cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Identification of nickel sulfides on Ni-YSZ cermet exposed to H2 fuel containing H2S using Raman spectroscopy

Abstract Ni–YSZ cermet was exposed to hydrogen containing different concentrations of H 2 S to identify the phases formed under various conditions using Raman spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction (XRD). For Ni–YSZ samples exposed to hydrogen containing 100 ppm H 2 S at 727 °C for 5 days, thermodynamic calculations indicate that Ni–YSZ would be stable and XRD analysis was unable to detect any changes. However, the vibration modes of Ni 3 S 2 were detected using Raman spectroscopy, suggesting that Raman spectroscopy could be a powerful tool for in situ study of sulfur poisoning of SOFC anodes. For Ni–YSZ cermet exposed to hydrogen containing 10% H 2 S at 950 °C for 5 days, Ni was converted to nickel sulfide, and vibration modes of NiS were detected using Raman spectroscopy.
System integration of the MiCES small animal PET scanner

A small animal positron emission tomography scanner for small animals has been developed based on the University of Washington micro-crystal element (MiCE2) detector module design. The scanner, MiCES, uses 72 MiCE2 modules, each consisting of a 22/spl times/22 array of 0.8/spl times/0.8/spl times/10 mm MLS crystals coupled to a Hamamatsu R5900-00-C12 PMT. Alternate rows of detectors (in the axial direction) are offset by the axial gap between crystal arrays and the entire detector and electronics system is continuously rotated. The system electronics is based on the use of the IEEE 1394a (FireWire) standard for transmitting data from detector nodes to the host computer. The electronics are organized around rows of four detector modules. Each module is connected to a threshold summing board that converts the 12 PS PMT signals to 4 position signals. The signals are then digitized and acquired by the host computer in a list mode format. Each set of electronics (supporting four modules) is essentially independent with its own control processor and field programmable gate arrays. Each electronics module receives basic commands from a single control processor, which in turns communicates with the host computer. In addition, during acquisition, data specific commands are sent to the electronics modules via FireWire (each module supports a control and a data logical unit). This paper provides an overview of the MiCES system and provides details of system integration and testing.
Estimation of a Conditional Mean in a Linear Regression Model

Consider the two linear regression models of Yij on Xij, namely Yij = βio + βil Xij + eij,j = 1,2,…,ni, i = 1,2, where eij are assumed to be normally distributed with zero mean and common unknown variance σ2. The estimated value of a mean of Y1 for a given value of X1 is made to depend on a preliminary test of significance of the hypothesis β11 = β21. The bias and the mean square error of the estimator for the conditional mean of Y1 are given. The relative efficiency of the estimator to the usual estimator is computed and is used to determine a proper choice of the significance level of the preliminary test.
Prediction of axial and off‐axis yield behavior of lsotactic polypropylene film from structural state parameters

Since only minor structural rearrangements occur prior to yielding, the axial and off-axis yield stress of a polymer sample is expected to relate to the initial structural state of the material. Samples of uniaxially oriented isotactic polypropylene films with known structural state parameters have been deformed under a uniaxial tensile stress at deformation rates of 20 percent and 100 percent per minute over an angular range from 0 to 90 degrees to the fabrication direction. The axial yield stress data was found to correlate with the initial noncrystalline orientation state of the undeformed sample. The axial and offaxis yield stress data was fit to the Hill equation derived for the application of a uniaxial tensile stress. The experimentally determined coefficients from the best fit of the yield stress data to the Hill equation were related to the measured structural state parameters. These correlations allow prediction of the yield stress of an anisotropic film at any angle to the film symmetry axis from knowledge of the measured structural state parameters alone.
Effects of faking instructions on the Eysenck Personality Inventory.

Effects of two faking instructions on Eysenck Personality Inventory scores were investigated. With both instructions, scores were significantly decreased on Neuroticism and significantly increased ...
To what extent are key services offered in treatment programs for special populations

Many substance abuse treatment (SAT) facilities offer programs designed specifically for special populations such as women, adolescents, gays/lesbians and others. Previous research shows that there are specific services that are integral to the successful treatment of these populations (e.g., family therapy for adolescents, childcare and transportation assistance for women, and HIV testing and counseling for gays/lesbians). This study examines whether facilities that self-report having programs for special populations actually offer the recommended services. The data come from the 2000 National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services, which contains information on service offerings, special programs and other characteristics for all SAT facilities in the USA. The results indicate that facilities with special programs are more likely to offer the recommended key services. However, often less than half of these facilities provide the key services. There are consistent differences by ownership status, with for-profit facilities less likely to offer many of the key services.
Tuning and timing in the gerbil ear: Wiener-kernel analysis

Information about the tuning and timing of excitation in cochlear axons with low-characteristic frequency (CF) is embodied in the first-order Wiener kernel, or reverse correlation function. For high-CF axons, the highest-ranking eigenvector (or singular vector) of the second-order Wiener kernel often can serve as a surrogate for the first-order kernel, providing the same information. For mid-CF axons, the two functions are essentially identical. In this paper we apply these tools to gerbil cochlear-nerve axons with CFs ranging from 700 Hz to 14 kHz. Eigen or singular-value decomposition of the second-order Wiener kernel allows us to separate excitatory and suppressive effects, and to determine precisely the timing of the latter.
Capital Gain Expectations And Efficiency In The Real Estate Markets

