cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Substrates Matter: Influence of an Adjacent Dielectric on an Individual Plasmonic Nanoparticle

Studying the plasmonic properties of metallic nanoparticles at the individual nanostructure level is critical to our understanding of nanoscale metallic systems. Here we show how the presence of a nearby dielectric substrate modifies the energies of the plasmon modes of a metallic nanoparticle. The adjacent dielectric lifts the degeneracy of the dipole plasmon modes oriented parallel and perpendicular to the substrate, introducing a significant energy splitting that depends strongly on the permittivity of the substrate. This energy splitting can easily be misinterpreted as an anomalously broadened plasmon line shape for excitation of an individual nanoparticle with unpolarized light.
Ocular manipulation reduces both ipsilateral and contralateral electroretinograms

To determine the electroretinogram (ERG) changes in eyes manipulated in the course of local ablative therapy (transpupil thermotherapy (TTT), cryotherapy or both) or scleral depression and in un-manipulated fellow, healthy eyes. This prospective observational report summarizes 73 ERG studies in 42 patients with retinoblastoma; a study consisted of ERGs of one or both eyes (if present) followed by ocular manipulation (scleral depression, cryotherapy, transpupillary thermotherapy, pressure applied to orbital implant in an anophthalmic socket, or a 5- or 10-min delay without mechanical manipulation) followed by a repeat of the ERGs. Each patient was studied with only a single manipulation modality on any given date: 23 patients were studied only once, and 19 patients were included in more than one study occasion. Following local ablative treatment of patients with unilateral retinoblastoma, the photopic response decreased significantly in both the treated eye and the untouched fellow, healthy eye. Following scleral depression of the diseased eye, the photopic response immediately decreased in the diseased eye by a mean of 16 μV (21 %, p = .006) and, in the fellow, healthy eye by 40 μV (23 %, p = .0005). Following scleral depression of the fellow, healthy eye, the photopic response immediately decreased by a mean of 11 μV (4 %, p = .37) in the fellow, healthy eye, and by 16 μV (28 %, p = .01) in the diseased eye. Following physical ocular manipulation, the amplitude of the photopic response decreased in the manipulated, but also the untouched healthy, fellow eyes. These findings may account for some of the variation in clinical ERG recordings, particularly that observed following ocular manipulation by TTT, laser or even scleral depression.
Metabolic heterogeneity of obesity: role of adipose tissue

Obesity is not synonymous with insulin resistance. Why some but not all individuals develop insulin resistance with weight excess is not clear, but a number of plausible hypotheses with ample support now exist. This article reviews regional fat distribution, inflammation, lipotoxicity/ectopic fat and impaired adipogenesis as leading theories as to why excess body weight has the potential to promote insulin resistance.
Trust-Based Information and Decision Fusion for Military Convoy Operations

This work shows how to improve intelligent behavior in multi-agent systems by using a trust-based information and decision fusion technique. Our technique fuses multi-dimensional sensor data in context-specific ways using Subjective Logic (SL) on the basis of trust values of information sources. In our investigation, we compare our trust-based information fusion technique to non-trust based technique on the basis of using SL with a Stochastic Petri Nets model. Our application focus shows how the proposed trust-based SL information fusion technique performs better for convoy operations than a baseline counterpart.
Embryonic arsenic exposure reduces the number of muscle fibers in killifish (Fundulus heteroclitus)

Abstract Arsenic is a contaminant of drinking water and has been correlated with adverse developmental outcomes such as low birth weight, reduced weight gain, and altered locomotor activity. Previous research has shown that killifish (Fundulus heteroclitus) exposed to high arsenic levels during embryogenesis had smaller muscle fiber diameters. The current study was designed to determine whether changes in muscle fibers persisted, were exacerbated, or resolved over time. Killifish embryos were exposed to 0–5 ppm arsenite and, upon hatching, were transferred into either clean water or continued receiving the same exposure to arsenic for up to 16 weeks. Arsenic significantly decreased the weight of both embryonic-only exposed juveniles and continuously exposed juveniles between 4 and 16 weeks of development at concentrations as low as 0.8 ppm. Although arsenite exposure increased the percentage of small diameter fibers during the early weeks, fiber diameters returned to control levels in the embryonic-only exposed fish. However, muscle fiber density was still reduced to 85.7%, 80.3%, and 73.8% of control for the 0.8, 2, and 5 ppm embryonic-only exposure groups, respectively, even after 16 weeks of development. These results indicate that while continuous exposure to arsenic may alter the size of muscle fibers, embryonic-only exposure to arsenic has lasting effects on the number of muscle fibers formed.
Expectations And Social Interactions Of Children With And Without Mental Retardation

