cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Supporting Engineering of Information Systems in Emergent Organizations

Research related to information systems development has roughly followed two diverse paths. The first, pursued by the software engineering community, is aimed at creating techniques for the efficient engineering of IT artifacts. The second, pursued by communities such as IFIP 8.2, attempts to understand and anticipate the impact of IT on organizations or upon one another by incorporating social science theories. The two views are in conflict because the former treats information systems merely as reflections of requirements, whereas the latter views them as agents of change. As a result, the two streams have suffered from increasing emphasis on minutiae and are, at worst, in danger of losing their relevance. Recent research in emergent systems development and developers’ engagement in problem and design spaces suggest a possible approach to integrating the two streams. In particular, we argue that novel R-forms (representation techniques) can proactively facilitate the engineering of information systems in emergent organizations. Using insights from research in both streams, we develop a set of requirements that can guide the development of new R-forms that may take into account both the engineering of the IT artifact as well as the emergent nature of organizational context in which the IT artifact will be deployed.
Pathophysiology of sensorineural hearing loss in jugular foramen paraganglioma

Objectives/hypothesis Pathologic involvement of the inferior cochlear vein is a mechanism of sensorineural hearing loss in patients with jugular foramen paraganglioma. Study design Retrospective case-control study. Methods The presenting audiograms, magnetic resonance imaging, and computed tomography were reviewed in 46 subjects with jugular foramen paragangliomas. Four-frequency bone conduction average was compared between the tumor and nontumor ears in each subject to establish the presence of sensorineural hearing loss. Imaging findings for each subject were recorded. Univariate and multivariate statistical analyses were performed to determine which radiographic features were associated with sensorineural hearing loss. Hearing data were analyzed as a continuous variable and as a categorical variable. Results Twenty subjects (43.4%) had a bone-conduction pure-tone asymmetry of greater than 15 dB. Inferior cochlear vein involvement was identified in 19 of the 20 (95%) subjects with sensorineural hearing loss. Inferior cochlear vein involvement was found to be a statistically significant predictor of sensorineural hearing loss using univariate and multivariate analyses. Other imaging findings that were statistically significant predictors of sensorineural hearing loss include Glasscock-Jackson stage, Fisch-Mattox stage, hypoglossal canal involvement, jugulo-carotid spin erosion, and petrous carotid canal erosion. Conclusions Involvement of the inferior cochlear vein appears to be a plausible mechanism for sensorineural hearing loss in patients with jugular foramen paraganglioma. Level of evidence 4 Laryngoscope, 129:67-75, 2019.
An Analysis of Fresh-Vegetable Consumption in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metropolitan Area

This study estimates expenditure and price elasticities using home-scan fresh-vegetable consumption data from the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area, the largest market in Northeast Texas. As vegetable consumption and production increases, it is critical for vegetable growers to keep up with production and consumption trends and recent substitution patterns. The study analyzed how various fresh vegetables perform at the retail level and found that consumers are not only responsive to changes in own-prices but also responsive to prices of other vegetables, and that own-price elasticity estimates seem to be more inelastic when fresh vegetables are sold by ounce than by count. The study may assist local producers identifying highly marketable fresh produce in the DFW metropolitan area and provide insight in assessing market profitability.
Obese women's perceptions of weight gain during pregnancy: a theory-based analysis.

Objective Excess gestational weight gain (GWG) in obese women is linked to adverse maternal outcomes and is particularly pervasive among African Americans, who have the highest obesity rates in the USA. A better understanding of culturally relevant attitudes and perceptions of GWG is needed to develop targeted interventions to prevent excess GWG among this group. Design Using the constructs of Social Cognitive Theory, we explored attitudes and perceptions surrounding diet and exercise among low-income obese African-American pregnant women in Baltimore. We conducted twenty-one semi-structured in-depth interviews with pregnant adult women. Setting Participants were recruited from a referral clinic for obese pregnant women at a large urban hospital in Baltimore, MD, USA. Participants Twenty-one low-income African-American adult females in the first two trimesters of pregnancy with BMI g 30·0 kg/m2. Results Lack of knowledge was not the main obstacle to healthy behaviours during pregnancy. Rather, food cravings and fatigue, an unhealthy physical food environment, limited self-efficacy for controlling excessive GWG, and a lack of adequate emotional and informational support impacted women's agency. While digital technology was discussed as a vehicle to promote maintenance of a healthy weight in pregnancy, further research is needed to test how it can be used to empower women to engage in healthy behaviours during pregnancy. Conclusion Interventions to prevent excess GWG among African-American pregnant women should harness support from partners and family and must go beyond sharing of clinical knowledge to also include strategies that improve the food environment, diet quality and self-efficacy.
Suboptimal Use of Inpatient Palliative Care Consultation May Lead to Higher Readmissions and Costs in End-Stage Liver Disease.

