cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Tartan: Evaluating Modern GPU Interconnect via a Multi-GPU Benchmark Suite

High performance multi-GPU computing becomes an inevitable trend due to the ever-increasing demand on computation capability in emerging domains such as deep learning, big data and planet-scale applications. However, the lack of deep understanding on how modern GPUs can be connected and the actual impact of state-of-the-art interconnect on multiGPU application performance becomes a hurdle. Additionally, the absence of a practical multi-GPU benchmark suite poses further obstacles for conducting research in multi-GPU era. In this paper, we fill the gap by proposing a multi-GPU benchmark suite named Tartan, which contains microbenchmarks, scale-up and scale-out applications. We then apply Tartan to evaluate the four latest types of modern GPU interconnects, i.e., PCI-e, NVLink-V1, NVLink-V2 and InfiniBand with GPUDirect-RDMA from two recently released NVIDIA super AI platforms as well as ORNL’s exascale prototype system. Based on empirical evaluation, we observe four new types of NUMA effects: three types are triggered by NVLink’s topology, connectivity and routing, while one type is caused by PCI-e (i.e., anti-locality). They are very important for performance tuning in multi-GPU environment. Our evaluation results show that, unless the current CPU-GPU master-slave programming model can be replaced, it is difficult for scale-up multi-GPU applications to really benefit from faster intra-node interconnects such as NVLinks; while for inter-node scale-out applications, although interconnect is more crucial to the overall performance, GPUDirect-RDMA appears to be not always the optimal choice. The Tartan benchmark suite including the microbenchmarks are opensource and available athttp://github.com/uuudown/Tartan.
Capnography Monitoring During Procedural Sedation and Analgesia

Procedural sedation is used to alleviate pain and anxiety associated with diagnostic procedures in the acute care setting. Although commonly used, procedural sedation is not without risk. Key to reducing this risk is early identification of risk factors through presedation screening and monitoring during the procedure. Electrocardiogram, respiratory rate, blood pressure, and pulse oximetry commonly are monitored. These parameters do not reliably identify airway and ventilation compromise. Capnography measures exhaled carbon dioxide and provides early identification of airway obstruction and hypoventilation. Capnography is useful in patients receiving supplemental oxygen. In these patients, oxygen desaturation reported by pulse oximetry may lag during episodes of respiratory depression and apnea. Capnography indicates partial pressure of end-tidal carbon dioxide and provides information regarding airway integrity and patterns of ventilation compromise. Implementation of this technology may provide an additional layer of safety, reducing risk of respiratory compromise in patients receiving procedural sedation.
Severe hypercalcemia in a patient with extrapulmonary Mycobacterium abscessus: granuloma or immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome? First case of Mycobacterium abscessus presenting as retroperitoneal lymphadenopathy with severe hypercalcemia: a case report and literature review.

Background: Nontuberculous mycobacterium is a recognized cause of hypercalcemia, particularly in patients with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). Here we describe a case of severe hypercalc...
Application of the Critical Pathway and Integrated Case Teaching Method to Nursing Orientation

Background Nursing staff development programs must be responsive to current changes in healthcare. New nursing staff must be prepared to manage continuous change and to function competently in clinical practice. Method The orientation pathway, based on a case management model, is used as a structure for the orientation phase of staff development. The integrated case is incorporated as a teaching strategy in orientation. The integrated case method is based on discussion and analysis of patient situations with emphasis on role modeling and integration of theory and skill. Results The orientation pathway and integrated case teaching method provide a useful framework for orientation of new staff. Educators, preceptors and orientees find the structure provided by the orientation pathway very useful. Conclusion Orientation that is developed, implemented and evaluated based on a case management model with the use of an orientation pathway and incorporation of an integrated case teaching method provides a standardized structure for orientation of new staff. This approach is designed for the adult learner, promotes conceptual reasoning, and encourages the social and contextual basis for continued learning.
Winter and summer annual biotypes of camelina have different morphology and seed characteristics

Abstract Camelina [Camelina sativa (L.) Crantz] has two distinctive biotypes, summer and winter, with winter biotypes requiring a vernalization treatment to enter the reproductive phase. Increased interest in broadening the diversity of winter-hardy cover crops in the northern Great Plains of the U.S. to reduce soil erosion through the winter months has led seed companies to offer winter camelina seed outsourced from other states. Regrettably, in 2017, outsourced camelina seed from other states turned out to be summer biotypes that did not survive the North Dakota winter. The objectives of this study were to determine the morphological characteristics of seed and seedlings from summer- and winter-biotypes. Morphological characteristics of seedlings were determined by growing nineteen summer- and eleven winter-biotypes in an environmental chamber. The experimental design was a randomized complete block design with three replicates. To determine differences in seed wavelength absorbance between winter- and summer-biotypes both visible and near infrared spectra were examined, which encompass 400–2498 nm wavelengths. Mixtures of cultivars Joelle (winter) and one summer type were analyzed using near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS). Seed mixtures were prepared in increments of 5% of ‘Joelle’. Mixtures of different lots of Joelle were prepared in increments of 25%. Significant interactions were present and observed for pairs of vegetative leaves, growth stage, height, leaf length, leaf width and the number of lobes. The equation for the ratio of winter seed (r2 = 0.96) performed very well, being able to distinguish known field grown cultivars used in the equation. Differences in seed and seedling morphological characteristics can be used to differentiate winter- or summer-biotypes. Having a rapid method to determine the percentage of winter camelina in an unknown seed sample will be very favorable for all producers, as well as seed companies, interested in growing winter camelina as either a winter-hardy cover crop or as a winter annual cash crop.
High-temperature tribological behavior of structural materials after conditioning in impure-helium environments for high-temperature gas-cooled reactor applications

