. Coexpression of beta 1 inhibited the use-dependent accumulation of lidocaine block during repetitive (1-Hz) depolarizations from -100 to -20 mV. Therefore, the time required for recovery from inactivated channel block was measured at -100 mV. Fast-inactivated (alpha + beta 1) channels were mostly unblocked within 1 s of repolarization; however, slow-inactivated (alpha alone) channels remained blocked for much longer repriming intervals (> 5 s). The affinity of the slow-inactivated state for lidocaine was estimated to be 15-25 microM, versus 24 microM for the fast-inactivated state. We conclude that slow-inactivated Na channels are blocked by lidocaine with an affinity comparable to that of fast-inactivated channels. A prominent functional consequence is potentiation of use-dependent block through a delay in repriming of lidocaine-bound slow-inactivated channels.
Racial/ethnic disparities in public opinion about breastfeeding: the 1999--2000 healthstyles surveys in the United States.

African American women in the United States have been reported to be less likely than whites to initiate and maintain breastfeeding (Li et al. 2002; Ryan 1997). Previous studies examining the basis of racial/ethnic disparities in breastfeeding behaviors mainly involved pregnant and lactating women (Scott 1999; Tan & Jeffery 1995). Because women’s choices of feeding practice are influenced by attitudes of people with whom they have contact (Humphreys et al. 1998), understanding the racial/ethnic disparities in public opinions that shape women’s breastfeeding behaviors is important. The purpose of this study was to examine racial/ethnic disparities in public knowledge about the health benefits of breastfeeding and public perceptions about barriers to breastfeeding.
High dose corticosteroids for treatment of vision loss due to indirect injury to the optic nerve.

Thirty-six patients with vision loss due to indirect injury to the optic nerve were retrospectively studied. Twenty-one had been acutely treated with high-dose intravenous dexamethasone and 15 had not. The visual acuity of 62% of the treated patients and of 33% of the untreated patients improved. This difference was not statistically significant. However, of those patients whose vision did improve, the vision of those on steroids began to improve earlier (P less than .05).
Separation of diamondoids in crude oils using molecular sieving techniques to allow compound-specific isotope analysis

Abstract Correlation of condensates with other condensates or oils has been a long standing problem due to the significantly depleted abundance of biomarkers in condensates. On the contrary, diamondoids are thermally stable and are present in relatively high abundance in highly mature oils and condensates. Hence, stable carbon isotope measurements of individual diamondoids using compound specific isotope analysis (CSIA) can potentially assist in solving this correlation problem (He, M., Moldowan, J.M., Nemchenko-Rovenskaya, A., Peters, K.E., 2012. Oil families and their inferred source rocks in the Barents Sea and northern Timan-Pechora Basin, Russia. American Association of Petroleum Geologists Bulletin 96, 1121–1146). However, CSIA analysis requires well resolved diamondoid concentrates, a daunting task due to the low concentration of diamondoids relative to non-diamondoids in oils and even condensates generated from carbonates and coals. The diamondoids co-elute substantially with the abundant iso- and cycloalkanes in gas chromatography (GC) chromatograms of oils. Here, isolation of adamantane and its methylated derivatives was achieved by way of concurrent desorption and adsorption processes in a column with two segments. The top segment contained 60 A pore silica gel powder with a pre-adsorbed hydrocarbon fraction containing the diamondoid mixture. The bottom segment was filled with a microporous adsorbent – a form of a commercial zeolite, β CP814 E∗, heated at 550 °C for 13 h under open air conditions to give a uniform pore size of ca. 9.5 A. With the larger micropore size (9.5 A) than the molecular dimensions of adamantane (7.4 A), molecular sieving to exclude diamondoids through the microporous adsorbent segment is induced by an entropy barrier arising from the mismatch between the bulky shape of diamondoid molecules and the elliptical shape of pore entrance in this adsorbent. It was also found that the separation was sensitive to operating temperature. The impact of pore size and shape of the microporous adsorbent on the quality of the diamondoid separation is addressed, as well as diamondoid abundance in the original hydrocarbon fraction.
Assay of secretin and cholecystokinin concentrates.

