cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
An Auto-Calibration System for Vision-Servoed Robots

This paper presents an eye-to-hand calibration scheme for visually-servoed robot systems. The visual servoing technique in this study involves maneuvering the robot to grasp a randomly oriented workpiece. The focus of the calibration scheme is to minimize the offset between the achieved end-effector position and the desired position. The proposed method statistically derives a transformation matrix whose coefficents compensate for the robot and camera inaccuracies which create the positional offset.
Surgical treatment of complications of portal hypertension

This review defines the role of non-transplant surgery in portal hypertension. Surgical options for patients with portal hypertensive bleedings include portacaval shunt emergently and distal splenorenal shunt with splenopancreatic disconnection electively. There is currently renewed interest for calibrated portacaval H-grafts. Early results show a low encephalopathy rate and a good control of bleeding.
A rationale for the treatment of peptic ulcer.

1. There are undoubtedly several interesting factors which are responsible for the genesis, reactivation and chronicity of peptic ulcer. 2. The most important of these factors are traumatization of local tissue, erosion made possible by any means which reduces the defensive reaction of tissue and certain systemic factors of which neurogenic influences are the most important. 3. Anyrationale for treatment of peptic ulcer must recognize the importance of all potential causes and direct therapeutic considerations toward all of them. Treatment must be sufficiently flexible so that consideration is given not only to the three factors mentioned before, in a general way, but also toward that factor which can frequently be shown to be the predominant one in a particular case. 4. Individual exacerbations are merely breakdowns in the cycle of peptic ulcer. The program of treatment must, therefore, be a prophylatic one, directing special attention toward prevention of disturbances in tissues, in gastric chemism, and in the nervous system of the patient, even during asymptomatic periods.
Small pixel hybrid CMOS x-ray detectors (Erratum)

Publisher’s Note: This paper, originally published on 20 July 2018, was replaced with a corrected/revised version on 12 October 2018. If you downloaded the original PDF but are unable to access the revision, please contact SPIE Digital Library Customer Service for assistance. Next generation X-ray mission concepts (e.g. Lynx) call for a wide field X-ray imager with high detection efficiency from 0.2 keV to 10 keV and fast readout capability (> 10 Hz frame rate). In order to properly sample the planned fine angular resolution of the optical assembly (0:5’’ HPD), small pixel sizes of less than or equal to 16 microns are required. Hybrid CMOS detectors are a type of active pixel sensor that is well suited to the high throughput and wide bandpass requirements of such instruments, and the pixel size goals are well within reach. In collaboration with Teledyne Imaging Sensors, the Penn State X-ray detector lab has developed new small pixel Hybrid CMOS sensors to meet these needs. These prototype 128 x 128 pixel devices have 12.5 micron pixel pitch, 100 micron fully depleted depth, and include crosstalk-eliminating CTIA amplifiers and in-pixel correlated double sampling capability. We report on characteristics of one of these new detectors, including read noise, energy resolution, and pixel-to-pixel gain variation. The read noise was measured to be as low as 5:54 e- ± 0:05 e-, while the gain variation was found to be 1:12% ± 0:06%. The energy resolution, including calibration for gain variation, was measured to be as good as 148 eV (2.5%) at 5.9 keV.
Cytokine and Anti-Cytokine Agents as Future Therapeutics for Fibrostenosing IBD

The pathogenesis of stricture formation in inflammatory bowel disease is a complex process with a wide variety of clinical, genetic, epigenetic, and environmental risk factors. Originally thought to be a consequence of chronic inflammation, new evidence arises for non-inflammatory contributors to stricture formation, suggesting an intricate interplay of cellular, molecular, and additional host/environmental factors. Although no specific medical treatments for fibrostenotic intestinal strictures currently exist, understanding the molecular pathways involved in stricture formation will undoubtedly guide therapeutic developments. As mediators of inflammation and immunoregulation, cytokines are key effectors in the fibrotic process. Accordingly, targeting inflammation, in part via cytokine blockade, has been the mainstay of therapy in IBD. In many cases, inflammatory disease is associated with significant fibrotic change, as increased inflammation perpetuates the cascade of mucosal repair. Thus, inflammatory cytokine-targeted therapy may serve as one potential avenue for treating fibrostenosis. As regulatory and repair mechanisms have been implicated in fibrosis as well, either as sequelae of inflammation or via de novo pathways, a parallel route for treating intestinal fibrosis may be the targeting of “regulatory” cytokines. This chapter will highlight the relevant contributions and potential therapeutic targeting of cytokines involved in inflammatory and regulatory pathways leading to fibrosis.
Exploring the electronic structure of aluminum metal–organic framework Basolite A100: solid-state synchronous fluorescence spectroscopy reveals new charge excitation/relaxation pathways

