cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Semantic Opposition and WordNet

We consider the problem of semantic opposition; in particular, the problem of determining adjective-verb opposition for transitive change of state verbs and adjectivally modified grammatical objects. Semantic opposition problems of this type are a sub-case of the classic Frame Problem; the well-known problem of knowing what is preserved or changed in the world as a result of some action or event. By definition, grammatical objects of change of state verbs undergo modification. In cases where the object is adjectivally modified, the problem reduces to determining whether the property denoted by the adjective still holds true after the event denoted by the verb. In this paper, we evaluate the efficacy of WordNet, a network of concepts organized around linguistically relevant semantic relations including antonymy, for this task. Test examples are drawn from the linguistic literature. Results are analyzed in detail with a view towards providing feedback on the concept of a network as an appropriate model of semantic relations for problems in semantic inference.
A Mutually Beneficial Integration of Data Mining and Information Extraction

Text mining concerns applying data mining techniques to unstructured text. Information extraction(IE) is a form of shallow text understanding that locates specific pieces of data in natural language documents, transforming unstructured text into a structured database. This paper describes a system called DISCOTEX, that combines IE and data mining methodologies to perform text mining as well as improve the performance of the underlying extraction system. Rules mined from a database extracted from a corpus of texts are used to predict additional information to extract from future documents, thereby improving the recall of IE. Encouraging results are presented on applying these techniques to a corpus of computer job announcement postings from an Internet newsgroup.
A safe, efficient update protocol for openflow networks

We describe a new protocol for update of OpenFlow networks, which has the packet consistency condition of [?] and a weak form of the flow consistency condition of [?]. The protocol conserves switch resources, particularly TCAM space, by ensuring that only a single set of rules is present on a switch at any time. The protocol exploits the identity of switch rules with Boolean functions, and the ability of any switch to send packets to a controller for routing. When a network changes from one ruleset (ruleset 1) to another (ruleset 2), the packets affected by the change are computed, and are sent to the controller. When all switches have been updated to send affected packets to the controller, ruleset 2 is sent to the switches and packets sent to the controller are re-released into the network.
A self-organizing neural network structure for motif identification in DNA sequences

In this paper, we study the problem of subtle signal discoveries in unaligned DNA and protein sequences. Motifs, also known as approximate common substrings, are good examples of subtle signals in DNA and protein sequences. The problem of motif identification in DNA and protein sequences has been studied for many years in the literature. Major hurdles at this point include computational complexity and reliability of the searching algorithms. We would develop a self-organizing neural network for solving the problem of motif identification in DNA and protein sequences. Our network contains several layers with each layer performing classifications at different level. The top layer divide the input space into a small number of regions and the bottom layer classifies all input patterns into motifs and non-motif patterns. Depending on the number of input patterns to be classified, several layers between the top layer and the bottom layer are needed to perform intermediate classification. We maintain a low computational complexity through the use of the layered structure so that each pattern's classification is performed with respect to a small subspace of the whole input space. We also maintain a high reliability using our self-organizing neural network since the network would grow as needed to make sure all input patterns are considered and are given the same amount of attention. Finally, simulation results show that our algorithm significantly outperforms existing algorithms, especially in the reliability aspect Our algorithm can identify motifs with higher accuracy than existing algorithms.
Defending the Moral Moderate: Contractualism and Common Sense

Soulignant le role des permissions et des contraintes dans la morale du sens commun, l'A. defend une theorie contractualiste inspiree de T. M. Scanlon, afin de justifier les aspects abstraits ou structurels du raisonnement moral mis en evidence par les non-consequentialistes, d'une part, et de formuler une conception du sens commun en termes de devoir ou de principe d'aide mutuelle, d'autre part.
Handheld recirculation system and customized media for microfluidic cell culture

A palm-sized microfluidic recirculation system and customized media enable simplified long-term culture and imaging of cells. The combination of bare Braille display modules, a leveled monolithic surface for complete chip mounting, and a transparent heater improved portability, mechanical stability and optical accessibility. Modification of basal culture media with Leibovitz's L-15 medium enabled an incubator-free culture of carbonate-dependent cells by eliminating the need for exogenous carbon dioxide. This capability is demonstrated through time-lapse recording of proliferation of C2C12 myoblasts and MC3T3-E1 osteoblasts for over 2 weeks in ambient atmosphere without medium exchange. The method opens up new possibilities for portable cell culture and for long-term continuous visual monitoring of cells.
DOK7 Mutations in Congenital Myasthenic Syndromes

