cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Integrating Material/Part/Process Design for Polymer Composites: A Knowledge-Based Problem-Solving Approach:

Polymer composites provide the opportunity to design the material as well as the part. The domain for composites design can be viewed along three dimensions, namely material design, part design, and process design. These dimensions are not independent, and their interactions create important bottlenecks in manufacturing. Integrating these material/part/process issues becomes increasingly important as composite materials penetrate the durable goods markets and as high-performance markets become more and more cost conscious. Often these bottlenecks are caused by lack of strategic knowledge or the application of knowledge in the wrong context. To address these challenges and facilitate the use of polymer composites, a problem-solving architecture for integrated material/part/process design is being developed that makes use of knowledge-based systems (KBS) technology. The goal is to bring to bear the necessary decision-making knowledge at important junctions in the design procedure. Our current implementation...
A two-step chemical/chiroptical method for determining absolute configurations of α-hydroxy acids

Abstract A general, chemical/chiroptical approach based on the CD exciton chirality method has been developed to determine the absolute configuration of α-hydroxy acids. This approach consists of amidation of the carboxyl group with ethanolamine followed by derivatization with the hydrophobic 10,15,20-triphenylporphyrinyl-5-benzoyl chromophore to form π,π-bisporphyrin derivatives which undergo intramolecular stacking. The sign of the observed bisignate couplet resulting from this stacking (in methylcyclohexane) is dictated by the preferred lower energy conformer and reflects the absolute configuration of the stereogenic center.
Cardiovascular disease—risk benefits of clean fuel technology and policy: A statistical analysis

The hypothesis of this study is that there is a statistical relationship between the cardiovascular disease mortality rate and the intensity of fuel consumption (measured in gallons/square mile) at a particular location. We estimate cross-sectional regressions of the mortality rate due to cardiovascular disease against the intensity of fuel consumption using local data for the entire US, before the US Clean Air Act (CAA) in 1974 and after the most recent policy revisions in 2004. The cardiovascular disease rate improvement estimate suggests that up to 60 cardiovascular disease deaths per 100,000 residents are avoided in the largest urban areas with highest fuel consumption per square mile. In New York City, for instance, the mortality reduction may be worth about $30.3 billion annually. Across the US, the estimated Value of Statistical Life (VSL) benefit is $202.7 billion annually. There are likely three inseparable reasons that contributed importantly to this welfare improvement. First, the CAA regulations banned leaded gasoline, and mandated reduction in specific chemicals and smog components. Second, technologies such as the Catalytic Converter (CC) for the automobile and the low particulate diesel engine were adopted. Third, biofuels have had important roles, making the adoption of clean air technology possible and substituting for high emission fuels.
Governance Alternatives and Pricing in the U.S. Electric Power Industry

Alternative governance mechanisms can be expected to result in differences in enterprise performance. This research analyzes the prices charged by U.S. electric utilities using a comprehensive pricing model and a large and detailed dataset that controls for enterprise costs and subsidies. It finds that public ownership is associated with significantly lower prices than with privately owned utilities, most likely because the latter are subject to regulation. Also associated with lower prices are elected commissioners (rather than those appointed by state governors), commissions with fewer members, and utilities whose governing bodies hold open meetings-all characteristics that imply more direct consumer influence on the price-determination process. Among customer groups, residential users are the biggest beneficiaries of public ownership, while industrial users appear to have more influence with elected state regulatory commissions. These findings are reconciled with theory and help explain the sometimes ambiguous results of previous studies.
Evolving design rules for the inverse granular packing problem

If a collection of identical particles is poured into a container, different shapes will fill to different densities. But what is the shape that fills a container as close as possible to a pre-specified, desired density? We demonstrate a solution to this inverse-packing problem by framing it in the context of artificial evolution. By representing shapes as bonded spheres, we show how shapes may be mutated, simulated, and selected to produce particularly dense or loose packing aggregates, both with and without friction. Moreover, we show how motifs emerge linking these shapes together. The result is a set of design rules that function as an effective solution to the inverse packing problem for given packing procedures and boundary conditions. Finally, we show that these results are verified by experiments on 3D-printed prototypes used to make packings in the real world.
A Second Look at the Toric h-Polynomial of a Cubical Complex

We provide an explicit formula for the toric h-contribution of each cubical shelling component, and a new combinatorial model to prove Chan’s result on the non-negativity of these contributions. Our model allows for a variant of the Gessel-Shapiro result on the g-polynomial of the cubical lattice, this variant may be shown by simple inclusion-exclusion. We establish an isomorphism between our model and Chan’s model and provide a reinterpretation in terms of noncrossing partitions. By discovering another variant of the Gessel-Shapiro result in the work of Denise and Simion, we find evidence that the toric h-polynomials of cubes are related to the Morgan-Voyce polynomials via Viennot’s combinatorial theory of orthogonal polynomials.
Large Applications and Challenges of State-Of-The-Art Superconducting RF (SRF) Technologies