SummaryThe assay of secretin and CCK concentrates are affected by cannulation of the pancreatic duct and the gall bladder, respectively. The ratio of dosages of a vasodilatin-free standard concentrate (SI) to the test fraction yielding the same number of drops of pancreatic juice in a 10-minute interval is determined, and the value is taken as the secretin unitage contained in 1 mg of test fraction. Similarly, the dosage ratio of this standard to the unknown giving the same gall bladder contraction is equated to the units of CCK per mg of unknown. Good reproducibility is obtained in a large number of dogs.The dose-response curves for CCK and their significance are discussed.
A case study in innovative outreach--combining training, research, and technology transfer to address real-world problems.

Outreach, training, technology transfer, and research are often treated as programmatically distinct activities. The interdisciplinary and applied aspects of the Superfund Basic Research Program offer an opportunity to explore different models. A case study is presented that describes a collaborative outreach effort that combines all of the above. It involves the University of California's Davis and Berkeley program projects, the University of California Systemwide Toxic Substances Research and Teaching Program, the U.S. Navy's civilian workforce at the former Mare Island Naval Shipyard, Vallejo, California (MINSY), a Department of Defense (DoD) Environmental Education Demonstration Grant program, and the Private Industry Council of Napa and Sonoma counties in California. The effort applied a Superfund-developed technology to a combined waste, radium and polychlorinated biphenyl contamination, stemming from a problematic removal action at an installation/restoration site at MINSY. The effort demonstrates that opportunities for similar collaborations are possible at DoD installations.
Seismotectonics of the Portland, Oregon, region

Abstract Portland, Oregon, lies in the southern half of an approximately rectangular basin measuring 30 by 50 km. Since 1969, there have been no earthquakes with M ≥ 4.0 in or on the margins of the Portland basin, but this level of seismicity may not be characteristic of the region. Using microseismicity data collected by the University of Washington regional short-period seismograph network for the period mid-1982 through 1989, we have determined P -wave focal mechanisms for four individual earthquakes and three groups of earthquakes. We have also relocated the 6 November 1962, M W = 5.2 Portland earthquake and analyzed regional surface-wave recordings of this event, using the seismic moment-tensor inversion technique. The results of these seismic analyses, along with geologic and other geophysical data, are integrated into a seismotectonic model of the Portland basin. The P -wave mechanisms are compatible with dextral strike-slip motion along approximately NW-striking fault zones bounding the eastern and western margins of the basin. We speculate that there is a dextral strike-slip fault zone, which we call the Frontal Fault Zone, along the eastern margin of the Portland basin. The western margin has been previously recognized as a zone of dextral strike-slip faulting, known as the Portland Hills Fault Zone. The epicenter of the 1962 earthquake is located between the two fault zones and lies approximately 15 km NE of downtown Portland. Our preferred mechanism is normal faulting on NE- or NNE-trending fault planes. These results support the hypothesis posed by previous investigators that the Portland basin is a pull-apart basin and are evidence for contemporary crustal extension between the Frontal and Portland Hills fault zones.
Methadone conversion in infants and children: Retrospective cohort study of 199 pediatric inpatients.

Objective: Methadone administration has increased in pediatric clinical settings. This review is an attempt to ascertain an equianalgesic dose ratio for methadone in the pediatric population using standard adult dose conversion guidelines. Setting: US tertiary children's hospital. Patients: Hospitalized pediatric patients, 0-18 years of age. Main outcome measures: A retrospective chart review was conducted for patients who were converted from their initial opioid therapy regimen (morphine, hydromorphone, and/or fentanyl) to methadone. The primary endpoint was whether or not a dose correction was needed for methadone in the 6 days following conversion using standard dose conversion charts for adults. Documented clinical signs of withdrawal, unrelieved pain, or oversedation were examined. Results: The majority (53.7 percent) of the 199 children were converted to methadone on intensive care units prior extubation or postextubation. The mean conversion ratio was 23.7 mg of oral morphine to 1 mg of oral methadone (median, 18.8 mg:1 mg, SD = 25.7). Most patients experienced an adequate conversion (n = 115, 57.8 percent), while 83 (41.7 percent) appeared undermedicated, and one child was oversedated. There were no associations found with conversion ratios for initial morphine dose, days to conversion, or effect of withdrawal of concomitant agents with potential for withdrawal. Conclusions: Opioid conversion to methadone is commonly practiced at our institution; however, dosing was significantly lower compared to adult conversion ratios, and more than 40 percent of children were undermedicated. The majority of children in this study received opioids for sedation while intubated and ventilated; therefore, safe and efficacious pediatric methadone conversion rates remain unclear. Prospective studies are needed.
The IGF-1R pathway as a therapeutic target.

