cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
AN AUTOMATIC STEPLENGTH CONTROL ALGORITHM FOR STIFF ODES SYSTEMS

processes when analyzing their thermal behavior. The finite element formulation for such a problem on a process domain produces a system of ordinary differerential equations which is characterized to be ‘stiff. Careful handling of the solution is required in order to avoid oscillatory and inaccurate results. This problem can be avoided by selecting a suitable recurrence scheme together with an efficient steplength control algorithm. In this paper an automatic steplength control algorithm has been developed and implemented in a finite element program for the transient convective-transport equation. The algorithm has been tested using an example representing a manufacturing process. The conv~tiv~trans~rt equation is applied to many manufacturing processes to determine the transient temperature distribution [l-7]. It is applied to metal cutting, metal casting, forming, welding, etc. The analytical solution is found to be difficult and often not possible in such applications due to the complexity of the problem [4]. Therefore, numerical methods such as finite difference and finite element are usually employed. The finite element fo~ulation produces a system of first-order ordinary differential equations (ODES). The system of ODES is found to be, in most cases, very ‘stiff’ and produces oscillatory results when the time step is inadequate at the initial stages of the solution [8,9]. In order to avoid these problems, there is a need for an automatic time steplength control algorithm which can be used to automatically determine the time steps for a stable, accurate and economic solution [IO]. This paper presents a new automatic steplength control algorithm that is used with suitable recurrence schemes in solving such systems of ODES. It also gives a discussion for the formulation of the problem, and the selection of the recurrence schemes.
Notes: A Reformulation of a Mean-Absolute Deviation Portfolio Optimization Model

The purpose of this note is to present a reformulation of the model presented by Konno and Yamazaki 1991. In their paper, it was claimed that under the assumption that there is no upper limit on the investment in an asset the number of nonzero assets in the optimal portfolio is at most 2T + 2, where T is the number of time periods in the data base used to approximate the parameters of the return distributions of the assets. The formulation we present, which is shown to be equivalent to that of Konno and Yamazaki, has a bound of T + 2 on the number of nonzero assets in the optimal portfolio.
Data time step to estimate snowpack accumulation at select United States meteorological stations

When estimating the water balance for a cold region watershed, that is one that receive a substantial portion of its annual precipitation as snow, accumulation and other winter hydrological processes must be considered. For many of theses watersheds, all but the most fundamental meteorological data (temperature and precipitation), are either not measured or not measured at a reasonable time step. Of particular importance are wind data, as wind influences underestimates of precipitation due to wind undercatch and losses of snow from the snowpack, specifically, snowpack sublimation, and the occurrence and magnitude of blowing snow. Estimating snow accumulation to yield snowmelt amounts requires summing of gauged precipitation and gauge undercatch, and subtracting minus snowpack sublimation and blowing snow transport. The first two components are computed on a daily time step, while the latter two are computed on an hourly time step. From five National Weather Service meteorological stations (Pullman WA, Rawlins WY, Leadville CO, Rhinelander WI, Syracuse NY), the variations in computed snowpack mass losses minus undercatch using data at different time intervals show that at most sites it is difficult to use monthly time steps for computations derived using hourly or daily data. At the relative dry and cold Leadville, Colorado site the computations were transferable between time steps. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Hierarchical routing in ad hoc mobile networks

Clustering is a method by which nodes are hierarchically organized on the basis of their relative proximity to one another. Routes can be recorded hierarchically, across clusters, to increase routing flexibility. Hierarchical routing greatly increases the scalability of routing in ad hoc networks by increasing the robustness of routes. This paper presents the Adaptive Routing using Clusters (ARC) protocol, a protocol that creates a cluster hierarchy composed of cluster leaders and gateway nodes to interconnect clusters. ARC introduces a new algorithm for cluster leader revocation that eliminates the ripple effect caused by leadership changes. Further, ARC utilizes a limited broadcast algorithm for reducing the impact of network floods. The performance of ARC is evaluated by comparing it both with other clustering schemes and with an on-demand ad hoc routing protocol. It is shown that the cluster topology created by ARC is more stable than that created by other clustering algorithms and that the use of ARC can result in throughput increases of over 100%. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Advancing Optimization of Hybrid Housing Development Plans Following Disasters: Achieving Computational Robustness, Effectiveness, and Efficiency

AbstractFollowing disasters, displaced families often face significant challenges to move from temporary to permanent housing. The Federal Emergency Management Agency is exploring alternative housing pilot programs to evaluate the possibility of providing quickly deployable, affordable housing that can serve both as temporary and permanent housing. Because of the complexities and costs associated with these programs, it is impractical to assume that accelerated permanent housing can fully replace the need for traditional temporary housing, especially in cases of large-scale displacements. A novel methodology was developed to evaluate the socioeconomic benefits of candidate configurations of hybrid housing plans, which incorporates both temporary and accelerated permanent housing developments. This paper presents the computational implementation and performance analysis of this novel methodology to offer a practical decision-support tool to emergency planners. To this end, genetic algorithms and integer-pr...
Development of a Fire Suppression Simulation Tool for Various Low-Gravity Environments