Clinical and genetic data of 14 patients from 12 congenital myasthenic syndrome (CMS) kinships with mutations in the DOK (‘downstream-of-kinase’) 7 gene are presented by researchers from the Friedrich-Baur-Institute, Munich, Germany, and several other centers.
Aesthetic Attributions: The Case of Poetry

It is widely agreed that some relationship exists between lower-level perceptual properties ('This is red.') and aesthetic attributions ('This is vibrant.'). The difficulty lies in ascertaining the nature of that relationship. In 'Aesthetic Concepts' (1955), Frank Sibley famously contended that 'there are no non-aesthetic features which serve in any circumstances as logically sufficient conditions for applying aesthetic terms'. In this paper I argue that some features of poetry call Sibley's thesis into doubt. The ancient origins and near universality of certain poetic forms and formal schemes (such as nursery rhymes and meter) point to a stronger correlation between poetic form (perceptual level) and poetic effect (aesthetic level) than Sibley would have allowed. Even more recent, culture-specific conventional forms (such as the limerick) likewise suggest a positive connection between the perceptual and the aesthetic levels. The relationship between lower-level, perceptual properties and aesthetic attributions that I will defend is a variation of H.L.A. Hart's notion of 'defeasible terms'; in my view, the defeating conditions also produce predictable effects.
OXIDANT-INDUCED CELL DEATH IN RESPIRATORY EPITHELIAL CELLS IS DUE TO DNA DAMAGE AND LOSS OF ATP

Oxidative stress is considered to be an important pathogenic event in ischemia-reperfusion injury, leading to apoptosis or necrosis. We show acute cytotoxicity upon exposure to hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)) in BEAS-2B cells and A549 cells. Single-cell gel electrophoresis showed formation of large comet tails from DNA upon oxidant exposure suggestive of DNA damage. The ATP content of the cells decreased upon exposure to H(2)O(2). Preincubation with 3-aminobenzamide (3-ABA), an inhibitor of poly (ADP-ribosyl) polymerase (PARP), prevented the cytotoxicity. The decrease in the ATP content of the cells was also prevented by 3-ABA. Increase in PARP activity was further confirmed by measuring incorporation of [(32)P]-NAD into nuclear proteins in presence of the cell extracts. Markers of apoptosis were not seen in cells treated with H(2)O(2) with or without 3-ABA pretreatment. These studies suggest that DNA damage is one of the primary reasons for oxidant-induced cell death and that PARP plays an important role in cell death due to its consumption of ATP. Further elaboration of this and other pathways that consume ATP may help prevent oxidant-mediated acute lung injury.
Mechanical devices used for carotid stenting

Placing stents in carotid arteries for athero-occusive stenosis is an increasingly common procedure that is soon to be subjected to systematic validity testing in the Carotid Revascularization Endarterectomy versus Stent Trial (CREST). Several self-expanding stents are available that vary in technical and performance characteristics. Stent technology continues to evolve, but even more rapid development is occurring in the area of mechanical cerebral protection devices. The strategies for mechanical cerebral protection vary, but the common goal is eliminating distal embolization. This is exemplified in a brief review.
The Brown Longitudinal Obsessive Compulsive Study: clinical features and symptoms of the sample at intake.

Objective This article describes the method and intake findings of the Brown Longitudinal Obsessive Compulsive Study, the first comprehensive prospective investigation of the naturalistic course of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) in a large clinical sample using longitudinal research methodology.
Novel Cross-Loopback Based Test Approach for Specification Test of Multi-Band, Multi-Hardware Radios

Recent advances in radio systems engineering have enabled the design of multiple RF front ends (transmitters and receivers), each servicing specific RF communication standards across different frequency bands in a single electronic package. While the design aspects of such radios have been rigorously researched, the test aspects are still evolving. This paper proposes a novel `alternate cross-loopback testing' scheme for a multi-hardware radio using an `optimized' multi-tone test input. In this approach, the transmitter corresponding to one RF standard is used to test receivers corresponding to the same or different communication standards and operating frequency bands. The test approach is compatible with half-duplex operation of the transceiver front-ends and works with all the signal modulation and demodulation software turned "off". Cross-loopback is achieved via a broadband mixer, a programmable VCO and attenuator in the loopback path. The multi-sine tests allow accurate prediction of all transmitter and receiver specifications
Sorting Out the Competing Effects of Racial Context

Context matters, but which context? We live in more than one context; for example, the cities in which we reside may differ dramatically from the neighborhoods we call home. When testing the racial-threat hypothesis, previous research has focused upon a single context, usually in isolation from other, potentially competing contexts. This paper argues that racial context is complicated for whites, and that multiple contexts need to be considered to assess racial threats effectively. Using individual evaluations of neighborhood and city, I show that contexts interact in complicated, surprising, and important ways. I find that the presence of African Americans does have a negative effect upon white attitudes, but that the effect can be misleading if examined in isolation. Scholars need to carefully consider multiple contexts when examining attitudes, and individuals who inhabit incongruent—that is, conflicting— contexts tell an interesting story about race and residence in the United States.
Branched chorda tympani neurons and interactions among taste receptors.

