cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Use of CFRP Overlays to Repair Fatigue Damage in Steel Plates under Tension Loading

AbstractFiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) overlays have been successfully used in the aerospace industry to repair fatigue damage in aluminum plates. With this success there is potential for use of similar FRP overlays to repair fatigue damage in aging steel bridge structures. This study investigated the effectiveness of repairing fatigue damage in steel plate with adhesively bonded carbon fiber–reinforced polymer (CFRP) overlays. A total of 15 steel plate specimens with preexisting fatigue cracks were repaired with varying thicknesses of CFRP overlays to evaluate the effect of the ratio of axial stiffness of the composite to that of the underlying steel, the axial stiffness ratio (SR), on increased fatigue life and decreased applied stress. The results showed that increasing the axial stiffness ratio from 0 to 0.4 could increase the fatigue life by a factor of 10 for the most extreme conditions, and with an optimal axial stiffness ratio infinite fatigue life may be reached. Fatigue life of the steel specime...
Management of a Multiple Cohort Fishery: Reply

Equations (2)-(5) constitute a system of twenty-five equations in twenty-five unknowns. By setting ,, = 0 (the shadow price on the terminal cohort is zero) one can use Newton's method to solve (2) for Z10. Knowing Z10 and making an initial guess for X3, one can solve (3) for Xhl. With Xhl in hand (or in memory), equation (2) can be solved for Z9. Moving back and forth between (2) and (3), one obtains Zk and Xk for k = 10,9, .. . , 3. Comparing the guess for A3 with the computed value and adjusting the guess allows for overall convergence to some arbitrary E. Making a guess for X3, noting Yk = Xk/Zk and Xk+1 = SkXk Yk, one can solve forward for Yk and Xk, k = 3, ..., 10. Comparing the guess for X3 with the value computed from the spawning constraint, one should be able to adjust the initial guess for X3 until all twenty-five equations hold. Table 1 contains the solution algorithm (written in BASIC) and the output for the initial guesses L3 = 15.0 and X3 = 3.0E6 (which was consistent with estimates of the standing stock of three-year-old "littlenecks" in 1979). For the parameter estimates contained in table 2 of Conrad (1982) the corrected system of twenty-five equations leads to a steady state where the resource has been driven to extinction (see table 1, steady state). When selecting this specification for the hard clam application, it was felt that stockdependent harvesting costs would play a "density dependent" role in stabilizing the system at a steady state with all Xk and Yk significantly positive. The same feature which facilitated solution [costs being dependent on the ratio of stock to harvest, Zk in equations (2) and (3)], precludes density-dependent feedback. Thus, the linear Lewis-Leslie model used to characterize the biology of the hard clam was not stabilized by density-dependent harvest cost.
QUANTUM SOLUTION OF THE CALOGERO SYSTEM BY THE PROJECTION METHOD

The projection method is a constructive proof of complete integrability of classical many-body systems. This method is extended to the quantum case. The wave functions and propagators of the $n$-particle Calogero systems are given in the form of integrals involving the wave functions and propagators of free motion in space of ${n}^{2}$ dimensions. Quantization of angular momentum in the large space yields solutions for discrete values of the coupling constant.
Franciscan Rocks near Sur Fault Zone, Northern Santa Lucia Range, California

The Sur fault zone is a complex series of high-angle and low-angle faults that juxtapose a northeast block of competent crystalline rocks against a southwest block of generally sheared Franciscan rocks. The Franciscan rocks are an assemblage of sandstone, siltstone, greenstone, and chert. This assemblage can be divided into a northwestern terrane characterized by unmetamorphosed sheared and unsheared units containing detrital K-feldspar and a southeastern terrane with a pervasive dip-slip tectonite fabric throughout, metamorphic mineral assemblages indicative of high-pressure, low-temperature metamorphism, and no K-feldspar. A lawsonite isograd in Franciscan sandstone crosses the southeastern terrane. K-Ar dates indicate a minimum age of Late Cretaceous for high-pressure metamorphism of the Franciscan. During mid- to Late Cretaceous time, accumulation of Franciscan rocks was closely followed by subduction and high-pressure, low-temperature metamorphism. Low-pressure, high-temperature metamorphism and plutonism occurred concurrently in the Salinian block. In Late Cenozoic time, the San Andreas fault probably offset the Sur-Nacimiento fault from the Great Valley subduction zone.
Galanin down-regulates microglial tumor necrosis factor-α production by a post-transcriptional mechanism

The neuropeptide galanin (GAL) is up-regulated following neuronal axotomy or inflammation. Since other neuropeptides act as immunomodulatory agents, we sought to determine whether GAL might affect the murine microglial cell line BV2, which expresses the GAL2 receptor. Even at very low concentrations, GAL inhibited tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF alpha) release but not TNF alpha mRNA levels in LPS-stimulated BV2 cells. Northern blot analysis showed that GAL inhibited the addition of a poly(A) tail, and stability assays showed that it also destabilized TNF alpha mRNA. Thus, GAL inhibits TNF alpha production by a post-transcriptional mechanism that both prevents the efficient addition of the poly(A) tail and accelerates TNF alpha mRNA degradation.
A new long form of Sox5 (L-Sox5), Sox6 and Sox9 are coexpressed in chondrogenesis and cooperatively activate the type II collagen gene

