cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Dimensionless supersymmetry breaking couplings, flat directions, and the origin of intermediate mass scales

The effects of supersymmetry breaking are usually parametrized by soft couplings of positive mass dimensions. However, realistic models also predict the existence of suppressed, but nonvanishing, dimensionless supersymmetry-breaking couplings. These couplings are technically hard, but do not lead to disastrous quadratic divergences in scalar masses, and may be crucial for understanding low-energy physics. In particular, analytic scalar quartic couplings that break supersymmetry can lead to intermediate scale vacuum expectation values along nearly flat directions. I study the one-loop effective potential for flat directions in the presence of dimensionless supersymmetry-breaking terms, and discuss the corresponding renormalization group equations. I discuss two applications: a minimal model of automatic R-parity conservation, and an extension of this minimal model which provides a solution to the \ensuremath{\mu} problem and an invisible axion.
Single institution experience with a right-sided interrupted aortic arch

Interrupted aortic arch is a rare congenital heart disease, whereas right-sided interrupted aortic arch is an extremely rare disorder with few reported cases in the literature. We report our institutional experience with two such patients and review the recent literature.
Rapid generation of both high- and low-δ18O, large-volume silicic magmas at the Timber Mountain/Oasis Valley caldera complex, Nevada

We present an oxygen isotope and pet- rologic study of four voluminous, zoned ash-flow sheets of the Southwestern Nevada Volcanic Field (SWNVF): Topopah Spring (TS, .1200 km 3 , 12.8 Ma), Tiva Canyon (TC, 1000 km in the Basin and Range province, and it fa- vors nearly total evacuation of the magma chamber during a single eruption. Each si- licic magma unit was generated by a shal- low influx of new mafic magma that melted 18 O/ 16 O-depleted (as in the case of AT) or 18 O/ 16 O-enriched (RM, TS) rocks. The AT tuff and associated pre- and post-caldera lavas are 2.5‰ lower in d 18 O than in the RM tuff and represent the largest known low d 18 O magma. We find that all units of the AT cycle contain isotopically zoned zir- cons that have up to 2‰ core-to-rim zon- ing and correspondingly smaller, out-of- equilibrium quartz-zircon and melt-zircon fractionations. Air-abraded cores of quartz and sphene do not preserve any d 18 O zon- ing. The higher-d 18 O zircon cores in low- d
Time-Evolving relational classification and ensemble methods

Relational networks often evolve over time by the addition, deletion, and changing of links, nodes, and attributes. However, accurately incorporating the full range of temporal dependencies into relational learning algorithms remains a challenge. We propose a novel framework for discovering temporal-relational representations for classification. The framework considers transformations over all the evolving relational components (attributes, edges, and nodes) in order to accurately incorporate temporal dependencies into relational models. Additionally, we propose temporal ensemble methods and demonstrate their effectiveness against traditional and relational ensembles on two real-world datasets. In all cases, the proposed temporal-relational models outperform competing models that ignore temporal information.
Value considerations in an information ecology: Printed materials, service providers and homeless young people

We demonstrate how value considerations can be used to analyze an information ecology that has emerged to help homeless young people. We studied the information ecology of service agencies that assist homeless young people, age 13 to 25. We focused on printed materials used at the agencies and employed surveys and semi-structured interviews to gather data. Of the printed materials considered, a flier with a map of all programs was reported to be most important and distributed most frequently. Future work would further investigate distribution and usability of these portable information sources and the values they embody.
Recombinant Arthrobacter β-1, 3-glucanase as a potential effector molecule for paratransgenic control of Chagas disease

Chagas disease is most often transmitted to humans by Trypanosoma cruzi infected triatomine bugs, and remains a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in Central and South America. Control of Chagas disease has relied mainly on vector eradication. However, development of insect resistance has prompted us to develop a paratransgenic strategy to control vectorial transmission of T. cruzi. Here, the potential role of recombinant endoglucanases as anti-trypanosomal agents for paratransgenic application is examined. The surface of T. cruzi is covered by a thick coat of mucin-like glycoproteins that have been proposed to play a role in the binding of T. cruzi to the membrane surface of the vector gut. We hypothesize that disruption of these glycoconjugates could arrest parasite development in the vector and abort the transmission cycle. In this work, we examine the effects of recombinant Arthrobacter luteus β-1, 3-glucanase expressed via Rhodococcus rhodnii on T. cruzi Sylvio II strain. The coding sequence for β-1, 3-glucanase was cloned in-frame to a heterologous promoter/signal sequence from the Mycobacterium kansasii alpha antigen gene resident in an E. coli/R. rhodnii shuttle vector. The resulting construct was confirmed by sequencing, and electroporated into R. rhodnii. Expression products from positive clones were purified from log phase cultures followed by dialysis into physiological buffers. Lysates and media were quantitated by ELISA against rabbit antibody specific to β-1,3-glucanase. Glucanase-positive samples were applied to live T. cruzi parasites in culture and viability accessed by spectrophotometric and fluorescent microscopic measurements. R. rhodnii-expressed β-1,3-glucanase exhibited toxicity against T. cruzi compared to controls when applied at 5 and 10% of the total culture volume. The decrease in cell viability ranged from a maximum of 50% for the media treatments to 80% for the filtered lysates. These results suggest that recombinant β-glucanase could be a powerful addition to the arsenal of effector molecules for paratransgenic control of Chagas disease. In future studies, the ability of β-glucanase to function in combination with other effector molecules will be explored. Dual targeting of T. cruzi should not only slow resistance but also permit synergistic or additive lethal effects on T. cruzi.
Celebrating the Twentieth Anniversary of Criminal Justice and Behavior The Past, Present, and Future of Forensic Psychology

