cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Studying the dependence of low-frequency noise on geometrical shape of Al-based thin film interconnects

In this paper the experimental results of a study conducted to investigate dependence of low-frequency noise on the geometrical shape of VLSI interconnect are discussed. The metal thin films are most commonly used in fabrication of these metallic interconnects. The interconnection lines of modern ICs have effective cross sections in the range of 1-5 square μm. Therefore, the operating currents of a few milliamps results in current densities in the range of MA/square cm. Under these conditions, the phenomenon of electromigration arises, which may lead to the failure of the interconnection lines in a time ranging from a few several hours to several years, depending on the subjected current density J and thermal stress T. To study the effect of subjected current densities and temperatures, low-frequency noise measurements were performed on a group of ten metal thin film VLSI interconnects. These measurements were carried out under stressing current densities between 1.0x105A/cm2 and 2.2 x106A/cm2 at different heating temperatures up to 280 ° C. We used a sophisticated noise measurement system based on dual-channel dynamic signal analyzer and ultra low-noise amplifier to monitor and capture the noise spectra exhibited by the samples when subjected to electrical and thermal stress. The low-frequency noise measurement system and measurement technique, metal thin film sample design, and the behavior of these samples under subjected stressing conditions are discussed in the paper.© (2005) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Analysis and prediction of stability in commercial, 1200 V, 33A, 4H-SiC MOSFETs

State-of-the-art, commercially available, 4H-SiC MOSFETs are evaluated for stability under high-temperature over-voltage and pulsed over-current conditions. The devices show maximum vulnerability under high-temperature accumulation stress, demonstrating that the gate oxide is more prone to hole trapping than to electron trapping. The power MOSFET architecture coupled with a high interface trap density enables us to predict the stability of the device through a simple evaluation of the free-wheeling diode ideality factor (η) of the unstressed device. The pulsed over-current operation results in degradation similar to electron trapping at high temperature, presumably due to overheating of the device beyond its specified junction temperature. Over-current degradation is more severe at high switching frequency.
Computing parent nodes in threaded binary trees

We give three algorithms for computing the parent of a node in a threaded binary tree, and calculate the average case complexity of each. By comparing these to the unit cost of obtaining the parent of a node with an explicit parent-pointer field, it is possible to balance runtime and storage cost with respect to the task of finding parent nodes in binary trees. The results obtained show that, although the worst case complexity for ann-node tree is obviouslyO(n) for all three algorithms, the average case complexity for two input distributions is asymptotic (from below) to either 3 or 2.
Enhancement in the sensitivity of libs using magnetic field and sequensial double laser pulse

The study of emission from laser-produced plasma from liquid jet is reported. Laser –induced plasma expanding in the magnetic field provides a 1.5-2 times enhancement in the plasma emission where as sequential double laser pulse excitation enhances the emission by more than four times.
Does shock modifiability contribute to preference for signaled shock

The central question asked was whether differential shock modification occurs (posturally induced differences in shock contact time) under signaled and unsignaled conditions using scrambled shock. Shock modifiability was tested with two different shock sources, intensities, and scrambling units by measuring the duration of time subjects were in contact with shock. Subjects were then given a choice between the signaled and unsignaled conditions. Results showed that differential modification of shock contact time did not occur between signaled and unsignaled conditions with any shock source, intensity, or scrambler unit. In addition, subjects preferred the signaled condition. It was concluded that experiments using scrambled shock are not confounded by posturally induced differences in shock contact time.
The effect of oral tolerance on the allergic airway response in younger and aged mice.

Background. The effect of increased age on the induction of oral tolerance by low-dose antigen feeding and its effect on the response to antigen airway challenge in aged mice have not been well characterized. Objective. To determine whether oral tolerance can be induced in aged mice and its impact on the development of allergic airway inflammation. Methods. Younger (6 weeks old) and aged (18 months old) mice were fed ovalbumin (OVA) prior to sensitization to induce antigen tolerance. Serum antigen-specific immunoglobulins (Igs), bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF), lung histology, enumeration of CD4 + Foxp3+ Treg cells, and airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR) were determined after the final antigen challenge. Results. Feeding antigen to aged mice prior to sensitization induced oral tolerance as determined by a decrease in antigen-specific IgE and IgG1; however, the effect was greater in younger mice. Induction of oral tolerance was associated with a greater increase in airway Treg cells in the younger mice. ...
Fuzzy control as a universal control tool

Abstract It is known that fuzzy control is a universal control tool , because an arbitrary control strategy (in particular, a control strategy that is in some sense optimal) can be obtained in principle by applying a fuzzy control methodology to some set of rules. This result has already been proved (e.g., [2, 7, 20, 21]) for the case when a plant is described by finitely many parameters and a special type of fuzzy control methodology is used. In this paper, we prove it for arbitrary plants (including plants that are distributed systems , i.e., plants whose state requires infinitely many parameters to describe) and arbitrary fuzzy control methodologies. We also prove that there exists a universal fuzzy controller that generates an appropriate control from an input description of a plant (and the desired objective). Mathematically, we prove that fuzzy systems can approximate arbitrary continuous functionals, thus generalizing a known result about continuous functions.
Microstructural refinement in melt-spun Nd2Fe14B