Transcripts for a new form of Sox5, called L-Sox5, and Sox6 are coexpressed with Sox9 in all chondrogenic sites of mouse embryos. A coiled-coil domain located in the N-terminal part of L-Sox5, and absent in Sox5, showed >90% identity with a similar domain in Sox6 and mediated homodimerization and heterodimerization with Sox6. Dimerization of L-Sox5/Sox6 greatly increased efficiency of binding of the two Sox proteins to DNA containing adjacent HMG sites. L-Sox5, Sox6 and Sox9 cooperatively activated expression of the chondrocyte differentiation marker Col2a1 in 10T1/2 and MC615 cells. A 48 bp chondrocyte-specific enhancer in this gene, which contains several HMG-like sites that are necessary for enhancer activity, bound the three Sox proteins and was cooperatively activated by the three Sox proteins in non-chondrogenic cells. Our data suggest that L-Sox5/Sox6 and Sox9, which belong to two different classes of Sox transcription factors, cooperate with each other in expression of Col2a1 and possibly other genes of the chondrocytic program.
Geotechnical Properties of Fly and Bottom Ash Mixtures for Use in Highway Embankments

Class F fly ash and bottom ash are the solid residue byproducts produced by coal-burning electric utilities. They are usually disposed of together as a waste in utility disposal sites with a typical disposal rate of 80% fly ash and 20% bottom ash. Direct use of these materials in construction projects consuming large volumes of materials, such as highway embankment construction, not only provides a promising solution to the disposal problem, but also an economic alternative to the use of traditional materials. Representative samples of class F fly and bottom ash were collected from two utility power plants in Indiana and tested for their mechanical properties (compaction, permeability, strength, stiffness, and compressibility). Three mixtures of fly and bottom ash with different mixture ratios (i.e., 50, 75, and 100% fly ash content by weight) were prepared for testing. Test results indicated that ash mixtures compare favorably with conventional granular materials.
Poroelastic coupling between the 1992 Landers and Big Bear Earthquakes

A three-dimensional finite element model was constructed to investigate the significance of poroelastic coupling between the 1992 Landers and Big Bear earthquakes in southern California. The homogeneous poroelastic model predicted a maximum increase in left lateral slip potential (change in shear stress less the change in effective fault normal stress scaled by a coefficient of friction) along the southwest part of the Big Bear fault, consistent with the epicentral location. In contrast, slip potential calculated for a weak fault zone in a state of isotropic stress for drained conditions, indicated a maximum increase along the northeast part of the Big Bear fault.
A Miniaturized Video System for Monitoring the Locomotor Activity of Walking Drosophila Melanogaster in Space and Terrestrial Settings

A novel method is presented for monitoring movement of Drosophila melanogaster (the fruit fly) in space. Transient fly movements were captured by a $60, 2.5-cm-cubed monochrome video camera imaging flies illuminated by a uniform light source. The video signal from this camera was bandpass filtered (0.3-10 Hz) and amplified by an analog circuit to extract the average light changes as a function of time. The raw activity signal output of this circuit was recorded on a computer and digitally processed to extract the fly movement ldquoeventsrdquo from the waveform. These events corresponded to flies entering and leaving the image and were used for extracting activity parameters such as interevent duration. The efficacy of the system in quantifying locomotor activity was evaluated by varying environmental temperature and measuring the activity level of the flies. The results of this experiment matched those reported in the literature.
Use of a Multiple Lumen Cuff for Nerve Regeneration

Initial studies using the rat sciatic nerve demonstrated the ability to adapt a multiple lumen cuff face to a nerve stump repair site. The neurons in the proximal stump grew through the individual conduits of the silicone rubber cuff, crossed a 5 mm gap, and continued into the distal stump. The effect of the cuff design on axonal regeneration was studied by comparing macroscopic and microstructural results for experimental groups of Sprague-Dawley rats with controls at 8, 12, 16, and 24 weeks post-implantation. The several individual nerve bundles which formed within the cuff lumens during these periods maintained their alignment on the distal side of the gap. The use of the multiple lumen system provided suitable scaffolding support and control of orientation and direction for fibers and established a sized, controlled environment for regeneration within each of the separate nerve cuff compartments.
Performance analysis of higher order ESPRIT for localization of near-field sources

Most existing array processing techniques for estimating the directions of arrival (DOAs) or signal copy rely heavily on the plane-wave assumption of far-field sources. When the sources are located relatively close to the array, these techniques may no longer perform satisfactorily. In this paper we present an asymptotic performance analysis of an ESPRIT-like method for passive localization of nearfield sources. The algorithm, which is based on fourth-order cumulants, is formulated for observations collected from a single uniformly spaced linear array. We examine the least-squares version of the algorithm and derive the expressions for the asymptotic variance of the estimated DOAs (relative to a reference sensor) and estimated ranges of the sources. We also derive an algorithm independent bound on the asymptotic variance of the estimated parameters. This bound can be used as a measure against the theoretically predicted algorithmic performance. Some insight into the achievable performance of this algorithm is obtained by numerical evaluation of the bound for several test cases of interest, and the results are compared with those obtained by numerical evaluation of the theoretically predicted performance. Monte Carlo simulations are used to verify the theoretical analysis.
Education of the Deaf in Nicaragua