Mentally retarded and nonretarded perceiver children (n = 40) conversed by telephone with a child who was described as a special or regular education student. Perceivers reported that special and regular education telephone partners behaved differently during the conversation even though observers who were unaware of how telephone partners had been described did not detect behavioral differences between them. These same observers did detect differences in stereotype-related social behaviors of mentally retarded and nonretarded perceivers, but only when perceivers thought they were speaking to a regular education student. Observer ratings also suggested that non-retarded perceivers “talked down” to special education telephone partners. These results suggest that stereotypes about children with and without learning problems may become self-fulfilling prophecies by altering how children treat one another and by affecting how they interpret each other's behaviors.
Phase stability of noble metal loaded WO3 for SO2 sensor applications

Abstract A thermodynamic phase stability investigation of semiconductor oxide materials for SO 2 gas sensing applications has been performed to provide insight into understanding the working principles for SO 2 sensing. Complex phase stabilities of noble metals (Au, Ag, Pd, and Pt) loaded WO 3 semiconductor oxides for SO 2 sensors have been investigated through the use of the CALPHAD (CALculation of PHAse Diagram) computational thermodynamics approach. Thermodynamic descriptions for the individual phases, i.e. SO 2 gas, oxides, sulfides, and metal sulfates, are obtained from the Scientific Group Thermodata Europe (SGTE) Substance Database. Calculated isothermal sections of W–S–O show a significant phase transformation for WS 2 at 400 °C. This phase transformation agrees with the previously reported experimental findings that the SO 2 response of WO 3 increases notably at that temperature. Ag-loaded WO 3 in equilibrium with the SO 2 gas exhibits very complex phase stabilities for the binary sulfide and ternary sulfate, while the other metals (Au, Pd and Pt) did not exhibit any notable phase transformations. The thermodynamic model predicts an allotropic phase transformation of the Ag 2 S phase near 500 °C in Ag/WO 3 –SO 2 regardless of the Ag content, which differs from the reported experimental observation that 1.0 wt% Ag/WO 3 exhibited SO 2 sensor response at 450 °C. This discrepancy may be attributed to the fact that the solubility of Ag in the WO 3 phase has not been considered in the thermodynamic model.
A look at the small antenna design problem from a practitioner's viewpoint

Designing small antennas is a very challenging problem, which has received the attention of a whole host of workers during the last five decades. It was recognized very early on, by researchers such as Chu, Harrington and their contemporaries, that there are some fundamental limits of realizable gain, bandwidth and efficiency of small antennas that are determined by the size of the sphere within which the antenna can be embedded, and that these limits cannot be overcome by using different materials or geometrical configurations of the antenna so long as it remained confined within the given sphere. Small antennas which attempted to “fill” the space within the sphere to reach the Chu-Harrington limit were designed by many workers, one of the principals among them being Best [1, 2]. Some of Best's designs are shown in Fig.1.
Catholic Identity: Balancing Reason, Faith, and Power

It has been well documented that American Catholics tend to be Catholics on their own terms, or choose to remain Catholic while selectively embracing official Church doctrine. But why do Catholics who disagree with official Church teachings on major issues such as homosexuality, women's ordination, or abortion, and are thus institutionally marginalized, choose to remain Catholic? Why do they stay, when the cost of staying and being stigmatized would seem to be greater than the benefits they might gain from switching to religious groups whose doctrines would validate their beliefs on these issues? Michele Dillon, drawing upon in-depth interviews with Catholics who are openly gay or lesbian, advocates of women's ordination, and pro-choice, investigates why and how pro-change Catholics continue to remain actively involved with the Church, despite their rejection of the Vatican's teaching on sexuality and gender.
New Embedded Core Testing for System-on-Chips and System-in-Packages

Modern System-on-Chip (SOC) and System-in-Package (SiP) devices, together with deep submicron geometries, challenge the ability of traditional test methodologies. The accessibility to core terminals becomes critical, since direct physical access to some deeply embedded cores from chip pins is prohibitive or very complex. This paper presents a short survey of state-of-the-art Test Access Mechanisms (TAM) and proposes a novel TAM scheme. The novel scheme is based on a concept of radio-on-chip technology. Specifically, by integrating very short-range low-power low cost (area) wireless network with embedded cores, the accessibility and transport capacity for test data and test response can be significantly improved. Simulation results based on test control distribution and resource partition are provided.
Prepatterned optical circuits in thin ion-sliced single-crystal films of LiNbO 3

Crystal ion slicing was used in conjunction with conventional annealed proton exchange in Z-cut LiNbO/sub 3/ to result in prepatterned microns-thick single-crystal LiNbO/sub 3/ films with channel guides and a measured waveguide propagation loss of 0.2-0.7 dB/cm. Full optical circuit transfer, including a buffer layer and a patterned metal electrode structure for active control was demonstrated.
Comparison of breath-hold and free-breathing positions of an external fiducial by analysis of respiratory traces