Various applications of superconducting radio-frequency (SRF) accelerating structures in many fields around the world are introduced. These applications consist of high energy physics, nuclear physics, free electron lasers, energy amplifiers, nuclear materials and the treatment of radioactive wastes. A review of recent development of SRF technologies is presented. We also briefly discuss the future prospects of SRF technologies and applications.
Acquiring 3-D spatial data of a real object

Abstract A method of acquiring 3-D information from a real object via a stereometric system is presented. Three-dimensional (3-D) data of an object are acquired by (1) camera calibration; (2) stereo matching; (3) multiple stereo views covering the whole object; (4) geometrical computations to determine the 3-D coordinates for each sample point of the object. The analysis and the experimental results indicate that the method implemented is capable of measuring the spatial data of a real object with satisfactory accuracy.
Febrile Reactions Occurring With Second Cycle of High Dose Melphalan and Stem Cell Transplantation in Patients With AL Amyloidosis: A “Melphalan Recall” Reaction

Systemic AL amyloidosis is a clonal plasma cell disease related to multiple myeloma characterized by the wide spread deposition of amyloid fibrils into tissues and organs. Treatment for this disease is directed towards reducing amyloidogenic monoclonal light chains by attacking the underlying plasma cell dyscrasia. Aggressive treatment with high dose intravenous melphalan followed by autologous stem cell transplantation (HDM/SCT) is effective in inducing hematologic and clinical remissions and in extending survival. Tandem cycles of HDM/SCT have been shown to increase hematologic complete response (HCR) rates in patients with multiple myeloma and have therefore been included in the treatment of AL amyloidosis. Between April 1994 and July 2008, 57 patients with AL amyloidosis at Boston University Medical Center were treated with a second cycle of HDM/SCT after failing to achieve a HCR following a first transplantation. Eleven of 57 patients (19%) treated with tandem transplantation developed a high fever; 12-24 hours following melphalan administration. Other clinical features noted in some of the patients include hypotension, acute renal failure, and skin rash. Among the 11 patients described, there were 7 men and 4 women. The average age was 53.5 years (range 41-60). The average peak temperature of the 11 patients was 39.1o C (range, 38.1-39.4°C). All patients experienced resolution of fever within 24–48 hours. Six of the 11 patients developed a rash and 5 developed hypotension that was responsive to intravenous fluids or pressors when indicated. Two of the patients developed acute renal failure that improved following resolution of the fever. In all 11 patients, workup for an infectious etiology of fever was negative. One of the 11 patients described, had cytokine measurements before, during and after the febrile reaction. The concentration of several pro-inflammatory as well as anti-inflammatory cytokines increased significantly. IL-6, a classic endogenous, pyrogenic cytokine, increased 10 fold with this reaction demonstrating a clear physiologic response correlating with the clinical findings. Therefore, an unusual febrile reaction mediated by pyrogenic cytokines can occur in patients with AL amyloidosis exposed to a second cycle of high dose melphalan. While this reaction has not been observed in patients with multiple myeloma treated in similar fashion for unclear reasons, clinicians should be aware of this phenomenon we have termed a “melphalan recall” reaction in patients with AL amyloidosis treated with tandem cycles of HDM/SCT.
Improving Accessibility of Archived Raster Dictionaries of Complex Script Languages

We propose an approach to index raster images of dictionary pages which in turn would require very little manual effort to enable direct access to the appropriate pages of the dictionary for lookup. Accessibility is further improved by feedback and crowdsourcing that enables highlighting of the specific location on the page where the lookup word is found, annotation, digitization, and fielded searching. This approach is equally applicable on simple scripts as well as complex writing systems. Using our proposed approach, we have built a Web application called "Dictionary Explorer" which supports word indexes in various languages and every language can have multiple dictionaries associated with it. Word lookup gives direct access to appropriate pages of all the dictionaries of that language simultaneously. The application has exploration features like searching, pagination, and navigating the word index through a tree-like interface. The application also supports feedback, annotation, and digitization features. Apart from the scanned images, "Dictionary Explorer" aggregates results from various sources and user contributions in Unicode. We have evaluated the time required for indexing dictionaries of different sizes and complexities in the Urdu language and examined various trade-offs in our implementation. Using our approach, a single person can make a dictionary of 1,000 pages searchable in less than an hour.
Anomaly free U(1) chiral gauge theories on a two-dimensional torus

Abstract We consider anomaly free combinations of chiral fermions coupled to U (1) gauge fields on a 2D torus first in the continuum and then on the lattice in the overlap formulation. Both in the continuum and on the lattice, when the background consists of sufficiently large constant gauge potentials, the action induced by the fermions varies significantly under certain singular gauge transformations. “Ruling away” such discontinuities cannot be justified in the continuum framework and does not naturally fit on the lattice. Complete gauge invariance in the continuum can be restored in some models by choosing special boundary conditions for the fermions. Evidence is presented that gauge averaging the overlap phases in these models produces correct continuum results.
Corporate Governance in Emerging Economies

