cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
“Stuck on sugars – how carbohydrates regulate cell adhesion, recognition, and signaling”

We have explored the fundamental biological processes by which complex carbohydrates expressed on cellular glycoproteins and glycolipids and in secretions of cells promote cell adhesion and signaling. We have also explored processes by which animal pathogens, such as viruses, bacteria, and parasites adhere to glycans of animal cells and initiate disease. Glycans important in cell signaling and adhesion, such as key O-glycans, are essential for proper animal development and cellular differentiation, but they are also involved in many pathogenic processes, including inflammation, tumorigenesis and metastasis, and microbial and parasitic pathogenesis. The overall hypothesis guiding these studies is that glycoconjugates are recognized and bound by a growing class of proteins called glycan-binding proteins (GBPs or lectins) expressed by all types of cells. There is an incredible variety and diversity of GBPs in animal cells involved in binding N- and O-glycans, glycosphingolipids, and proteoglycan/glycosaminoglycans. We have specifically studied such molecular determinants recognized by selectins, galectins, and many other C-type lectins, involved in leukocyte recruitment to sites of inflammation in human tissues, lymphocyte trafficking, adhesion of human viruses to human cells, structure and immunogenicity of glycoproteins on the surfaces of human parasites. We have also explored the molecular basis of glycoconjugate biosynthesis by exploring the enzymes and molecular chaperones required for correct protein glycosylation. From these studies opportunities for translational biology have arisen, involving production of function-blocking antibodies, anti-glycan specific antibodies, and synthetic glycoconjugates, e.g. glycosulfopeptides, that specifically are recognized by GBPs. This invited short review is based in part on my presentation for the IGO Award 2019 given by the International Glycoconjugate Organization in Milan.
Ayahuasca's Antidepressant Effects Covary with Behavioral Activation as Well as Mindfulness

Ayahuasca, a plant-based hallucinogen that serves as a spiritual medicine in South America, has improved depression in at least one placebo-controlled clinical trial. Case studies suggest that dram...
Problematizing authentic leadership: How the experience of minoritized people highlights the impossibility of leading from one’s “true self”:

This short essay argues that the case of minoritized individuals attempting to lead authentically highlights barriers that anyone leading from their “true self” will encounter. By offering the conc...
A Twenty-Year Analysis of Winds in California for Offshore WindEnergy Production Using WRF v4.1.2

Abstract. Offshore wind resource characterization in the United States relies heavily on simulated winds from numerical weather prediction (NWP) models, given the lack of hub-height observations offshore. One such NWP data set used extensively by U.S. stakeholders is the Wind Integration National Dataset (WIND) Toolkit, a 7-year time-series data set produced in 2013 by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. In this study, we present an update to that data set for offshore California that leverages recent advancements in NWP modeling capabilities and extends the period of record to a full 20 years. The data set predicts a significantly larger wind resource (0.25–1.75 m s−1 stronger), including in three Call Areas that the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management is considering for commercial activity. We conduct a set of yearlong simulations to study factors that contribute to this increase in the modeled wind resource. The largest impact arises from a change in the planetary boundary layer parameterization from the Yonsei University scheme to the Mellor-Yamada-Nakanishi-Niino scheme and their diverging wind profiles under stable stratification. Additionally, we conduct a refined wind resource assessment at the three Call Areas, characterizing distributions of wind speed, shear, veer, stability, frequency of wind droughts, and power production. We find that, depending on the attribute, the new data set can show substantial disagreement with the WIND Toolkit, thereby driving important changes in predicted power.
A 20MHz-Transformer-Based Isolated Gate Driver for 3.3kV SiC MOSFETs

This paper presents a 20MHz-transformer-based isolated gate driver (GD) for 3.3kV SiC MOSFETs. The proposed GD transmits PWM signal and gate-drive power simultaneously through 20MHz very-high-frequency (VHF) modulated resonant flyback converters (RFCs). A PCB-based air-core transformer is designed to meet the insulation voltage of 15kVrms and achieve a low coupling capacitance of 5pF, which enhances the noise immunity to high dv/dt of 3.3kV SiC MOSFETs. The proposed GD does not require additional isolated GD power supplies nor optical fibers and can operate within the full PWM duty-cycle range. Experimental results on 3.3kV discrete SiC MOSFETs are provided to validate the effectiveness of proposed GD.
Dueling Visions of Blues People: Racial Authenticity, Presidential Legacies, and Incumbent Protection in the 2010 Democratic Primary in Memphis, Tennessee