Abstract Incoloy 800HT and Inconel 617 have been selected as candidate structural alloys for the high-temperature gas-cooled reactor (HTGR) concept. Helium, the primary coolant, contains impurities (e.g., H2O and CH4) that can induce corrosion reactions at high temperatures, which in turn can affect the tribological behavior of components in sliding contact such as valves and control-rod drive systems. This paper presents results from the study of the tribological behavior of both alloys before and after conditioning them in either an impure-helium oxidizing environment or in an air environment. Both alloys were conditioned for 22 days at elevated temperatures in a once-through helium loop with 4 ppmv H2O and tested subsequently at elevated temperatures with a pin-on-disk tribometer in an air environment - 650 °C and 750 °C for 800HT; 850 °C and 900 °C for 617 – with various applied loads - 1 N, 2 N and 5 N. SEM-EDS analysis revealed that conditioning the samples in an oxidizing environment leads to the formation of a mixed Fe/Cr-oxide on alloy 800HT and a Cr-oxide on alloy 617, both increasing the wear resistance compared to that of as-received samples. Alloy 617 exhibited lower steady-state friction coefficients compared to those of alloy 800HT. There was a significant decrease in the scatter of the steady-state friction coefficient of the conditioned samples compared to that of the unconditioned samples. The steady-state friction coefficient for alloy 800HT and 617 were found to be 0.53 ± 0.07 and 0.25 ± 0.04, respectively. The wear resistance of alloy 800HT is approximately one order of magnitude lower than that of alloy 617 in all cases that exhibited measurable wear. After sample conditioning, the wear volumes measured at low loads were undistinguishable from the unworn background, a result attributed to the formation of a compacted glaze layer under high temperatures and high contact stresses.
E-059 Calculation of mean arterial blood flow rate from digital subtraction angiography: effect of injection conditions

Introduction Several methods of extracting arterial blood flow rates from angiography have been attempted over the past decades.1 However, such methods are not used clinically, primarily because catheter-based contrast injections in arteries can result in substantial pressure and flow disturbances during the injection.2 We hypothesize that injections which cause minimal hemodynamic disturbance in the vessel of interest would result in greater accuracy of angiographically calculated mean flow rates. We conducted an in vitro study under various injection conditions to evaluate this hypothesis. Methods Angiography at 15 FPS was acquired in a Circle of Willis silicone replica assembled on a pulsatile flow simulator (figure 1, Vascular Simulations, Stony Brook, NY). Injection conditions included (total n=72): catheter-tip position (right carotid, ascending aorta), catheter type (6F end-hole, 6F side-holes), baseline internal carotid flow (4.3, 5.3, 8.3 cc/s), injection rate (carotid: 2, 6 cc/s; aorta: 10, 20 cc/s). Contrast concentration-time curves were recorded at proximal and distal locations on the right internal carotid artery (figure 1) and the bolus transit-time between these two locations was calculated using three different methods (Mean Transit Time, Time to Peak, Cross Correlation). Then, arterial mean flow rate (ml/s)=arterial segment volume(ml)/transit-time(s). Actual flow in the vessel was measured with a flow meter. Results Statistically significant linear correlations were observed between measured and angiographically calculated flow rates under nearly all injection conditions. Cross correlation was substantially superior to the other two methods (p Conclusions Calculation of mean arterial flow rates by angiography is feasible. The accuracy is higher when the injection causes the least hemodynamic disturbance (side-hole catheter, aortic injection). Improvements to the technique need to be made in order to achieve reliable accuracy in patients, especially under standard (˜4 FPS) frame rate acquisitions. References Lieber BB, et al. Crit Rev Biomed Eng. 2005;33(1):1–1022. Kovarovic B, et al. Cardiovasc Eng Technol. 2018. doi:10.1007/s13239-018-0344-3 Disclosures M. Gross: None. B. Kovarovic: None. H. Woo: 4; C; Vascular Simulations. 6; C; Cerenovus, JnJ. D. Fiorella: 2; C; Penumbra, Microvention, Medtronic. 4; C; Vascular Simulations. 6; C; Cerenovus JnJ. C. Sadasivan: 4; C; Vascular Simulations.
Underdog Status Yields Support for Musicians