The preterminal branching pattern of nerve fibers from the chorda tympani nerve was examined in the tongues of rats using a normal silver stain. The lingual branch of the trigeminal nerve was sectioned unilaterally proximal to where it is joined by the chorda tympani and these fibers were allowed to degenerate from eight to ten days prior to sacrifice of the animals. Termination of the chorda tympani fibers in the anterior tongue was found to be limited to the taste bud region of the fungiform papillae. The control side of the tongue showed ubiquitous fiber terminations in the basal layers of the common epithelium of the filiform papillae as well as in the lateral walls of the fungiform papillae. These fibers were assumed to be of trigeminal origin. Seventy-nine percent of the fungiform papillae on the experimental side of the tongue received fibers from a branched nerve bundle. Branch points within the nerve bundles were located deep within the tongue 300–500 μ below the taste bud in 43% of the papillae, at the base of 36% of the fungiform papillae about 125 μ below the taste bud, and within the papilla. These data corroborate electrophysiological observations that single chorda tympani fibers receive input from more than one taste bud. Lateral inhibition observed among adjacent taste buds has been postulated to result from interaction of fiber inputs at branch points in the afferent fiber. From a theoretical consideration of the morphology of chorda tympani nerve fibers it is concluded that modification of the neural response may be feasible at branch points.
Arabidopsis Species Hybrids in the Study of Species Differences and Evolution of Amphiploidy in Plants

It is estimated that 5 million years of evolution separate Arabidopsis thaliana from its close relative Arabidopsis lyrata. The two taxa differ by many characteristics, and together they exemplify the differentiation of angiosperms into self-fertilizing and cross-fertilizing species as well as annual and perennial species. Despite their disparate life histories, the two species can be crossed to produce viable and vigorous hybrids exhibiting heterotic effects. Although pollen sterile, the hybrids produce viable ovules and were used as female parent in backcrosses to both parental species. The resulting backcross plants exhibited transgressive variation for a number of interesting developmental and growth traits as well as negative nuclear/cytoplasmic interactions. Moreover, the genesis of a fertile amphidiploid neospecies, apparently by spontaneous somatic doubling in an interspecific hybrid, was observed in the laboratory. The mechanisms responsible for the generation of amphiploids and the subsequent evolution of amphiploid genomes can now be studied through direct observation using the large arsenal of molecular tools available for Arabidopsis.
Range: exploring implicit interaction through electronic whiteboard design

An important challenge in designing ubiquitous computing experiences is negotiating transitions between explicit and implicit interaction, such as how and when to provide users with notifications. While the paradigm of implicit interaction has important benefits, it is also susceptible to difficulties with hidden modes, unexpected action, and misunderstood intent. To address these issues, this work presents a framework for implicit interaction and applies it to the design of an interactive whiteboard application called Range. Range is a public interactive whiteboard designed to support co-located, ad-hoc meetings. It employs proximity sensing capability to proactively transition between display and authoring modes, to clear space for writing, and to cluster ink strokes. We show how the implicit interaction techniques of user reflection (how systems indicate to users what they perceive or infer), system demonstration (how systems indicate what they are doing), and override (how users can interrupt or stop a proactive system action) can prevent, mitigate, and correct errors in the whiteboard's proactive behaviors. These techniques can be generalized to improve the designs of a wide array of ubiquitous computing experiences.
Are semi-presidential constitutions bad for democratic performance?

Many countries since 1990 have adopted semi-presidential constitutions, which are often considered to be problematic, primarily because of the potential for conflict between the assembly-supported government and the popularly elected president. Such conflicts are said to lead to unstable governments, policy paralysis and the eventual undermining of the democratic regime. Using data for all parliamentary and semi-presidential democracies between 1946 and 2006, we examine the effect of semi-presidential constitutions on the duration of prime ministers’ tenure in office, government accountability with respect to economic outcomes, and democratic survival. We also examine (for a smaller sample of post-communist countries) the impact of these constitutions on the progress of structural reforms. We find that the observed higher instability of prime ministers in semi-presidential democracies is more due to the electoral system than to the presence of a popularly elected president. We also find that semi-presidential constitutions have little impact on the government’s accountability to economic outcomes and on the survival of democratic regimes. Finally, we find that neither a weak president nor a weak government is optimal for the progress of economic reforms in post-communist countries. Regarding economic reforms, the optimal allocation of constitutional powers between the president and the government grants both significant powers.
Avicinylation (thioesterification): A protein modification that can regulate the response to oxidative and nitrosative stress