(Abstract) The paper discusses the development of a joint numerical and experimental effort to assess the effectiveness of water mist for suppressing small fires in large compartments both in Earth gravity, and in the future, zero, moon, and Mars gravity. The emphasis of the present research is on simulating small-scale flames in large compartments, with and without suppressant present. The computational method uses a fully three- dimensional, unsteady, Navier-Stokes formulation for the gas-phase. For the dispersed- phase water mist, the Eulerian sectional conservation equations are solved to compute the mist density and liquid-gas momentum flux, heat flux, and vaporization. The computational method and procedure is discussed in detail. Comparisons between experiments being conducted at the Colorado School of Mines and numerical results show reasonable agreement with small-scale flames. Some preliminary results with suppressants are also shown.
Orthogonal-Flux Parametric Voltage Regulator

A mathematical analysis of the orthogonal-flux voltage regulator explains three important properties of the regulator-the output waveform is independent of disturbances in the input waveform, the output voltage shuts off automatically under low line voltage, and the output voltage shuts off automatically under an overload. The output voltage will not tun on again unless the overload is removed and special action is taken to initiate the output. These properties result from parametric action in a ferroresonant circuit.
Food security challenges in Nigeria: a paradox of rising domestic food production and food import

This paper examined the food security challenges vis-a-vis the paradox of increased domestic food production and food import in Nigeria. The study used time-series data from National Bureau of Statistic, Central Bank of Nigeria, Nigeria’s National Dailies and CIA Factbook reports. The trend analysis showed that the share of agriculture to the total Gross Domestic Product, GDP had a downward trend, especially from 1960-1979, where food import hovered around 2.92 % from 196074 and up to 9.85 % in 1975-79 of GDP. The result depicts an undulating trend in the contribution of agriculture and food import values to 2009 where food import rose astronomically from N2.6trillion (3.83 %) in 2005-2009 to about N20.6trillion (25.02 %) in 2010-2012. Results of the regression analysis confirmed that agriculture has a positive relationship with GDP, and contributes significantly with a coefficient of 0.852. The paradox however is that food import negates the a priori expectation as it is found to be positively related to the GDP: as food production increases marginally, food importation increases asymptotically. The paper recommends that reliance on food import could be minimized through increased budgetary allocation to the sector, and improvement in postharvest management practices that have hitherto, aggravated food insecurity in the country.
Recent Progress in Closed-Loop Control of Cavity Tones

Active flow control of cavity tones has been successful in controlling Rossiter tones in both subsonic and supersonic flows. While closed-loop control promises the lowest actuator power requirements and the ability to adapt to changing flow conditions, so far it has only been demonstrated on subsonic cavities. Suppression of Rossiter tones in supersonic cavities has been demonstrated using open-loop techniques. Progress and issues related to closedloop control and controlling supersonic cavities are reviewed.
Genetic susceptibility to paratuberculosis.

Genetics, as an approach to disease control, is an emerging discipline. It can become an adjunct to other disease control approaches such as vaccination, chemotherapy, segregation, and other management practices. Like vaccination and segregation, genetics is a preventive measure. Genetics is a good candidate as a method of preventing infection by Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP) because currently an effective vaccine is not available and the disease is incurable. Genetic improvement of disease resistance is a slow, long-term process, but the results are permanent; genetic gains made in one generation remain in future generations, and under a program of continuous improvement, advances in genetic resistance accumulate generation upon generation. In contrast, vaccination must be administered to each new individual in each generation. An important role exists for both genetic improvement and vaccination. Research to improve both genetic approaches and vaccines is necessary to advance MAP infection prevention. However, a drawback to vaccination is that it preempts the opportunity to measure genetic susceptibility. And unless a vaccine is highly effective, it also preempts the opportunity to diagnose diseased animals by serology.
Repair of truncus arteriosus in the neonate and young infant

Infants with truncus arteriosus present a difficult management issue. Because of the high operative mortality, repair is often delayed beyond the first 3 to 6 months of age. We reviewed our experience with 11 neonates and young infants with truncus arteriosus undergoing repair (median age, 21 days). Five patients also had major truncal valve insufficiency, and 2 required valve replacement. Right ventricle-pulmonary artery continuity was established with a porcine valved conduit in 3 patients and an aortic or pulmonary homograft in 8. There was 1 operative death (9%; 70% confidence limits, 3%-22%) and 1 late death over a mean follow-up of 21 months (range, 4 to 32 months). Eight of the 9 late survivors are growing normally. Echocardiographic examination revealed normal ventricular function in all patients (mean shortening fraction, 39%). Doppler assessment demonstrated trivial prosthetic or homograft valve regurgitation in 7 patients and mild to moderate obstruction in 5 patients. This recent experience with repair of truncus arteriosus indicates that the operative risk is low even in the neonate. Repair in the first month of life should be recommended before the development of critical congestive heart failure or irreversible pulmonary vascular disease.
Writing and physics: an interdisciplinary approach