In this issue of ONCOLOGY, Golan and Javle present a timely review of the current status of the insulin growth factor-1 receptor (IGF-1R) signaling pathway as a therapeutic target, with a specific focus on gastrointestinal (GI) cancers.
Immunopathology of the central and peripheral nervous systems.

As a working hypothesis, multiple sclerosis (MS) and similar demyelinative disorders are considered to be a response to an auto-allergic process. This concept grew out of observations of patients who developed a post-inoculation encephalomyelitis following treatment with Pasteur’s anti-rabies vaccine. Since the reaction was thought to result from the inoculation of brain tissue, in which the virus had been cultured, the idea of an allergic encephalomyelitis was conceived. The similarity of the histopathology between post-inoculation encephalomyelitis and acute MS further suggested that the naturally-occurring demyelinative disorders might also result from an immunological mechanism, an auto-allergy. The later development of experimental allergic encephalomyelitis (EAE) as a laboratory model (Kies and Alvord, 1959) and, again, the resemblance of the lesions in the animals to those observed in patients with acute MS, as described by Wolf (1959) reinforced the hypothesis. Pette and Pette (1963) also pioneered this concept and, with his colleagues, brought evidence to bear on this pathogenetic mechanism of the demyelinative encephalopathies. Considerable weight was also given to this possibility by Shiraki’s (1968) extensive examination of patients with rabies post-vaccinal encephalomyelitis and their similarity to acute MS and EAE.
Base geometry influence on impact load failure of a traffic signal pole

Abstract A galvanized tapered steel traffic signal pole impacted by a flat-front school bus was found not to break away at the base anchors bolts, but instead fail within the pole tube at a unique height associated with an inner back-up ring component. This failure was simulated with a 3D finite element model. The model was also used to investigate deformation and failure for various front bus shapes, pole thicknesses, and inner back-up ring heights. A higher back-up ring was found to delay failure at the point of impact, but in every case, the traffic signal pole always failed from the bus impact and associated impact load.
CHAPTER 2 – Models for Spectral Analysis—The Univariate Case

This chapter presents the basic theory for univariate weakly stationary processes. Wiener provided the spectral analysis for functions with finite power. Wiener's theory covered both univariate and multivariate time series, and applied to stochastic as well as nonstochastic series, although at that time the nature of the stochastic series, as stochastic processes, was not well understood. From the viewpoint of applying the theory to real problems, the Wiener model provides some peace of mind to the experimenter who is concerned about the validity of his model, because it applies equally well to a large class of nonstochastic as well as stochastic time series. Moreover, the class of stochastic processes to which it applies is far larger than the class of weakly stationary processes.
PCR-directed in vivo plasmid construction using homologous recombination in baker's yeast.

A variety of applications require the creation of custom-designed plasmids, including transgenic reporters, heterologous gene fusions, and phenotypic rescue plasmids. These plasmids are created traditionally using restriction digests and in vitro ligation reactions, but these techniques are dependent on available restriction sites and can be laborious given the size and number of fragments to be ligated. The baker’s yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae provides a powerful platform to create nearly any plasmid through PCR-directed yeast-mediated ligation. This technique can ligate complex plasmids of up to 50 kilobasepairs (kb) in vivo to produce plasmids with precisely defined sequences.
“We're All Kids!” Picture Books and Cultural Awareness

ABSTRACTPicture books engage young learners across the elementary curriculum and can effectively help teach about a variety of social studies topics. Social studies may be a neglected subject in many elementary schools, but purposefully incorporating it through children's literature provides an effective means of advancing both literacy skills and social studies understanding. In this study, first graders from two different schools were each provided with five books related to social studies ideas as part of a summer reading program. A picture-sorting activity with six of the students as they began second grade found variations in cultural awareness. Students were found to display chauvinism and presentism more with images relating to a country they had not read about (China) than with one that was included in the books (Tanzania). This study found that providing students with opportunities to read picture books with text and images that accurately reflect contemporary life in different countries can help...
Determining the Impact of Personal Mobility Carbon Allowance Schemes in Transportation Networks

