cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
VISUALIZATION OF LOW DIMENSIONAL STRUCTURE IN TONAL PITCH SPACE

In his 2001 monograph Tonal Pitch Space, Fred Lerdahl defined a distance function over tonal and post-tonal harmonies distilled from years of research on music cognition. Although this work references the toroidal structure commonly associated with harmonic space, it stops short of presenting an explicit embedding of this torus. It is possible to use statistical techniques to recreate such an embedding from the distance function, yielding a more complex structure than the standard toroidal model has heretofore assumed. Nonlinear techniques can reduce the dimensionality of this structure and be tuned to emphasize global or local anatomy. The resulting manifolds highlight the relationships inherent in the tonal system and offer a basis for future work in machine-assisted analysis and music theory. Comments Presented at the International Computer Music Conference (ICMC 2005 : free sound), Paper ID 1200, held in Barcelona, September 5-9, 2005. http://www.icmc2005.org/index.php?selectedPage=119 This conference paper is available at ScholarlyCommons: http://repository.upenn.edu/cis_papers/193 VISUALIZATION OF LOW DIMENSIONAL STRUCTURE IN TONAL PITCH SPACE J. Ashley Burgoyne and Lawrence K. Saul Department of Computer and Information Science University of Pennsylvania {burgoyne,lsaul}@cis.upenn.edu
The Current Landscape and Unmet Needs in Multiple Sclerosis

When introduced in the early and middle 1990s, current first-line pharmacologic therapies for multiple sclerosis (MS)--interferon beta-1a, interferon beta-1b, and glatiramer acetate--constituted a major advancement in MS treatment. Nevertheless, disease progression, although typically delayed with these agents, remains inevitable in most patients and constitutes a significant limitation of the currently available treatments. Moreover, the first-line therapies all require frequent subcutaneous or intramuscular injections, delivery modalities that are associated with subpar treatment adherence. The demand for more effective agents has produced a new generation of MS therapies with impressive efficacy profiles--although their long-term safety and tolerability remain largely unknown. Some of the new agents have been formulated for oral administration, which will likely have a positive impact on treatment adherence. These new agents are appearing during a time of major change in MS research. As the old expectation of inevitable disease progression is being reconsidered, the notion of sustained disease inactivity has become a credible, still somewhat elusive, goal. Neuroprotection may also be possible with new and existing treatments. At the same time, new imaging techniques, such as measuring disease progression via T1-hypointense lesions ("black holes"), and a better understanding of pathophysiologic factors in MS--such as the role of neurotrophic growth factors and oxidative stress--are changing the ways that efficacy is measured and how new agents are developed.
Sex differences in murine cardiac pathophysiology with hyperoxia exposure.

Hyperoxia (>90% oxygen) is commonly implemented in mechanically ventilated patients. Reports suggest that hyperoxia is directly associated with in-hospital mortality in ventilated patients. Certain studies also show that mortality in women undergoing mechanical ventilation is significantly higher than that in men. Additionally, females are predisposed to certain cardiac electrophysiological risks, including QTc prolongation. In this study, we assessed the impact of hyperoxia in male and female mice (C57BL/6J) at age 8-10 weeks. On completion of either hyperoxia or normoxia exposures, physical, hemodynamic, biochemical, functional, electrophysiological, and molecular assessments were conducted. Hyperoxia-exposed mice lost a significant amount of body mass, compared with normoxia controls, in both sexes. However, while both genders developed brady-arrhythmia after hyperoxia exposure, female mice exhibited significantly reduced heart rates compared with males, with significantly elevated RR intervals. Additionally, 50% mortality was observed in females, whereas no mortality was reported in males. Furthermore, unlike in male mice, we observed no hypertrophy upon hyperoxia exposure in female mice. We reported that both hyperoxia-treated male and female mice exhibit significant hyperdynamic left ventricular ejection fraction, which is marked by % ejection fraction > 70 compared with the normoxia controls. We also noted significant reductions in stroke volume and cardiac output in both mice with hyperoxia. Surface ECG also demonstrated that hyperoxia exposure significantly augments RR, PR, QRS, QTc, and JT intervals in both sexes. Molecular analysis of left ventricular tissue demonstrated dysregulation of potassium ion channels in hyperoxia-treated males and females. In summary, we determined that sex differences are present with 72 hr hyperoxia exposure.
Visible Light Communication System-on-a-Chip

This paper reviews a fully integrated transceiver designed in an 180nm BCD process for light-emitting diode (LED) based visible light communication (VLC) system-on-a-chip (SoC). The VLC transceiver SoC consists of Manchester encoder/decoder, high accuracy bandgap reference, phase lock loop (PLL), multistage amplifier, trans-impedance amplifier (TIA), LED driver and ESD protection. A feed-forward equalizer is used to boost the LED bandwidth for high data rate wireless streaming. Measurement demonstrates wireless streaming of data through visible light using commercial LEDs.
Core body temperature, energy expenditure, and epinephrine during fasting, eucaloric feeding, and overfeeding in healthy adult men: evidence for a ceiling effect for human thermogenic response to diet.