Nicaragua now ranks as the third poorest country in the Western Hemisphere (Interamerican Development Bank [IDB], 1995). Occasionally educational improvement has been a national priority (Arrien & Matus, 1989). Usually, however, education rests at the lower end of a long list of national needs. The history of education in Nicaragua is marked by low teacher salaries, deteriorated physical plants, and scarcities of teaching materials (Arnove, 1994). Deaf education has been no exception. Teachers have been expected to learn empirically what deafness is and how to teach deaf children, to teach pupils who have had little or no language exposure before entering school, and to manage with the barest physical resources, all the while receiving only meager compensation. This article places education of the deaf in Nicaragua in a historical perspective, reports the results of a teacher survey, and discusses national policies that, so far, have had only indirect effects, but are likely to gain importance in the future.
Ethnic Identification: Honolulu and Seattle Japanese -Americans:

This study compared the magnitude of ethnic identification among three generations of Japanese-Americans in Honolulu, Hawaii. Ethnic identification was measured by a recently constructed Ethnic Identity Questionnaire. The first generation Japanese immigrant (Issei) scored higher than the second (Nisei) and third (Sansei) generations. The EIQ scores between the Nisei and Sansei, although not significantly different, were in the hypothesized direction of attenuation with generations. This was attributed to intermingling of peer self-defined generation groups. The Honolulu sample was then compared to three generations of Seattle Japanese-Americans on the same questionnaire. The former were seen to be less ethnically identified than their Seattle counter-parts. Possible reasons for this unexpected result were discussed in terms of immigration and community history, greater structural assimilation in the areas of political and economic power and social interrelationships, middle-class status conformity, person...
Changes in Craniocervical and Trunk Flexion Angles and Gluteal Pressure during VDT Work with Continuous Cross-legged Sitting

Objectives: This study investigated changes in craniocervical and trunk flexion angles and gluteal pressure on both sides during visual display terminal (VDT) work with continuous cross-legged sitting. Methods: The gluteal pressures of ten VDT workers, who were recruited from laboratories, were measured using a Teckscan system and videotaped using a single video camera to capture the craniocervical and trunk flexion angles during VDT work at 30 s, 10, 20 and 30 min. Results: The craniocervical angle was significantly increased at 10 and 20 min compared with the initial angle (p<0.05). The trunk flexion angle was significantly decreased at 30 s, 10, 20 and 30 min (p<0.05). The gluteal pressure of the crossed-leg side significantly increased at 30 s, 10 and 20 min (p<0.05). The gluteal pressure of the uncrossed-leg side significantly decreased at 30 s (p<0.05). Conclusion: We found that cross-legged sitting during VDT work may exert disadvantageous postural effects resulting from craniocervical and trunk flexion angles and gluteal pressure. Therefore, this posture could not be recommended during long-term VDT work.
Expanding Functionality Within the Looking-Glass Universe

After she stepped through a looking glass into a mirror image of her own world, Lewis Carroll's adventuress Alice soon recognized that the two worlds were perhaps not so similar after all. She intuits that something about the very make-up of “looking-glass milk” was fundamentally different from that of the wholesome beverage she typically enjoyed ( 1 ). Indeed, nature has stocked our universe with biological substances that exist as two mirror image forms of one another. Nineteen of the 20 naturally occurring amino acids that make up proteins are “chiral,” meaning that each can be arranged in two orientations around a central carbon atom. The result is a mixture of “mirror-image compounds” called l- and d-amino acids, which cannot be superimposed (see the figure), much in the way a person's left and right hands are not superimposable. One of the great mysteries of life has been the emergence of a strictly “left-handed” protein world where great attention has been paid to the l-amino acid building blocks ( 2 – 4 ), while d-amino acids are largely regarded as red-headed cousins who are easy to ignore. On page 1552 of this issue, Lam et al. challenge this perception, describing a role for d-amino acids in controlling bacterial responses to environmental cues ( 5 ).
Perceived parental monitoring and health risk behaviors among urban low-income African-American children and adolescents

Abstract Purpose: To examine gender and age differences among urban, low-income, African-American children and adolescents in perceived monitoring by their parents, and the association of perceived parental monitoring with family characteristics, health risk behaviors, and risk perceptions. Methods: Three cross-sectional surveys were conducted in 1992 ( n = 455), 1994 ( n = 355), and 1996 ( n = 349). Respondents aged 9–17 years were recruited from low-income urban areas including public housing communities and associated recreation centers. Both multivariate analysis of variance and correlation analysis were performed. Results: Low levels of perceived parental monitoring were associated with participation in several health risk behaviors, including sexual behavior, substance/drug use, drug trafficking, school truancy, and violent behaviors. Females perceived themselves to be more monitored than did males. In general, the perceived parental monitoring tended to decrease with advancing age of the youth. Conclusions: The strong inverse correlation between perceived parental monitoring and adolescent risk behavior suggests that parental monitoring initiatives may be an effective intervention tool. Longitudinal studies are needed to determine the long-term relationship between perceived parental monitoring and adolescent risk involvements.
Gender Differences in Computer-Related Attitudes: It Depends on What You Ask.