Avicins are a recently discovered family of plant-derived terpenoid molecules that possess proapoptotic, antiinflammatory, and cytoprotective properties in mammalian cells. Previous work demonstrating that avicins can exert their effects by suppressing or activating the redox-sensitive transcription factors NF-κB and nuclear factor-erythroid 2 p45-related factor (Nrf2), respectively, has raised the idea that they may react with critical cysteine residues. To understand the molecular mechanism through which avicins regulate protein function, we examined their effects on the paradigmatic redox-responsive transcriptional activator, OxyR of Escherichia coli, which protects bacterial cells against oxidative and nitrosative stresses. In vitro transcription assays demonstrated that avicins activate OxyR and its target genes katG and oxyS in a DTT-reversible manner. In addition, katG-dependent hydroperoxidase I activity was enhanced in avicin-treated bacteria. Mass spectrometric analysis of activated OxyR revealed thioesterification of the critical regulatory cysteine, Cys-199, to an avicin fragment comprising the outer monoterpene side chain. Our results indicate that avicinylation can induce adaptive responses that protect cells against oxidative or nitrosative stress. More generally, transesterification may represent a previously undescribed thiol-directed posttranslational modification, which extends the code for redox regulation of protein function.
Objective assessment of left ventricular wall motion from cardiac magnetic resonance images

Cardiac MRI diagnosis of regional LV dysfunction relies on subjective interpretation of cine images that suffers from wide inter-observer variability, especially when performed by readers not trained in the assessment of regional wall motion. We developed a method for objective, automated detection of regional wall motion abnormalities. Cine images (GE 1.5 T, FIESTA) were obtained in 6-10 short axis slices in 10 pts. Images were reviewed by an expert cardiologist whose grades were used as the gold standard. Images were then analyzed using custom software. In each slice, endocardial border was detected semiautomatically and divided into 6 segments. Regional fractional area change (RFAC) was computed and displayed as "bull's eyes". RFAC<50% was considered abnormal. The "bull's eyes" showed dark areas in segments judged as abnormal by the expert reader. The automated detection had sensitivity 79%, specificity 78%, accuracy 78%. Analysis of endocardial motion from MRI images provides the basis for accurate, automated and objective interpretation of regional wall motion.
The effect of delayed responding on Stroop-like task performance among preschoolers.

ABSTRACT Forty-four preschoolers completed 2 conditions of a Stroop-like procedure (e.g., saying “boat” for car and “car” for boat) that differed in whether a 3-s delay was imposed before responding. The test card was visible during the delay period for half of the children and occluded for the other children. Preschoolers’ interference control was significantly improved in the delay condition. There was no difference between the two delay variants (test card visible or occluded). Children were more prone to interference as testing progressed regardless of whether the delay was present. These results suggest that delays effectively reduce interference by reducing the potency of the competing response during test trials, although memory demands may moderate the effectiveness of delays.
Cross currents: water scarcity and sustainable CHI

Growing awareness of the threats posed by global freshwater shortages coupled with increased interest in environmental sustainability among CHI researchers make water management a ripe area for new CHI applications. This paper presents a qualitative study of practices and attitudes in a water-stressed region of the United States. We describe water conservation as a culturally-situated activity influenced by a variety of social factors, and show "sustainability" to be a complicated concept rife with competing, often incompatible interpretations and prescriptions. We discuss implications for designing interfaces that encourage personal conservation, and identify environmental policy making as an area ripe for new CHI activity. Finally, we suggest that sustainability has the potential to move from the periphery of CHI research and become a galvanizing force for the community at large.
Hidden synaptic differences in a neural circuit underlie differential behavioral susceptibility to a neural injury