Background/Aims: Patients with end-stage liver disease (ESLD) have a high risk for readmission. We studied the role of palliative care consultation (PCC) in ESLD-related readmissions with a focus o...
Sibling separation and self-reported offending: An examination of the association between sibling placement and offending behavior

Abstract This study uses data from the National Study of Child and Adolescent Well-Being II (NSCAW II) to examine the relationship between separation from siblings in out-of-home care and subsequent offending behavior in adolescence. While past research has examined the impact of being separated from siblings in foster care on problem behavior among youth, including internalizing and externalizing problems, no studies have addressed the association between sibling separation and delinquent/criminal behavior. Among the analysis sample (N = 380), participants who were separated from some but not all siblings at the first wave of data collection (mean age = 11.75) reported significantly more offending behavior than youth who were not separated from siblings, while youth who were separated from all siblings did not differ in offending behavior from youth who were placed with all siblings. Results of the current study provide support for the potential detrimental effect of sibling separation on youth functioning. Policy makers interested in reducing dual involvement of youth in the foster care system and the juvenile justice system should continue to emphasize the importance of preserving sibling relationships in out-of-home care. Future research should continue examining the relationship between sibling placement and later problem behaviors, as well as the mechanisms underlying these relationships.
A toolbox for the numerical study of linear dynamic rational expectations models

espanolSe presenta una guia para resolver y estudiar modelos de expectativas racionales dinamicas lineales (LDRE). Luego de codificar el modelo, se aplica una function simple para log-linealizarlo; simular los efectos de series exogenas de shocks; calcular condiciones de momentos muestrales y poblacionales; y obtener funciones de impulso-respuesta. Se resuelven y estudian detalladamente tres modelos clasicos en la literatura de Real-Business-Cycles, Brock and Mirman ("LDRE Toolbox" of Matlab functionsOptimal Growth and Uncertainty: the Discounted Case, Journal of Economic Theory 4(3): 479-513; 1972); King, Plosser, and Rebelo (Production, Growth and Business Cycles I: The Basic Neoclassical Model, Journal of Monetary Economics 21: 195-232; 1988); y Mendoza (Real Business Cycles in a Small Open Economy, American Economic Review 81(4): 797-818; 1991). EnglishBy simplifying the computational tasks and by providing step-by-step explanations of the procedures required to study a linear dynamic rational expectations (LDRE) model, this paper and the accompanying "LDRE Toolbox" of Matlab functions guide a researcher with almost no experience in computational work to resolve and study his own model. After coding the model following specific guidelines, a single function call is all that is needed to log-linearize the model; simulate it under exogenous sequences of shocks; compute sample and population moment conditional models in the Real-Business-Cycles literature are solved and studied throughout to give detailed examples of the steps involved in solving and studying LDRE models using the LDRE Toolbox. Namely, the economies in Brock and Mirman (Optimal Growth and Uncertainty: the Discounted Case, Journal of Economic Theory 4(3): 479-513; 1972); King, Plosser, and Rebelo (Production, Growth and Business Cycles I: The Basic Neoclassical Model, Journal of Monetary Economics 21: 195-232; 1988); and Mendoza (Real Business Cycles in a Small Open Economy, American Economic Review 81(4): 797-818; 1991).
Lassa virus antigen distribution and inflammation in the ear of infected strain 13/N Guinea pigs.

Abstract Sudden-onset sensorineuronal hearing loss (SNHL) is reported in approximately one-third of survivors of Lassa fever (LF) and remains the most prominent cause of Lassa virus (LASV)-associated morbidity in convalescence. Using a guinea pig model of LF, and incorporating animals from LASV vaccine trials, we investigated viral antigen distribution and histopathology in the ear of infected animals to elucidate the pathogenesis of hearing loss associated with LASV infection. Antigen was detected only in animals that succumbed to disease and was found within structures of the inner ear that are intimately associated with neural detection and/or translation of auditory stimuli and in adjacent vasculature. No inflammation or viral cytopathic changes were observed in the inner ear or surrounding structures in these animals. In contrast, no viral antigen was detected in the ear of surviving animals. However, all survivors that exhibited clinical signs of disease during the course of infection developed perivascular mononuclear inflammation within and adjacent to the ear, indicating an ongoing inflammatory response in these animals that may contribute to hearing loss. These data contribute to the knowledge of LASV pathogenesis in the auditory system, support an immune-mediated process resulting in LASV-associated hearing loss, and demonstrate that vaccination protecting animals from clinical disease can also prevent infection-associated auditory pathology.
Epigenetic Signatures of Human Myocardium and Brown Adipose Tissue Revealed with Simultaneous Positron Emission Tomography and Magnetic Resonance of Class I Histone Deacetylases