Abstract The phase selection process during solidification of Nd 2 Fe 14 B melt-spun alloys is highly dependent on a few processing parameters. The processing variables that determine the three typical microstructures of melt-spun ribbons are described and a general peritectic rapid solidification model incorporating recalescence is presented.
Quality of Broiler Carcasses as Affected by Hot Water Treatments

Abstract Chilled whole eviscerated broiler carcasses were immersed in water at 24°, 38°, 49°, 60°, 66°, or 71° C. for either 1 or 3 minutes, with or without water agitation. The birds were then rechilled, individually bagged and stored at 4° C. For experiment 1 (without agitation), total counts of the breast skin were determined on days 0, 4, 7, 10, and 14. Birds immersed in 60° C. water showed a 1 log reduction per cm.2 in bacterial count immediately after treatment. Those receiving the 71° C. treatment showed a 2 log reduction and those below 60° C. showed a 0.5 log reduction. Carcasses treated at 60° C. and below spoiled after 7–9 days of storage at 4° C., while those receiving 71° C. did not spoil until the 10th day. For experiment 2 (with agitation), birds were sampled on days 0, 5, 7, and 9. Birds receiving 66° C. treatment and above showed about a 1 log reduction immediately after treatment, while those receiving 60° C. and below showed a 0.25 log reduction. All carcasses in experiment 2 spoiled between 8–9 days regardless of treatment temperature. Hot water alone, under these conditions, did not significantly extend shelf life and decrease initial count for batches of whole broiler carcasses. In both experiments carcasses receiving a 60° C. water treatment or higher exhibited a partially cooked appearance.
Daunomycin-induced chromosomal aberrations and the influence of arginine in modifying the effect of the drug.

Abstract The effect of Daunomycin (Dm)—a new antibiotic—was studied on human chromosomes. Chromatid and chromosome aberrations were recorded. Chromatid exchanges appear to be in preponderance over free acentric fragments. It is suggested that Dm favors the reunion of broken ends by cross-linking DNA strands. When Dm is supplemented with arginine, the mitotic index as well as the frequency of chromosome aberrations is increased. The mechanism of action of the Daunomycin+arginine mixture is not quite clear. After 24 h of treatment, DNA synthesis was observed in cells treated with 0.02 μ g Dm/ml+0.16% arginine but not cells treated with 0.02 μg Dm/ml alone. In the former treatment, rapidity of DNA synthesis was as high as in untreated cells, but the frequency of labelled cells was reduced by about two-thirds. There may exist an “all or none” relationship between Dm and DNA synthesis.
A possible cataractogenic factor in the Nakano mouse lens.

Abstract A factor present in the Nakano mouse lens is an inhibitor of NaK ATPase. This inhibitor is not found in the normal mouse lens. It is not associated with any of the major crystallins but is found with the low molecular weight components. It is resistant to high temperatures and to acid and alkaline pHs. It appears to be a polypeptide since its activity is abolished by treatment with carboxy-peptidase A and leucine amino peptidase. Other properties of the inhibitor indicate that this factor appears quite different from other substances which inhibit NaK ATPase.
Reverse binary graphs

We define a new family of labeled, undirected graphs, called reverse binary graphs (RBG), and study their properties. These graphs are incrementally generated and ''succinctly represented.'' Several important parameters of reverse binary graphs, including diameter, node and edge chromatic numbers, domination number, and genus, are obtained easily. Therefore, RBG's can be used as inputs for testing and experimenting with graph algorithms. Furthermore, like other families of graphs (such as, paths, stars, complete graphs, DeBruijn graphs, hypercubes, Stirling graphs, etc.), RBG's could also be used as interconnection networks.
The complexity of approximating a nonlinear program

We consider the problem of finding the maximum of a multivariate polynomial inside a convex polytope. We show that there is no polynomial time approximation algorithm for this problem, even one with a very poor guarantee, unless P = NP. We show that even when the polynomial is quadratic (i.e. quadratic programming) there is no polynomial time approximation unless NP is contained in quasi-polynomial time.
Accelerated monotone iterations for numerical solutions of nonlinear elliptic boundary value problems

Abstract An accelerated monotone iterative scheme for numerical solutions of a class of nonlinear elliptic boundary value problems is presented. The mathematical analysis is devoted to a system of discretized equations of the elliptic boundary value problem by the finite-difference or finite-element method. It is shown that the sequence of iterations from a linear iteration process converges monotonically and quadratically to a unique solution in a sector between a pair of upper and lower solutions. This result is then used to show the quadratic convergence of the iterations to a maximal solution and a minimal solution when the nonlinear discrete system possesses multiple solutions. An application is given to a tabular reactor model from chemical engineering for numerical solutions, and the number of iterations are compared with that by the regular monotone iterative scheme.
Direct cell-mediated cytotoxicity in experimental allergic encephalomyelitis