Prior research suggests that underdogs elicit from others an increased affiliation (e.g., liking, identification) as well as an increased desire for success (e.g., support). In the present study, w...
Study of the dynamic coupling term (μ) in parallel force/velocity actuated systems

Presented in this paper is an actuator concept, called a parallel force/velocity actuator (PFVA), that combines two fundamentally distinct actuators (one using low gear reduction or even direct drive, which we will call a force actuator (FA) and the other with a high reduction gear train that we will refer to as a velocity actuator (VA)). The objective of this work is to evaluate the effect of the relative scale factor, RSF, (ratio of gear reductions) between these inputs on their dynamic coupling. We conceptually describe a parallel force/velocity actuator (PFVA) based on a dual-input-single-output (DISO) epicyclic gear train. We then present an analytical formulation for the variation of the dynamic coupling term w.r.t. RSF. Conclusions from this formulation are illustrated through a numerical example involving a 1-DOF four-bar linkage. It is shown, both analytically and numerically, that as we increase the RSF, the two inputs to the PFVA are decoupled w.r.t. the inertia torques. This understanding can serve as an important design guideline for PFVAs. The paper also presents two limitations of this study and suggests future work based on these caveats.
Comparing Robot Grasping Teleoperation Across Desktop and Virtual Reality with ROS Reality

Teleoperation allows a human to remotely operate a robot to perform complex and potentially dangerous tasks such as defusing a bomb, repairing a nuclear reactor, or maintaining the exterior of a space station. Existing teleoperation approaches generally rely on computer monitors to display sensor data and joysticks or keyboards to actuate the robot. These approaches use 2D interfaces to view and interact with a 3D world, which can make using them difficult for complex or delicate tasks. To address this problem, we introduce a virtual reality interface that allows users to remotely teleoperate a physical robot in real-time. Our interface allows users to control their point of view in the scene using virtual reality, increasing situational awareness (especially of object contact), and to directly move the robot’s end effector by moving a hand controller in 3D space, enabling fine-grained dexterous control. We evaluated our interface on a cup-stacking manipulation task with 18 participants, comparing the relative effectiveness of a keyboard and mouse interface, virtual reality camera control, and positional hand tracking. Our system reduces task completion time from 153 s (\(\pm 44\)) to 53 s (\(\pm 37\)), a reduction of 66%, while improving subjective assessments of system usability and workload. Additionally, we have shown the effectiveness of our system over long distances, successfully completing a cup stacking task from over 40 miles away. Our paper contributes a quantitative assessment of robot grasping teleoperation across desktop and virtual reality interfaces.
Complexation by Organic Matter Controls Uranium Mobility in Anoxic Sediments

Uranium contamination threatens the availability of safe and clean drinking water globally. This toxic element occurs both naturally and as a result of mining and ore-processing in alluvial sediments, where it accumulates as tetravalent U [U(IV)], a form once considered largely immobile. Changing hydrologic and geochemical conditions cause U to be released into groundwater. Knowledge of the chemical form(s) of U(IV) is essential to understand the release mechanism, yet the relevant U(IV) species are poorly characterized. There is growing belief that natural organic matter (OM) binds U(IV) and mediates its fate in the subsurface. In this work, we combined nanoscale imaging (nano secondary ion mass spectrometry and scanning transmission X-ray microscopy) with a density-based fractionation approach to physically and microscopically isolate organic and mineral matter from alluvial sediments contaminated with uranium. We identified two populations of U (dominantly +IV) in anoxic sediments. Uranium was retained on OM and adsorbed to particulate organic carbon, comprising both microbial and plant material. Surprisingly, U was also adsorbed to clay minerals and OM-coated clay minerals. The dominance of OM-associated U provides a framework to understand U mobility in the shallow subsurface, and, in particular, emphasizes roles for desorption and colloid formation in its mobilization.
Frequency-Domain Fluorescence Spectroscopy

In this chapter we described instrumentation, basic theory, and applications of first- (1-200 MHz) and second-generation (2 GHz) frequency-domain fluorometers. The frequency-domain data provide excellent resolution of time-dependent spectral parameters. It is possible to resolve closely spaced fluorescence lifetimes, even in the picosecond region, and to determine multiexponential decays of anisotropy. Correlation times as short as 10 ps have been measured. Several novel applications are described, including picosecond fluorescence of hemoglobin and enhanced resolution of anisotropy decays using combination quenching and multiwavelength global measurements and analysis, as well as unusual behavior of phase and modulation data for associated anisotropy decays.
Belowground competition favors character convergence but not character displacement in root traits