This paper examines the 2010 Democratic Primary contest in Tennessee’s Ninth Congressional District to investigate the ways in which the Voting Rights Act is invoked to support claims that a particularized representational style in Congress is necessary to advance black interests. The 2010 primary featured incumbent Steve Cohen, the first white representative since the district was redrawn as a majority-black district, and former Memphis Mayor Willie Herenton, the city’s first black executive. Herenton’s “Just One” campaign presented the District as a racial protectorate in need of an authentic black representative to fulfill the district’s obligations to black interests. Consequently, the contest garnered national attention and entangled the Congressional Black Caucus and President Barack Obama (he endorsed the incumbent). Although Cohen defeated Herenton, the “Just One” rhetoric did resonate. Using content analysis of 2009-2010 media coverage, survey results, and election data, I conclude that the Cohen-Herenton contest illuminated dueling visions about black faith in racial clientele politics which were enlivened by black skepticism of President Obama. One vision depicts black faith as myopic and dispossessing; the other as judicious and empowering. These visions reinforced, rather than destabilized, the currency of stylized tropes of black leadership and of black constituents.
Imaging Room and Beyond: The Underlying Economics Behind Physicians' Test-Ordering Behavior in Outpatient Services

Motivated by a collaborative study with one of the most comprehensive ocular imaging programs in the United States, we investigate the underlying three-way trade-off among operational, clinical, and financial considerations in physicians' decisions about ordering imaging tests. Laboratory tests may be processed in parallel and thus have a limited effect on patients' waiting times; imaging tests, by contrast, require patient presence and thus directly influence patients' waiting times. We use a strategic queueing framework to model a physician's decision of ordering imaging tests and show that insurance coverage is the key driver of overtesting. Our further analysis reveals the following: i Whereas existing studies hold that lower out-of-pocket expenses lead to higher consumption levels, we refine this statement by showing the copayment and the coinsurance rate drive the consumption in different directions. Thus, simply expanding patient cost sharing is not the solution to overtesting. ii Setting a low reimbursement ceiling alone cannot eliminate overtesting. iii The joint effect of misdiagnosis concerns and insurance coverage can lead to both overtesting and undertesting even when no reimbursement ceiling exists. These and other results continue to hold under more general conditions and are therefore robust. We enrich our model along two extensions: one with patient heterogeneity in diagnostic precision, and the other with disparities in health insurance coverage. Our findings have implications for other healthcare settings with similar trade-offs.
Chemical Synthesis and Applications of Phosphopeptides

Many biologically important molecules including oncogenes, growth factor receptors, transcription factors, immune cell receptors, protein kinases and cytoskeletal proteins are specifically and reversibly phosphorylated in response to physiological stimuli as well as during differentiation and normal eukaryotic cell cycle progression (1–3). Phosphorylation occurs primarily on the hydroxy 1 group of serine, threonine or tyrosine residues in proteins. While other residues, including histidine, lysine and glutamic acid may be phosphorylated, these phosphoamino acids are chemically less stable and their roles in physiological processes are relatively poorly understood. Protein phosphorylation is accomplished by protein kinases, which catalyze the transfer of phosphate from a nucleotide triphosphate, usually ATP, to the substrate protein. Protein kinases traditionally are grouped by amino acid homology as protein tyrosine kinases or as protein serine/threonine kinases, although a few dual specificity tyrosine/serine/threonine kinases have been described (4,5), and recently, an evolutionarily separate group of serine/threonine kinases related to the phospholipid kinases was discovered (6). Many tyrosine-specific kinases are cell surface receptors or are associated with the plasma membrane as illustrated by the epidermal growth factor, insulin and platelet-derived growth factor receptors (7,8). Serine/threonine kinases more frequently are involved in intracellular signaling and may be linked in cascades with receptor tyrosine kinases to transmit signals from the extracellular environment to the cell nucleus.
The Remittance Market in India: Opportunities, Challenges, and Policy Options

In chapter one, this report maps the patterns and characteristics of migration flows from India; in chapter two, it provides a detailed discussion of remittance flows to India in terms of their importance, sources, uses, trends, costs, and links to financial access. In chapter three, the report describes the remittance market (the players, the regulatory framework, as well as the existing operational schemes), setting the stage for chapter four, which presents a diagnostic of the remittance market based on the General Principles for International Remittance Services (GPs). The diagnostic covers the legal and regulatory framework, payment system infrastructure, market transparency and level of consumer protection, market structure, level of competition among remittance service providers, as well as market governance. It analyzes the existing situation in India and provides detailed recommendations (including lessons learned from international best practices) that are aimed at increasing competition in the remittance industry, providing broader access to payment system infrastructure, enhancing transparency, and ensuring a sound and predictable legal and regulatory framework. Several of the actions could set a basis for leveraging remittances to achieve other important public policy goals such as broadening financial access, expanding financial inclusion, and both strengthening and deepening the financial sector. The report was prepared through (a) background research (data research and mining, literature review, collection of relevant material and information, and background research), (b) a field visit in 2009 (a team of experts visited India and conducted interviews and focus groups with all relevant stakeholders and major institutions active in the remittance market), and (c) surveys of both the authorities and the market players.
Polyploidy in plant evolution: summary.