This article traces the recent history of the liaison between psychology and law, describes the need for an examination of the content domain of psychology and law, and considers the wisdom of unit...
Geological age of reactors

Nuclear reactors become obsolete by wearing out or by becoming outclassed or out of date. The lifetime of a conventional power reactor is probably less that 30 years, but the life of its potentially dangerous radioactivity is now known to be of a geological time scale. When a reactor is shutdown permanently, the fuel rods, cooling water, and radioactively ‘hot’ pieces are removed for long-term storage. High-level and low-level radioactive isotopes contained in the liquids and solids removed present a special problem (see Eos, Feb. 9, 1982, p. 147). It is the main frame and construction of worn out reactors that are the major problem, however. Mainly because of neutron activation processes that occur during reactor operation, components have been found to contain nickel-59 and niobium-94, both of which have very long half-lives: 80,000 and 20,300 years, respectively. The two isotopes are only present in trace amounts in metals incorporated in reactor components, but they emit levels of radiation above acceptable levels. The result is that the entire reactors must be dismantled, reduced to shippable size pieces, and the pieces stored for geologic time periods (several half-lives).
The effect of field effect device channel dimensions on the effective mobility of graphene

Graphene is a possible candidate for post CMOS applications and mobility is a material characteristic that has been utilized to gauge the quality of the material[1]. Mobility of exfoliated graphene transferred on SiO 2 has been reported to range from 2,000 to 25,000 cm2/V·s [1, 2]. The large variation is typically attributed to factors such as scattering by defects in the underlying substrate, residue from processing, charged impurity scattering and phonon scattering [3]. In most previous studies one of the primary assumptions made is that the mobility is independent of channel dimensions. In this study, we performed room temperature effective mobility measurements as a function of channel dimensions. The mobility exhibits clear channel length (L ch ) and width (W ch ) dependence and varies from less than 1,000 cm2/V·s to 7,000 cm2/V·s. Theoretical analysis of the conductivity (σ) in graphene devices as a function of W ch performed by Vasko et al [4]. is in agreement with our experimental results. Mobility values for back gated devices with well defined channel dimensions in literature [5] are seen to be consistent with the trend that we report here.
Social complexity and linguistic diversity in the Austronesian and Bantu population expansions

Reconstructing the rise and fall of social complexity in human societies through time is fundamental for understanding some of the most important transformations in human history. Phylogenetic methods based on language diversity provide a means to reconstruct pre-historic events and model the transition rates of cultural change through time. We model and compare the evolution of social complexity in Austronesian (n = 88) and Bantu (n = 89) societies, two of the world's largest language families with societies representing a wide spectrum of social complexity. Our results show that in both language families, social complexity tends to build and decline in an incremental fashion, while the Austronesian phylogeny provides evidence for additional severe demographic bottlenecks. We suggest that the greater linguistic diversity of the Austronesian language family than Bantu likely follows the different biogeographic structure of the two regions. Cultural evolution in both the Bantu and Austronesian cases was not a simple linear process, but more of a wave-like process closely tied to the demography of expanding populations and the spatial structure of the colonized regions.
Ethnic Neighborhoods in Multi-Ethnic America, 1990–2000: Resurgent Ethnicity in the Ethnoburbs?

Using tract-level data from the 1990 and 2000 U.S. Census, this study addresses four questions: (1. Has the proportion of neighborhoods with high ethnic concentration changed in from 1990 to 2000? (2. What are the socio-demographic profiles of ethnic neighborhoods? (3. Are new ethnic neighborhoods forming in America’s suburbs? (4. How common are ethnoburbs – that is, affluent, suburban, ethnic neighborhoods? For most racial/ethnic groups, the number and share of ethnic neighborhoods grew from 1990 to 2000 and the suburbanization trend was remarkable. Asian neighborhoods as a whole experienced the fastest growth. Ethnoburbs have formed across the country. Although ethnoburbs are more an Asian phenomenon, Hispanic and black ethnoburbs have also developed. These patterns support the segmented assimilation model and the resurgence of ethnicity perspectives.
Spermidine: a contaminant in the n-butanol extraction of brain in the fluorometric assay of histamine.