Abstract Background In homeothermic animals, approximately 50% of daily energy expenditure (EE) is spent to maintain a consistent core body temperature (CBT). In humans, little is known about CBT responses to feeding and overfeeding and their relationship to diet-related changes in EE. Objective To study the effects of feeding and overfeeding on CBT and its association with diet-induced thermogenesis (DIT). Design Fifty-three healthy men with normal glucose regulation and a wide range of body composition (mean ± SD, body fat: 25 ± 8%, range: 7–43%) had 24-h EE assessed during fasting in a whole-room indirect calorimeter with concomitant CBT measurement by ingestible capsules and 24-h urinary collection for catecholamine measurements. Changes in 24-h EE (DIT) and CBT compared to fasting were assessed during three normal-protein (20%) diets using a cross-over design: one eucaloric diet (EBL, 50% carbohydrate, n = 37) and two overfeeding diets with 200% energy requirements: a high-fat (FNP, 60% fat, n = 25) and a high-carbohydrate (CNP; 75% carbohydrate, n = 24) diet. Results The average 24-h CBT (avgCBT) during fasting was 36.81 ± 0.14 °C (inter-individual CV = 0.4%) and positively correlated with 24-h urinary epinephrine (r = 0.61, p 0.05). AvgCBT increased during EBL (Δ = 0.06 ± 0.11 °C, p = 0.002), FNP (Δ = 0.13 ± 0.14 °C, p Conclusions CBT increases with feeding and is moderately associated with DIT to a different degree depending on the macronutrient composition of the overfeeding diet. There is a ceiling effect such that individuals with a higher CBT during fasting have limited capacity to increase CBT with feeding. Because of body thermoregulatory mechanisms that maintain a constant CBT, these results indicate that CBT has a limited role in the inter-individual variability in DIT.
duskin drum, Selections from Performance Artmaking

This chapter focuses on the rhetorical term ‘medium’ and the figure of allegory, which always asks for audience engagement. Alongside work has no genres, so how does either the performer or the audience understand where moments of political agency might be opening up? How do audiences and artmakers collaborate in ways that keep the valuing going? The artmaking by duskin drum from the northwestern United States, currently working around the Pacific Rim, generates media that increasingly build performances that not only engage audiences in attending to the not-known of the materials in the performance ecology, but also embodying that not-known in performances that involve audience members from many quite distinct and disunified sociosituated locations. This is situated work in the social world of the alongside that embraces the possibility that emergent forms may move into the sociocultural—yet may not.
Screening young adult cancer survivors with the PROMIS Depression Short Form (PROMIS-D-SF): Comparison with a structured clinical diagnostic interview.

Background The current study was conducted to evaluate the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System Depression Short Form (PROMIS-D-SF) as a screening measure for young adult cancer survivors (YACS) compared with a structured diagnostic interview. Methods A total of 249 YACS (aged 18-40 years) completed the PROMIS-D-SF and Structured Clinical Interview for the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th Edition (SCID). Based on the SCID, participants were classified as having: 1) an SCID depression diagnosis; 2) depression symptoms without an SCID diagnosis; or 3) no depression symptoms. Receiver operating characteristic analyses evaluated PROMIS-D-SF and SCID concordance and the sensitivity and specificity of PROMIS-D-SF cutoff t -scores. Results The PROMIS-D-SF had overall good agreement with the SCID for both depression diagnosis (area under the curve, 0.89) and the presence of depressive symptoms (area under the curve, 0.83). A PROMIS-D-SF cutoff t-score of ≥53.2 came closest to meeting study criteria for detecting a SCID depression diagnosis (sensitivity ≥0.85 and specificity ≥0.75), with a sensitivity of 0.81 and a specificity of 0.74. For identifying survivors with depression symptoms, a t-score cutoff value of 49.4 was found to have slightly superior sensitivity (0.84) and inferior specificity (0.64). In hypothetical screening examples, these cutoff scores led to moderate levels of missed cases (15%-19%) and a high percentage of clinical referrals that were unnecessary by SCID criteria (56%-70%). Conclusions The PROMIS-D-SF demonstrated moderately strong concordance with depressive diagnoses and symptoms measured by the SCID, but cutoff t-scores did not meet study criteria for clinical screening. The PROMIS-D-SF may be useful for assessing depression in YACS, but the limitations in its sensitivity and specificity identified in the current study are likely to limit its usefulness as a stand-alone screening instrument in this population.
Associations Between Teacher–Student Racial/Ethnic Congruence and Public School Teachers’ Risk for Stress:

Using national data from the National Center for Education Statistics 2011–2012 Schools and Staffing Survey and Common Core of Data, we examined the relationship between K–12 practitioners’ risk fo...
Vehicle ECEF Position Accuracy and Reliability in the Presence of DGNSS Communication Latency

Commercial on-vehicle implementation of Earth-referenced positioning at submeter accuracy with 95% probability would require widely and reliably available differential corrections; however, such corrections delivered on a nationwide or global scale via satellite systems will incur latency between their time-of-applicability and their time-of-reception at the vehicle. This article presents the results of a study with two main goals: 1) To investigate the sensitivity of differential Global Navigation Satellite System (DGNSS) corrections and position estimation accuracy to communication latency; 2) To investigate the feasibility of achieving meter-level positioning accuracy for at least 95% of epochs. The article presents a local base station approach designed for robustness to latency and lost packets. It then experimentally evaluates correction and position accuracy as a function of communication latency under open sky condition. The article demonstrates submeter horizontal position accuracy for communication latency exceeding 500 s. The article presents and experimentally analyzes two state estimation approaches suitable for moving platforms. One uses DGNSS data only. The other uses DGNSS and inertial data. Using the DGNSS correction approach presented herein both are shown to achieve position accuracy (one meter at 98%) that exceeds the SAE J2945 specification.
RECURRENT, CULTURE-NEGATIVE ENDOCARDITIS: DON't GET WHIPPED!