Capital gain expectation is known to be an important determinant of housing price hikes during the real estate booms. Empirically, however, specifying the way expectations about current and future economic variables are formed is a dilemma. Although it is reasonable to assume that economic fundamentals have a significant effect on the investors’ expectation about future gains, a number of housing market analysts claim that expectations of housing prices are extrapolative. This study attempts to investigate the mechanism by which investors’ capital gain expectations and psychology are shaped. The results suggest that housing prices are predictable with respect to capital gain expectations only when these expectations are formed by extrapolation of past price appreciations. Considering the large number of empirical evidence on housing market anomaly with respect to capital gain expectations, the results suggest that the extrapolative expectations can better explain the real estate price behavior than expectations that are formed by economic fundamentals.
Defective Lattice Charge Density Waves in La10Se19, Cs3Te22, RbDy3Se8, and Dy65.33Se120

In this paper we consider charge density waves in defective lattice structures. Just as in nondefective lattices, we find that the Fermi surface plays an important role in supercell dimensions. In particular, a correspondence is found between the Fermi surfaces of the defective and the nondefective lattices. The concept of an effective band filling is introduced, which may be understood as the band filling for which the fully occupied lattice mimics the Fermi surface of the partially occupied lattice. To demonstrate the efficacy of this method, the superstructures of La{sub 10}Se{sub 19}, Cs{sub 3}Te{sub 22}, RbDy{sub 3}Se{sub 8}, and Dy{sub 65.33}Se{sub 120} are studied. Fermi surfaces from both Hueckel and extended Hueckel tight-binding theories allow the rationalization of the defect lattice structures found in these systems. Finally a simple model based only on nearest neighbor interaction is found to preserve most of the essential features of the Hueckel and extended Hueckel treatments. 22 refs., 13 figs., 1 tab.
Utility of Screening for Escherichia coliOl57:H7 Associated With Hemorrhagic Colitis

Verotoxin-producing Escherichia coli O157:H7 has recently been associated with hemorrhagic colitis and hemolytic syndrome. In the wake of this recognition, screening tests and serotyping kits have been developed and offered to clinical microbiology laboratories. Field studies have shown, however, that the low prevalence of E coli O257:H7 in diarrheal stools causes screening tests to have unacceptably low positive predictive values. Before implementing new protocols to identify E coli O157:H7, laboratories should carefully consider the limited utility of the results they would report. E coli O157:H7-associated hemorrhagic colitis is a self-limited process in which antibiotics are contraindicated. Patients and clinicians, therefore, stand to benefit little from identification of this organism.
Optimal Approach for the Diagnosis of Hemodialysis Catheter–Related Bacteremia

Central venous catheter (CVC) use among patients on hemodialysis (HD) remains unacceptably high and is associated with an increased risk of all-cause infection, infection-related hospitalizations, and mortality ([1][1]–[4][2]). In CVC-dependent patients on HD who present with suspected infection (
Introduction to Metric-Preserving Functions

(1999). Introduction to Metric-Preserving Functions. The American Mathematical Monthly: Vol. 106, No. 4, pp. 309-323.
Heterojunction solar cells on flexible silicon wafers

Current large-scale production of flexible solar devices delivers cells with low efficiency. In this paper we present an alternative path to organic or inorganic thin films. Our cells combine the remarkable surface passivation properties of the silicon heterojunction solar cells design, and the quality of n-type Cz wafers. The cells were manufactured on 50–70 μm-thick wafers. The cells have and efficiency of 17.8–19.2%, open-circuit voltages of 735–742 mV, short-circuit currents of 34.5–35.5 mA/cm2, and fill-factors of 72–75%. The cells are not as flexible as bare wafers. Thin cells are particular sensitive to the additional stress introduced by the busbars and the soldered ribbons. For radiuses of curvature over 8cm the cells efficiency remains the same, for radius equal to 6cm the cell efficiency drops less than 2%, and for radius equal to 4cm the drop is less than 3%. The broken fingers due to smaller bend radius lead to higher series resistance and subsequently lower field-factors.
Hydrolysis of oligoribonucleotides by an enzyme fraction from Escherichia coli.