Summary Character displacement can play a major role in species ecology and evolution, however, research testing whether character displacement can influence the evolution of root traits in plant systems remains scarce in the literature. Here we investigated the potential that character displacement may influence the evolution of root traits using two closely related morning glory species, Ipomoea purpurea and I. hederacea. We performed a field experiment where we grew the common morning glory, I. purpurea, in the presence and absence of competition from I. hederacea and examined the potential that the process of character displacement could influence the evolution of root traits. We found maternal line variation in root phenotypes and evidence that belowground competition acts as an agent of selection on these traits. Our test of character displacement, however, showed evidence of character convergence on our measure of root architecture rather than displacement. These results suggest that plants may be constrained by their local environments to express a phenotype that enhances fitness. Therefore, the conditions of the competitive environment experienced by a plant may influence the potential for character convergence or displacement to influence the evolution of root traits.
STARFORGE: Toward a comprehensive numerical model of star cluster formation and feedback

We present STARFORGE (STAR FORmation in Gaseous Environments): a new numerical framework for 3D radiation MHD simulations of star formation that simultaneously follow the formation, accretion, evolution, and dynamics of individual stars in massive giant molecular clouds (GMCs) while accounting for stellar feedback, including jets, radiative heating and momentum, stellar winds, and supernovae. We use the GIZMO code with the MFM mesh-free Lagrangian MHD method, augmented with new algorithms for gravity, timestepping, sink particle formation and accretion, stellar dynamics, and feedback coupling. We survey a wide range of numerical parameters/prescriptions for sink formation and accretion and find very small variations in star formation history and the IMF (except for intentionally-unphysical variations). Modules for mass-injecting feedback (winds, SNe, and jets) inject new gas elements on-the-fly, eliminating the lack of resolution in diffuse feedback cavities otherwise inherent in Lagrangian methods. The treatment of radiation uses GIZMO's radiative transfer solver to track 5 frequency bands (IR, optical, NUV, FUV, ionizing), coupling direct stellar emission and dust emission with gas heating and radiation pressure terms. We demonstrate accurate solutions for SNe, winds, and radiation in problems with known similarity solutions, and show that our jet module is robust to resolution and numerical details, and agrees well with previous AMR simulations. STARFORGE can scale up to massive ($>10^5 M_\odot $) GMCs on current supercomputers while predicting the stellar ($\gtrsim 0.1 M_\odot$) range of the IMF, permitting simulations of both high- and low-mass cluster formation in a wide range of conditions.
An Illustrative Case of Combination Cabozantinib/Nivolumab for Progressive Metastatic Renal Cell Carcinoma (mRCC).

We report a case using combination cabozantinib/nivolumab to salvage disease control in a patient with refractory metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC). The patient had previously experienced disease progression from high dose IL-2, sunitinib, pazopanib, cabozantinib, and nivolumab, all given sequentially. Combination cabozantinib/nivolumab resulted in 22 months of disease control. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) inhibitors including cabozantinib have immunomodulatory effects when combined with immune checkpoint inhibitors, with multiple ongoing phase 3 trials exploring the cabozantinib/nivolumab combination in the first line setting. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of progression on nivolumab and cabozantinib when given as sequential monotherapies but stable disease on combination cabozantinib/nivolumab. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: There is ongoing evaluation of combination VEGF-targeted therapies and immune checkpoint inhibitors given their potential mechanistic synergy. With the recent CHECKMATE 9ER press release reporting clinically meaningful benefit from the combination cabozantinib/nivolumab compared to sunitinib in the first line setting, this case of sustained stable disease with combination cabozantinib/nivolumab after progression on prior VEGF-targeting therapies and immunotherapies highlights the activity of this combination as a potential treatment alternative to improve disease control.
The effect of taxing situations on preschool children’s responses to peer conflict

Abstract Preschool children are often faced with situations that could tax their cognitive resources and consequently affect their abilities to navigate subsequent social problems. Following taxing situations, children may be more likely to enact impulsive, aggressive responses instead of competent responses during peer conflict episodes. We exposed 114 5-year-old children to either a brief taxing procedure or one of two control procedures, followed by a social problem solving task. Children in the Taxing condition were more likely to endorse physically aggressive responses and less likely to endorse prosocial responses to peer social situations compared to the control conditions. The results suggest that taxing situations can negatively impact children’s social problem solving skills. We discuss the possibility that the observed taxing effect provides preliminary evidence for a causal link between executive function and social competence.
Review of Physics-based and Data-driven Multiscale Simulation Methods for Computational Fluid Dynamics and Nuclear Thermal Hydraulics

Modeling of fluid flows requires corresponding adequate and effective approaches that would account for multiscale nature of the considered physics. Despite the tremendous growth of computational power in the past decades, modeling of fluid flows at engineering and system scales with a direct resolution of all scales is still infeasibly computationally expensive. As a result, several different physics-based methodologies were historically suggested in an attempt to "bridge" the existing scaling gaps. In this paper, the origin of the scaling gaps in computational fluid dynamics and thermal hydraulics (with an emphasis on engineering scale applications) is discussed. The discussion is supplemented by a review, classification, and discussion of the physics-based multiscale modeling approaches. The classification is based on the existing in literature ones and distinguishes serial and concurrent approaches (based on the information flow between micro- and macro-models) with their variations. Possible applications of the data-driven (machine learning and statistics-based) methods for enabling and / or improving multiscale modeling (bridging the scaling gaps) are reviewed. The introduced classification distinguishes error correction (hybrid) models; closure modeling (turbulence models, two-phase and thermal fluid closures); and approaches aimed at the facilitation of the concurrent physics-based multiscale modeling approaches. A comprehensive review of data-driven approaches for turbulence modeling is performed.
LLL promotes engraftment of human umbilical cord blood-derived hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells

This Conference Presentation, “LLL promotes engraftment of human umbilical cord blood-derived hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells,” was recorded for the Photonics West 2021 Digital Forum.
Early warning of coalescing neutron-star and neutron-star-black-hole binaries from the nonstationary noise background using neural networks

The success of the multimessenger astronomy relies on gravitational-wave observatories like LIGO and Virgo to provide prompt warning of merger events involving neutron stars (including both binary neutron stars and neutron-star-black-hole binaries), which further depends critically on the low-frequency sensitivity of LIGO as a typical binary neutron star stays in this band for minutes. However, the current sub-60 Hz sensitivity of LIGO has not yet reached its design target and the excess noise can be more than an order of magnitude below 20 Hz. It is limited by nonlinearly coupled noises from auxiliary control loops which are also nonstationary, posing challenges to realistic early warning pipelines. Nevertheless, machine-learning-based neural networks provide ways to simultaneously improve the low-frequency sensitivity and mitigate its nonstationarity, and detect the real-time gravitational-wave signal with a very short computational time. We propose to achieve this by inputting both the main gravitational-wave readout and key auxiliary witnesses to a compound neural network. Using simulated data with characteristic representing the real LIGO detectors, our machine-learning-based neural networks can reduce nonlinearly coupled noise by about a factor of 5 and allows a typical binary neutron star (neutron-star black hole) to be detected 100 s (10 s) before the merger at a distance of 40 Mpc (160 Mpc). If one can further reduce the noise to the fundamental limit, our neural networks can achieve detection out to a distance of 80 and 240 Mpc for binary neutron stars and neutron-star-black-hole binaries, respectively. It thus demonstrates that utilizing machine-learning-based neural networks is a promising direction for the timely detection of the coalescence of electromagnetically bright LIGO/Virgo sources.
Single-cluster electronics

This article reviews the scope of inorganic cluster compounds interrogated in single-molecule break-junction measurements. This body of work lies at the intersection between the fields of inorganic cluster chemistry and single-molecule electronics, where discrete inorganic cluster molecules are used as the active components in molecular electronic circuitry. We explore the breadth of transition metal and main group cluster compounds that have been studied in single-cluster junctions, largely within the context of scanning tunnelling microscopy break-junction (STM-BJ) measurements. Our discussion centers on how the structure and bonding of inorganic cluster compounds give rise to desirable quantum transport effects such as room-temperature current blockade, sequential tunneling, voltage-gated conductance switching, destructive quantum interference, and high thermoelectric currents.
Stein particle filtering.

We present a new particle filtering algorithm for nonlinear systems in the discrete-time setting. Our algorithm is based on the Stein variational gradient descent (SVGD) framework, which is a general approach to sample from a target distribution. We merge the standard two-step paradigm in particle filtering into one step so that SVGD can be used. A distinguishing feature of the proposed algorithm is that, unlike most particle filtering methods, all the particles at any time step are equally weighted and thus no update on the weights is needed. We further extended our algorithm to allow for updating previous particles within a sliding window. This strategy may improve the reliability of the algorithm with respect to unexpected disturbance in the dynamics or outlier-measurements. The efficacy of the proposed algorithms is illustrated through several numerical examples in comparison with a standard particle filtering method.
Parental home vision testing of children during covid-19 pandemic

Background: The Covid-19 pandemic necessitated social distancing restrictions, which placed limitations on access to ophthalmic care to only those who had an imminent risk of sight loss. All other face-to-face consultations were converted to telephone consultations or were postponed. We investigated whether parents were able to test their child’s vision using available home vision testing applications, with an aim to aid decision making during a telephone consultation. Methods: Families with follow-up consultations at Birmingham Children’s Hospital were asked to test their child’s vision at home. Instructions for the use of Peek acuity, or iSight Pro, were emailed to a parent. Parents chose to use a particular app based on available devices at home. Parents were asked to test uniocular visual acuity twice. Home versus hospital acuity was correlated. Home acuity test-retest reliability was acquired. Parental feedback was obtained through questionnaires. Results: One hundred and three families were contacted, 15 families completed home vision testing. Ten families used Peek acuity, five families used iSight Pro. Uniocular visual acuity test-retest reliability was 0.03 LogMAR. Home-hospital acuity testing had a bias of 0.14 LogMAR, hospital acuity yielding a lower LogMAR score. Most families who completed testing found it easy to do; however, some struggled, and 81 families did not undertake home vision testing. Conclusions: Uptake of home vision testing was limited by parental engagement, most likely influenced by the current pandemic. Most families who undertook home vision testing were able to generate results that could be used for clinical decision making. Extending the impact of parental vision testing will require education by clinicians and further study to increase sample sizes and to improve confidence.
Dynamics of Ga penetration in textured Al polycrystal revealed through multimodal three-dimensional analysis

