cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Learning strategies and classification methods for off-line signature verification

Learning strategies and classification methods for verification of signatures from scanned documents are proposed and evaluated. Learning strategies considered are writer independent- those that learn from a set of signature sample (including forgeries) prior to enrollment of a writer, and writer dependent- those that learn only from a newly enrolled individual. Classification methods considered include two distance based methods (one based on a threshold, which is the standard method of signature verification and biometrics, and the other based on a distance probability distribution), a Nave Bayes (NB) classifier based on pairs of feature bit values and a support vector machine (SVM). Two scenarios are considered for the writer dependent scenario: (i) without forgeries (one-class problem) and (ii) with forgery samples being available (two class problem). The features used to characterize a signature capture local geometry, stroke and topology information in the form of a binary vector. In the one-class scenario distance methods are superior while in the two-class SVM based method outperforms the other methods.
Experiments with Conjugate Gradient Algorithms for Homotopy CurveTracking

There are algorithms for finding zeros or fixed points of nonlinear systems of equations that are globally convergent for almost all starting points, i.e., with probability one. The essence of all such algorithms is the construction of an appropriate homotopy map and then tracking some smooth curve in the zero set of this homotopy map. HOMPACK is a mathematical software package implementing globally convergent homotopy algorithms with three different techniques for tracking a homotopy zero curve, and has separate routines for dense and sparse Jacobian matrices. The HOMPACK algorithms for sparse Jacobian matrices use a preconditioned conjugate gradient algorithm for the computation of the kernal of the homotopy Jacobian matrix, a required linear algebra step for homotopy curve tracking. Here variants of the conjugate gradient algorithm are implemented in the context of homotopy curve tracking and compared with Craig''s preconditioned conjugate gradient method used in HOMPACK. The test problems used include actual large scale, sparse structural mechanics problems.
Revised structure of sheep beta-lipotropic hormone.

The amino-acid sequence of the first 38 residues of sheep beta-LPH has been determined with the automated Edman degradation method and found to be slightly different from the published structure. The sequence gly-thr in positions 3 and 4, and ala-glu in positions 16–17 are respectively thr-gly and gln-ala.
Characterization of the Noncoding Regions of the 1918 Influenza A H1N1 Virus

The terminal noncoding region (NCR) sequences of the eight gene segments of the influenza A/Brevig Mission/1/1918 (H1N1) virus were determined by rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE). Chimeric viruses encoding the open reading frames of the 1918 virus but flanked by either the wild-type 1918 NCR sequences or the NCR sequences of two other H1N1 virus strains, A/WSN/1933 and A/New York/312/2001, were produced. No growth differences between the NCR variant 1918 influenza viruses were noted.
Estimation for the Simple Linear Boolean Model

We consider the simple linear Boolean model, a fundamental coverage process also known as the Markov/General/∞ queue. In the model, line segments of independent and identically distributed length are located at the points of a Poisson process. The segments may overlap, resulting in a pattern of “clumps”–regions of the line that are covered by one or more segments–alternating with uncovered regions or “spacings”. Study and application of the model have been impeded by the difficulty of obtaining the distribution of clump length. We present explicit expressions for the clump length distribution and density functions. The expressions take the form of integral equations, and we develop a method of successive approximation to solve them numerically. Use of the fast Fourier transform greatly enhances the computational efficiency of the method. We further present inference procedures for the model using maximum likelihood techniques. Applications in engineering and biomedicine illustrate the methods.
Junctional tachycardia in infants and children after open heart surgery for congenital heart disease

Abstract Junctional tachycardia may occur in the postoperative period and is associated with mortality and significant morbidity in infants and children. 1–5 Limited numbers of postoperative patients have been reported. 2,4,6 Successful pharmacologic treatment of junctional tachycardia in infants and children has been limited. 2,4,6,7 This report describes the characteristics of junctional tachycardia in infants and children in the postoperative period and their treatment at Duke University Medical Center.
Strong seasonality in sand loading and resulting feedbacks on sediment transport, bed texture, and channel planform at Mount Pinatubo, Philippines