This paper reports the isolation from Escherichia coli of an enzyme fraction that rapidly hydrolyzes adenine oligoribonucleotides, yielding 5′-AMP as the major product. Two ribonucleases from E. coli have been described previously. RNase I (Elson, 1959; Spahr and Hollingsworth, 1961) is an endonuclease that hydrolyzes polyribonucleotides and yields nucleoside 3′-monophosphates. RNase II (Spahr and Schlessinger, 1963; Spahr, 1964; Singer and Tolbert, 1964 and 1965; Nossal, Tolbert, and Singer, 1967) is an exonuclease that hydrolyzes polyribonucleotides from the 3′-termini and yields nucleoside 5′-monophosphates. Singer and Tolbert (1965) and Nossal et al. (1967) have reported that short adenine oligoribonucleotides are not hydrolyzed by RNase II.
47 Relationship between coalition building factors and indicators of effectiveness in 24 safe community coalitions: implications for practitioners

Statement of purpose Safe Communities America is a grass roots coalition building initiative in 24 communities serving over 6 million Americans. The goal is to reduce intentional and unintentional injuries by creating partnerships between diverse sectors and offering evidence-based injury prevention interventions to address local needs. The current study examines coalition building factors and indicators of effectiveness, based on the Community Coalition Action Theory, to explore how to increase the impact of Safe Community coalitions in ultimately decreasing injury rates in their communities. Methods/approach Coalition member surveys measured 4 indicators of effectiveness (member satisfaction, participation, synergy and community capacity), as well as coalition building factors (leadership, administration, available resources and communication). A content analysis of coalition meeting notes determined the number of community changes produced, an indicator of effectiveness. Pearson correlations tested associations between factors and indicators as well as correlations between different levels of indicators. Results Surveys were completed by 192 coalition members from 23 coalitions while 229 meeting notes were submitted by 16 coalitions yielding 109 examples of community changes. Results showed numerous statistically significant correlations between factors and indicators. Results also showed community capacity, a long-term indicator, being associated with other indicators of effectiveness. Conclusions Results suggest specific coalition building factors are associated with more changes in the community and an increase in the capacity of the community to address injuries and larger social issues. Practical implications to increase coalition effectiveness to prevent injuries are suggested for practitioners. Significance and contributions Using the largest sample of injury prevention coalitions, these results provide additional evidence for the Community Coalition Action Theory and demonstrate correlations between constructs of the theory that have not been previously tested. Few studies have demonstrated associations between coalition building factors and long-term effectiveness, such as community capacity, to address injuries at a local level.
THE INFLUENCE OF ACCLIMATIZATION AND AGE OF IMPORTED BOARS ON THE QUALITY OF THEIR SPERM

In the paper the process of acclimatization and adaptation of boars on climate and microclimate conditions are described. The process of growth and sexual maturity during the breeding and accustoming of boars in taking sperms in the centers of artificial insemination or breeding stations are analyzed. It is concluded that appropriate microclimate conditions may solve sterility provoked by climate conditions and even increase fertility of pigs. For purchased and imported young boars it is very important that animals are raised in a proper way and trained for mounting and semen collecting. Ejaculate in the native sperm of imported boars is better quality comparing to the ejaculate of home breeds, but they are sensitive to unspecific infections that can reduce spermatozoa vitality, damage acrosome, disturb spermatozoa maturation and thus influence fertilizing of diluted semen. Housing and nutrition of high-born breed boars has important role in maximal exploitation of producing ability especially on longevity and lifetime production of the imported boars.
Genetics and Biochemistry Remain Essential in the Structural Era of the Spliceosome

The spliceosome is not a single macromolecular machine. Rather it is a collection of dynamic heterogeneous subcomplexes that rapidly interconvert throughout the course of a typical splicing cycle. Because of this, for many years the only high resolution structures of the spliceosome available were of smaller, isolated protein or RNA components. Consequently much of our current understanding of the spliceosome derives from biochemical and genetic techniques. Now with the publication of multiple, high resolution structures of the spliceosome, some question the relevance of traditional biochemical and genetic techniques to the splicing field. We argue such techniques are not only relevant, but vital for an in depth mechanistic understanding of pre-mRNA splicing.
Pairwise graphical models for structural health monitoring with dense sensor arrays

Abstract Through advances in sensor technology and development of camera-based measurement techniques, it has become affordable to obtain high spatial resolution data from structures. Although measured datasets become more informative by increasing the number of sensors, the spatial dependencies between sensor data are increased at the same time. Therefore, appropriate data analysis techniques are needed to handle the inference problem in presence of these dependencies. In this paper, we propose a novel approach that uses graphical models (GM) for considering the spatial dependencies between sensor measurements in dense sensor networks or arrays to improve damage localization accuracy in structural health monitoring (SHM) application. Because there are always unobserved damaged states in this application, the available information is insufficient for learning the GMs. To overcome this challenge, we propose an approximated model that uses the mutual information between sensor measurements to learn the GMs. The study is backed by experimental validation of the method on two test structures. The first is a three-story two-bay steel model structure that is instrumented by MEMS accelerometers. The second experimental setup consists of a plate structure and a video camera to measure the displacement field of the plate. Our results show that considering the spatial dependencies by the proposed algorithm can significantly improve damage localization accuracy.
Adhesion of epoxy (pseudobarnacles) to glass that has been treated with hydrophobic carbosilane-based coatings

Abstract Derivatives of silacyclobutane were applied as monolayer coatings to provide a release layer for epoxy adhesion. Pull-off tests of epoxy (pseudobarnacles) from both uncoated glass slides and glass slides coated with two silacyclobutane derivatives were performed in order to determine the effects of the silacyclobutane coating on adhesion. It was found that the type of silacyclobutane coatings and the heat treatment used affected the amount of force required to pull-off the epoxy from the glass. More specifically, a removal stress of 1.6 MPa was achieved when using one silacyclobutane derivative. This pull-off stress is close to that of a much thicker polydimethylsiloxane, PDMS (70 μm Sylgard 184™, 1.2 MPa).
Increased Basic Fibroblastic Growth Factor mRNA in the Brains of Rats Exposed to Hypobaric Hypoxia