An internal target volume (ITV) accounting for respiratory-induced tumor motion is best obtained using 4DCT. However, when 4DCT is not available, inspiratory/expiratory breath-hold (BH insp , BH exp ) CT images have been suggested as an alternative. In such cases, an external fiducial on the abdomen is often used as a substitute for tumor motion and CT images are acquired when the marker position matches – as judged by the therapist/physicist - its positions at previously determined free-breathing (FB) respiratory extrema (FB insp , FB exp ). In this study we retrospectively determined the accuracy of these matches. As part of routine radiation therapy planning, FB CT images were acquired, followed by BH insp and BH exp CT images for 25 patients with non-small cell lung cancer. Respiration was monitored using a commercial external fiducial system, which generates positional information while CT studies are conducted. Software was written for statistically analyzing the displacement of the external fiducial during BH insp and BH exp CT acquisition and compared these displacements with corresponding mean FB extrema positions (FB insp and FB exp , respectively) using a student’s t-test. In 72% of patients, mean positions at BH insp differed significantly from mean positions at FB insp ( p < 0.05). In 92% of patients, mean positions at BH exp differed significantly from mean positions at FB exp (p < 0.05). Our findings indicate that relying solely on external markers for accurate BH CT imaging in order to facilitate in the definition of the ITV may be subject to significant error.
Use of serum protein concentration as an indicator of quality and physiological condition in the lobster Homarus americanus (Milne-Edwards, 1837).

Decapod crustaceans are a valuable seafood product and although their price is typically gauged by their overall size, the quality of the product (organ/muscle mass and moisture content) is also important. The current study investigated the use of the serum protein concentration (determined from the refractive index) as an indicator of the quality and physiological condition of the adult lobster Homarus americanus (Milne-Edwards, 1837). Lobsters were maintained in a variety of feeding regimes and environmental conditions for 6 mo in both the laboratory and in the field. A hand-held refractometer was used to determine serum protein concentrations indirectly. At the end of the experimental period, the lobsters were killed and the hepatopancreas and heart mass, edible meat content, and moisture content of the hepatopancreas and muscle tissue were measured. In each case, there was a significant correlation with serum protein concentration. Serum protein concentration increased linearly with hepatopancreas mass, heart mass, and edible meat content. There was a concomitant decrease in serum protein concentration with increasing moisture content of the hepatopancreas and muscle tissue. Food intake had a significant effect, with higher serum protein concentrations and thus larger organs, in animals that were maintained on a high-feeding frequency regime. The serum protein concentration also changed during the molt cycle, reaching its highest levels during the premolt stage followed by a sharp decrease after the lobsters had molted. The serum protein concentration increased slowly thereafter and, 12 wk after molting, had reached levels that were similar to those measured at the start of the experiment. This rapid and noninvasive method has the potential to be a valuable tool for determining quality and physiological status of commercially important decapod crustaceans.
Cell-based approaches for cardiac repair

Many forms of cardiovascular disease are associated with cardiomyocyte loss via necrosis and/or apoptosis. The cumulative loss of contractile cells ultimately results in diminished cardiac function. Numerous approaches have been employed to reduce the rate of cardiomyocyte loss, or alternatively, to repopulate the heart with new cardiomyocytes. Strategies aimed at repopulating the heart include cardiomyocyte cell therapy, myogenic stem cell therapy, and cell cycle activation therapy. All three approaches are based on the assumption that the de novo cardiomyocytes will participate in a functional syncytium with the surviving myocardium. This review will discuss the current status of interventions aimed at repopulating the heart with functional cardiomyocytes.
Influence of divalent cations in protein crystallization

We have tested the effect of several cations in attempts to crystallize the ligand-bound forms of the leucine/isoleucine/valine-binding protein (LIVBP) (M(r) = 36,700) and leucine-specific binding protein (LBP) (M(r) = 37,000), which act as initial periplasmic receptors for the high-affinity osmotic-shock-sensitive active transport system in bacterial cells. Success was achieved with Cd2+ promoting the most dramatic improvement in crystal size, morphology, and diffraction quality. This comes about 15 years after the ligand-free proteins were crystallized. Nine other different divalent cations were tried as additives in the crystallization of LIVBP with polyethylene glycol 8000 as precipitant, and each showed different effects on the crystal quality and morphology. Cd2+ produced large hexagonal prism crystals of LIVBP, whereas a majority of the cations resulted in less desirable needle-shaped crystals. Zn2+ gave crystals that are long rods with hexagonal cross sections, a shape intermediate between the hexagonal prism and needle forms. The concentration of Cd2+ is critical. The best crystals of the LIVBP were obtained in the presence of 1 mM CdCl2, whereas those of LBP, with trigonal prism morphology, were obtained at a much higher concentration of 100 mM. Both crystals diffract to at least 1.7 A resolution using a conventional X-ray source.
Causes of Change in National Security Processes: Carter, Reagan, and Bush Decision Making on Arms Control