Abstract Reviews of research on gender differences in computer attitudes have concluded that the results of studies are contradictory or that any differences that exist are very small. This study tested the hypothesis that the size of gender differences found depends on the facet of computer-related attitudes assessed. A survey of college students' computer-related attitudes and behaviors resulted in four key findings. First, attitudes toward computers as assessed in this study can be described in terms of one affective factor — anxiety — and two cognitive factors — positive and negative beliefs concerning the social impact of computers. Second, there is a moderate gender difference for anxiety, a small gender difference for negative beliefs, and no gender difference for positive beliefs. Third, small to moderate gender differences exist on measures of computer-related behavior. Finally, although prior experience with computers does not mediate gender differences in anxiety, anxiety does appear to mediate gender differences in current computer-related behavior. Implications of these findings for reducing gender differences in computer-related behaviors are discussed.
Reverberation reduction in vibro-acoustography using channel estimation method

Vibro-acoustography (VA) displays the vibroacoustic response of the object (tissue) induced by two intersecting ultrasound beams of different frequencies. VA image of a given object may vary depending on boundary conditions. Such variations are attributed to the reverberation of the sound emanating from the object in the acoustic environment of the experiment. This effect can be explained in terms of acoustic propagation through multiple paths before reaching the receiving hydrophone. The goal of this study is to reduce VA image variations caused by the acoustic multipath. Two methods based on channel estimation are developed to evaluate the effect of multipath and correct the received acoustic data from the object. The first method uses two ultrasound excitation pulses having different length for every image location. Another method uses tissue responses of different excitation amplitudes to remove reverberation and measure tissue nonlinearity.
Novel insights on effect of atrioventricular programming of biventricular pacemaker in heart failure – a case series

Echocardiography plays an integral role in the diagnosis of congestive heart failure including measurement of left heart pressure as well as mechanical dyssynchrony. In this report we describe novel therapeutic uses of echo pulsed wave Doppler in atrioventricular pacemaker optimization in patients who had either not derived significant symptomatic benefit post biventricular pacemaker implantation or deteriorated after deriving initial benefit. In these patients atrioventricular optimization showed novel findings and improved cardiac output and symptoms. In 3 patients with Cheyne Stokes pattern of respiration echo Doppler showed worsening of mitral regurgitation during hyperpneac phase in one patient, marked E and A fusion in another patient and exaggerated ventricular interdependence in a third patient thus highlighting mechanisms of adverse effects of Cheyne Stokes respiration in patients with heart failure. All 3 patients required a very short atrioventricular delay programming for best cardiac output. In one patient with recurrent congestive heart failure post cardiac resynchronization, mitral inflow pulse wave Doppler showed no A wave until a sensed atrioventricular delay of 190 ms was reached and showed progressive improvement in mitral inflow pattern until an atrioventricular delay of 290 ms. In 2 patients atrioventricular delay as short as 50 ms was required to allow E and A separation and prevent diastolic mitral regurgitation. All patients developed marked improvement in congestive heart failure symptoms post echo-guided biv pacemaker optimization. These findings highlight the value of echo-guided pacemaker optimization in symptomatic patients post cardiac resynchronization treatment.
The failure of torcetrapib: was it the molecule or the mechanism?

Hopes have been running high that treatments aimed at raising HDL levels would soon help to reduce the large burden of cardiovascular disease that remains in patients at high risk of CHD who are now treated with statins. The unexpected and premature termination of the ILLUMINATE study has dashed those hopes. This study was designed to determine the clinical outcome of raising HDL by treatment with the CETP inhibitor torcetrapib in combination with atorvastatin. It had enrolled approximately 15 000 patients at high CHD risk who were randomized to treatment with torcetrapib (60 mg) plus atorvastatin versus atorvastatin alone (10 to 80 mg). As reported in the Wall Street Journal (Dec 4th), the study was terminated abruptly and unexpectedly after a little more than a year of treatment, because of an excess of deaths in the torcetrapib/atorvastatin versus atorvastatin groups (82 versus 51, respectively). Increases in heart failure, angina, and revascularization procedures were also observed. So is this the awakening from a dream of a highly effective way to raise HDL, or is it simply a nightmare created by unintended pharmacological effects of this particular CETP inhibitor? There is no clear answer to this question yet, but it is of interest to trace the development of CETP inhibitors, to reflect on the potential underlying reasons for the failure, and to ask if there is a way forward. The idea of inhibiting CETP as a therapy to increase HDL and lower LDL levels emerged from studies that elucidated human genetic deficiency of CETP in the Japanese population.1,2 Heterozygotes with about 40% reductions in CETP had mean 30% increases in HDL levels and no changes in LDL-C, whereas homozygotes with complete deficiency had HDL increases of more than 100%, and 40% decreases in LDL-C and apoB levels, as well as decreased …
System Level Performance Assessment of SOC Processors with SystemC