Continued exposure of rats to hypobaric hypoxia results in both functional and structural changes in brain. A most striking structural change is the 50-80% increased capillary density in the cerebral cortex and other brain regions after 3 weeks of hypoxic exposure (LaManna et al., 1992; LaManna, 1992). The apparent increased density may be accompanied by a shift in the capillary segment length distribution towards longer capillary segments (LaManna et al., 1993). It is still not clear if the increased capillary density is due to new capillary branching or to elongation of existing capillaries, or both. Nevertheless, it seems likely that the microvascular adaptation to continued hypoxia is controlled by growth factors. The growth factors that control angiogenesis are not yet well understood, but basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) is known to activate endothelial cells resulting in capillary growth (de Juan et al., 1990), and this growth factor is increased following metabolic stress such as brain ischemia (Finkelstein et al., 1990; Lyons et al., 1991). In this study, we determined whether bFGF mRNA was increased in brains of rats exposed to 3 weeks of hypoxia.
Micromorphology of silica cementation in soils

Abstract Norton, L.D., 1994. Micromorphology of silica cementation in soils. In: A.J. Ringrose-Voase and G.S. Humphreys (Editors), Soil Micromorphology: Studies in Management and Genesis. Proc. IX Int. Working Meeting on Soil Micromorphology, Townsville, Australia, July 1992. Developments in Soil Science 22, Elsevier, Amsterdam, pp. 811–824.
Quantifying Long-Term Accuracy of Sonar Doppler Velocity Logs

A Doppler velocity log sonar measures relative velocity between the instrument and the bottom of a body of water by transmitting acoustic pulses that are scattered off the bottom. The scattered sound is received and the Doppler shift is measured. Like any other sensor, the data quality of a Doppler velocity log can be quantified by a variance and a bias. The goal of this work is to model error sources that do not average out over time; quantify those sources under various operating and environmental conditions; and derive a statistically significant range of expected long-term errors. The following error sources are analyzed: absorption bias, terrain bias, sidelobe coupling, beam alignment, clock drift, element spacing, and speed-of-sound error. A combination of analytical derivations and simulations, where the simulation results were fit to closed-form equations, were used to construct the long-term error model. Validity of the error model was demonstrated by tank testing Doppler velocity logs of different configurations under a range of operating conditions. We envision that the error model derived in this work will be of great use to both system designers that engage in design of new instruments and instrument users that wish to understand how to achieve high navigational accuracy during missions.
Why the Religious Freedom Restoration Act Provides a Defense in Suits by Private Plaintiffs

In Employment Division v. Smith, the Supreme Court reversed course in its First Amendment doctrine, moving away from strict scrutiny protection for religious freedom and towards a more lenient standard akin to a rational basis test. Congress took action in response by enacting the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) in 1993. In order to provide broad protections for the free exercise of religion and to provide a defense for religious beliefs against generally applicable laws, RFRA restored the pre-Smith compelling interest test. However, an ambiguity in the judicial relief section has given rise to a circuit split. Some circuits have found that RFRA does not provide a defense to religious individuals and organizations in suits brought by a private plaintiff. As a result, RFRA’s ability to provide broad religious protection has been significantly impaired. This paper resolves this circuit split, defending the conclusions in Hankins v. Lyght and finding that RFRA does provide a defense in private citizen suits. In Parts I – III, the paper applies a purely textualist analysis, closely examining RFRA’s text and its drafting history. It concludes that the judicial relief section unambiguously provides a defense in citizen suits. Part IV supplements this conclusion by excavating the legislative history surrounding the religious liberty bills – the 1993 RFRA and the proposed 1999 Religious Liberty Protection Act (RLPA.) The record is clear that Congress had a shared understanding RLPA would provide a defense in citizen suits. In discussing the merits of the bill, both proponents and opponents cited to cases with private plaintiffs and advanced policy considerations based on the assumption that RLPA would apply in citizen suits.
Rubber Elasticity, Entanglement Constraints and the Memory—Lattice Model

The conformational freedom of a polymer chain in an elastomeric network is severely restricted by the presence of neighboring chains. Two monomer units cannot occupy the same space, and two chains cannot pass through each other. These entanglement constraints are not easy to introduce into the theory of rubber elasticity though many attempts have been made.
Cost-Shifting in Managed Care

