cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Turbulent mixing with multiple second‐order chemical reactions

A molecular-based statistical simulation program was developed to study the covariance terms involved in the mass balance equations for complex chemical reactions during mixing. Several closure theories were compared to the simulations and available experimental data. The simple closure by Brodkey and Lewalle was found to be an extension of Toor's analysis applied to two reactions. This closure does not satisfy the molar fluctuation balance equation and was found only to represent the high Reynolds number data of Li and Toor. This result led to examining other possible closures which were based on Damkoehler numbers, reaction rate constant ratios, and limiting forms of the covariance term. These closures also were inadequate. The second reaction's covariance term varied from the product of the average values for each component to the Brodkey and Lewalle value for the range of Reynolds numbers considered.
Employee Stock Option Fair-value Estimates: Do Managerial Discretion and Incentives Explain Accuracy?

We examine the determinants of managers' use of discretion over employee stock option (ESO) valuation-model inputs that determine ESO fair values. We also explore the consequences of such discretion. Firms exercise considerable discretion over all model inputs and this discretion results in material differences in ESO fair-value estimates. Contrary to conventional wisdom, we find that a large proportion of firms exercise value-increasing discretion. Importantly, we find that the use of discretion improves predictive accuracy for about half of our sample firms. Moreover, we find that both opportunistic and informational managerial incentives together explain the accuracy firms' ESO fair value estimates. Partitioning on direction of discretion improves our understanding of managerial incentives. Our analysis identifies that financial statement readers can use mandated contextual disclosures to construct powerful ex ante predictions of ex post accuracy.
Are Current Health Behavioral Change Models Helpful in Guiding Prevention of Weight Gain Efforts

Effective procedures are needed to prevent the substantial increases in adiposity that have been occurring among children and adults. Behavioral change may occur as a result of changes in variables that mediate interventions. These mediating variables have typically come from the theories or models used to understand behavior. Seven categories of theories and models are reviewed to define the concepts and to identify the motivational mechanism(s), the resources that a person needs for change, the processes by which behavioral change is likely to occur, and the procedures necessary to promote change. Although each model has something to offer obesity prevention, the early promise can be achieved only with substantial additional research in which these models are applied to diet and physical activity in regard to obesity. The most promising avenues for such research seem to be using the latest variants of the Theory of Planned Behavior and Social Ecology. Synergy may be achieved by taking the most promising concepts from each model and integrating them for use with specific populations. Biology-based steps in an eating or physical activity event are identified, and research issues are suggested to integrate behavioral and biological approaches to understanding eating and physical activity behaviors. Social marketing procedures have much to offer in terms of organizing and strategizing behavioral change programs to incorporate these theoretical ideas. More research is needed to assess the true potential for these models to contribute to our understanding of obesity-related diet and physical activity practices, and in turn, to obesity prevention.
Linkage Map of Escherichia coli K-12, Edition 10: The Physical Map

A physical map, EcoMap10, of the now completely sequenced Escherichia coli chromosome is presented. Calculated genomic positions for the eight restriction enzymes BamHI, HindIII, EcoRI, EcoRV, BglI, KpnI, PstI, and PvuII are depicted. Both sequenced and unsequenced Kohara/Isono miniset clones are aligned to this calculated restriction map. DNA sequence searches identify the precise locations of insertion sequence elements and repetitive extragenic palindrome clusters. EcoGene10, a revised set of genes and functionally uncharacterized open reading frames (ORFs), is also depicted on EcoMap10. The complete set of unnamed ORFs in EcoGene10 are assigned provisional names beginning with the letter “y” by using a systematic nomenclature.
European Merchants in the Medieval Indies: The Evidence of Commercial Documents

Strangely enough, up to the present day, commercial documents have contributed almost nothing to our knowledge of trade between Europe and India or China in the Middle Ages. The actual management of a voyage to “the Indies,” as India and China were designated in the thirteenth or fourteenth century, has remained obscure because our evidence about commerce has come from sources mainly concerned with other matters.
Subtypes of Schizophrenia: Descriptive Models

Descriptive approaches to subtyping schizophrenia use symptoms, signs, and functioning characteristics as diagnostic criteria. Such approaches often appear superficially to be obvious, simple, and atheoretical; in reality, however, there are many ways in which descriptive data can be selected and organized to subtype patients. This report describes these various approaches. Selection of diagnostic criteria can focus primarily either on cross-sectional or longitudinal characteristics of patients. Alternative ways of organizing descriptive data include typological and dimensional approaches and two increasingly common complex models, multiaxial and hierarchical subtyping. Examples and implications of these alternative approaches are described, and methods for choosing among them are suggested.
Effects of Welding-Induced Initial Geometric Imperfections on the Nonlinear Behavior of the Space Shuttle Superlightweight LO2 Tank