Splenocytes from guinea pigs with experimental allergic encephalomyelitis were assayed in a short-term 51Cr release assay for cytolytic activity against target cells coated with myelin basic protein. The basic protein was attached to target cells via a concanavalin A bridge which had been complexed to the basic protein with glutaraldehyde. Cytolytic activity was detected in symptomatic animals and the activity could be boosted by culture in vitro with additional basic protein. Histone was used as a control antigen.
Light sterile neutrinos in the early universe

Cosmological and terrestrial data suggests the number of light neutrinos may be greater than 3, motivating a careful reexamination of cosmological bounds on extra light species. Big bang nucleosynthesis constrains the number of relativistic neutrino species present during nucleosynthesis, NeffBBN, while measurements of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) angular power spectrum constrain the effective energy density in relativistic neutrinos at the time of matter-radiation equality, NeffCMB. We review a scenario with two sterile neutrinos and explore whether partial thermalization of the sterile states can ease the tension between cosmological constraints on NeffBBN and terrestrial data. We conclude that, still, two additional light sterile neutrinos species cannot fit all the data at the 95% confidence level.
Finite element analysis of bolted flange connections

Abstract A 2-D axisymmetric finite element model and a 3-D solid finite element model of a high pressure bolted flange joint were generated to investigate the stress behaviors. This investigation includes comparisons for axisymmetric loading of both the 2-D and 3-D models, the effects of non-axisymmetric bolt pretensions in the 3-D models, and the differences between 2-D and 3-D models subjected to non-axisymmetric loading. Comparisons indicated differences in von Mises stress up to 12% at various points due to the non-axisymmetric bolt pretensions. Applied bending moments were converted to equivalent axial forces for use in the 2-D model. It was found that the largest von Mises stresses in 3-D model did not occur on the side of the connection where the bending stresses and applied axial stresses were additive. Hence, in the 2-D model where the equivalent axial force (for bending moment) and applied axial forces were added, the 2-D model under estimated the maximum von Mises stress obtained from the 3-D model by 30%.
CHANGES IN THE SHAPE AND SIZE OF BACTERIUM COLI AND BACILLUS MEGATHERIUM UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF BACTERIOPHAGE—A MOTION PHOTOMICROGRAPHIC ANALYSIS OF THE MECHANISM OF LYSIS

This paper contains the records of a motion photomicrographic investigation of the lysis of Bact. coli and B. megatherium by bacteriophage. The bacteria mixed with bacteriophage were grown on moist nutrient agar in small culture chambers on the stage of a microscope in an incubator maintained at 37°C. The apparatus used permitted continuous inspection of the preparations. Photographs were made at the rates of 2 and 30 per minute and at the rate of 8 per second during the terminal stage of lysis of Bact. coli. The accurately timed films were studied by rapid projection and by the projection of single frames. Measurements of dimensions of cells, calculations of volumes, information on generations, generation times and duration spans are presented in the tables. Similar information on normal cultures grown and photographed in the same way is furnished for comparison. Groups of serial photographs are reproduced in the plates to illustrate the special features observed. These observations seem to us to warrant the following conclusions: 1. Enlargement or swelling of the cells of Bact. coli usually, but not always, precedes lysis. Some of the enlargement is an expression of increase of cell substance and is not altogether due to imbibition of water. Cells of early generations of Bact. coli enlarge to greater absolute and relative proportions than cells of later generations. Enlargement does not occur before lysis in B. megatherium. 2. The terminal stage of lysis of Bact. coli is explosive, occupying ½ to ⅞ second. The terminal stage of lysis of B. megatherium is a slow disintegrative process, extending over 2–10 minutes. 3. Bacteriophage inhibits fission of some cells, but does not stop the reproduction of other cells in contact with it. The genealogical records of six generations of cells of Bact. coli and of two generations of cells of B. megatherium indicate that bacteriophage may be transmitted through parents to the offspring which ultimately undergo lysis. 4. Bacteriophage spreads by contact through a group of cells and also along paths determined by genetical relationships. 5. A large amount of cellular debris remains after the lysis of the cells in both of these species of bacteria. This residue of material is in the form of irregularly shaped masses and granules. This material is not in solution at the time of lysis and appears not to be digested or hydrolized. 6. Theories of the mechanism of lysis are discussed. It is suggested that reduction of surface tension of the cells may be an important factor in the mechanism of lysis.
Renal cortical basolateral Na+/HCO3- cotransporter. III. Evidence for a regulatory protein in the inhibitory effect of protein kinase A.