Abstract Rationale Histone deacetylases (HDACs) play a central role in cardiac hypertrophy and fibrosis in preclinical models. However, their impact in the human heart remains unknown. Objective We aimed to image HDAC expression in the human heart in vivo with PET-MR (positron emission tomography and magnetic resonance) using [11C]Martinostat, a novel radiotracer targeted to class I HDACs. We further aimed to compare HDAC expression in the heart with its expression in skeletal muscle and brown/white adipose tissue (BAT/WAT). Methods and Results The specificity and selectivity of [11C]Martinostat binding in the heart was assessed in non-human primates (n=2) by in vivo blocking studies and with an ex vivo cellular thermal shift assay (CETSA) of HDAC paralog stabilization by Martinostat. PET-MR imaging of [11C]Martinostat was performed in healthy volunteers (n=6) for 60 minutes to obtain time-activity curves of probe uptake and kinetics. qPCR of class I HDACs was performed in specimens of BAT obtained from patients (n=7) undergoing abdominal surgery and in specimens of human subcutaneous WAT (n=7). CETSA and the blocking studies demonstrated that Martinostat was specific for class I HDACs in the heart. HDAC density, measured by standardized uptake values of [11C]Martinostat, was 8 times higher in the myocardium than skeletal muscle (4.4 ± 0.6 vs. 0.54 ± 0.29, p Conclusions Class I HDAC expression in the human heart can be imaged in vivo and is dramatically higher than any other peripheral tissue, including skeletal muscle. The high levels of HDAC in the myocardium and BAT suggest that epigenetic regulation plays an important role in tissues with high energetic demands and metabolic plasticity.
Justifications for Copyright Limitations and Exceptions

S | 121 Justifications for Copyright Limitations & Exceptions Pamela Samuelson Professor of Law, Berkeley Center for Law & Technology Berkeley, CA Modern copyright laws grant authors a broad set of rights to control exploitations of their works. Typically tempering the reach of these broad rights are a series of limitations and exceptions (L&Es) adopted by legislatures or sometimes by courts through common law adjudication. L&E provisions in national copyright laws often seem a hodgepodge of special purpose provisions whose policy justifications are sometimes difficult to discern. This essay discusses several policy justifications for L&Es and considers the relative utilities of specific and open-ended L&Es. Its principal focus will be on U.S. law, although it will feature examples of L&Es embodied in other national copyright laws and authorized by international treaties. Part II traces the historical development of L&Es in U.S. copyright law. For the first hundred years of the nation's existence, there were no L&Es in U.S. copyright law, in part because rights were fewer in number and narrower in scope than they became over time. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, courts invented the exhaustion of rights and fair use doctrines as limits on copyright's scope. These doctrines were codified in the Copyright Act of 1976 ("1976 Act"), although they have continued to evolve in the nearly four decades after their enactment. Less visible, although quite important, are the dozens of other L&Es codified in the 1976 Act. Part III offers eight principled justifications for the existence of these L&Es. One set promotes ongoing authorship. A second recognizes both authorial and broader public interests in news dissemination, freedom of expression, and access to information. A third protects privacy, personal autonomy, and ownership interests of consumers. A fourth aims to fulfill certain cultural and social policy goals. A fifth enables public institutions, such as courts and legislatures, to function more effectively. A sixth fosters competition and ongoing innovation. A seventh exempts incidental uses that lack economic significance. An eighth addresses market failure problems. This Part also discusses some politically expedient exceptions. Part III considers justifications for adopting a flexible and open-ended rule such as the U.S. fair use doctrine. Open-ended rules such as fair use enable copyright law to remain flexible and adaptable over time. Especially in an era of rapid technological change, flexible exceptions such as fair use have some advantages over specific L&Es. The chapter concludes that the optimal policy for L&Es may well be to have specific exceptions for categories of justified uses that are relatively stable over time and for which predictability is more important than flexibility and to have an open-ended exception such as fair use to allow the law to adapt to new uses not contemplated by the legislature. Email: psamuelson@law.berkeley.edu
Temporomandibular disorder-related characteristics and treatment outcomes in Oromandibular Dystonia patients in two different clinical settings: A cross-sectional study.

INTRODUCTION Clinical presentation of oromandibular dystonia (OMD) is variable that can be further complicated by the presence of temporomandibular disorder (TMD) symptoms. We sought to evaluate variations in the clinical presentation of OMD patients, particularly TMD-related characteristics, in two clinical settings. METHODS In a cross-sectional study design, a Web-based data collection survey was provided to eligible patients with OMD from movement disorder (MD) and oro-facial pain (OFP) clinics. The survey questionnaire was designed to collect information on demographic characteristics, clinical presentation particularly related to TMD, quality of life and treatment outcomes. Validated questionnaires were used when available such as the TMD Pain Screener, EuroQol 5-Dimensions 5-Levels (EQ-5D-5L), Jaw Functional Limitation Scale and Global Rating of Change Scale. RESULTS Of 53 eligible patients, 31 responded to the survey for a 58% response rate. Forty-eight per cent of patients in the MD clinic and 60% of patients in the OFP clinic reported jaw pain along with involuntary movements. Of those, 90% from the MD group and 83% from the OFP group screened positive with the TMD Pain Screener at the onset of symptoms based on recall. Positive TMD Pain Screener response was observed in about 40% of patients in both clinics within 30 days of questionnaire response. No statistically significant differences were observed between two groups for any measured variables. CONCLUSION Patients with OMD have features of TMD, irrespective of the clinical setting in which they seek and receive care. OMD patients from both clinics were similar in terms of clinical presentation, quality of life and treatment outcomes.
In vivo microscopy of targeted vessel occlusion employing acoustic droplet vaporization.