This paper presents a system level methodology for modeling, and analyzing the performance of system-on-chip (SOC) processors. The solution adopted focuses on minimizing assessment time by modeling processors behavior only in terms of the performance metrics of interest. Formally, the desired behavior is captured through a C/C++ executable model, which uses finite state machines (FSM) as the underlying model of computation (MOC). To illustrate and validate our methodology we applied it to the design of a 16-bit reduced instruction set (RISC) processor. The performance metrics used to assess the quality of the design considered are power consumption and execution time. However, the methodology can be extended to any performance metric. The results obtained demonstrate the robustness of the proposed method both in terms of assessment time and accuracy
Vaginal Mucosa Serves as an Inductive Site for Tolerance

These data demonstrate that tolerance can be induced by vaginal Ag exposure. In these experiments, mice were given vaginal agarose gel suppositories containing either 5 mg OVA or saline for 6 h. Mice were given suppositories either during the estrous (estrogen dominant) or diestrous (progesterone dominant) stage of the estrous cycle. Mice were restrained during the inoculation period to prevent orovaginal transmission of the Ag. After 1 wk, mice were immunized s.c. with OVA in CFA. After 3 wk, mice were tested for delayed-type hypersensitivity responses by measuring footpad swelling and measuring in vitro proliferation of lymphocytes to Ag. Using ELISA, the magnitude of the serum Ab response was also measured. In some mice, FITC conjugated to OVA was used to track the dissemination of the protein into the systemic tissues. The magnitude of footpad swelling was significantly reduced in mice receiving OVA-containing suppositories during estrus compared with mice receiving saline suppositories. Concomitant decreases in the Ag-specific proliferative response were also observed in lymph node lymphocytes and splenocytes. Conversely, mice inoculated during diestrus did not show a decreased response to Ag by either footpad response or in vitro proliferation. Serum Ab titers in the estrus-inoculated mice did not decrease significantly. These data demonstrate that the reproductive tract can be an inductive site for mucosally induced tolerance. However, unlike other mucosal sites such as the lung and gastrointestinal tract, reproductive tract tolerance induction is hormonally regulated.
Gender Differences in Prison-Based Drug Treatment Participation

Prisons inmates have high rates of substance abuse and associated social and health problems, and a concomitant high need for drug treatment while incarcerated. Female inmates have an even greater treatment need, yet most inmates do not participate in treatment while incarcerated. Using data from a nationally representative sample of prison inmates, this article examines the impact of gender on prison treatment participation and gender differences in the factors associated with clinical treatment participation. Females were significantly more likely to participate in prison drug treatment than males, controlling for other factors. For both males and females, severity of drug problems predicted participation in treatment. For males but not females, race was associated with prison treatment participation, and among those with drug abuse or dependence, females with co-occurring mental health problems were more likely to participate in treatment. Implications for prison assessment and treatment policies, and future research, are discussed.
Remote Sensing of Coastal Wetland Biomass: An Overview

Klemas, V., 2013. Remote sensing of coastal wetland biomass: an overview. Journal of Coastal Research, 29(5), 1016–
Compound Pulse Position Modulation Codes

A general class of nonlinear compound pulse position modulation (CPPM) codes is introduced to incorporate nonlinear low-rate PPM constraints directly into a Tanner-like code graph on which iterative decoding can be performed. The iterative decoding algorithm is specified for these codes, including the extrinsic message computations at the nonlinear constraint nodes. For a particular subclass of CPPM codes a simple but strange encoding algorithm is defined that encodes a variable number of source bits for each code block. The encoding algorithm is applied to calculate the average information rate of a particular type of parallel concatenated CPPM code ensemble called turbo PPM?.
Ethnicity as social rank: Governance, law, and empire in Muscovite Russia∗

Most European early-modern states transitioned from composite monarchies into centralized ones. Essentially, composite monarchies were “more than one country under the sovereignty of one ruler.” As Moscow expanded and acquired the surrounding principalities either by inheritance or force, its grand princes enacted a series of legal and administrative reforms to dissolve the differences among its territories and create a centralized monarchy. These political reforms began under Ivan III, who instituted a standardization of Muscovite legal practice and formalized a defined system of social precedence, mestnichestvo, which accorded high rank to his newly acquired provincial elites within the Muscovite social system. Change could not happen overnight, and further legal reforms by Ivan IV, in addition to new religious reforms to eradicate differences of practice among his subjects, centralized the Grand Prince's political and religious authority.
Synthesis of mixed synchronous/asynchronous control logic