The outcome of a traumatic brain injury or a stroke can vary considerably from person to person, making it difficult to provide a reliable prognosis for any individual person. If clinicians were able to predict outcomes with better accuracy, patients would benefit from more tailored treatments. However, the sheer complexity of the mammalian brain has hindered attempts to explain why similar damage to the brain can have such different effects on different individuals. Now Sakurai et al. have used a mollusc model to show that the extensive variation between individuals could be caused by hidden differences in their neural networks. Crucially, this natural variation has no effect on normal behavior; it only becomes obvious when the brain is injured. The experiments were performed on a type of sea slug called Tritonia diomedea. When these sea slugs encounter a predator they respond by swimming away, rhythmically flexing their whole body. This repetitive motion is driven by a specific neural network in which two neurons—called a cerebral 2 (C2) neuron and a ventral swim interneuron—play important roles. Both of these neurons are quite long and they run alongside each other in the brain, with the ventral swim interneuron being activated by signals sent from the C2 neuron at multiple ‘synaptic connections’ between the two. Sakurai et al. showed that the strength of the connections between the C2 neuron and the ventral swim interneuron varied substantially between animals. However, despite this variation, the sea slugs still performed the same number of whole-body flexions as they swam. Sakurai et al. then made a lesion to the brain, which removed about half of the connections between the C2 neuron and the ventral swim interneuron. This meant that the response of the sea slugs to predators depended on the strength of the remaining connections between the two neurons. Sakurai et al. found that the responses of some sea slugs were only mildly impaired, whereas others were severely impaired. This showed that although variations in the strength of the individual connections had no effect on swimming behavior of normal sea slugs, the same variations had a substantial effect when the brain was damaged. Moreover, by creating computer-generated synapses between the C2 neuron and the ventral swim interneuron, Sakurai et al. were able to change the level of impairment. These findings suggest that the variability in human responses to brain injury could be due to hidden differences at the neuronal level. In everyday life, these differences are unimportant and individuals are able to function in similar ways in spite of subtle differences in their neuronal configurations. However, when the brain is damaged, the differences become more important. This suggests that certain configurations within neuronal networks are more resistant to brain damage than others.
Lawsuits against plastic surgeons: Does locale affect incidence of claims?

Physicians continue to practice in a very litigious environment and despite attempts to reduce susceptibility to lawsuits, there is still a malpractice crisis (1). Physicians may try to mitigate their exposure to lawsuits with several techniques. They can change their practice behaviour or attempt to avoid certain high-risk situations altogether. An additional technique, possibly the most important in reducing claims, is communication with the patient even in the midst of a complication (2,3). Two recent articles (4,5) demonstrate behavioural changes that attempt to minimize the risk of litigation. In an effort to reduce lawsuits related to informed consent, physicians can alter their practice behaviour by obtaining informed consent in the office and documenting the discussion. This was suggested in contrast to getting informed consent in the preoperative area (4). A second example of changing behaviour is to perform an early fasciotomy in compartment syndrome to reduce indemnity risk, but more importantly, improve patient outcome (5). The second technique physicians use to reduce their susceptibility to lawsuits is to avoid certain regions of the country known for their high incidence of medical malpractice claims (6). In addition to certain geographical regions, it is assumed that certain areas of the hospital incur a greater chance of liability. There is a medicolegal dogma suggesting a greater number and more costly malpractice claims arising from patients seen in the emergency room (ER) (7). A review of the literature showed no scientific evaluation of this assumption. We performed an analysis of malpractice claims involving plastic surgeons in the ER, office and operating room (OR). Claims were cross-referenced to the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9) codes that represent typical plastic surgery consults from the ER. We hypothesized that when compared with the office or OR, the majority of the misadventures leading to lawsuits would come from incidents that occurred in the ER and the resulting claims would incur a higher payment to the plaintiff.
Physical attractiveness as a mediator of the impact of early pubertal changes for girls

The present study examined the effects of early pubertal development and physical attractiveness on the popularity, body image, and self-esteem of over 200 sixth-grade girls. Two rival hypotheses were explored. The first suggests that physically attractive girls, because of their more favorable social environment, will exhibit fewer psychosocial difficulties than unattractive girls during pubertal development. The second hypothesis argues that attractive girls will exhibit greater difficulty during pubertal transition because their self-image is more intimately connected with their physical appearance. Although there were no significant interactions between attractiveness and pubertal development for either popularity or body image, the second hypothesis was supported with respect to self-esteem. Specifically, developing attractive girls exhibited lower self-esteem than their unattractive counterparts. The results are discussed in terms of the relative vulnerability to bodily changes of girls differing in physical attractiveness.
Approximation by fully complex multilayer perceptrons

