cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Axisymmetric Hadley Cell Theory with a Fixed Tropopause Temperature Rather than Height

AbstractAxisymmetric Hadley cell theory has traditionally assumed that the tropopause height (Ht) is uniform and unchanged from its radiative–convective equilibrium (RCE) value by the cells’ emerge...
Efficacy and safety of alvimopan use in benign urinary tract reconstruction

To analyze the use of alvimopan, a peripheral mu-opioid receptor antagonist, in expediting gastrointestinal recovery after benign abdominal urinary tract reconstruction. Alvimopan use has been well defined in the management of radical cystectomy and urinary diversion for oncologic indications. It has not been studied in benign abdominal genitourinary reconstruction. Patients who underwent urinary reconstruction utilizing harvested bowel segments for benign conditions from 12/2014–7/2019 were retrospectively reviewed. From 5/2018–7/2019 our institution approved the use of perioperative alvimopan in the aforementioned patients (N = 11), who were paired 1:2 with patients from a cohort of alvimopan-eligible patients who did not receive the drug (N = 22). Patients were paired by (1) type of reconstruction and (2) presence of neurogenic bowel-bladder (NBB). Of the 70 patients who underwent urinary reconstruction during the study period, 46 patients (66%) were eligible to receive alvimopan. Length of stay was shorter for the alvimopan group compared to the non-alvimopan group (median 5 days [IQR 4–5 days] vs. 8 days [IQR 6–11 days]; P = 0.002). Time to first bowel movement was shorter for the alvimopan group (median 4 days [IQR 3–4 days] vs. 6 days [IQR 4–7], P = 0.001). No patient treated with alvimopan required a nasogastric (NG) tube for post-operative ileus compared to 7 (32%) patients in the non-treatment group (P = 0.035). Post-operative complications and 30-day readmissions were similar between the two groups. The use of perioperative alvimopan in benign abdominal urinary tract reconstruction expedited return of bowel function and decreased length of stay compared to a matched cohort of untreated patients.
Distance dependent energy transfer dynamics from a molecular donor to a zeolitic imidazolate framework acceptor

Zeolitic Imidazolate frameworks (ZIFs) have been demonstrated as promising light harvesting and photocatalytic materials for solar energy conversion. To facilitate their application in photocatalysis, it is essential to develop a fundamental understanding of their light absorption properties and energy transfer dynamics. In this work, we report distance-dependent energy transfer dynamics from a molecular photosensitizer (RuN3) to ZIF-67, where the distance between RuN3 and ZIF-67 is finely tuned by depositing an ultrathin Al2O3 layer on the ZIF-67 surface using an atomic layer deposition (ALD) method. We show that energy transfer time decreases with increasing distance between RuN3 and ZIF-67 and the Forster radius is estimated to be 14.4 nm.
On estimation of $$L_{r}$$Lr -norms in Gaussian white noise models

We provide a complete picture of asymptotically minimax estimation of $$L_r$$ -norms (for any $$r\ge 1$$ ) of the mean in Gaussian white noise model over Nikolskii–Besov spaces. In this regard, we complement the work of Lepski et al. (Probab Theory Relat Fields 113(2):221–253, 1999), who considered the cases of $$r=1$$ (with poly-logarithmic gap between upper and lower bounds) and r even (with asymptotically sharp upper and lower bounds) over Holder spaces. We additionally consider the case of asymptotically adaptive minimax estimation and demonstrate a difference between even and non-even r in terms of an investigator’s ability to produce asymptotically adaptive minimax estimators without paying a penalty.
Quantum Dissipation in Unbounded Systems

In recent years trajectory based methodologies have become increasingly popular for evaluating the time evolution of quantum systems. A revival of the de Broglie Bohm interpretation of quantum mechanics has spawned several such techniques for examining quantum dynamics from a hydrodynamic perspective. Using techniques similar to those found in computational fluid dynamics one can construct the wavefunction of a quantum system at any time from the trajectories of a discrete ensemble of hydrodynamic fluid elements (Bohm particles) which evolve according to non-classical equations of motion. Until very recently these schemes have been limited to closed systems. In this paper we present our methodology for including the effects of a thermal environment into the hydrodynamic formulation of quantum dynamics. We derive hydrodynamic equations of motion from the Caldeira-Leggett master equation for the reduced density matrix and give a brief overview of our computational scheme which incorporates an adaptive Lagrangian mesh. Our applications focus upon the dissipative dynamics of open unbounded quantum systems. Using both the Wigner phase space representation and the linear entropy we probe the breakdown of the Markov approximation of the bath dynamics at low temperatures. We suggest a criteria for rationalizing the validity of the Markov approximation in open unbound systems and discuss decoherence, energy relaxation, and quantum/classical correspondence in the context of the Bohmian paths.
Cowpea mosaic virus stimulates antitumor immunity through recognition by multiple MYD88-dependent toll-like receptors.

