cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Mixed-mode traction-separation relations between graphene and copper by blister tests

Abstract A blister test with associated analysis was developed to characterize the traction-separation relations associated with interactions between graphene and a copper substrate to which it had been transferred. Graphene grown by chemical vapor deposition was backed by a photoresist film and transferred to a highly polished copper substrate from its seed copper foil. The graphene/photoresist composite film was then pressurized with deionized water through a hole in the substrate. The blister profiles and normal crack opening displacements (NCOD) were measured by two microscopes with synchronized cameras. Different mixed-mode conditions were achieved by varying the thickness of the backing layers. The measured adhesion energy for the graphene/copper and photoresist/copper interfaces showed a strong dependence on the mode-mix. Cohesive zone models associated with traction-separation relations were then developed to study the damage initiation and crack propagation under various mixed-mode conditions. The numerical solutions for the resistance curves, pressure vs. deflection, and NCOD were in good agreement with measurements. The cohesive zone model was extended to a wider range of mode-mixes by making use of the asperity locking model which had provided a mechanism for the observed toughening effect. The interactions between graphene and copper were found to be stronger in all respects than those associated with photoresist and copper. Because the monolayer graphene was sandwiched between photoresist and copper, this result suggests that graphene was not transparent to interactions between photoresist and copper, but opaque. The use of pressure could provide another approach to transfer large-scale graphene.
Multi-Objective Optimization of Tip Tracking Control Using LMI

This paper presented multi-objective optimization of tip tracking control for non-collocated flexible beam. The desired trajectory is specified at the tip displacement of the flexible structure, which undergoes translation base motion actuated by a linear motor. The system model is first formulated from modal truncation approach for the flexible structure representing a single Cartesian robot manipulator. The linear system model of the flexible structure always has structural uncertainties. Robust stability and robust performance on tip tracking can be expressed as H2 /H∞ norm constraints, which are converted into the Linear Matrix Inequality (LMI). The multi-objective controller design is solved by the convex minimization. In order to reduce the conservatism generated when the same Lyapunov matrix is selected, the Lyapunov matrix is scaled for different norm constraints. Simulation results have demonstrated favorable tip tracking of the proposed robust controller.Copyright © 2005 by ASME
Cecchi's Assiuolo: A Creative Imitation of the Old and a Telling Reflection of Contemporary Realities

The present essay is part of a larger project (a book) that argues that creative literary imitation, though based on old material, can lead to an original work of art and be a reflection of contemporary realities. Its central argument is that Cecchi, in imitating characters and plot elements from Plautus, Boccaccio, and Machiavelli, managed to produce a truly original play and bring on stage a reflection of his own world. The play's amator senex Ambrogio, for instance, thinks and acts in ways reminiscent of Plautus' Lysidamus, Boccaccio's Arriguccio, and Machiavelli's Nicia and Nicomaco. Yet, he resembles none of them in particular. For the spectators, his many flaws not only distinguished him from his source counterparts, but also make him a telling satire of unnatural marriages between old men and young women. The same may be said of his adulterous wife, whose unrestraint morals set her apart from her predecessors and, at the same time, contributed to the representation of a world totally different from...
A Photoelectron Spectroscopic and Theoretical Study of B16− and B162−: An All-Boron Naphthalene

The structure and chemical bonding of B16− were studied using ab initio calculations and photoelectron spectroscopy. Its global minimum is found to be a quasi-planar and elongated structure (C2h). Addition of an electron to B16− resulted in a perfectly planar and closed shell B162− (D2h), which is shown to possess 10 π electrons with a π-bonding pattern similar to that of naphthalene and can thus be considered as an “all-boron naphthalene”, a new member in the growing family of hydrocarbon analogues of boron clusters.
An American Atrocity: The My Lai Massacre Concretized in a Victim's Face

Few military operations have been documented as thoroughly as the My Lai massacre during the Vietnam War. Documents from army investigations and congressional hear ings, court-martial transcripts, articles, books, and documentaries?all based on inter views with the soldiers who perpetrated it and the villagers who survived it?detail how American soldiers murdered more than 500 unarmed women, children, and old men on March 16, 1968.2 It might have been the most forgotten operation. The officers of Charlie Company and their superiors in the Americal Division covered up the massacre, and it would have remained buried, except for Spec. Ron Ridenhour, who learned of the event from friends who participated. After his discharge from the army, Ridenhour reported the killings in a letter to President Richard M. Nixon, several senators and representatives, and Pentagon officials in March 1969. He quoted one sergeant who said, "They were slaughtering the villagers like so many sheep."3 Despite Ridenhour's letter and the investigations it launched, the massacre would probably have made little public impact, had it not been for photographs taken by Sgt. Ron Haeberle. (On that same day another company massacred at least ninety women and children a mile away in My Khe?an atrocity few have heard of.) The publication of Haeberle's photos in Life and Time magazines in late November and early December 1969 propelled the story to national and international attention.4
EFFECTS OF MEASUREMENT ERROR ON LONG-TERM WAVE STATISTICS