During the Fall 2000 and Fall 2001 semesters, a joint study was undertaken between the Physics and Literature Departments at American University. The study involved the linking of two introductory general education Liberal Arts courses: an introductory physics class for nonmajors and an introductory college writing class. One goal of the study was to provide more content-specific writing assignments within the college writing class by linking them to material being covered in the physics class. The writing assignments given in both classes formed the basis of the data collected during the study. Additional data was taken in Fall 2001 using the Force Concept Inventory (FCI), a nationally recognized assessment instrument to measure students' understanding of concepts in basic mechanics. The underlying questions behind the study involved the assessment of student learning in physics as well as in college writing. The primary research questions were: (1) could this course linkage serve to enhance the motivation Of Liberal Arts students to think more deeply and critically about the physics-specific content they were writing about in each class? and (2) if so, could this enhanced motivation be linked to increased student understanding? Within this paper, highlights of the curricula developed for the linked classes is provided along with results of the assessment of student learning.
Transsexuals' Sexual Stories

When viewed through a popular cultural lens, male-to-female transsexuals' sexual biographies can appear to indicate male transvestitism, heterosexuality, or homosexuality rather than transsexuality. How do transsexuals subvert such implications and construct transsexual identities? Drawing on K. Plummer's (1995) approach to sexual stories, we examine how nine male-to-female transsexuals construct their sexual pasts to accomplish what sociologists call "identity work." Interviewees used gendered sexual scripts, cultural discourse on the biological basis of male sexual arousal, and a discourse of therapeutic individualism to narratively defetishize autoerotic crossdressing, queer straight sex, refashion transvestic sex, and straighten out gay sex.
Pulmonary microvessel density is a marker of angiogenesis in children after cavopulmonary anastomosis.

Abstract Objective: Pulmonary arteriovenous malformations cause progressive cyanosis in children after cavopulmonary anastomosis and may be due to abnormal angiogenesis. We determined the microvessel density, a marker of angiogenesis, in the lungs of children after cavopulmonary anastomosis. Methods: Lung biopsy specimens were obtained from 8 children after cavopulmonary anastomosis and from 4 control patients. Three of the 8 children undergoing cavopulmonary anastomosis had clinical and angiographic evidence of pulmonary arteriovenous malformations, whereas the other 5 were free of symptoms. Routine histologic and immunohistologic stains were performed with a primary antibody to von Willebrand factor. Microvessel staining for von Willebrand factor was determined for 10 fields (200×) per patient. Results: Patients with and without pulmonary arteriovenous malformations after cavopulmonary anastomosis demonstrated significantly increased microvessel density compared with control subjects (32.7 ± 2.8 vs 9.3 ± 4.6, P =.02, and 31.5 ± 15.7 vs 9.3 ± 4.6, P =.01, respectively). There was no difference in microvessel density in children with and without clinically apparent pulmonary arteriovenous malformations after cavopulmonary anastomosis ( P =.9). The children with pulmonary arteriovenous malformations had numerous greatly dilated vessels that were absent in the asymptomatic children after cavopulmonary anastomosis. Conclusions: After cavopulmonary anastomosis, pulmonary microvessel density is increased even in the absence of clinically apparent pulmonary arteriovenous malformations, supporting the presence of a constant angiogenic stimulus. Children with clinically apparent pulmonary arteriovenous malformations possess large numbers of greatly dilated pulmonary microvessels, which are absent in asymptomatic children after cavopulmonary anastomosis. These results suggest that the transition to clinically apparent pulmonary arteriovenous malformations may be due to mechanisms that lead to vessel dilation and remodeling. (J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 2000;120:902-8)
Seasonal and Diurnal Dynamics of Spiders (Araneae) in West Virginia Orchards and the Effect of Orchard Management on Spider Communities

Four West Virginia apple orchards under different management (unmanaged; horticultural management only; horticultural management with apple, peach, and cherry trees interplanted; and standard commercial management) were sampled for spider abundance. Sampling was done with limb jarring at four times during the season; samples were taken hourly over a 24-h period. A total of 1,926 spiders from 15 families was collected, and 44% of all spiders were Salticidae. More spiders were collected in August (37%) than earlier months, but the highest diversity of spider families was in July. Older, unsprayed apple trees had the greatest diversity of spiders. The family Oxyopidae was most abundant in the commercially managed orchard. Spiders in the families Anyphaenidae, Philodromidae, and Thomisidae were significantly more abundant during night samples than during the day. Philodromids were also significantly more abundant on peach and cherry trees than on apple, possibly being attracted to extrafloral nectaries. Comparisons with other published data sets found that regional differences were more important determinants of spider community structure in apple than insecticide use. Northwest European, sprayed Quebec, and sprayed Washington apple orchards were found to be dominated by web-building spiders; the other North American and Israeli orchards were dominated by hunting spiders. Abundance and diversity of the spider community in orchards suggests that spiders could be major contributors to biological control of many insect pests.
Potential Gallium-68 Tracers for Imaging the Heart with PET: Evaluation of Four Gallium Complexes with Functionalized Tripodal Tris(Salicylaldimine) Ligands