Abstract n -Butanol extracts of guinea pig midbrain condensed with o -phthaldialdehyde give a fluorescent product characterized by activation and fluorescence maxima of 350 and 400 mμ respectively in contrast to those of histamine, which are 350 and 450 mμ. Histamine in the original extract was separated from the contaminant by adsorption onto and elution from phosphorylated cellulose, Cellex-P. On the basis of fluorescence spectra and chromatographic Rf, the interfering substance has been identified as spermidine. The fluorescence per mole of histamine is 30 times that of spermidine. The guinea pig midbrain spermidine: histamine ratio is approximately 500:1. The concentrations of spermidine and histamine are 300 and 0.654 nanomoles per gram.
The dropout learning algorithm

Dropout is a recently introduced algorithm for training neural networks by randomly dropping units during training to prevent their co-adaptation. A mathematical analysis of some of the static and dynamic properties of dropout is provided using Bernoulli gating variables, general enough to accommodate dropout on units or connections, and with variable rates. The framework allows a complete analysis of the ensemble averaging properties of dropout in linear networks, which is useful to understand the non-linear case. The ensemble averaging properties of dropout in non-linear logistic networks result from three fundamental equations: (1) the approximation of the expectations of logistic functions by normalized geometric means, for which bounds and estimates are derived; (2) the algebraic equality between normalized geometric means of logistic functions with the logistic of the means, which mathematically characterizes logistic functions; and (3) the linearity of the means with respect to sums, as well as products of independent variables. The results are also extended to other classes of transfer functions, including rectified linear functions. Approximation errors tend to cancel each other and do not accumulate. Dropout can also be connected to stochastic neurons and used to predict firing rates, and to backpropagation by viewing the backward propagation as ensemble averaging in a dropout linear network. Moreover, the convergence properties of dropout can be understood in terms of stochastic gradient descent. Finally, for the regularization properties of dropout, the expectation of the dropout gradient is the gradient of the corresponding approximation ensemble, regularized by an adaptive weight decay term with a propensity for self-consistent variance minimization and sparse representations.
Holistic wellness assessment for young adults: psychometric analysis.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to develop the Holistic Wellness Assessment (HWA) that incorporates conventional dimensions of wellness with a new dimension of wellness influencing young adu...
"Benevolence" of Confucianism in the Eyes of Australian High School Teachers

This paper examines empirically the reflections of a group of Australian high school teachers on the core value of the Confucian doctrine ‘benevolence’, in order to explore Confucianism in contemporary Chinese culture. The data has been collected from the diaries kept by these teachers, all of whom are students at The University of New England, Australia, and participated in an In-country Language Program held in the city of Xi’an in mainland China during January 2011. The paper begins with a brief literature review of Chinese habits in relation to ‘benevolence’ and provides some details about the In-country Language Program held in Xi’an. It then proceeds to the research aims and questions of this study, followed by a brief review of the concept of culture, Confucianism, and the research methodology employed. Finally some discussion of the group’s reflections will be considered and conclusions drawn from the data.
THIRTY-YEAR BIRD POPULATION TRENDS IN AN UNFRAGMENTED TEMPERATE DECIDUOUS FOREST: IMPORTANCE OF HABITAT CHANGE

Abstract Abundances of forest birds in an unfragmented, undisturbed, and relatively mature temperate deciduous forest at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest, New Hampshire, changed markedly between 1969 and 1998. Total numbers of birds (all species combined) declined from 210–220 individuals/10 ha in the early 1970s to 70–90/10 ha in the 1990s. Of the 24 regularly occurring species, 12 decreased significantly (four to local extinction), three increased significantly, and nine remained relatively constant in abundance. Nine of the 12 declining species were Neotropical migrants. Most species exhibited similar trends on Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) routes in New Hampshire during the same 30 year period and on three replicate study sites in nearby sections of the White Mountains from 1986–1998. Probable causes of trends were diverse and differed among species. Most could be accounted for by individual species' responses to events occurring primarily in the local breeding area. The most important local factor ...
Setting Risk Priorities in Environmental Policy: The Role of Women

In many episodes of environmental contamination, local citizens’ groups have been mobilized and led by women who have little or no prior history of civic activism. Some of these “housewife activists” have gone on to participate in, become leaders in, or even establish state and national organizations. This phenomenon has received little attention, yet it raises such questions as: What is it about local environment threats which moves these women to a social activism which has no precedent in their lives? Compared with other communities with similar problems but different (or no) citizens’ groups working to remedy or avert the risks, how do communities with housewife-led groups define the issues and take actions and get results? And how are the results different? Do their efforts serve to legitimize the issues they raise in the eyes of their fellow residents and public officials, or do their strategies or social status work against them? If the latter, how do they overcome the barriers to public legitimization of their concerns? This paper discusses the implications of gender differences for risk assessment, communication and management of environmental contamination; considers the differences in local relations with state and federal agencies when local groups are led by such women; and attempts an answer to the question: Does the existence of housewife-led groups suggest the need for reassessment of risk analysis priorities and strategies?
Transplanting the Organizing Seed: Understanding the Political Habitus of Salvadorans in the Metro D.C. Area

