cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Environmental temperature and the fatty acid compositions of house sparrow (Passer domesticus) muscle and brain

1. 1. Summer- and winter-caught House Sparrows (Passer domesticus) were acclimated to either 35, 20, 5, or -20°C, and brain and muscle fatty acid compositions were determined. 2. 2. Muscle lipids were composed mainly of fatty acids 16:0, 18:1, 18:0, and 18:2. In the brain were mainly 16:0, 18:0, 18:1, 22:6, and 20:4. There was no significant difference in fatty acid composition between sexes or between seasons of capture. 3. 3. Mean upper and lower lethal temperatures were found to be 45 and -27°C, respectively. 4. 4. Cold-stressed and starved birds had less 16:0, 16:1, and 18:1 in their muscles, and more 18:0 and 22:6, likely because of depletion of neutral lipids in that tissue. At high temperature there were somewhat greater amounts of 16:1 and 18:1, and less 18:0. 5. 5. Brain fatty acid composition did not change with sub-lethal temperature stress, but contained significantly high 18:0 at the upper lethal temperature. Brains of starved birds contained significantly high 20:4.
Clinical analysis of families with heart, midline, and laterality defects.

Disturbances of the normal asymmetric placement of organs, such as polysplenia or situs inversus, have been defined traditionally as laterality defects. However, there is compelling evidence from vertebrate models and human birth defects to hypothesize that defects of the midline, isolated congenital heart defects, and laterality defects are etiologically related. We present the clinical characteristics of three families that exhibit a variety of midline defects and isolated heart defects in addition to laterality defects. These observations suggest that the phenotypic consequences of mutations causing laterality defects include defects of the midline as well as isolated heart defects. To further explore the relationship between midline, heart, and laterality defects, it is imperative that detailed phenotyping of individuals and families with laterality defects be done and a classification system created to facilitate identification of genes causing human laterality disorders.
On-Line Cure Monitoring of Epoxy/Graphite Composites Using a Scaling Analysis and a Dual Heat Flux Sensor

On-line cure monitoring of an epoxy/graphite composite was studied. A scaling analysis derived the dimensionless Damkohler number for cure monitoring. A dual heat flux sensor was designed from a pile of three thermocouples to provide on-line estimation of thermal diffusivity and to measure change in heat flux for calculating the Damkohler number. Verification of this cure monitoring technique was made using differ ential scanning calorimetry. A simplified cure model was developed for a commercial epoxy/graphite prepreg. Conventional model-assisted cure cycle design was compared to the on-line monitoring technique.
Duality between some linear preservers problems: the invariance of the c-numerical range, the c-numerical radius and certain matrix sets

Let C be a hermitian matrix. We show that the C-numerical range or C-numerical radius preservers are actually the dual operators of some matrix set preservers. We use the known results about the C-numerical range preservers to determine the structure of their dual operators. For the C-numerical radius preservers, we prove a structural theorem for the dual operators, and then determine their structure. This solves a problem in an earlier paper of the authors
Energy-Based Control of a Pneumatic Oscillator With Application to Energy Efficient Hopping Robots

This paper presents an energetically derived control methodology to specify and regulate the frequency and amplitude of oscillatory motion of a pneumatic actuation system. A lossless horizontal pneumatic actuation system with an inertia is energetically shown to represent an oscillator with a stiffness, and hence frequency, related to the equilibrium pressures in the actuator. Following from an analysis of the conservative energy storage elements in the system, a control methodology is derived to sustain a specified frequency and amplitude of oscillation in the presence of energy dissipation. The control strategy takes advantage of the natural passive dynamics of the system to provide much of the required actuation forces, while the remaining forces needed to overcome the energy dissipation present in a non-ideal system with losses are provided by a nonlinear control law for the charging and discharging of the actuator. This control methodology is demonstrated experimentally to provide accurate and repeatable frequency and amplitude control of oscillation in the presence of dissipative forces. Finally, the energetic analysis of the horizontal pneumatic system is extended to the vertical case where gravity is present. This extension provides an energetically efficient hopping control methodology for pneumatically actuated robots.Copyright © 2006 by ASME
Explaining Premiums in Restricted DR Markets and Their Implications: The Case of Infosys

I examine several possible explanations for why Infosys' Depositary Receipts (DRs) trade at significant premiums to the equivalent underlying domestic shares. I find that a limited supply of DRs and a downward-sloping demand curve, significant transaction costs associated with investing directly in the domestic market, and trend-chasing by smaller and potentially uninformed investors partly explain the DR premiums. I also examine the wealth effects of non-capital raising secondary depositary receipt offerings by Infosys Technologies and find significant wealth transfers from existing DR holders to selling domestic shareholders who are comprised significantly of Infosys' founders.
Dynamic testing of laser trackers