Personal mobility carbon allowance (PMCA) schemes are designed to reduce carbon consumption from transportation networks. PMCA schemes influence the travel decision process of users and accordingly impact the system metrics including travel time and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. We develop a multi-user class dynamic user equilibrium model to evaluate the transportation system performance when PMCA scheme is implemented. The results using Sioux-Falls test network indicate that PMCA schemes can achieve the emissions reduction goals for transportation networks. Further, users characterized by high value of travel time are found to be less sensitive to carbon budget in the context of work trips. Results also show that PMCA scheme can lead to higher emissions for a path compared with the case without PMCA because of flow redistribution. The developed network equilibrium model allows to examine the change in system states at different carbon allocation levels and to design parameters of PMCA schemes accounting for population heterogeneity.
An Intelligent Framework for Geologic Modeling Applications

This paper provides a framework that can be used for constructing system models, simulations, or actual devices - real time or otherwise. The framework constructs, in the limit, can be intelligent, adaptive, systems or devices with a common architecture that may be used in a variety of applications. Application examples are given from characterization and exploration. A representation is introduced that generalizes the concept of an artificial intelligent agent, or being. The organization for intelligent systems given in this paper may be applied to systems modeling or control in: waste characterization (buried, stored, or processed), site characterization and restoration, materials processing and handling, regulatory compliance monitoring, environmental monitoring, waste storage or repository modeling, site selection, and facility monitoring and control.
Psychology, Customary Behavior, and Ethnic Identity

This chapter explores various parameters of individual and social psychology, such as emotion, communication, attitude, value, group behavior, and culture-rooted customary behavior and addresses the issue of ethnic identity formation and its relation to mental health functioning. Psychiatrists, as clinicians, are interested in the psychological parameters of emotion, as they deal professionally with patients who suffer from emotional problems, such as anxiety, depression, or anger. Communication is another psychological parameter that often concerns clinicians, as clinical practice always deals with communication between people and, in particular, between the therapist and the patient. Communication involves interpersonal interaction and transmission of a message through a wide range of means, including language, sublingual or nonverbal communication, and emotional communication. Nonverbal or sublinguislistic communication is considered very important from cross-cultural and clinical perspectives, as it expresses underlying emotions and attitudes explicitly, without the barriers of language. As a member of a society, a person's behavior, in addition to biological factors, individual psychology, and personality, is always subject to customary regulating factors derived from sociocultural dimensions. These regulating factors are exercised and enforced through rituals, etiquette, customs, taboos, or laws. They can vary tremendously from culture to culture and may therefore not be applicable cross-culturally. Ethnic identity refers to the psychological way in which a person identifies his own ethnic background and how he feels about his own ethnicity. In contrast to an individual or personal identity, ethnic identity is one kind of group identity. As with personal, family, or other kinds of group identity, a sound and positive ethnic identity is important for an individual's psychological well-being and health.
When do markets with simple agents fail

We consider (prediction) markets where myopic agents sequentially interact with an automated market maker. We show a broad negative result: by varying the order of participation, the market's aggregate prediction can converge to an arbitrary value. In other words, markets may fail to do any meaningful belief aggregation. On the positive side, we show that under a random participation model, steady state prices equal those of the traditional static prediction market model. We discuss applications of our results to the failure of the 1996 Iowa Electronic Market.
Modeling Methylation Patterns with Long Read Sequencing Data

Variation in cytosine methylation at CpG dinucleotides is often observed in genomic regions, and analysis typically focuses on estimating the proportion of methylated sites observed in a given region and comparing these levels across samples to determine association with conditions of interest. While sites are tacitly treated as independent, when observed at the level of individual molecules methylation patterns exhibit strong evidence of local spatial dependence. We previously developed a neighboring sites model to account for correlation and clustering behavior observed in two tandem repeat regions in a collection of ovarian carcinomas. We now introduce extensions of the model that account for the effect of distance between sites as well as asymmetric correlation in de novo methylation and demethylation rates. We apply our models to published data from a whole genome bisulfite sequencing experiment using long reads, estimating model parameters for a selection of CpG-dense regions spanning between 21 and 67 sites. Our methods detect evidence of local spatial correlation as a function of site-to-site distance and demonstrate the added value of employing long read sequencing data in epigenetic research.
Statistical characterization of radiation-induced pulse waveforms and flip-flop soft errors in 14nm tri-gate CMOS using a back-sampling chain (BSC) technique