Six speakers give a fresh perspective of the role of Polyploidy in the evolutionary process described over half a century ago and considered by many biologists well-known and thoroughly understood. One need only examine discussions on the subject in general texts, that usually begin and end with hybridization of species followed by chromosomal doubling of a sterile hybrid to give rise to a tetraploid, to realize how little data on genome multiplication discovered in recent years has impacted the scientific world. Ironically, this type of neopolyploid formation may not be as generalized as once assumed, and in fact may occur only occasionally in nature.
Example of an order 16 non symplectic action on a K3 surface

Abstract We exhibit an example of a K3 surface of Picard rank 14 with a non-symplectic automorphism of order 16 which fixes a rational curve and 10 isolated points. This settles the existence problem for the last case of Al Tabbaa, Sarti and Taki's classification [1] .
Solar Sea Power

The tropical oceans collect and store vast amounts of solar energy; research in converting this energy to electrical power is already well advanced, and the prospects are promising that the costs can be reduced to make it competitive with power produced by conventional means; what the United States needs now is a more intensive program to demonstrate the economic feasibility
A closed form solution to multi-view low-rank regression

Real life data often includes information from different channels. For example, in computer vision, we can describe an image using different image features, such as pixel intensity, color, HOG, GIST feature, SIFT features, etc.. These different aspects of the same objects are often called multi-view (or multi-modal) data. Low-rank regression model has been proved to be an effective learning mechanism by exploring the low-rank structure of real life data. But previous low-rank regression model only works on single view data. In this paper, we propose a multi-view low-rank regression model by imposing low-rank constraints on multi-view regression model. Most importantly, we provide a closed-form solution to the multi-view low-rank regression model. Extensive experiments on 4 multi-view datasets show that the multi-view low-rank regression model outperforms single-view regression model and reveals that multi-view low-rank structure is very helpful.
The response of two-phase hydrothermal systems to changing magmatic heat input at mid-ocean ridges

Abstract We develop numerical simulations of two-phase flow in a NaCl–H2O fluid subject to time varying basal heat flux boundary conditions in order to understand the response of hydrothermal vent temperature and salinity to changing magmatic heat input. The results show that periodic changes in basal heat input on a time scale of several years will not be detected in a continuous time series record of temperature measurements. Fluctuations in vent salinity may be recorded, however. For models with monotonic decay of the magmatic heat flux, a decline in vent temperature may not be observed for several years; however, once single phase conditions are established at the base of the system, a pulse of brine-derived fluid is expected to appear at the surface, followed by a gradual decline of salinity to the seawater value. The pulse of brine salinity is expected to occur before an observed decline in vent temperature. Observed rapid changes in vent temperature and salinity associated with either eruptive or non-eruptive magmatic events are not likely a result of changes in basal heat flux.
Methods to slow starch digestion rate in functional cereal products.

Publisher Summary Starch, being the principal component in cereals and tubers, is the major carbohydrate related to postprandial glycemia and Glycaemic Index (GI) of foods. Carbohydrates modified for lower GI would be desirable as ingredients in functional cereal and other products for certain groups, that is, diabetics, and possibly for other improvements in general health. The current understanding of GI, particularly in relation to slowly digestible cereal starches—in terms of their structure and manufacturing approaches, is the focus of this chapter. Strategies for producing slowly digesting/low-GI functional cereal-based foods could include creating proper food forms and incorporating particular ingredients into foods, such as starches with the slow digesting property that extend glucose release, some non-digesting carbohydrates, Dietary Fiber (DF), Resistant Starch (RS), including viscosity-increasing polysaccharides that delay gastric emptying or decrease digestive enzyme access, organic acids and their salts to slow down gastric emptying, or anti-nutritional agents that inhibit digestion of starch, and other low-glycemic carbohydrates. Most importantly, human trials must show what levels of such carbohydrate-based ingredients or foods are needed to elicit a positive physiological or metabolic response. Food form will continue to be a major issue in the development of slow digesting cereal foods. Highly organized, dense food forms impede starch digestion and, thereby lower the glycemic response of starchy foods. Besides pasta, whole kernel foods, wherein the cellular layers surrounding the starch granules are intact, also present an example of an organized food form with low GI and probable slow digestion property.
Challenges of Quantum Gravity and Higher-Dimensional Field Theories