The effect of sample size on confidence band in predicting the extreme wave height is related to the return period and the duration of the sample record length. An estimate of errors resulting from various methods of data acquisition is given. The uncertainties corresponding to various number of years of observation and various measurement errors are analyzed for various return intervals. It is shown that data accuracy and record length are equally important in long term wave predictions. At the present time, the determination of extreme event benefits more from relatively less accurate long-term hindcast calculation rather than short-term high quality measurements. In the long run, a long-term accurate measurement program is imperative if more definite descriptions of extreme events are sought.
Creative Destruction: Evidence From Initial Public Offerings

Joseph Schumpeter coined the term “creative destruction” to characterize the impact of innovation on existing organizations. According to this perspective, creative destruction is driven by a firm’...
Serological Response in Chickens to Beta-Propiolactone Treated Newcastle Disease Virus

Summary1. A vaccine made by treating Newcastle disease virus wtih 0.025% beta-propiolactone was found not to be infectious to the chicken, its natural host. 2. The sera from chickens receiving the vaccine were found to contain protective antibodies 16 days following vaccination. 3. Paired sera collected before and after vaccination showed a marked rise in hemagglutination inhibition and neutralizing antibodies.
Nonlinear, finite deformation, finite element analysis

The roles of the consistent Jacobian matrix and the material tangent moduli, which are used in nonlinear incremental finite deformation mechanics problems solved using the finite element method, are emphasized in this paper, and demonstrated using the commercial software ABAQUS standard. In doing so, the necessity for correctly employing user material subroutines to solve nonlinear problems involving large deformation and/or large rotation is clarified. Starting with the rate form of the principle of virtual work, the derivations of the material tangent moduli, the consistent Jacobian matrix, the stress/strain measures, and the objective stress rates are discussed and clarified. The difference between the consistent Jacobian matrix (which, in the ABAQUS UMAT user material subroutine is referred to as DDSDDE) and the material tangent moduli (Ce) needed for the stress update is pointed out and emphasized in this paper. While the former is derived based on the Jaumann rate of the Kirchhoff stress, the latter is derived using the Jaumann rate of the Cauchy stress. Understanding the difference between these two objective stress rates is crucial for correctly implementing a constitutive model, especially a rate form constitutive relation, and for ensuring fast convergence. Specifically, the implementation requires the stresses to be updated correctly. For this, the strains must be computed directly from the deformation gradient and corresponding strain measure (for a total form model). Alternatively, the material tangent moduli derived from the corresponding Jaumann rate of the Cauchy stress of the constitutive relation (for a rate form model) should be used. Given that this requirement is satisfied, the consistent Jacobian matrix only influences the rate of convergence. Its derivation should be based on the Jaumann rate of the Kirchhoff stress to ensure fast convergence; however, the use of a different objective stress rate may also be possible. The error associated with energy conservation and work-conjugacy due to the use of the Jaumann objective stress rate in ABAQUS nonlinear incremental analysis is viewed as a consequence of the implementation of a constitutive model that violates these requirements.
Clinical trials in the natural environment

In the last 40 years there has been a radical change in the ways of obtaining information about therapeutic agents that are considered valid by the scientific establishment and by national regulatory authorities. We have witnessed the ascendancy of the randomized, double-blind, controlled clinical trial (RCCT), to the point where many in positions of authority now believe that data obtained via this technique should constitute the only basis for registering a drug, or indeed for coming to any conclusions about its efficacy at any time in the drug’s career. My thesis is that this viewpoint is untenable, needlessly rigid, unrealistic, and at times unethical.
Correlates of Physical Activity Differ by Sex and Country of Birth Among Mexican-Heritage Youth.

Barriers to physical activity (PA) may be experienced differently by sex and country of birth. We examine psychosocial correlates of PA in four groups based on sex (boy/girl) and country of birth [Mexico/United States (U.S.)]. 1154 Mexican heritage adolescents residing in Houston, Texas provided psychosocial data in 2008-09 and PA (number of days per week active for at least 60 min) in 2010-11 (N = 1001). Poisson regression models were fitted for each groups. Among boys, English language preference (p US-born = 0.045, p Mexico-born = 0.008) and higher subjective social status (p US-born = 0.002, p Mexico-born = 0.031) were associated with increased PA. Body image dissatisfaction was associated with decreased PA in Mexico-born girls (p = 0.007). Sensation-seeking tendencies were associated with increased PA among all groups; anxiety was associated with decreased PA among all but U.S.-born boys. Tailoring PA interventions to key sex-specific psychosocial correlates rather than country of birth may enhance efficacy of interventions to increase PA levels among Mexican heritage adolescents.
Magic Tales in Medieval Christian Europe

A vast variety of stories circulated in the Christian Middle Ages. Their differing casts of characters reflected Europe’s mix of Celtic, Germanic, Latin, and Slavic ethnic groups and its pagan and Christian religious cultures. Story plots communicate peasant, mercantile, courtly, and cloistered social environments, as well as rural and urban communities, narrative riches that were further expanded by importations from Byzantium, and from West, East, and South Asian cultures. There were stories for every taste: bawdy tales of lust and low humor, chaste allegories of hot desire thwarted and heavenly reward conferred. Miraculous intervention saved sinners and routed the devil; chivalric epics eased slow hours at court; and prankish urban tales and abbreviated romances of knightly valor amused literate city dwellers along with less lettered contemporaries, at home and on the road.
Value of Procalcitonin Measurement for Early Evidence of Severe Bacterial Infections in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit.