Results of linear bifurcation and nonlinear analyses of the Space Shuttle superlightweight external liquid-oxygen (LO\sub{2}) tank are presented for an important prelaunch loading condition. These results show the effects of actual, measured welding-induced intial geometric imperfections on an important response mode for thin-walled shells that are subjected to combined mechanical and thermal loads. This type of initial geometric imperfection may be encountered in the design of other liquid-fuel launch vehicles. Results are presented that show that the LO\sub{2} tank will buckle in the barrel section at load levels nearly four times the magnitude of the operational load level and will exhibit stable postbuckling behavior. The actual measured imperfections are located in this section of the tank. Results of imperfection sensitivity analyses are presented that show that the largest degradation in the apparent membrane stiffnesses of the LO\sub{2} tank barrel section is caused by an imperfection shape that is in the form of the linear bifurcation buckling mode with a relatively small amplitude. These results also show that the effect of the relatively large-amplitude measured imperfection is benign.
Monte Carlo lookup table-based inverse model for extracting optical properties from tissue-simulating phantoms using diffuse reflectance spectroscopy

We present a Monte Carlo lookup table (MCLUT)-based inverse model for extracting optical properties from tissue-simulating phantoms. This model is valid for close source-detector separation and highly absorbing tissues. The MCLUT is based entirely on Monte Carlo simulation, which was implemented using a graphics processing unit. We used tissue-simulating phantoms to determine the accuracy of the MCLUT inverse model. Our results show strong agreement between extracted and expected optical properties, with errors rate of 1.74% for extracted reduced scattering values, 0.74% for extracted absorption values, and 2.42% for extracted hemoglobin concentration values.
Categorizing Biases in High-Confidence High-Throughput Protein-Protein Interaction Data Sets

We characterized and evaluated the functional attributes of three yeast high-confidence protein-protein interaction data sets derived from affinity purification/mass spectrometry, protein-fragment complementation assay, and yeast two-hybrid experiments. The interacting proteins retrieved from these data sets formed distinct, partially overlapping sets with different protein-protein interaction characteristics. These differences were primarily a function of the deployed experimental technologies used to recover these interactions. This affected the total coverage of interactions and was especially evident in the recovery of interactions among different functional classes of proteins. We found that the interaction data obtained by the yeast two-hybrid method was the least biased toward any particular functional characterization. In contrast, interacting proteins in the affinity purification/mass spectrometry and protein-fragment complementation assay data sets were over- and under-represented among distinct and different functional categories. We delineated how these differences affected protein complex organization in the network of interactions, in particular for strongly interacting complexes (e.g. RNA and protein synthesis) versus weak and transient interacting complexes (e.g. protein transport). We quantified methodological differences in detecting protein interactions from larger protein complexes, in the correlation of protein abundance among interacting proteins, and in their connectivity of essential proteins. In the latter case, we showed that minimizing inherent methodology biases removed many of the ambiguous conclusions about protein essentiality and protein connectivity. We used these findings to rationalize how biological insights obtained by analyzing data sets originating from different sources sometimes do not agree or may even contradict each other. An important corollary of this work was that discrepancies in biological insights did not necessarily imply that one detection methodology was better or worse, but rather that, to a large extent, the insights reflected the methodological biases themselves. Consequently, interpreting the protein interaction data within their experimental or cellular context provided the best avenue for overcoming biases and inferring biological knowledge.
Long-term movement patterns and trophic ecology of blacktip reef sharks (Carcharhinus melanopterus) at Palmyra Atoll

article i nfo Animal movements, residence times, and subsequently foraging strategies, should vary with habitat quality. We used acoustic and satellite telemetry, as well as stable isotopes, to look at movement patterns, macro- scale habitat use, and trophic ecology of blacktip reef sharks, Carcharhinus melanopterus, between two lagoons (eastern and western) at Palmyra Atoll, a US National Wildlife Refuge in the central Pacific. Sharks in the Palmyra lagoons have relatively small home ranges and appear to obtain most of their energy from the lagoon ecosystem. Sharks showed low levels of migration between lagoons over periods of several years, and individuals in the larger western lagoon tended to have longer residence times than those in the smaller eastern lagoon. Furthermore, for sharks in the western lagoon, there was no relationship between total length (TL) and δ 15 N, 13 C relative isotope concentrations, or a Body Condition index (BC). For sharks in the
The Simulation Experiment Description Markup Language – Update

This presentation gives a brief overview of the Simulation Experiment Description Markup Language L1V1 as well as an introduction to LibSedML (http://libsedml.sf.net) a library for reading and writing SED-ML documents.
Chemical Cues from an Introduced Predator (Mantodea, Mantidae) Reduce the Movement and Foraging of a Native Wolf Spider (Araneae, Lycosidae) in the Laboratory