Most of the literature on corporate governance emphasizes that firms should be run in the interests of shareholders. This is an appropriate objective function when markets are perfect and complete. In many emerging economies this is not the case: markets are imperfect and incomplete. The first theme of the paper is that alternative firm objective functions, such as pursuing the interests of all stakeholders, may help overcome market failures. The second theme is that it is not necessarily optimal to use the law to ensure good corporate governance. Other mechanisms such as competition, trust, and reputation may be preferable.
Tolerating SDN Application Failures with LegoSDN

Despite Software Defined Network's (SDN) proven benefits, there remains significant reluctance in adopting it. Among the issues that hamper SDN's adoption two stand out: reliability and fault tolerance. At the heart of these issues is a set of fate-sharing relationships: The first between the SDN-Apps and controllers, where-in the crash of the former induces a crash of the latter, and thereby affecting availability; and, the second between the SDN-App and the network, where-in a byzantine failure e.g., black-holes and network-loops, induces a failure in the network, and thereby affecting network availability. The principal position of this paper is that availability is of utmost concern -- second only to security. To this end, we present a re-design of the controller architecture centering around a set of abstractions to eliminate these fate-sharing relationships, and make the controllers and network resilient to SDN-App failures. We illustrate how these abstractions can be used to improve the reliability of an SDN environment, thus eliminating one of the barriers to SDN's adoption.
Synthesis and Characterization of Stable Stoichiometric Clathrates of Silicon and Germanium: Cs8Na16Si136 and Cs8Na16Ge136

The search for new and better thermoelectric materials has recently brought to light a somewhat forgotten class of compounds, the clathrates of group 14. This and some purely theoretical interest in these and similar structural types have instigated much research on their electronic, magnetic, spectral, and conducting properties. Furthermore, renewed interest in these systems was sparked by the recent discovery of superconductivity in a Na-Ba-Si compound with the clathrate-I structure. Last, the clathrates are a step closer to porous silicon and the valuable optical properties that come with it. All of this interest has led to the search for reliable and reproducible ways for the synthesis of such silicon and germanium clathrates in high yields and with defined stoichiometry.
Family Size: Implicit Policies and Assumed Psychological Outcomes

The literature is surveyed to investigate 2 questions that should concern population planners: 1) whether there are likely to be shifts to the zero-and one-child family which is assumed by the Presidents Commission to be essential if an "average" family size of two children is to be maintained; and 2) What if any psychological differences exist between children in single families in two-child families and in larger families. Concerning the first issue it is contended that a culturally sanctioned strong desire for zero-or one-child families in the United States is nonexistent. A review of existing studies positing psychological differenceis among children from varying family sizes emphasizes that evidence for the validity of such characterizations is far from conclusive. In addition the following important issues have been ignored: 1) The cultural proscriptions concerning the only child; and 2) The lack of evidence that the smaller families that would result would be those in which positive traits would most likely emerge. Also the literature surveyed suggests that a negative image concerning the only child continues to exist; while the psychological traits imputed to the only child have failed to be demonstrated with certainity. Neither is there incontestable evidence for psychological characteristics associ ated with other family sizes. If more research confirms the benefits to the only child and the widely-spaced child and the negative characteristics of children in large families an appeal for zero-and one-child families might expect to result in societal responsiveness.
Tunneling in Heavy-Fermion Junctions

In this paper I review recent theoretical and experimental advances in understanding of tunneling processes between normal metals and metals containing electrons which occupy partially filled f-orbitals. In heavy-fermion materials the effective mass of the quasiparticles far exceeds the bare electron mass due to strong hybridization between conduction and f-orbital states. Kondo lattices form a class of heavy-fermion systems in which an average occupation number of f-electron states is close to an integer. Therefore, the tunneling into a Kondo lattice necessarily involves co-tunneling process of a tip electron into an f-electron state of a Kondo lattice. This co-tunneling process is manifested in the Fano-lineshape of differential conductance as a function of an applied voltage, which has been routinely observed in recent experiments on various Kondo lattice systems. To illustrate these ideas, I discuss the problem of the tunneling junction when the single particle states in the tip are also a product of ...
Physical Structure of Small Wolf-Rayet Ring Nebulae

We have selected the seven most well-defined Wolf-Rayet (WR) ring nebulae in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), Br 2, 10, 13, 40a, 48, 52, and 100, to study their physical nature and evolutionary stages. New CCD imaging and echelle observations have been obtained for five of these nebulae; previous photographic imaging and echelle observations are available for the remaining two nebulae. Using the nebular dynamics and abundances, we find that the Br 13 nebula is a circumstellar bubble, and that the Br 2 nebula may represent a circumstellar bubble merging with a fossil main-sequence interstellar bubble. The nebulae around Br 10, 52, and 100 all show influence of the ambient interstellar medium. Their regular expansion patterns suggest that they still contain significant amounts of circumstellar material. Their nebular abundances would be extremely interesting, as their central stars are WC5 and WN3–WN4 stars whose nebular abundances have not been derived previously. Intriguing and tantalizing implications are obtained from comparisons of the LMC WR ring nebulae with ring nebulae around Galactic WR stars, Galactic LBVs, LMC LBVs, and LMC BSGs; however, these implications may be limited by small-number statistics. A SNR candidate close to Br 2 is diagnosed by its large expansion velocity and nonthermal radio emission. There is no indication that Br 2's ring nebula interacts dynamically with this SNR candidate.
Lefschetz fixed point theorems for Fourier-Mukai functors and DG algebras