Whipple's disease is a rare chronic infection typically dominated by gastrointestinal and rheumatologic symptoms but can infrequently cause endocarditis. The diagnosis is often delayed due to its rarity, nonspecific presenting symptoms, and insensitive serologic and culture testing. A 65 year-old
Clinical outcomes with low dose anti-thymocyte globulin in patients undergoing matched unrelated donor allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation.

Anti-thymocyte globulin (ATG) has been associated with decreased rates graft versus host disease (GVHD) but with a potential risk of increasing risk of infection and relapse. We retrospectively stu...
Twelve inequivalent Dirac cones in two-dimensional ZrB 2

Theoretical evidence of the existence of 12 inequivalent Dirac cones at the vicinity of the Fermi energy in monolayered ${\mathrm{ZrB}}_{2}$ is presented. Two-dimensional ${\mathrm{ZrB}}_{2}$ is a mechanically stable $d$- and $p$-orbital compound exhibiting a unique electronic structure with two Dirac cones out of high-symmetry points in the irreducible Brillouin zone with a small electron-pocket compensation. First-principles calculations demonstrate that while one of the cones is insensitive to lattice expansion, the second cone vanishes for small perturbation of the vertical Zr position. Internal symmetry breaking with external physical stimuli, along with the relativistic effect of spin-orbit coupling, is able to remove selectively the Dirac cones. A rational explanation in terms of $d$- and $p$-orbital mixing is provided to elucidate the origin of the infrequent Dirac cones in a flat structure. The versatility of transition-metal $d$ orbitals combined with the honeycomb lattice provided by the B atoms yields particular features in a two-dimensional material.
Assessment of gadolinium deposition in the brain tissue of pediatric and adult congenital heart disease patients after contrast enhanced cardiovascular magnetic resonance.

Contrast enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is an important tool for the assessment of extracardiac vasculature and myocardial viability. Gadolinium (Gd) brain deposition after contrast enhanced MRI has recently been described and resulted in a warning issued by the United States Food and Drug Administration. However, the prevalence of brain deposition in children and adults with congenital heart disease (CHD) undergoing cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) is unclear. We hypothesized that Gd exposure as part of one or more CMRs would lead to a low rate of brain deposition in pediatric and adult CHD patients. We queried our institutional electronic health record for all pediatric and adult CHD patients who underwent contrast enhanced CMR from 2005 to 2018 and had a subsequent brain MRI. Cases were age- and gender-matched to controls who were never exposed to Gd and underwent brain MRIs. The total number of contrast enhanced MRIs, type of Gd, and total Gd dose were determined. Brain MRIs were reviewed by a neuroradiologist for evidence of Gd deposition using qualitative and quantitative assessment. Quantitative assessment was performed using the dentate nucleus to pons signal intensity ratio (dp-SIR) on T1 weighted imaging. Continuous variables were analyzed using Mann–Whitney U and Spearman rank correlation tests. Normal SIR was defined as the 95% CI of the control population dp-SIR. Sixty-two cases and 62 controls were identified. The most contrast enhanced MRIs in a single patient was five and the largest lifetime dose of Gd that any patient received was 0.75 mmol/kg. There was no significant difference in the mean dp-SIR of cases and controls (p = 0.11). The dp-SIR was not correlated with either the lifetime dose of Gd (rs = 0.21, p = 0.11) or the lifetime number of contrast enhanced studies (rs = 0.21, p = 0.11). Two cases and 2 controls had dp-SIRs above the upper bound of the 95% confidence interval for the control group. One case had qualitative imaging-based evidence of Gd deposition in the brain but had a dp-SIR within the normal range. In our cohort of pediatric and adult CHD patients undergoing contrast enhanced CMR, there was a low incidence of qualitative and no significant quantitative imaging-based evidence of Gd brain deposition.
Islam i musulʹmane postsovetskoi Rossii v rabotakh otechestvennykh issledovatelei (1992-2017): biobibliograficheskii slovarʹ-spravochnik [Islam and Muslims of post-Soviet Russia in works of researchers (1992-2017): bio bibliographical dictionary-reference]: by M. A. Sapronova, A. L. Checehevishnikov, and A.A. Iarlykapov, Moskva MGIMO-Universitet, 2018, 82 pp., 419 ₽, ISBN 978-5-9228-1897-1