The activity of the Na-H antiporter is inhibited by cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase A (cAMP.PKA). The inhibitory effect of PKA on the Na-H antiporter is mediated through a regulatory protein that can be dissociated from the antiporter by limited protein digestion. PKA also inhibits the activity of the Na+/ HCO 3 − cotransporter. We investigated whether the activity of Na+/HCO 3 − cotransporter and the effect of PKA on this transporter may also be regulated by limited protein digestion. In rabbit renal cortical basolateral membranes (BLM) and in solubilized BLM reconstituted in liposomes (proteoliposomes), trypsin (100 μg) increased 22Na uptake in the presence of HCO3 but not in the presence of gluconate, indicating that trypsin does not alter diffusive 22Na uptake but directly stimulates the Na+/HCO 3 − cotransporter activity. In proteoliposomes phosphorylated with ATP, the catalytic subunit (CSU) of cAMP-PKA decreased the activity of the Na+/HCO 3 − cotransporter (expressed as nanomoles/mg protein/3s) from 23 ± 10 to 14 ± 6 (P < 0.01). In the presence of trypsin, the inhibitory effect of CSU of cAMP-PKA on the activity of Na+/HCO 3 − cotransporter was blunted. To identify a fraction that was responsible for the inhibitory effect of the CSU on the Na+/HCO 3 − cotransporter activity, solubilized proteins were separated by size exclusion chromatography. The effect of CSU of cAMP-PKA on the Na+/HCO 3 − cotransporter activity was assayed in proteoliposomes digested with trypsin with the addition of a fraction containing the 42 kDa protein (fraction S+) or without the 42 kDa protein (fraction S−). With the addition of fraction S−, the CSU of cAMP-PKA failed to inhibit the Na+/HCO 3 − cotransporter activity (control 27 ± 6, CSU 27 ± 3) while the addition of fraction S+ restored the inhibitory effect of CSU (27 ± 6 to 3 ± 0.3 P < 0.01). The CSU of cAMP-PKA phosphorylated several proteins in solubilized protein including a 42 kDa protein. Fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) labels components of the Na+/HCO 3 − cotransporter including the 56 kDa and 42 kDa proteins. In trypsin-treated solubilized protein the 42 kDa protein was not identified with FITC labeling. The results demonstrate that the activity of the Na+/HCO 3 − cotransporter is regulated by protein(s) which mediates the inhibitory effect of PKA. Limited protein digestion can dissociate this protein from the cotransporter.
Mode confinement and gain in junction lasers

For a three layer dielectric sandwich, the center dielectric region must have a dielectric constant higher than the outer regions and some finite thickness for a wave to be "bound" to the center region. We have calculated the transverse propagation constants for even TE modes when the dielectric sandwich is unsymmetrical. The resultant field distributions are used to derive a formula for the gain of a junction laser of the form \alpha = \frac{\alpha_{1} + P\alpha_{3}/nR + f\alpha_{2}}{g} , where the α n 's are the attenuation (or gain) constants associated with the various regions of the junction structure. Curves of P/nR , f , and g as a function of active region thickness are given from which the condition for laser oscillation or the net gain or loss per unit length of a given device may be found.
Highly Regioselective Nitration of Hexamethylbenzene and Its Derivatives to Dinitroprehnitene with Excess Nitronium Tetrafluoroborate

Hexamethylbenzene and its derivatives undergo very clean regioselective dinitration to dinitroprehnitene (1, 2, 3, 4-tetramethyl-5, 6-dinitrobenzene) with excess of nitronium tetrafluoroborate in dry CH2C12 solution. The mechanism of this unexpected new nitration is also discussed.
Luminescence, emission spectra and hydrogen content of crystalline Lu2SiO5 :Ce3+

Abstract Thermally stimulated luminescence and emission spectra of cerium-doped Lu2SiO5 have been measured in the temperature interval 10K  T  310K. Eight glow peaks occur with the most intense peak exhibiting a maximum at 306 K. Data analyses show that the peaks generally obey first-order kinetics with thermal activation energies ranging from 0.085 to 0.907 eV. The relatively short lifetime (160 s) of the intense glow peak at 306 K implies that it does not make a significant contribution to the long-lived room-temperature afterglow routinely observed in this phosphor. Spectral emission of the glow peaks is dominated by Ce3+ de-excitation, although additional emission due to trace amounts of Sm3+ is observed for T < 72 K. Elastic recoil detection measurements in nominally undoped and cerium-doped Lu2SiO5 show that the doped specimen contains 3.5–4.0 times more hydrogen within the first 300 nm of the surface than does the undoped sample. However, spectral emission associated with surface hydrogen defects...
Bias-corrected estimators for monotone and concave frontier functions

Abstract For the estimation of a monotone and concave support-boundary the data envelopment analysis (DEA) estimator is popular. Recently, under the assumption that the density at boundary is bounded away from zero, Gijbels et al. (J. Amer. Statist. Assoc. 94 (445) 220) derives the limit distribution of the DEA estimator and gives a bias-corrected estimator. In this paper, we generalize the results in Gijbels et al. (1999) by allowing the density at boundary to be infinite, bounded away from zero or zero.
Organizational Issues in the Implementation of High Involvement Ergonomics