We give a concise but incomplete list of reasons why Quantum Gravity and Higher-Dimensional field theories are likely to point in the wrong direction. For the sake of clarity and due to the vast volume of research on these topics, no references are included. The interested reader can search for key words relevant to the context using Google Scholar or similar internet engines.
Transformative Deliberations: Participatory Budgeting in the United States

This article develops two conceptual models, based on empirical data, for assessing deliberation and decision making within United States adoptions of Participatory Budgeting (PB). The first model is results oriented whereas the second model is process oriented. The two models evince the tension between inclusiveness and efficiency that emerge as U.S. PB tries accommodating the dual goals of improved short-term service delivery and democratic deepening. Each model satisfies one of these deliberate goals better. Results oriented deliberation is more effective at producing viable projects whereas process oriented is better at ensuring that all participants’ voices are heard. Variation suggests that decision-making in PBNYC exceeds citizens’ ability to make collective decisions with rational discourse. Rather, the structural conditions of district constitution, bureaucratic constraints, and facilitator skill impacted decision-making.
Evidence on Subsequent Filing from the State of Michigan's Income Tax Amnesty

Based on individual taxpayer-level data from Michigan, this study provides first-time empirical evidence on the subsequent filing compliance of state income tax amnesty participants. We find that a...
Quantity Theory of Money Redux? Will Inflation be the Legacy of Quantitative Easing?

Since the onset of the Federal Reserve's unconventional programme of large-scale asset purchases, known as quantitative easing (QE), some economists and financial practitioners have feared that the consequent buildup of the Fed's balance sheet could lead to a large expansion of the money supply, and that such an increase could cause a sharp rise in inflation. So far fears about induced inflation have not been validated. This article examines the basis for the original concerns about inflation in terms of the classic quantity theory of money, which holds that inflation occurs when the money supply expands more rapidly than warranted by increases in real production. The article first reviews the US experience and shows that whereas rapid money growth might have been a plausible explanation of inflation in the 1960s through the early 1980s, subsequent data have not supported such an explanation. It then shows that the quantity theory of money has not really been put to the test after the Great Recession, because a sharp increase in banks’ excess reserves and corresponding sharp decline in the ‘money multiplier’ has meant that the rise in the Federal Reserve's balance sheet has not translated into increased money available to the public in the usual fashion. The most likely aftermath of quantitative easing remains one of benign price behaviour. However, if nascent inflationary conditions materialise, the Federal Reserve will need to manage adroitly the large amounts of banks’ excess reserves that have accumulated as a consequence of QE in order to limit inflationary pressures.
Nuance and behavioral cogency: How the Visible Burrow System inspired the Stress-Alternatives Model and conceptualization of the continuum of anxiety

By creating the Visible Burrow System (VBS) Bob Blanchard found a way to study the interaction of genetics, physiology, environment, and adaptive significance in a model with broad validity. The VBS changed the way we think about anxiety and affective disorders by allowing the mechanisms which control them to be observed in a dynamic setting. Critically, Blanchard used the VBS and other models to show how behavioral systems like defense are dependent upon context and behavioral elements unique to the individual. Inspired by the VBS, we developed a Stress Alternatives Model (SAM) to further explore the multifaceted dynamics of the stress response with a dichotomous choice condition. Like the VBS, the SAM is a naturalistic model built upon risk-assessment and defensive behavior, but with a choice of response: escape or submission to a large conspecific aggressor. The anxiety of novelty during the first escape must be weighed against fear of the aggressor, and a decision must be made. Both outcomes are adaptively significant, evidenced by a 50/50 split in outcome across several study systems. By manipulating the variables of the SAM, we show that a gradient of anxiety exists that spans the contextual settings of escaping an open field, escaping from aggression, and submitting to aggression. These findings correspond with increasing levels of corticosterone and increasing levels of NPS and BDNF in the central amygdala as the context changes. Whereas some anxiolytics were able to reduce the latency to escape for some animals, only with the potent anxiolytic drug antalarmin (CRF1R-blocker) and the anxiogenic drug yohimbine (α2 antagonist) were we able to reverse the outcome for a substantial proportion of individuals. Our findings promote a novel method for modeling anxiety, offering a distinction between low-and-high levels, and accounting for individual variability. The translational value of the VBS is immeasurable, and it guided us and many other researchers to seek potential clinical solutions through a deeper understanding of regional neurochemistry and gene expression in concert with an ecological behavioral model.
Interdisciplinary Project Experiences: Collaboration between Majors and Non-Majors