Objectives To determine whether peak blood procalcitonin (PCT) measured within 48 hours of pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) admission can differentiate severe bacterial infections from sterile inflammation and viral infection and identify potential subgroups of PICU patients for whom PCT may not have clinical utility. Study design This was a retrospective, observational study of 646 critically ill children who had PCT measured within 48 hours of admission to an urban, academic PICU. Patients were stratified into 6 categories by infection status. We compared test characteristics for peak PCT, C-reactive protein (CRP), white blood cell count (WBC), absolute neutrophil count (ANC), and % immature neutrophils. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was determined for each biomarker to discriminate bacterial infection. Results The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was similar for PCT (0.73, 95% CI 0.69, 0.77) and CRP (0.75, 95% CI 0.71, 0.79; P = .36), but both outperformed WBC, ANC, and % immature neutrophils ( P Conclusions Peak blood PCT measured close to PICU admission was not superior to CRP in differentiating severe bacterial infection from viral illness and sterile inflammation; both PCT and CRP outperformed WBC, ANC, and % immature neutrophils. PCT appeared especially prone to inaccuracies in detecting localized bacterial central nervous system infections or bacterial coinfection in acute viral illness causing respiratory failure.
Correcting Biased Cohen’s Kappa in NVivo

ABSTRACTThis study demonstrates that NVivo, a popular research tool for content analysis, produces biased Cohen’s kappa as it calculates the reliability statistic at the character level, which is unsuitable for most content-analytic studies adopting a higher unit of analysis (e.g., sentence, paragraph). Based on empirical data and a statistical simulation, this study proposes a method of bias correction applicable to situations where two independent raters conduct binary coding.
One thousand two hundred sixty motifs: getting students to draw when they think they can't draw

The course is a 6 hour studio, designed to introduce students to “foundational design concepts and methods representative of the creative thought and processes of fashion and textile design disciplines.” In brief the assignment was to select 5 themes, and draw 3 objects from each theme, each in 5 different styles. The result would be a collection of 60 drawings from each student, each of which could potentially be used as a design motif in a textile print or as a garment design embellishment.
Mapping Medley: Adaptive Parallelism Mapping with Varying Optimization Goals

In modern day computing, the performance of parallel programs is bound by the dynamic execution context that includes inherent program behavior, resource requirements, co-scheduled programs sharing the system resources, hardware failures and input data. Besides this dynamic context, the optimization goals are increasingly becoming multi-objective and dynamic such as minimizing execution time while maximizing energy efficiency. Efficiently mapping the parallel threads on to the hardware cores is crucial to achieve these goals. This paper proposes a novel approach to judiciously map parallel programs to hardware in dynamic contexts and goals. It uses a simple, yet novel technique by collecting a set of mapping policies to determine best number of threads that are optimal for specific contexts. It then binds threads to cores for increased affinity. Besides, this approach also determines the optimal DVFS levels for these cores to achieve higher energy efficiency. On extensive evaluation with state-of-art techniques, this scheme outperforms them in the range 1.08x up to 1.21x and 1.39x over OpenMP default.
Using consumer-grade wearables and novel measures of sleep and activity to analyze changes in behavioral health during an 8-month simulated Mars mission

Abstract For analyzing changes in an individual's health over time, this research has developed objective measures for comparing behavioral patterns, including sleep quality and activity scores. These novel measures of behavioral health have provided insight about how sleep debt accumulates after long, extended days, how sleep disruption and recovery from wakefulness occur during the night, and when cross-correlations exist between measures. This data-driven approach to quantifying behavioral patterns is informed by minute-by-minute data from consumer-grade, wrist-worn wearables. In this 8-month longitudinal study, Jawbone UP wristbands and the Jawbone UP API were utilized to collect minute-by-minute data about the behavior of crewmembers participating in a simulated Mars mission. To study the challenges of living and working on the planet Mars, for eight months, these crewmembers were confined to a Mars-like habitat, living in close quarters, isolated from the rest of humanity at a high elevation on Mauna Loa volcano in Hawaii, wearing mock spacesuits while exploring the volcanic terrain, consuming shelf-stable foods, restricted in water usage, relying on solar energy, and delayed in communications with 20-min lag-times for delivering messages to and from the crew. Analyzing the behavior of these astronaut-like individuals has led to the development of objective measures for quantifying sleep patterns, that have potential for contributing to the development of next-generation, smart wearables.
Localization of spermatozoa inside viviparous and oviparous females of Chrysomelinae