Abstract Cowpea mosaic virus (CPMV), a non-enveloped plant virus, and empty CPMV (eCPMV), a virus-like particle (VLP) composed of CPMV capsid without nucleic acids , are potent in situ cancer vaccines when administered intratumorally (I.T.). However, it is unclear how immune cells recognize these nanoparticles and why they are immunogenic, which was investigated in this study. CPMV generated stronger selective induction of cytokines and chemokines in naive mouse splenocytes and exhibited more potent anti-tumor efficacy than eCPMV. MyD88 is required for both CPMV- and eCPMV-elicited immune responses. Screening with human embryonic kidney (HEK)-293 cell toll-like receptor (TLR) reporter assays along with experiments in corresponding TLR−/− mice indicated CPMV and eCPMV capsids are recognized by MyD88-dependent TLR2 and TLR4 . CPMV, but not eCPMV, is additionally recognized by TLR7 . Secretion of type I interferons (IFNs), which requires the interaction between TLR7 and encapsulated single-stranded RNAs (ssRNAs), is critical to CPMV's better efficacy. The same recognition mechanisms are also functional in human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). Overall, these findings link CPMV immunotherapy efficacy with molecular recognition , provide rationale for how to develop more potent viral particles, accentuate the value of multi-TLR agonists as in situ cancer vaccines, and highlight the functional importance of type I IFNs for in situ vaccination.
Artificial Insemination by Donor — Status and Problems

Research, both basic and applied, has led to significant progress in the therapy of female infertility. The treatment of male infertility, on the other hand, has been discouragingly slow. Until recently, couples with infertility secondary to oligospermia (too few sperm) or azospermia (absence of sperm) relied principally on adoption to establish their families. In the last decade, however, newly accepted sociological and moral attitudes and legal statutes concerning abortion and contraception have led to decreasing numbers of infants available for adoption and a marked increase in the number of requests for donor insemination. This increase is also due in part to the knowledge that the service is available from more and more physicians and clinics, and to the growing success rate and greater social acceptance of the procedure.
Using Portuguese: A Guide to Contemporary Usage

1. Introduction 2. Written expression 3. Vocabulary 4. Nouns and adjectives 5. Verbs 6. Reported speech 7. Pronouns and articles 8. Adverbs 9. Comparatives and superlatives 10. Interrogatives (Questions) 11. Fields of meaning - vocabulary extension 12. Portuguese for Spanish speakers Portuguese index English index.
SU-E-T-568: Neutron Dose Survey of a Compact Single Room Proton Machine

Purpose: To ensure acceptable radiation limits are maintained for those working at and near the machine during its operation, a comprehensive radiation survey was performed prior to the clinical release of Mevion S250 compact proton machine at Stephenson Oklahoma Cancer Center. Methods: The Mevion S250 proton therapy system consists of the following: a superconducting cyclotron to accelerate the proton particles, a passive double scattering system for beam shaping, and paired orthogonal x-ray imaging systems for patient setup and verification via a 6D robotic couch. All equipment is housed within a single vault of compact design. Two beam delivery applicators are available for patient treatment, offering field sizes of as great as 14 cm and 25 cm in diameter, respectively. Typical clinical dose rates are between 1 and 2 Gy/min with a fixed beam energy of 250 MeV. The large applicator (25 cm in diameter) was used in conjunction with a custom cut brass aperture to create a 20 cm x 20 cm field size at beam isocenter. A 30 cm − 30 cm − 35 cm high density plastic phantom was placed in the beam path to mimic the conditions creating patient scatter. Measurements integrated-ambient-neutron-dose-equivalence were made with a SWENDIImore » detector. Gantry angles of 0, 90 and 180 degrees, with a maximum dose rate of 150 MU/min (for large applicator) and beam configuration of option 1 (range 25 cm and 20 cm modulation), were selected as testing conditions. At each point of interest, the highest reading was recorded at 30 cm from the barrier surface. Results: The highest neutron dose was estimated to be 0.085 mSv/year at the console area. Conclusion: All controlled areas are under 5 mSv/year and the uncontrolled areas are under 1 mSv/year. The radiation protection provided by the proton vault is of sufficient quality.« less
A Prospective Look at the Usefulness of Separately Reporting Goodwill Charges: An Evaluation of 'Cash Earnings'

The purpose of this paper is to document how goodwill charges as currently presented in companies' financial statements relate to future earnings and how they are used by investors in conditioning expectations about future firm performance. These analyses are motivated by arguments in the financial media and the implicit supposition in the FASB's proposed standard on business combinations that current reporting is inadequate and that as a result, the capital markets are allocating capital inefficiently. We investigate these assertions by inferring goodwill charges from financial statements as currently prepared by acquiring firms who use purchase accounting. We do this to simulate the reporting convention that would be applied if the FASB proposal were adopted in its current state (that is, separate income statement reporting of goodwill charges). We examine the relations between goodwill charges and future earnings, and we infer the weighting of goodwill charges in the formation of investors' earnings expectations. These analyses indicate that (1) separating goodwill charges is not incrementally useful in predicting future earnings; and (2) investors' do not weight goodwill charges differently from other long-term accruals in forming their earnings expectations. Finally, we directly investigate the assertion that stocks of firms who use purchase accounting are 'penalized' because of the income-decreasing effects of goodwill amortization. We find no evidence of systematic under-valuation that is related to goodwill charges.
THE ASSIMILATION ARGUMENT AND THE ROLLBACK ARGUMENT