Exotic predators are sometimes introduced into agricultural ecosystems to aid in biological control of crop pests. Besides direct effects, such as consumption, introduced predators can have indirect effects on smaller predators and herbivores through chemically mediated shifts in behavior. We tested whether the chemical cues of Tenodera aridifolia sinensis (the Chinese praying mantis) affected the movement and foraging of the native wolf spider Pardosa milvina. Comparisons of behavior in paired-treatment arenas revealed that P. milvina spent a greater amount of time immobile, had a greater residence time, and moved at a significantly slower speed on T. a. sinensis cues relative to a blank control. While this reduced movement may reduce the probability of predation, it has a cost in terms of foraging. P. milvina gained less mass and had a smaller increase in abdomen width after foraging in microcosms containing T. sinensis cues relative to blank controls. The response of P. milvina to chemical cues of mantids is similar to the response of this small wolf spider to chemical cues from a larger, coexisting wolf spider predator. While these effects appear important in the lab, further studies are needed to evaluate the impact of cues on populations of P. milvina in the field.
Applying Psychometrics to Measure User Comfort when Constructing a Strong Password

As mobile devices become increasingly common for accessing services online, the security of these services in turn depends more on password entry on these devices. Unfortunately, users are not comfortable with existing textual password entry mechanisms on mobile phone handsets. In this study, we investigate this issue of user comfort from the viewpoint of psychometrics. By applying standard techniques of psychometrics, we develop a questionnaire (known as a scale in psychometrics) that measures the comfort of constructing a strong password when using a particular interface. We establish the essential psychometric properties (reliability and validity) of this scale and demonstrate how the scale can be used to profile password construction interfaces of popular smartphone handsets. We also theoretically conceptualize user comfort across different dimensions and use confirmatory factor analysis to verify our theory. Finally, we highlight several issues related to scale development and discuss how psychometric approaches may be useful in general for measuring various subjective concepts that are related to usable security.
The Demographic Transition from Single-Family to Multifamily Housing

This article examines forces underlying the housing recovery to determine when sustained construction growth will resume. The analysis suggests that very strong multifamily construction growth is likely to resume by early 2014 and that moderately strong single-family construction growth is likely to resume by early 2015. The longer term outlook is especially positive for multifamily construction, reflecting the aging of the baby boomers and an associated shift in demand from single-family to multifamily housing. By the end of the decade, multifamily construction is likely to peak at a level nearly two-thirds higher than its highest annual level during the 1990s and 2000s. Notwithstanding renewed growth, the level of single-family construction is likely to remain moderate. By the end of the decade, it is likely to peak at a level comparable to what prevailed just prior to the housing boom. Thereafter, single family construction is projected to contract at a moderate rate.
CAVE CRICKET EXIT COUNTS: ENVIRONMENTAL INFLUENCES AND DURATION OF SURVEYS

Cave cricket abundance is used as an indicator of integrity of cave ecosystems. One means of monitoring cave cricket abundance is counting crickets as they emerge from cave entrances for two hours after sunset. The influence of cloud cover, relative humidity, and surface temperature on counts is unknown and there might be few cave crickets that emerge during the first hour of the survey. Using mixed effects models, I assessed the influence of these environmental variables on exit counts and estimated when cave crickets emerged within the two-hour survey period. Exit-count surveys were conducted in eleven caves over four years in central Texas, and caves were surveyed up to four times a year across the four calendar seasons. Cloud cover, relative humidity, and temperature influenced counts, but the greatest influence was from temperature. Peaks in cave cricket counts occurred 80 to 90 minutes after the start of a survey and declined thereafter. Cave cricket exit count surveys should record surface temperature, cloud cover, and relative humidity at the start of surveys so that counts can be adjusted for these environmental influences. Also, surveys can be shortened to 1 or 1.5 hours in length.
Computational Methods to Predict and Avoid Design Failure

Component selection can be a difficult task for designers, and the components they choose can have a large impact on the robustness of the design. Using previous methods to predict and identify potential failure modes, known as the function-failure design method (FFDM), the impact on failure of selecting a particular component over another can be explored based on failure results from previous design endeavors using the same component. This assists designers in selecting the component that is best suited for the application. Since the predicted distribution of failure modes changes depending on the selected component, failure reduction is possible through component selection. Through this method of component selection, risk can be decreases and potential failures can be eliminated. Experiments based on undergraduate student competition design projects are presented to illustrate this method’s ability to predict failure modes. Initial results indicate that the predictions are accurate and meaningful to designers. The experiment also serves as initial validation previous work in the area of failure prediction.Copyright © 2005 by ASME
Preoperative intracavitary brachytherapy in early-stage cervical carcinoma.