After the collapse of the Soviet Union and the failure of the atheist regime, publications on Islam in Russia increased exponentially. Many new authors appeared in the field of Islamic studies. The...
Non-Invasive Scintigraphy in the Identification of Treatable Transthyretin Cardiac Amyloid

Introduction The previous gold standard for diagnosing transthyretin amyloid cardiomyopathy (ATTR-CM) was cardiac biopsy. Nuclear scintigraphy using technetium-99m-pyrophosphate (Tc-99m-PYP) is a non-invasive underutilized method of diagnosing this condition Case Report An 83 year old man with a past medical history of hyperlipidemia and paroxysmal atrial fibrillation presented with dyspnea and volume overload on physical examination. Echocardiogram showed a left ventricular ejection fraction of 47%, severe diastolic dysfunction, increased left ventricular wall thickness, and bi-atrial enlargement. Non-ischemic evaluation was unremarkable including negative serum/urine protein electrophoresis and immunofixation. Left heart catheterization showed mild non-obstructive coronary artery atherosclerosis. Cardiac MRI revealed late gadolinium enhancement consistent with amyloidosis. Nuclear scintigraphy (Figure 1) was consistent with ATTR-CM. The patient was referred to a cardiac amyloid specialist for further care. Summary While cardiac biopsies are classically recommended for diagnosing ATTR-CM, bone scintigraphy offers a non-invasive method to attain the same diagnosis. If incorporated into the algorithm for initial non-ischemic cardiomyopathy evaluation, Tc-99m-PYP scintigraphy can quickly and safely identify patients with ATTR-CM who would benefit from the newer transthyretin stabilizer tafamidis, which halts the progression of ATTR-CM.
Primary cutaneous T-cell lymphomas other than mycosis fungoides and Sézary syndrome. Part II: Prognosis and management.

Primary cutaneous T-cell lymphomas (CTCLs) other than mycosis fungoides (MF) and Sezary syndrome (SS) encompass a heterogenous group of non-Hodgkin lymphomas with variable clinical courses, prognoses, and management approaches. Given the morphologic and histologic overlap among the CTCL subtypes and other T-cell lymphomas with cutaneous manifestations, thorough evaluation with clinicopathologic correlation and exclusion of systemic involvement are essential prior to initiating therapy. Staging and treatment recommendations vary, depending on the subtype, clinical behavior, and treatment response. Generally, for subtypes in which staging is recommended, Ann Arbor or tumor, node, metastasis staging specific to CTCL other than MF or SS are used. For many subtypes, there is no standard treatment to date. Available recommended treatments range widely, from no active or minimal intervention with skin-directed therapy to aggressive systemic therapies that include multi-agent chemotherapy with consideration for hematopoietic stem cell transplant. Emerging targeted therapies, such as brentuximab, a chimeric antibody targeting CD30, show promise in altering the disease course of non-MF/SS CTCLs.
Monte Carlo calculations for recriticality during the reflood phase of a severe accident in a boiling water reactor

The possibility of recriticality during the reflood phase of a severe accident in a boiling water reactor (BWR) is investigated. In addition, the fraction of control-rod material that must be retai...
Two models of cross polar cap potential saturation compared: Siscoe-Hill model versus Kivelson-Ridley model

[1] The cross polar cap potential is considered an instantaneous monitor of the rate at which magnetic flux couples the solar wind to the Earth’s magnetosphere-ionosphere system. Studies have shown that the cross polar cap potential responds linearly to the solar wind electric field under nominal solar wind conditions but asymptotes to the order of 200 kV for large electric field. Saturation of the cross polar cap potential is also found to occur in MHD simulations. Several mechanisms have been proposed to explain this phenomenon. Two well-developed models are those of Siscoe et al. (2002), herein referred to as the Siscoe-Hill model, and of Kivelson and Ridley (2008), herein referred to as the Kivelson-Ridley model. In this study, we compare the mathematical formulas as well as the predictions of the two models with data. We find that the two models predict similar saturation limits. Their difference can be expressed in terms of a factor, which is close to unity during a saturation interval. A survey of the differences in the model predictions show that, on average, the potential of the Kivelson-Ridley model is smaller than that of the Siscoe-Hill model by 10 kV. Measurements of AMIE, DMSP, PC index, and SuperDARN are used to differentiate between the two models. However, given the uncertainties of the measurements, it is impossible to conclude that one model does a better job than the other of predicting the observed cross polar cap potentials.
On corporate governance: A study of proxy contests

Abstract This paper examines a sample of firms experiencing proxy contests for seats on their board of directors. Dissident shareholders usually fail to obtain a majority of board seats. Nevertheless, they capture some seats, via mechanisms such as cumulative voting, in over half of the sample contests. Regardless of proxy contest outcome, positive and statistically significant share price performance is associated with the contest. That finding is predicted by the standard economic analysis of proxy contests, in which the challenges benefit shareholders by improving corporate performance. The finding runs counter to the claim of Berle (1962) that the economists' view of proxy contests is ‘a wholly imaginary picture’. A portion of the positive share price changes taking place in the early stages of some proxy contests is not permanent, however, and as suggested by Manne (1962) is at least partially attributable to temporary increases in the market value of the vote attached to corporate shares.
The role of a trial of labor with a positive contraction stress test