We investigated the electronic structure of a metal-organic framework (MOF), for the first time, by solid-state synchronous fluorescence spectroscopy in comparison with "conventional" fluorescence spectroscopy. The solid-state synchronous fluorescence spectra of aluminum MOF Basolite A100 in the UV-visible range at 25 °C are significantly narrower than the commonly used "conventional" fluorescence spectra. More importantly, the solid-state synchronous fluorescence spectra reveal major electronic transitions and fine molecular interactions in the MOF not available from the commonly used analysis. The following distinct pathways of charge excitation, followed by relaxation, are observed in Basolite A100: (a) a narrow resonance due to the monomer of the BDC linker at 308 nm, (b) an optical bandgap at 355 nm, and (c) absorption by excimers due to the ligand-to-ligand charge transfer (LLCT) between the two BDC linkers at ca. 387 nm. Furthermore, we accurately determine the optical bandgap in Basolite A100, for the first time, by solid-state enhanced resolution synchronous (excitation) spectroscopy. Finally, changes in the inter-linker LLCT interactions in the activated and hydrated forms of Basolite A100 are revealed by solid-state enhanced resolution synchronous (excitation) spectroscopy.
The Isolation Effectiveness of Ground Via Stitches in High-Speed Board Designs

Because the speed of signals continues to rise, controlling crosstalks between close signal passages becomes increasingly critical, especially for high-speed links on high-density boards. Ground stitching vias are important tools used by industries to enhance the isolation performance. However, the level of their effectiveness for very high-speed links and their significance in the whole signal link were seldom reported. In this work, we provide comprehensive studies of the effectiveness of ground stitching vias for high-speed signal crosstalks up to 40 GHz. Comparisons are made to verify the effectiveness and isolation level that could be introduced by stitching vias to highspeed differential signals. Also the stitching via contribution to the full path crosstalk distribution is analyzed and discussed. The conclusions and summaries developed from these comparisons and analysis provide effective guidelines for highspeed link designs.
Males Require Estrogen Signaling Too: Sexual Dimorphism in the Regulation of Glucose Homeostasis by Nuclear ERα.

Females are more protected against insulin resistance and cardiovascular disease compared with males of the same age or BMI, and this relative protection is diminished in postmenopausal women, attributable to a loss in estrogen signaling (1–4). Evidence from genetic animal models further points to the beneficial effects of estrogen signaling via estrogen receptor-α (ERα) in regard to glucose homeostasis in health and metabolic diseases (5). Mice harboring whole-body deletion of ERα (ERαKO) reveal that estrogen signaling through this receptor regulates glucose homeostasis in part by modulating hepatic insulin sensitivity (6) and glucose uptake in the skeletal muscle and adipose tissue (7). Moreover, ERα signaling has been demonstrated to promote pancreatic insulin-producing β-cell function, survival, and proliferation, as well as protection from development of diabetes in mice of both sexes (8–10). Thus, estrogen is generally thought to positively regulate glucose homeostasis primarily through ERα, which is expressed in both male and female tissues, but the respective importance of nuclear and membrane ERα pools in the regulation of glucose homeostasis is not clear. ERα is predominantly characterized as a nuclear receptor and thus noted for exclusively regulating transcription of target genes. However, extranuclear ERα action or membrane compartment–initiated estrogen signaling is now widely accepted to activate different pathways occurring in the cytoplasm and nucleus. For example, membrane localization of ERα (which accounts for ∼5–10% of the ERα pool depending on cell type) facilitates membrane-initiated signaling events important for reproduction and vascular physiology (11) as well as β-cell function and survival (12). Although it is clear that ERα positively regulates glucose homeostasis, the distinct and overlapping contributions of the extranuclear and nuclear pool of ERα remain unknown. Therefore, mouse models specifically engineered to have only nuclear or membrane ERα action are necessary to delineate specific ERα functions related to …
In situ, operando studies on the size and structure of supported Pt catalysts under supercritical conditions by simultaneous synchrotron-based X-ray techniques

To control the size and structure of supported Pt catalysts, the influence of additional metal particles and the effect of supports were elucidated during the cracking reaction of n-dodecane under supercritical reaction conditions. The dynamical changes in nanocatalysts and catalytic activity are studied under realistic reaction conditions by using a combination of simultaneous temperature-programmed heating, in situ Small Angle X-ray Scattering (SAXS) and X-ray Absorption Near Edge Structure (XANES). In situ SAXS results indicate that the stability of the catalysts increases with Sn concentration. In situ XANES analysis reveals that the degree of oxidation and the electronic states of catalysts are dependent on the amount of Sn. Carbonaceous deposits over spent catalysts were characterized by Raman spectroscopy, indicating that the highest Sn loading inhibits the formation of disordered graphitic lattices, which leads to an increased catalytic activity. SiO2, γ-Al2O3 and Mg(Al)Ox were employed as supports to investigate the support effect on the stability of Pt catalysts. In situ SAXS and XANES results clearly show the improved stability of catalysts on γ-Al2O3 and Mg(Al)Ox supports compared to Pt catalysts on SiO2 and the electronic states of catalysts are strongly influenced by support materials.
Risk Prediction and Risk Classification