Abstract We propose some variants of Lefschetz fixed point theorem for Fourier–Mukai functors on a smooth projective algebraic variety. Independently we also suggest a similar theorem for endo-functors on the category of perfect modules over a smooth and proper DG algebra.
Effects of bistatic clutter dispersion on STAP systems

In this paper, we analyze the performance of several space-time adaptive processing (STAP) approaches in bistatic applications. Specific consideration is given to the effects of bistatic clutter spectral dispersion on covariance estimation and the algorithm's resulting clutter rejection capability. We emphasize the role of adaptive processing methods capable of high performance with efficient utilization of training data. A deterministic two-dimensional (angle-Doppler) compensation technique is used as a preprocessor and is compared to the Doppler warping approach. Algorithm performance is assessed using the output signal-to-interference plus noise ratio (SINR) compared to that of the matched filter with known covariance.
Analysis of Chemistry Models for DSMC Simulations of the Atmosphere of Io

Hypervelocity chemical reactions between SO2 and O are studied using the molecular dynamic/quasi-classicaltrajectory method for conditions relevant to the modeling of the rarefied atmosphere of Io, a moon of Jupiter. The implementation of both molecular dynamic/quasi-classical-trajectory and total-collisional-energy chemistry reactionmodelsindirectsimulationMonteCarloisstudiedinazero-dimensionaltime-dependentanalysisandatwodimensionalaxisymmetricdirectsimulationMonteCarlosimulationtomodelasimpleplanetary flowcondition.The molecular dynamic/quasi-classical-trajectory simulations were found to result in lower reaction rate constants and reactionprobabilitiesthanthetotal-collisional-energymodel,andthevibrationalfavoringfeatureoftheSO2 � O ! SO � 2O reaction was revealed. The total collision cross section using the more general viscosity cross section was also obtained through the molecular dynamic/quasi-classical-trajectory simulations and was found to have a significantlydifferentenergydependencecomparedwiththeoriginalvariablehardspherecrosssection.Forthetwodimensional direct simulation Monte Carlo simulations it was found that the structure of the flow as well as the chemically formed sulfur oxide were different for the molecular dynamic/quasi-classical-trajectory and the totalcollisional-energy reaction probabilities and total cross sections. In addition, the reaction region was found to be highly nonequilibrium, which suggests that molecular dynamic/quasi-classical trajectory is a more suitable chemistry model for the simulation of Io’s atmosphere.
Asymmetric information in a competitive market game: Reexamining the implications of rational expectations

We examine price formation in a simple static model with asymmetric information, an infinite number of risk neutral traders and no noise traders. Here we re-examine four results associated with rational expectations models relating to the existence of fully revealing equilibrium prices, the advantage of becoming informed, the costly acquisition of information, and the impossibility of having equilibrium prices with higher volatility than the underlying fundamentals.
Endonucleolytic incision of UVB-irradiated DNA.

. Ultraviolet irradiation of DNA produces a variety of pyrimidine damage. In addition to the well-known photoproducts, pyrimidine dimers and 6-4′(pyrimidin-2'one)pyrimidines, DNA sequence analysis has shown that E. coli endonuclease III incises broad-spectrum UV-irradiated DNA at cytosines. The same enzyme incises DNA oxidized by osmium tetroxide at damaged thymines. The wavelength dependence of endonuclease III incision of irradiated DNA was examined. DNA substrates were irradiated by monochromatic light ranging from 250 to 320 nm. Maximal enzymic cleavage was obtained with substrates irradiated by wavelengths between 265 and 285 nm, with peak activity against DNA irradiated at 280 nm. Therefore, these photoproducts are optimally formed at biologically significant wavelengths and may be involved in actinic carcinogenesis.
Complex structures, duality and WZW models in extended superspace

Abstract We find the complex structure on the dual of a complex target space. For N = (2,2) systems, we prove that the space orthogonal to the kernel of the commutator of the left and right complex structures is always integrable, and hence the kernel is parametrized by chiral and twisted chiral superfield coordinates. We then analyze the particular case of SU (2) × SU (2), and are led to a new N = 2 superspace formulation of the SU (2) × U (1) WZW-model.
Discrete Symmetries and Isosinglet Quarks in Low-Energy Supersymmetry