This study utilizes in-depth, semi-structured, and open-ended interviews to study Salvadorans in the metro D.C. area. It aims to find the different ways in which Salvadoran actors enact a political habitus. Political habitus is defined as the disposition, thoughts, and actions that inhabit peoples’ worldview, and in turn, influences the political choices they make. I find that Salvadoran actors are multi-faceted and create a typology to understand how each actor builds a political habitus that is shaped by different experiences, beliefs, and political attitudes. Moreover, I find that Salvadoran actors are immersed in local and transnational work that is infused with internal and external challenges and impact the overall organizational structure of the area.
Between the ‘Real’ and the ‘Right’: Explorations Along the Institutional-Constitutional Frontier

The aim of this chapter is to offer some fragments of a theory of institutional (and by extension constitutional) change that might shed some light on the interplay between idealism and realism at the heart of this volume. The chapter first lays out some sources and influences for my own understanding of that interplay, using the work of Maurice Hauriou (1856-1929) as the point of entry into the discussion. Hauriou was perhaps France’s greatest administrative law scholar of the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries and, more importantly for our purposes, the progenitor of the ‘theory of the institution and the foundation’. More clearly than any other theorist in my view, it was Hauriou who articulated the ‘special phenomenon of the institution [as] the transformation of an organization of fact into an organization of law, of the real into the right’. Building on Hauriou’s insights (particularly as to the role of ideas in institutional evolution), this chapter attempts to distill out elements of a theory of institutional change in three primary dimensions – functional, political, and cultural – while also introducing certain extensions and complications. From there, the discussion turns to a particular form of interaction between the ‘real’ and the ‘right’: the transformation of a set of ‘institutions’ into a robust ‘constitution’ for a political community. This transformation may be analogized to a kind of ‘phase transition’, to use the language of the natural sciences. Its key manifestation is the manner in which certain institutions attain a legitimacy to exercise not merely regulatory or normative power but also the power of compulsory mobilization, whether human (defense or policing) or fiscal (taxation, spending, and borrowing). Legitimate compulsory mobilization, this discussion suggests, is a crucial element in the political metabolism of a community, converting social resources into work for public ends. It is the ultimate boundary – the Rubicon, if you will – between a merely ‘institutional’ regime as opposed to a robustly ‘constitutional’ order for a particular political community. To illuminate the significance of this institutional-constitutional frontier, the chapter concludes with discussion of an historical example – the emergence and evolution of supranational governance in Europe over the last six and half decades.
Postsynthetic ligand and cation exchange in robust metal-organic frameworks.

Postsynthetic ligand and metal ion exchange (PSE) processes are shown to readily occur in several “inert” metal–organic frameworks (MOFs), including zeolitic imidazolate frameworks (ZIFs). Ligand exchange can occur between solid samples, as was demonstrated under relatively mild conditions with two robust, topologically distinct MOFs, MIL-53(Al) and MIL-68(In). Interestingly, ligand PSE is not observed with MIL-101(Cr), which is attributed to the kinetic inertness of the Cr(III) ion. In addition to ligand exchange, metal ion (cation) PSE was also studied between intact MOF microcrystalline particles. Metal ion transfer between MIL-53(Al) and MIL-53(Fe) was readily observed. These PSE reactions were monitored and the products characterized by a number of techniques, including aerosol time-of-flight mass spectrometry, which permits single-particle compositional analysis. To show the potential synthetic utility of this approach, the PSE process was used to prepare the first Ti(IV) analogue of the robust UiO-...
“Phenomenal displacement” in delayed auditory feedback: II. High intensity effects

It was previously demonstrated with 10 Ss that the speech disruptive effect of delayed auditory feedback (DAF) was significantly reduced when there was, instead of equal intensity of fed-back input to each ear, a marked disparity of inter-aural intensity. The findings were interpreted as implying that the disruptive effect of DAF was related to the phenomenal localization of the feedback. It was later suggested that the effect noted might simply reflect a reduction of intensity in one headphone to a degree allowing the Ss to receive some non-delayed feedback. The experiment was redesigned to overcome this objection by achieving disparity of intensities by raising rather than lowering the input to one headphone. The originally reported effect was retained.
Wilson Prize article: From vacuum tubes to lasers and back again