During a 28 month period 812 patients underwent antepartum FHR testing. Twenty-eight patients had a positive CST. There were two antepartum fetal deaths and 11 patients had a cesarean section without a trial of labor. Fifteen patients had a trial of closely monitored labor (continuous FHR and fetal scalp blood sampling when indicated) and 11 of these (73%) were delivered vaginally. The CST records were examined for: per cent late deceleration, baseline FHR, presence of FHR accelerations, duration of the latency period (time from onset of contraction to onset of deceleration), and amplitude of deceleration. The absence of accelerations (nonreactive CST) and a latency period of less than 45 seconds both predicted persistent late deceleration during labor or fetal death in utero but statistical significance was found only for the latter parameter.
Intraclass Correlation Coefficients for Obesity Indicators and Energy Balance–Related Behaviors Among New York City Public Elementary Schools

Objective. Sample size and statistical power calculation should consider clustering effects when schools are the unit of randomization in intervention studies. The objective of the current study was to investigate how student outcomes are clustered within schools in an obesity prevention trial. Method. Baseline data from the Food, Health & Choices project were used. Participants were 9- to 13-year-old students enrolled in 20 New York City public schools (n = 1,387). Body mass index (BMI) was calculated based on measures of height and weight, and body fat percentage was measured with a Tanita® body composition analyzer (Model SC-331s). Energy balance–related behaviors were self-reported with a frequency questionnaire. To examine the cluster effects, intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) were calculated as school variance over total variance for outcome variables. School-level covariates, percentage students eligible for free and reduced-price lunch, percentage Black or Hispanic, and English language l...
Disulfide-linked aggregation of thyroglobulin normally occurs during nascent protein folding

In the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) of cultured porcine thyrocytes, newly synthesized thyroglobulin (Tg, the precursor in thyroid hormone synthesis) initially forms protein aggregates, which are dissolved into monomers and then assembled to dimers, before intracellular transport and secretion. However, studies suggest that in different physiological states and in different cells, folding efficiency in the ER may vary; with this in mind we have set out to further characterize the phenomenon of nascent Tg aggregation. In primary cultured thyrocytes, fresh thyroid follicular tissue (of porcine and rat origin), and the FRTL-5 cell line, nascent Tg appears transiently aggregated with mispaired, interchain disulfide linkages. Using a cell lysis procedure that maximally inhibits proteolysis as well as artifactual disulfide formation, Tg aggregates of M(r) > or = 2,000,000 can be stably isolated by gel filtration. Furthermore, stimulation with thyrotropin and other hormones that enhance Tg production may alter but does not eliminate formation of these aggregates. We conclude that transient disulfide-linked aggregation occurs normally during Tg folding in the ER of thyroid epithelial cells.
Differential dependence of store-operated and excitation-coupled Ca2+ entry in skeletal muscle on STIM1 and Orai1

In non-excitable cells, agonist-induced depletion of intracellular Ca2+ stores triggers Ca2+ influx via a process termed store-operated Ca2+ entry (SOCE). In T-lymphocytes, stromal interaction molecule 1 (STIM1) acts as the intra-store Ca2+ sensor and Orai1 functions as the Ca2+-permeable SOCE channel activated by STIM1 following store depletion. Two functionally distinct Ca2+ entry pathways exist in skeletal muscle; one activated by store depletion (SOCE) and a second by sustained/repetitive depolarization that does not require store depletion (excitation-coupled Ca2+ entry, ECCE). However, the role of STIM1 and Orai1 in coordinating SOCE and ECCE activity in skeletal muscle and whether these two Ca2+ entry pathways represent distinct molecular entities or two different activation mechanisms of the same channel complex is unknown. Here we address these issues using siRNA-mediated STIM1 knockdown, dominant-negative Orai1, and permeation-defective Orai1 to determine the role of STIM1 and Orai1 in store-operated and excitation-coupled Ca2+ entry in skeletal myotubes. SOCE and ECCE activity were quantified from both intracellular Ca2+ measurements and Mn2+ quench assays. We found that STIM1 siRNA reduced STIM1 protein by more than 90% and abolished SOCE activity, while expression of siRNA-resistant hSTIM1 fully restored SOCE. SOCE was also abolished by dominant-negative Orai1 (E106Q) and markedly reduced by expression of a permeation-defective Orai1 (E190Q). In contrast, ECCE was unaffected by STIM1 knockdown, E106Q expression or E190Q expression. These results are the first to demonstrate that SOCE in skeletal muscle requires both STIM1 and Orai1 and that SOCE and ECCE represent two distinct molecular entities.
Orientation-based differential geometric representations for computer vision applications