A novel BSC circuit with tunable current starved buffers demonstrates higher sensitivity, scalability & accurate statistical characterization of radiation-induced SET pulse waveforms & flip-flop SER in 14nm tri-gate CMOS, thus enabling improved SER estimation & analysis for a range of supply voltages including NTV.
How Justice Thomas Determines the Original Meaning of Article Ii of the Constitution

This paper was presented at a panel on Justice Thomas and Article II at the Yale Federalist Society’s conference, "Celebrating Justice Thomas: 25 Years on the Supreme Court." It addresses the question: "How does Justice Thomas determine the original meaning of Article II of the U.S. Constitution?" In answering this question, I make three observations based on opinions authored or joined by Justice Thomas. First, Justice Thomas seems much more inclined to theorize about executive power than other aspects of constitutional law. Second, Justice Thomas routinely cites seven key sources of original meaning in his decisions on executive power. Third, in deciding questions under Article II, Justice Thomas adheres to his general approach of seeking the original objective meaning of the Constitution, rather than some other form of original meaning. The practical conclusions from my observations are twofold. First, a litigator who hopes to persuade Justice Thomas in an Article II case should attempt to find support in a variety of historical sources. Second, the same litigator also should consider making arguments based on theories of executive power--such as those concerning the competence and authority of the President compared to Congress and the Courts--even though Justice Thomas generally decides other kinds of constitutional questions with a focus more on the text of the Constitution than on abstract principles.
Wellbeing Indices: A Comprehensive Inventory of Standards and a Review of Current Comparative Measures

•We present a systematic inventory of standards for societal wellbeing indices.•We offer an in-depth analytical review of comparative wellbeing measures.
Visionary Leadership in a Team-Oriented Setting

Team-oriented workplace settings generally operate with one of two driving influences superseding the other: task focus or people focus. A central theme of this chapter is how to become an effective leader and an improved manager through authentic and engaged interactions with others. This requires, first and foremost, being present. A function of a leader’s ability is to create opportunities for others that allow them to produce expanded results. This function is enhanced exponentially when the leader understands the use of transformative technology of interpersonal exchange currencies.
Laser Cutting as a Rapid Method for Fabricating Thin Soft Pneumatic Actuators and Robots.

Abstract Pneumatically actuated soft robots address many challenges with interfacing with delicate objects, but these actuators/robots are still bulky and require many hours to fabricate, limiting ...
Achieving the functionality of filter conditions in a partial order planner

One of the most common modifications made to the standard STRIPS action representation is the inclusion of filter conditions. A key function of such filter conditions is to distinguish between operators that represent different context-dependent effects for the same action. We consider how filter conditions may be used to provide this functionality in a complete and correct partial order planner. We conclude that they are not effective, and that in general the use of filter conditions is incompatible with the basic assumptions that lie behind partial order planning. We present an alternative mechanism, using the secondary preconditions of Pednault (1988, 1991) to represent context-dependent effects. The use of secondary preconditions is effective, and preserves completeness and correctness.
Clustering theory in the design of information systems

A typical first step in the system analysis or design process is to decompose, hierarchically, the system into subsystems until each subsystem admits no useful decomposition, or is seen to exist, or is recognized as designable. For the actual design work, groups of these pensile subsystems are assigned to design groups and their efforts interconnected to give the overall system. The present paper focuses attention upon the problem of grouping the subsystems—an optimal partition is sought. For a reasonable metric on the set of subsystems it is found they may be treated as objects on a line, a case where exact optimal solutions may be determined. A dynamic programming/LaGrangian algorithm is given and the computer solution to a 100 subsystem example presented.
The fate of urinary bladder smooth muscle after outlet obstruction--a role for the sarcoplasmic reticulum.