Gallium-67 and 68Ga complexes have been synthesized with tripodal hexadentate salicylaldimine ligands derived from 1,1,1-tris(salicylaldiminomethyl)ethane, sal3tame. The four ligands evaluated contained alkoxy substituents (n-BuO-, iso-BuO-, sec-BuO-, and n-PrO-) on the terminal ethane carbon of the ligand backbone. In the case of the n-PrO-derivative, the tris(salicylaldimine) ligand was additionally substituted with methoxy groups in the 5-position of the aromatic rings. The 67Ga and 68Ga-complexes of these ligands were prepared by ligand exchange from 67Ga- or 68Ga-acetylacetonate in ethanol. The nonradioactive Ga[(sal)3tame-O-iso-Bu] complex was similarly prepared and shown by x-ray crystallography to exhibit the expected pseudo-octahedral N3O3(3-) coordination sphere about the Ga3+ center. These Ga-radiotracers are highly lipophilic, as demonstrated by their octanol/water partition coefficients. Log P values of 3.1, 3.1, 2.6, and 2.5 were found for the [(sal)3tame-O-iso-Bu], [(sal)3tame-O-n-Bu], [(sal)3tame-O-sec-Bu], and [(5-MeOsal)3tame-O-n-Pr] complexes, respectively. Following intravenous injection into rats, these complexes are rapidly cleared from the blood and exhibit significant myocardial uptake. At 1 min postinjection, 2.4%, 2.0%, 2.1% and 1.1% of the injected dose was found in the heart for the iso-BuO, n-BuO, sec-BuO, and n-PrO complexes, respectively, dropping to 1.0%, 0.8%, 0.8%, and 0.7% at 5 min. The corresponding heart-to-blood ratios are quite high: 17 +/- 3, 14 +/- 2, 12 +/- 2 and 3.5 +/- 0.4 at 1 min and 14 +/- 4, 10 +/- 1, 10 +/- 1 and 3.2 +/- 0.1 at 5 min postinjection. High quality myocardial images were obtained with PET in a normal dog using data collected from 2 to 10 min following intravenous injection of 68Ga[(sal)3tame-O-iso-Bu].
Pioneering the Youth and Technology Movement in Africa and Beyond (Case Narrative)

When I was growing up, my father often said to me, “They can take everything else away from you, but they can’t take away how much you have in your head.” His words have resonated with me throughout my life. Perhaps that is why, when I started Youth for Technology Foundation (YTF) from a cubicle at Microsoft in 2000, I became so obsessed with my vision that I had no choice but to pursue it. Fortunately, I did not have to convince my husband, Telema, that my vision for YTF was worth pursuing; he soon joined me as cofounder. Let me provide a little background. Born to an American mother and a Nigerian father, I have lived most of my life in Nigeria, a developing country, which has had a profound effect on my view of the world. My father was the only child in his family to finish a postprimary education. When the Biafra War broke out in Nigeria, he was one of just a few people to earn a scholarship to study in the United States. It was there he fell in love with an American woman, my mother. My mother was the first entrepreneur I knew. In the early 1980s, she opened La Pâtisserie, the first outdoor French restaurant in Nigeria. A mere ten years old, I learned at her feet, at first just running small errands. I later became a marketer and, finally, a host. I remember my mother working very long days. She not only had an entrepreneurial enterprise to manage, she also had to deal with the unique challenges of being an American woman trying to do business in Nigeria. She learned to cut through red tape to secure contracts with dignitaries and government officials. I sometimes would wander into the kitchen for a glass of water in the middle of the night and find my mother preparing elegant displays for some catered event. She inspired me to solve problems creatively, and thus to work to change the world.
Views on Right-to-Work Legislation Among Michigan's Local Government Leaders

This report presents Michigan local government leaders’ opinions regarding the state’s "right-to-work" legislation, enacted in December 2012 for both private sector (Public Act 348) and public sector unions (Public Act 349). The findings in this report are based on statewide surveys of local government leaders in the Spring 2013 wave of the Michigan Public Policy Survey (MPPS), and focus primarily on views of P.A. 349 regarding public sector employees and unions.
Regional vascular resistance during exercise: role of cardiac afferents and exercise training.