We investigate the approximation ability of a multilayer perceptron (MLP) network when it is extended to the complex domain. The main challenge for processing complex data with neural networks has been the lack of bounded and analytic complex nonlinear activation functions in the complex domain, as stated by Liouville's theorem. To avoid the conflict between the boundedness and the analyticity of a nonlinear complex function in the complex domain, a number of ad hoc MLPs that include using two real-valued MLPs, one processing the real part and the other processing the imaginary part, have been traditionally employed. However, since nonanalytic functions do not meet the Cauchy-Riemann conditions, they render themselves into degenerative backpropagation algorithms that compromise the efficiency of nonlinear approximation and learning in the complex vector field. A number of elementary transcendental functions (ETFs) derivable from the entire exponential function ez that are analytic are defined as fully complex activation functions and are shown to provide a parsimonious structure for processing data in the complex domain and address most of the shortcomings of the traditional approach. The introduction of ETFs, however, raises a new question in the approximation capability of this fully complex MLP. In this letter, three proofs of the approximation capability of the fully complex MLP are provided based on the characteristics of singularity among ETFs. First, the fully complex MLPs with continuous ETFs over a compact set in the complex vector field are shown to be the universal approximator of any continuous complex mappings. The complex universal approximation theorem extends to bounded measurable ETFs possessing a removable singularity. Finally, it is shown that the output of complex MLPs using ETFs with isolated and essential singularities uniformly converges to any nonlinear mapping in the deleted annulus of singularity nearest to the origin.
The Politics of Budget Execution Financial Manipulation in State and Local Government

Until recently, political scientists focused on the approval of budget requests and ignored budget execution. This study counters the budgeting literature's almost single-minded concentration on legislative action. Existing studies which touch on budget execution in state and local governments are reviewed and five major techniques of budgetary adjustment are identified: (1) conservative special fund revenue estimates, (2) accounting legerdemain, (3) transfers, (4) reprogramming, and (5) juggling of special funds. The study concludes that additional research on budget execution is necessary before developing more effective theories about the "steering" of governmental institutions.
A New Approach to a Lyme Disease Vaccine

A single recombinant outer surface protein A (OspA) antigen designed to contain protective elements from 2 different OspA serotypes (1 and 2) is able to induce antibody responses that protect mice against infection with either Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto (OspA serotype-1) or Borrelia afzelii (OspA serotype-2). Protection against infection with B burgdorferi ss strain ZS7 was demonstrated in a needle-challenge model. Protection against B. afzelii species was shown in a tick-challenge model using feral ticks. In both models, as little as .03 μg of antigen, when administered in a 2-dose immunization schedule with aluminum hydroxide as adjuvant, was sufficient to provide complete protection against the species targeted. This proof of principle study proves that knowledge of protective epitopes can be used for the rational design of effective, genetically modified vaccines requiring fewer OspA antigens and suggests that this approach may facilitate the development of an OspA vaccine for global use.
Skeletons in the Closet: Transitional Justice in Post-Communist Europe. By Monika Nalepa

Skeletons in the Closet: Transitional Justice in Post-Communist Europe. By Monika Nalepa. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2010. 328p. 27.00 paper.In the not-too-distant past, systematic transitional justice research was a rarity. Normative treatises on various aspects of the justice of transitions have long been a staple of the human rights literature, but empirical and analytical inquiries into the causes and consequences of efforts to deal with the past have not.
Modal nonmonotonic logics

Monotonic modal logics have long been used as means to study formal properties of such concepts as knowledge and belief. But they are not quite adequate to study knowledge (or belief) sets an agent constructs when he is reasoning not only from what is known to him but also from what is possible or consistent to assume Such reasonings are defeasible, that is, when the agent learns new facts some of the previous derivations are not valid any more. In order to capture the phenomenon of nonmonotonicity, classical provability operators have to be modified. We have already studied in detail one nonmonotonic formalism, namely the logic of defaults, defined by means of the notion of a context-dependent proof.
Management Strategies for Post-Prostatectomy Bladder Neck Contractures

Patients who develop bladder neck contracture (BNC) after surgical treatment for prostate cancer often present with progressive lower urinary tract symptoms. Multiple risk factors contribute to BNC development including patient-related factors and technical considerations at the time of surgery. Initial management begins with endoscopic therapies, including dilation, transurethral incision (TUIBNC), and injection of adjunctive agents. When BNC remains refractory to these therapies, surgical reconstruction of the vesicourethral anastomosis or urinary diversion can be considered in select cases. This review presents an outline of the management of BNC after radical prostatectomy (RP), highlighting the recent literature related to the subject.
Supporting instructors in overcoming self-efficacy and background barriers to adoption

Most academic technology areas of higher education institutes do not feel faculty technology adoption is adequate (Hartman (EDUCAUSE Rev 43(6), 2008)). Among the barriers to instructional technology adoption are faculty self-efficacy and background. Self-efficacy encompasses the faculty member's belief or confidence in his ability to succeed. Background barriers include the instructor's previous experiences. Faculty members adopting new technologies for teaching and learning are facing a series of obstacles based on their self-efficacy and background as sound adoption requires changes in both technology and pedagogy. In addition, many technologies and pedagogies require comfort with underlying skills. As academic technologists, we need to appreciate the levels of comfort that instructors need in order to be open to new technologies. In addition to Rogers' innovation curve, we need to be aware of the factors involved in deciding to adopt as well as the stages instructors go through in their decision making. Examples of specific actions are provided.
An Analysis of MOOC Discussion Forum Interactions from the Most Active Users