The first demonstration of an optical-wavelength laser by Theodore Maiman in 1960 had a transformational impact on the paths that would be blazed to advance the state of the art of short wavelength coherent electron beam-based radiation sources. Free electron lasers (FELs) emerged from these efforts as the electron beam-based realization of the pioneering model of atom-based ``optical masers'' by Schawlow and Townes, but with far greater potential for tunable operation at high power and very short wavelengths. Further opportunities for yet greater capabilities may be inherent in our still growing understanding of the underlying physics. This article focuses on the FEL efforts in which the author was directly and personally involved.
Physical Properties of Particulate Matter Emitted from Combustion of Coals of Various Ranks in O2/N2 and O2/CO2 Environments

This work examined the particulate emissions from pulverized coals burning under either conventional or oxyfuel combustion conditions. Oxyfuel combustion is a process that takes place in O2/CO2 environments, which are achieved by removing nitrogen from the intake gases and recirculating large amounts of flue gases into the boiler; this is done to moderate the high temperatures caused by the elevated oxygen partial pressure therein. In this study, combustion took place in a laboratory laminar-flow drop-tube furnace (DTF) in environments containing various mole fractions of oxygen in either nitrogen or carbon dioxide background gases. A bituminous coal, a sub-bituminous coal, and a lignite were burned at a DTF temperature of 1400 K. Trimodal ash particle size distributions were observed with peaks in the submicrometer region (∼0.2 μm), as well as in the supermicrometer region (∼5 μm and >10 μm). Both submicrometer and supermicrometer particulate emission yields of all three coals were typically lower in O2/...
The effects of repeated intravenous injections of distilled water on the blood picture in rabbits.

The effect of repeated induced intravascular hemolysis upon the blood of rabbits was studied in the following manner: Ten to 12 cc. of sterile distilled water were injected slowly into the marginal ear veins of 6 rabbits at 48 hour intervals. The number of injections varied, the maximum being 34. Recently, as a control experiment, Patterson and Kast1 described an anemia in rabbits produced by the intravenous injection of sterile distilled water, but as their experiments were only continued for 19 days, they apparently did not observe that the animals subsequently developed an increased resistance to such injections.The following constituents of the blood were studied; erythrocytes, hemoglobin, leucocytes and reticulocytes. The resistance of the erythrocytes against hypotonic salt solution was also determined. The examinations were made immediately preceding each injection. Control observations were made upon normal rabbits and rabbits which had received physiological salt solution in doses corresponding t...
Effects of Composition and Strain on Image Contrast in Atomic-Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy

In this investigation, multislice image calculations were used to determine the effects of point defects on image contrast in ARTEM. It is shown that point defects with an atomic number different from the matrix produce a regular change in image contrast. The minimum detectable defect concentration for any system of matrix and solute can be predicted from a simple formula based on a rule of mixtures and the atomic numbers of the matrix and solute. The effects of lattice distortions associated with point defects appears to have minimal effect on image contrast in ARTEM. Optimum specimen and microscope conditions for observing point defects in crystals and the possibility of extending the analyses to interpret atomic-resolution images of larger defects are discussed.
Trends and disparities in the prevalence of physicians' counseling on diet and nutrition among the U.S. adult population, 2000-2011.

Abstract Background Although healthy eating plays a crucial role in addressing the obesity and chronic disease epidemics, a few Americans have diets that meet dietary guidelines. Because physicians-delivered counseling is a strong predictor for behavioral modification among patients, the Healthy People Objectives have emphasized diet counseling since 2000. However, research on impact of physicians' counseling over time on a national level has been limited. Methods We used data from the 2000 and 2011 National Health Interview Surveys to apply a logistic regression model to identify predictors of physicians' counseling and examine any changes in disparities over a decade. Results In 2000, only 23.7% of our national sample had received dietary counseling, it increased to 32.6% in 2011. Hispanics were less likely than Whites to receive advice on diet in 2000 (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 0.74, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.62–0.88). By 2011, Hispanics 18% (AOR = 1.18, CI = 1.09–1.28) and Blacks were 42% (AOR = 1.42, CI = 1.32–1.54) more likely to receive advice from their physicians on diet than Whites. In both years, men were significantly less likely than women to receive counseling. The uninsured patients were increasingly less likely than insured patients in receiving diet counseling, being 60% less likely in 2011 (AOR = 0.40, CI = 0.37–0.40). Obese patients were substantially (88% in 2000 to 290% in 2011) more likely to receive counseling than normal-weight patients. Conclusions The overall prevalence of physicians' counseling on diet increased moderately between 2000 and 2011. However, substantial disparities in dietary counseling related to access to care and gender continue to exist.
Implications of Isolated Transverse Process Fractures: Is Spine Service Consultation Necessary?