Abstract Laser trackers measure and report the three-dimensional location of a retroreflector target in space. Inaccuracies in the rotary encoders that measure angle, the ranging system, or in the geometric relationship between the axes will produce errors in the location determination. Current standards and guides (and the draft international standard) for evaluating the performance of laser trackers focus on the measurement of a series of static point-to-point distances and the errors that are reported from those measurements. This paper reports on the development of a series of tests that characterize a laser tracker's performance as it collects data from a moving target.
Computerized Performance Predictions For A Solid State Reconnaissance Camera

A computer program system has been developed for predicting performance of a CCD strip mode aerial reconnaissance camera. Both static and dynamic performance results are available from the computer output. The input data include optical characteristics, defocus effects, solid state sensor geometry, image motion due to the basic forward vehicle rate, forward and side motion compensation errors, and camera forward and side oblique viewing angles. Output data from the computer include; image coordinates, slant range, image velocities at the image plane in two axes (due to forward motion and the vehicle attitudes and motions), electronic data rates, and resolution performance (both at the image plane and equivalent ground resolution). An application of the program to sample reconnaissance problems is given together with typical results and analyses.© (1976) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Two-Person Dynamic Equilibrium in the Capital Market

When several investors with different risk aversions trade competitively in a capital market, the allocation of wealth fluctuates randomly among them and acts as a state variable against which each market participant will want to hedge. This hedging motive complicates the investors' portfolio choice and the equilibrium in the capital market. This article features two investors, with the same degree of impatience, one of them being logarithmic and the other having an isoelastic utility function. They face one risky constant- return-to-scale stationary production opportunity and they can borrow and lend to and from each other. The behaviors of the allocation of wealth and of the aggregate capital stock are characterized, along with the behavior of the rate of interest, the security market line, and the portfolio holdings. Article published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Financial Studies in its journal, The Review of Financial Studies.
Effects of indomethacin upon cerebral hemodynamics of newborn pigs.

Treatment of unanesthetized newborn pigs with indomethacin trihydrate (5 +/- 1 mg/kg, intravenous) decreased cerebral blood flow uniformly throughout the brain by 18-28% without changing cardiac output, arterial pressure, or arterial blood gases and pH. Breathing 10% O2, 9% CO2 with the balance N2 (hypoxia/hypercapnia) caused cerebral blood flow to increase from 102 +/- 12 to 218 +/- 19 ml/100 g . min. Intravenous administration of indomethacin during hypoxia/hypercapnia caused a uniform decrease in cerebral flow throughout the brain to levels (94 +/- 5 ml/100 g . min) indistinguishable from those when the piglet was breathing ambient air. Further, 2.5 h later, the cerebral hyperemia caused by hypoxia/hypercapnia was attenuated markedly (129 +/- 19 ml/100 g . min). Vehicle treatment did not alter resting cerebral blood flow or cerebral hyperemia in response to hypoxia/hypercapnia. Measurements of 6-keto-prostaglandin F1 alpha, thromboxane B2, and prostaglandin E2 demonstrated that intravenously administered indomethacin crossed the blood-brain barrier of newborn pigs in sufficient quantity to inhibit prostanoid release into the cerebrospinal fluid passing over the surface of the brain. The mechanism by which indomethacin reduces cerebral blood flow and attenuates cerebral hyperemia cannot be determined from the present experiments. We conclude that intravenous administration of indomethacin decreases cerebral blood flow and attenuates cerebral hyperemia induced by severe, combined hypoxia/hypercapnia in newborn pigs.
Heat transfer in a second-order fluid over a continuous stretching surface

The heat transfer characteristics of a second-order fluid over a continuous stretching surface with internal heat generation or absorption is analyzed. Two cases are studied, namely (i) the sheet with prescribed surface temperature (PST-case) and (ii) the sheet with prescribed wall heat flux (PHF-case). The solution and heat transfer characteristics are obtained in terms of Kummer's functions. For large values of Prandtl number a uniform approximation is given in terms of parabolic cylinder functions with a boundary layer of width\(\sqrt {{1 \mathord{\left/ {\vphantom {1 {\Pr }}} \right. \kern-\nulldelimiterspace} {\Pr }}} \) in both the PST and PHF cases. It is also shown that no boundary layer type solution exists for small Prandtl number.
Practical codes for photon communication

In a recent paper, Pierce studied the problems of communicating at optical frequencies using photon-counting techniques, and concluded that "at low temperatures we encounter insuperable problems of encoding long before we approach [channel capacity]." In this paper it is shown that even assuming a noiseless model for photon communication for which capacity (measured in nats/photon) is infinite, it is unlikely that a signaling efficiency of even 10 nats/photon could be achieved practically. On the positive side, it is shown that pulse-position modulation plus Reed-Solomon coding yields practical results in the range of 2 to 3 nats/photon.
MDCK cysts: An in vitro model of epithelial cyst formation and growth