Abstract We investigate in situ the penetration of liquid Ga in a polycrystalline Al rod at a temperature of 31.9°C. Our study is made possible with the aid of a novel, multimodal laboratory-based X-ray imaging platform, which enables us to characterize the three-dimensional (3D) grain structure, Ga wetting behavior, and correlations of the two. Our sample shows a strong texture along [001] and a higher fraction of low-angle grain boundaries (LAGBs) compared to a random distribution, signifying a poor connectivity of high-angle grain boundaries (HAGBs). We detect channels of Ga along HAGBs after 1-hour of exposure to the liquid metal, but such channels gradually disappear upon prolonged annealing. We interpret this phenomenon in the lens of geometric percolation theory and diffusion theory, which point to the synergistic effects of a limited HAGB connectivity and the enhanced Ga leakage from HAGBs into the bulk through dislocation-pipe diffusion. This work provides detailed insight into the influences of texture and grain boundary connectivity on the dynamics of liquid metal embrittlement, with relevance to grain boundary engineering of embrittlement-resistant materials with high stacking fault energy.
Global warming consequences of replacing natural gas with hydrogen in the domestic energy sectors of future low-carbon economies in the United Kingdom and the United States of America

Abstract Hydrogen has a potentially important future role as a replacement for natural gas in the domestic sector in a zero-carbon economy for heating homes and cooking. To assess this potential, an understanding is required of the global warming potentials (GWPs) of methane and hydrogen and of the leakage rates of the natural gas distribution system and that of a hydrogen system that would replace it. The GWPs of methane and hydrogen were estimated using a global chemistry-transport model as 29.2 ± 8 and 3.3 ± 1.4, respectively, over a 100-year time horizon. The current natural gas leakage rates from the distribution system have been estimated for the UK by the ethane tracer method to be about 0.64 Tg CH4/year (2.3%) and for the US by literature review to be of the order of 0.69–2.9 Tg CH4/year (0.5–2.1%). On this basis, with the inclusion of carbon dioxide emissions from combustion, replacing natural gas with green hydrogen in the domestic sectors of both countries should reduce substantially the global warming consequences of domestic sector energy use both in the UK and in the US, provided care is taken to reduce hydrogen leakage to a minimum. A perfectly sealed zero-carbon green hydrogen distribution system would save the entire 76 million tonnes CO2 equivalent per year in the UK.
Integrated Carbon Capture and Utilization Evaluation for U.S. Microbreweries

The brewing process for beer production both utilizes and emits carbon dioxide (CO 2 ). Instead of capturing and cleaning CO 2 produced in the process, most microbreweries emit it into the atmosphere. Microbreweries have the potential to save money and reduce their carbon footprint by capturing, cleaning, and reusing CO 2 from the fermentation process instead of purchasing it from an outside supplier. CO 2 capture and cleaning systems are now commercially available but are costly. Given the financial drawback that microbreweries face, a decision support tool (DST) is developed with a dashboard that aims to provide a feasibility assessment for implementing a specific carbon capture and utilization system (CCUS). The dashboard has an ease of use and accessibility and provides relevant information for a wide range of variables: direct and indirect costs and benefits to perform assessments including life cycle cost-benefit analysis for the CCUS, sensitivity analysis, and more. The DST uses testing and validation through expert elicitation and simulation. Its design relies on system simulation software Vensim for the development of a back-end equation derivation. The front-end is hosted on a user-friendly dashboard. Further testing and validation can be conducted to further improve the frontend design and usability of the system.
Next Best View Estimation With Eye In Hand Camera

For many robotic systems, automated data acquisition is an important part of detecting and recognizing objects. This is true especially for robots like the PR2 which are supposed to operate in human environments like our homes. Human living environments are usually highly cluttered. Thus, oftentimes, a scene can not be fully observed from one position only. For scenes like this, data acquisition is treated as a sensor placement problem, also known as the Next-Best-View (NBV) problem. The NBV approach seeks a single additional sensor placement in order to improve the knowledge of the environment. However, the set of possible NBV positions is constrained by the robots abilities. For instance, if the sensor is mounted on the head of the robot, the position of the sensor can only be changed by driving the robot around. In environments like kitchens this can make information gathering difficult, as countertops are only accessible from one side, making it difficult for the robot to observe the objects on the countertop from a different angle. We address automatic data acquisition in scenarios like this in this work. To enable the PR2 to handle constrained positioning settings like this, we equip it with a camera system mounted on the high dimensional manipulator. The camera system we are using for our system is the Microsoft Kinect, which provides us a point cloud representation of the scene. The increase in degrees of freedom allows the robot to choose from a bigger set of possible viewing positions allowing it to observe an area which would otherwise be inaccessible. Additionally, we consider the possibility of planning the trajectory to the NBV position such that the movement can be used to collect even more data. In the following section we introduce the main ideas of our approach. Then we illustrate and discuss first results obtained through this approach.
Binding of secretin to plastic surfaces