Females of Chrysomelinae release their offspring in two different ways. The most frequent is the laying of eggs or oviparity. Less common is direct production of larvae or viviparity. Many females are using an intermediary way to reproduce: they lay eggs containing more or less developed embryos. For that reason, I have proposed to call ‘viviparous’ the females whose embryos accomplish at least a part of their development inside their mother’s body (Bontems 1981, 1985).
Body Contouring with Tumescent Liposuction

Liposuction is the aesthetic removal of undesirable, localized collections of subcutaneous adipose tissue.1 An individual may be near his or her ideal body weight, yet still have disproportionate, localized adipose deposition. Such a patient is an ideal candidate for tumescent liposuction. This technique of infiltrating large volumes of dilute lidocaine and epinephrine obviated the need for general anesthesia, virtually eliminated the need for blood transfusions, and decreased patient recovery time.2–4 Lidocaine toxicity is the most significant factor that limits the amount of anesthesia used in tumescent liposuction. Using the tumescent technique, lidocaine dosages up to 55 mg/kg can be used with minimal risk of lidocaine toxicity.5
Phase I study of paclitaxel administered by ten-day continuous infusion

Purpose: Pre-clinical data have suggested that prolonged exposure to paclitaxel enhances its cytotoxicity, but various clinical trials utilizing long-term infusions of paclitaxel have been limited by unacceptable hematologic toxicity, most notably significant neutropenia. A phase I study of paclitaxel administered over 10 days, was performed to evaluate the hematologic and non-hematologic toxicities as well as to determine the maximum-tolerated dose for the 10-day infusion duration.
Effect of light on seed germination in Phalaris arundinacea L. (reed canary grass)

Phalaris arundinacea is an invasive species in someregions of North America. The literature on how the light environment affectsseed germination in Phalaris arundinacea is contradictory,and clarification is necessary for understanding its mechanisms of invasion. Inour trials, germination was photoperiod insensitive in the range of 12 to 16hours. Highest germination percentages (up to 80) were obtained under whitelight and red light (11.0 ) and up to 40 with high red: far-red ratios.Virtually no germination occurred in the dark. Our results are not consistentwith early reports that P. arundinacea germinationoccurredin the dark and was light insensitive, but they are consistent with a recentreport that it does not germinate in the dark and our own field and greenhouseobservations.
Tips on Maintaining an Effective Lab Notebook for Bench Research

Efficient and organized data storage is an essential aspect of bench research and helps to maintain the integrity of the laboratory. Such processes allow investigators to report scientific data with confidence, accuracy, and transparency. The recording of experimental techniques and protocols also facilitate experimental reproducibility. These elements of scientific record maintenance are key requirements of academic institutions as well as federal funding agencies that support the work. In the modern era, paper laboratory books cannot keep up with the varied forms and volumes of data that can be generated with current investigative tools. The integration of electronic data storage into the laboratory record-keeping process enables investigators to catalog all the complex information derived from scientific investigations. It also allows for accessibility for collaboration. Regardless of the type of laboratory notebook, detail, accountability, and transparency are key elements of maintenance and require diligence on the part of the investigator to consistently achieve these goals.
Biochemical Studies of Tay-Sachs Disease

Tay-Sachs disease (GM2-gangliosidosis) is one of the most common ganglioside storage diseases characterized by the accumulation of a large amount of GM2 ganglioside (Tay-Sachs ganglioside) in the neural tissues. The catabolism of this ganglioside has been a subject of interest to many investigators. In 1968, Robinson and Stirling described the presence of two β-hexosaminadase isozymes (β-hexosaminadase A and B) in human spleen. Soon thereafter, Okada and O’Brien (1969), Hultberg (1969), and Sandhoff (1969) found that the tissues of classical Tay-Sachs patients were missing in β-hexosaminadase A iszyme. These two findings constitute the two most important events in elucidating the etiology of Tay-Sachs disease. So far, three biochemically distinct types of GM2-gangliosidosis have been described (O’Brien, 1978). Type-B (classical Tay-Sachs disease) has been established to be caused by the deficiency of β-hexosaminadase A, and Type-O (Sandhoff’s disease), by the deficiency of both β-hexosaminadase A and B. Type-AB (late infantile or juvenile GM2-gangliosidosis) is characterized by the presence of a normal or elevated level of both β-hexosaminadase isozymes in the tissues of patients using synthetic substrates such as p-nitrophenyl-β-N-acetylglucosaminide.
VIBRATION AND ACOUSTIC RESPONSE OF HIGH-SPEED MECHANISMS DUE TO IMPACTS IN THE CLEARANCES

ABSTRACT A primary cause of vibration and noise radiation in high-speed mechanical systems is the impact forces resulting from backlash in the clearances of the revolute joints. As a first step in the modeling of the vibration and sound response of a mechanism, a nondimensional separation parameter is developed to determine the contact loss between the journal and bearings. ln the next step, the repetitive impact force spectrum is modeled for multiple impacts per revolution. Finally, an expression for sound power radiation from a link is given with a discussion on radiation efficiency of beams.
What measures of program quality tell us about the importance of executive function: implications for teacher education and preparation

In recent years, increased attention has been given to executive function and its relationship to the overall learning and development of young children. Because of this, it is essential that educa...
Ridinilazole for the treatment of Clostridioides difficile infection.