This study was designed to determine whether cardiac vagal afferents exert an inhibitory influence on increases in regional vascular resistance during exercise and to determine whether endurance ex...
In Memoriam: Edward H. Lambert

(2003). In Memoriam: Edward H. Lambert. American Journal of Electroneurodiagnostic Technology: Vol. 43, No. 4, pp. 207-210.
Randomized prospective trial comparing the native prothrombin antigen with the prothrombin time for monitoring oral anticoagulant therapy

The dosage of the anticoagulant warfarin sodium is based upon the prolongation of the prothrombin time into an optimal therapeutic range. We have developed a new assay for the native prothrombin antigen that measures the fully gamma-carboxylated prothrombin using a radioimmunoassay. Based on preliminary data that indicated that the native prothrombin antigen predicted both bleeding and thrombotic complications more accurately than the prothrombin time in patients anticoagulated with warfarin sodium, we have performed a randomized prospective trial comparing the complication rate in warfarin-treated patients monitored with the native prothrombin antigen or the prothrombin time. Patients with indications for anticoagulation were randomized to be monitored by the native prothrombin antigen (therapeutic range, 12 to 24 micrograms/mL) or the prothrombin time index (therapeutic range, 1.5 to 2.0). Of the prothrombin time group (N = 80), seven (8.8%) had bleeding or thrombotic complications, with a complication rate of 9.5%/patient-year. In the native prothrombin antigen group (N = 76), one subject (1.3%) had a bleeding complication. The complication rate per patient-year was 1.5%. These results indicate an 85% reduction in the complication rate of the native prothrombin antigen group compared with the complication rate of the prothrombin time group. This difference is statistically significant by the Fisher exact test (P = .037) and by Kaplan Meier survival analysis (P = .040). This study suggests that the use of the native prothrombin antigen assay has the potential to decrease the complications associated with anticoagulation therapy with warfarin sodium.
Deuteron Bombardment of Be 9 and Classification of Levels of B 10

Previous measurements on the ${\mathrm{Be}}^{9}(d,n){\mathrm{B}}^{10}$ neutron spectrum at 0\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{} and 80\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{} have been extended to 10\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{}, 30\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{}, and 45\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{} to check the energy level assignments and to deduce the parity of the levels from a Butler analysis of the angular distributions. The observed neutron groups correspond to levels of ${\mathrm{B}}^{10}$ at 0.72, 1.75, 2.15, 3.53, 4.78, 5.14 (doublet), 5.37 (?), 5.58, 5.72 (?), 5.93, 6.12 (possibly doublet), 6.38, 6.58, and 6.77 Mev. The estimated uncertainty is 0.06 Mev for the first five states of ${\mathrm{B}}^{10}$ and 0.04 Mev for the higher energy levels. The Butler analysis of the angular distribution data indicates that the ground state and the first four excited states of ${\mathrm{B}}^{10}$ are of even parity and that both components of the 5.14-Mev doublet are probably odd parity states. Parity assignments for some of the other energy levels have been attempted. The spins of these states cannot be uniquely determined on the basis of the Butler analysis, but the possible spin limits are listed. A ${\mathrm{Be}}^{9}(d,p){\mathrm{Be}}^{10}$ exposure was also made. There do not appear to be any states in ${\mathrm{Be}}^{10}$ between the ground state and the known 3.37-Mev level.
Ursodeoxycholic acid for intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy: good for the mother, not bad for the baby

Commentary on: Bacq Y, Sentilhes L, Reyes HB, et al. Efficacy of ursodeoxycholic acid in treating intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy: a meta-analysis. Gastroenterology 2012;143:1492–501.[OpenUrl][1][CrossRef][2][PubMed][3][Web of Science][4] Intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy (ICP) is a heritable disease of pregnancy resulting in elevation of serum bile acids, pruritus and increased risk of poor fetal outcomes. It always resolves after delivery, but pruritus can be a cause of severe distress for the mother, and the fetus is at increased risk of intrauterine demise. The prevalence of ICP varies greatly by ethnicity and geography: rates of over 25% have been reported in South American Indians, although in most areas the prevalence is less than 2%.1 ,2 Ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) is a naturally occurring hydrophilic bile acid used in a variety of cholestatic liver diseases. The exact mechanism of benefit is not completely … [1]: {openurl}?query=rft.jtitle%253DGastroenterology%26rft.volume%253D143%26rft.spage%253D1492%26rft_id%253Dinfo%253Adoi%252F10.1053%252Fj.gastro.2012.08.004%26rft_id%253Dinfo%253Apmid%252F22892336%26rft.genre%253Darticle%26rft_val_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Ajournal%26ctx_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ctx_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Actx [2]: /lookup/external-ref?access_num=10.1053/j.gastro.2012.08.004&link_type=DOI [3]: /lookup/external-ref?access_num=22892336&link_type=MED&atom=%2Febmed%2F18%2F6%2Fe55.atom [4]: /lookup/external-ref?access_num=000311505100027&link_type=ISI
Pharmacokinetic considerations when prescribing in children

Before prescribing, the pediatrician typically considers recommended dosing guidelines and issues related to safety. Rarely does (s)he consider the impact of normal growth and development on drug disposition and by extension drug action. This paper reviews how the processes of absorption, distribution, metabolism and elimination differ between healthy children and adults and briefly discusses considerations for medication prescribing in children where these processes are altered secondary to comorbidities.
Mucin multilayers assembled through sugar-lectin interactions.