MDCK cells dissociated from monolayer culture were either dispersed within medium-hydrated collagen gel or seeded atop a collagen substrate which was immediately overlaid with collagen gel. Individual cells exhibited clonal growth in three dimensions to form spherical cysts in which a simple epithelium surrounded a fluid-filled lumen. The cells of MDCK cysts were polarized with apical surface bordering the lumen. MDCK cysts increased in diameter with continued culture. Maximum cyst size was dependent on seeding density and was influenced by medium composition. MDCK cysts could be isolated from the collagen substrate by digestion with collagenase. Also, collagen gel could be dissected from the cyst wall to give unrestricted access to regions of the basolateral cell surface. This novel method of renal cell culture provides a study system to model the influence of the extracellular matrix on kidney epithelial cell structure and function. It also offers an in vitro model of general application to the study of epithelial cyst formation and growth.
Ultrastructural and certain cytochemical aspects of plasma membranes within glycol methacrylate sections.

The ultrastructure and certain cytochemical aspects of plasma membranes within normal human breast epithelium have been examined. The triple-layered structure of membranes in osmium fixed material has been equated to the appearance of membranes in tissue that is suitable for cytochemical studies of thin sections. For this purpose, tissue is fixed in glutaraldehyde and embedded in glycol methacrylate. Impregnation of intercellular spaces with lanthanum and identification of surface coat material with phosphotungstic acid made it possible to identify the cytoplasmic and intermediate layers of plasma membranes in the glycol methacrylate sections. Results from trypsin and pronase digestions of thin sections indicate that phosphotungstic acid stains cell coat glycoprotein and that there is protein at the cytoplasmic surfaces of membranes. The results also indicate indirectly that the triple-layered appearance of plasma membranes commonly observed after osmium fixation and section staining could be due largely to the reactivity of membrane protein. Plasma membranes in the osmium-fixed sections exhibit a symmetric unit membrane structure. They have a geometrically asymmetric appearance in the glycol methacrylate sections. Differential effects of section stains on the peripheral and cytoplasmic layers of membranes and the better visualization of surface coat material produced this morphologic asymmetry, which might represent a truer picture of membrane structure.
Phase transformations in mullite-based nanocomposites

Abstract Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) has been used to deposit mullite (3Al 2 O 3 · 2SiO 2 ) based nanocomposite coatings and powders. The nanocomposite coatings typically comprised of Si-rich nanolayer close to the coating-substrate interface which serves as a template for the growth of columnar mullite grains. Finally a third zone composed of Al-rich nanocrystallites is obtained towards the top surface of the coating. The phase stability/transformation of these three zones in the coatings, which is critical for high temperature applications, was investigated in the range 1000–1600 °C. Si-rich nanolayer converts to mullite after a two-step anneal, columnar mullite grains undergo a tetragonal–orthorhombic transformation and the Al-rich nanocrystallite powders completely transform into mullite and α Al 2 O 3 above 1500 °C. Various aspects of these phase transformations which eventually lead to the formation of mullite-α Al 2 O 3 nanocomposite coating are discussed.
Replication of heterologous combinations of helper and defective RNA of citrus tristeza virus

Citrus tristeza virus (CTV) populations are among the more complex of plant RNA viruses with unusual mixtures of strains and defective RNAs (dRNAs). Citrus plants infected with different CTV isolates contain multiple dRNA molecules that differ in size and relative abundance within and between isolates. Additionally, we found mixtures of heterologous dRNAs in populations. To examine the replication of CTV dRNAs, the protoplast system had to be extended to support helper-assisted amplification of input dRNAs. The use of freshly extracted sap of CTV-infected tissue as inoculum increased the infection of Nicotiana benthamiana protoplasts sufficiently to result in accumulation of high levels of CTV RNAs as well as dRNAs within 2 or 3 days postinoculation. A series of dRNA-like molecules, each with a single large internal deletion, were created from an infectious cDNA clone of the CTV T36 isolate and examined for amplification in N. benthamiana protoplasts using a CTV deletion mutant as the helper virus. Of 12 synthetic dRNAs, only three with sizes of 3650, 3819, and 4460 nucleotides were efficiently replicated. CTV dRNA replication did not appreciably affect levels of accumulation of the genomic or the subgenomic RNAs of the helper virus. To investigate the maintenance of dRNAs in CTV populations, we examined heterologous interactions between dRNAs and helper viruses. Wild-type populations of heterologous strains T68 and T3, as well as the homologous T36, supported replication of synthetic T36 dRNAs. Replacement in the T36 dRNA of the 5' region, which is most variable among CTV strains, with the corresponding sequences from VT, T68, T3, or T30 resulted in chimeric dRNAs that failed to be replicated by the T36 helpers but were replicated to detectable levels by the T68 helper. The differential specificities of different CTV replicase complexes with dRNA replication signals is one possible factor that affects the maintenance of dRNA population structures.
On designing direct dependency: based fast recovery algorithms for distributed systems