In response to outlet obstruction, the human bladder is capable of undergoing an adaptive response.39,45,51 Similar findings have been observed in a rabbit model of partial bladder outlet obstruction. Compensatory hypertrophy can be defined as a bladder that has developed increased mass, wall thickness, and can generate greater pressures to overcome the increased outlet resistance with a non-existent or minimal post void residual urine. While muscle strips from such a bladder may generate the same or slightly less force using in vitro studies, the increase in total bladder wall muscle mass allows the compensated bladder to empty to completion. However, in some instances, bladder decompensation sets in, characterized by less efficient contractile performance and increasing post void residuals.39 In general, bladder wall decompensation and the increasing post void residual urine have a relatively slow and insidious clinical onset with the patient gradually noticing changes in their voiding pattern. At its clinical extreme, bladder decompensation may result in acute urinary retention,39 although this occurs rarely in the United States. Bladder outlet obstruction managed surgically still leaves up to 30% of patients with persisting complaints of lower urinary tract symptoms despite successful removal of the anatomic obstruction.27 It is not known which changes take place in the lower urinary tract that can account for these observations.
Rainfall and Stream Flow Conditions During Floods in Central and Southern New York

During the afternoon of July 7 and the morning of July 8, 1935 a series of thunderstorms of great intensity centered in an area of some 7,000 square miles in ten counties in central and southern New York. Abnormally heavy rainfall occurred at about the same time in parts of the Mohawk Valley, in the Hudson River valley north of Albany and in other more or less isolated sections, such as the Chaumont River region in Jefferson County. While under ordinary circumstances the flood conditions in these, outside areas would have been considered notable, they were so far surpassed by the conditions in the main area that no further reference will be made to them in this paper. Now that this flood is a matter of history we can examine it in relation to other past floods in the northeastern section of the United States. By almost any standard of comparison the July flood is entitled to rank as a classic. The well-known New England flood of 1927 is the most recent and in fact about the only well-authenticated flood which is at all comparable. In the New England flood the precipitation was in general much less both in total amount and intensity than in the New York flood. The condition of the ground and the mountainous character of the terrain were important factors in causing the high runoff and resultant property damage in New
Adaptive Changes in Renal Cortical Brush Border Membrane

The kidney plays a key role in phosphorus (P)* homeostasis.1 The amount of phosphate (Pi) excreted by the kidney depends mostly on the extent to which Pi filtered in glomeruli is reabsorbed back to peritubular circulation in tubules.2 The bulk of the filtered Pi is reabsorbed in the proximal tubule2 and the first step in the mechanism of Pi transport from the lumen across the proximal tubule epithelium is a Na+-dependent Pi uptake across the luminal brush border membrane (BBM).3,4 Studies on 32Pi uptake by BBM vesicles isolated from the renal cortex allows analysis of this initial step in tubular Pi reabsorption in a variety of pathophysiologic situations, independent of immediate supply of energy from tubular cell metabolism and independent of other factors which could contribute to or regulate overall proximal tubular Pi reabsorption in situ.
Logic and Mathematics

For over one hundred years, the links between logic and mathematics have been so close that it is difficult to think of the one without the other. All the persons chiefly responsible for the development of symbolic logic were both mathematicians and logicians.
Presence of Antitopoisomerase I Antibody Alone May Not Be Sufficient for the Diagnosis of Systemic Sclerosis.

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is characterized by altered immune function and vascular damage, which lead to extensive fibrosis. Experts underscore the importance of using SSc-specific autoantibodies to divide the disease into subsets for prognosis, management, and research1,2. One representative feature of the immunological abnormalities in patients with SSc is the presence of antinuclear antibodies (ANA) associated with autoantibody targets. The anticentromere (ACA), antitopoisomerase I (anti–topo I), anti-RNA polymerase I/III (ARA I/III), and anti-Th/To constitute about 80–85% of autoantibodies specific for SSc and can assist the physician in assessment3,4,5. The 2013 classification criteria for SSc provide 3 points (toward a 9-point diagnosis) for patients who test positive for anti-ACA, anti-ARA III, or anti–topo I antibodies1. All 3 classical autoantibodies remain stable throughout the course of disease and tend to have a mutually exclusive association. While the presence of anti–topo I antibodies is thought to be highly specific and diagnostic for SSc, the significance of certain positive results remains unclear6,7. Since the development of ELISA to detect anti–topo I antibodies, a number of different … Address correspondence to Dr. T.M. Frech, University of Utah, Internal Medicine, 30 N. 1900 E., Salt Lake City, Utah 84132, USA. E-mail: tracy.frech{at}hsc.utah.edu