Multilayer films of biopolymers are attractive tools to exploit the extraordinary properties of certain biomacromolecules and introduce new functionalities to surfaces. Mucins, the gel-forming constituents of mucus, are versatile glycoproteins that have potential as new building blocks for biomaterial surface coatings. Multilayer films have mostly been assembled through the electrostatic pairing of polyelectrolytes, which results in limited pH and salt stability and screens charges otherwise available for useful payload binding. Here, we aim at assembling mucin multilayer films that differ from conventional paired polyelectrolyte assemblies to obtain highly stable and functional surface modifications. Using the lectin wheat germ agglutinin (WGA) to cross-link mucin-bound sugar residues, we show that (Mucin/WGA) films can grow into hydrated films and sustain exceptional resistance to extreme salt conditions and a large range of pH. Furthermore, we show that the addition of soluble N-acetyl-d-glucosamine ca...
A Reevaluation of the Association Between Instrument Delivery and Epidural Analgesia

Background and Objectives Over 100 papers in the medical literature suggest pro or con that epidural analgesia is associated with an increase in the incidence of instrument delivery. This two-component study was performed to evaluate the influence of epidural labor analgesia on the incidence of instrument delivery. Methods Component 1 was a retrospective analysis of the medical records of 14,804 mothers having a vaginal delivery before and after implementation of an active epidural service. Component 2 was a case control study designed to determine factors, in addition to epidural analgesia, associated with an increase in instrument delivery. In component 2 11 factors describing maternal, fetal, anesthetic, and obstetric factors were analyzed for each of 609 consecutive patients having an instrument delivery and 246 controls having a spontaneous vaginal delivery. Results In component 1, despite a tenfold increase in the use of epidural analgesia, there was a similar association between epidural use and instrument delivery in both time periods. Additionally, the epidural-forceps association was twice as strong for parous patients as for nulliparous patients (odds-ratios 9.74 and 4.52, respectively). In component 2, five factors were significantly (P > .0001) associated with instrument delivery conclusions. Conclusions While epidural analgesia was one factor, the others were gestational age >41 weeks, a second stage of labor >2 hours, an occiput posterior or transverse fetal position, and previous cesarean section. These four factors are individually and independently associated with an increase in the incidence of instrument delivery independent of epidural use.
Photonic multitasking enabled with geometric phase

The constructive and destructive interference of waves is often exploited in optics and signal transmission. The interference pattern is a direct measure of the phase difference between two or more beams. Such a phase difference may result from the difference between the optical paths traversed by the light beams. However, phase can change for a single beam if it propagates through an “anisotropic parameter space,” a medium that curves the light; this property is called geometric or topological phase ( 1 – 4 ). On page 1202 of this issue, Maguid et al. ( 5 ) use metasurfaces—ultrathin, planar engineered structures ( 6 – 9 )—to form shared-aperture antenna arrays that impart geometric phase to optical signals. These devices can control photonic spin and enable multiple optical functions.
Analysis of VB factorizations for sparse and low-rank estimation

Variational Bayesian (VB) factorial approximations anchor a wide variety of probabilistic models, where tractable posterior inference is almost never possible. This basic strategy is particularly attractive when estimating structured low-dimensional models of high-dimensional data, exemplified by the search for minimal rank and/or sparse approximations to observed data. To this end, VB models are frequently deployed across applications including multi-task learning, robust PCA, subspace clustering, matrix completion, affine rank minimization, source localization, compressive sensing, and assorted combinations thereof. Perhaps surprisingly however, there exists almost no attendant theoretical explanation for how various VB factorizations operate, and in which situations one may be preferable to another. We address this relative void by comparing arguably two of the most popular factorizations, one built upon Gaussian scale mixture priors, the other bilinear Gaussian priors, both of which can favor minimal rank or sparsity depending on the context. More specifically, by reexpressing the respective VB objective functions, we weigh multiple factors related to local minima avoidance, feature transformation invariance and correlation, and computational complexity to arrive at insightful conclusions useful in explaining performance and deciding which VB flavor is advantageous. We also envision that the principles explored here are quite relevant to other structured inverse problems where VB serves as a viable solution.
Seniority, Bailouts and Effect of International Lender of the Last Resort

This paper explores the welfare effects of the seniority requirement of the ILLR, a common arrangement in the recent sovereign debt crisis in Europe that gives the ILLR seniority over existing creditors. An ILLR with seniority might decrease the interest burden of the country because it has a higher chance of getting repaid and is willing to accept a lower the interest rate. On the other hand, when an ILLR with seniority is introduced, existing creditors who would otherwise want to refrain from early liquidation, may decide to liquidate before the maturity date because the ILLR makes their claim junior. I construct a model with information asymmetries and incomplete contracts to examine the trade off between higher early liquidation by the investors and lower interest rates. The results show that ILLR intervention with seniority does not improve or even reduce the welfare of the country subject to bailout and the same welfare levels can be achieved by an ILLR without seniority. Besides, if seniority requirement is compulsory, the ILLR should keep the interest rates low enough in order not to trigger additional early liquidation. When it is possible for the country to adopt a costly policy to boost future return, then ILLR intervention with seniority can provide incentive for adoption.
A Shifting Legal Durability, 1990–1999