This article merges the literature on national security decision making with scholarly work on presidential decision making. It examines ways in which national security decision-making structures are changed by international and domestic political forces as well as presidential management of the bureaucratic and organizational politics within the executive branch. Three decision-making case studies–the Carter administration's March 1977 Strategic Arms Limitations Talks II(SALT II) proposal, the Reagan administration's initial strategic arms reduction proposal of May 1982, and President Bush's speech of September 1991 that led to the Strategic Arms Reduction Talks (START) II–illustrate the dynamic and evolving nature of the national security decision-making process. The case studies suggest that presidents make modifications in their standard interagency processes for the deliberate purpose of achieving specific political goals. Adjustments in policy are the impetus for adjustments in process.
High-risk HPV DNA detected in less than 2% of over 25,000 cytology negative imaged liquid-based Pap test samples from women 30 and older.

Abstract Objective The purpose of this study was to document the prevalence of high-risk HPV DNA (HPV) in the largest cohort of woman studied to date with negative ThinPrep Imaging system (TIS)-imaged Pap tests. Methods Women with negative (TIS)-imaged ThinPrep Pap Tests (TPPT) who also were tested for HPV were identified between July 1, 2005 and December 31, 2007 from a large women's hospital practice. HPV detection rates were compared for women with either presence or absence of a transformation zone/endocervical cell sample (EC/TZS). Results 26,558 negative TPPT also underwent HPV testing. HPV detection was higher in women younger than 30 and sharply declined in women 30–39 ( P P Conclusion This is the largest study to date documenting very low HPV detection rates in women screened cytology negative with computer-imaged liquid-based Pap methods now representing a major portion of the U.S. cervical cytology market. Findings of very low rates of HPV detection in 490 (1.9%) of 25,259 cytology negative women 30 and older extend and confirm previously reported findings in smaller study populations. Because HPV testing provides an objective measure of relative residual risk for cervical neoplasia after screening, these data are relevant to discussions on how best to combine cytology and HPV testing in screening low risk populations.
A Cell Line-Based Neutralization Assay for Primary Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 Isolates That Use either the CCR5 or the CXCR4 Coreceptor

We describe here a cell line-based assay for the evaluation of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) neutralization. The assay is based on CEM.NKR cells, transfected to express the HIV-1 coreceptor CCR5 to supplement the endogenous expression of CD4 and the CXCR4 coreceptor. The resulting CEM.NKR-CCR5 cells efficiently replicate primary HIV-1 isolates of both R5 and X4 phenotypes. A comparison of the CEM.NKR-CCR5 cells with mitogen-activated peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) in neutralization assays with sera from HIV-1-infected individuals or specific anti-HIV-1 monoclonal antibodies shows that the sensitivity of HIV-1 neutralization is similar in the two cell types. The CEM.NKR-CCR5 cell assay, however, is more convenient to perform and eliminates the donor-to-donor variation in HIV-1 replication efficiency, which is one of the principal drawbacks of the PBMC-based neutralization assay. We suggest that this new assay is suitable for the general measurement of HIV-1 neutralization by antibodies.
Empirical Evaluation of Wireless Localization when Using Multiple Antennas

We show that signal strength variability can be reduced by employing multiple low-cost antennas at fixed locations. We further explore the impact of this reduction on wireless localization by analyzing a representative set of algorithms ranging from fingerprint matching, to statistical maximum likelihood estimation, to threshold bounding of signal fingerprints, and to multilateration. Using an indoor wireless testbed, we provide experimental evaluation of the localization performance under multiple antennas. We found that in nearly all cases the performance of localization algorithms improved when using multiple antennas. Specifically, the median and the 90th percentile error can be reduced up to 70 percent. Additionally, we found that multiple antennas improve the localization stability significantly, up to 100 percent improvement, when there are small-scale three-dimensional movements of a mobile device around a given location.
PrimoGENI: Integrating Real-Time Network Simulation and Emulation in GENI

The Global Environment for Network Innovations (GENI) is a community-driven research and development effort to build a collaborative and exploratory network experimentation platform -- a "virtual laboratory'' for the design, implementation and evaluation of future networks. The PrimoGENI project enables real-time network simulation by extending an existing network simulator to become part of the GENI federation to support large-scale experiments involving physical, simulated and emulated network entities. In this paper, we describe a novel design of PrimoGENI, which aims at supporting realistic, scalable, and flexible network experiments with real-time simulation and emulation capabilities. We present a flexible emulation infrastructure that allows both remote client machines and local cluster nodes running virtual machines to seamlessly interoperate with the simulated network running within a designated "slice'' of resources. We show the results of our preliminary validation and performance studies to demonstrate the capabilities and limitations of our approach.
William Congreve's rational rockets