Abstract Many extensions of the minimal supersymmetric standard model contain superfields for quarks which are singlets under weak isospin with electric charge − 1 3 . We explore the possibility that such isosinglet quarks have low or intermediate scale masses, but do not mediate rapid proton decay because of a discrete symmetry. By imposing the discrete gauge anomaly cancellation conditions, we show that the simplest way to achieve this is to extend the Z3 “baryon parity” of Ibanez and Ross to the isosinglet quark superfields. This can be done in three distinct ways. This strategy is not consistent with grand unification with a simple gauge group, but may find a natural place in superstring-inspired models, for example. An interesting feature of this scenario is that proton decay is absolutely forbidden.
A Learning-Based Approach to Reactive Security

Despite the conventional wisdom that proactive security is superior to reactive security, we show that reactive security can be competitive with proactive security as long as the reactive defender learns from past attacks instead of myopically overreacting to the last attack. Our game-theoretic model follows common practice in the security literature by making worst case assumptions about the attacker: we grant the attacker complete knowledge of the defender's strategy and do not require the attacker to act rationally. In this model, we bound the competitive ratio between a reactive defense algorithm (which is inspired by online learning theory) and the best fixed proactive defense. Additionally, we show that, unlike proactive defenses, this reactive strategy is robust to a lack of information about the attacker's incentives and knowledge.
Social Capital, Economic Development, and Homicide: A Cross-National Investigation

This article draws from an ongoing debate over explanations of homicide. Within this debate, we investigate the pro-social effects of civil society and social capital. Few cross-national studies explore whether elements of social capital either increase or decrease homicide. The cross-national work that does is often characterized by small, homogeneous samples and the use of inappropriate statistical techniques. Replicating elements of Lederman et al.’s (Econ Dev Cult Change 50:509–539, 2002) original study but with wave IV World Values Survey data and negative binomial regression, we find weak support for the beneficial consequences of social capital on homicide. One dimension of social capital, however, does exhibit a significant negative association with homicide rates, net of other influences: social activism. We also fail to support the Durkheimian hypothesis that the negative effect of social capital on homicide is conditional on modernization. We explore the implications of the findings along with avenues for future research.
Quantum effects in the Alcubierre warp-drive spacetime

The expectation value of the stress - energy tensor of a free conformally invariant scalar field is computed in a two-dimensional reduction of the Alcubierre `warp-drive' spacetime. Unless the spacetime is in the Hartle - Hawking state at an appropriate temperature, the stress - energy diverges on past and future event horizons which form when the apparent velocity of the spaceship exceeds the speed of light. The likelihood of the spacetime being in this state, whether due to natural evolution or the application of technology, is briefly discussed.
A leader’s guide to strategic risk management

Purpose – Many firms did not have mechanisms in place prior to 2007 to identify and track the weak signals of an impending financial crisis, and as a result they were not prepared for the stresses and opportunities the crisis generated. The author aims to offer a guide to identifying these weak signals and a system for mitigating the risk of being hurt by another such crisis. Design/methodology/approach – This is a guide to strategic risk management (SRM), which defines a process of identifying, assessing and economically managing potentially enterprise-threatening losses. It is a way to mitigate developing ambiguous threats before they manifest themselves and then spiral out of control. Findings – Corporate leaders can follow the example of savvy investors who use risk management insights to mitigate the effects of a potential crisis and to profit from one if it develops. Practical implications – Market pressures can cause firms to loosen product or investment standards incrementally, which over time can...
The effect on optimal consumption of increased uncertainty in labor income in the multiperiod case

Abstract We consider a multiperiod, additive utility, optimal consumption model with a riskless investment and a stochastic labor income. The main result is that for utility functions belonging to the set F , consumption decreases when we go from any sequence of distribution functions representing labor income to a more risky sequence. A concave utility function belongs to F if its first derivative exists everywhere and is convex.
Enabling adaptive rate and relay selection for 802.11 mobile ad hoc networks

Mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs) are self-configuring wireless networks that lack permanent infrastructure and are formed among mobile nodes on demand. Rapid node mobility results in dramatic channel variation, or fading, that degrades MANET performance. Employing channel state information (CSI) at the transmitter can improve the throughput of routing and medium access control (MAC) protocols for mobile ad hoc networks. Several routing algorithms in the literature explicitly incorporate the fading signal strength into the routing metric, thus selecting the routes with strong channel conditions. While these studies show that adaptation to the time-variant channel gain is beneficial in MANETs, they do not address the effect of the outdated fading CSI at the transmitter. For realistic mobile node speeds, the channel gain is rapidly varying, and becomes quickly outdated due the feedback delay. We analyze the link throughput of joint rate adaptation and adaptive relay selection in the presence of imperfect CSI. Moreover, for an 802.11 network that employs geographic opportunistic routing with adaptive rate and relay selection, we propose a novel method to reduce the effect of the feedback delay at the MAC layer in the presence of Rayleigh fading. This method exploits channel reciprocity and fading prediction and does not require significant modification to the existing 802.11 frame structure. Extensive network simulations demonstrate that the proposed approach significantly improves the throughput, delay, and packet delivery ratio for high mobile velocities relative to previously proposed approaches that employ outdated CSI at the transmitter.
Noncompact manifolds with nonnegative Ricci curvature