Objective: Embolotherapy is a potential means to treat a variety of cancers. Our approach—gas embolotherapy—introduces the droplets upstream from the tumor and then acoustically activates them to form bubbles for occlusion—a process known as ADV. We wanted to provide the first optical documentation of ADV, lodged bubbles, or vessel occlusion in vivo. Methods: We used the rat cremaster muscle for in vivo microscopy. Perfluorocarbon droplets were administered into the aortic arch. Ultrasound exposures in the cremaster induced vaporization. The cremaster was examined pre- and post-exposure for ADV-related effects. Two sets of experiments compared the effect of exposure in the capillaries versus the first order arteriole. Results: Bubbles that lodge following capillary exposure are significantly larger (76 lm mean length, 36 lm mean diameter) than those following feeder vessel exposure (25 lm mean length, 11 lm mean diameter). Despite the differing sizes in bubbles, the ratio of bubble length to the hydraulic diameter of all lodged bubbles was 2.11 (±0.65; n = 112), which agrees with theoretical predictions and experimental observations.
Conflict Resolution as Evolution

Life began only once some three billion years ago as a replicating molecule. There were two basic challenges - repair and adaptation. The strategy of replication successfully addressed both challenges; however, it also created competition. Without some mechanism for cooperation molecules could not successfully replicate over time and would die out.The emergence of a successful strategic mechanism that managed conflict and competition either produced or allowed an evolutionary transition to a more complex form. Thus, the major evolutionary transitions - from individual genes to gene networks to bacteria-like cells to eukaryotic cells with organelles to multicellular organisms to societies - share three common themes: (1) cooperation among lower-level units making the higher-level unit functional, (2) the management of conflict among lower-level units, and (3) encapsulation that excludes others. So, conflict and the need for conflict resolution mechanisms are present at the beginning of life and explain major transitions in evolution that lead to increasing complexity in nature. In addition, the creation of "boundaries" sets the stage for continued conflict (in-group v. out-group), the resolution of which requires another evolutionary transition.The CR mechanisms responsible for these transitions are, respectively, the hypercycle, localization of genes, chromosomes, meiosis, uniparental inheritance of cytoplasm, kin selection, reciprocation, and group selection. In this context, the human social behaviors associated with conflict and its resolution, such as those in our “reconciliatory cycle schema,” are essential for the reciprocal mechanism inducing cooperation and altruistic behavior among non-related individuals within the same group. The efficacy of this mechanism, when relying solely on individual behavior, is limited to small groups in a regularly-connected, degree-homogeneous network. Larger groups with differently structured networks become possible through the emergence of culture (replicating ideas or “memes”) and social institutions that extend the functionality of reciprocation, of which legal institutions are a current example and, in our view, are biological phenomena. This biological perspective provides a different lens through which to analyze human conflict resolution behavior and institutions.
Elicitation of Plant Hypersensitive Response by Bacteria.

There appears to be two types of plant cell death associated with pathogen infections: a rapid death localized at the site of infection during an incompatible interaction between a resistant plant and an avirulent pathogen, and a slow normosensitive plant cell death that spreads beyond the site of infection during compatible interactions involving a susceptible plant and a virulent, necrogenic pathogen. Both can lead to a systemic, broad-spectrum resistance response called SAR, which is effective against subsequent infection by the same or different pathogens. This report describes how bacteria elicit hypersensitive cell death. 40 refs., 2 figs.
Addressing challenges when studying mobile or episodic species: hierarchical Bayes estimation of occupancy and use