Seth Shabo has presented a new argument that attempts to codify familiar worries about indeterminism, luck, and control. His ‘Assimilation Argument’ contends that libertarians cannot distinguish overtly randomized outcomes from exercises of free will. Shabo claims that the argument possesses advantages over the Mind Argument and Rollback Argument, which also purport to establish that indeterminism is incompatible with free will. I argue first that the Assimilation Argument presents no new challenges over and above those presented by the Rollback Argument, and second that the Rollback Argument itself neither presents a deep challenge to, nor raises the cost of, accepting libertarianism.
Mode of Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide Utilization by Escherichia coli

Exogenous nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide is not utilized per se by Escherichia coli, but is converted to nicotinamide and thence to nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide via nicotinate.
Intense plasmapheresis in the pregnant Rh-sensitized woman☆☆☆

Abstract Reduction of Rh antibody titers in sensitized pregnant females has been carried out with intense plasmapheresis in 8 patients with bad Rh obstetric histories with prior fetal loss. As low titers are generally associated with less severely affected infants, this was studied as a means of lowering the titer to alleviate fetal effects of the isoimmunization process. Detailed studies of hematologic, nutritional, and biochemical changes as well as changes in the amniotic fluid have been done. Adjunctive measures of mercaptan administration, intrauterine transfusion, and plasma replacement were selectively used. Drops in Rh antibody titer have been achieved but not sustained, and cost factors limit clinical application. Depleted serum proteins rebound quickly. The safety of massive plasma removal in pregnancy has been shown and should help to stimulate its use in production of Rh-immune globulin.
Transcriptional control of circadian metabolic rhythms in the liver

Diurnal metabolic rhythms add an important temporal dimension to metabolic homeostasis in mammals. Although it remains a challenge to untangle the intricate networks of crosstalk among the body clock, nutrient signalling and tissue metabolism, there is little doubt that the rhythmic nature of nutrient and energy metabolism is a central aspect of metabolic physiology. Disruption of the synchrony between clock and metabolism has been causally linked to diverse pathophysiological states. As such, restoring the rhythmicity of body physiology and therapeutic targeting directed at specific time windows during the day may have important implications in human health and medicine. In this review, we summarize recent findings on the integration of hepatic glucose metabolism and the body clock through a regulatory network centred on the PPARγ coactivator 1 (PGC-1) transcriptional coactivators. In addition, we discuss the transcriptional mechanisms underlying circadian control of the autophagy gene programme and autophagy in the liver.
New Life: Person or Property?

Medical science is on the threshold of creating human life through other than traditional reproductive methods. The legal problems associated with cloning, the use of a host mother, or the growth of a fetus in an artificial placenta have not been solved. An examination of the legal problems associated with the paternity of children conceived by artificial insemination reveals the need to resolve anticipated "new life" problems before continuing to develop new techniques for procreation. Adoption and legitimation statutes may serve as useful models for legislative solutions.
Interspecific comparison of a Drosophila gene encoding FMRFamide- related neuropeptides

In order to identify functionally important regions of a neuropeptide gene in Drosophila melanogaster, we have studied its occurrence in related species and have characterized the structure of a homologous gene in Drosophila virilis. The melanogaster gene encodes a precursor that contains 13 neuropeptides related to the molluscan tetrapeptide FMRFamide (Nambu et al., 1988; Schneider and Taghert, 1988). Using the melanogaster gene as a probe in Southern blot analysis, related sequences were detected in DNA from each of 7 species tested. D. virilis, which is estimated to have diverged from D. melanogaster between 60 and 80 million years ago (Throckmorton, 1975), was chosen for more detailed study. Immunocytochemical staining using an antibody to authentic FMRFamide revealed a similar set of immunoreactive neurons in the CNS of larvae from the 2 Drosophila species. Using a melanogaster gene probe, overlapping clones were isolated from a virilis genomic library; DNA sequence analysis indicated the presence of a homologous gene. Comparisons of the genes and deduced proteins between the 2 species revealed the following points. (1) Both genes are divided into 2 exons: in D. melanogaster the exons are 106 and 1352 bp long; in D. virilis, they are 169 and at least 1232 bp long; in both species, the intron is approximately 2.5 kb long. (2) The sequence of exon I has largely diverged, and in neither species are exon I sequences translated. In this vicinity of the gene, sequence conservation is limited to a 67 bp region that spans the TATA box and the RNA start site. (3) The deduced neuropeptide precursors have very similar sizes (347 vs 339 amino acids) and the presumed signal sequences are perfectly conserved. (4) While the melanogaster precursor contains 13 FMRFamide-related peptides, the virilis precursor contains only 10. (5) The sequences of some but not all of the FMRFamide-like peptides are perfectly conserved. (6) In the rest of the precursor, significant sequence conservation is found only in the N-terminal portion; immediately downstream of the final FMRFamide-like peptide, the protein sequences are highly divergent. (7) 5′ to the RNA start sites (1.2 kb of melanogaster DNA and 1.8 kb of virilis DNA), 17 small (9–52 base pairs) regions are evolutionarily conserved (greater than 80% sequence conservation). We discuss neuropeptide biosynthesis, the functions and evolution of FMRFamide-like neuropeptides in insects, and the cell-specific regulation of neuropeptide gene expression in the contexts of these results.
Accommodating Unscheduled Flows in Electric Grids Using the Analytical Ridge Regression