This article examines the early development of military rockets devised by the English inventor and Royal Society Fellow William Congreve in the first decade of the nineteenth century. Congreve's e...
Estimating hospital costs of catheter‐associated urinary tract infection

Healthcare-associated infections are common, costly, and potentially deadly. However, effective prevention strategies are underutilized, particularly for catheter-associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI), one of the most common healthcare-associated infections. Further, since 2008, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services no longer reimburses hospitals for the additional costs of caring for patients who develop CAUTI during hospitalization. Given the resulting payment pressures on hospitals stemming from this decision, it is important to factor in cost implications when attempting to encourage decision makers to support infection prevention measures. To this end, we present a simple tool (with easy-to-use online implementation) that hospitals can use to estimate hospital costs due to CAUTI, both before and after an intervention, to reduce inappropriate urinary catheterization. Using previously published cost and risk estimates, we show that an intervention yielding clinically feasible reductions in catheter use can lead to an estimated 50% reduction in CAUTI-related costs. Our tool is meant to complement the Society of Hospital Medicine's Choosing Wisely campaign, which highlights avoiding placement or continued use of nonindicated urinary catheters as a key area for improving decision making and quality of care while decreasing costs.
Generating Accurate and Diverse Members of a Neural-Network Ensemble

Neural-network ensembles have been shown to be very accurate classification techniques. Previous work has shown that an effective ensemble should consist of networks that are not only highly correct, but ones that make their errors on different parts of the input space as well. Most existing techniques, however, only indirectly address the problem of creating such a set of networks. In this paper we present a technique called ADDEMUP that uses genetic algorithms to directly search for an accurate and diverse set of trained networks. ADDEMUP works by first creating an initial population, then uses genetic operators to continually create new networks, keeping the set of networks that are as accurate as possible while disagreeing with each other as much as possible. Experiments on three DNA problems show that ADDEMUP is able to generate a set of trained networks that is more accurate than several existing approaches. Experiments also show that ADDEMUP is able to effectively incorporate prior knowledge, if available, to improve the quality of its ensemble.
The Lifetime Estimate for ACSR Single-Stage Splice Connector Operating at Higher Temperatures

The power transmission conductor system consists of: the aluminum conductor, the steel-core supporting material, and the splice connector. The splice connector connects the aluminum conductor to form a continuing current transmission line. The splice connector region of a conductor system is more sensitive to material aging during service. This is due to the material discontinuity and the crimped connector's forming mechanism. The objective of this project is to develop a protocol to evaluate the integrity of a full tension single-stage splice connector (SSC) assembly operated at high temperature. The project focuses on thermal mechanical testing, thermal cycling simulation and the effective lifetime of the SSC system. The investigation indicates that thermal cycling temperature and frequency, conductor cable tension loading, and the compressive residual stress field within a SSC system have significant impact on SSC integrity and its associated effective lifetime. The developed governing equation and its application to assure the adequate service life of transmission lines are also discussed in the paper.
Suicides in the U.S. Military Birth Cohort Vulnerability and the All-Volunteer Force

This paper builds a case for examining suicide in the U.S. military relative to broad societal context, specifically, the unique experiences of birth cohorts relating to processes described by Durkheim's theory of suicide. In more recent birth cohorts, suicide rates have increased among teenagers and young adults. In addition, suicide rates of age intervals at a given time period have been reliably predicted by the size of the birth cohort and the percentage of nonmarital births--supposed indicators of Durkheim's diminished social integration and behavioral regulation. Consequences of these trends are likely more evident in the U.S. military due to having proportionally more individuals known to be at risk for suicide, that is, young males who are from nontraditional households. The all-volunteer force compared to draft force has fewer applicants to select, and proportionally more of applicants are accepted for military service. Consequently, more recruits having varied conditions now than before, perhaps including greater vulnerability to suicide, serve in the U.S. military. These points are further elaborated with supporting evidence, concluding with a call for new directions in suicide research, practice, and policy. Language: en
One Hundred Inches in One Hundred Hours: Evolution of a Wasatch Mountain Winter Storm Cycle