In this paper, we have proposed two recovery algorithms for distributed systems. Both algorithms follow a revolving centralized scheme. The direct dependency tracking of an integer representing the number of messages sent by each process has been shown to be sufficient to determine the maximum consistent state. The main feature of the recovery algorithms is that they are executed simultaneously by all the participating processes while determining the maximum consistent state. It thus ensures fast execution. The time overheads of the recovery algorithms are reduced further because both algorithms avoid some unnecessary comparisons while determining a consistent global checkpoint. The second algorithm has been shown to be faster than the first one, because it avoids, in general, much larger number of unnecessary comparisons compared to the first one; however the trade off is the increased amount of control information to be stored at each checkpoint in the second algorithm.
Attracting Foreign Direct Investment: Applying Dunning's Location Advantages Framework to FDI Advertising

Abstract Countries compete intensely for foreign direct investment (FDI) and perform a wide range of activities to attract it. Research on FDI promotion often overlooks the effects of advertising. To fill this gap in the literature, this study analyzes the content of FDI advertising to explain its structure. To guide the analysis, the authors use Dunning's FDI location advantages framework. This framework represents an effective prism through which to view FDI advertising, and Dunning's location advantages are reflected in advertising content. In an effort to shed more light on FDI advertising, the authors first provide an assessment of how advertising content varies by country income classification. Next, using exploratory factor analysis, they identify the five factors represented in FDI advertising: knowledge resources, market attractiveness, economic governance, infrastructure, and natural resources. The findings suggest that high-income countries tend to focus on knowledge resources, while lower-midd...
The Electrical Contact Resistance of Two Rough Surfaces with Varying Phase Conductivity

Electrical contact materials deposited via thin-film processes enable the structuring of interfaces that optimize electrical contact performance. The performance gains are accomplished by structuring the contact material such that a conductive pathway is always present in the composite, a phenomenon related to the percolation threshold. The relationship between film composition and percolation threshold was explored by combined three-dimensional contact area and resistance modeling as well as experimental efforts. An optimal composite structure was found based on deposition parameters and compositional phase selections.
Information Literacy for Undergraduate Business Students: Examining Value, Relevancy, and Implications for the New Century

This article examines the new-century business relevance of information literacy and why it is important for undergraduate business students. It then validates the relevance and value of the elements that make up the concept of information literacy with current business professionals (recruiters and employers). Business professionals were surveyed to reveal their (1) familiarity with the term information literacy, (2) feelings about the relevancy and value of information literacy in the business workplace, (3) perceived competency in information literacy of undergraduate business school graduates, (4) validation of cognitive difficulty elements of information literacy, and (5) reactions to other terms/phrases that more closely align with the concepts of information literacy in the business workplace. Although these business professionals were in general not familiar with the term, once they were informed of its components, they recognized and valued its processes.
Aging in the colonial chordate, Botryllus schlosseri

What mechanisms underlie aging? One theory, the wear-and-tear model, attributes aging to progressive deterioration in the molecular and cellular machinery which eventually lead to death through the disruption of physiological homeostasis. The second suggests that life span is genetically programmed, and aging may be derived from intrinsic processes which enforce a non-random, terminal time interval for the survivability of the organism. We are studying an organism that demonstrates both properties: the colonial ascidian, Botryllus schlosseri. Botryllus is a member of the Tunicata, the sister group to the vertebrates, and has a number of life history traits which make it an excellent model for studies on aging. First, Botryllus has a colonial life history, and grows by a process of asexual reproduction during which entire bodies, including all somatic and germline lineages, regenerate every week, resulting in a colony of genetically identical individuals. Second, previous studies of lifespan in genetically...
Time dependent linear transport I. Existence, uniqueness, and continuous dependence

Abstract This paper concerns the time dependent linear transport equation posed in a multidimensional rectangular parallelepiped with partially reflecting walls. We consider the continuous transport equation and the discrete ordinate equations simultaneously. Our boundary condition, partial specular reflection, includes both vacuum and reflecting boundaries as special cases. We define strong and weak solutions of the problem, strong solutions being solutions in the ordinary sense and weak solutions being distributions, and show that a weak solution is a strong solution if it has space and time derivatives almost everywhere. For weak solutions we establish existence, uniqueness, and continuous dependence upon the initial data and the other functions which define the problem.
The Margaret Herrick Library: Library of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences

You may not be a die-hard cinefile or film historian, but chances are you know at least a little bit about the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, if only its annual televised broadcast of t...
The metabolism of hydrocortisone in the isolated perfused dog liver.