An approach to the automatic synthesis of mixed sequential logic, called Suture, that takes timing constraints and component delays into account is presented. In addition, since mixed circuitry typically occurs at an interface where communication bandwidth is critical to performance. Suture synthesizes the fastest circuit possible using the specified implementation technology. The novel aspects of the algorithm include: uniform treatment of synchronous and asynchronous signals, an incremental approach to generating a correct circuit, and an emphasis on communication bandwidth that is crucial for the interfacing applications that utilize this class of circuits. Two examples highlighting Suture's features are given. >
Proximity-aware directory-based coherence for multi-core processor architectures

As the number of cores increases on chip multiprocessors, coherence is fast becoming a central issue for multi-core performance. This is exacerbated by the fact that interconnection speeds are not scaling well with technology. This paper describes mechanisms to accelerate coherence for a multi-core architecture that has multiple private L2 caches and a scalable point-to-point interconnect between cores. These techniques exploit the differences in geometry between chip multiprocessors and traditional multiprocessor architectures.Directory-based protocols have been proposed as a scalable alternative to snoop-based protocols. In this paper, we discuss implementations of coherence for CMPs and propose and evaluate a novel directory-based coherence scheme to improve the performance of parallel programs on such processors. Proximity-aware coherence accelerates read and write misses by initiating cache-to-cache transfers from the spatially closest sharer. This has the dual benefit of eliminating unnecessary accesses to off-chip memory, and minimizing the distance over which communicated data moves across the network. The proposed schemes result in speedups up to 74.9% for our workloads.
Managerial Implications of Computerized Aircraft Design Synthesis

Several aerospace industry management teams were surveyed in late 1972 to evaluate managerial aspects of computerized design programs. Areas investigated included program initiation, feasibility studies, computer systems, the programs, management operations, and evolution of program objectives. The advent of real time man-computer interaction has affected aerospace management by reducing design cycle time and expanding the range of design options. Most programs started at lower levels and initial objectives were to get a program working quickly. The programs were integrated by commonality of input and output and modular via disciplinary responsibility for each module. Use and development of the programs has increased crosstalk between the disciplines. Design information is now better organized and more thorough. Output more closely reflects capability and innovation has been enhanced. Program success correlates well with management involvement.
A 0.6 V, 1.5 GHz 84 Mb SRAM in 14 nm FinFET CMOS Technology With Capacitive Charge-Sharing Write Assist Circuitry

A 0.6–1.1 V, 84 Mb pipelined SRAM array design implemented in 14 nm FinFET CMOS technology is presented. Two array architectures featuring a high-density 0.0500 µm 2 6T SRAM bitcell and a 0.0588 µm 2 6T SRAM bitcell targeting low voltage operation are detailed. The high-density array design reaches 2.7 GHz at 1.1 V with 14.5 Mb/mm 2 bit density, while the low voltage optimized array can operate at 0.6 V, 1.5 GHz under typical process conditions. A capacitive charge-share transient voltage collapse write-assist circuit (CS-TVC) enables a 24% reduction in write energy compared to previous techniques by eliminating bias currents during operation. Technology and assist co-optimization enable $>$ 50 mV reduction in V $_{\rm MIN}$ and a 1.81× increase in density over a 22 nm design.
Does Formal Research Training Lead to Academic Success in Plastic Surgery? A Comprehensive Analysis of U.S. Academic Plastic Surgeons

Introduction It is currently unknown whether formal research training has an influence on academic advancement in plastic surgery. The purpose of this study was to determine whether formal research training was associated with higher research productivity, academic rank, and procurement of extramural National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding in plastic surgery, comparing academic surgeons who completed said research training with those without. Methods This was a cross-sectional study of full-time academic plastic surgeons in the United States. The main predictor variable was formal research training, defined as completion of a postdoctoral research fellowship or attainment of a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD). The primary outcome was scientific productivity measured by the Hirsh-index ( h -index, the number of publications, h that have at least h citations each). The secondary outcomes were academic rank and NIH funding. Descriptive, bivariate, and multiple regression statistics were computed. Results A total of 607 academic surgeons were identified from 94 Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education-accredited plastic surgery training programs. In all, 179 (29.5%) surgeons completed formal research training. The mean h -index was 11.7 ± 9.9. And, 58 (9.6%) surgeons successfully procured NIH funding. The distribution of academic rank was the following: endowed professor (5.4%), professor (23.9%), associate professor (23.4%), assistant professor (46.0%), and instructor (1.3%). In a multiple regression analysis, completion of formal research training was significantly predictive of a higher h -index and successful procurement of NIH funding. Conclusion Current evidence demonstrates that formal research training is associated with higher scientific productivity and increased likelihood of future NIH funding.
From Confusion to Clarity: Issues and American Voters, 1956–1968

Analysis of national election surveys from 1956 to 1968 reveals significant changes in the voters' perceptions of issues and the major parties. There has been a considerable increase in the correlation of party identification and opinion on six major issues, relating to social welfare, racial integration, and foreign aid. Voters are more prone to see a difference between the parties on these issues and are increasingly likely to identify the Democratic party as favorable to federal governmental action. These findings contrast with those of The American Voter and similar studies. The reasons for the changes cannot be found in demographic factors, as tested by controls for age cohorts, education, region, and race. More probably the explanation lies in strictly political factors. A particularly important event was the presidential campaign of 1964, in which ideological differences between the parties were deliberately emphasized. The electorate responded to this campaign by becoming more ideologically aware, and its learning appears to have persisted through the 1968 election. This finding suggests that past conclusions about the low ideological awareness of the electorate were specific to the Eisenhower era, and that the issue content of the vote will vary with the stimuli provided by the general political environment.
Microfabricated Gas Chromatograph for the Selective Determination of Trichloroethylene Vapor at Sub-Parts-Per-Billion Concentrations in Complex Mixtures