One year following the Good Friday Agreement and 27 years after the Northern Ireland (Emergency Provisions) Act 1973 was formed, Secretary of State for the Home Department Jack Straw (Lab) addressed the House of Commons, proposing permanent counterterrorism legislation. Straw stated that “a lasting peace in Northern Ireland … would not of itself remove the need for counter-terrorist legislation” because “[t]errorism, and the threat of terrorism from a range of fronts, is likely to continue to exist for the foreseeable future” [emphasis added].1 At the beginning of the 1990s, Labour had argued that counterterrorism law was not working,2 but less than ten years later, it was arguing for permanency. By December of that same year, opposition to making these laws permanent continued to be voiced given issues of counter-productive consequence and uncertain effectiveness. As stated by John Wadham in reply to Straw, “anti-terrorism laws have led to some of the worst human rights abuses in this country over the past 25 years, contributed to miscarriages of justice and have led to the unnecessary detention of thousands of innocent people, most of them Irish”, highlighting how “only a tiny percentage of those detained have ever been charged and almost without exception they could have been detained under ordinary criminal laws”.3
Dwight D. Eisenhower: Civil Religion and the Cold War

When I shared with my graduate students that I thought Dwight D. Eisenhower was the most religious president in the twentieth century, they hooted back in unison, “Jimmy Carter, Jimmy Carter.” Soon thereafter, I read Philip Yancey’s accounts of Billy Graham’s ministry to Lyndon Johnson in the 1960s and of Yancey’s own religious conversations in the White House with Bill Clinton.1 I have been chastened by the reminder that American presidents have, in their own way, embodied a variety of religious experiences. I also have had to remind myself that we cannot reliably know the outward signs of inward grace even among American presidents.
Pancreas Transplant Pathology

Pancreas and simultaneous pancreas-kidney transplantation (SPK) are indicated for the treatment of type 1 diabetic patients, in particular, patients with diabetic nephropathy. Pancreas transplant alone may be indicated for type 1 diabetic patients with unstable “brittle diabetes” but no significant renal disease. Pancreas transplantation is also infrequently performed to treat patients with type 2 diabetes. Diabetes mellitus and the sequelae of hyperglycemia is a major cause of end-stage renal disease, vascular disease, diabetic gastroparesis, neuropathy, and retinopathy. With a functional pancreatic graft, there is a stabilization of glucose levels and a decrease in the long-term consequences of hyperglycemia.
Murine Models of Pneumonia Using Aerosol Inoculation

Publisher Summary This chapter focuses on murine model of pneumonia using aerosol inoculation. In this model, any species or strain could be used and preliminary experiments should be performed to determine optimal bacterial inocula and treatment delay. No specialized housing or care is required and immunocompetent mice may be used after appropriate acclimatization. To render the mice neutropenic for 48 hours after infection, two doses of cyclophosphamide are injected intraperitoneally for four days (150 mg/kg) and one day (100 mg/kg) before the experiment. The duration of neutropenia may be prolonged by an additional 100 mg/kg intraperitoneal injection of cyclophosphamide every 48 hours. A diffuse pneumonia is induced by exposing the mice in a closed chamber for 45 minutes to a 4–5 l/minute rate of aerosol generated by a Collison nebulizer. The bacteria in the lung begin log phase growth in approximately 6–8 hours following infection. The mice become bacteremic approximately 14–16 hours later, when there is histologic evidence of bronchopneumonia. The infection is lethal in control mice within 36–48 hours. This pneumonia model can be used in survival studies looking at 50% protective doses or in studies quantifying bacterial inocula at various time points. To evaluate the antimicrobial activity at the end of 24 hours of therapy, the lung inocula in four mice are generally sacrificed and quantified for each specific antimicrobial regimen.
Science and the Enlightenment: God's order and man's understanding