Let (M, d) be a metric space. For 0 < r < R, let G(p, r, R) be the group obtained by considering all loops based at a point p ∈ M whose image is contained in the closed ball of radius r and identifying two loops if there is a homotopy between them that is contained in the open ball of radius R. In this article we study the asymptotic behavior of the G(p, r, R) groups of complete open manifolds of nonnegative Ricci curvature. We also find relationships between the G(p, r, R) groups and tangent cones at infinity of a metric space and show that any tangent cone at infinity of a complete open manifold of nonnegative Ricci curvature and small linear diameter growth is its own universal cover.
Removing Diurnal Cycle Contamination in Satellite-Derived Tropospheric Temperatures: Understanding Tropical Tropospheric Trend Discrepancies

AbstractIndependent research teams have constructed long-term tropical time series of the temperature of the middle troposphere (TMT) using satellite Microwave Sounding Unit (MSU) and Advanced MSU (AMSU) measurements. Despite careful efforts to homogenize the MSU/AMSU measurements, tropical TMT trends beginning in 1979 disagree by more than a factor of 3. Previous studies suggest that the discrepancy in tropical TMT trends is caused by differences in both the NOAA-9 warm target factor and diurnal drift corrections. This work introduces a new observationally based method for removing biases related to satellite diurnal drift. Over land, the derived diurnal correction is similar to a general circulation model (GCM) diurnal cycle. Over ocean, the diurnal corrections have a negligible effect on TMT trends, indicating that oceanic biases are small. It is demonstrated that this method is effective at removing biases between coorbiting satellites and biases between nodes of individual satellites. Using a homogen...
The Radion and the perturbative metric in RS1

We calculate the linearized metric perturbations in the five-dimensional two-brane model of Randall and Sundrum. In a carefully chosen gauge, we write down and decouple Einstein equations for the perturbations and get the final and simple perturbative metric ansatz. This ansatz turns out to be equal to the linear expansion of the metric solution of Charmousis et al.1 We show that this ansatz, the metric ansatz of Boos et al.2 and the one of Das and Mitov3 are not incompatible, as it appears on the surface, but completely equivalent by an allowed gauge transformation that we give.
Lithium cobalt-bis-dicarbollide catalyzed substitution reactions of allylic acetates

Abstract Lithium cobalt-bis-dicarbollide (1), in which the lithium is weakly coordinated to the Co(B9C2H11)2−1 anion, is an effective catalyst for the substitution of allylic acetates by a variety of nucleophiles.
Einstein Metrics with Prescribed Conformal Infinity on 4-Manifolds

This paper considers the existence of conformally compact Einstein metrics on 4-manifolds. A reasonably complete understanding is obtained for the existence of such metrics with prescribed conformal infinity, when the conformal infinity is of positive scalar curvature. We find in particular that general solvability depends on the topology of the filling manifold. The obstruction to extending these results to arbitrary boundary values is also identified. While most of the paper concerns dimension 4, some general results on the structure of the space of such metrics hold in all dimensions.
The IDES framework: a case study in development of a parallel discrete-event simulation system

This tutorial describes considerations in the design and development of the IDES parallel simulation system. IDES is a Java-based parallel/distributed simulation system designed to support the study of complex large-scale enterprise systems. Using the IDES system as an example, the authors discuss how anticipated model and system constraints molded the design decisions with respect to modeling, synchronization, and communication strategies.
Proposal for a free electron laser in the X-ray region

Abstract It is proposed that a free electron laser can be operated in the X-ray region, in the range 2–3 A. An analysis is presented of the machine parameters and the characteristics of the mirrors that are required for operation in the Angstrom region.
Weak lensing of the CMB: extraction of lensing information from the trispectrum

Abstract We discuss the four-point correlation function, or the trispectrum in Fourier space, of CMB temperature and polarization anisotropies due to the weak gravitational lensing effect by intervening large scale structure. We discuss the squared temperature power spectrum as a probe of this trispectrum and, more importantly, as an observational approach to extracting the power spectrum of the deflection angle associated with the weak gravitational lensing effect on the CMB. We extend previous discussions on the trispectrum and associated weak lensing reconstruction from CMB data by calculating non-Gaussian noise contributions, beyond the previously discussed dominant Gaussian noise. Non-Gaussian noise contributions are generated by lensing itself and by the correlation between the lensing effect and other foreground secondary anisotropies in the CMB such as the Sunyaev–Zel’dovich (SZ) effect. When the SZ effect is removed from temperature maps using its spectral dependence, we find these additional non-Gaussian noise contributions to be an order of magnitude lower than the dominant Gaussian noise. If the noise-bias due to the dominant Gaussian part of the temperature squared power spectrum is removed, then these additional non-Gaussian contributions provide the limiting noise level for the lensing reconstruction. The temperature squared power spectrum allows a high signal-to-noise extraction of the lensing deflections and a confusion-free separation of the curl (or B-mode) polarization due to inflationary gravitational waves from that due to lensed gradient (or E-mode) polarization. The small angular scale temperature and polarization anisotropy measurements provide a novel approach to weak lensing studies, complementing the approach based on galaxy ellipticities.
Computing a family of skeletons of volumetric models for shape description