Background Acute traumatic isolated transverse process fractures (ITPFs) are increasingly identified in trauma patients owing to the increased use of routine computed tomography imaging. Despite repeated demonstrations that these fractures are treated only symptomatically, patterns of consultation with a spine service have not changed. We aim to provide information on long-term outcomes following conservative treatment to help clarify the role of the spine service in the treatment of ITPFs. Methods A retrospective chart review of 306 patients presenting with ITPFs was conducted to identify both short-term and long-term patient outcomes. A subsection of patients was identified with no other traumatic injuries besides isolated ITPFs (iITPFs). Results No patient required surgical intervention for an ITPF, and 97.7% of all patients and 100% of the patients with iITPFs did not require bracing. At last follow-up, all patients were neurologically intact, 97.8% were fully ambulatory, and 87.9% had no ITPF-related back pain. When only patients with 6 or more months of follow-up were considered, all patients were fully ambulatory, and only 1.1% of all patients and none of the patients with iITPFs had persistent back pain. Conclusions ITPFs can be treated conservatively without concern for long-term outcome sequelae such as pain, neurologic deficits, or ambulatory difficulties. Consequently, a spine service consult is not required for patients with ITPFs.
Experimental verification of the mechanism of hot-carrier-induced photon emission in n-MOSFET's with a CCD gate structure

New experimental data are presented to verify the physical mechanism of hot-carrier-induced photon emission in n-MOSFETs. The multiple gates are biased to create hot electron populations either at the drain junction or at the interelectrode gap regions by using MOSFETs with an overlapping CCD (charge coupled device). Results show that the magnitudes of the photon-generated minority carrier collected were comparable for hot-carrier-induced photons emitted from the drain junction and from the interelectrode gap regions, although the density of charged centers available for Bremsstrahlung for both situations differed by about two orders of magnitude. These results show unambiguously that Bremsstrahlung of hot electrons in the Coulomb field of ionized drain dopants is not the sole mechanism responsible for hot-carrier-induced photon emission in n-MOSFETs. >
Shift Schedules and Intern Work Hours, Patient Numbers, Conference Attendance, and Sleep at a Single Pediatric Residency Program

Abstract Objective The effects of 2011 Accreditation Council on Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) duty hour standards on intern work hours, patient load, conference attendance, and sleep have not been fully determined. We prospectively compared intern work hours, patient numbers, conference attendance, sleep duration, pattern, and quality in a 2011 ACGME duty hour–compliant shift schedule with a 2003 ACGME duty hour–compliant call schedule at a single pediatric residency program. Methods Interns were assigned to shift or call schedules during 4 alternate months in the winter of 2010–2011. Work hours, patient numbers, conference attendance, sleep duration, pattern, and quality were tracked. Results Interns worked significantly fewer hours per week on day (73.2 hours) or night (71.6 hours) shifts than during q4 call (79.6 hours; P P P Conclusions A shift schedule resulted in reduced intern work hours and improved sleep duration and pattern. Although intern didactic conference attendance declined significantly during high census months, opportunities for experiential learning remained robust with unchanged or increased intern patient numbers.
Bidirectional relations between executive function and expressive vocabulary in kindergarten and first grade / Relaciones bidireccionales entre la función ejecutiva y el vocabulario expresivo en jardín de infantes y primer grado

Abstract: Research suggests that language predicts executive function (EF) in the preschool period; however, the relation between language and EF in the transition to formal schooling has not been previously examined. Given that language and EF are both important for school readiness, it is valuable to examine the ways in which they may be interrelated during the start of formal schooling. Research and theory suggest that expressive language in particular may be bidirectionally related to EF. To test this hypothesis, we analysed data from five- and six-year-old children (N = 347) who completed measures of expressive vocabulary and EF in the fall and spring of kindergarten and the fall of first grade. Path analysis revealed significant cross-lagged paths between EF and expressive vocabulary in kindergarten and from kindergarten into first grade, above and beyond stability in these constructs. The findings are discussed in relation to the current understanding of the relation between language and EF and the...
Argon fluoride LA-LEAF for rapid arsenic quantitation

Coupling laser-induced fluorescence to laser ablation can reduce detection limits relative to LIBS. The wing of the broadband ∼193.3 nm emission from unmodified argon fluoride lasers can excite arsenic fluorescence via its 193.76 nm ground state transition for a simple fluorescence scheme. We present argon fluoride-excited laser-ablation laser-excited atomic fluorescence (LA-LEAF) measurements in steel and copper under argon and helium atmospheres. Because the ArF laser saturates the absorption transition and the steel samples show substantial nonspecific iron fluorescence, it is necessary to optimize the laser energy in addition to interpulse delay. LODs are slightly lower under helium (1.0 ppm in steel, 0.15 ppm in copper). These detection limits represent a modest improvement over previous LODs with LIBS, but suggest potential for improvement with line narrowing of the ArF laser.
Myth 10: Free Market and Laissez Faire Are the Same

Myth: A free market’s distinguishing characteristic is the lack of government intervention. Government involvement destroys free markets. Bans on various types of economic behavior, including those intended to protect competition, go against free market principles. Government is easily corrupted and works on behalf of powerful interest groups therefore is not the most suitable institution to safeguard competition.
The environment, epigenome, and asthma