Introduction: Ridinilazole is a novel antibiotic being developed for the treatment of Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI). Ridinilazole has completed two phase II trials and phase III trials w...
Youth Strategies for Positive Bystander Action in Situations of Dating and Sexual Violence: Implications for Measurement and Programming.

Research on bystander behavior in situations of dating violence (DV) and sexual violence (SV) in youth populations is growing; yet, there is a distinct lack of qualitative studies to identify nuanc...
Clinical Evaluation of Alpha Defensin Test Following Staged Treatment of Prosthetic Joint Infections.

Abstract Background Diagnosing persistent infection following staged treatment of prosthetic joint infection (PJI) is challenging. The alpha defensin (AD) test has been shown to be an accurate diagnostic test for the primary diagnosis PJI but has limited evaluation for use following a staged treatment of PJI. The goal of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of AD testing following staged treatment of PJI before reimplantation surgery and to determine if negative AD test predicted success following reimplantation using Delphi Criteria at time of last follow-up. Methods Patients who underwent AD testing prior to reimplantation after staged treatment of PJI (n = 52) were reviewed. Preoperative data (AD result, synovial fluid [SF], C-reactive protein level [mg/L], SF culture, SF white blood cell count, % of polymorphonuclear lymphocytes, serum C-reactive protein/erythrocyte sedimentation rate) and intraoperative data (purulence and tissue culture) were reviewed and used to classify patients using 2018 Musculoskeletal Infectious Disease Society criteria for infection, which was then used as a gold standard test to calculate diagnostic accuracy. Chart review was used to determine if patients who underwent reimplantation surgery would go on to treatment failure as defined by Delphi Criteria. Results The sensitivity and specificity of AD test result as compared with Musculoskeletal Infectious Disease Society criteria in diagnosing PJI was calculated to be 71% and 97.78%. Positive predictive value was calculated to be 83.3%, and negative predictive value was calculated to be 95.65%. Patients who underwent reimplantation (46/52 patients) all had negative AD test results, and 9/46 or 19.5% would have treatment failure as defined by the Delphi Criteria with an average follow-up of 588 days. Conclusion AD demonstrates high specificity and negative predictive value, with low sensitivity when utilized after staged treatment of PJI. Further investigation of this and other diagnostic tests following staged treatment of PJI is needed. Additionally, validated criteria used to identify persistent infection following staged treatment of PJI are required.
Drivers of forest cover changes in the Chocó‐Darien Global Ecoregion of South America

Tropical rain forests are suffering the highest deforestation and reforestation ever recorded. Interactions between direct (proximate or direct causes) and indirect (underling or indirect causes) drivers could cluster these forest cover changes forming hotspots (areas that exhibit significant spatial correlation of deforestation or reforestation transitions). Using land use–land cover maps and global (I) and local (Iᵢ) Moran's tests, we identified these hotspots in the Choco‐Darien Global Ecoregion (CGE) of South America, a natural region that was declared one of the top 25 hotspots for conservation priorities in the world. Subsequently, we tested and studied the effects and interactions between deforestation and reforestation hotspots and their direct and indirect drivers using Bayesian Structural Equation Modeling (Bayesian SEM). We found that deforestation and reforestation were spatially auto‐correlated forming hotspots (I = 0.49, P = 0.001 for deforestation transitions and I = 0.48, P = 0.001 for reforestation transitions). Also, hotspots of deforestation and reforestation were auto‐correlated within municipality borders (I = 0.5, P = 0.001 for deforestation transitions; I = 0.49, P = 0.001 for reforestation transitions). Eighteen municipalities located on the border between Colombia and Ecuador showed significant aggregations of deforestation hotspots, while thirty‐four municipalities in three areas of Colombia and the area between the Colombian and Ecuadorian border showed significant clustering of reforestation hotspots. Eleven of these municipalities presented significant clustering of both reforestation and deforestation hotspots. The Bayesian SEM for deforestation showed that population growth and road density were indirect drivers of deforestation hotspots (0.191 and 0.127 standard deviation units). The Bayesian SEM for reforestation found that armed conflicts, Gross Domestic Product, and average annual rain were indirect drivers related to reforestation hotspots (0.228, 0.076, and 0.081 standard deviation units, respectively). Our assessment shows a novel methodology to study interactions among direct and indirect drivers of forest change and their potential dissimilar effects on forest transitions.
Robust location of hidden interdictions on a shortest path network