Local failure within the central pelvis is a common site of recurrence in patients with early stage cervical carcinoma who experience recurrence after radical hysterectomy and pelvic lymphadenectomy. To reduce the risk of local failure, the authors treated selected patients with early stage cervical carcinoma with a moderate dose (45 Gy) of preoperative intracavitary brachytherapy before radical hysterectomy and pelvic lymphadenectomy. Given the low risk of recurrence in patients with small (<2 cm) tumors, the authors included only patients with tumors 2 cm or more in size. Forty-three patients (37 with stage IB disease, six with stage IIA disease) were treated from 1986 through 1995. Forty-two completed intracavitary brachytherapy: intracavitary brachytherapy was stopped early in one patient secondary to a low-grade fever. Exploratory laparotomy and planned radical hysterectomy were performed 2 weeks later. Radical hysterectomy was aborted in patients found to have extrauterine disease. At a median follow-up of 45 months, only one local failure has been noted, which occurred in the patient unable to complete intracavitary brachytherapy as planned. The most significant factor correlated with poor outcome was nodal involvement (p < 0.0004). A trend to a better disease-free survival was seen in patients with no residual or only microscopically residual disease. No patients developed significant chronic bowel or bladder toxicity, including fistulae. The results suggest that preoperative intracavitary brachytherapy in selected patients with early stage cervical carcinoma is a promising approach and is associated with a high rate of local control without significant adverse sequelae. Further data is needed to determine whether this approach improves the long-term outcome of these patients.
Destruction of Gnomonia leptostyla perithecia on Juglans nigra leaves by microarthropods associated with Elaeagnus umbellata litter

Companion planting of the woody shrub autumn olive, Elaeagnus umbellata Thunb., with black walnut, Juglans nigra L., in plantations resulted in control of Mycosphaerella leaf spot (4, 5) and walnut anthracnose (3), important defoliating diseases of black walnut. One of the principal beneficial effects ofthe autumn olive was to reduce ascospore primary inoculum ofthe two disease causal agents, Mycosphaerella juglandis Kessler and Gnomonia leptostyla (Fr.) Ces. & de Not. in the spring. A major cause of the reduced ascospore production of M. juglandis and G. leptostyla was microarthropod feeding upon perithecia within infected fallen walnut leaves (4). The purpose of this study is (1) to describe the type and extent of microarthropod perithecial feeding occuning in the leaf litters and (2) investigate the possible role of Collembola and oribatid mites as probable main fungal feeders involved.
Multi-Scale Modeling of the Nanomechanics of Microtubule Filaments

Large-size biomolecular systems that spontaneously assemble, disassemble, and self-repair by controlled inputs play fundamental roles in biology. Microtubules (MTs), which play important roles in cell adhesion and cell division, are a prime example. MTs serve as ″tracks″ for molecular motors, and their biomechanical functions depend on dynamic instability—a stochastic switching between periods of rapid growing and shrinking. This process is controlled by many cellular factors so that growth and shrinkage periods are correlated with the life cycle of a cell. Resolving the molecular basis for the action of these factors is of paramount importance for understanding the diverse functions of MTs. We employed a multiscale modeling approach to study the force-induced MT depolymerization by analyzing the mechanical response of a MT protofilament to external forces. We carried out self-organized polymer (SOP) model based simulations accelerated on Graphics Processing Units (GPUs). This approach enabled us to follo...
Guan-hua Xu: China's move toward being a country of innovation

As the former Minister of China's Ministry of Science & Technology (MoST), Guan-hua Xu has witnessed, and personally contributed to, China's science and technology (S&T) development during the critical period of the country's transition into a great economic power. During his tenure at MoST and its predecessor (1995-2007), he promoted the reform of research institutions, initiated some of the Nation's most significant research and development (R&D) projects, and coordinated the formulation of China's National Outline for the Medium to Long Term Science and Technology Development Plan (2006-2020). As a distinguished scientist specializing in remote sensing, Xu has devoted much of his career over the past two decades to S&T policy and management. Since leaving the ministry, he has further explored fundamental issues surrounding China's S&T development, and recently collected his thoughts in a book entitled 'Towards a Country of Innovation' (Beijing: Science Press, 2014). In this recent interview with NSR, Xu summarized his view of the problems China faces in becoming an innovative country, and offered his recommendations for drastic reform of China's S&T system.
Prevention in primary care: variability in physician practice patterns in New York City.

We conducted a telephone survey of 120 randomly selected primary care physicians in New York City. This survey, which was completed in October 1984, concerned physicians’ recommendations for health promotion and disease prevention. The recommendations by these physicians were often at variance with the recommendations of nationally recognized organizations such as the American Cancer Society and the American College of Physicians. Multivariate analysis revealed that board-certified physicians, U.S. medical graduates, and younger physicians agreed more frequently with the recommendations of national organizations. The physicians surveyed agreed upon the need to include health promotion and disease prevention in their practices. Eighty-seven percent agreed with the statement, “Physicians should probably practice more preventive medicine than they presently do.” Reasons given for the failure to practice more prevention included lack of time (70 percent), inadequate reimbursement (60 percent), and “unclear recommendations” (58 percent). Approximately four out of five of the physicians felt a task force was needed to “clarify recommendations” for preventive medicine. The findings of this survey suggest a need for increased physician training and education in disease prevention and health promotion.
Surface engineering of bismuth nanocrystals to counter dissolution.