Asthma prevalence has been on the increase, especially in North America compared with other continents. However, the prevalence of asthma differs worldwide, and in many countries the prevalence is stable or decreasing. This highlights the influence of environmental exposures, such as allergens, air pollution, and the environmental microbiome, on disease etiology and pathogenesis. The epigenome might provide the unifying mechanism that translates the influence of environmental exposures to changes in gene expression, respiratory epithelial function, and immune cell skewing that are hallmarks of asthma. In this review we will introduce the concept of the environmental epigenome in asthmatic patients, summarize previous publications of relevance to this field, and discuss future directions.
Razor-Thin Discs and Swing Amplification

This chapter considers the secular dynamics of razor-thin stellar discs, and shows how a proper accounting of the discs’ self-gravitating amplification allows for a precise description of their diffusion features.
Benign Notochordal Remnant

Benign notochordal cell tumors are intraosseous lesions that arise from notochord remnants and should be differentiated from malignant chordomas. PET/MR imaging provides detailed anatomic evaluation of benign notochordal cell tumor, and the lack of aggressiveness and metabolic activity distinguishes it from chordoma.
A three-tiered approach for calibration of a biosensor to detect estrogen mimics.

A three-tiered approach was developed to determine the influence of a chemically-diverse group of compounds exhibiting estrogen mimicry using recombinant human estrogen receptor (rhER) activity to calibrate a receptor protein-based biosensor. In the initial tier, a ligand competition array was developed to evaluate compounds inhibiting [3H]estradiol-17β binding to rhER. Each of six different concentrations of [3H]estradiol-17β was mixed with increasing concentrations of an unlabeled putative mimic. Each of these mixtures was incubated with a constant amount of rhERα and then receptorbound [[3H]estradiol-17β was measured. This array protocol analyzes ligand binding affinities of hERα with a potential inhibitor over the entire range of receptor protein saturation.
Towards the shortest possible contact time: Droplet impact on cylindrical superhydrophobic surfaces structured with macro-scale features.

Abstract Hypothesis Recently, it has been shown that the contact time of impacting water droplets on a superhydrophobic cylindrical surface decreases when its radius becomes comparable to that of the droplet, yet the correlation of this reduction with the impact velocity is unclear. Moreover, on a flat surface, experiments involving the addition of a single macrotexture, along with covering the surface with macroscopic cylindrical ridges (ribbed pattern), have been reported to shorten the contact time. Hence, a ribbed-curved surface with an additional macrotexture may logically lead to a very short contact time. Experiments Such a surface was obtained by utilizing an extruder-type 3D printer and a copper wire was used as the additional macrotexture. The bouncing of water droplets of three different volumes on curved and ribbed-curved samples with two different diameters was investigated for varied impact velocities. Findings For the curved surfaces, a scaling model for the contact time reduction with respect to the impact velocity was found. Our data show that adding a wire to the peak of a cylinder containing both micro- and macro-scale roughness (wired ribbed-curved surfaces) yields the contact time even shorter than the inertial-capillary time scale, an unprecedented phenomenon.
Alkylation of N- and O-Heteroatom Compounds with Alcohols, with Special Reference to the Synthesis of Alkylamines

Alcohols are convenient reactants for heterogeneous, as well as homogeneous, catalytic alkylations of heteroatom compounds. Examples include the alkylation of ammonia with methanol to yield methylamines, the reaction of methylamines with higher molecular weight alcohols to produce long chain aliphatic amines, and the methylation of pyridine with methanol to form 2-picoline. Alcohols are also utilized in the alkylation of carboxylic acids and anhydrides to produce industrially valuable esters such as ethylacetate and dialkylphthalates, as well as in the ring opening of ethylene oxide to yield glycol ethers. It is evident from these examples that the heteroatoms of interest are N and O. Alkylation of other heteroatoms, e.g. S and CI, will not be considered in this paper.
Computational simulations of local vascular heparin deposition and distribution

Local vascular drug delivery systems provide elevated concentrations in target arterial tissues while minimizing systemic side effects; however, definition of their precise pharmacokinetics remains elusive. The standard labeled tracer assays used in experimental vascular pharmacokinetic studies of these systems are limited because they quantify the arterial average drug concentration as opposed to transmural concentration profiles, require many animal experiments to elucidate the time-varying deposition, and track label rather than intact biologically active drug. In this study, computational simulations of drug deposition and distribution in vascular tissues after release from these systems have provided two important insights. First, simulations of arteries that were uniformly loaded with heparin predicted that most of the drug is cleared in < 1 h, illustrating the need for sustained modes of delivery. Second, some of the limitations of labeled tracers can be over come by combining experimental data with simulations that provided high spatial resolution. This enabled us to describe the kinetics of the deposited drug and distinguish soluble from reversibly bound and internalized drug within cells. The latter can help differentiate biologically viable drug from its committed inactive form or metabolites. These points have been illustrated through simulations of a novel endovascular hydrogel heparin-delivery system that has been applied to the porcine coronary artery. The basic models used in these simulations are generalized, and with the appropriate boundary conditions, binding and distribution constants can be used to study the physical interactions between any compound and tissue.
Trends in documented co-occurring conditions in children with autism spectrum disorder, 2002-2010.