Abstract Synoptic, orographic, and lake-effect precipitation processes during a major winter storm cycle over the Wasatch Mountains of northern Utah are examined using radar imagery, high-density surface data, and precipitation observations from Alta Ski Area [2600–3200 m above mean sea level (MSL)] and nearby Salt Lake City International Airport (1288 m MSL). The storm cycle, which occurred from 22 to 27 November 2001, included two distinct storm systems that produced 108 in. (274 cm) of snow at Alta Ski Area, including 100 in. (254 cm) during a 100-h period. Each storm system featured an intrusion of low equivalent potential temperature (θe) air aloft, well in advance of a surface-based cold front. Prefrontal precipitation became increasingly convective as low-θe air aloft moved over northern Utah, while cold frontal passage was accompanied by a convective line and a stratiform precipitation region. Postfrontal destabilization led to orographic and lake-effect snowshowers that produced two-thirds of the...
ANSI/ASHRAE/IES Standard 90.1-2013 Determination of Energy Savings: Qualitative Analysis

This report provides a final quantitative analysis to assess whether buildings constructed according to the requirements of ANSI/ASHRAE/IES Standard 90.1-2013 would result in improved energy efficiency in commercial buildings. The final analysis considered each of the 110 addenda to Standard 90.1-2010 that were included in Standard 90.1-2013. PNNL reviewed all addenda included by ASHRAE in creating Standard 90.1-2013 from Standard 90.1-2010, and considered their combined impact on a suite of prototype building models across all U.S. climate zones. Most addenda were deemed to have little quantifiable impact on building efficiency for the purpose of DOE’s final determination. However, out of the 110 total addenda, 30 were identified as having a measureable and quantifiable impact.
Lagrangian statistics in weakly forced two-dimensional turbulence

Measurements of Lagrangian single-point and multiple-point statistics in a quasi-two-dimensional stratified layer system are reported. The system consists of a layer of salt water over an immiscible layer of Fluorinert and is forced electromagnetically so that mean-squared vorticity is injected at a well-defined spatial scale ri. Simultaneous cascades develop in which enstrophy flows predominately to small scales whereas energy cascades, on average, to larger scales. Lagrangian correlations and one- and two-point displacements are measured for random initial conditions and for initial positions within topological centers and saddles. Some of the behavior of these quantities can be understood in terms of the trapping characteristics of long-lived centers, the slow motion near strong saddles, and the rapid fluctuations outside of either centers or saddles. We also present statistics of Lagrangian velocity fluctuations using energy spectra in frequency space and structure functions in real space. We compare with complementary Eulerian velocity statistics. We find that simultaneous inverse energy and enstrophy ranges present in spectra are not directly echoed in real-space moments of velocity difference. Nevertheless, the spectral ranges line up well with features of moment ratios, indicating that although the moments are not exhibiting unambiguous scaling, the behavior of the probability distribution functions is changing over short ranges of length scales. Implications for understanding weakly forced 2D turbulence with simultaneous inverse and direct cascades are discussed.
Market Responses to Sale-and-Leasebacks

A sale-and-leaseback occurs when an asset that was previously purchased by a company is sold to a third party and then simultaneously leased back from the third party. Historically, the majority of sale-and-leaseback transactions have involved real estate. This paper examines the market response of publicly traded firms that announce a sale-and-leaseback transaction. Transactions are also separated by the type of asset, the declared motive, and the property type involved. The market responds more favorably to transactions involving real estate and especially to real estate associated with manufacturing, retail, and hotels. Furthermore, the market also responds more favorably to transactions motivated by debt reduction compared to alternative motives.
Crosslinked structurally-tuned polymeric ionic liquids as stationary phases for the analysis of hydrocarbons in kerosene and diesel fuels by comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography.

Abstract Structurally-tuned ionic liquids (ILs) have been previously applied as the second dimension column in comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography (GC × GC) and have demonstrated high selectivity in the separation of individual aliphatic hydrocarbons from other aliphatic hydrocarbons. However, the maximum operating temperatures of these stationary phases limit the separation of analytes with high boiling points. In order to address this issue, a series of polymeric ionic liquid (PIL)-based stationary phases were prepared in this study using imidazolium-based IL monomers via in-column free radical polymerization. The IL monomers were functionalized with long alkyl chain substituents to provide the needed selectivity for the separation of aliphatic hydrocarbons. Columns were prepared with different film thicknesses to identify the best performing stationary phase for the separation of kerosene. The bis[(trifluoromethyl)sulfonyl]imide ([NTf 2 ] − )-based PIL stationary phase with larger film thickness (0.28 μm) exhibited higher selectivity for aliphatic hydrocarbons and showed a maximum allowable operating temperature of 300 °C. PIL-based stationary phases containing varied amount of IL-based crosslinker were prepared to study the effect of the crosslinker on the selectivity and thermal stability of the resulting stationary phase. The optimal resolution of aliphatic hydrocarbons was achieved when 50% (w/w) of crosslinker was incorporated into the PIL-based stationary phase. The resulting stationary phase exhibited good selectivity for different groups of aliphatic hydrocarbons even after being conditioned at 325 °C. Finally, the crosslinked PIL-based stationary phase was compared with SUPELCOWAX 10 and DB-17 columns for the separation of aliphatic hydrocarbons in diesel fuel. Better resolution of aliphatic hydrocarbons was obtained when employing the crosslinked PIL-based stationary phase as the second dimension column.
Broadband, Frequency Comb Spectroscopy