High involvement ergonomics (HIE) has been proposed as a new approach to the use of participation in organizational systems. Recent publications have argued that work organizations need to move toward a more involved or ‘commitment’ approach to the design and management of the organization. Six major organizational considerations or issues in the implementation of high involvement ergonomics are presented which must be addressed by top management if participation and involvement practices are to succeed. Solutions and recommendations for each of these issues are discussed.
Study of the variation in electromigration performance from lot to lot variations and the implications for design rule generation

A principle effort during the development of any new semiconductor process is that of insuring the inherent reliability of material made with that process. However, despite its importance it continues to be a largely un-standardized process with great variations across the industry. Designing a qualification process comes with the challenge of optimizing the balance between a realistic prediction of product lifetime and its expected variations, and being reasonable in terms of time and money spent Additional challenges that arise as the technology advances include the need to extrapolate the results from a minimal population of failures under accelerated testing to the reliability for a device with perhaps millions of failure elements. This procedure must consider process variability from wafer-to-wafer and lot-to-lot, and the need for increased reliability with less reliable technologies and inherently less reliable materials. In this study we investigated the efficacy of common qualification practices used in the industry for electromigration reliability assessments by observing the reliability of 29 lots to projections made from arbitrary subsets of 3 to 6 lots as is commonly practiced in industry and considered the impact of uncertainty as a result of lot-to-lot variation on those projections. Since design rules are generally generated from this sort of analysis, we calculated the allowable current density to achieve at most 0.1% failure at 10 years for a chip containing 1,000 failure elements, defined as a conductor carrying the maximum current density at 100% duty cycle. Here we assumed n=l kinetics and an activation energy of 0.9 e V.
A Microscale Approach for the Seismic Response of MDOF Structures Including Soil-Foundation-Structure Interaction

In this article, a three-dimensional microscale computational framework utilizing the discrete element method is presented to analyze the seismic response of soil-foundation- MDOF structure systems. The proposed approach is used to explore the response of MDOF structures on a square embedded footing founded on a dry granular deposit. Computational simulations were conducted to investigate the response of the system to several base excitations. The impact of replacing a MDOF structure with its equivalent single degree of freedom (ESDOF) structure while accounting for soil-foundation-structure interaction (SFSI) is investigated. Detrimental or beneficial effect of SFSI on the response is also examined.
The influence of exposure time on color discrimination

An experiment was performed to determine the influence of exposure duration on color discrimination. The current study substantiated earlier research results and established that changes in fixation are responsible for discrimination scores improving at longer exposures.
A review of the Ompok hypophthalmus group of silurid catfishes with the description of a new species from South‐East Asia

The identities of the nominal species in the Ompok hypophthalmus group of silurid catfishes, namely Ompok hypophthalmus, O. macronema and O. urbaini are verified in this study. Ompok macronema is hypothesized to be a junior synonym of O. hypophthalmus, and O. urbaini (previously considered a junior synonym of O. hypophthalmus) is hypothesized to be valid, distinct species. Ompok hypophthalmus is restricted to Java and the Barito River drainage in southern Borneo, and the material previously identified as O. hypophthalmus from Sumatra, the Malay Peninsula and Borneo represents O. rhadinurus, a new species.
A Power-of-Two Ordering Policy for One-Warehouse Multiretailer Systems with Stochastic Demand

We study a two-echelon supply chain with one warehouse and N (nonidentical) retailers facing stochastic demand. An easy-to-implement inventory policy, the so-called power-of-two (POT) policy, is proposed to manage inventory for the system. To maintain a certain service level, safety stocks are kept at the warehouse and each retailer outlet to buffer random demand. Our analysis highlights the important role of the warehouse safety stock level, which, in addition to the length of the warehouse order interval, significantly affects the lengths of the retailers' order intervals. By combining the length of the warehouse order interval with the warehouse safety stock level, we introduce a plane partition method and develop a polynomial time algorithm to find a POT policy for arbitrary target service levels. The long-run average cost of the proposed POT policy is guaranteed to be no more than 1.26 times the optimal POT policy cost. We also show that our proposed policy can be computed in O(N3).
Exact Moments of the Order Statistics of the Geometric Distribution and Their Relation to Inverse Sampling and Reliability of Redundant Systems

Abstract Formulae for the first two moments of the order statistics from a geometric distribution are presented in closed form. Brief illustrative tables of the first two moments of the order statistics from a geometric distribution are included and two related dice games are discussed. The distribution of the range of a set of independent observations from a geometric distribution is presented in closed form. A system of redundant components which performs a given task repetitively at discrete times and its statistical equivalent, an inverse sampling scheme, are studied. The distribution of the number of stages until the scheme terminates or the system fails is shown to be identical to the distribution of a specific order statistic from a geometric distribution. A Markov chain formulation is presented which facilitates certain system reliability and cost analyses.
Detector evaluation of a prototype amorphous selenium-based full field digital mammography system