We are interested in predicting risk of a disease for an individual because treatment decisions are often based on risk. We will use cardiovascular risk as an example in the following sections since risk prediction is most developed for this disease. Treatment guidelines for high blood pressure or high cholesterol from the American Heart Association differ for people at high risk of cardiovascular disease from those at lower risk. For example, anticoagulant drugs are recommended to people who have atrial fibrillation (a type of heart arrhythmia) if they are at high risk of stroke as determined by their age, whether they have diabetes, a history of stroke, heart failure, and hypertension. Since anticoagulants pose a risk of bleeding, they are not recommended for people who have a low risk of stroke. Prediction of risk is also very useful for public health matters. Knowing what percentage of a population is at high risk can help health planners to mount preventive measures and to plan utilization of resources.
Intersectional stereotyping in policing: an analysis of traffic stop outcomes

Identity-based stereotyping often operates on perceptions about the intersection of multiple identities. Intersectional stereotyping predicts that certain combinations of attributes lend themselves...
The Biosynthesis of Flavin Derivatives

Publisher Summary This chapter provides an overview of the biosynthesis of flavin derivatives. It explains the biogenesis and the biological decomposition of riboflavin. The chapter discusses the results of the incorporation of radioactive compounds into riboflavin in relation to the biogenesis of the vitamin. The possible role as intermediates in riboflavin biosynthesis of some compounds recently isolated from vitamin B2-producing organisms, for example, 6,7-dimethyl-8-ribityllumazine, 6-methyl-7-hydroxy-8-ribityllumazine, has been related. The chapter describes a number of processes found in bacteria leading to the modification of the side chain of riboflavin and some of the intermediate steps in the conversion of the vitamin to carbon dioxide and ammonia. It also explores some of the enzymic mechanisms leading to the formation of riboflavin derivatives, for example, riboflavin 5'-phosphate, flavin adenine dinucleotide, and riboflavin glycosides.
Comparison of glenohumeral joint kinematics between manual wheelchair tasks and implications on the subacromial space: A biplane fluoroscopy study

Abstract Scapula and humerus motion associated with common manual wheelchair tasks is hypothesized to reduce the subacromial space. However, previous work relied on either marker-based motion capture for kinematic measures, which is prone to skin-motion artifact; or ultrasound imaging for arthrokinematic measures, which are 2D and acquired in statically-held positions. The aim of this study was to use a fluoroscopy-based approach to accurately quantify glenohumeral kinematics during manual wheelchair use, and compare tasks for a subset of parameters theorized to be associated with mechanical impingement. Biplane images of the dominant shoulder were acquired during scapular plane elevation, propulsion, sideways lean, and weight-relief raise in ten manual wheelchair users with spinal cord injury. A computed tomography scan of the shoulder was obtained, and model-based tracking was used to quantify six-degree-of-freedom glenohumeral kinematics. Axial rotation and superior/inferior and anterior/posterior humeral head positions were characterized for full activity cycles and compared between tasks. The change in the subacromial space was also determined for the period of each task defined by maximal change in the aforementioned parameters. Propulsion, sideways lean, and weight-relief raise, but not scapular plane elevation, were marked by mean internal rotation (8.1°, 10.8°, 14.7°, −49.2° respectively). On average, the humeral head was most superiorly positioned during the weight-relief raise (1.6 ± 0.9 mm), but not significantly different from the sideways lean (0.8 ± 1.1 mm) (p = 0.191), and much of the task was characterized by inferior translation. Scaption was the only task without a defined period of superior translation on average. Pairwise comparisons revealed no significant differences between tasks for anterior/posterior position (task means range: 0.1–1.7 mm), but each task exhibited defined periods of anterior translation. There was not a consistent trend across tasks between internal rotation, superior translation, and anterior translation with reductions in the subacromial space. Further research is warranted to determine the likelihood of mechanical impingement during these tasks based on the measured task kinematics and reductions in the subacromial space.
Large scale epitaxial graphite grown on twin free nickel(111)/spinel substrate

Single crystal graphite is an extremely useful substrate to grow functional single crystalline films for future electronic and optoelectronic device applications. Due to weak van der Waals interaction, it allows one to grow high quality epitaxial films without the restriction of lattice matching and the films are relaxed at the interface without generating a high density of misfit induced defects even with very large lattice mismatch systems. However, the sizes of single crystalline graphite substrates are typically very small when cleaved from the natural graphite or exfoliated from the commercial highly oriented graphite. In this study we grew large scale single crystalline AB-stacking graphite films by chemical vapor deposition of graphite on wafer size, single crystalline Ni(111) films that were epitaxially grown by magnetron sputtering on spinel (MgAl2O4(111)) substrates. Our results show that smooth, single crystalline graphite films can be achieved at temperatures below 925 °C. Growth temperatures higher than 1000 °C promotes much rougher and thicker graphite films resulted from the inhomogeneous graphite segregation and precipitation processes in the Ni film. These large single crystalline graphite films may serve as substrates to grow functional semiconductor films for electronic and optoelectronic device applications.
Bayesian estimation and sensitivity analysis of toluene and trichloroethylene biodegradation kinetic parameters.