Abstract Hydrocortisone was perfused through a male dog liver. Six compounds have been identified on the basis of presumptive evidence: Pregnane-3α, 17α,20α,21-tetrol-11-one, pregnane-3α, 11β,17α,21-tetrol-20-one, pregnane-3α,17α,21-triol-11,20-dione; Δ4-pregnene-11α, 17α, 21-triol-3, 20-dione; Δ4-pregnene-17α,21-diol-3,11,20-trione; and Δ4-androstene-11β-ol-3,17-dione.
The Application of Digital Techniques to a VOR Signal Generator

The design of a high-accuracy digital VOR signal generator is described. The main part of the generator is formed of three digital sinewave generators, one of which is frequency modulated. The equations needed to design these generators are given and the practical realization based on read-only memories is described.
Modeling Alkaline Liquid Metal (Na) Evaporating Thin Films Using Both Retarded Dispersion and Electronic Force Components

A new thin-film evaporation model is presented that captures the unsimplified dispersion force along with an electronic disjoining pressure component that is unique to liquid metals. The resulting nonlinear fourth-order ordinary differential equation (ODE) is solved using implicit orthogonal collocation along with the Levenberg-Marquardt method. The electronic component of the disjoining pressure should be considered when modeling liquid metal extended meniscus evaporation for a wide range of work function boundary values, which represent physical properties of different liquid metals. For liquid sodium, as an example test material, variation in the work function produces order-of-magnitude differences in the film thickness and evaporation profile.
Determiner Phrase in a Language without Determiners

Serbo-Croatian (SC) is a language without articles, probably the only category of speech that has uncontroversially and crosslinguistically been argued to occupy the head of the Determiner Phrase (DP). This paper argues that even SC, a language without articles, projects a DP on top of NPs in argument positions. The strongest evidence comes from noun/pronoun asymmetries, where the pronouns precede, and nouns follow, certain intensifying adjectives. Assuming that these adjectives occupy a fixed syntactic position, the conclusion must be that pronouns occupy a structurally higher position than nouns. Since the evidence of such asymmetries is extremely sparse in the data, the children presumably cannot rely on them to conclude that there is a DP in SC. Since there are also no articles in SC, children have virtually no evidence of the existence of a DP. It must be then that the projection of DPs is a universal property, independent of the presence of the lexical item which solely occupies the head of the projection. Morphological properties of SC pronouns and adjectives actually support the existence of more than just one functional projection in the noun phrase in SC. The paper derives Greenberg's universal 43, which states that pronouns are more likely to have (gender) morphology than nouns, by arguing that pronouns move (overtly) through more functional projections than nouns, and ultimately land in D.
The3F3 and the1D2 nucleon-nucleon partial-wave amplitudes in aN/D model

We discuss the energy dependence of the3F3 and the1D2 nucleon-nucleon partial-wave amplitudes within the framework of theN/D model, using as input a single pole for the nearby fixed left-hand singularities. Results clearly show dynamical poles as being responsible for the observed structures in the afore-mentioned amplitudes.
A New Control for Room Air-Conditioners

An adjustable bimetal temperature control for room air-conditioners is reviewed. Control engineering parameters, design considerations, and unique switching properties are outlined. Finally the performance of this narrow-differential high-energy system is analyzed in terms of temperature response and effective differential.
Semiconductor manufacturing material handling systems: integrating dynamic fab capacity and automation models for 300mm semiconductor manufacturing

Semiconductor fabrication facilities (fabs) continue to expand in both complexity and volume. As a result, integrated models are required to determine even high level impacts to key success indicators. In order to gain insight into how the components of a factory impact performance metrics, Intel uses an integrated discrete-event simulation modeling approach. Two models, one fab capacity and one automation model, are used. This paper discusses the methodology for building and integrating both models, and the results from using this method.Both the fab capacity and automation models have a variety of input parameters that are required to drive the simulation. In addition, each model produces output parameters, some of which are used as inputs to the other model. An iterative feedback technique eventually results in a convergence on the appropriate data to feed the fab capacity model, which enables Intel to determine the impact of automation on 300mm wafer semiconductor manufacturing, and predict factory performance. Intel's approach provides the capability to use the models in stand-alone mode for specific fab-only or automation-only analyses, and also to take on any number of analyses via model communication. Intel continues to search for new applications for these merged models to answer strategic operational questions.
Bone morphogenetic proteins BMP‐6 and BMP‐7 have differential effects on survival and neurite outgrowth of cerebellar granule cell neurons

The bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs) play an inductive role in the generation of cerebellar granule cells embryonically. Therefore, we chose to look at their effects on cerebellar granule cell survival and differentiation postnatally. The cells express mRNA for both BMP-6 and BMP-7, as well as for the receptors BMPRIA and BMPRII, demonstrating that the postnatal cells have the ability to form the heterodimer receptors needed to respond to BMPs. BMP-7 promotes cell survival, with a maximal effect at 10 ng/ml, whereas tenfold more BMP-6 is needed: Both were active over the course of 8 days in culture. In addition, both BMPs were able to protect the neurons against death from induced apoptosis (exposure to serum-free, low-potassium medium) or exposure to glutamate. However, only BMP-6 could stimulate neurite outgrowth, measured with a neurofilament ELISA, an effect that was seen over the first 6 days in culture. These results, taken together with others in the literature, suggest that the BMPs have strong neurotrophic effects that are both neuron specific and BMP specific.
Enhancing alliance performance: The effects of contractual-based versus relational-based governance