A complete field-deployable microfabricated gas chromatograph (μGC) is described, and its adaptation to the analysis of low- and subparts-per-billion (ppb) concentrations of trichloroethylene (TCE) vapors in complex mixtures is demonstrated through laboratory testing. The specific application being addressed concerns the problem of indoor air contamination by TCE vapor intrusion. The μGC prototype employs a microfabricated focuser, dual microfabricated separation columns, and a microsensor array. These are interfaced to a nonmicrofabricated front-end pretrap and high-volume sampler module to reduce analysis time and limits of detection (LOD). Selective preconcentration and focusing are coupled with rapid chromatographic separation and multisensor detection for the determination of TCE in the presence of up to 45 interferences. Autonomous operation is possible via a laptop computer. Preconcentration factors as high as 500 000 are achieved. Sensitivities are constant over the range of captured TCE masses te...
Live Media Places: Participation in Online Education through Composition

Live streaming is an emerging form of social media, which affords sharing and participating in rich experiences. Through these experiences, live streams often serve as places supporting the formation of online communities. Meanwhile, MOOCs are rapidly expanding the scope and reach of online learning. However they struggle to engage students in participatory learning experiences. In this work, I propose an environment that supports the composition of live media to create places that foster expression and participation in online communities and education.
A Realization of Real Time Software Radio Receiving System Based on Cluster Computing

This paper provides a realization framework and describes the hardware architecture, software compoments and work mechanisms of a software radio receiving system based on cluster computing. By using the key technologys such as parallel network data dispatching, efficient load-balance algorithm, two-level parallel computing and so on, the system gets a throughput up to 200MB/s and can process a signal bandwidth up to 40MHz. The practical tests show that the system can receive and process various high speed wireless communication signals such as PSK, QPSK, 8PSK, 16PSK and mQAM in real time.
Effect evaluation on dietary health education among residents in new type rural community of Chengdu

Objective To understand the effect of dietary health education for residents knowledge and behavior change. Methods Health education interventions were implemented in new type rural community of Chengdu. A questionnaire about healthy diet knowledge was used in 18 rural communities of Chengdu. 540 residents were selected by stratified random sampling method before and after the intervention,and then a statistical analysis was used data analysis. Results After intervention,the rate of correct health knowledge and health behavior were increased from 70. 4% to 79. 9%. The rate of using different tools for cooked food and raw food was increased from 36. 2% to 62. 9%,the rate of salad eating after mixing immediately was increased from 81. 7% to 92. 6%,the rate of washing their hands properly was increased from 68. 9%to 78. 2%,the difference before and after the intervention were statistically significant( P 0. 05). Conclusion The dietary health education was one of the effective ways to improve health knowledge and behavior of residents in new type rural community.
Position Optimization of Valves in Long Distance Transmission Pipeline

After shutdowning the leaked pipeline,the oil leakage volume of pipeline depends mainly on the cut-off valve position and varied topography.This paper discusses how to optimize valve position to minimize oil leakage therefore to reduce the economic lost and environmental pollution.Through the example analysis about the effect of valve position on potential leakage length,it is shown that potential leakage length curve of pipeline can be generally used to analyze oil leakage volume and valve position.The average potential leakage length of pipeline can be used to estimate valve installation position.The mathematical expected value of potential leakage length can be taken as the optimization criterion of valve position when leakage points don't distribute equally along the pipeline.
An evidence-based recommendation for a standardized approach to detecting metastatic neuroblastoma in staging bone marrow biopsies.

Abstract Neuroblastoma is a common malignant tumor of childhood. Accurate bone marrow (BM) evaluation for metastatic tumor is essential; however, no standardized pathologic workup exists for staging BMs. We examined the diagnostic yield of various BM components and optimal core biopsy (CB) length as part of developing evidence-based recommendations for BM evaluation. After obtaining IRB approval, 160 BM biopsies from 50 neuroblastoma patients were retrospectively selected. HE aspirate 67.1%; clot 66.7%; core/aspirate combined 94.7%. Mean total Diagnostic CBs had significan...
Tl2Ba2CaCu2Oy superconducting thin films on polycrystalline Al2O3 substrates with textured YSZ buffer layers

Abstract We report for the first time the successful fabrication of Tl 2 Ba 2 CaCu 2 O y superconducting thin films on polycrystalline Al 2 O 3 substrates using yttria-stabilized-zirconia (YSZ) buffer layers. Ion beam-assisted laser deposition was used to obtain the textured YSZ buffer layers. The Tl 2 Ba 2 CaCu 2 O y thin films were shiny, highly c -axis oriented with respect to the film surface and strongly in plane textured. The zero resistance temperature of these films was as high as 108 K with a critical current density of ∼ 10 5 A/cm 2 at 77 K.
What Can the Human Sciences Contribute to Phenomenology