The analytical ridge regression is applied for accommodating unscheduled flows in bulk interconnection by estimating “minor loop flows”. Ridge regression uses a bias parameter to minimize the average squared error, instead of the ordinary least squares method, when numerically ill-conditioned system matrices are present. The analytical approach is used in cases with large number of regressors. An example using the IEEE 14-bus test system, with wind penetration, illustrates the application.
Effect of Cholera Entero-Exotoxin on Reproductive Performance in Mice

Treatment of mice with high sublethal doses of cholera entero-exotoxin, or chol-eragen, given i.v. on days 4 and 6 post-coitum, i.e., around the time of nidation, decreases or suppresses pregnancy in females of 3 different strains of mice. Our studies reveal that the toxin interferes with embryonic growth and development after day 7 post-coitum, producing complete embryo resorption sometime between days 9 and 11 post-coitum.Studies of plasma progesterone reveal normal or slightly elevated levels on day 7 post-coitum and a marked decrease on day 9 post-coitum in toxin-treated mice, indicating that failure of the corpus luteum occurs sometime between these two days. Exogenous progesterone during this period partially or totally prevents the abortifo-cient effect of the toxin, at least until day 9 post-coitumIn the period preceding abortion, treated mice may show a slight increase in frequency of pregnancy or number of implants per mouse, probably related to an initial but transitory stimulation of the corpu...
Structure of yeast poly(A) polymerase in complex with a peptide from Fip1, an intrinsically disordered protein.

In yeast, the mRNA processing enzyme poly(A) polymerase is tethered to the much larger 3′-end processing complex via Fip1, a 36 kDa protein of unknown structure. We report the 2.6 A crystal structure of yeast poly(A) polymerase in complex with a peptide containing residues 80−105 of Fip1. The Fip1 peptide binds to the outside surface of the C-terminal domain of the polymerase. On the basis of this structure, we designed a mutant of the polymerase (V498Y, C485R) that is lethal to yeast. The mutant is unable to bind Fip1 but retains full polymerase activity. Fip1 is found in all eukaryotes and serves to connect poly(A) polymerase to pre-mRNA processing complexes in yeast, plants, and mammals. However, the Fip1 sequence is highly divergent, and residues on both Pap1 and Fip1 at the observed interaction surface are poorly conserved. Herein we demonstrate using analytical ultracentrifugation, circular dichroism, proteolytic studies, and other techniques that, in the absence of Pap1, Fip1 is largely, if not com...
Development and Analysis of a Measure of Children's Goal-setting: The Level of Aspiration Indicator

The process of setting realistic goals to guide behavior is inextricably bound with children's perceptions of their self-worth. Unrealistic goals and poor self-perceptions influence strikingly the ability of children to learn and adjust in school. Thus, it is vital that educational diagnosticians, counselors, school psychologists, and teachers be able to assess children's goal-setting tendencies and self-perceptions as they affect school adjustment. Responding to this need and the dearth of practical scales to screen aspiration levels in young children, this study was designed to establish the reliability in young children, this study was designed to establish the reliability and validity of a goal-setting measure for children. Third, fourth, and fifth grade students (N= 84) were administered the Level of Aspiration indicator and the Piers-Harris Children's Self-Concept Scale concurrently. The subsequent results established the technical adequacy of the Level of Aspiration indicator as a screening instrum...
Breeding and hand‐rearing Pesquet's parrot at the Zoological Society of San Diego

Pesquet's parrots Psittrichas fulgidus are rare in avi-cultural collections and successful breeding is uncommon and usually off-exhibit. At San Diego Zoo, however, two pairs of P. fulgidus which were on-exhibit have bred successfully. In the 1980s a pair of wild-caught adults nested in a natural palm log in their enclosure and eight chicks hatched from 17 eggs which were artificially incubated. In 1997 two hand-reared adults nested in an artificial nestbox laying seven eggs all of which were removed for artificial incubation and two of which hatched. The chicks from both pairs were hand-reared owing to the lack of parent-rearing success in the past. A review of breeding history since 1988 at San Diego Zoo is given and the methods used for artificial incubation and hand-rearing are described.
Premarket assessment of devices for treatment of critical limb ischemia: The role of Objective Performance Criteria and Goals