This study evaluated the physical performance of a selenium-based direct full-field digital mammography prototype detector (Siemens Mammomat NovationDR), including the pixel value vs. exposure linearity, the modulation transfer function (MTF), the normalized noise power spectrum (NNPS), and the detective quantum efficiency (DQE). The current detector is the same model which received an approvable letter from FDA for release to the US market. The results of the current prototype are compared to those of an earlier prototype. Two IEC standard beam qualities (RQA-M2: Mo/Mo, 28 kVp, 2 mm Al; RQA-M4: Mo/Mo, 35 kVp, 2 mm Al) and two additional beam qualities (MW2: W/Rh, 28 kVp, 2 mm Al; MW4: W/Rh, 35 kVp, 2 mm Al) were investigated. To calculate the modulation transfer function (MTF), a 0.1 mm Pt-Ir edge was imaged at each beam quality. Detector pixel values responded linearly against exposure values (R2 0.999). As before, above 6 cycles/mm Mo/Mo MTF was slightly higher along the chest-nipple axis compared to the left-right axis. MTF was comparable to the previously reported prototype, with slightly reduced resolution. The DQE peaks ranged from 0.71 for 3.31 μC/kg (12.83 mR) to 0.4 for 0.48 μC/kg (1.86 mR) at 1.75 cycles/mm for Mo/Mo at 28 kVp. The DQE range for W/Rh at 28 kVP was 0.81 at 2.03 μC/kg (7.87 mR) to 0.50 at 0.50 μC/kg (1.94 mR) at 1 cycle/mm. NNPS tended to increase with greater exposures, while all exposures had a significant low-frequency component. Bloom and detector edge artifacts observed previously were no longer present in this prototype. The new detector shows marked noise improvement, with slightly reduced resolution. There remain artifacts due to imperfect gain calibration, but at a reduced magnitude compared to a prototype detector.
Socioeconomic status is independently associated with overall survival in patients with multiple myeloma

Population-based studies suggest that black patients with multiple myeloma (MM) have a higher mortality rate than white patients. However, other studies suggest that this disparity is related to socioeconomic status (SES) rather than race. To provide clarity on this topic, we reviewed 562 patients diagnosed with MM at our institution. Patients with high SES had a median overall survival (OS) of 62.8 months (95% confidence interval [CI] 43.1–82.6 months), compared to 53.7 months (45.2–62.3 months) and 48.6 months (40.4–56.8 months) for middle and low SES, respectively (p = 0.015). After controlling for race, age, year of diagnosis, severity of comorbidities, stem cell transplant utilization and insurance provider, patients with low SES had a 54% increase in mortality rate relative to patients with high SES. To support our findings, we performed a similar analysis of 45,505 patients with MM from the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results-18 (SEER) database. Low SES is independently associated with poore...
Prenatal care use and health insurance status.

Manyobserversexplaintheprevalenceofinadeauateprenatal care in the United States by citing demographic or psychosocial factors. But fewhaveevaluated the baniers faced by women with different health insurance status and socioeconomic backgrounds. In this study of 149 women at six hospitals in Minneapolis, insurance status was significantly related to the source of prenatal care (p<.0001). Private physicians cared for 52 percent of privately insured, 23 percent of Medicaid-insured, and two percent of unin- sured women. Public clinics were the primary source of care for Medicaid and uninsured women, who, compared to privately insured women, experienced longer waiting times (p<.001) during prenatal visits and were more likely (p<.01) to lack continuity of care with a provider. Multiple measures, including expanding Medicaid eligibility, may help correct these problems.
A Dirty-Paper Coding Scheme for the Cognitive Radio Channel

We implement a dirty-paper coded framework for the cognitive radio channel. We assume that the cognitive user has non-causal knowledge about the primary user's transmissions. Thus the secondary receiver can employ dirty-paper coding to counter the effect of any interference from the primary user. In addition, we consider a situation where the introduction of the cognitive user should not affect the performance of the primary system -- nor should the primary system have to change its encoding/decoding process. For the primary user we use a low-density parity-check code and a 4-ary pulse amplitude modulation format. For the cognitive user, we propose a dirty-paper coding scheme which employs trellis-coded quantization as the source code and an irregular repeat-accumulate code as the channel code. At a transmission rate of 1.0 bits/sample, the designed dirty-paper coding scheme operates within 1.23 dB of the theoretical limit.
Liquid-crystal-television-based optical-digital processor for measurement of shortening velocity in single rat heart cells

Cardiac cells exhibit rhythmic contractions when electrically paced and maintain striation patterns throughout the contraction-relaxation cycle similar to one-dimensional diffraction grating that changes in spatial frequency. The current study demonstrates the application of an on-line hybrid optical-digital processor with liquid crystal television (LCTV) acting as a spatial light modulator(SLM) to monitor the dynamics of contraction of single cardiac cells in real-time . The processor which is interfaced with a phase contrast microscope performs the Fourier transformation of the cell''s striated image optically and records the Fourier spectra digitally using a charge coupled device (CCD) camera. A series of digitized images of the Fourier spectra each of duration of 16 . 67 msec (non-interlaced frames) is captured during one contraction cycle (''4000 msec). The sarcomere length at each time point and contraction velocities are calculated. The overall system is initially calibrated using a high-resolution Ealing target. Experimental results demonstrate the improvement of contrast by about 300 using the LCTV and the optical-digital processor can faithfully track sarcomere mechanics. 1 .© (1991) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
The descriptive epidemiology of atypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumors in the United States, 2001-2010.