Many massive open online courses (MOOCs) offer mainly video-based lectures, which limits the opportunity for interactions and communications among students and instructors. Thus, the discussion forums of MOOC become indispensable in providing a platform for facilitating interactions and communications. In this research, discussion forum users who continually and actively participate in the forum discussions throughout the course are identified. We then employ different measures for evaluating whether those active users have more influence on overall forum activities. We further analyze forum votes, both positive and negative, on posts and comments to verify if active users make positive contributions to the course conversations. Based the result of analysis, users who constantly participate in forum discussions are identified as statistically more influential users, and these users also produce a positive effect on the discussions. Implications for MOOC student engagement and retention are discussed.
Influence of growth hormone (GH) on content of GH in the pituitaries of normal rats.

SummaryAlterations in the content of pituitary GH as estimated by the tibial epi-physeal cartilage assay were produced in rats by the daily, subcutaneous injection of large doses (2 and 6 mg/100 g/day) of bovine GH. An elevation of pituitary GH was observed one day after the first injection of GH. This level returned towards normal after 6 days and the GH content was depressed at 11 days following the initial injection. The injection of saline was without effect on pituitary GH. Blood glucose concentration was slightly elevated at 6 days after the first injection of the higher dose of GH. The rate of weight gain of rats treated with GH was increased. It is suggested that large doses of exogenous GH may alter its secretion by the adenohypophy-sis.
Store or sell? A threshold price policy for revenue maximization in windfarms with on-site storage

We consider the problem of maximizing the revenue of a windfarm with on-site storage, and propose and analyze a scheme for a windfarm to store or sell energy based on a threshold price. The threshold price is calculated based on long-term distributions of the electricity price and wind power generation processes, and is chosen so as to balance the energy flows in and out of the storage-equipped windfarm. We apply our method on real time data from a windfarm in New York, along with real time electricity prices from NYISO for the same region and time period. Comparing it with the optimal policy that has knowledge of the future, we observe that the revenue obtained by our threshold policy increases as the storage capacity is increased, and is approximately 90% of the maximum attainable revenue at a storage capacity of 10–15 times the power rating.
Identifying, Preventing, and Addressing Job Burnout and Vicarious Burnout for Social Work Professionals

Genuineness, concern for others, and empathy are characteristics used to describe the professional social worker. To this end, the social worker tirelessly works on behalf of and in collaboration with the client to move them from stagnant life situations into positive life situations. While the fundamental principles of social work are wonderful, the result for some workers is job burnout and/or vicarious trauma. The concepts of job burnout, its antecedents, and manifestations are thoroughly discussed in this article to provide a holistic overview of this phenomenon. The six antecedents: workload, control, values, fairness, reward, and community are discussed and linked to the manifestations of job burnout. When working with individuals who have been exposed to the depravity of life, the professional can take on the client's vulnerabilities, victimizations, and stress. The common term for this phenomenon is vicarious trauma. Professionals who work with trauma victims can often have issues in their personal and professional life as evidenced by reduced professional efficacy, increased emotional concerns, and physical concerns. The purpose of the author in this article is to provide an overview of job burnout, vicarious trauma, and a discussion about self-care responsibilities.
Simple Agents, Complex Emergent City: Agent-Based Modeling of Intraurban Migration

Intraurban migration—residential movement within a metropolitan area—defines the nature of urbanization. Housing location decision making is a complex process driven by the interactions between the housing market and home searchers. Researchers have paid much attention to the environmental, socioeconomic, cultural, and policy features of housing markets. In contrast, housing search has been relatively neglected due to challenges of theory, methodology, and data. This article addresses these challenges by presenting an agent-based model of intraurban migration featuring straightforward and empirically specified rules for housing search. This model is calibrated and validated against real-world housing vacancies and relocation origin–destination pairs extracted from parcel records for the Twin Cities of Minnesota, USA, for 2005–2007. Drawing on these unique data sidesteps a long-standing issue, the prohibitive costs of identifying, recording, and quantifying housing search activities for an entire metropolitan region. Conceptually, this model updates geographic theories of intraurban migration that focus on intervening opportunities and spatial bias. It also methodologically advances the agent-based modeling of urbanization with a high-resolution, empirically specified model that demonstrates how urban pattern emerges from simple rules and interactions. Overall, the model demonstrates that relatively straightforward housing search rules can simulate realistic patterns of intraurban migration.
Foreign Intervention in Africa: From the Cold War to the War on Terror, 1991–2010