We conducted a study of the change from fee-for-service to managed care for mental health services in the Massachusetts Medicaid program, which occurred in fiscal year 1993. We estimated the effect of managed care on total public expenditures over both the short and the long term. Per person expenditures were lower by 24% in the first year of managed care but only lower by 5% in the second and third years. We also tested for cost-shifting by estimating expenditures for five specific services paid by three public agencies. Expenditures on services paid by the managed care vendor decreased, expenditures paid by Medicaid increased, and expenditures paid by the Department of Mental Health decreased. We discuss the implications for both cost-shifting and quality of care improvements. The results from two-part expenditure models indicate that some cost-shifting may be related to quality improvement. The effects are generally stronger for the beneficiaries in the highest quartile of expenditures.
PELUANG PENERAPAN FPIC SEBAGAI INSTRUMEN HUKUM PROGRESIF UNTUK MELINDUNGI HAK MASYARAKAT ADAT DALAM KEGIATAN USAHA MINYAK DAN GAS BUMI

Abstrak Pengadaan tanah untuk kegiatan industri minyak dan gas bumi merupakan kegiatan strategis yang diprioritaskan negara atas nama ‘kepentingan umum’. Tidak jarang, pengadaan tersebut merampas hak tenurial masyarakat adat demi menyediakan lahan bagi perusahaan untuk melakukan eksplorasi dan eksploitasi. Padahal fungsi tanah bagi masyarakat adat tidak hanya sebagai tempat tinggal saja, tetapi juga sebagai tempat peribadatan, sumber mata pencaharian serta bagian dari budaya dan warisan leluhur yang harus dipertahankan dan dilestarikan. Hak masyarakat adat terhadap tanah ulayat juga dilindungi oleh berbagai instrumen hukum nasional dan internasional. Salah satu prosedur yang dapat memberikan perlindungan terhadap hak-hak fundamental masyarakat adat adalah FPIC ( Free, Prior and Informed Consent ) atau PADIATAPA (Persetujuan Atas Dasar Informasi Awal Tanpa Paksaan). Secara khusus, tulisan ini bertujuan untuk menjawab pokok permasalahan sebagai berikut: Pertama, mengapa FPIC dapat menjadi instrumen hukum progresif untuk melindungi hak-hak masyarakat adat dalam kegiatan usaha migas? Kedua, bagaimana FPIC dapat meningkatkan kepastian hukum bagi investasi di sektor migas? Ketiga, bagaimana strategi untuk menerapkan FPIC dalam kebijakan pengadaan tanah untuk industri migas di Indonesia? Abstract Land clearing for oil and gas industry is deemed as a strategic activity that is prioritized in the name of ‘Public Interest’. In many cases, such land clearing confiscated the land tenure of indigenous peoples to give space for oil companies conducting exploration and exploitation. This is unacceptable for indigenous peoples because not only they often depend on their customary land for their livelihoods and residence, but also because it has strong cultural and often spiritual significance. The rights of indigenous peoples over their customary land is protected under national and international legal frameworks. One of the procedure that shall gives a protection over the fundamental rights of Indigenous Peoples is FPIC (Free and Prior Informed Consent). In the business perspective, FPIC will increase the legal certainty for invesment as it provides the companies with social license to extract. Specifically, this paper will address the following questions: First, how FPIC could be a progressive legal instrument to protect Indigenous Peoples rights in the activity of oil and gas? Second, how FPIC could increase the legal certainty for investment in oil and gas industry? Third, what are the strategies to apply FPIC in the land clearing policy for oil and gas industry in Indonesia?
Information Technology and Vertical Integration: Evidence from Plant-Level Data

We study the relationship between different margins of information technology (IT) use and vertical integration using plant-level data from the U.S. Census of Manufactures. Focusing on the short-ru...
Direct prediction of bidirectional reflectance by dense particulate deposits

Abstract To observe and study the effects of the volume packing density on polarimetric scattering by deposited particulate materials, a comparison is made between the vector radiative transport equation (VRTE) and the plane wave plane parallel (PWPP) models for the polarized bidirectional reflectance and transmittance from plane parallel layers of randomly distributed, wavelength–sized particles. Calculations have been performed on ice and mineral materials with refractive indices of m = 1.31 and m = 1.5 + 0.01 i respectively. In these simulations, particle volume fraction ranges from around 0.05–0.3 for deposits consisting of spherical particles with size parameters of one and two. It is found that the PWPP model results converge to those predicted by the VRTE at small ( ∼ 5% or less) particle volume fractions. At higher volume fractions, the difference between the PWPP and VRTE results depends strongly on the particle size and refractive index, yet not so much on the optical thickness (equivalently, volume of particles per unit area of layer). PWPP simulation results of coherent backscattering effects – brightness opposition and polarization opposition effects – for ice and mineral particles are also represented. Their dependency on the particle volume fraction and particle size has been discussed.
Reactive nitrogen species alter NFκB activity