We study a version of the shortest path network interdiction problem in which the follower seeks a path of minimum length on a network and the leader seeks to maximize the follower’s path length by...
A Scalable Soft-Switching Photovoltaic Inverter with Cascaded H-Bridge Cells and Galvanic Isolation

Modular converters with stacked cells have a widely-known advantage of achieving higher voltage or current levels by using standard low-voltage or low-current switches. This study presents a galvanically isolated and scalable photovoltaic inverter with stacked output cells. There is no dc link with electrolytic capacitors in this three-phase inverter. Instead, a distributed ac link composed of small ac capacitors and transformer magnetizing inductances is proposed. The transformer core is utilized symmetrically in positive and negative half cycles. Due to non-appearance of a dc link, fast dynamic response is achievable. The ac link provides soft-switching for all switches in the entire load range. The energy stored in transformer winding leakage inductances is fed to the ac capacitors to mitigate switching spikes without using auxiliary snubbing switches. Current and voltage symmetry among the cells is provided naturally. The transformer design is simple because the inverter operation is not affected by unequal winding leakage inductances. An analytical study and design curves are provided to determine the ac link components. Experimental validation verifies the operation of a 750 W prototype.
Directed Growth of Free-StandingSingle-Walled Carbon Nanotubes

However,obtaining SWNTs in aligned orientations perpendicular or parallelto surfaces has not been possible thus far.In this communication, we report the first directed growth ofsingle-walled nanotubes parallel to the plane of a silicon substrate.The SWNTs are suspended bridges grown from catalyst materialplaced on top of regularly patterned silicon tower structures. Thekey synthetic step in our approach involves developing a seriesof liquid-phase catalyst precursor materials. The liquid materialsallow for uniform film formation and large-scale catalyst pat-terning. Contact printing techniques were used to selectivelydeposit catalyst precursor materials on top of the silicon towerarrays. Calcination led to the formation of catalyst particlesconfined on the tower tops and subsequent CVD growth yieldedSWNTs emanating from the towers. Directed free-standing SWNTnetworks were formed by nanotubes growing to adjacent towersand becoming suspended above the surface. Rational design oftower arrangements within our approach could lead to a varietyof directed SWNT architectures.Our growth strategy begins with developing liquid-phasecatalyst precursor materials consisting of three general compo-nents: inorganic chloride precursors, a removable triblockcopolymer serving as the structure-directing agent for thechlorides, and an appropriate alcohol for dissolution of theinorganic and polymer compounds. The block copolymer
Revising the Conceptual Foundations of Attitude Formation in the E-Marketing Era

This paper proposes revisions of four seminal models of how marketing influences attitudes: mood mediation, cognitive response generation, situational parameters, and task mediation. Extensions of each model reflect applications and insights drawn from e-marketing. Additionally, the author integrates the models along key dimensions which are relevant to particular e-marketing issues, and identifies certain challenges to attitude formation research in this setting.
How Small Neighborhood Convenience Store Operators in Ecuador and Mexico View the Growing Presence of Retired Americans

Neighborhood convenience stores (“tiendas de barrio”) have an important role in the national and household economies in Latin America. Open daily, often for as many as 16 h a day, tiendas vary in size but are typically quite small, often with one clerk located near the front of the store to monitor traffic and take payment from customers. Their traditional roles included serving a neighborhood, often selling small quantities of goods to persons who could not afford to buy in bulk, working in partnership with small businesses such as bread bakers or tortilla makers to market fresh products daily, providing credit to clients whose economic circumstances were day-to-day, and serving as neighborhood gathering places.
The special considerations of gene therapy for mitochondrial diseases

The recent success of gene therapy across multiple clinical trials has inspired a great deal of hope regarding the treatment of previously intractable genetic diseases. This optimism has been extended to the prospect of gene therapy for mitochondrial disorders, which are not only particularly severe but also difficult to treat. However, this hope must be tempered by the reality of the mitochondrial organelle, which possesses specific biological properties that complicate genetic manipulation. In this perspective, we will discuss some of these complicating factors, including the unique pathways used to express and import mitochondrial proteins. We will also present some ways in which these challenges can be overcome by genetic manipulation strategies tailored specifically for mitochondrial diseases.
The Role of Psychological Testing in Pre-Surgical Bariatric Evaluations

Psychological testing should play an integral role in the pre-surgical psychological evaluation of bariatric surgery candidates. Generally, such testing involves at least one broad measure of general psychopathology, as well as 2–6 briefer and more specific assessments of depression, anxiety, substance abuse, and cognitive functioning as indicated. Ideally completed prior to the clinical interview, testing allows psychologists to identify key areas for further clinical assessment and evaluate the consistency between test and interview data.
Sparse Roadmap Spanners