Parameter estimation is needed for process management, design, and reactor scaling when values from the literature vary tremendously or are unavailable. A Bayesian approach, implemented via Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) simulations using SAS software, was used to estimate the kinetic parameters of toluene and trichloroethylene (TCE) biodegradation by the microorganism Pseudomonas putida F1 in batch cultures. The prediction capabilities of Bayesian estimation were illustrated by comparing predicted and observed data and reported in goodness-of-fit statistics. The sensitivity analysis showed that the parameters obtained using this approach were consistent under the designated toluene and TCE concentration range. Moreover, the impact of TCE on toluene degradation kinetics was numerically exhibited, verifying the fact that TCE was able to stimulate toluene degradation; hence, TCE's presence increased the apparent maximum toluene-specific rate. Various kinetic models were explored at different degrees of complexity. At a low TCE concentration range (e.g., <2 mg L-1 ), a simplified Michaelis-Menten model (i.e., substrate half-saturation parameters approximated the inhibition parameters) was adequate to describe the reaction kinetics. However, at a higher TCE range (e.g., 5 mg L-1 ), a full-scale Michaelis-Menten model was needed to discriminate among the inhibition parameters in the model. The results demonstrated that a Bayesian estimation method is particularly useful for determining complex bioreaction kinetic parameters in the presence of a small volume of experimental data.
Open bilateral common femoral and popliteal vein aneurysm repair

Abstract Although venous aneurysms are rare, typically asymptomatic, and most commonly found incidentally on imaging studies, patients with this pathology can develop pulmonary emboli owing to these aneurysms acting as a nidus for thrombus formation. There is no clear consensus regarding conservative management with anticoagulation vs operative intervention as the best treatment of deep venous aneurysms. We report the clinical course and surgical treatment of a patient presenting with both bilateral common femoral vein and bilateral popliteal venous aneurysms who had a known history of prior symptomatic pulmonary emboli.
AB0091 Pulmonary takayasu’s arteritis mimicking acute pulmonary embolism

Background Pulmonary Takayasu’s arteritis may sometimes be the initial presentation of Takayasu’s arteritis. Cases of pulmonary TA mimicking chronic thromboembolism have been reported.1–4 However, only two brief reports of Takayasu’s arteritis mimicking acute pulmonary embolism have been described in the radiology and pathology literature,1,4 but none mentioned the exact duration of symptoms or the detailed presentation. We describe a patient of Takayasu’s arteritis who presented with pulmonary symptoms of three days duration, which mimicked acute pulmonary embolism. Objectives Methods Results The patient presented with a three-day history of cough and shortness of breath and had multiple bilateral perfusion defects on ventilation-perfusion scan, typical of acute pulmonary embolism (Figure 1). She was initially diagnosed with acute pulmonary embolism and treated empirically with heparin. Subsequently a negative venous Doppler, absence of changes of acute or chronic thromboembolic disease on pulmonary angiogram, elevated ESR of 70 mm/hr, and the typical angiographic changes (Figure 2), led us to make the correct diagnosis of Takayasu’s arteritis. Her initial arch angiogram was normal (Figure 3A) She responded to treatment with prednisone, with both clinical improvement and a 50% increase in the calibre of both right and left pulmonary arteries on a MR angiogram done six months later. A repeat pulmonary angiogram 11 months later showed a decrease in pulmonary artery pressures from 65/12 mm Hg to 49/10 mm Hg. She was lost to follow-up and returned six years later with symptoms of dizziness and angiographic evidence of carotid artery involvement (Figure 3B), which required arterial bypass grafting. Histopathological examination of the artery specimen showed patchy acute and chronic inflammation of adventitia, media and intima, focal granulomatous foreign body reaction, and intimal proliferation, changes consistent with Takayasu’s arteritis. Conclusion In young women presenting with a clinical picture of acute pulmonary embolism without any risk factors or a previous history of thromboembolism, pulmonary TA must be considered in the differential diagnosis. A careful evaluation of the clinical features, laboratory findings and angiographic appearance, will often lead to the correct recognition of pulmonary Takayasu’s arteritis and the initiation of appropriate therapy. References Lie JT. Isolated pulmonary arteritis: clinicopathologic characteristics. Mod Pathol 1996;9(5):469–74 Haque U, Hellmann D, Traill T, Venbrux A, Stone J. Takayasu’s Arteritis involving proximal pulmonary arteries and mimicking thromboembolic disease. J Rheumatol. 1999;26:450–3 Nakabayashi K, Kurata N, Nangi N, Miyake H, Nagasawa T. Pulmonary artery involvement as first manifestation in three cases of Takayasu’s arteritis. Int J Cardiol. 1996;54(Suppl):S147–53 Kerr KM, Auger WR, Fedullo PF, Channick RH, Yi ES, Moser KM. Large vessel pulmonary arteritis mimicking chronic thromboembolic disease. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 1995;152:367–73
Feasibility of manual ventilation replacing mechanical ventilation