Skeletons are important shape descriptors in object representation and recognition. Typically, skeletons of volumetric models are computed using iterative thinning. However, traditional thinning methods often generate skeletons with complex structures that are unsuitable for shape description, and appropriate pruning methods are lacking. In this paper, we present a new method for computing skeletons of volumetric models by alternating thinning and a novel skeleton pruning routine. Our method creates a family of skeletons parameterized by two user-specified numbers that determine respectively the size of curve and surface features on the skeleton. As demonstrated on both real-world models and protein images in bio-medical research, our method generates skeletons with simple and meaningful structures that are particularly suitable for describing cylindrical and plate-like shapes.
X-ray charge density study of p-amino-p′-nitrobiphenyl at 20 K using a CCD area detector and synchrotron radiation: a very large dipole moment enhancement in the solid state

Accurate 20 K intensity data were collected on a crystal of p-amino-p′-nitrobiphenyl [a = 24.348(1), b = 5.802 (1), c = 7.158 (1) A, α = β = γ = 90°, space group Pca21] at the SUNY X3A1 beamline at the National Synchrotron Light Source, using a CCD area detector and a DISPLEX cryostat. The sharp vertical profile of the synchrotron beam, combined with a slight instability of the cryostat, necessitates a φ-dependent correction, made possible by a large redundancy in the data set, the average multiplicity of the measurements being 8.02. In the multipole refinement, net atomic charges were constrained to those from a κ-refinement, corresponding to a more local definition of the pseudoatoms in the crystal. Both localized and unrestricted refinements show a very large (more than threefold) enhancement of the dipole moment in the solid state compared with that of the isolated molecule.
On-demand loop-free routing with link vectors

We present the on-demand link vector (OLIVE) protocol, a routing protocol for ad hoc networks based on link-state information that is free of routing loops and supports destination-based packet forwarding. Routers exchange routing information reactively for each destination in the form of complete paths, and each node creates a labeled source graph based on the paths advertised by its neighbors. A node originates a broadcast route request (RREQ) to obtain a route for a destination for which a complete path does not exist in its source graph. When the original path breaks, a node can select an alternative path based on information reported by neighbors, and a node can send a unicast RREQ to verify that the route is still active. A node that cannot find any alternate path to a destination sends route errors reliably to those neighbors that were using it as next hop to the destination. Using simulation experiments in ns2, OLIVE is shown to outperform dynamic source routing, ad hoc on-demand distance vector, optimized link-state routing protocol, and topology broadcast based on reverse-path forwarding, in terms of control overhead, throughput, and average network delay, while maintaining loop-free routing with no need for source routes.
Cyclage, catabolism, and the affine Hecke algebra

Abstract We identify a subalgebra H ˆ n + of the extended affine Hecke algebra H ˆ n of type A. The subalgebra H ˆ n + is a u-analogue of the monoid algebra of S n ⋉ Z ⩾ 0 n and inherits a canonical basis from that of H ˆ n . We show that its left cells are naturally labeled by tableaux filled with positive integer entries having distinct residues mod n, which we term positive affine tableaux (PAT). We then exhibit a cellular subquotient R 1 n of H ˆ n + that is a u-analogue of the ring of coinvariants C [ y 1 , … , y n ] / ( e 1 , … , e n ) with left cells labeled by PAT that are essentially standard Young tableaux with cocharge labels. Multiplying canonical basis elements by a certain element π ∈ H ˆ n + corresponds to rotations of words, and on cells corresponds to cocyclage. We further show that R 1 n has cellular quotients R λ that are u-analogues of the Garsia–Procesi modules R λ with left cells labeled by (a PAT version of) the λ-catabolizable tableaux. We give a conjectural description of a cellular filtration of H ˆ n + , the subquotients of which are isomorphic to dual versions of R λ under the perfect pairing on R 1 n . This turns out to be closely related to the combinatorics of the cells of H ˆ n worked out by Shi, Lusztig, and Xi, and we state explicit conjectures along these lines. We also conjecture that the k-atoms of Lapointe, Lascoux and Morse (2003) [9] and the R-catabolizable tableaux of Shimozono and Weyman (2000) [20] have cellular counterparts in H ˆ n + . We extend the idea of atom copies from Lapointe, Lascoux and Morse (2003) [9] to positive affine tableaux and give descriptions, mostly conjectural, of some of these copies in terms of catabolizability.
Using qualitative relationships for bounding probability distributions