Orientation-based representations (OBR's) have many advantages. Three orientation-based differential geometric representations in computer vision literature are critically examined. The three representations are the extended Gaussian image (EGI), the support-function-based representation (SFBR), and the generalized Gaussian image (GGI). The scope of unique representation, invariant properties from matching considerations, computation and storage requirements, and relations between the three representations are analyzed. A constructive proof of the uniqueness of the SFBR for smooth surfaces is given. It is shown that an OBR using any combination of locally defined descriptors is insufficient to uniquely characterize a surface. It must contain either global descriptors or ordering information to uniquely characterize a surface. The GGI as it was originally introduced requires the recording of one principle vector. It is shown in this paper that this is unnecessary. This reduces the storage requirement of a GGI, therefore making it a more attractive representation. The key ideas of the GGI are to represent the multiple folds of a Gaussian image separately; the use of linked data structures to preserve ordering at all levels and between the folds; and the indexing of the data structures by the unit normal. It extends the EGI approach to a much wider range of applications. >
Planning and execution of straight line manipulator trajectories

Recently developed manipulator control languages typically specify motions as sequences of points through which a tool affixed to the end of the manipulator is to pass. The effectiveness of such motion specification formalisms is greatly increased if the tool moves in a straight line between the user-specified points. This paper describes two methods for achieving such straight line motions. The first method is a refinement of one developed in 1974 by R. Paul. Intermediate points are interpolated along the Cartesian straight line path at regular intervals during the motion, and the manipulator's kinematic equations are solved to produce the corresponding intermediate joint parameter values. The path interpolation functions developed here offer several advantages, including less computational cost and improved motion characteristics. The second method uses a motion planning phase to precompute enough intermediate points so that the manipulator may be driven by interpolation of joint parameter values while keeping the tool on an approximately straight line path. This technique allows a substantial reduction in real time computation and permits problems arising from degenerate joint alignments to be handled more easily. The planning is done by an efficient recursive algorithm which generates only enough intermediate points to guarantee that the tool's deviation from a straight line path stays within prespecified error bounds.
Oral and Nasal Airway Screening by the Dentist

The dentist is well positioned to screen for patients at risk for a sleep disorder. When adequately trained, a dentist can use an oral appliance to treat patients diagnosed with sleep apnea. This requires some degree of awareness through training to be able to recognize the symptoms related to the more common sleep disorders. Regardless of whether the dentist intents to treat a possible sleep disorder, the dentist needs to obtain a health history to determine if the patient is at risk for some type of sleep disorder. Because a patient’s overall health may be affected by his or her oral health, the role of the dentist in managing medical conditions is expanding rapidly. This trend is evident in the literature, especially in connection with increased risk for cardiovascular disease in those individuals with periodontal disease. 1 Here, a direct link has been recognized that compels the practicing dentist
Academic Giftedness and Alcohol Use in Early Adolescence

Adolescence is a period of development particularly vulnerable to the effects of alcohol use, with recent studies underscoring alcohol's effects on adolescent brain development. Despite the alarming rates and consequences of adolescent alcohol use, gifted adolescents are often overlooked as being at risk for early alcohol use. Although gifted adolescents may possess protective factors that likely inhibit the use of alcohol, some gifted youth may be vulnerable to initiating alcohol use during adolescence as experimenting with alcohol may be one way gifted youth choose to compensate for the social price (whether real or perceived) of their academic talents. To address the dearth of research on alcohol use among gifted adolescents the current study (a) examined the extent to which gifted adolescents use alcohol relative to their nongifted peers and (b) examined the adjustment profile of gifted adolescents who had tried alcohol relative to nongifted adolescents who tried alcohol as well as gifted and nongifted abstainers. More than 300 students in seventh grade (42.5% gifted) participated in the present study. Results indicated gifted students have, in fact, tried alcohol at rates that do not differ from nongifted students. Although trying alcohol was generally associated with negative adjustment, giftedness served as a moderating factor such that gifted students who had tried alcohol were less at risk than their nongifted peers. However, evidence also suggests that gifted adolescents who tried alcohol may be a part of a peer context that promotes substance use, which may place these youth at risk for adjustment difficulties in the future.
Comparison of digital subtraction arteriography and conventional film screen subtraction arteriography for neuroradiology.

Sixty-nine patients with 91 separate abnormal findings were studied by both intra-arterial digital subtraction arteriography (ADSA) and conventional film screen subtraction arteriography (CFSA) in the same projection, with the same magnification. Digital subtraction arteriography has distinct advantages over CFSA in the form of reduced contrast utilization, better patient tolerance of arteriography because of reduced contrast concentration, superior contrast resolution, and rapid, on-line visualization of the abnormalities. Digital subtraction arteriography is limited by its availability in only a single plane, by decreased spatial resolution which affected the image quality for intracranial blood vessels at an image intensifier (I.I.) field of 12 inches, and by relatively limited field of view both intracranially and extracranially for I. I. fields of 6 and 9 inches.
Partitioning of Chi-Square, Analysis of Marginal Contingency Tables, and Estimation of Expected Frequencies in Multidimensional Contingency Tables

Abstract A step-by-step method is presented herein for partitioning a certain kind of hypothesis H about the m-way contingency table into (a) a series of hypotheses about marginal tables formed from the m-way table by ignoring one or more of table's m dimensions; and (b) a hypothesis about independence, conditional independence, or conditional equiprobability in the m-way table. This step-by-step method facilitates both the testing of H and the calculation of , the estimated expected frequencies in the m-way table under H. The method introduced herein for calculating is easier to apply than the usual iterative-scaling method in many cases.
Experimental study of ILU preconditioners for indefinite matrices