Background During the COVID-19 pandemic it is anticipated that there will be a shortage of mechanical ventilators available for patients in critical condition. This has sparked many discussions about rationing resources and withholding care; however, an alternative may be to implement manual ventilation in these situations instead. Manual ventilation and a safety device were assessed for efficacy of extended use, such as may be required during this pandemic. Methods To evaluate physical output characteristics of extended manual ventilation and efficacy of a barotrauma mitigation device, 47 medical students, nurses and medics completed two 1-hour manual ventilation sessions using the SmartLung 2000 Lung Simulator and 5300 Series Mass Flow Meter with a SPUR II resuscitator bag and endotracheal tube, mimicking a healthy adult with normal lung physiology, both with and without the Sotair device. Providers were randomised to complete their initial session either with or without the Sotair device. Findings Collected data show wide variability in tidal volume and peak pressure in unmitigated manual breaths despite prior training and independent exploration of the resuscitation equipment prior to testing. The mean (±SD) tidal volume with bag only was 563.9±128.8 mL and with the safety device 536.1±80.9 mL (p Interpretation While extended manual ventilation cannot replace mechanical ventilation, it is feasible with a safety device, which may reduce barotrauma, underventilation and overventilation. These results also demonstrate that withholding care and rationing resources may not be necessary.
Pincho: A Modular Approach to High Quality De Novo Transcriptomics

Transcriptomic reconstructions without reference (i.e., de novo) are common for data samples derived from non-model biological systems. These assemblies involve massive parallel short read sequence reconstructions from experiments, but they usually employ ad-hoc bioinformatic workflows that exhibit limited standardization and customization. The increasing number of transcriptome assembly software continues to provide little room for standardization which is exacerbated by the lack of studies on modularity that compare the effects of assembler synergy. We developed a customizable management workflow for de novo transcriptomics that includes modular units for short read cleaning, assembly, validation, annotation, and expression analysis by connecting twenty-five individual bioinformatic tools. With our software tool, we were able to compare the assessment scores based on 129 distinct single-, bi- and tri-assembler combinations with diverse k-mer size selections. Our results demonstrate a drastic increase in the quality of transcriptome assemblies with bi- and tri- assembler combinations. We aim for our software to improve de novo transcriptome reconstructions for the ever-growing landscape of RNA-seq data derived from non-model systems. We offer guidance to ensure the most complete transcriptomic reconstructions via the inclusion of modular multi-assembly software controlled from a single master console.
GeneWeld: Efficient Targeted Integration Directed by Short Homology in Zebrafish

Efficient precision genome engineering requires high frequency and specificity of integration at the genomic target site. Multiple design strategies for zebrafish gene targeting have previously been reported with widely varying frequencies for germline recovery of integration alleles. The GeneWeld protocol and pGTag (plasmids for Gene Tagging) vector series provide a set of resources to streamline precision gene targeting in zebrafish. Our approach uses short homology of 24-48 bp to drive targeted integration of DNA reporter cassettes by homology-mediated end joining (HMEJ) at a CRISPR/Cas induced DNA double-strand break. The pGTag vectors contain reporters flanked by a universal CRISPR sgRNA sequence to liberate the targeting cassette in vivo and expose homology arms for homology-driven integration. Germline transmission rates for precision-targeted integration alleles range 22-100%. Our system provides a streamlined, straightforward, and cost-effective approach for high-efficiency gene targeting applications in zebrafish. Graphic abstract: GeneWeld method for CRISPR/Cas9 targeted integration.
Advancing local search approximations for multiobjective combinatorial optimization problems

This study proposes a theoretical framework for defining approximations of the Pareto sets of multiobjective combinatorial optimization (MOCO) problems. The concept of t-representation is proposed for modeling the approximation quality and describes a local search algorithm to produce a t-representation. Unlike the current local search algorithms found in the literature, the proposed algorithm yields a representation for the Pareto set with a mathematically proven error term (quality). The algorithm starts with an initial representation containing efficient solutions. The approximation quality is derived mathematically and is measured using a tolerance function that depends on the cost coefficients of the problem and the initial representation. The computational experiments are conducted using two types of MOCO problems (multiobjective set covering problem and multiobjective knapsack problem). The computational results demonstrate that this algorithm significantly outperforms the initial representation, obeys the theoretical bounds, and efficiently solves MOCO problems.
Preparing for implantation