Asymptotically optimal planners like prm* guarantee that solutions approach optimal as iterations increase. Roadmaps with this property, however, may grow too large. If optimality is relaxed, asymptotically near-optimal solutions produce sparser graphs by not including all edges. The idea stems from graph spanners, which produce sparse subgraphs that guarantee near-optimal paths. Existing asymptotically optimal and near-optimal planners, however, include all sampled configurations as roadmap nodes, meaning only infinite graphs have the desired properties. This work proposes an approach, called spars, that provides the following asymptotic properties: (a) completeness, (b) near-optimality and (c) the probability of adding nodes to the spanner converges to zero as iterations increase, which suggests that finite-size data structures may exist that have near-optimality properties. The method brings together ideas from various planners but deviates from existing integrations of prm* with graph spanners. Simulations for rigid bodies show that spars indeed provides small roadmaps and results in faster query resolution. The rate of node addition is shown to decrease over time and the quality of solutions is even better than the theoretical bounds.
A Digital Health Intervention for Weight Management for Latino Families Living in Rural Communities: Perspectives and Lessons Learned During Development

Rural residents face numerous challenges in accessing quality health care for management of chronic diseases (eg, obesity, diabetes), including scarcity of health care services and insufficient public transport. Digital health interventions, which include modalities such as internet, smartphones, and monitoring sensors, may help increase rural residents’ access to health care. While digital health interventions have become an increasingly popular intervention strategy to address obesity, research examining the use of technological tools for obesity management among rural Latino populations is limited. In this paper, we share our experience developing a culturally tailored, interactive health intervention using digital technologies for a family-oriented, weight management program in a rural, primarily Latino community. We describe the formative research that guided the development of the intervention, discuss the process of developing the intervention technologies including issues of privacy and data security, examine the results of a pilot study, and share lessons learned. Our experience can help others design user-centered digital health interventions to engage underserved populations in the uptake of healthy lifestyle and disease management skills.
Topology of transition metal dichalcogenides: the case of the core–shell architecture

Non-planar architectures of the traditionally flat 2D materials are emerging as an intriguing paradigm to realize nascent properties within the family of transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs). These non-planar forms encompass a diversity of curvatures, morphologies, and overall 3D architectures that exhibit unusual characteristics across the hierarchy of length-scales. Topology offers an integrated and unified approach to describe, harness, and eventually tailor non-planar architectures through both local and higher order geometry. Topological design of layered materials intrinsically invokes elements highly relevant to property manipulation in TMDs, such as the origin of strain and its accommodation by defects and interfaces, which have broad implications for improved material design. In this review, we discuss the importance and impact of geometry on the structure and properties of TMDs. We present a generalized geometric framework to classify and relate the diversity of possible non-planar TMD forms. We then examine the nature of curvature in the emerging core-shell architecture, which has attracted high interest due to its versatility and design potential. We consider the local structure of curved TMDs, including defect formation, strain, and crystal growth dynamics, and factors affecting the morphology of core-shell structures, such as synthesis conditions and substrate morphology. We conclude by discussing unique aspects of TMD architectures that can be leveraged to engineer targeted, exotic properties and detail how advanced characterization tools enable detection of these features. Varying the topology of nanomaterials has long served as a potent methodology to engineer unusual and exotic properties, and the time is ripe to apply topological design principles to TMDs to drive future nanotechnology innovation.
Phragmoplast navigator needs high IQ.

Polarity cues direct tissue patterning by defining the cell division plane. Proteins containing the IQ67 calmodulin-binding domain govern cell division by establishing and maintaining cell polarity during cytokinesis.
Product Diversification, Adaptive Management, and Climate Change: Farming and Family in the U.S. Corn Belt

A variety of factors shape farmers’ views as they face the rising effects of climate change and consider a range of adaptation strategies to build the resilience of their farming systems. We examine a set of related questions to explore farmers’ perspectives on risks and potential shifts to their operations: (1) Relative to other environmental factors, how salient of a challenge is climate change and climate-related impacts to farmers? (2) Do farmers intend to adapt to climate impacts generally? and (3) What factors shape their use of a specific and underexplored adaptive response—farm product diversification? The data come from a survey of 179 operators within a 30-county region of Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio. The region spans various rural-urban gradients. Respondents generally represent smaller operations (median of 80 acres (32 hectares)). Because our selection methods aimed to over-sample from food-producing farms, 60% of respondents produced some type of food or value-added product, and 40% produced only commodity feedstocks and biofuels. Although the group as a whole indicated only “somewhat” of a concern about changing weather patterns, and half did not anticipate adapting their farming practices to climate change, farmers’ responses to a write-in question denoted regional climate effects as challenges to their farms. Analysis of subgroups among the respondents, according to their views of climate change, adaptation, and further diversifying their agricultural products, distinguished farmers’ family considerations and gender. Methods to elicit subgroups included correlation, regression, cluster analysis and an examination of the many respondents (29%) who indicated uncertainty about adapting practices. Women, who participated in 29% of responses, indicated more concern with changing weather patterns and more openness to adapting farming practices compared to men. Farmers with the most family relationships to consider, and those with the greatest aspirations to employ descendants, were the most receptive to adapting their farming practices. This was the case even when respondents’ concern over climate change was low. Results point to the importance of family relationships as a factor in farmers' openness to implementing adaptive and potentially mitigative actions.
Single-shot omnidirectional Stokes polarimetry using radially polarized light