Incomplete LU factorization preconditioners have been surprisingly successful for many cases of general nonsymmetric and indefinite matrices. However, their failure rate is still too high for them to be useful as black-box library software for general matrices. Besides fatal breakdowns due to zero pivots, the major causes of failure are inaccuracy, and instability of the triangular solves. When there are small pivots, both these problems can occur, but these problems can also occur without small pivots. Through examples from actual problems, this paper shows how these problems evince themselves, how these problems can be detected, and how these problems can sometimes be circumvented through pivoting, reordering, scaling, perturbing diagonal elements, and preserving symmetric structure. The goal of this paper is to gain a better practical understanding of ILU preconditioners and help improve their reliability.
From abrasive size to subsurface damage in grinding

How can subsurface damage be estimated from knowledge of the abrasive size used in a variety of grinding operations, using different process parameters in grinding diofferent optical materials (glasses and ceramics)? We are examining whether the size of abrasive used can provide such an estimate.
ATTRIBUTION OF POWER AND STATUS IN A RELIGIOUS NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION

Katz and Kahn (1978) argue that within any organization the dimensions of power and status exist. These two constructs were studied in the context of a vegetarian restaurant and health food store, a nonprofit organization with a religious base. The organization consisted of eight members: director, manager, supervisor and five workers. ALL erght members were asked to identify the one person in the organization who had the most power and the most status. The three top officials (director, manager, supervisor) were mentioned. The reasons given for such attributions were those persons' position, experience, and religious commitment. It was reasoned, then, that this group of high-power, high-status individuals would receive significantly higher scores on measures of power and status than the remaining group with low power and low status. The Allport-Vernon-Lindzey (1960) Study of Values was administered to all members in the organization. The scale consists of six values: Theoretical, Economic, Aesthetic, Social, Political, and Religious. Power was measured by the Political value (high scores suggest a strong interest in power and influence). Status was measured by the Religious value (high scores suggest strong religious commitment). A 2 x 6 analysis of variance indicated a main effect for values (F,,,, = 49.68, p < .01). A post hoc Newman-Keuls analysis showed the means of the Social value (M = 46.81, SD = 4.36) and the Religious value (M = 52.62, SD = 3.29) were significantly higher than the means for the remaining four values. The mean and standard deviations for these values were: Theoretical (M = 36.12, SD = 3.481, Economic (M = 37.12, SD = 2.531, Aesthetic (M = 37.25, SD = 2.37), Political (M = 38.93, SD = 2.39). It was concluded that, as a group, the high-power, high-status individuals were not considered necessarily more powerful than other members in the organization. They were, however, perceived to be more religiously committed. Further study with a much larger sample is recommended.
Convergence of nested classical iterative methods for linear systems

Classical iterative methods for the solution of algebraic linear systems of equations proceed by solving at each step a simpler system of equations. When this system is itself solved by an (inner) iterative method, the global method is called a two-stage iterative method. If this process is repeated, then the resulting method is called a nested iterative method. We study the convergence of such methods and present conditions on the splittings corresponding to the iterative methods to guarantee convergence forany number of inner iterations. We also show that under the conditions presented, the spectral radii of the global iteration matrices decrease when the number of inner iterations increases. The proof uses a new comparison theorem for weak regular splittings. We extend our results to larger classes of iterative methods, which include iterative block Gauss-Seidel. We develop a theory for the concatenation of such iterative methods. This concatenation appears when different numbers of inner interations are performed at each outer step. We also analyze block methods, where different numbers of inner iterations are performed for different diagonal blocks.
Diffusion, Solubility, and Electrical Properties of Copper in Indium Antimonide

Radiotracer and sheet resistivity measurements show four distinct mechanisms of the diffusion of Cu in InSb: (A) Rapid diffusion as an interstitial atom with a diffusion coefficient of approximately ${10}^{\ensuremath{-}5}$ ${\mathrm{cm}}^{2}$/sec. No electrical activity of interstitial Cu is observed. (B) Dissociative diffusion due to reaction of interstitial Cu with vacancies diffusing in from the surface. This process has an activation energy of 1.08\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.08 eV and a ${D}_{0}$ between ${10}^{\ensuremath{-}4}$ and ${10}^{\ensuremath{-}3}$ ${\mathrm{cm}}^{2}$/sec. (C) Diffusion due to reaction of interstitial Cu with vacancies inherited in dislocation-free crystals during growth. It is possible to free low-dislocation density crystals from such vacancies by a low-temperature heat treatment. The reaction of vacancy aggregates with diffusing interstitial Cu is analyzed as an example of a mechanism which explains the observed behavior. (D) The diffusion due to interstitial Cu reacting with vacancies supplied through dislocations. Diffusion in crystals containing ${10}^{5}$ dislocations ${\mathrm{cm}}^{\ensuremath{-}2}$ is 5 orders of magnitude faster than in dislocation-free and annealed InSb crystals. The solubility of substitutional Cu in InSb is expressed by the relation ${C}_{s}(T)=1.5\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{22}\mathrm{exp}(\ensuremath{-}\frac{0.76}{\mathrm{kT}})$. The solubility of interstitial Cu is approximately 50 times lower. From the Cu-labeling technique suggested by mechanism (C), the equilibrium In-vacancy concentration at the melting point is estimated to be 1.0\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{16}$ ${\mathrm{cm}}^{\ensuremath{-}3}$, corresponding to an activation energy of 1.0 eV. The activation energy for the self-diffusion of indium in InSb is calculated to be 1.84\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.14 eV, in excellent agreement with Eisen and Birchenall's measured value of 1.81\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.25 eV. However, the diffusion coefficients calculated are one order of magnitude lower than their measured values, presumably because they were measured in high-dislocation density material.
Discriminants of Polynomials Related to Chebyshev Polynomials: The 'Mutt and Jeff' Syndrome