A new laboratory model helps to understand the role of senescent cells in fostering a uterine environment that can support an embryo.
Visual Navigation Using Heterogeneous Landmarks and Unsupervised Geometric Constraints

We present a heterogeneous landmark-based visual navigation approach for a monocular mobile robot. We utilize heterogeneous visual features, such as points, line segments, lines, planes, and vanishing points, and their inner geometric constraints managed by a novel multilayer feature graph (MFG). Our method extends the local bundle adjustment-based visual simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) framework by explicitly exploiting the heterogeneous features and their inner geometric relationships in an unsupervised manner. As the result, our heterogeneous landmark-based visual navigation algorithm takes a video stream as input, initializes and iteratively updates MFG based on extracted key frames, and refines robot localization and MFG landmarks through the process. We present pseudocode for the algorithm and analyze its complexity. We have evaluated our method and compared it with state-of-the-art point landmark-based visual SLAM methods using multiple indoor and outdoor datasets. In particular, on the KITTI dataset, our method reduces the translational error by 52.5% under urban sequences where rectilinear structures dominate the scene.
Elimination of CO2 and H2O as oxygen transport species in mixed oxide fuel pins

Thermodynamic and kinetic calculations show that both CO2 and H2O are eliminated as oxygen transporting species in typical, near-stoichiometric LMFBR mixed oxide fuel. Thus, current gas phase transport theories do not correctly describe the oxygen distribution in such a pin. A method for measurement of the oxygen potential across an oxide fuel pin is presented.
Engaging with Others: Philosophy of Education 2009

It is my pleasure to introduce the Presidential Essay, the Kneller Lecture, the refereed essays, and the invited responses that comprise Philosophy of Education 2009. The papers included in this volume sparked lively conversations when they were presented at the 65th Annual Meeting of the Philosophy of Education Society in Montreal. The high quality of these essays, the thoughtfulness of the responses, and the skill with which session chairs facilitated exchanges between authors, respondents, and conference participants all contributed to the dynamism of the Montreal conference. What are the issues that these essays examine?
Volumetric Shape Model for Oriented Tubular Structure from DTI Data

In this paper, we describe methods for constructing shape priors using orientation information to model white matter tracts from magnetic resonance diffusion tensor images (DTI). Shape Normalization is needed for the construction of a shape prior using statistical methods. Moving beyond shape normalization using boundary-only or orientation-only information, our method combines the idea of sweeping and inverse-skeletonization to parameterize 3D volumetric shape, which provides point correspondence and orientations over the whole volume in a continuous fashion. Tangents from this continuous model can be treated as a de-noised reconstruction of the original structural orientation inside a shape. We demonstrate the accuracy of this technique by reconstructing synthetic data and the 3D cingulum tract from brain DTI data and manually drawn 2D contours for each tract. Our output can also serve as the input for subsequent boundary finding or shape analysis.
Sexual abuse prevention education. Is it appropriate for the preschool child

Sexual Abuse Prevention Education Is It Appropriate for the Preschool Child? Jill Duerr Berrick University of California, Berkeley Child sexual abuse is a growing concern for children of all ages. Whether in day care or at home, recent studies have shown that children in their preschool years and younger are falling victim to sexual assaults (Finkelhor, Williams, Burns, & Kalinowski, 1985). One response to this problem has been to call upon prevention specialists from the community to train children in preschool programs. Workshops designed to teach young children how to prevent their own abuse now blanket the United States. In Califor- nia, the Child Abuse Prevention and Training Act (AB 2443) provides for prevention training in all public schools. Specifically, the bill mandates that all children have the opportunity to receive “comprehensive and effective primary prevention education . . . four times in their school career, including once in preschool, elementary school, junior high school, and senior high school.” That state currently serves approximately 45,000 preschool children each year. The annual cost for the entire program is $10.4 million. But sexual abuse prevention training for preschoolers is no easy matter. Despite the money and effort being spent in the area, the question remains: What can 3- to 5year-olds learn to protect themselves from sexual abuse? Requests for reprints should be sent to Jill Duerr School of Social Welfare, University of California, Berrick, Family LVelfare Berkeley, CA 91i20. Research Group,
Federal Preemption of Shrinkwrap and On-Line Licenses