Medical devices are cleared for marketing approval through the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Unique statutory requirements, such as the "least burdensome mandate," have allowed the FDA to employ non-concurrent controls in its evaluation of prospective therapies. The use of Objective Performance Criteria and Goals (OPC and OPG) for the premarket evaluation of cardiovascular devices has become established as an alternative to randomized, controlled trials (RCTs). These single-armed comparisons may facilitate rapid entry of novel devices to the market. Unlike RCTs, they do not establish superiority or non-inferiority of the examined therapy, and study populations must be carefully inspected to ensure validity of comparisons to historical controls.
Element Separation by Upward Proton Drag in the Chromosphere

The extremely close collisional coupling between protons and heavy ions in the upper chromosphere suggests that proton drag is the main agent for ion-neutral separation there. We argue that a small upward drift of protons and electrons relative to the stationary neutral hydrogen component can explain the observed enrichment of elements with low first ionization potential (FIP) in the corona. The resulting abundances are determined by the ionization fractions of the different elements relative to that of hydrogen. We suggest that the required ambipolar flow may be induced by transient coronal heating leading to chromospheric evaporation. The model predicts that the FIP effect should be weak inside coronal holes, where most of the energy released in the corona is carried outward by the solar wind rather than being conducted downward as in closed magnetic regions and coronal plumes.
Organic Phosphorus Compounds 59. A new method for the synthesis of phosphonic dichlorides

Heating of thiophosphonic dichlorides, RP(S)Cl2, R CH3, C2H3, C2H5, with a molar equivalent of SOCl2 under pressure at 150° for 5 to 8 h yields phosphonic dichlorides in quantitative yield. In addition sulfur and sulfur dichloride is formed according to the equation: This method is particularly useful for the preparation of CH3P(O)Cl2 since it was observed that chlorination of CH3P(O)(OCH3)2 with PCl5 yields CH3OP(O)Cl2 as a by-product which is difficult to separate from CH3P(O)Cl2. On the other hand chlorination of methylphosphonic acid with PCl5 also gives pure CH3P(O)Cl2 .
Motivation of programmers

When we speak of motivation in casual conversation, we usually mean two different things. For the sake of simplicity, one of those can be called internal motivation, the other external motivation.
Anomalous functional language lateralization in semantic variant PPA

In 1982, Marsel Mesulam detailed a series of cases with primary progressive aphasia (PPA). Originally defined, PPA was restricted to patients with focal left hemisphere involvement. As cases with right hemisphere disease appeared,1–3 an amended theory proposed that PPA arose from a “locus of least resistance” within the dominant language network.4 Ultimately, this explanation was unable to account for a specific subtype of semantic variant PPA (svPPA) where pathology first involved the nondominant hemisphere and subsequently attacked the dominant anterior temporal lobe language network.5 With the discovery of increased non-right-handedness (nRH) and planum temporale symmetry within our svPPA cohort,6 we put forward a refinement of the prevailing hypothesis and suggested that mechanisms of lateralization and neurodevelopment that shape the language network also generate a differential pattern of disease susceptibility within specific PPA variants. We postulated that the increased nRH observed in svPPA might be secondary to an increased incidence of anomalous language laterality. In this report, we describe the magnetoencephalography (MEG) pattern of language lateralization in a single svPPA case with left temporal predominant atrophy despite a clinical presentation of a right temporal syndrome.
Waltzing with Bashir: perpetrator trauma and cinema

In the introduction to her book Waltzing with Bashir: perpetrator trauma and cinema, Raya Morag clearly summarizes the book’s objective:First, it proposes a new direction in cinema studies to deal ...
Competence in discourse as a measure of social integration and quality of life in persons with traumatic brain injury

Persisting difficulties in communication are a serious handicap faced by many after traumatic brain injury (TBI) and a major barrier to community reintegration. Conventional approaches to the study of communication problems after TBI have focused on the form of language production and expression, usually in terms of phonological, semantic, and syntactical features. Most TBI patients, however, perform overall within normal ranges on these conventional indicators. More recently, attention has focused on language in its naturally-occurring form, that is, discourse, which is heavily influenced by linguistic, cognitive and social skills. Because most TBI patients are left with residual deficits in these areas, study of discourse abilities seem to be particularly suited to understanding their problems in communication and facilitating eventual reintegration into the community. This study was designed to determine if and how the conversational discourse of TBI patients differs from a matched non-TBI group and whether any identified variables are related to measures of outcome as measured by community integration and quality of life. Additionally, the study was designed to explore the relationship between TBI and features of discourse across conversational, narrative, procedural genres. TBI patients (n = 30) from an out-patient brain injury programme were compared to matched controls (n = 10) in the three discourse genres. Bivariate and multivariate analyses evaluated 23 measures of discourse efficiency, complexity, topic management, information and pragmatic behaviours in each genre as well as measures of psychosocial adjustment, particularly social integration and quality of life. Results indicated that TBIs were significantly different from controls on several measures of discourse and psychosocial adjustment. A number of other features of discourse were found to correlate significantly with social integration and quality of life. Interestingly, discourse variables appeared to correlate with social integration more strongly than age, gender, education, and other conventional psychosocial factors. Contrary to prediction, features of conversational discourse did not correlate more strongly than other types of discourse with social integration and quality of life. Discussion centred on the apparent comorbidity of features in everyday discourse and psychosocial determinants that were associated with quality of life and social integration.
Need like Cases Be Decided Alike? Mashaw's Bureaucratic Justice