Students in computer science and information technology should be engaged in solving real-world problems received from government and industry as well as those that expose them to various areas of application. In this paper, we discuss interdisciplinary project experiences between majors and non-majors that offered a creative and innovative opportunity for collaborative learning. Activelearning exercises allowed students to express their creativity and apply concepts learned from each discipline. Feedback from this effort resulted in the development of the Seven C’s (Competencies) for collaborative learning that were ascertained for successful completion of an interdisciplinary project. We feel that these interdisciplinary and collaborative efforts increased student appreciation, enhanced team skills, and created a positive learning environment for the application of concepts.
A New Formula for Partial Fraction Expansion of a Transfer Matrix

A new formula for matrix partial fraction expansion is established. It only involves the inversion of the product of Vandermonde and Stanley matrices with Kronecher expansion and the multiplication of the resulting matrix by the Rosenbrook coefficient matrix. It is much simpler than either the indirect method or methods based on the Lagrange-Sylvester interpolation.
Economic security arrangements in the context of population ageing in India

The rapid ageing of India's population, in conjunction with migration out of rural areas and the continued concentration of the working population in the informal sector, has highlighted the need for better economic security arrangements for the elderly. Traditional family ties that have been key to ensuring a modicum of such security are beginning to fray, and increased longevity is making care of the elderly more expensive. As a result, the elderly are at increased risk of being poor or falling into poverty. In parallel with its efforts to address this issue, the Government of India and some of the Indian states have initiated an array of programmes for providing some level of access to health care or health insurance to the great majority of Indians who lack sufficient access. Formal-sector workers have greater social security than those in the informal sector, but they only represent a small share of the workforce. Women are particularly vulnerable to economic insecurity. India's experience offers some lessons for other countries. Although there is space for private initiatives in the social security arena, it is clear that most such efforts will need to be tax-financed. The role that private providers can play is substantial, even when most funding comes from public sources, but such activity will face greater challenges as more individuals seek benefits. India has also shown that implementation can often be carried out well by states using central government funds, with a set of advantages and disadvantages that such decentralization brings. Finally, India's experience with implementation can offer guidance on issues such as targeting, the use of information technology in social security systems, and human resource management.
OPTIMAL HEDGING WITH VIEWS: A BAYESIAN APPROACH

The optimal hedging model has become the standard theoretical model of normative hedging behavior due to its intuitive tradeoff of expected return with risk, its effcient use of information and its easy implementation. In practice, the model can be easily implemented with the Parameter Certainty Equivalent procedure, which substitutes sample estimates for the true but unknown model parameters. But subjective views, which refer to opinions concerning the directions of market returns of the assets involved in hedging decisions, are either completely ignored or handled in an ad hoc and unsatisfactory manner within the optimal hedging model. Given the widespread use of subjective views in hedging practice and the potential economic benefit of selective hedging, the lack of accommodation of subjective views in the optimal hedging model is a serious problem and could hamper the model's application in risk management practice. With an empirical Bayesian approach adopted, this study proposes an alternative Bayesian optimal hedging model, in which a hedger can adjust his/her optimal hedging position (ratio) according to his/her view(s) on the expected returns of assets under consideration. Like Lence and Hayes' Bayesian optimal hedging model (1994a, 1994b), the optimal hedging position is also determined by mean-variance optimization conditioned on the predictive expectation vector and predictive covariance matrix of asset returns, but unlike their model, the number and type of subjective views that can be expressed is quite flexible because of the adoption of an empirical Bayesian approach. The empirical Bayesian optimal hedging model provides practitioners with a theoretically intuitive yet quantitatively rigorous framework to blend subjective views and the market consensus estimated from sample data according to their relative confidence levels.
Exploratory model building

Some instances of creative thinking require an agent to build and test hypothetical theories. Such a reasoner needs to explore the space of not only those situations that have occurred in the past, but also those that are rationally conceivable. In this paper we present a formalism for exploring the space of conceivable situation-models for those domains in which the knowledge is primarily probabilistic in nature. The formalism seeks to construct consistent, minimal, and desirable situation-descriptions by selecting suitable domain-attributes and dependency relationships from the available domain knowledge.
Application-Level checkpointing techniques for parallel programs

In its simplest form, checkpointing is the act of saving a program's computation state in a form external to the running program, e.g. the computation state is saved to a filesystem. The checkpoint files can then be used to resume computation upon failure of the original process(s), hopefully with minimal loss of computing work. A checkpoint can be taken using a variety of techniques in every level of the system, from utilizing special hardware/architectural checkpointing features through modification of the user's source code. This survey will discuss the various techniques used in application-level checkpointing, with special attention being paid to techniques for checkpointing parallel and distributed applications.
A root cause localization model for large scale systems

Root cause localization, the process of identifying the source of problems in a system using purely external observations, is a significant challenge in many large-scale systems. In this paper, we propose an abstract model that captures the common issues underlying root cause localization and hence provides the ability to leverage solutions across different systems.
Determination of the Masses of Elliptical Galaxies and Clusters of Galaxies with AXAF