For works that have been widely distributed, the fundamental copyright balances are not subject to private reordering under state contract law. Judge Easterbrook's overreliance on narrow law-and-economics reasoning caused him to miss the critical public interest analysis when he upheld the shrinkwrap license in ProCD, Inc. v. Zeidenberg. This article stresses the important distinction between commercialized and noncommercialized works. It argues that United States copyright law is and should remain philosophically based firmly in instrumentalist rather than natural rights views, but that in any event there is no denying the strong public interest not only in rewarding past creators but also in nurturing current and future creators. The decision in the 1976 Copyright Act to bring unpublished works into the federal scheme did not change any of the fundamental policy tradeoffs for widely distributed, but represented a federalization for housekeeping and efficiency purposes of the old common law right of first publication. The policy balances with respect to such rights of first publication are very different from those governing widely distributed works, and in that sense we actually still have two copyright laws operating in parallel.Once that foundation has been laid and the public nature of the policy tradeoffs applicable to widely distributed works brought into focus, it follows directly that state enforcement of purported contracts or licenses that restrict basic users' rights reserved to the public by the copyright statute would fundamentally frustrate the federal scheme. The article therefore concludes that state contract law must, to this extent, be preempted by federal copyright. It is clear that the correct answer can be achieved only through full and fair consideration of the public benefits that flow from the free use of information as well as from the incentives supplied by intellectual property law to the creators of information products. Judicial validation of contracts that wholly tilt the balance in favor of the producers at the expense of users and the general public cannot be right.
Efficient Algorithms for T-way Test Sequence Generation

Combinatorial testing has been shown to be a very effective testing strategy. Most work on combinatorial testing focuses on t-way test data generation, where each test is an unordered set of parameter values. In this paper, we study the problem of t-way test sequence generation, where each test is an ordered sequence of events. Using a general labeled transition system as the system model, we formally define the notion of t-way sequence coverage, and introduce an efficient algorithm to compute all valid t-way target sequences, i.e., sequences of t events that must be covered by at least one test sequence. We then report several algorithms to generate a set of test sequences that achieves the proposed t-way sequence coverage. These algorithms are developed as the result of a systematic exploration of the possible approaches to t-way test sequence generation, and are compared both analytically and experimentally. The results show that while these algorithms have their own advantages and disadvantages, one of them is more scalable than others while exhibiting very good performance.
Workplace, Organizational, and Societal: Three Domains of Learning for 21st‐Century Cities

Interconnections between workplace and organizational learning can highlight the ongoing changes taking place that pre-stage the need for learning cities and regions. The diverse institutions that comprise cities and regions can function as organizational learning mechanisms in the 21st century. Learning cities themselves can also be conceptualized as societal learning organizations.
Early life dynamics of the human gut virome and bacterial microbiome in infants

The early years of life are important for immune development and influence health in adulthood. Although it has been established that the gut bacterial microbiome is rapidly acquired after birth, less is known about the viral microbiome (or 'virome'), consisting of bacteriophages and eukaryotic RNA and DNA viruses, during the first years of life. Here, we characterized the gut virome and bacterial microbiome in a longitudinal cohort of healthy infant twins. The virome and bacterial microbiome were more similar between co-twins than between unrelated infants. From birth to 2 years of age, the eukaryotic virome and the bacterial microbiome expanded, but this was accompanied by a contraction of and shift in the bacteriophage virome composition. The bacteriophage-bacteria relationship begins from birth with a high predator-low prey dynamic, consistent with the Lotka-Volterra prey model. Thus, in contrast to the stable microbiome observed in adults, the infant microbiome is highly dynamic and associated with early life changes in the composition of bacteria, viruses and bacteriophages with age.
Toward a pre-disciplinary introductory design sequence

One of our greatest challenges in education is to prepare our students for the realities of the workplace they will be entering. In an economy characterized by global competition and continuous change, students need career-sustaining skills in addition to hard knowledge. They must know how to synthesize and integrate information; to work together in teams; to be creative; to attack open, multidisciplinary problems; to communicate the answers obtained; and to bring ideas into fruition. Recent critiques of engineering education, state the need a slightly different way. They claim that engineering education has focused too much of its energy on engineering science at the expense of engineering design. The author considers how Georgia Tech's EduTech Institute is spearheading an interdisciplinary effort to address these needs. Key to the effort is a two-quarter pre-disciplinary introduction to design. The introductory courses are designed to lay the foundations for teaming principles and strategies behind good design, reasoning involved in doing design, and cognitive and social skills a designer needs. Keeping in mind that good design requires effective collaboration and effective use of computer technology, collaboration and use of software is integral to the courses.
Finite Element Analysis of Prosthetic Running Blades Using Different Composite Materials to Optimize Performance

A prosthetic limb is an artificial device that replaces missing body part, or parts. Prosthetic limbs are used for many different applications however the application of prosthetic limbs focused in this paper categorized as prosthetic enhancements. Prosthetic enhancements are special prosthetic that allow the patients to participate in more rigorous recreational activities, such as running. These prosthetic limbs now have started to arise in major sporting events like the Olympics. Some researchers say that the legs use only 25% of the energy that an able bodied leg would use.High performance prosthetic running legs made of carbon fiber, show great advantages over their metal counterparts. Including being lighter and being able to retain more strain energy, current carbon fiber running blades offered by Ossur provide the best performance in the market. In this study, prosthetic racing legs known as blades were analyzed using finite element analysis technique. Performance improvements of these blades were sought by creating mechanical models of the current Ossur products using the finite element analysis software ANSYS and incorporating better performing composite materials into the mechanical simulations. Two different composite materials have taken in consideration by which the legs are created from, these are thermoplastic values for polyethylene epoxy and Vinylester. The use of a new composite material reduces the strain in each of the existing blade geometries, and it permits fewer layers of carbon fiber to be required in the construction of these running blades, which reduces the weight of each leg. Three different blade designs such as Cheetah blade, Flex-Run blade and Flex-Sprint blade have been considered in this study. Also two different loading conditions on the blade such as standing and running conditions have been considered.Copyright © 2014 by ASME
Apoptosis in HIV infection.