1715 Chronic inflammation, with its associated increased generation of reactive nitrogen species (RNS) and reactive oxygen species, is implicated in the pathogenesis of many cancers, including head/neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). Furthermore, previous studies have demonstrated the contribution of oxidative stress in aberrant activation of the pleiotrophic transcriptional activating factor NFκB in the progression of numerous diseases including cancer. Nitrosative stress is also implicated in the development and progression of HNSCC. To date, however, no studies have investigated the effects of RNS on NFκB activation and subsequent gene expression. This study employed transient transfection of an NFκB reporter gene to assess NFκB activation, while effects on gene expression were monitored by cellular production of two HNSCC relevant cytokines VEGF and IL 8. Studies were conducted on characterized HNSCC cell lines obtained from ATCC, and included a 24 h treatment with these reactive species (RS) generators: TNF (100U/ml-inititates endogenous RS production), H 2 O 2 (freely permeable, 0.2mM), NOC 18 (long lived RN production, 25 μM) and SIN 1 (simultaneous production of O 2 .- and NO, 100 μM). NFκB activation was assessed by fluorimetric detection of release of the reporter gene protein (data normalized to amount of PCR amplified plasmid DNA) and VEGF and IL 8 production were determined by ELISAs (pg/mg protein). Data were analyzed with a Yates corrected Chi Square. Results from ELISA assays demonstrate cell line and RS generator dependent variability. TNF significantly increased IL 8 levels in SCC 25 cells (p 2 O 2 strongly induced VEGF and IL 8 in SCC 9 cells (p 2 O 2 had no effect on VEGF protein levels in SCC 2095 or 25 and either reduced IL 8 release (SCC 25, p
ARF: identifying re-delegation vulnerabilities in Android system services

Over the past decade, the security of the Android platform has undergone significant scrutiny by both academic and industrial researchers. This scrutiny has been largely directed towards third-party applications and a few critical system interfaces, leaving much of Android's middleware unstudied. Building upon recent efforts to more rigorously analyze authorization logic in Android's system services, we revisit the problem of permission re-delegation, but in the context of system service entry points. In this paper, we propose the Android Re-delegation Finder (ARF) analysis framework for helping security analysts identify permission re-delegation vulnerabilities within Android's system services. ARF analyzes an interconnected graph of entry points in system services, deriving calling dependencies, annotating permission checks, and identifying potentially vulnerable deputies that improperly expose information or functionality to third-party applications. We apply ARF to Android AOSP version 8.1.0 and find that it refines the set of 15,483 paths between entry points down to a manageable set of 490 paths. Upon manual inspection, we found that 170 paths improperly exposed information or functionality, consisting of 86 vulnerable deputies. Through this effort, we demonstrate the need for continued investigation of automated tools to analyze the authorization logic within the Android middleware.
Women Take Their Place in State Legislatures: The Creation of Women’s Caucuses

Scholars, pundits, and casual observers alike continue to observe the election of women to legislatures with mixed expectations. Campaigns that promote public policy problems facing women and journ...
Overcoming barriers to biosimilars in inflammatory arthritis.

The availability of biosimilars to treat inflammatory diseases has generated concern about changing patients from a bio-originator to its biosimilar to save costs. Studies published in 2019 support the effectiveness and safety of ‘nonmedical switching’ and highlight the benefits of communicating information about biosimilars to patients in a positive light.
Herpesviridae: Herpes Simplex Virus 1 and 2 (HSV-1, HSV-2)

Abstract Herpes simplex virus 1 and 2 (HSV-1 and HSV-2) are two species of human herpesviruses that replicate in the nucleus of infected cells, undergo productive infection in epithelial cells and fibroblasts, and spread to establish latent infection in sensory neurons. Latent infection is maintained for the life of an individual, from which the virus can be reactivated to cause recurrent disease. HSVs cause significant human disease, including cold sores, encephalitis, genital herpes, and corneal blindness, with HSV-2 infections increasing the likelihood of human immunodeficiency virus infection.
Estimation of Corrosion Fatigue-Safe Life of 7B06-T6 and 30CrMnSiA JointSpecimens

The 7B04-T6 and 30CrMnSiA joints were pretensioned and exposed to hot and humid marine climate for corrosion test. They were taken back after different cycles of test and fatigue-loaded. Then the fatigue life values of six cycles were studied. The fatigue-safe life of the joints was estimated by using the one-sided tolerance factor method. The results show that the fatigue life of the joint specimen is greatly reduced by the interaction of the corrosive environment and fatigue load. Taking the confidence and reliability into consideration, the one-sided tolerance factor method makes it is possible to obtain an accurate estimated value of fatigue-safe life and thus plays a guiding role in the use of engineering application materials.
Ultrafast dynamics in LMCT and intraconfigurational excited states in hexahaloiridates(iv), models for heavy transition metal complexes and building blocks of quantum correlated materials.

The population and structural dynamics of IrCl62− is studied in acetonitrile and aqueous solutions in comparison to isoelectronic IrBr62− using ultrafast broadband, dispersed transient absorption, with both octahedra excited with 85 fs pulses at four different wavelengths, encompassing the first seven t2g-based electronic states. Ligand-to-metal charge transfer (LMCT) 420 or 490 nm excitation of IrCl62− into Uu′(2T2u) + Eu′′(2T2u) states, superimposed due to Ham effect, or Uu′(2T1u), respectively, leads to symmetry lowering due to Jahn–Teller effect in these excited states with the subsequent 100 fs decay into Ug′(2T1g). This first LMCT state is formed vibrationally coherent in the 104 cm−1 t2g (scissor) or 243 cm−1 eg (out-of-phase-stretch) Jahn–Teller modes for the respective excitation wavelength. Direct excitation into Ug′(2T1g) at 600 nm and the intraconfigurational lowest excited Ug′(2T2g) state at 1900 nm helped to establish that Ug′(2T1g) decays via back electron transfer into Ug′(2T2g) (time constants, 3.55 ps in acetonitrile and 0.9 ps in water), and the decay of Ug′(2T2g) into the ground state is the rate-limiting relaxation step. The relaxation cascade of IrBr62− is similar with short-lived (≤100 fs) higher LMCT states, but the vibrational coherence is only observed in the Jahn–Teller t2g mode. Faster back electron transfer for IrBr62− is explained by the energy gap law. The intraconfigurational Ug′(2T2g) states, which are ∼5100 cm−1 above the ground state for both complexes, have a sub-nanosecond lifetime largely independent of the ligand nature (∼350 ps, acetonitrile).
Shifting Can Be Stressful for African American Women: A Structural Mediation Model:

The present study was designed to examine shifting, the phenomenon of altering or modifying one’s self-presentation in different social contexts, as a mediator of the predictive effects of African ...
Africa, COVID-19, and International Law: From Hegemonic Priority to the Geopolitical Periphery?

One of the most striking features of the COVID-19 pandemic is how balance-of-power politics have shaped U.S. and Chinese responses to this global health crisis. The geopolitical reactions of China and the United States to the pandemic have implications for global health, including global health endeavors focused on Africa. This chapter explores how the return of balance-of-power politics might affect global health, Africa’s place in global health, and the international law used in this policy area. Global cooperation and international law on health will be more politically contested, and geopolitics will shift Africa towards the periphery of global health from the priority position it had in global health during the post-Cold War period when the United States was the unrivalled great power. These changes will transform the context in which African governments conduct health diplomacy through the remainder of the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond.
Antarctic Teleosts With and Without Haemoglobin Behaviourally Mitigate Deleterious Effects of Acute Environmental Warming

Recent studies forecast that many ectothermic animals, especially aquatic stenotherms, may not be able to thrive or even survive predicted climate change. These projections, however, generally do not call much attention to the role of behaviour, an essential thermoregulatory mechanism of many ectotherms. Here we characterize species-specific locomotor and respiratory responses to acute ambient warming in two highly stenothermic Antarctic Notothenioid fishes, one of which (Chaenocephalus aceratus) lacks haemoglobin and appears to be less tolerant to thermal stress as compared to the other (Notothenia coriiceps), which expresses haemoglobin. At the onset of ambient warming, both species perform distinct locomotor manoeuvres that appear to include avoidance reactions. In response to unavoidable progressive hyperthermia, fishes demonstrate a range of species-specific manoeuvres, all of which appear to provide some mitigation of the deleterious effects of obligatory thermoconformation and to compensate for increasing metabolic demand by enhancing the efficacy of branchial respiration. As temperature continues to rise, Chaenocephalus aceratus supplements these behaviours with intensive pectoral fin fanning which may facilitate cutaneous respiration through its scaleless integument, and Notothenia coriiceps manifests respiratory-locomotor coupling during repetitive startle-like manoeuvres which may further augment gill ventilation. The latter behaviours, found only in Notothenia coriiceps, have highly stereotyped appearance resembling Fixed Action Pattern sequences. Altogether, this behavioural flexibility could contribute to the reduction of the detrimental effects of acute thermal stress within a limited thermal range. In an ecologically relevant setting, this may enable efficient thermoregulation of fishes by habitat selection, thus facilitating their resilience in persistent environmental change.
Medical Disorders and Treatments in Professional Voice Users and Wind Instrumentalists

Numerous medical conditions occur in patients with or without dentofacial anomalies and may affect voice and/or wind instrument performance. Interaction between such medical conditions and dentofacial abnormalities may compound performance difficulties. Common medical conditions include infection and inflammation, sinusitis, allergy, respiratory tract infection, autoimmune disease, obesity, aging, hearing loss, respiratory dysfunction, endocrine and neurologic disorders, psychological impairment, structural lesions of the larynx, and others. Practitioners and performers should be familiar with these conditions and their implications when evaluating and treating performers with dentofacial anomalies.
Computing on encrypted data and its applicability to a coalition operations environment

Coalition operations often invoke the sharing of information and IT infrastructure amongst partners. Whilst there may be a coalition Oneed to shareO data this is o ften tempered by a Oneed to knowO principle that often prevents valuable information from being exchanged, particularly with classified data. Ideally, coalition partners would wish to share data that can be used to compute specific results that are only relevant to a given operation , without revealing all of the shared information. In this paper we will present the concept of a secure coalition cloud architecture that is capable of storing encrypted data and of performing arbitrary computation s on the encry pted data on behalf of users , without at any stage having to decrypt it. To do this we make use of a fully homomorphic encryption scheme using a novel approach for managing encryption and decryption keys in a public key infrastructure (PKI) setting . Keywords: cryptography, cloud, ful ly homomorphic encryption, microcloud, security .
Structural Requirements for α9β1-Mediated Adhesion and Migration to Thrombin-Cleaved Osteopontin