Abstract This study draws upon work in transaction cost economics and relational capital theory to examine the effect of governance structure on alliance performance. The authors distinguish the strategic performance of an alliance and the overall market performance and test the relationship between the two. The analysis of 184 business alliances suggests that relational-based governance as opposed to contractual-based governance is more effective and influential in strengthening the interfirm partnership, stabilizing the alliance, and facilitating knowledge transfer between alliance partners. The positive effects of relational-based governance are enhanced under high pressure of environmental turbulence.
ESTIMATING STRETCHING FORCE CONSTANTS FOR GEOMETRY OPTIMIZATION

Abstract The rate of convergence of geometry optimizations depends upon the accuracy of the initial estimate of the Hessian. A set of parameters dependent on the rows of the periodic table are developed for use in Badger's rule to approximate bond stretching force constants.
Synthesis and Pyroelectric Properties of Novel Ferroelectric Organosiloxane Liquid Crystalline Materials

Novel ferroelectric liquid crystal materials with large pyroelectric coefficients (exceeding 100 nC/cm2·K even under zero applied bias field) as compared to those reported so far have been synthesized. The materials described show a low melting point (<−10 °C) and low SmC*−SmA phase transition temperatures suitable for practical devices. Combined with the fact that the real part of the dielectric constant is also low as compared to that of ferroelectric ceramic materials used in pyroelectric devices, these new materials have significant potential for application in uncooled infrared sensing devices.
Use of the woodcock language proficiency battery with culturally variant learning‐disabled students

The Woodcock Language Proficiency Battery (WLPB) was administered to 18 learning-disabled adolescents from a culturally variant population in rural southern Louisiana and to a matching group of normal achievers. ANOVA results revealed that group status (learning-disabled vs. normally achieving) had a significant effect on cluster scores (Oral Language, Reading, and Written Language), p < .001. Significant effects for cluster scores were not discovered; however, the significant interaction (p < .05) between subjects and cluster scores was determined to be the result of group differences on all cluster scores. Kolmogorov-Smirnov Z-test results indicated that all WLPB cluster scores for the learning-disabled group were significantly lower (p < .001) than the test's means for each of these clusters; but, for the achieving group, only the Oral Language Cluster mean was significantly lower than the WLPB mean, p < .001. Additional t-test investigation revealed that the learning-disabled group means were significantly lower than the achieving group means on all subtests except for Picture Vocabulary. A modified contrastive linguistic analysis did not uncover the existence of test bias for semantics when error responses were evaluated. The results of this study suggest that the WLPB may be a useful tool for culturally diverse students when interpretation is based on a community norm perspective.
Mechanism for Subambient Interfacial Pressures While Polishing With Liquids

This paper reports the results of a model for predicting the development of subambient pressures during the polishing of flat hard substrates by sliding against a compliant pad in the presence of a slurry (liquid). This work is an extension of our prior experimental work on the polishing of single crystal silicon wafers with polyurethane pads and high pH slurries containing silica particles. Subambient pressures have important implications in the polishing rate and uniformity of silicon and, therefore, in the manufacture of large-scale integrated circuits. The subambient pressure is the result of pad asperity compression at the wafer leading edge followed by elastic reexpansion beneath the wafer due to the nommiform wafer/pad contact stress. Liquid is expelled from interasperity voids where high leading edge contact stress causes asperities to be compressed. Lower contact stress behind the leading edge causes asperity reexpansion leading to recreation of interasperity voids and subambient liquid pressures. A Poiseuille like in-flow of liquid from the sides of the wafer limits the value of the subambient pressure. Numerical simulations predict subambient pressures as a function of liquid viscosity and relative velocity of the pad and wafer and the pad and wafer mechanics which follow the same trend as the experimental data.
Chemical imaging of corrosion: sum frequency generation imaging microscopy of cyanide on gold at the solid-liquid interface.

Sum frequency generation (SFG) imaging is used to monitor, in situ, the reaction of cyanide ions with gold surface. Spatial and chemical variations across the surface are observed as a function of time. The initial period resulted in the formation of linearly bound cyanide to gold, and continuous exposure of gold film to cyanide solution led to the presence of higher-coordinated gold−cyanide complexes. These species were identified by their specific position in the SFG vibrational spectrum (2105, 2140, 2170, and 2225 cm−1). The relative amounts of these gold−cyanide species varied across the surface as resolved by SFG microscopy.
Principal component analysis and the scaled subprofile model compared to intersubject averaging and statistical parametric mapping. I: Functional connectivity of the human motor system studied with [15O]water PET