A stabilized frequency comb provides a broadband array of highly resolved comb lines. Using a multiheterodyne technique, we measure the amplitude and phase of every comb line, allowing for massively parallel, high-resolution spectroscopy.
Homer’s Iliad and Modern IR

The author asserts that a liberal arts approach to teaching International Relations (IR) is a unique way to teach undergraduates and to conduct research that is reflective of and relevant to real-world situations. A liberal arts approach includes interdisciplinarity, a bottom-up method to balance the top-down elite orientation of conventional IR, and data collection that focuses on human beings in real-life, concrete conditions. The article offers specific examples of interdisciplinarity in the classroom, including the use of literature, visual arts, and music, to enrich students' understanding of international relations.
Do “Sunshine” Private Fund Managers Have Superior Investment Skills?

By using the hand-collected data of 493 unstructured sunshine private funds for the first time,this paper comprehensively employs eight factor models based on CAPM and FF3 to study the performance of sunshine private funds from the perspectives of individual fund,fund portfolio and past occupational experiences of fund managers(divided into mutual-fund type,brokerage type and folk type).It comes to the conclusions as follows:firstly,overall,sunshine private funds outperform the market,and the performance of mutual-fund type funds is the best,followed by brokerage type and folk type funds;secondly,as for the security-selecting and market-timing abilities,managers of mutual-fund type and brokerage type have no obvious market-timing abilities,but show strong security-selecting abilities,and folk type fund managers have certain security-selecting abilities,but show poor market-timing abilities;thirdly,FF3-based factor models provide the more perfect explanation of fund performance and GII-FF3model is more effective to identify market-timing ability.
Characteristics and origin of myogenic response in isolated mesenteric arterioles

Responses to changes in intravascular pressure of isolated rat mesenteric arterioles were investigated under no-flow conditions. First-, second-, third-, and fourth-generation arterioles were isolated and cannulated. Vascular diameters were measured with an image-shearing device and recorded. The arterioles (except for the first-generation vessels) developed spontaneous tone, corresponding to the step increases in intravascular pressure (from 20 to 160 mmHg, by 20-mmHg steps). For example, at 80 mmHg pressure the mean diameters of first-, second-, third-, and fourth-generation vessels were 286.9 +/- 5.0, 203.4 +/- 8.2, 92.5 +/- 4.6, and 35.6 +/- 4.8 microns, respectively; by use of a Ca(2+)-free solution containing ethylene glycol-bis(beta-aminoethyl ether)-N,N,N',N'-tetraacetic acid (1 mM) and sodium nitroprusside (SNP; 10(-4) M) the passive diameters of these vessels were 295.6 +/- 6.3, 238.4 +/- 11.7, 120.3 +/- 3.7, and 59.4 +/- 3.1 microns, respectively, demonstrating that the degree of pressure-induced constriction increased with the increasing order of generations (3, 14, 24, and 43%, respectively). The vasoactive function of endothelium and vascular smooth muscle was assessed by the responses of arterioles to acetylcholine (ACh; 10(-6) M) and SNP (10(-7) M) before and after removal of the endothelium with air. After removal of the endothelium, dilation to ACh was abolished while dilation to SNP was retained. Removal of the endothelium did not significantly alter the changes in the diameter of arterioles in response to step increases in intravascular pressure.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
The discovery of drugs from higher plants.

Publisher Summary This chapter describes the discovery of drugs from higher plants. Plant secondary metabolites, unlike their precursor primary metabolites, such as fatty acids and amino acids, do not have any apparent metabolic functions, and are of restricted taxonomic distribution. The major role for plant secondary metabolites appears to be ecological and therefore, they are produced in the correct chiral form to serve such functions as chemical defenses against insects, microorganisms, and other predators, or as pollinator attractants. Secondary metabolites tend to be biosynthesized in specialized cell types, at only some of the life stages of the plant, and usually accumulate in much lower quantities than primary metabolites. Among the plant secondary metabolites used as therapeutic agents are alkaloids, anthraquinone glycosides, cardiac glycosides, and lignans, whose biosynthetic precursors are, respectively, amino acids, polyketides, isoprenoids, and shikimate-derived compounds. Plant secondary metabolites are not only useful as drugs or potential drugs in their natural unmodified form but are also suitable as synthetic intermediate substances for the production of useful drugs. Whereas only the more structurally simple plant drugs such as ephedrine and pseudoephedrine are prepared commercially by total synthesis, plant constituents, along with other natural products, are often extremely useful as lead compounds for the synthetic design of analogues with either improved therapeutic activity or reduced toxicity.
The fetal monitoring polemic.