Summary 1. Understanding the distribution and ecology of episodic or mobile species requires us to address multiple potential biases, including spatial clustering of survey locations, imperfect detectability and partial availability for detection. These challenges have been addressed individually by previous modelling approaches, but there is currently no extension of the occupancy modelling framework that accounts for all three problems while estimating occupancy (ψ), availability for detection (i.e. use; θ) and detectability (P). 2. We describe a hierarchical Bayes multi-scale occupancy model that simultaneously estimates site occupancy, use, and detectability, while accounting for spatial dependence through a state-space approach based on repeated samples at multiple spatial or temporal scales. As an example application, we analyse the spatiotemporal distribution of the Louisiana waterthrush Seiurus motacilla with respect to catchment size and availability of potential prey based on data collected along Appalachian streams of southern West Virginia, USA. In spring 2009, single observers recorded detections of Louisiana waterthrush (henceforth, waterthrush) within 75 m of point-count stations (i.e. sites) during four 5-min surveys per site, with each survey broken into 1-min intervals. 3. Waterthrushes were widely distributed (ψ range: 0·6–1·0) and were regularly using (θ range: 0·4–0·6) count circles along forested mountain streams. While accounting for detection biases and spatial dependence among nearby sampling sites, waterthrushes became more common as catchment area increased, and they became more available for detection as the per cent of the benthic macroinvertebrates that were of the orders Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera or Trichoptera (EPT) increased. These results lend some support to the hypothesis that waterthrushes are influenced by instream conditions as mediated by watershed size and benthic macroinvertebrate community composition. 4. Synthesis and applications. Although several available modelling techniques provide estimates of occupancy at one scale, hierarchical Bayes multi-scale occupancy modelling provides estimates of distribution at two scales simultaneously while accounting for detection biases and spatial dependencies. Hierarchical Bayes multi-scale occupancy models therefore hold significant potential for addressing complex conservation threats that operate at a landscape scale (e.g. climate change) and probably influence species distributions over multiple scales.
In situ irregularity identification and scintillation estimation using wavelets and CINDI on C/NOFS

[1] Wavelets are a time-domain method that is able to extract both time and frequency information from a signal. The Morlet wavelet is used here to characterize the magnitude of ionospheric irregularities using measurements of the total ion density from the Coupled Ion Neutral Dynamics Investigation package onboard the Communications/Navigation Outage Forecasting System spacecraft. The power in ionospheric irregularities at scale sizes less than 128 km is used to generate an irregularity amplitude index. This index is used with a phase screen analysis to form an estimate of scintillation at the satellite location. The temporal information retained in a wavelet analysis also allows for an accurate power spectrum calculation even when used on short segments of data which is useful for real-time processing of irregularity detection onboard a satellite or for analyzing the long data sets produced by a satellite. To validate the process, a comparison of the in situ scintillation estimate and Scintillation Network and Decision Aid measurements of the S4 index is presented.
Effect of Oxygen-Supply Rates on Growth of Escherichia coli: I. Studies in Unbaffled and Baffled Shake Flasks

The effect of oxygen-supply rates on bacterial growth was studied in commercially available unbaffled and baffled flasks with the use of Escherichia coli in a synthetic medium as a test system. The amount of growth obtained depended on the oxygen-supply rate. Based on oxygen-absorption rates (OAR) measured by the rate of sulfite oxidation, equal OAR values in different types of flasks did not give equal amounts of growth. However, growth was essentially equal at the equal sulfite-oxidation rates when these were determined in the presence of killed whole cultures. Specific growth rates were reduced only at oxygen-supply rates much lower than those at which the total amount of growth was reduced. For the physical set-up used in this work and with the biological system employed, Bellco 598 flasks and flasks fitted with Biotech stainless-steel baffles gave satisfactory results at workable broth volumes; unbaffled and Bellco 600 flasks did not.
Producing Authenticity in Global Capitalism: Language, Materiality, and Value

In this article, we bring together two distinct ethnographic cases of capitalist production—food producers in northern Italy and Asian American advertising executives in New York City—to illustrate how these producers use language and materiality to produce value in global capitalism. Taken together, the cases illustrate how contemporary capitalist producers utilize particular notions of ethnolinguistic heritage in ways that reflect group-specific values and enable economic profitability in globalizing economies. We consider the work that producers do to construct authenticity by identifying the links they create among and across linguistic and material elements. Whether the product in question is a locally crafted salami or a car commercial aimed at Chinese Americans, constructing authenticity is a complex process that is not assured of success but that is driven by various possibilities of reward. Noting the ways in which authenticity construction seldom goes unchallenged, we consider producers’ linguistic and material work to create authentic goods against those who question and contest their efforts. In so doing, we examine broader implications of this capitalist production and contribute to literature on global capitalism, commodity creation, brand, and relationships between language and materiality.
Cross-linguistic semantics for questions

L'A. tente de determiner dans quelle mesure il est possible de formuler une theorie universelle capable d'interpreter toutes les questions dans toutes les langues. Cette entreprise suppose la resolution d'un certain nombre de problemes, tels que la reaffectation du role joue par les regles specifiques a la langue et specifiques aux constructions, et par les significations, a des mecanismes semantiques universels, et l'identification des significations affectees au complementeur et aux divers operateurs interrogatifs. En se situant dans une perspective translinguistique et en prenant comme point de depart la theorie semantique translinguistique qu'il a elaboree en 1994, l'A. analyse differents types de questions simples qui conduisent a une revision de la theorie, puis propose une theorie revisee, accompagnee de sa formalisation, qui s'etend aux questions complexes sans conditions supplementaires
El próximo escenario global de Kenichi Ohmae: ¿Mito o realidad?