The Creator doubtless did not bestow so much curiosity and exquisite workmanship and skill upon his creatures, to be looked upon with a careless or incurious eye, especially to have them slighted or condemned; but to be admired by the rational part of the world, to magnify his own power, wisdom and goodness throughout all the world, and the ages thereof…my text commends God's works, not only for being great, but also approves of those curious and ingenious enquirers, that seek them out, or pry into them. And the more we pry into and discover of them, the greater and more glorious we find them to be, the more worthy of, and the more expressly to proclaim their great Creator. The first man I saw was of a meagre aspect, with sooty hands and face, his hair and beard long, ragged and singed in several places. His clothes, shirt, and skin were all of the same colour. He had been eight years upon a project for extracting sunbeams out of cucumbers, which were to be put into vials hermetically sealed, and let out to warm the air in raw inclement summers. He told me, he did not doubt in eight years more, that he should be able to supply the Governor's gardens with sunshine at a reasonable rate; but he complained that his stock was low, and entreated me to give him something as an encouragement to ingenuity, especially since this had been a very dear season for cucumbers. I made him a small present, for my Lord had furnished me with money on purpose, because he knew their practice of begging from all who go to see them. Science is today probably the most powerful force in twenty-first-century culture. It determines our potential for technological control of the environment, many of our cultural and intellectual assumptions, and our economic, technological and agricultural base. In the twentieth century almost all science receives some form of public funding, and scientific practices and assumptions have also heavily influenced much current thinking about the way governments should be run. None of this was the case in the eighteenth century. The intellectual status of science was contested, its institutional organisations often weak, and certainly thin on the ground, and the nature of its relations with the economy and with government often tenuous.
Fiber Optic Link Design

This chapter examines the technical requirements for designing fiber optic communication systems. It defines some figures of merit to characterize the system performance. Several possible figures of merit are used to characterize the performance of an optical communication system. Different figures of merit may be more suitable for different applications, such as analog or digital transmission. Even if the practical considerations of laser eye safety standards are ignored, an optical transmitter is capable of launching a limited amount of optical power into a fiber; similarly, there is a limit as to how weak a signal can be detected by the receiver in the presence of noise. Thus, a fundamental consideration in optical communication systems design is the optical link power budget or the difference between the transmitted and the received optical power levels. Concentrating on digital optical communication systems, the chapter describes how to design an optical link loss budget and how to account for various types of noise sources in the link.
Minimum energy-per-bit multi-hop wireless networks

In this paper, the tradeoff between the total energy consumption and the end-to-end rate in wireless multi-hop networks is considered. An energy consumption model that incorporates both the energy radiated by the transmitter and the energy consumed by the circuits that process the received signals is proposed. The end-to-end rate of communication is considered for the number of information bits transmitted (end-to-end) per coded symbol transmitted by any node in the network that is forwarding the data. The tradeoff between the minimum total energy consumption and the end-to-end rate of communication is analyzed. It is shown that the performance (either energy or rate) depends on the transmission strategy of each node, the location of the relay nodes and the data rate used by each node. Two communication schemes that capture the inherent constraints of networks, bandwidth and energy respectively are then investigated. For a given distribution of relays it is shown that the total energy consumption can be minimized with an optimal selection of end-to-end rate for both schemes.
Rapid, Sustained B Cell Receptor Signaling in Lymphoma B Cells Differs from Normal Signaling in Tumor Infiltrating Nonmalignant B Cells.

Abstract The B cell receptor (BCR) drives life and death signaling throughout B cell development, and dysregulation of BCR signaling might be expected to play a role in aberrant proliferation of lymphoma B cells. We have previously used flow cytometry based cell signaling profiles to identify patterns of altered signaling in acute myeloid leukemia that were informative of clinical outcome (Irish et al., Cell, 2004). Here we used a similar signaling profiles approach to compare BCR signaling in normal and lymphoma B cells. However, in addition to comparing follicular lymphoma (FL) B cells with peripheral blood B cells from normal donors, we also interrogated signaling within individual non-tumor B cells infiltrating FL tumor biopsies. By staining for CD20 and BCR light chain isotype (κ vs. λ), we could distinguish tumor and normal B cells within each patient biopsy. Following crosslinking of BCR heavy chains (shared by tumor and non-tumor B cells), we measured phosphorylation of Syk and Btk proteins, as markers of early BCR signaling activity, and Erk1/2 and p38, as markers of downstream BCR signaling effector activity. The BCR signaling network in FL tumor B cells was activated more rapidly than infiltrating non-tumor B cells, achieved greater levels of per-cell signaling, and sustained high levels of signaling over a period of hours. In lymphoma B cells, BCR-mediated Btk and Erk1/2 phosphorylation could reach the normal maximum in as little as 4 minutes, which was much more rapid than the 30–60 minutes required for peak signaling in non-tumor B cells. Strikingly, the timing and magnitude of BCR pathway protein phosphorylation we measured in non-tumor B cells within tumor biopsies was the same as that of normal, mature B cells from peripheral blood. These results suggest that the altered BCR signaling we identified in lymphoma is cell-intrinsic and associated with lymphomagenesis, as opposed to being a general change in tumor microenviornment affecting all B cells within a biopsy. FL tumor B cells from different patients were distinguished by the degree and number of changes to BCR signaling, such that variable profiles of lymphoma signaling kinetics distinguished each patient from the consistent signaling of normal B cells. These results identify cell-intrinsic changes to BCR signaling that may contribute to immortalization of lymphoma B cells and suggest that single cell profiles could identify lymphoma specific BCR-mediated signaling responsible for clinical outcomes.