Abstract Five carboxyl-terminal fragments of secretin ranging in size from 6 to 21 amino acid residues were tested for pancreatic secretory activity in the rat. None of the fragments displayed activity when given alone but each displayed significant activity when given after secretin. This apparent activity was shown to be the result of displacement of secretin bound to the walls of the injection catheter. The activity was abolished by dissolving secretin in 2% bovine serum albumin. The finding emphasizes the ease with which secretin can bind to plastic surfaces and consequently the need to reevaluate previous dose-response studies and the caution required in the design of future studies.
Special Algorithms for Exponentially Small Phenomena

Standard infinite interval spectral methods fail for nonlocal solitary waves. The core is well-approximated, but the wings contain an infinite number of crests and troughs. It is ridiculous to imagine that a finite number of rational Chebyshev functions (or whatever) can faithfully mimic a never-ending oscillation over all of space. To obtain a solution which is uniformly accurate everywhere with an error smaller than O(α) where α is (as always) the amplitude of the wings, one has only two options.
A Review of “Schooling in the Workplace”

An educational system, writes Hoffman, should not be measured by the performance of its top and middle achievers. Instead, an effective educational system is one that focuses resources on those who...
Studies on Human Erythrocyte Nucleotide Metabolism. I. Monisotopic Methodologies

Methods were developed to assay the activities of ribosephosphate pyrophosphokinase (RPK, PRPP synthetase, E.C. [2.7.6.1][1]) and adenine phosphoribosyltransferase (APRT, AMP pyrophosphorylase, E.C. [2.4.2.7][1]) in hemolysates of human erythrocytes. RPK activity was determined by measuring the production of phosphoribosyl pyrophosphate (PRPP) and the formation of adenosine mononucleotide (AMP), the two products of the reaction. The Km for adenosine triphosphate (ATP) was 0.12 m M with the PRPP method and 0.1 m M with the AMP method. The Km for ribose-5-phosphate (R-5-P) was 0.14 m M with the former method and 0.033-0.042 m M with the latter. The pH optimum with the PRPP method was between 7.6 and 8.2. The mean RPK activity of hemolysates of normal mature erythrocytes was 30.5 ± 3.78 µmoles of PRPP or 30.6 ± 3.82 µmoles of AMP produced/hr per 1010 erythrocytes at 37° C. Although RPK activity of normal mature erythrocytes did not appear to be markedly age dependent, activity was substantially increased in reticulocyte-rich blood. APRT activity was assayed by measuring the AMP produced in a system linked to the generation of oxidized nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD). The activity of normal mature erythrocytes was 3.38 ± 0.37 µmoles of AMP formed/hr per 1010 erythrocytes at 37° C. Enzyme activity was significantly elevated in reticulocyte-rich blood and in the erythrocytes of a patient with the Lesch-Nyhan syndrome. These methods obviated the need for isotopic techniques and were readily applicable to small samples of blood. [1]: pending:yes
Intramuscular iron therapy in pregnancy; a preliminary report.

Abstract Iron-dextran complex in a concentration of 50 mg. of iron per milliliter was administered intramuscularly to pregnant patients suffering from iron-deficiency anemia as well as to normal nonpregnant women. The preparation was well tolerated and presented no serious side effects. When given to pregnant patients with iron-deficiency anemia, the material caused an average hemoglobin increase of 0.32 Gm. per cent per 100 mg. of iron, and replenished the depleted iron stores, as evidenced by the restoration of normal serum iron levels. Single intramuscular injections of 250 mg. of iron in the dextran complex in normal nonpregnant women gave peak serum iron levels in approximately 24 hours with a gradual fall to normal in approximately one week.
Chapter 3 - High-Temperature Superconductors

Neutron scattering is indispensable in studying magnetic properties of solids. In the case of cuprate and iron-based high-transition-temperature (high Tc) superconductors, elastic and inelastic neutron scattering have played a dominant role in determining the magnetic structure and spin excitations in these materials. In this review, we summarize progress in the field of high Tc cuprates and iron-based superconductors, focusing on the role neutron scattering played in determining the magnetic structures and evolution of spin excitations in these materials. We compare and contrast the similarities and differences in magnetic properties of these two most studied systems of superconductors.
σ-convergence in the presence of spatial effects