The issue of globalization is analyzed from three points of view in this article.First, a critical analysis is made of the book The Next Global Stage by KenichiOhmae, who argues that the worldis now globalized and it is an unavoidable reality. Although Ohmae is right onseveral things, he also omits important issues, in particular the negative aspects of globalization. Secondly, the opinions of two other authors are presented, who have written about globalization: one of them is Thomas Friedman, who brings a broader vision of globalization, and the other is Pankaj Ghemawat, who is somewhat skeptical and believes that,at most, the world is semiglobalized.Third, the case of Costa Rica is analyzed,a country that decided to take the path of globalization and trade liberalization 35 years ago, a decision which has led us to experience both their positive and negative aspects.
Sulfur K-edge XAS of WVO vs. MoVO bis(dithiolene) complexes: contributions of relativistic effects to electronic structure and reactivity of tungsten enzymes.

Abstract Molybdenum- or tungsten-containing enzymes catalyze oxygen atom transfer reactions involved in carbon, sulfur, or nitrogen metabolism. It has been observed that reduction potentials and oxygen atom transfer rates are different for W relative to Mo enzymes and the isostructural Mo/W complexes. Sulfur K-edge X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) and density functional theory (DFT) calculations on [MoVO(bdt)2]− and [WVO(bdt)2]−, where bdt = benzene-1,2-dithiolate(2-), have been used to determine that the energies of the half-filled redox-active orbital, and thus the reduction potentials and M O bond strengths, are different for these complexes due to relativistic effects in the W sites.
Positioning polygonal parts without sensors

It has been shown that given any polygonal part, it is possible to derive a sequence of grasping operations that are sufficient to orient the part up to symmetry without sensors. At the conclusion of such a sequence, one degree of translational freedom is part position remains. This paper describes how to eliminate that degree of freedom with a sequence of pushing motions. Thus we show that sensors are not necessary to uniquely determine the final position and orientation of polygonal parts.© (1993) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
The Cardiovascular Link to Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease: A Critical Analysis

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most common chronic liver disease in Western countries and can progress from simple steatosis to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis and finally to liver cirrhosis. NAFLD is considered to be the hepatic manifestation of the metabolic syndrome because both share common features, which implicates a role of NAFLD in the development and progression of cardiovascular disease (CVD). The diagnosis of NAFLD deserves special attention in clinical practice for cardiovascular risk screening and surveillance strategies to allow for early targeted intervention in selected individuals at risk of future cardiovascular events.
Capability of spectroscopic ellipsometry-based profile metrology for detecting the profile excursion of polysilicon gate

A small notch or foot existing at the bottom of a polysilicon gate is a common issue for etching processes. The small notch or foot could have a major impact on the length of the polysilicon gate, and the performance of the device would then be impacted significantly, especially for cutting-edge devices. This paper demonstrates the capability of a spectroscopic ellipsometry based profile technology, SpectraCD, as a new metrology tool to monitor polysilicon gate process at 130 nm and 90 nm nodes. Firstly, the capability of SpectraCD as a metrology technology was studied, including dynamic precision and CD correlation. Dynamic precision in the range of 0.1~0.4 nm was demonstrated repeatedly in this study. CD correlation with CDSEM also showed a very linear result. R-squared values of ~0.99 are presented. Secondly, by comparison with images from cross-sectional SEM (XSEM) and TEM (XTEM), it has been proved in this study that SpectraCD can consistently flag different profile excursions of polysilicon gate, e.g., small notching, footing, or undercut. The size of the footing or notch reported by SpectraCD shows a linear correlation with the size extracted from XTEM images, which demonstrates quantitatively SpectraCD capability for detecting profile excursions. Finally, linear correlation between the bottom CD from SpectraCD and the gate lengths determined from electrical test (Lcap) will be presented.
Right sizing prevention. Food portion size effects on children's eating and weight

Experimental findings provide consistent evidence that increasing the portion size of palatable, energy dense entrees relative to an age appropriate reference portion increases children's energy intake of the entree and the meal. Most of these studies have been conducted on preschool aged children between 2 and 6 years of age, in childcare or laboratory settings, using repeated measures designs. In these studies, children's intake is compared across a series of meals, where the size of the entree portion is varied and other aspects of the meal, including the portion size of other items on the menu, are held constant. This paper provides an overview of what we know from this research, what is not known about the effects of portion size on children's intake and weight status, and points to some of the important unanswered questions and gaps in the literature. Lastly, we discuss how individual characteristics may make someone more or less susceptible to large portions of foods and how the palatability of foods may moderate observed associations among portion size, children's intake, and weight status. Future studies that address the gaps identified in this paper are needed to inform policy and to develop effective and efficient interventions to prevent childhood obesity.
Culture and Coping: Kinship Caregivers’ Experiences with Stress and Strain and the Relationship to Child Well-Being