When the Soviet Union disintegrated in 1991 and the Cold War ended, African client states were economically devastated, fraught with political divisions, and awash in weapons. No longer propped up by outside powers, dictators were driven from power and fragile states collapsed. In many instances, nascent prodemocracy movements were trampled as warlords, criminal gangs, and paramilitary groups devoid of political ideology or program moved into the power vacuums. The pervasive violence of the first post–Cold War decade was rooted in the political and economic crises of the Cold War era. As states and economies fragmented, opportunists mobilized the alienated, impoverished, and unemployed to claim their share of power and resources on the basis of their race, ethnicity, clan, or religion. Those who did not share these identities were excluded as unworthy and their claims as illegitimate. Marginalized out-groups were easy scapegoats for the countries’ enormous political and economic problems. Thus, the politics of exclusion laid the groundwork for intergroup violence, ethnic cleansing, and genocide. Foreshadowed by the Cold War era wars of destabilization in Angola and Mozambique, in which antigovernment forces controlled indigenous populations through terror, the wars of the 1990s were characterized by widespread violence and atrocities against civilians. Foreign intervention after the Cold War also assumed new characteristics. The state and its foreign backers no longer monopolized the means of coercion. The new wars were both privatized and globalized. Contests for control over power and resources were waged by private factions – warlords, criminal gangs, rebel groups, renegade soldiers, and old-fashioned foreign mercenaries and their new transformations as private military companies. Foreign intervention during this period involved neighboring states as well as non-African powers. Intervention was sometimes bilateral, just as it was when former colonial powers or Cold War superpowers policed their privileged domains. In other instances, it was multinational, characterized by the involvement of UN, African Union, regionally based peacekeeping forces, or international humanitarian organizations.
Source Authentication and Path Validation in Networks Using Orthogonal Sequences

Verifying the authenticity of the source of network traffic and the path that this traffic has traversed is an important building block for secure network protocols and defense mechanisms. We investigate these problems of in-network source authentication and path validation. Existing approaches are either unable to satisfy security requirements or need significant computational resources due to cryptographic operations, thus limiting their suitability in practice where potentially every packet needs to be checked at line rate. We present Orthogonal Sequence Verification (OSV), a lightweight and scalable technique to address this problem. OSV uses orthogonal capabilities to enable source authentication and path verification simultaneously. The verification of these orthogonal capabilities is based on inner product computations, which can be easily realized by basic bitwise operations in a processor. Therefore, OSV significantly reduces computational cost, while achieving the necessary security properties. We present evaluation results which show that OSV is three orders of magnitude faster than the current approaches based on cryptographic operations. Therefore, we believe that our work presents an important contribution toward realizing high-performance, secure network protocols and network attack defenses in practice.
Do sex differences in rumination explain sex differences in depression

It is generally accepted that women tend to ruminate more than men do and these thought patterns are often associated with depressive symptoms (Nolen-Hoeksema et al., ). Based on these findings, we considered whether the relationship between rumination and depression is stronger in women than in men and if so, whether this might explain the higher prevalence of major depressive disorder (MDD) in women and finally, whether the association can be disrupted through a mind/body intervention. Adult men and women, most of whom were clinically depressed, participated in an intervention known as MAP Training, which combines "mental" training with silent meditation and "physical" training with aerobic exercise (Shors et al., ). After eight weeks of training, both men and women reported significantly fewer symptoms of depression and fewer ruminative thoughts (Alderman et al., ). Statistical correlations between depressive symptoms and ruminative thoughts were strong and significant (rho > 0.50; p < 0.05) for both men and women before and after MAP Training. However, only in women did depressive symptoms relate to "reflective" ruminations, which involve analyses of past events, feelings, and behaviors. This is also the only relationship that dissipated after the intervention. In general, these analyses suggest that the strength of the relationship between depressive symptoms and rumination does not necessarily explain sex differences in depression; but because the relationship is strong, targeting rumination through intervention can reduce the incidence of MDD, which is more prevalent among women. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Quantification of Forecast Uncertainty and Data Assimilation Using Wiener’s Polynomial Chaos Expansion

In this chapter we demonstrate the power of the Wiener’s polynomial chaos based approach to quantify the uncertainty in the forecast of a dynamical system when the randomness enters through initial conditions, and/or parameters and/or forcing. This method enables an easy generation of forecast ensemble which can then be combined with one of many known methods for ensemble Kalman filtering.