Advocates consider electronic fetal monitoring to be a routine technique, potentially beneficial to all pregnancies. Critics believe it is a meddlesome, cumbersome technique that offers no advantage over auscultation for low-risk, or even high-risk, patients. The author attempts to reconcile these disparate views and discusses the correlation between fetal heart rate patterns and outcome results that have prompted these views.
Blood Respiratory Properties

This chapter examines the influence of aerial gas exchange on the blood-respiratory properties of air breathing fishes. With few exceptions, fishes have a tetrameric Hb contained within a nucleated erythrocyte. To a large extent, both the Hb concentration and Hb-O 2 affinity of air-breathing fish blood are functionally linked to circulatory specializations for conserving aerially-obtained O 2 and preventing mixing between the air breathing organ (ABO) efferent and systemic bloods. An elevated blood O 2 capacity compensates for the forced unsaturation of O 2 -rich efferent ABO blood when it mixes with O 2 -poor systemic blood in the venous circulation. A high [Hb] can serve both an O 2 storage and a blood-buffering function in air-breathing fishes. Although the pattern of reduced Hb-O 2 affinity is seen among closely related species of non-air-breathing and air-breathing osteoglossids and erythrinids, comparisons among a diversity of air-breathing and non-air-breathing species fail to verify this as a universal evolutionary pattern. Research indicates that the degree of branchial isolation enjoyed by a species, that is, its degree of independence from gill respiration, is a major determinant of Hb-O 2 affinity during air breathing.
House arrest: the effects of underwater and low-equity mortgages on small business failure and mobility

AbstractThis paper studies the effects of the recent housing crash on small business survival and household geographic mobility. Although a number of other works have studied these issues, our analysis differs from these because we do not focus only on underwater mortgages (less than 0% home equity), but also those slightly above water (0-10% equity). Homeowners with little or no equity face considerable constraints regarding moving, starting a business or keeping a current business open. They are more like underwater homeowners, but they differ enough to deserve a separate categorization in comparative studies, rather than being conflated with all other homeowners that have positive equity. We use the Federal Reserve’s Survey of Consumer Finances panel data for 2007 and 2009, which allows us to track the exact same households during this critical time in the housing crisis.
Optimal rate allocation for the vector Gaussian CEO problem

Consider the problem of estimating a vector source with a bandwidth constrained sensor network in which sensors make distributed observations on the source and collaborate with a fusion center (FC) to generate a final estimate. Due to power and bandwidth limitations, each sensor must compress its data and transmit to the FC only the minimum amount of information necessary to ensure the final estimate meets a given distortion bound. The optimal power allocation for the class of linear decentralized analog compression schemes was considered in Z-Q Luo et al. (2005) and proved to be NP-hard in general. In this paper, we consider the optimal rate allocation problem in the so called Berger-Tung achievable rate distortion region. In contrast to the power allocation for the linear analog compression schemes, we show that the optimal rate allocation can be formulated as a convex optimization problem which can be efficiently solved by interior point methods. Our convex reformulation technique is also applicable to the vector Gaussian multiterminal source coding problem.
Improved Screening Mammogram Workflow by Maximizing PACS Streamlining Capabilities in an Academic Breast Center.

The aim of this study was to perform an operational improvement project targeted at the breast imaging reading workflow of mammography examinations at an academic medical center with its associated breast centers and satellite sites. Through careful analysis of the current workflow, two major issues were identified: stockpiling of paperwork and multiple worklists. Both issues were considered to cause significant delays to the start of interpreting screening mammograms. Four workflow changes were suggested (scanning of paperwork, worklist consolidation, use of chat functionality, and tracking of case distribution among trainees) and implemented in July 2015. Timestamp data was collected 2 months before (May–Jun) and after (Aug–Sep) the implemented changes. Generalized linear models were used to analyze the data. The results showed significant improvements for the interpretation of screening mammograms. The average time elapsed for time to open a case reduced from 70 to 28 min (60 % decrease, p < 0.001), report turn-around time with preliminary signature decreased from 151 to 107 min (29 % decrease, p < 0.001), and report turn-around time final signature from 153 to 139 min (9 % decrease, p = 0.002). These improvements were achieved while keeping the efficiency of the workflow for diagnostic mammograms at large unaltered even with increased volume of mammography examinations (31 % increase of 4344 examinations for May–Jun to 5678 examinations for Aug–Sep). In conclusion, targeted efforts to improve the breast imaging reading workflow for screening mammograms in a teaching environment provided significant performance improvements without affecting the workflow of diagnostic mammograms.