Results. The average annual age-adjusted incidence rate was 0.07 (95% CI: 0.07, 0.08). Incidence rates did not significantly vary by sex, race, or ethnicity. Age had a strong effect on incidence rate, with highest incidence among children ,1 year, and decreasing incidence with increasing age. The 6-month, 1-year, and 5-year relative survival rates for all ages were 65.0%, 46.8%, and 28.3%, respectively. Atypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumor can occur anywhere in the CNS, but supratentorial tumors were more common with increasing age. Conclusion. We confirm differences in survival by age at diagnosis, treatment pattern, and location of tumor in the brain. This contributes to our understanding of these tumors and may stimulate research leading to improved treatment of this devastating childhood disease.
Analysis and Mapping of Gene Families Encoding β-1,3-Glucanases of Soybean

Oligonucleotide primers designed for conserved sequences from coding regions of β-1,3-glucanase genes from different species were used to amplify related sequences from soybean [ Glycine max (L.) Merr.]. Sequencing and cross-hybridization of amplification products indicated that at least 12 classes of β-1,3-glucanase genes exist in the soybean. Members of classes mapped to 34 loci on five different linkage groups using an F 2 population of 56 individuals. β-1,3-Glucanase genes are clustered onto regions of five linkage groups. Data suggest that more closely related genes are clustered together on one linkage group or on duplicated regions of linkage groups. Northern blot analyses performed on total RNA from root, stem, leaf, pod, flower bud, and hypocotyl using DNA probes for the different classes of β-1,3-glucanase genes revealed that the mRNA levels of all classes were low in young leaves. SGlu2, SGlu4, SGlu7 , and SGlu12 mRNA were highly accumulated in young roots and hypocotyls. SGlu7 mRNA also accumulated in pods and flower buds.
Some Analysis of the LPI Concept for Active Sonar

A low probability of intercept (LPI) waveform is designed to appear to the target it probes as noise, and consequently the robust target receiver can detect only a rise in random energy. It can be recalled by the transmitter (platform), and matched to what is received; however, the platform pays a heavy two-way attenuation penalty: its signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) is far lower than that at the target. How these two factors trade off against one another is the topic of this paper. It will be shown that the sonar's time-bandwidth product is generally unfavorable to LPI. For most cases of interest in a Gaussian noise environment, LPI sonar does not favor covert observation for sonar signals shorter than 1 min at ranges greater than 100 yards. However, LPI sonar may have a key role in non-Gaussian heavy-tailed noise environments. Specifically, LPI may play a role in environments where the ambient noise has a kurtosis of around 10.
Human Rights: The Role of Psychological Sense of Global Community

Despite progress in addressing human rights, abuses and violations persist around the world. This research attempts to gain a better understanding of the psychological determinants that lead people to be concerned about and take action to promote human rights issues. In particular, it tests a model in which self-transcendence values predict attitudes and behaviors supportive of human rights, largely mediated by people’s feeling that they are part of a broad and global community consisting of all humanity (PSGC). In Study 1a, 339 adult participants completed measures of values, PSGC, and attitudes toward human rights. In Study 1b, an ethnically diverse sample (N 427) completed similar measures, but with items assessing engagement in behaviors supportive of human rights in a number of domains and with diverse populations instead of items assessing human rights attitudes. Structural equation modeling showed that self-transcendence values were related to the human rights measures, and that the relationships between self-transcendence values and concern for human rights and human rights behaviors were mediated by PSGC. In Study 2, 308 participants completed measures of values, PSGC, and both human rights concern and behaviors. Results were consistent with those of Study 1a and 1b. Taken together, these studies reveal a consistent pattern in which feeling part of a global community plays a critical role in connecting people’s values to human rights concern and behaviors.
When herbivores come back: effects of repeated damage on induced resistance