Using [15O]water PET and a previously well studied motor activation task, repetitive finger-to-thumb opposition, we compared the spatial activation patterns produced by (1) global normalization and intersubject averaging of paired-image subtractions, (2) the mean differences of ANCOVA-adjusted voxels in Statistical Parametric Mapping, (3) ANCOVA-adjusted voxels followed by principal component analysis (PCA), (4) ANCOVA-adjustment of mean image volumes (mean over subjects at each time point) followed by F-masking and PCA, and (5) PCA with Scaled Subprofile Model pre- and postprocessing. All data analysis techniques identified large positive focal activations in the contralateral sensorimotor cortex and ipsilateral cerebellar cortex, with varying levels of activation in other parts of the motor system, e.g., supplementary motor area, thalamus, putamen; techniques 1-4 also produced extensive negative areas. The activation signal of interest constitutes a very small fraction of the total nonrandom signal in the original dataset, and the exact choice of data preprocessing steps together with a particular analysis procedure have a significant impact on the identification and relative levels of activated regions. The challenge for the future is to identify those preprocessing algorithms and data analysis models that reproducibly optimize the identification and quantification of higher-order sensorimotor and cognitive responses.
Arterial and coronary sinus catecholamines in the course of spontaneous coronary artery spasm

We studied plasma catecholamine levels in 10 patients with frequent spontaneous episodes of coronary artery spasm to evaluate the role of the sympathetic nervous system. Peripheral venous norepinephrine in supine and upright postures, urinary excretion of catecholamines, and functional testing of the sympathetic nervous system did not differ from the same measurements in control subjects. Arterial and coronary sinus levels of norepinephrine and epinephrine drawn early in ischemia were not elevated over baseline; coronary sinus norepinephrine levels were higher than those in arterial samples and rose from 315 +/- 32 (pg/ml +/- SE) at the onset of ST elevation to 490 +/- 49 pg/ml late in ischemia (p less than 0.05). Plasma epinephrine levels, higher in arterial than coronary sinus samples, also rose significantly only late in ischemia, from 44 +/- 14 pg/ml to 148 +/- 35 pg/ml (p less than 0.05) in arterial blood and from 33 +/- 10 pg/ml to 108 +/- 29 pg/ml in coronary sinus samples (p less than 0.05). Generalized sympathetic nervous system activation is not likely to be the sole cause of coronary artery spasm.
Glenohumeral Rotational Motion and Strength and Baseball Pitching Biomechanics

Context: Addressing loss of shoulder range of motion and rotator cuff weakness in injury-prevention programs might be an effective strategy for preventing throwing arm injuries in baseball pitchers. However, the influence of these clinical measures on pitching biomechanics is unclear. Objective: To evaluate the relationships among clinical measures of shoulder rotational motion and strength and 3-dimensional pitching biomechanics and to evaluate the presence of coupling between the shoulder and the elbow during pitching to provide insight into the influence of clinical shoulder characteristics on elbow biomechanics. Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: Biomechanics laboratory. Patients or Other Participants: A total of 27 uninjured male high school baseball pitchers (age = 16 ± 1.1 years, height = 183 ± 7 cm, mass = 83 ± 12 kg). Main Outcome Measure(s): Clinical measures included shoulder internal- and external-rotation range of motion and peak isometric internal- and external-rotator strength. T...
Thyroid dysfunction in thalassaemic patients: ferritin as a prognostic marker and combined iron chelators as an ideal therapy

Objective: Endocrine complications characterised patients with b thalassaemia (bT). In particular, thyroid dysfunction occurs frequently in bT major, but its long-term natural history is poorly understood. Design: A total of 72 bT patients were followed for 8 years. The incidence of thyreopathies, defined as the primary study endpoint, was assessed. The aim of this study was to analyse the prognostic role of ferritin for thyreopathies in patients with major and intermedia bT. The power of different iron chelators to treat iron overload and to prevent or reverse thyreopathies was also assessed. Methods: Patients were treated with chelators with different chelation strategies during the study. Receiver operating characteristics analysis was employed to calculate the area under the curve for serum ferritin to find the best cutoff values capable of identifying thyroid dysfunction in thalassaemic patients. Kaplan‐Meier curves were generated to assess incidence of thyreopathy. Adjusted risk estimates for thyreopathy were calculated using univariate followed by multivariate Cox proportional hazard regression analysis. Results: Patients with thyroid dysfunction were characterised by higher ferritin when compared with patients without thyreopathies (1500 (872‐2336) vs 513 (370‐698) mg/l; P!0.0001). Patients with ferritin values above 1800 mg/l experienced a significantly faster evolution to endpoint (log-rank (c 2 ): 7.7; PZ0.005). Ferritin predicted high risk of thyroid dysfunction independently of confounding factors (hazard ratio: 1.20; P!0.0001). The intensification of chelation therapy led to an amelioration of thyroid function. Conclusions: Ferritin represents a prognostic marker for bT patients and a predictive factor for progression to thyroid dysfunction. Intensive chelation therapy allows the prevention and reversibility of thyroid complications.
Identifying frequency-domain features for an EEG-based pain measurement system