Rapid dissolution of Bi Nanocrystals (NCs) in lysosomal conditions results in poor biocompatibility. We report that an in situ surface coating of Bi nanocrystals with Ganex® V216, a cosmetic dispersant, limits its dissolution under physiological conditions. These Bi Ganex (BiG) NCs are readily encapsulated in FDA approved polymer poly(DL-lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) by an oil-in-water emulsion technique and also undergo facile SiO2 coating. BiG NCs in BiG@PLGA and BiG@SiO2 nanoparticles dissolve slowly under physiological conditions and exhibit excellent biocompatibility, as opposed to uncoated Bi NCs. Finally, these Bi nanoconstructs are shown to be strong CT CAs, even at relatively low Bi concentrations.
Kinetics and mechanisms of alcohol dehydration pathways on alumina materials

The steady state rates of ethene and diethyl ether formation in parallel ethanol dehydration reactions at 573 and 623 K are mechanistically and kinetically described by the same rate expression on different alumina materials (α-, γ-, and η-Al2O3), implying that alumina materials have similar surface sites under reaction environments. In situ chemical titration using pyridine as a titrant elucidates similar site densities (∼0.12 sites nm−2 and ∼0.07 sites nm−2 for ethene formation and ∼0.14 sites nm−2 and ∼0.09 sites nm−2 for diethyl ether formation on γ- and η-Al2O3, respectively) on γ- and η-Al2O3 indicating that similar surface features exist on both γ- and η-Al2O3. Pyridine-ethanol co-feed experiments show that pyridine inhibited the formation of ethene to a greater extent than diethyl ether suggesting that the two parallel dehydration reactions are not catalyzed by a common active site.
Bootstrapping and Resetting CMOS Starter for Thermoelectric and Photovoltaic Chargers

Sustaining microsensors for years is challenging because tiny batteries exhaust quickly, and recharging or replacing thousands of networked nodes is impracticable. Harnessing heat or light energy helps, but only when available. And even then, tiny generators output less than 300 mV, which is not enough to operate microelectronics well. This brief presents a 0.18- $\mu$ m CMOS starter that charges a temporary 1.8-V supply quickly and reliably from slow- or fast-rising photovoltaic and thermoelectric sources. For this, a jump starter helps an LC tank oscillate to a level that allows a discharge path to output power. A resetter then continually resets the circuit until the system senses the temporary supply is ready. This way, with 1.8 V, a charging system can then charge a battery quickly before the onset of another harvesting drought. The starter does not require off-chip components because it borrows the switched inductor that the charging system already uses to charge the battery. A prototype of the starter proposed charges 120 pF to 1.8 V in 15–59 $\mu$ s with 1.5%–7% efficiency from a 180 $\Omega$ , 220–250-mV source.
What We Don't Know about How We Decide.

Three questions about decision making for critically ill children need empirical study: how we evaluate others’ quality of life, how the child’s illness affects other family members, and what role the family wants caregivers to have. Virtual Mentor is a monthly bioethics journal published by the American Medical Association.
Galton, reversion and the quincunx: The rise of statistical explanation.

Abstract Over the last six decades there has been a consistent trend in the philosophy literature to emphasize the role of causes in scientific explanation. The emphasis on causes even pervades discussions of non-causal explanations. For example, the concern of a recent paper by Marc Lange (2013b) is whether purported cases of statistical explanation are “really statistical” or really causal. Likewise, Michael Strevens (2011) argues that the main task of statistical idealizations is to distinguish between the causal factors that make a difference to the phenomenon to be explained and those that do not. But, the philosophy literature poorly reflects the history of the development of statistical explanation in the sciences. Francis Galton's (19th century) explanation for the laws of heredity is our case. Galton's statistical explanation was both innovative for his time and influential to our contemporary sciences. The key points to understanding Galton's statistical explanation for reversion is that it is autonomous from the real-world biological properties that make up an instance of reversion while still being approximately true of many real-world biological phenomena. Ours is an expanded discussion of ideas originated in Hacking (1990) and Sober (1980) . We will articulate these features and compare our account with that of Lange and Strevens.
Wisconsin's School Finance: A Policy Primer

The author analyzes Wisconsin's school funding policy. The author believes that the state's school funding system needs reform because it is not capable of guaranteeing that all school districts have sufficient resources to provide an adequate education for their students.
Troponin T3 associates with DNA consensus sequence that overlaps with p53 binding motifs.