Given the diverse ethnic makeup of the 3 million U.S. children who reside with kinship caregivers, it is imperative that human service professionals understand caregiving from a broad cultural perspective. In this survey research study, the caregiving experiences of 656 African American, Asian American, European American, Latino American, and Native American kinship caregivers were compared and contrasted. The caregivers share many of the same overall parenting experiences; however, there were differences in how they experience stress and strain and how this affects their sense of readiness/capacity to parent and their childrearing experiences. Likewise, kinship caregivers’ perceptions of the well-being of the children in their care are influenced by ethnicity, the number of children in their care, and their annual incomes. The findings may suggest the influence of culture on stress and strain as well as cultural variations in perceptions of child well-being. The findings provide a direction for practitioners who are engaged in work with culturally diverse kinship caregivers.
Towards a Reassessment of Comte’s ‘Methode Positive’

Judged by almost any criteria, Auguste Comte’s theory of positivism was an influential doctrine in the history of the philosophy of science. His contemporaries took it very seriously indeed, whether they were his followers, like (the early) Mill1 and Littre,2 or his opponents, like Whewe11. His 20th-century successors, too, evidently attached some importance to Comte, since the phrase ‘logical positivism’ cannot have been an entirely capricious choice of label by the philosophers of the Vienna Circle.4 But in spite of the frequency with which the term ‘positivism’ is used and notwithstanding the fact that Comte is invariably cited as one of the important precursors of the Vienna Circle, remarkably little has been written about the details of Comte’s theory of scientific method and his philosophy of science.5 Apart from his celebrated theory of the three stages of intellectual history, which has been discussed at length, there exists as yet nothing like a detailed exegesis of Comte’s views on issues like induction, prediction, hypotheses, and explanation. The tacit assumption appears to be that although Comte’s general approach was interesting, influential and provocative, it would probably be both unrewarding and tedious (when one recalls the prolixity of Comte’s prose) to push very far into an exploration of his views. However, it seems to me that such an inquiry is worth undertaking, not only because in its absence any claims about Comte’s importance and influence are hollow, but also because his views on certain questions are both original and perceptive.
Removal of MTBE and other organic contaminants from water by sorption to high silica zeolites

Select zeolites with high SiO2/Al2O3 ratios were shown to effectively remove methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE), chloroform, and trichloroethylene (TCE) from water. In laboratory studies using batch so...
Evolving concepts of chemical sensitivity.

Chemical sensitivity appears to be an elusive phenomenon. Studies on individual differences in susceptibility may provide glimpses into the range of sensitivity in a population, which can be used f...
Vascular endothelial growth factor induces mRNA expression of pro-inflammatory factors in the uterine cervix of mice

Inflammation is believed to play a role in uterine cervical remodeling and infection-induced preterm labor. One of the distinct features of remodeling uterine cervix is presence of prominent vascular events, such as angiogenesis, vasodilation, and vascular permeability. Although the functional significance of these features is not yet clear, we know that in most tissue types, vascular remodeling is intricately intertwined with inflammation. Since vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is the major architect of vascular remodeling, we sought to examine and elucidate the potential relationship between VEGF and inflammation in the uterine cervix of non-pregnant mice. The animals used were divided into 4 treatment groups: A) negative control (vehicle only), B) positive control (lipopolysaccharide, LPS), C) recombinant VEGF-164 protein, and D) LPS + VEGF blocker (n = 3). After the appropriate treatments, the uterine cervices were harvested and analyzed using real-time PCR and confocal fluorescence microscopy. Results showed that exogenous VEGF upregulates expression of interleukin (IL)-6 and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α mRNAs, whereas VEGF blocker partially diminishes the LPS-induced expression of pro-inflammatory factors compared to the positive control group. We conclude that a positive feed-forward relationship likely exists between VEGF and inflammation in the uterine cervix, thus implicating VEGF in inflammation-induced preterm labor.
Additional experience with continent urinary diversion using cutaneous ileocecocystoplasty

Abstract Objectives We have used the technique of ileocecocystoplasty with a cutaneous continent catheterizable limb to incorporate native bladder into the urinary reservoir to treat patients with functional and anatomic bladder disorders. This review was performed to evaluate the outcome of the first 8 patients who underwent this procedure. Methods A retrospective analysis was performed by chart review and telephone interview. Patients' preoperative and postoperative bladder status and management, satisfaction rating, and renal function are reported. Results Follow-up of 9 to 64 months (mean, 33.9) in our first 8 patients reveals excellent results in all, including 1 patient who prefers an indwelling catheter due to progressive neuromuscular disability. Conclusions Cutaneous ileocecocystoplasty offers urologists and patients continent urinary diversion with minimal morbidity and is a much less extensive procedure than complete bladder replacement.
In Situ XRD of Thin Film Tin Electrodes for Lithium Ion Batteries