Abstract Background Autism spectrumdisorder (ASD) commonly presents with co-occurring medical conditions (CoCs). Little is known about patterns in CoCs in a time of rising ASD prevalence. Aims To describe trends in number and type of documented CoCs in 8-year-old children with ASD. Methods We used Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network (ADDM) data, a multi-source active surveillance system monitoring ASD prevalence among 8-year-old children across the US. Data from surveillance years 2002, 2006, 2008, and 2010 were used to describe trends in count, categories, and individual CoCs. Results Mean number of CoCs increased from 0.94 CoCs in 2002 to 1.06 CoCs in 2010 (p Conclusions The increase in the percentage of children with ASD and CoCs may suggest the ASD phenotype has changed over time or clinicians are more likely to diagnose CoCs.
Lingua Franca between pidginization and koineization

Abstract Published literature on Lingua Franca contains divergent views regarding its place in the taxonomy of contact language types. While this language is traditionally regarded as a pidgin, some scholars consider it more accurate to view it as a koine. This paper shows that Lingua Franca exhibits features that are consistent with both pidginization and koineization, and proposes to view it as located on the pidgin/koine continuum.
Network Revenue Management with Online Inverse Batch Gradient Descent Method

We consider a general class of price-based network revenue management problems that a firm aims to maximize revenue from multiple products produced with multiple types of resources endowed with limited inventory over a finite selling season. A salient feature of our problem is that the firm does not know the underlying demand function that maps prices to demand rate, which must be learned from sales data. It is well known that for almost all classes of demand functions, such as linear, exponential, multinomial logit and nested logit models, the revenue rate function is not concave in the products' prices but is concave in products' market shares (or price-controlled demand rates). This creates challenges in adopting any stochastic gradient descent based methods in the price space. We propose a novel nonparametric learning algorithm termed online inverse batch gradient descent (IGD) algorithm. This algorithm proceeds in batches. In each batch, the firm implements each product's perturbed prices, and then uses the sales information to estimate the market shares. Leveraging these estimates, the firm carries out a stochastic gradient descent step in the market share space that takes into account the relative inventory scarcity for the entire horizon, and then inversely maps the updated market shares back to the price space to obtain the prices for the next batch. Moreover, we also propose an inventory adjusted algorithm (IGD-I) that the feasible market share set is dynamically adjusted to capture the real-time relative inventory scarcity for the remaining season. For the large scale systems wherein all resources' inventories and the length of the horizon are proportionally scaled by a parameter $k$, we establish a dimension-independent regret bound of $O( k^{4/5} \log k)$. This result is independent of the number of products and resources and works for continuum action-set prices and the demand functions that are only once differentiable. Our theoretical result guarantees the efficacy of both algorithms in the high dimensional systems where the number of products or resources is large and the prices are continuous. Our algorithms also numerically outperform the existing algorithms in the literature.
A PRELIMINARY MATRIX MODEL FOR QUANTIFYING AND BALANCING THE SOCIO-ECONOMIC IMPACT OF ALTERNATIVE COOLING SYSTEM TECHNOLOGIES FOR NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS

Assessment of environmental, including socio-economic, impacts of alternative technologies or courses of action is made difficult by the inability to adequately quantify the impacts. Matrix methods offer a set of techniques which allows the analyst to compare the relative impacts of alternative technologies or actions. Work is underway to develop and adapt these techniques to be used in assessing the environmental impacts of alternative cooling systems, and other alternative technological and siting options.
Thermal mechanical analysis of porous granite asperities in contact using probabilistic damage model

Abstract Contacting asperities play an important role in stabilizing the existing fracture networks in the geothermal system . In such a system, the rapid heat exchange occurs when cold water is injected into existing fractures with high reservoir temperatures . The deformation mechanisms of the porous asperities in contact under the coupled thermal-mechanical loading are complex and critical to engineering operations. The present study models the deformation process using a probabilistic damage model (PDM) incorporating the porosity effect. The results revealed the coupled deformation mechanisms, which are the contact induced damage and the radial cracking of the asperities. The interaction between two processes was characterized based on both of the analytical and computational models. It was also found that the porosity distribution affects two mechanisms and their interaction significantly. The field data were input to predict the deformations of fracture apertures during the normal range of operation conditions. A critical overburden pressure was discovered, which draws the line between the increasing or decreasing trend of porosity effect as the temperature increases.