Abstract We recently reported that in addition to its classical cytoplasmic location, the fast skeletal muscle Troponin T3 (TnT3) shuttles to the nucleus, where it appears to perform nonclassical transcription regulatory functions. Importantly, changes in the composition of the nucleus-localized pool of TnT3 and its fragments contribute to age-dependent muscle damage and wasting. Here, using ChIP-Seq, we demonstrate that TnT3 associates with DNA consensus sequences including the TGCCT motif, which is required for p53 binding to the promoter area of p53-related genes. Gene set enrichment analysis further demonstrated that the p53 pathway was the most significantly enriched pathway among genes annotated to the TnT3 ChIP-Seq peaks. We further demonstrated a strong correlation (r = 0.78, P = 1 × 10−4) between the expression levels of TNNT3 and TP53-inducible ribonucleotide reductase regulatory subunit M2B (RRM2B) in skeletal muscle tissue of 21 lean non-diabetic human subjects and a significant (P
Using Mobile Application Development and 3-D Modeling to Encourage Minority Male Interest in Computing and Engineering

Contribution: This paper shows that participating in a year-round program for African–American male middle school students (ages 10–14) can positively impact their attitudes toward STEM, their confidence in problem solving and team work, and their interest in STEM careers, but may not impact the interest in taking STEM classes to the same extent. Background: Increasing the number of under-represented minorities pursuing degrees in science and engineering through formal and informal learning activities has been a focus in the United States for many years. Efforts to diversify the engineering workforce have often targeted students in high school and college (ages 15–22), with varying success. Intended Outcomes: This program was designed to increase participants’ content knowledge, interest in STEM courses, interest in STEM careers, interest in attending college, and improve their attitudes about STEM. Application Design: Approaches used included: 1) introducing software tools that encouraged critical thinking, creativity and independent learning; 2) integrating engineering and software design processes; 3) providing projects that were age- and culturally-appropriate; and 4) using ethnically matched mentors. Findings: After almost two years in the program participants show improved attitudes toward STEM, more interest and career choices in computing and engineering, and increased interest in attending college. These findings suggested that summer and academic year programs can be effective for cultivating interest in computing and engineering careers, but their impact on interest in studying related subjects may need further study.
Prevalence of depression and anxiety in older patients with multiple myeloma in North Carolina: A population-based, claims-based assessment.

10048Background: Patients (pts) with multiple myeloma (MM) experience physical symptoms and complications from disease or treatment that include bone pain, fatigue, anorexia, and insomnia. However,...
Synthetic studies towards the penicisulfuranols: Synthesis of an advanced spirocyclic diketopiperazine intermediate

Abstract The 2,5-diketopiperazine (DKP) moiety is a core feature of many natural products and medicinally relevant scaffolds. As part of our efforts directed towards a total synthesis of penicisulfuranol B, we have developed and report herein: (1) the preparation of an N-hydroxy diketopiperazine intermediate accessible via a molybdenum-mediated oxidation of a parent diketopiperazine, and (2) further synthetic studies leading to a novel spirocyclic dihydrobenzofuran-containing diketopiperazine.
South American Coccinellidae (Coleoptera), part VI: a systematic revision of the South American Diomini, new tribe (Scymninae)

Diomini, new tribe, is erected to contain Diomus Mulsant, 1850, Decadiomus Chapin,1933, Heterodiomus Brethes 1925, Magnodiomusgen. nov., and Erratodiomusgen. nov. DiomusapparitoriusWeise and Diomus marchaliBrethes are placed in Heterodiomus; Diomus locuples Brethes and Heterodiomus tetraspilotus Brethes are junior synonyms of. H. apparitorius. Scymnus (Scymnus) fonscolombii Mulsant, Scymnus politus Schaufuss, Scymnus pusillus Berg, and Pulluscaseyi Brethes are transferred to Diomus. Diomus assentator Brethes is a junior synonym of D. tucumanus Weise, and Diomus messorius Brethes is a junior synonym of D. puslillus (Berg). Scymnus (Diomus) morio Mulsant. Scymnus(Diomus) tardus Mulsant, Scymnus (Pullus) viaticus Mulsant, Diomus brasiliensis Brethes, Diomus brasilicolaBrethes, Diomus gilvipes Mulsant, Diomus viator Brethes, Diomus profectus Brethes, and Diomus opportunus Brethes are junior synonyms of Diomus seminulus (Mulsant). Newly described are one species of Magnodiomus, one species of Erratodiomus, two species of Heterodiomus, and 30 species of Diomus.
Secondary User Access Control with MassiveMIMO in Cognitive Radio Networks

We consider the problem of secondary user access control (SUAC) in cognitive radio (CR) networks with the massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) technique, where a primary user (PU) equipped with a large number of antennas coexists with a number of single-antenna equipped secondary users (SUs). In SUAC design, a jamming signal is injected by a PU to degrade the spectrum sensing performance of unauthorized secondary users (UA-SUs), while maintain reliable spectrum sensing performance for authorized secondary users (A-SUs). In this paper, a minimum mean-squared error (MMSE) estimator is used to perform uplink channel estimation, and the energy detection method is used for spectrum sensing. Given the estimated channel state information (CSI), we present two optimization algorithms to minimize the jamming signal effect on A-SUs under the constraint that the jamming signal has a significant influence on the UA-SUs. The presented non-convex optimization algorithms can be effectively solved with a semidefinite relaxation (SDR) method. Simulation results show the effectiveness of the proposed SUAC method in assuring reliable spectrum sensing performance of the A-SUs and degrading the spectrum sensing performance of the UA-SUs.
Nowhere to Go: FDI, Terror, and Market-specific Assets:

Under what circumstances does terrorism repel foreign investment? The negative effect of terrorism on foreign investment identified in current scholarship masks heterogeneity across host markets an...
Case report of bacterial infection secondary to influenza

对山东大学齐鲁儿童医院收治的1例流行性感冒继发细菌性肺炎并脑脓肿患儿的临床资料行回顾性分析。患儿，男，1岁3个月，其临床特点为发热、咳嗽、气喘、气促。之后病情进展迅速，出现呼吸衰竭、多发气漏，查流感病毒B抗体阳性，胸部CT提示双肺广泛渗出、实变及气肿样改变。给予亚胺培南、奥司他韦颗粒、甲泼尼龙、布地奈德、特布他林等治疗，同时呼吸支持。治疗2周病情逐步缓解。但在恢复期患儿出现惊厥，脑脊液常规及培养均阴性，头颅磁共振提示2处脑脓肿的形成。给予利奈唑胺抗感染治疗后脓肿逐渐吸收，肺部感染逐渐恢复。提示流感病毒感染后容易继发细菌性感染，需注意评估各个系统的合并症，避免漏诊、误诊。
Amynthas spp. impacts on seedlings and forest soils are tree species-dependent

Asian jumping worms (Amynthas spp.) are recent invaders of Upper Midwest forests. Research has highlighted the impacts of Amynthas earthworms on soil biogeochemistry and structure, and field observations suggest that Amynthas spp. decrease litter horizon depth and alter plant communities. However, the extent to which Amynthas spp. effects vary among forest types and with worm density and the mechanisms driving these effects are unknown. We conducted a 3-month tree seedling study to evaluate the effects of Amynthas spp. on tree seedling growth and a mesocosm field experiment to evaluate Amynthas spp. effects on soil carbon and nutrient cycling, soil structure, and leaf litter decomposition rates across forest types. In the seedling study, Amynthas spp. enhanced the growth of sugar maple and European buckthorn seedlings and decreased the growth of white oak seedlings. These effects were due to Amynthas spp.-induced changes in soil properties. In the mesocosm study, as Amynthas spp. density increased, carbon mineralization and carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus availability increased in white oak forest soils and decreased in sugar maple forest soils, while decomposition rates of European buckthorn litter increased as Amynthas spp. density increased. Amynthas spp. altered soil structure similarly across all forest soil types. Taken together, our results suggest that Amynthas spp. have the potential to alter forest ecosystem dynamics via feedbacks among tree species, seedlings, and soil biogeochemistry. However, Amynthas spp. effects on tree seedlings and forest soils are largely context-dependent, and the direction and magnitude of these effects are mediated by tree species.
Zu Beeckes Biographie

Den bislang erschienenen biographischen Skizzen des Komponisten Ignaz Franz von Beecke liegen zumeist die Arbeiten Dominicus Mettenleiters und Ludwig Schiedermeiers zu Grunde. Friedrich Munter vermehrt diese Angaben um einige neue Erkenntnisse, die er beim Studium der im Furstlichen Archiv Oettingen-Wallerstein in groser Zahl uberlieferten Schriftstucke erhielt. Einige von ihm eingesehene Schriftstucke sind heute nicht mehr verifizierbar oder verlegt, manches was heute geordnet zuganglich ist, war seinerzeit noch nicht gesichtet.
How mindful of their own health are healthcare professionals? perception and practice of personnel in a tertiary hospital in Nigeria.

Objectives To assess health professionals' perception and determinants of their health and practice of preventive self-care. Methods An analytic cross-sectional design was employed, and 232 professionals were selected by stratified sampling from all health professional departments of Delta State University Teaching Hospital. Healthcare professionals who had worked in the hospital for at least six months were included in the sampling frame. Pregnant women and supernumerary professionals were excluded. A self-administered questionnaire was used, and data analysed using SPSS. The main outcome measures were the level of perception of self-health and level of practice of preventive selfcare. Results More than four-fifths of doctors and 64.8% of nurses had good perception of their health, with significant association between perception and service area (X2 = 11.828, p =0.008). Screening practice was lowest amongst doctors except for HIV/HBV screening. Whereas 63.4% of all participants adjudged their BMI to be normal, only 36.2% actually had normal BMI, the difference being significant (p <0.001). Almost 20% of doctors had not had a BP check in a year or more, and the same proportion of doctors and nurses had never checked their FBS. The proportion of personnel who had never checked their serum lipid profile was high among nurses (76.1%) and doctors (58.3%). Conclusion Respondents had good perception but poor preventive behaviour, beginning management after disease onset. This may be ominous for the sector. Urgent health promotion action to safeguard productivity is needed. Comprehensive data from a multi-centre study will provide a deeper understanding of the issue. Funding None declared.
A review of recent developments in aluminum gallium oxide thin films and devices