Bureaucratic Justice is a book about the administration of the Social Security Administration's disability program.' Professor Mashaw knows about his subject, for he has studied the administration of the program for many years, has supervised the preparation of reports on its administration,2 and has written law review articles about various aspects of it.3 His topic is one that properly commands thoughtful attention. The disability program, as Mashaw points out, is the largest system of administrative adjudication in the Western world and is presently responsible for annual expenditures in excess of $32 billion (at 19, 196), amounts which have grown exponentially since the institution of the program in the early 1960s. According to Mashaw, the attractiveness of the disability insurance program and its administrative problems flow from the same source: the problematic concept of disability embodied in the program. The disability concept incorporates concern that workers should be compensated for loss of ability to earn a livelihood, that injured workers should be rehabilitated whenever possible, and that the program should not slide into the role of a residual unemployment program. It is a program, in Mashaw's words, of "cautious benevolence" (at 19, 35) and Congress's several concerns have much to recommend them. Yet because these concerns pull in opposite direc-
Online Haggling at a Name-Your-Own-Price Retailer: Theory and Application

We present a formal model of haggling between a name-your-own-price retailer and a set of individual buyers. Rather than posting a price, the retailer waits for potential buyers to submit offers for a given product and then chooses to either accept or reject them. Consumers whose offers have been rejected can invest in additional haggling effort and increment their offers. This pricing model allows the name-your-own-price retailer to engage in price discrimination: As haggling is costly for the potential buyer, customers with a high willingness to haggle will achieve lower transaction prices. However, because haggling is costly, it reduces overall welfare and diminishes the benefits of price discrimination. Our study is motivated by several name-your-own-price retailers that have recently emerged on the Internet. Based on detailed transaction data of a large German name-your-own-price retailer, we present a model of consumer haggling. We then show how this model can be used to improve the decision making of the retailer, who needs to choose a threshold price above which all offers are accepted. Another decision variable for the retailer lies in the user interface design, which allows the retailer to either facilitate or to hinder the haggling of the consumer.
The point of entanglement: modernism, Diaspora, and Toni Morrison's Love

Abstract Black Diaspora Studies constitute an indispensable analytical discourse for black expressivity. Ignoring such studies, mainstream, journalistic criticism of a novel such as Toni Morrison's Love stumbles into banal dead ends. Only through a scholarly return to the dispersed singularities that Edouard Glissant terms the ‘point of entanglement’ can critics render sufficient accounts of Morrison's corpus and its creative kin. The enduring legacy of the Transatlantic Slave Trade and the Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome are crucial to understanding Black Diaspora life and creativity in the contemporary Americas. Love reveals a striking grammar that has been identified as de-idealized and archivally generative: a discursive system replete with both dread silences, and ‘broken word’ narratives of resilience, spiritual retention, and miraculous survival.
Simple Reliabilism and Agent Reliabilism

John Greco offers a version of virtue epistemology which attempts to include the good features of reliabilism and yet avoid the problems facing that theory. The most intriguing element of his approach is its theoretical unity. Whereas other theorists have claimed that both objective and subjective justification are needed to avoid the problems of simple reliabilism, none have proposed a unified theory of both notions that is generally reliabilist in spirit. Greco proposes to do just this by offering a theory that gives a unified, character based account of both objective and subjective justification. This theory is reliabilist in spirit while maintaining that subjective justification is required for knowledge. Such a proposal is unique and ingenious, and deserves careful study because of it. Though I find the project significant and unprecedented in this way, I am not convinced that it is entirely successful, and I will try to explain here the grounds of my concern. We can begin with Greco's list of requirements for an adequate theory of knowledge, and the relationship he sees between simple reliabilism and his own theory, agent reliabilism. Greco desires a theory of knowledge with five features. (1) It needs to imply that not all evidential relations are inferential, and in particular (2) why sensory evidence can be non-inferential. (3) It must also be a foundational theory of knowledge. Finally, (4) it must reveal how inferences that are only contingently reliable can yield knowledge, and (5) how knowers can be sensi tive to the reliability of their inferences (p. 164). Greco believes that simple reliabilism, the view that identifies knowledge with beliefs produced by reliable methods or processes, explains adequately the first four claims. He holds, however, that agent reliabilism is needed in order to account for the last. These two central claims are at the heart of my worries about Greco's project. On the first point, I think Greco misleadingly endorses simple reliabilism as an explanation of (l)-(4) because it implies all of them. It is a foundational theory of knowledge, at least in its formal structure (some beliefs are known
On heavy doping effects and the injection efficiency of silicon transistors