Osteopontin is an RGD-containing glycoprotein that mediates adhesion and migration of a variety of different cell types. We recently showed that a recombinant osteopontin fragment that was expected to be formed following thrombin cleavage was not only biologically active, but also could support alpha 9 beta 1-mediated adhesion, an activity not found in the full-length molecule. In this study we defined binding sites on the N-terminal osteopontin fragment important for alpha 9 beta 1-mediated cell interactions. In addition to adhesion, we showed that alpha 9 beta 1 could mediate cell migration, a function not previously identified for this integrin. Using site-directed mutagenesis, we made specific mutations in the RGD region of the N-terminal osteopontin fragment. Mutation of RGD to RGE resulted in a 50% decrease in cell adhesion. The residual binding to the RGE mutant could be blocked by alpha 9 and beta 1 antibodies. Adhesion to the RGE mutant was due to residual recognition of the RGE site by alpha 9 beta 1 since mutants containing more drastic mutations in the RGD domain achieved by mutating RGD to RAA or by eliminating the RGD completely failed to support cell adhesion and migration. In contrast, alpha 9 beta 1-mediated adhesion to tenascin was RGD independent. These data demonstrate that alpha 9 beta 1 is one of the few integrin receptors that can interact with two distinct RGD-containing ligands through different adhesive domains.
Structure–Activity Relationships for Carcinogenic Potential

Two important disadvantages of long-term animal bioassays are that testing involves substantial amounts of time and money, and that high doses are usually used in the testing process. These disadvantages can be circumvented using (quantitative) structure-activity relationships ((Q)SARs). In the field of computational toxicology, (Q)SARs are predictive models that provide a quantitative measure of the relationship between the chemical structure and a measure of a given health-related end point. Such relationships can be expressed in terms of continuous dose-response data (e.g. carcinogenic potency) based on some type of regression analysis for quantitative end points, or a dichotomous classification (e.g. yes/no-type answers for carcinogenicity, etc.) based on discriminant analysis or other pattern recognition techniques for qualitative end points. There are a limited number of (Q)SAR models to predict the carcinogenicity of various chemicals, a majority of which relate the carcinogenic potency to measures of carcinogenicity such as mutagenicity, lethal dose (LD50) or the maximum tolerated dose (MTD). Other (Q)SAR models relate the carcinogenicity of a chemical to its structure, either in terms of its chemical fragments (groups of one or more atoms that make up the chemical structure) or in terms of its physical and chemical properties. In addition, a variety of commercial and noncommercial software that contain modules to predict the carcinogenicity of chemicals are also available. Keywords: structure-activity relationship; quantitative structure-activity relationship; SAR; QSAR; carcinogenicity; cancer; carcinogenic potency; toxicity prediction; computer modelling; tumour; tumourigenicity; oral slope factor; tumourigenicity dose rate
Cometary Activity, Discrete Outgassing Areas and Dust-Jet Formation

Conceptual models for various types of features observed in cometary comae (jets, spirals, halos, fans, etc.), their computer simulation, and the hydrodynamic models for jet formation are critically reviewed, and evidence for anisotropic, strongly collimated flows of ejecta emanating from discrete active regions (vents) on the rotating cometary nuclei is presented. Techniques employed to generate synthetic comet images that simulate the features observed are described, and their relevance to the primary objects of coma-morphology studies is discussed. Modeling of temporal variations in the water emission from discrete active regions suggests that production curves asymmetric with respect to perihelion should be commonplace. Critical comparisons with the activity profiles of Enke's comet and with light curves of disappearing comets and comets that undergo outbursts are presented. Recent developments in the understanding of the processes that cause the nongravitational perturbations of cometary motions are reviewed, and the observed discontinuities are identified with the birth of new sources and/or deactivation of old vents.
Sky Segmentation by Fusing Clustering with Neural Networks

Sky segmentation is an important task for many applications related to obstacle detection and path planning for autonomous air and ground vehicles. In this paper, we present a method for the automated sky segmentation by fusing K-means clustering and Neural Network (NN) classifications. The performance of the method has been tested on images taken by two Hazcams (ie., Hazard Avoidance Cameras) on NASA’s Mars rover. Our experimental results show high accuracy in determining the sky area. The effect of various parameters is demonstrated using Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curves.
TA Training at Virginia Tech

The proper training of teaching assistants (TAs) to be instructors of elementary statistics plays a central role in the teaching mission of the Department of Statistics at Virginia Tech. We rely on several indirect methods to prepare our TAs for the classroom, from observational learning, to formal training in the many facets of statistical consulting, to graduated increase in teaching duties and responsibilities. Each of these steps is fully illustrated in the following article. Also discussed are the monitoring of TA teaching quality and the methods we use to maintain consistency of course presentation and materials across multiple sections. Language issues associated with international student TAs are briefly examined. We conclude with a wish list of suggestions designed to improve the quality of TA training and, eventually, TA teaching.
Aurorasaurus and the St Patrick’s Day storm

The recent St. Patrick's Day geomagnetic storm provided a rare chance for the public to witness a dazzling auroral display, even from mid-latitudes. An unprecedented number of citizen scientists reported their sightings to Aurorasaurus, offering an exciting opportunity for future scientific study.