Abstract The discriminants of certain polynomials related to Chebyshev polynomials factor into the product of two polynomials, one of which has coefficients that are much larger than the otherʼs. Remarkably, these polynomials of dissimilar size have “almost” the same roots, and their discriminants involve exactly the same prime factors.
Experimental study of non-circular concrete elements actively confined with shape memory alloy wires

This study focuses on developing a novel scheme for applying external active confinement to non-circular concrete elements that lack ductility using shape memory alloys (SMAs). A total of 13 concrete elements (prisms) are tested under monotonic and cyclic uniaxial compression load. The compressive stress–strain relationships of the SMA confined concrete elements are examined and compared with the behaviors of elements confined with conventional glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) jackets. The results clearly show a significant improvement in the ultimate strain and residual (post-peak) strength of concrete elements actively confined with SMA compared to that of GFRP confined elements.
CMOS: a compressive sensing based template for high-resolution multi-heterodyne optical spectroscopy

We perform numerical study of Compressive Multi-heterodyne Optical Spectroscopy [CMOS], which is based on multiple heterodyne measurements using a dynamically encoded frequency comb. Compressive sensing enables us to utilize sparsity in typical optical spectra of interest to reduce the number of heterodyne measurements. Numerical results are presented to demonstrate retrieval of coherent and incoherent sparse hypothetical Lorentzian spectra over a 42 nmwide bandwidth, sampled every 100 MHz (~0.2 pm), by using as few as 25% measurements.
Regulation of c-myb expression in ML-1 human myeloblastic leukemia cells by c-ets-1 protein

C-myb and c-ets-1 have variously been demonstrated to function as protooncogenes. Using a human leukemic cell line, ML-1, we have examined the mechanism by which these genes participate in establishing the sustained proliferation mode that is characteristic of the transformed cell. In the absence of serum, ML-1 cells were found to require IGF-1 and transferrin (TF) for growth and TGF-beta or TNF-alpha plus TF for differentiation. Upon administration of the growth factors, c-myb expression increased within 60 min, whereas after addition of the differentiation factors c-myb expression ceased completely within 3 hr. A correlation was found to exist between the level of c-ets-1 protein in the cells, the extent to which that protein is bound to intron I of the myb gene and the amount of c-myb mRNA that is expressed. Upon administration of growth factors, a sizable increase in the intracellular, and particularly, in the intranuclear level of c-ets-1 protein was observed, whereas a pronounced decrease in the level of this protein occurred after exposure to the differentiation factors. These data demonstrated that the level at which an oncogene-specified transcription factor is expressed can affect the expression of other target oncogenes involved in the regulation of cell proliferation. Stimulated expression of such transcription factor can then lead to the continuous proliferation cycle characteristic of the cancer cell.
The super KP origin of the super W1+∞ algebra and its topological version

The integrable KP hierarchy via its hamiltonian structures is known to incorporate all known extended conformal W-algebras. In this paper, we discuss the appropriate supersymmetric generalization of it. We obtain the (first) hamiltonian structure of super KP hierarchy based on the even super KP operator Λ = θ2 + Σi = 0∞Uiθ−i−1. It naturally generates a super W1+∞ algebra whose bosonic sector is identified with W1+∞⊗W1+∞. We show that a subalgebra of it turns out to be isomorphic to the known N = 2 super W∞ algebra without center. Moreover, we find that a twisted version of super W1+∞ gives rise to a topological-anti-topological W1+∞ algebra containing simultaneously two BRST operators. Our results not only provide a promising framework of studying 2d quantum supergravity and non-critical superstrings, but also open a channel towards constructing more interesting topological field theories.
Analysis of the Reactivities of Protein C-H Bonds to H Atom Abstraction by OH Radical

Ab initio and density functional theory calculations are used to monitor the process wherein a OH· radical is allowed to approach the various CH groups of a Leu dipeptide, with its CH(2)CH(CH(3))(2) side chain. After forming an encounter complex, the OH· abstracts the pertinent H atom, and the resulting HOH is then dissociated from the complex. The energy barriers for H· abstraction from the β, γ, and δ CH groups are all less than 8 kcal/mol, but a significantly higher barrier is computed for the C(α)H removal. This higher barrier is the result of the strong H-bonds formed in the encounter complex between the OH· and the NH and C═O groups of the peptide units that surround the C(α) atom. This low-energy complex represents a kinetic trap which raises the energy needed to surmount the ensuing H· transfer barrier.