The procedures to be used in the determination of the mass and mass distribution of elliptical galaxies and clusters of galaxies, using spatially resolved X-ray spectra of galaxies and clusters of galaxies to be obtained by the imaging spectrometers on AXAF, are described. The procedures utilize the unique AXAF features of large band width, large field of view, high angular resolution, long exposure times, and the availability of sophisticated AXAF instrumentation. The techniques described involve the measurement of the surface brightness and temperature profiles of the hot gas trapped in the potential wells of these systems. Then, by using the equation of hydrostatic equilibrium, which relates the total mass inside a given radius to the size, absolute temperature, density gradient, and temperature profile, it will be possible to infer the mass distribution in these objects to large physical scales.
Fertility and Virtual Reality

The genesis of this Article was an invitation to attend a conference on children and virtual worlds and deliver a brief keynote address. Keynotes are supposed to take the conference participants beyond current thinking, and therefore enjoy some latitude in terms of subject matter and method. While most of the symposium presentations explore how law and regulation of virtual worlds affects children, this Keynote address considers this question somewhat in reverse. Given freedom to roam, one issue comes to mind that often eludes everyone's perception when talking about children and their well-being: the basic question of existence and how children, or the lack thereof, will fundamentally change the law and regulation of virtual reality.
On Extracting Private Randomness over a Public Channel

We introduce strong blender s. A strong blender Ble(·,·) uses weak sources X, Y to produce Ble(X,Y) that is statistically random even if one is given Y. Strong blenders generalize strong extractors [15] and extractors from two weak random sources [25,6]. We show that non-constructive strong blenders can extract all the randomness from X, as long as Y has logarithmic min-entropy. We also give explicit strong blenders which work provided the sum of the min-entropies of X and Y is at least their block length. Finally, we show that strong blenders have applications to cryptographic systems for parties that have independent weak sources of randomness. In particular, we extend the results of Maurer and Wolf [12] and show that parties that are not able to sample even a single truly random bit can still perform privacy amplification over an adversarially controlled channel.
Food Labels and Weight Loss: Evidence from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth

This study investigates the role of nutrition and ingredients information, included in the food labels, as useful tools for individuals who are trying to lose weight. This research has three objectives - examine personal characteristics as predictors of willingness to lose weight conditional on individual's current body mass index, investigate whether those who are trying to lose weight are more likely to read food labels to gather nutritional and ingredients information, and, analyze whether those who want to lose weight and read food labels have a greater propensity to lose weight. Estimates from random effects logistic regressions indicate higher usage of food labels by those who are trying to lose weight, irrespective of their current body mass index. There is also greater likelihood of weight loss in the user group. Future research entails use of more sophisticated econometric techniques to control for self-selection and endogeneity.
Efficiency of energy funneling in the photosystem II supercomplex of higher plants

The investigation of energy transfer properties in photosynthetic multi-protein networks gives insight into their underlying design principles. Here, we discuss the excitonic energy transfer mechanisms of the photosystem II (PS-II) C2S2M2 supercomplex, which is the largest isolated functional unit of the photosynthetic apparatus of higher plants. Despite the lack of a definite energy gradient in C2S2M2, we show that the energy transfer is directed by relaxation to low energy states. C2S2M2 is not organized to form pathways with strict energetically downhill transfer, which has direct consequences for the transfer efficiency, transfer pathways and transfer limiting steps. The exciton dynamics is sensitive to small changes in the energetic layout which, for instance, are induced by the reorganization of vibrational coordinates. In order to incorporate the reorganization process in our numerical simulations, we go beyond rate equations and use the hierarchically coupled equation of motion approach (HEOM). While transfer from the peripheral antenna to the proteins in proximity to the reaction center occurs on a faster time scale, the final step of the energy transfer to the RC core is rather slow, and thus the limiting step in the transfer chain. Our findings suggest that the structure of the PS-II supercomplex guarantees photoprotection rather than optimized efficiency.
The sun since the Bronze Age

An investigation is conducted concerning the behavior of the sun during the last 7000 years. The C-14 content in carbonaceous fossil material can be used as an indicator regarding the level of solar activity at the time when the carbon was assimilated in the process of photosynthesis. Living trees, such as the bristlecone pine, provide a solar activity record to about 3000 B.C. The record can be extended with the aid of well-preserved dead wood to beyond 5000 B.C. The results of an analysis of solar activity levels as a function of time on the basis of C-14 contents are presented in a graph. Attention is given to the Maunder Minimum, a history of the sun in the last 5000 years, an interpretation of the major C-14 excursions, and the sun and climate history.
Well-behaved coarse-grained model of density-functional theory