Inspired by the success of gallium oxide as a wide bandgap semiconductor, aluminum gallium oxide films which possess higher bandgap values have been researched extensively. Higher bandgap values of...
Statistical geometric computation on tolerances for dimensioning

Dimensions are used to specify the distances between different features in geometric models. These dimensions will often be expressed as a range of allowable dimensions. When considering a group of toleranced dimensions, these ranges can be analyzed as either a worst-case bound on allowable ranges, or as a statistical measure of expected distribution. This paper presents a new geometric model for representing statistically-based tolerance regions. Methods for tolerance estimation and allocation on a geometric model are provided by generalizing root sum square (RSS) methods for compositing and cascading over tolerance zones. This gives us a geometric interpretation of a statistical analysis. Tolerance regions are determined by probabilities of variations of dimensions falling into the region. A dependency graph over dimensions can be represented by a topological graph on which the tolerance cascading and tolerance allocation can be processed. To illustrate applications of this geometric method, we provide examples of tolerance estimation and tolerance allocation on our model. The estimation examples utilize the compositing and cascading operations provided in the analysis method. The allocation examples present an automatic tolerance allocation procedure on the tolerance model. As opposed to existing methods, our allocation method allows us to specify not only a numerical objective of the optimization, but also a statistically-based objective for the geometric shape of the tolerance. A generalized RSS method is proposed for modeling geometric representations of tolerances in the statistical way.A set of basic operations over the new tolerance model are proposed to enable tolerance compositing and cascading.A set of examples demonstrate applications of the new model in tolerance estimation.A tolerance allocation framework based on optimization is also proposed by utilizing analytical forms of the new model.
Cooperative Interactions between Myosin II and Cortexillin I Mediated by Actin Filaments during Cellular Deformation

A mechanosensory system consisting non-muscle myosin II, cortexillin I, and actin filaments has been identified recently. During cellular deformation, myosin II and cortexillin cooperatively accumulate in highly deformed region in response to the applied stress and the extent of accumulation increases with increased stress. The cooperativity is suggested to be mediated by the actin filaments. The accumulation of these proteins increases the mechanical resistance of the cells to against the external load, leading to a diminishing deformation.
Oral health literacy levels among a low-income WIC population

Objectives: To determine oral health literacy (OHL) levels and explore potential racial differences in a low-income population. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study of caregiver/child dyads that completed a structured 30-minute in-person interview conducted by two trained interviewers in seven counties in North Carolina. Sociodemographic, OHL, and dental health-related data were collected. OHL was measured with a dental word recognition test [Rapid Estimate of Adult Literacy in Dentistry (REALD-30)]. Descriptive, bivariate, and multivariate methods were used to examine the distribution of OHL and explore racial differences. Results: Of 1,658 eligible subjects, 1,405 (85 percent) participated and completed the interviews. The analytic sample (N = 1,280) had mean age 26.5 (standard deviation = 6.9) years with 60 percent having a high school degree or less. OHL varied between racial groups as follows: Whites – mean score = 17.4 (SE = 0.2); African-American (AA) – mean score = 15.3 [standard error (SE) = 0.2]; American Indian (AI) – mean score = 13.7 (SE = 0.3). Multiple linear regression revealed that after controlling for education, county of residence, age, and Hispanic ethnicity, Whites had 2.0 points (95 percent CI = 1.4, 2.6) higher adjusted REALD-30 score versus AA and AI. Conclusions: Differences in OHL levels between racial groups persisted after adjusting for education and sociodemographic characteristics.
Addressing Disparities in Health and Health Care: Issues for Reform

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee on Health, thank you for the opportunity to testify on the issue of racial disparities in health and health care. I am Marsha Lillie-Blanton, Senior Advisor on Race, Ethnicity, and Health Care at the Kaiser Family Foundation, and also an Associate Research Professor in the George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services. Today, 1 in 3 Americans self-identify as either Hispanic/Latino, African American/Black, American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian American, or Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander. By 2050, half of the U.S. population will be a person of color (Figure 1). This demographic shift in the population suggests that there are economic as well as health consequences of our failure to eliminate longstanding disparities in health status and in access to health care.
Problem Identification, Contracting, and Case Planning

The evolution of evidence-based practice has changed the expectations and the subsequent procedures for adequate identifying, planning, and documenting the needs of clients. Evidencehyphen;based practice principles go beyond general theoretical approaches and provide a procedural framework that uses scientific methodology along with qualitative and quantitative practice methods. This chapter highlights the importance of professional training in this area and provides practice application tips that stress the importance of uniting problem identification with the case plan through a process that clearly leads to the outcome. Keywords: evidence-based documentation; treatment planning; evidence-based practice; outcomes documentation; outcomes treatment planning
Chaos as a design tactic: broadening the capture range of the phase-locked loop

In this paper, we present and discuss some circuit experiments that demonstrate how chaos can be used to broaden the capture range of the common phase-locked loop circuit.