Thin film electrodes for lithium ion batteries (LIB) poses several attractive advantages over traditional composite electrodes including size and shape constraints, operating temperature range, and volumetric energy density. Tin is an attractive candidate for LIB anode applications due to its exceptional specific capacity, cascading voltage profile, safety, wide availability, and low cost. Tin thin film electrodes were sputtered onto the current collector of a recently developed in situ X-ray diffraction (XRD) and were monitored continuously by XRD while cycling. A phase transformation from white tin, to Li2Sn5, to -LiSn, to Li22Sn5 was observed during lithiation with the same phases detected in reverse order during delithiation. Preferred orientation and crystallite size information for these phases was extracted from the XRD data in order to develop a clearer picture of how lithium enters and exits thin film tin electrodes.
Scrape-off layer measurements in DIII-D

In this paper, scrape-off layer measurements in DIII-D are presented as a function of the main discharge plasma parameters. A systematic study is under way to understand and predict the behavior of the edge and divertor plasma in DIII-D and this scaling behavior will be crucial for the design of ITER. To facilitate the studies, a fast reciprocating Langmuir probe incorporating five graphite tips was installed at the midplane of DIII-D which has the capability of performing multiple plunges 1 cm inside the separatrix during 5 MW of NBI. Density and temperature profiles in the midplane (reciprocating probe), near the top (Thomson scattering) and at the lower divertor plate (fixed Langmuir probe array) are compared by mapping the measurements into magnetic flux coordinates. Local pressure measurements are compared on different parts of a flux surface. The three different local measurements also indicate the spatial evolution of plasma conditions as plasma approaches the divertor plate. Ohmic and L-mode discharges exhibit similar (exponential) density and temperature decay in the scrape-off layer. H-mode discharges, however, display a faster spatial decay reflecting at least a factor of 3 decrease in the perpendicular diffusion coefficient. Consistency of the magnitude and scaling behavior of the edge profile parameters with models of the scrape-off layer is examined.
APPROACHES FOR ESTIMATING NONCOMPLIANCE: EXAMPLES FROM FEDERAL TAXATION IN THE UNITED STATES

Crime and underground economic activity are a fact of life around the world. Most societies attempt to control these activities through the expenditure of resources on monitoring, prosecution, punishment, and educational programmes. Gathering statistics about who is engaging in illegal or underground activity, the frequencies with which various crimes or underground transactions are occurring, and the severity or magnitude of these acts, is crucial for making good decisions regarding our allocation of resources in this area. Unfortunately, in general it is very difficult to obtain accurate information about these issues. This is partly because the individuals engaged in such activities wish not to be identified and often take actions to avoid detection, and partly because by their very nature the activities tend not to generate economic, accounting, legal, demographic or other cultural records. The fact that it is difficult to obtain accurate information about the activities, however, does not in any way imply that we should not make a concerted effort to try to obtain the best information we can. I believe the cost associated with attempting to determine the extent and nature of these activities is in most circumstances well below the expected benefit, which includes the likelihood of improved decisionmaking by relevant government personnel and the general public. As a result, I also believe the debate about developing estimates of illegal or underground economic activity should primarily focus on practical issues related to how best to go about developing estimates that are as reliable as possible. In this short article I shall discuss the measurement of noncompliance with laws and regulations, my particular area of expertise, and shall not discuss the measurement of other kinds of 'hidden' economic behaviours, such as informal contracting, unmeasured home production, and 'grey-market' activities. In particular, I shall discuss three approaches for estimating the aggregate amount of noncompliance with respect to a specific law or regulation, (i) intensive data collection for a focused subsample of the population, (ii) detection controlled estimation, and (iii) the comparision of estimates generated by distinct datasets and models. For each, I shall describe in general terms what the approach is and how it is implemented, review limitations of the approach, and present an example of the application of the approach to the measurement of tax noncompliance in the United States. My discussion shall necessarily be short and I refer the interested reader to a variety of original research publications for more details, especially about the specific examples.
Large-Scale Structure of the June–July 1996 Marine Boundary Layer along California and Oregon

Abstract Data from surface stations, profilers, long-range aircraft surveys, and satellites were used to characterize the large-scale structure of the marine boundary layer off of California and Oregon during June and July 1996. To supplement these observations, June–July 1996 averages of meteorological fields from the U.S. Navy’s operational Coupled Ocean–Atmospheric Mesoscale Prediction System (COAMPS) model were generated for the region. Model calculations show a broad band of fast northerly surface winds exceeding 7 m s−1 extending along the California–Oregon coast. Buoy-measured peaks of 7.1 m s−1 off Bodega Bay, 7.2 m s−1 off Point Piedras Blancas, and 8.8 m s−1 near Point Conception were reported. Mean winds at the buoys located 15–25 km offshore are generally faster than those at coastal stations, and all station winds are faster in the afternoon. The aircraft and station observations confirm that an air temperature inversion typically marks the top of the marine boundary layer, which deepens offs...