A coarse-grained version of quantum density-functional theory featuring a limited spatial resolution is shown to model formal density-functional theory (DFT). This means that all densities are ensemble-V-representable (that is, by mixed states), the intrinsic energy functional F is a continuous function of the density, and the representing external potential is the functional derivative of the intrinsic energy, in the sense of directional derivatives within the domain of F. The representing potential v[{rho}] also has a quasicontinuity property, specifically, v[{rho}]{rho} is continuous as a function of {rho}. Convergence of the intrinsic energy, coarse-grained densities, and representing potentials in the limit of coarse-graining scale going to zero are studied vis-a-vis Lieb's L{sup 1} intersection L{sup 3} theory. The intrinsic energy converges monotonically to its fine-grained (continuum) value, and coarse-grainings of a density {rho} converge strongly to {rho}. If a sequence of coarse-grained densities converges strongly to {rho} and their representing potentials converge weak-{sup *}, the limit is the representing potential for {rho}. Conversely, L{sup 3/2}+L{sup {infinity}} representability implies the existence of such a coarse-grained sequence.
Monopolistic Competition and North–South Trade

This paper examines the consequences of opening to international trade for a developing economy with open urban unemployment and rural–urban migration, where the urban sector is monopolistically competitive. It is shown that there exists a threshold level of urbanization prior to which increases in product variety will be reflected in increased urban unemployment, that opening to intra-industry trade with a high-wage economy (i.e. North–South trade) will reduce the rate of urban unemployment by a greater amount than intra-industry trade with a similar economy, and that trade intervention in the South may lower welfare by reducing varieties produced in the North.
Demand-Driven Interprocedural Array Property Analysis

Many optimization techniques rely on the analysis of array subscripts. Current compilers often give up optimizations when arrays are subscripted by index arrays and treat the index arrays as unknown functions at compile-time. However, recent empirical studies of real programs have shown that index arrays often possess some properties that can be used to derive more precise information about the enclosing loops. In this paper, we present an index array analysis method, called array property analysis, which computes array properties by backpropagating queries along the control flow of the program. This method integrates the array data-flow analysis with interprocedural analysis and the demand-driven approach.
Devising a Corporate Facility Location Strategy to Maximize Shareholder Wealth

Location decisions should consider all related impacts upon a firm’s shareholder wealth. Overall, firm cost savings available at alternative locations need to be carefully examined in addition to a...
Results of the Cabriolet Excavation Experiment

Project Cabriolet, a nuclear detonation in hard, dry (volcanic) rock, was executed as a part of the Plowshare Program for development of nuclear excavation techniques. The primary objectives of thi...
Survival and Mortality of Pumas (Puma concolor) in a Fragmented, Urbanizing Landscape.

Wide-ranging large carnivores pose myriad challenges for conservation, especially in highly fragmented landscapes. Over a 13-year period, we combined monitoring of radio collared pumas (Puma concolor) with complementary multi-generational genetic analyses to inform puma conservation in southern California, USA. Our goals were to generate survivorship estimates, determine causes of mortality, identify barriers to movement, and determine the genetic and demographic challenges to puma persistence among >20,000,000 people and extensive urban, suburban, and exurban development. Despite protection from hunting, annual survival for radio collared pumas was surprisingly low (55.8%), and humans caused the majority of puma deaths. The most common sources of mortality were vehicle collisions (28% of deaths), and mortalities resulting from depredation permits issued after pumas killed domestic animals (17% of deaths). Other human-caused mortalities included illegal shootings, public safety removals, and human-caused wildfire. An interstate highway (I-15) bisecting this study area, and associated development, have created a nearly impermeable barrier to puma movements, resulting in severe genetic restriction and demographic isolation of the small puma population (n ~ 17–27 adults) in the Santa Ana Mountains west of I-15. Highways that bisect habitat or divide remaining “conserved” habitat, and associated ongoing development, threaten to further subdivide this already fragmented puma population and increase threats to survival. This study highlights the importance of combining demographic and genetic analyses, and illustrates that in the absence of effective measures to reduce mortality and enhance safe movement across highways, translocation of pumas, such as was done with the endangered Florida panther (P. c. coryi), may ultimately be necessary to prevent further genetic decline and ensure persistence of the Santa Ana Mountains population.
Theory refinement on Bayesian networks