An objective pain measurement device would provide a revolutionary tool for physicians to treat patients. Electroencephalography (EEG) is a widely-used, inexpensive, simply-administered method for obtaining robust information on brain activity. This study shows how frequency domain data from EEG could provide features toward a pattern recognition system to detect and possibly quantify pain in humans. In addition artifacts from pain trials not exclusively linked to pain state (i.e., muscle, arousal, anxiety, etc.) will be identified. EEG data was recorded from human subjects during pain and control trials. Scalp and facial muscle artifact primarily affected only the Gamma band (26-98 Hz), while state of anxiety caused significant changes only in the frontal electrodes of the Theta band (5-6 Hz). State of arousal appeared to be the primary factor in only the Beta2 band (19-25 Hz). Decreased visual activity during pain is likely indicated by the observed increased Alpha (8-13 Hz) (associated with increased inhibition) over the visual cortex. Decreased Theta and Alpha during pain in right temporal-parietal region is consistent with a pain-related activation of brain areas in the parietal operculum and insula known to be involved in pain processes. Given these results, evidence that Alpha indexes cortical gating and the physiological significance of the observed gating, Alpha over the temporal-parietal region is a promising feature towards a pain measurement system.
The PATRIOT Act: Liberty Afir e

The USA PATRIOT Act was written and passed into law in the United States within weeks of the devastating 9/11 terrorist attack. Its purpose was to strengthen and realign U.S. policy to allow greater judicial power to better protect the U.S. from further acts of terrorism. However, as the legal tenets of the Act became more transparent, public concern mounted over the wide latitude given to the governmental agencies that seemed to threaten academic and intellectual freedom and overall civil liberties. The problems inherent in the USA PATRIOT Act are described, and potential amendments and improvements have been suggested.
Basic Motor Skills Instruction for Children with Neuromotor Delays A Critical Review

The purpose of this paper was to examine and integrate the findings of empirical research on the effectiveness of basic motor skills instruction for children with neuromotor delays. Twenty-eight studies were identified. The methodology and effectiveness of the specific training approaches implemented in each study were analyzed. Training approaches were classified into one of four frameworks: neuromotor interventions, sensory integration techniques, behavioral programming, and naturalistic programming. Analysis of study findings indicate that progress in developing and conducting rigorous empirical investigations to address questions of effectiveness of motor intervention techniques is occurring, albeit slowly. The area with the strongest research base is behavioral programming. All approaches, however, lack comprehensive assessment of generalization and maintenance, especially in terms of response generalization, generalization to the natural environment, and maintenance. In fact, the issue of generaliza...
Novel EOD robot design with dexterous gripper and intuitive teleoperation

This paper details the design and implementation of an intelligent explosive ordnance disposal robot to provide law enforcement agencies with a cost effective and reliable robotic platform. The key features of the robot include an intuitive user interface which provides additional sensor feedback and enhanced visual awareness compared to existing systems, an on-board three degree of freedom manipulator arm providing an enlarged workspace, and a dexterous gripper allowing for the removal of blasting caps. The flexible and modular robot design utilizes commercial off-the-shelf components for ease of maintenance and repairs. The robot provides a safe distance threat assessment and increased capacity for explosive ordnance disposal, improving the effectiveness of bomb disposal teams. The robot's low-cost, intuitive operation and ease-of-maintenance promote its widespread appeal, thereby saving the lives of both law enforcement personnel and civilians.
Oral Poetry in Mediaeval English, French, and German Literature: Some Notes on Recent Research

THROUGH M. Parry and his analyses of contemporary Serbo-Croatian song' Homeric scholarship in recent years has once more happily influenced the study of mediaeval literature. A. B. Lord, continuing and gradually expanding Parry's work, included a tentative chapter on the mediaeval epic in his authoritative book Tht, Singer of Tales (Cambridge, 1960). By this time F. P. Magoun, Jr had begun to use Parry's and Lord's findings in the interpretation of Anglo-Saxon poetry, and since then a good deal of scholarship in this field has consisted of related efforts.2 Studying a living oral tradition, Parry developed convenient and apparently convincing techniques of proving the oral-formulaic character of a given text (see especially "Homer and Homeric Style," 118 ff.). Unfortunately these methods provide a certain temptation to mechanical analysis: one breaks down passages of Anglo-Saxon or, as has more recently been done, Old Spanish and Old Saxon poetry3 into "formulas" and formula systems, only to find once
A new laboratory experiment for transformer modeling in the presence of harmonic distortion using a computer controlled harmonic generator

The authors describe the introduction of power-system harmonics in the power engineering curriculum by investigating the variation of the transformer parameters and the mutual coupling between the windings as a function of frequency by a laboratory experiment. This test is based on a hybrid set of measurements on a single-phase and a three-phase transformer. The test procedure and comparison of the results with the available studies are shown. It is concluded that studying actual recorded data, simulating the distorted waveform in a laboratory experiment, and obtaining the results represent a good experience for the students who choose the power area as their careers. This experiment gave the students a better understanding of the impact of harmonics and distortion in power system analysis and modeling. >