It is reported that DNA fragmentation (indicating apoptosis) is rarely observed in HIV-1 or SIV-producing infected cells, and HIV-1 or SIV RNA is rarely (0-1%) observed in apoptotic cells. What is the role of apoptosis in the pathogenicity of HIV infection? (pages 129–134)
Novel therapies targeting the myeloma cell and its bone marrow microenvironment.

Novel therapies in multiple myeloma (MM) target not only the tumor cell but also the bone marrow (BM) microenvironment. Thalidomide (Thal), as well as derivative immunomodulatory drugs (IMiDs), directly induce apoptosis or G1 growth arrest in MM cell lines and patient's MM cells which are resistant to melphalan (Mel), doxorubicin (Dox), and dexamethasone (Dex). Although Thal and IMiDs do not alter adhesion of MM cells to bone marrow stromal cells (BMSCs), they inhibit the upregulation of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) secretion triggered by the binding of MM cells to BMSCs. Proteasome inhibitors represent another potential anticancer therapy targeting the MM cell and the BM microenvironment. The proteasome inhibitor PS-341 directly inhibits proliferation and induces apoptosis in both human MM cell lines and freshly isolated patient's MM cells which are resistant to Mel, Dox, and Dex. PS-341 inhibits p44/42 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) growth signaling triggered by IL-6 and induces apoptosis, despite induction of p21 and p27, in p53 wild-type and p53 mutant MM cells. PS-341 adds to the anti-MM activity of dexamethasone and overcomes IL-6-mediated protection against dexamethasone-induced apoptosis. PS-341 blocks the paracrine growth of human MM cells by decreasing their adherence to BMSCs and related NF-kappaB-dependent induction of IL-6 secretion in BMSCs. Moreover, proliferation and MAPK growth signaling of those residual adherent MM cells is also inhibited. Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), which is produced by some MM cells, induces only low-level MM proliferation and MAPK activation in MM cells, but markedly upregulates IL-6 secretion from BMSCs and upregulates expression of adhesion molecules (VLA-4 and LFA-1) on MM cells and their receptors (VCAM-1 and ICAM-1) on BMSCs, with resultant increased binding of MM cells to BMSCs. Inhibition of TNF-alpha-induced NF-kappaB activation with PS-341 inhibits both the upregulation of these molecules on MM cells and BMSCs and the resultant increased adhesion. Therefore, inhibiting TNF-alpha and its sequelae may be useful treatment strategies in MM. Our data show that VEGF causes proliferation and enhances migration of MM as well as plasma cell leukemia (PCL) cells. VEGF induced twofold activation of cell migration in MM cells and more than 100-fold activation of cell migration in PCL cells, suggesting an important role of VEGF in the progression of MM to PCL. These data indicate that VEGF plays a pivotal role not only in neoangiogenesis in MM BM but also in proliferation and migration of tumor cells.
The Dickensian Occupational Structure

Twelve of the novels of Charles Dickens provide a sample of 349 characters whose occupational achievement and mobility are investigated. The mobility patterns indicate more inheritance than in the United States. This cannot be accounted for by education, material inheritance, or morality (being a good or bad person). A model of quasi-perfect mobility, taking all diagonal frequencies as given, more closely represents the patterns. Determinants of achievement considered are social origins, number of siblings, education, marital status, morality. The characters from large families do better occupationally than those from small. Education functions primarily to redistribute success. The married are superior to the unmarried, with marriage functioning not as a selective mechanism, but exerting causal impact of its own. The evil are rewarded in this life. The basic path model of the stratification system of Dickens is similar to that of the United States.
Converting education into earnings: The patterns among Hispanic origin men

We evaluate the functional form of the relationship between education and earnings for Hispanic and non-Hispanic white men to determine whether the payoffs to education vary with level of schooling, and whether credential effects can be discerned. Results indicate that for all groups the usual linear specification, while offering the advantage of parsimony, fits the data less well than more complex models. The levels model best predicts the earnings of Puerto Rican and other Spanish origin workers, while the credential model is best suited for Mexican, Central/South American, and non-Hispanic white men. Credential effects accrue to all groups, except the other Spanish, but Central/South Americans only receive added income bonuses for the completion of a college degree, whereas Mexican, Puerto Rican, and non-Hispanic white men also receive a bonus for a high school diploma.