We exploit qualitative probabilistic relationships among variables for computing bounds of conditional probability distributions of interest in Bayesian networks. Using the signs of qualitative relationships, we can implement abstraction operations that are guaranteed to bound the distributions of interest in the desired direction. By evaluating incrementally improved approximate networks, our algorithm obtains monotonically tightening bounds that converge to exact distributions. For supermodular utility functions, the tightening bounds monotonically reduce the set of admissible decision alternatives as well.
Breaking Up Is Hard to Do, Unless Everyone Else Is Doing It Too: Social Network Effects on Divorce in a Longitudinal Sample

Divorce represents the dissolution of a social tie, but it is also possible that attitudes about divorce flow across social ties. To explore how social networks influence divorce and vice versa, we exploit a longitudinal data set from the long-running Framingham Heart Study. The results suggest that divorce can spread between friends. Clusters of divorces extend to two degrees of separation in the network. Popular people are less likely to get divorced, divorcees have denser social networks, and they are much more likely to remarry other divorcees. Interestingly, the presence of children does not influence the likelihood of divorce, but each child reduces the susceptibility to being influenced by peers who get divorced. Overall, the results suggest that attending to the health of one's friends' marriages may serve to support and enhance the durability of one's own relationship, and that, from a policy perspective, divorce should be understood as a collective phenomenon that extends beyond those directly affected.
“Business Responsibilities in a Divided World”: The Cold War Roots of the Corporate Social Responsibility Movement

Both business executives and management scholars have, in recent years, focused a great deal of attention on the theme of corporate social responsibility (CSR). Calls for business leaders to expend resources on behalf of “social good” tend to downplay, if not ignore, what is fundamentally an ideological question: just what is a “good” society and who defines “goodness”? The ideological underpinnings of social responsibility and its relationship to the “good” society can be explored through an historical perspective. The roots of the CSR movement trace back to the early years of the Cold War. Led by Donald K David, Dean of the Harvard Business School and supported by other academics and executives given voice on the pages of the Harvard Business Review, advocates urged expanded business social responsibility as a means of aligning business interests with the defense of free-market capitalism against what was depicted as the clear-and-present danger of Soviet Communism. Today's enthusiastic calls for business to “do well by doing good” could benefit from a similar critical analysis not just of the goals of CSR but also the ideological assumptions, often unacknowledged, that underlie those goals.
Effect of Staff Turnover on Staffing: A Closer Look at Registered Nurses, Licensed Vocational Nurses, and Certified Nursing Assistants

Purpose: We examined the effects of facility and market-level characteristics on staffing levels and turnover rates for direct care staff, and we examined the effect of staff turnover on staffing levels. Design and Methods: We analyzed cross-sectional data from 1,014 Texas nursing homes. Data were from the 2002 Texas Nursing Facility Medicaid Cost Report and the Area Resource File for 2003. After examining factors associated with staff turnover, we tested the significance and impact of staff turnover on staffing levels for registered nurses (RNs), licensed vocational nurses (LVNs) and certified nursing assistants (CNAs). Results: All three staff types showed strong dependency on resources, such as reimbursement rates and facility payor mix. The ratio of contracted to employed nursing staff as well as RN turnover increased LVN turnover rates. CNA turnover was reduced by higher administrative expenditures and higher CNA wages. Turnover rates significantly reduced staffing levels for RNs and CNAs. LVN staffing levels were not affected by LVN turnover but were influenced by market factors such as availability of LVNs in the county and women in the labor force. Implications: Staffing levels are not always associated with staff turnover. We conclude that staff turnover is a predictor of RN and CNA staffing levels but that LVN staffing levels are associated with market factors rather than turnover. Therefore, it is important to focus on management initiatives that help reduce CNA and RN turnover and ultimately result in higher nurse staffing levels in nursing homes.
The ties that bind: Motion planning for multiple tethered robots☆

Abstract We consider the problem of motion planning for a number of small, circular robots in a common planar workspace. Each robot is tethered to a point on the boundary of the workspace by a flexible cable of finite length. These cables may be pushed and bent by robots that come in contact with them but remain taut at all times. The robots have a target point to reach on the workspace and, as each moves to its target, its cable gets stretched out into the workspace. For any set of target points, there may be many final cable configurations of differing complexity that allow all robots to reach their targets. Assuming a final configuration of the cables has been specified, the motion planning task addressed here is to produce reasonably short paths for the robots that will achieve this configuration. This is formulated as a problem in computational geometry and an O( n 3 log n ) algorithm is presented for achieving this task for n robots.
Involutions on standard Young tableaux and divisors on metric graphs

We elaborate upon a bijection discovered by Cools, Draisma, Payne, and Robeva (2012) between the set of rectangular standard Young tableaux and the set of equivalence classes of chip configurations on certain metric graphs under the relation of linear equivalence. We present an explicit formula for computing the $v_0$-reduced divisors (representatives of the equivalence classes) associated to given tableaux, and use this formula to prove (i) evacuation of tableaux corresponds (under the bijection) to reflecting the metric graph, and (ii) conjugation of the tableaux corresponds to taking the Riemann-Roch dual of the divisor.