Abstract A study of heavy doping effects on the current gain of diffused bipolar silicon transistors is continued, with emphasis on the variation of the current gain with injection level. The sensitivity of the calculations to some assumptions and approximations made previously is appraised. Numerical solutions of the heavy doping model simultaneously with the carrier transport equations are included.
Reactions of 3,4-epoxy alcohols. New results

Abstract The treatment of 5,6-epoxynorbornan-2-ol derivatives with acidic or basic reagents has provided new examples of oxetane formation, particularly a novel dimerization and a cyclization following reversible first order kinetics.
Determination of the steady state crack resistance value (Rp) using a single specimen

Abstract A method for determining steady state crack resistance (Rp) using a single specimen is discussed. An expression for crack resistance R is derived as a function of crack growth c in terms of the essential energy Ue which is the sum of the blunting energy and the integration of the crack resistance with respect to the cracking area. The essential energy Ue is then related to the area between the loading and unloading curves. Energy values determined in this way are found to be meaningful for steady state crack growth, and as a result the derived equation is useful for calculating Rp values. This method is demonstrated for two samples of modified PMMA with different initial crack lengths. Rp is calculated for each sample and compared with a value obtained from multiple specimen testing of the same material.
Label-Free Characterization of Emerging Human Neuronal Networks

The emergent self-organization of a neuronal network in a developing nervous system is the result of a remarkably orchestrated process involving a multitude of chemical, mechanical and electrical signals. Little is known about the dynamic behavior of a developing network (especially in a human model) primarily due to a lack of practical and non-invasive methods to measure and quantify the process. Here we demonstrate that by using a novel optical interferometric technique, we can non-invasively measure several fundamental properties of neural networks from the sub-cellular to the cell population level. We applied this method to quantify network formation in human stem cell derived neurons and show for the first time, correlations between trends in the growth, transport and spatial organization of such a system. Quantifying the fundamental behavior of such cell lines without compromising their viability may provide an important new tool in future longitudinal studies.
Aeronautical telemetry using offset QPSK in frequency selective multipath

The impact of frequency selective multipath fading on the bit error rate performance of ARTM Tier-1 waveforms (FQPSK and SOQPSK) is derived and analyzed. In the presence of a strong specular reflection with relative magnitude |/spl Gamma//sub 1/|, the ARTM Tier-1 waveforms suffer a loss in performance of (1 - |/spl Gamma//sub 1/|)/sup -4/spl radic/|/spl Gamma///sub 1/| for |/spl Gamma//sub 1/| < 0.5 and a relatively high error floor at approximately 10/sup -2/ for |/spl Gamma//sub 1/| /spl ges/ 0.5. The ARTM Tier-1 waveforms possess twice the spectral efficiency of PCM/FM, but exhibit a greater loss and higher error floors than PCM/FM for the same multipath conditions and signal-to-noise ratio.
Absorption of Nitrogen at Al/Al2O3 Interfaces in Al Nanocomposites: A Computational Analysis

The presence of nitrogen in nanostructured aluminum composites milled in liquid nitrogen has been argued to be responsible for reported property improvements, such as high strength and thermal stability. However, it has been experimentally difficult to precisely determine the nature of the nitride phases that form given their small scale (e.g., nm) and limited volume fraction. Moreover, the mechanism by which the nitrogen molecules are absorbed into the aluminum lattice during the cryomilling process remains poorly understood, and experimental studies are often constrained by resolution limits. In this paper, the absorption of nitrogen in Al-alloy composites during cryomilling is investigated from a computational perspective with the aid of the molecular dynamics simulation function in Materials Studio® software. Results indicate that Mg solute atoms in the matrix tend to segregate to Al/Al2O3 interfaces, creating vacancies in the Al lattice and subsequently enhancing the absorption of nitrogen into the Al lattice. The simulations also reveal that not only free N atoms but also N2 molecules can be absorbed into the Al lattice by occupying an Al vacancy. In addition, it is demonstrated that a structural defect, i.e., the presence of vacancies regardless of their source, is a requirement for enhanced absorption of nitrogen in the Al lattice.
A factor analytic study of the subjective components of activation.