What phenomenological details can investigations by human scientists provide to classical phenomenological inquiries regarding sense-constitution, the reflexivity of mundane understanding, and the production of objective knowledge? Problems of constitutional phenomenology are summarized and specifications are provided regarding ways to study intersubjective events. After a review of some quandaries suggested by an examination of Husserl, Levinas, Merleau-Ponty, Schutz, Gurwitsch, Garfinkel, and Adorno, the author provides two demonstrations of social phenomenologically inspired human studies—the playing of games with rules and the objective determination of flavors by coffee tasters—in order to identify and describe some of the local details of sense organization that the human sciences can provide to phenomenological researchers.
A comparison of perioperative outcomes in elderly patients with malignant liver tumors undergoing laparoscopic liver resection versus radiofrequency ablation

Liver resection is the treatment option with the best chance for cure in patients with malignant liver tumors. However, there are concerns regarding postoperative recovery in elderly patients, which may lead to a preference of non-resectional therapies over hepatectomy in this patient population. Although laparoscopic liver resection (LLR) is associated with a faster recovery compared to open hepatectomy, there are scant data on how elderly patients tolerate LLR. The aim of this study was to analyze the perioperative outcomes of LLR in elderly patients with hepatic malignancies, with a comparison to laparoscopic RFA (LRFA). A retrospective analysis of a prospective database for liver tumors identified a total of 82 patients older than 65 years who underwent laparoscopic treatment of their liver tumors in a single tertiary care center between 2000 and 2014. These patients were equally distributed into LLR and LRFA treatment arms. Mean age, American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) score and tumor type (predominantly metastatic colorectal cancer) were similar in both groups. Patients in the LRFA group had more tumors (2.1 ± 1.8 vs. 1.2 ± 0.6, p < 0.01), whereas tumors were larger in the LLR group (3.8 ± 1.6 vs. 2.8 ± 1.1 cm, p < 0.01). Although the operative time (116 vs. 214 min, p < 0.01) and hospital stay (2.1 vs. 3.4 days, p = 0.010) were shorter for the LRFA versus LLR group, respectively, morbidity (4.8 vs. 7.3 %) and mortality (0 vs. 0 %) were similar. Local recurrence was significantly higher in the LRFA versus LLR group (29 vs. 2.4 %, respectively, p = 0.002). However, there was no statistical difference in disease-free and overall survival between two groups (28 vs. 30 and 51 vs. 54 months, p = 0.443 and 0.768, respectively). This study showed that LLR was tolerated as well as LRFA in elderly patients with similar comorbidities. We suggest LLR to be considered as an option in selected elderly patients who are deemed poor candidates for open hepatectomy.
Hepatic Fibrosis in Hepatitis C

Infection with the Hepatitis C virus (HCV) leads to liver inflammation and fibrosis, which progresses to cirrhosis. Cirrhosis leads to complications including hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), end-stage liver disease, the necessity for liver transplantation, or death. In fact, HCV is the leading cause of liver transplantation, accounting for more than 40 % of liver transplants in the United States (Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network 2010). Because of the extended interval between infection and the emergence of complications, the proportion of HCV-infected patients with cirrhosis is expected to reach 45 % by 2030 (Davis et al. 2010). Fibrosis stage predicts morbidity, including liver-related deaths (Everhart et al. 2010). Patients with cirrhosis from HCV infection have an increased risk of developing HCC, estimated at 1–3 % per year (Fattovich et al. 1997), and the risk increases when comparing patients with cirrhosis relative to those with bridging fibrosis (Lok et al. 2009). With an estimated 180 million people infected by HCV worldwide, fibrosis and its progression to cirrhosis represent a major global problem (Rosen HR 2011).
Giant frequency down-conversion of the dancing acoustic bubble.

We have demonstrated experimentally the existence of a giant frequency down-conversion of the translational oscillatory motion of individual submillimeter acoustic bubbles in water in the presence of a high frequency (500 kHz) ultrasonic standing wave. The frequency of the translational oscillations (~170 Hz) is more than three orders of magnitude smaller than that of the driving acoustic wave. We elucidate the mechanism of this very slow oscillation with an analytical model leading to an equation of translational motion of a bubble taking the form of Mathieu’s equation. This equation illuminates the origin of the giant down conversion in frequency as arising from an unstable equilibrium. We also show that bubbles that form chains along the direction of the acoustic standing wave due to radiation interaction forces exhibit also translation oscillations that form a spectral band. This band extends approximately from 130 Hz up to nearly 370 Hz, a frequency range that is still at least three orders of magnitude lower than the frequency of the driving acoustic wave.
Affect and the dialectics of uncertainty: Governing a Paraguayan frontier town:

This article discusses the affective politics enabling urban development in Ciudad del Este, Paraguay, a young frontier boomtown where the volume of the extralegal transborder trade once exceeded t...