Theory refinement is the task of updating a domain theory in the light of new cases, to be done automatically or with some expert assistance. The problem of theory refinement under uncertainty is reviewed here in the context of Bayesian statistics, a theory of belief revision. The problem is reduced to an incremental learning task as follows: the learning system is initially primed with a partial theory supplied by a domain expert, and thereafter maintains its own internal representation of alternative theories which is able to be interrogated by the domain expert and able to be incrementally refined from data. Algorithms for refinement of Bayesian networks are presented to illustrate what is meant by "partial theory", "alternative theory representation", etc. The algorithms are an incremental variant of batch learning algorithms from the literature so can work well in batch and incremental mode.
Labor supply, school attendance, and remittances from international migration : the case of El Salvador

The objective of this paper is to present microeconomic evidence on the economic effects of international remittances on households' spending decisions. Remittances can increase the household budget and reduce liquidity constraint problems, allowing more consumption and investment. In particular, remittances can afford investing in children's human capital, a key outcome for the discussion of the perspective of growth in a high recipient developing country. Robust estimates that take into account both selection and endogeneity problems in estimating an average impact of remittances are substantially different from least squares (OLS) estimates presented in previous studies, indicating the importance of dealing with these methodological concerns. After controlling for household wealth and using selection correction techniques such as propensity score matching as well as village and household networks as instruments for remittances receipts, average estimates suggest that girls and young boys (less than 14 years old) from recipient households seem to be more likely to be enrolled at school than those from nonrecipient households. Remittances are also negatively related to child labor and adult female labor supply, while adult male labor force participation remains unaffected on average. The results signaling that the additional income derived from migration increases girls' education and reduces women's labor supply, with no major impact on activity choice for males 14 years or older, suggest the presence of gender differences in the use of remittances across (and possibly, within) households.
Information/relevance influence diagrams

In this paper we extend the influence diagram (ID) representation for decisions under uncertainty. In the standard ID, arrows into a decision node are only informational; they do not represent constraints on what the decision maker can do. We can represent such constraints only indirectly, using arrows to the children of the decision and sometimes adding more variables to the influence diagram, thus making the ID more complicated. Users of influence diagrams often want to represent constraints by arrows into decision nodes. We represent constraints on decisions by allowing relevance arrows into decisions nodes. We call the resulting representation information/relevance influence diagrams (IRIDs). Information/ relevance influence diagrams allow for direct representation and specification of constrained decisions. We use a combination of stochastic dynamic programming and Gibbs sampling to solve IRIDs. This method is especially useful when exact methods for solving IDs fail.
Framing effects in international relations

Framing is the least well-developed central concept of prospect theory. Framing is both fundamental to prospect theory and remarkably underdeveloped in the prospect theory literature. This paper focuses on the many subtypes and variations of framing: thematic vs. evaluative; successful vs. failed; productive vs. counterproductive; purposeful, structural and interactive framing; counterframing; loss frames vs. gain frames; revolving framing vs. sequential framing; framing by a third party; and framing vs. priming. The bulk of the paper provides an analysis of framing and framing effects in foreign policy settings with an emphasis on U.S. foreign policy. We highlight framing effects during the Cold War, the Persian Gulf War, the current ``war on terrorism'', and other IR/foreign policy settings. Our examination highlights the extent to which presidents and other significant world leaders use framing to shape policy debates and national security choices.
Genetic Program Based Data Mining for Fuzzy Decision Trees

A data mining procedure for automatic determination of fuzzy decision tree structure using a genetic program is discussed. A genetic program is an algorithm that evolves other algorithms or mathematical expressions. Methods of accelerating convergence of the data mining procedure including a new innovation based on computer algebra are examined. Experimental results related to using computer algebra are given. A comparison between a tree obtained using a genetic program and one constructed solely by interviewing experts is made. A genetic program evolved tree is shown to be superior to one created by hand using expertise alone. Finally, additional methods that have been used to validate the data mining algorithm are discussed.
Characterizing Configuration Spaces of Simple Threshold Cellular Automata

We study herewith the simple threshold cellular automata (CA), as perhaps the simplest broad class of CA with non-additive (that is, non-linear and non-affine) local update rules. We characterize all possible computations of the most interesting rule for such CA, namely, the Majority (MAJ) rule, both in the classical, parallel CA case, and in case of the corresponding sequential CA where the nodes update sequentially, one at a time. We compare and contrast the configuration spaces of arbitrary simple threshold automata in those two cases, and point out that some parallel threshold CA cannot be simulated by any of their sequential equivalents. We show that the temporal cycles exist only in case of (some) parallel simple threshold CA, but can never take place in sequential threshold CA. We also show that most threshold CA have very few fixed point configurations and few (if any) cycle configurations, and that, while the MAJ sequential and parallel CA may have many fixed points, nonetheless “almost all” configurations, in both parallel and sequential cases, are transient states. Finally, motivated by the contrasts between parallel and sequential simple threshold CA, we try to motivate the study of genuinely asynchronous CA.