Summary 1. Plants are known to respond to damage with subsequent changes in resistance. The consequences of these changes for plant fitness and herbivore populations will depend on both the response of a plant to a particular attack at a given moment and on how plants respond through time to varying levels of damage and varying numbers of attacks. While a small number of studies document how induced resistance changes with time after attack (time course of induction) and different levels of damage, few studies have examined the cumulative level of resistance after multiple attacks, and little is known about how the plant’s response to damage changes with subsequent attacks. 2. Two experiments were conducted to address the consequences of repeated damage for resistance of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum, var Castlemart) to a common pest, the beet armyworm (Spodoptera exigua). The first experiment documented the time course of resistance following a single damage event using both growth and choice bioassays. The second experiment examined whether the plant responded differently to one versus two damage events. 3. Results show that plants were significantly induced by day 1 and remained induced until 15 or 20 days later, suggesting that repeated damage during the response to initial damage is possible. Plants receiving a second bout of damage were able to further increase their resistance level over the level reached in response to a first bout of damage, but the magnitude of response to the second damage event was initially smaller and slower than the response to a single damage event. 4. There was no evidence in this study for immune-like memory in induced resistance. Results of this study suggest that plants can respond to repeated damage, but that there is some limit on responses to repeated damage. Such limits on total plant resistance will affect the influence of induced resistance on herbivore populations and are consistent with assumptions of existing models of induced resistance and herbivore population dynamics, although models have not yet considered the consequences of slower rather than smaller responses to repeated damage.
Measurements of acoustic scattering from zooplankton and oceanic microstructure using a broadband echosounder

© 2009 The Authors. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License. The definitive version was published in ICES Journal of Marine Science: Journal du Conseil 67 (2010): 379-394, doi:10.1093/icesjms/fsp242.
An Automated Material Testing System for Evaluating the Effects of Thermal Mechanical Fatigue on Material Properties

Thermal Mechanical Fatigue (TMF) testing studies the effects on a material when it is subjected to both temperature and mechanical cycles. Materials for turbine engines and rocket motors are subjected to these types of conditions in regular service. With this test system, thermal and mechanical cycling may be performed using sine and/or arbitrary waveforms. A thermal strain calibration function provides strain data whereby, the total strain data from the test may be separated into its mechanical and thermal components. Data acquisition and shutdown procedures take into consideration the long test times. Logarithmic data retention stores stress, strain, and temperature values to characterize individual cycles and the overall history. The system performs a shutdown procedure to preserve the specimen in the event of an interruption, and permits resumption of the test. Specimen failure detection allows unattended operation of the TMF test.
The effects of manual interference and reading level on deaf subjects' recall of word lists

This study examined the effect of a manual interference task on deaf and hearing college students' written free recall under both immediate- and delayed-recall conditions. The stimuli consisted of printed English words that varied on signability (i.e., words that could be expressed by a single sign) and visual imagery. The manual interference task had a small adverse effect on the deaf students' recall, but this effect did not appear to be related to the use of a kinesthetic sign-based coding strategy. It was also found than the deaf subjects' reading levels were very strongly related to their level of word recall; the better deaf readers recalled more than 50% more words than the poorer readers. Ratings of the deaf subjects' speech intelligibility, however, were not related to their level of word recall.
A branch-current-based state estimation method for distribution systems

A branch-current-based three-phase state estimation (SE) method is proposed for distribution systems. The method is tailored for distribution feeders with a few loops. The method is computationally more efficient than the conventional node voltage-based SE methods. To further improve the computational efficiency, it is shown that distribution systems can be reduced without much loss of accuracy in SE. >
Isolation and Identification of Progesterone and 20α-Hydroxypregn-4-en-3-one in Ovarian Venous Blood of Rabbits

Pregn-4-ene-3,20-dione (progesterone) and 20a-hydroxy-pregn-4-en-3-one (Δ4-3-ketopregnen-20α-ol) were identified in the ovarian venous blood of mature New Zealand white rabbits. Pregn-4-ene-3,20-dione was identified by chromatographic mobilities in 4 different paper chromatographic systems, by refractiveness to acetylation, by UVabsorption spectra in methanol and in concentrated sulfuric acid, and finally by an infrared absorption spectrum. The criteria of the identity of 20α-hydroxy-pregn-4-en-3-one were the following: RT values in 4 different systems, the oxidation product, the acetate, the Zimmermann reaction and the KI-I2 reaction on paper, the UV spectrum in methanol, the UV and visible spectrum in concentrated sulfuric acid and the infrared spectrum in chloroform.
The effect of acute tryptophan depletion on emotional distraction and subsequent memory

Serotonin is a key neurotransmitter involved in emotional regulation and memory. A number of studies using acute tryptophan depletion (ATD) in healthy subjects have shown that a temporary serotonin reduction both induces a negative emotional bias and impairs long-term memory. However, little is known about the specific effects of ATD on emotional memory. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we investigated the effect of ATD on negative memory and executive function in healthy volunteers. Our emotional oddball task required participants to distinguish infrequently presented targets from distracting negative and neutral pictures. Memory for the distracting pictures was tested 1 h following the fMRI session. ATD selectively enhanced memory for negative distractors relative to neutral distractors and increased activation in response to the negative distractors in the left orbital-inferior frontal, dorsomedial prefrontal and bilateral angular gyri. ATD also induced greater activation in the left inferior frontal gyrus and anterior cingulate across all stimuli. Stronger frontal activation to distractors was positively correlated with memory performance on ATD but not control days, indicating a possible compensatory mechanism for coping with increased task demand under the ATD challenge. These findings highlight the importance of serotonin in negative memory with implications for mood disorders.