Measuring the state of polarization of light is critical because it contains information about its source, including radiation, reflection, and any other interactions with matter. However, the traditional method to operate polarimetry relies on knowing the direction of wave propagation. Otherwise, one measures only the projection of the three-dimensional optical field onto the two-dimensional detector. This limitation, however, can be circumvented by using a reference vector field with a non-homogeneous spatial distribution of the state of polarization. Here we demonstrate that a “radially polarized” reference beam offers a simple and robust solution for a single-shot, omnidirectional polarimeter. The technique relies on intensity contrasts measured simultaneously in different orthogonal bases followed by an appropriate Fourier analysis to extract both direction and state of polarization of an incoming beam of light.
Prescribed-Time Stabilization of ODEs with Diffusive Actuator Dynamics

Abstract We study the finite-time stabilization of an ODE plant having diffusive infinite-dimensional actuator dynamics. We follow a predictor-feedback approach relying on time-varying backstepping, where the actuator utilizes time-dependent gains selected to stabilize the actuator dynamics as well as the plant within a finite time which can be prescribed independently of the system’s initial conditions. As the attenuative actuator dynamics cascade into the ODE, the time-varying feedback gains result in cascading backstepping kernel PDEs. We utilize differential flatness of the kernel PDE as well as the method of successive approximations in order to recover these kernels.
Fruit and Seed

The fruit of Poaceae is a caryopsis, in which the seed coat is firmly attached to the inner wall of the ovary. This structure is uniquely derived in the family. Within this general category, however, there is variation in the structure of the pericarp and the ultimate fate of the integuments and nucellus; in particular the inner integument of the ovule, which generally constitutes the seed coat, may be intact or crushed at maturity. Only a few taxa have been studied in detail, and these are so widely scattered taxonomically that the data appear somewhat anecdotal; a broader survey would help clarify the generality of the observations.
The effectiveness of a concussion-u educational presentation on knowledge and attitudes of concussion amongst elite bantam and midget hockey players

Background: The diagnosis of a concussion is often dependent on the athlete self-reporting their symptoms. It has been suggested that improving athlete’s knowledge and attitudes towards concussions may increase self-reporting behavior; however, research in this area is inconclusive. The objective of this study is to determine if a Concussion-U educational presentation improves knowledge and attitudes of youth hockey players towards concussions. This is part of a larger study designed to determine the impact of an informational presentation on the knowledge and attitudes over a full hockey season. Methods: 56 elite male Bantam and Midget hockey players (mean age=14.52±1.13 years) were recruited from the local community. Each participant completed a modified version of Rosenbaum and Arnett’s Concussion Knowledge and Attitudes Survey (RoCKAS) questionnaire immediately before and after a Concussion-U educational presentation on the subject. Results: Concussion knowledge and attitude scores significantly (p<.001) increased from pre-presentation to post-presentation by 13.1% and 8.7%, respectively. Discussion: A Concussion-U educational presentation designed to improve concussion knowledge and attitudes in youth hockey players resulted in increased knowledge and improved attitudes towards concussion in elite male Bantam and Midget hockey players. Future research should examine the long-term effects of such presentations.
A control problem for fluid flow

The dissipative feedback control law developed by the authors in 'A dissipative feedback control synthesis for systems arising in fluid dynamics.' SIAM, J. Control and Optim., 1990, is applied to the Burgers equation and the two-dimensional Navier-Stokes equations. The control law is designed for driving a given fluid flow to a desired equilibrium state and enhancing energy dissipation effects of the given dynamics. These applications support the validation of the proposed control law in the previous article, not only for achievement of the desired asymptotic behavior, but also for changes in global nature of the transient behavior of the controlled dynamics that are not easily characterized analytically. >
Spinal epidural abscess in a neonate

Spinal epidural abscess constitutes a neurosurgical emergency in which early diagnosis and prompt decompression are necessary to avoid permanent cord damage. This entity is rare in premature infants and neonates in whom diagnosis can be challenging. The authors present a case of a premature twin neonate who developed an epidural abscess with complete paraparesis after coagulase-negative Staphylococcus epidermidis bacteremia that was treated with a single-level flavotomy and catheter irrigation.
Is it thee or me?—autoimmunity in Lyme disease

The chronic musculskeletal and nervous system symptoms that persist after Lyme disease infection are believed to be caused by an autoimmune reaction triggered by B. burgdorferi. A new technique should allow us to identify the self-reactive T cells and antigen epitopes involved ( 1375–1382 ).