. This paper explores the implications that spatial effects can hold for the application of measures of σ-convergence. The bias of a common indicator of σ-convergence is examined for a family of spatial process models including: [a] spatial lag, [b] spatial error, and [c] spatial moving average. We show that the measure of σ-convergence is sensitive to a number of distinct influences including global dispersion, spatial dependence, and a variety of forms of spatial heterogeneity. We suggest a decomposition of the convergence indicator into two components: one reflecting global dispersion, and one reflecting the influence of spatial effects. We then illustrate this approach with a case study of the U.S. states over the 1929–2000 period.
A method for finding similarity between multi-layer perceptrons by Forward Bipartite Alignment

We present Forward Bipartite Alignment (FBA), a method that aligns the topological structures of two neural networks. Neural networks are considered to be a black box, because neural networks have a complex model surface determined by their weights that combine attributes non-linearly. Two networks that make similar predictions on training data may still generalize differently. FBA enables a diversity of applications, including visualization and canonicalization of neural networks, ensembles, and cross-over between unrelated neural networks in evolutionary optimization. We describe the FBA algorithm, and describe implementations for three applications: genetic algorithms, visualization, and ensembles. We demonstrate FBA's usefulness by comparing a bag of neural networks to a bag of FBA-aligned neural networks. We also show that aligning, and then combining two neural networks has no appreciable loss in accuracy which means that Forward Bipartite Alignment aligns neural networks in a meaningful way.
A TEDS analyzer for testing IEEE 1451 sensors and transducers through serial port

This paper presents an implemented system for testing IEEE 1451 standard by using PC computer and an implemented board with various sensors. Communication is according to IEEE 1451 standard through RS232.
Performance of an adaptive array under sensor failure

It has been reported that during experiments with linear arrays at sea, sensor failure occurs with nearly 100% probability. An upper bound on the increase in sidelobe level for a nonadaptive weighted array with inoperative elements has been reported. The authors consider the performance of a narrowband adaptive array that has failed sensors. Assuming that each sensor fails independently and with equal probability, expressions for the expected signal-interference-to-noise (SINR) and variance are given. The mean minus three sigma is then used as the lower bound of the SINR under sensor failure. Simulation results verify the analysis for the expected SINR and show that the lower bound holds in 98% of the cases. >
Wimmer Wins FLP Annual Exclusions

In Wimmer, the Tax Court held that the income stream from a taxpayer’s gifts of family limited partnership interests was eligible for the annual exclusion. By comparing the income interest in the partnership’s dividend paying marketable securities to the income interest in a trust, the court made Wimmer a winner. But does the opinion logically lead to that conclusion?
Postsynaptic changes at a sensory-to-motoneuron synapse contribute to the developmental loss of a reflex behavior during insect metamorphosis.

The larval-pupal transformation of the tobacco hornworm, Manduca sexta, involves the loss of many larval-specific behaviors, including a simple withdrawal reflex of the abdominal prolegs. This reflex is mediated by monosynaptic excitatory connections between afferents that innervate mechanosensory hairs on the proleg [the planta hairs (PHs)] and motoneurons that innervate proleg retractor muscles. In response to hormonal cues during the final days of larval life, the dendritic arbors of proleg retractor motoneurons regress extensively. Intracellular recordings indicate that the synaptic depolarization evoked in proleg motoneurons by electrical stimulation of PH afferents decreases by 78% during the larval-pupal transformation, over the same time course that the motoneuron dendrites regress. During the same period the number of PH afferents and the extent of their central projections may decrease slightly. To test the relative contributions of developmental changes in the presynaptic afferents and postsynaptic motoneurons to the weakening of the reflex pathway, we generated heterochronic mosaic pupae that retained one larval proleg. The PH afferents on the retained proleg retained their larval characteristics while their postsynaptic targets, the proleg motoneurons, appeared to regress normally. In the mosaic hemisegments, electrical stimulation of PH afferents evoked only a small synaptic depolarization of the proleg motoneurons, similar in amplitude to that recorded in normally developing pupae; thus, the developmental status of the afferents was irrelevant to the loss of the reflex. These findings suggest that postsynaptic changes, e.g., structural regression of motoneuron dendrites, may cause the weakening of the reflex pathway. This is the first demonstrated correlation between the hormonally mediated regression of motoneuron dendrites and the loss of a specific behavior during metamorphosis.
The lived experience of initial symptoms of and factors triggering epileptic seizures

The aim of this study was to document the self-perception of initial symptoms of and factors triggering epileptic seizures in a sample of people with epilepsy (PWE) and their carers. Among 600 participants, questionnaires were returned by 309 (51.5%), of whom 72.8% were PWE and 27.2% were carers and others. Experiencing at least one symptom prior to a seizure was reported by 86.9% of PWE and 74% of carers. The most common symptoms were a funny feeling, confusion, and anxiety. Experiencing one trigger that resulted in a seizure was reported by 89.8% of PWE and 85.5% of carers. The most common triggers were tiredness, stress, and sleep deprivation. Among PWE and their carers, 63.6% and 51.3%, respectively, indicated that they can tell when a seizure is about to occur, and 26.7% and 15.4%, respectively, indicated that they felt they could stop a seizure. The most common techniques were resting, medication, and relaxation.