Summary.Ss were asked to cite personal examples of experiences involving high, moderate, and low levels of activation and to describe each of these experiences in terms of 132 adjectives and adjectival phrases. These data were subjected to varimax factor analyses and 12 interpretable high-, 9 moderate-, and 5 low-activation factors were extracted. The relevance of these results to activation theory and to Wolf's (1967) analysis was discussed. Variations in behavior have been described in terms of changes in arousal or activation (Duffy, 1962). Activation theory is essentially a neuropsychological description of the intensity dimension of behavior. This, dimension extends from deep sleep at the low end to excitement at the higher end. Hebb ( 1955) in relating subjective "feelings" to activation proposed that there is increasing alertness, interest, and positive emotion as activation increases from a minimum to an intermediate level, and increasing emotional disturbances and anxiety as activation rises still further, i.e., different subjective reactions or emotions correspond to different levels of activation. Activation states may be analyzed physiologically, neurologically, behaviorally, and experientially (the feelings of s). By far the greatest number of studies have used either physiological measures (e.g., EMG, blood pressure, GSR) , neurological measures, or a combination of these measures along with some relevant behavioral index. Through such studies, much has been learned about the neuro-physiological and behavioral states which characterize different levels of activation. For example, an organism sleeps when it is deprived of sensory input, or when sensory input declines (Kleitmatl, 1939). Under conditions of reduced afferent influx, the encephalogram changes from a picture of desynchronization (activation) to one of synchronic alpha waves (relaxed state) and finally to one of large, slow, increasingly synchronized waves indicative of sleep. (Lindsley, 195 1). To date, only one attempt to isolate systematically the experiential or subjective components of activation has appeared in the literature. Wolf (1967) factor analyzed 30 adjectives checked by Ss as descriptive of feelings of fatigue. In order to give a context for his descriptions, each S wrote a brief narration of a recent fatiguing experience. Three interpretable factors were extracted: exhaustion, nervous fatigue, and drowsy fatigue. He judged that each of these factors corresponded with some activation state. Thus, drowsy fatigue seemed similar to Duffy's (1962) description of low activation, nervous fatigue to her description of compensatory high activation, and exhaustion to her "simple fatigue." The present study attempted to expand Wolf's (1967) findings by apply
A general solution procedure in elastostatics with multiply-connected regions with applications to mode III fracture mechanics problems

A new variational method recently proposed by Ho is extended to the general boundaryvalue problems of elasticity involving multiply-connected regions, including those of fracture mechanics. The method presents the approximate displacement functions in “series” form, the coefficients of which are obtained through minimizing the strain energy of the difference displacement field, resulting in the solution of a system of linear algebraic equations. Formulations are derived for all four types of boundary conditions (displacement, traction, mixed, dual). The method is applied to the anti-plane shear deformation of a finite elastic medium with a line crack. Surprisingly elegant exact solutions are obtained for two different problems. Further applications are included for infinite strips with parallel, perpendicular, as well as inclined cracks. Results show good convergence characteristics. Since the strain energy norm used in this method is actually proportional to the stress intensity factor, this method is indeed ideally suited for studies of Fracture Mechanics problems.
Art and Identity in an Amulet Roll from Fourteenth-Century Trebizond

This article examines a unique survival from the Middle Ages: an amulet roll, now divided between libraries in New York City and Chicago, which now measures approximately 5 m in width and 8–9 cm in width, which has Greek texts on the obverse and Arabic on the reverse, and a series of very fine illustrations on the Greek side. Analysis of the roll reveals that it originated in Trebizond in the second half of the fourteenth century, and the roll is therefore considered within the cultural and political context of that small but active Greek kingdom. The article pays particular attention to the text and representation of a rare figure, Evgenios of Trebizond, who is included among a series of saints and prophets in order to enact that saint's protection of the (evidently elite) patron of the roll. And through the series of texts and images about the letter and self-portrait of Christ, the Mandylion, the roll also stated the sacred destiny of Trebizond. The roll generated identity through its Greek Christian texts and images, and made clear the special role God had chosen for Trebizond.
Dibutyryl-cAMP induces SNAP-25 translocation into the neurites in PC12

SNAP-25 immunoreactivity was translocated into the endings of the processes induced in PC12 cells by dibutyryl-cAMP-treatment. Conversely, the protein was not present in the endings of the processes seen after NGF-treatment unless dibutyryl-cAMP was used simultaneously. This redistribution of SNAP-25 immunoreactivity appeared to be dependent upon new protein synthesis. Finally, dibutyryl-cAMP was capable of inducing SNAP-25 expression.
Effects of oral administration of p-chlorophenylalanine to experimental animals.

Abstract Oral administration of pCPA produces in the adult rat a series of metabolic imbalances which do not entirely mimic human phenylketonuria. Using low dosages of this enzyme inhibitor and additional amino acids in the diet, it was possible to lower rat liver phenylalanine hydroxylase to levels comparable to hyperphenylalaninemic or phenyl-ketonuric patients who may have vestigial (14) or no detectable (15) enzymatic capability. Under these conditions, only a minor disturbance is produced in serotonin metabolism as now appears to be the case in those genetic defects, as studied in man (16). The most apparent divergency, besides the introduction of a nonnatural, substituted amino acid, is that serum tyrosine changes are generally not parallel to the human inborn error. However, tryptophanemia has an inverse correlation with serum phenylalanine and this pattern is common to phenylketonuria.