Declining sand inputs to a channel with bimodal bed sediment can lead to degradation, armoring, and reduced bedload transport rates. Where sand loading is episodic, channels may alternate between high-sand and low-sand conditions, with ensuing responses in bed texture and bedload transport rates. The effects of episodic sand loading are explored through flow, grain size, and bedload transport measurements on the Pasig-Potrero River, a sediment-rich channel draining Mount Pinatubo, Philippines. Sand loading on the Pasig-Potrero River is highly seasonal, and channel adjustments between seasons are dramatic. In the rainy season, inputs from sand-rich 1991 eruption deposits lead to active, sand-bedded, braided channels. In the dry season, many precipitation-driven sand sources are cut off, leading to incision, armoring, and significantly lower bedload transport rates. This seasonal transition offers an excellent opportunity to examine models of degradation, incision, and armoring as well as the effectiveness of sediment transport models that explicitly encapsulate the importance of sand on transport rates. During the fall 2009 seasonal transition, 7·6 km of channel incised and armored, carving a 2–3 m deep channel on the upper alluvial fan. Bedload transport rates measured in the August 2009 rainy season were over four orders of magnitude greater than gravel-bedded dry-season channels surveyed in January 2010, despite having similar shear stress and unit discharge conditions. Within dry-season incised channels, bed armoring is rapid, leading to an abrupt gravel-sand transition. Bedload transport rates adjust more slowly, creating a lag between armoring and commensurate reductions in transport. Seasonal channel incision occurred in steps, aided by lateral migration into sand-rich banks. These lateral sand inputs may increase armor layer mobility, renewing incision, and forming terraces within the incised seasonal channel. The seasonal incised channel is currently being reset by precipitation-driven sand loading during the next rainy season, and the cycle begins again. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Electrochemical deposition of copper oxide nanowires for photoelectrochemical applications

We report a two-step electrochemical process to grow copper oxide nanowires without the use of templates and surfactants. The first step is to electrochemically corrode amorphous Cu–W oxides pre-sputtered on fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) coated glass substrates under positive potentials. The second step is to use the corroded samples to grow copper oxide nanowires electrochemically under negative potentials. We find that copper oxide nanowires grown by this method exhibit excellent contact with the FTO-coated substrates leading to good charge transfer. The oxidation states, i.e., CuO or Cu2O, and morphology of nanowires can be controlled by the applied potentials. Cu2O nanowires grown using this method reveal moderate photoelectrochemical response and stability under illumination and under cathodic bias.
Sidescan sonar image processing techniques

A four-step processing sequence is described to produce image mosaics from the various segments of a sidescanned acoustic imaging survey of a given seafloor area. Starting with data consisting for each ping of acoustic backscatter levels versus horizontal range across-track, median prefiltering is used first to reduce the influence of outliers on subsequent linear processes. Artifacts that are clearly unrelated to the backscattering properties of the seafloor are then isolated on a ping by ping basis through a spectral analysis that relies on a decomposition using Chebyshev polynomials to filter the low spatial frequency components of the image. Contrast enhancement is then achieved through an original implementation of the classical gray level histogram equalization technique by balancing local versus global histogram contributions. Pixels are mapped on a geographic grid taking due account of the geometry of the measurement and of the spacing between pings to minimize along-track smearing of features. Examples of results obtained with these processing techniques are given for SeaMARC II data recorded during a complete survey of Fieberling Guyot (32 degrees .5 N, 128 degrees W). >
Structural convergence and language change: Evidence from Serbian/English code-switching

This study investigates how the process of structural convergence common in many bilingual communities (cf. Clyne 1987, 1994) interacts with the process of code-switching. Data on Serbian/English code-switching indicate that there the process of structural convergence is reshaping the Serbian variety spoken by bilingual speakers. This process is reflected in code-switching situations in the form of what Myers-Scotton 1993b calls “matrix language” (ML) turnover: the matrix language in code-switched utterances can only be assigned if one considers the process of structural convergence occurring in Serbian. These data indicate that code-switched utterances in which the diachronic ML turnover is under-way present a very useful source of information not only for the analysis of code-switching, but also for the analysis of language change under conditions of contact. The findings of this study strongly suggest that any theoretical model of code-switching which aims at achieving universality needs also to take into consideration the results of the structural convergence that affects linguistic varieties in many code-switching bilingual communities. (Structural convergence and language change, Serbian, code-switching, Matrix Language Frame model)
The Core Apoptotic Executioner Proteins CED-3 and CED-4 Promote Initiation of Neuronal Regeneration in Caenorhabditis elegans

A critical accomplishment in the rapidly developing field of regenerative medicine will be the ability to foster repair of neurons severed by injury, disease, or microsurgery. In C. elegans, individual visualized axons can be laser-cut in vivo and neuronal responses to damage can be monitored to decipher genetic requirements for regeneration. With an initial interest in how local environments manage cellular debris, we performed femtosecond laser axotomies in genetic backgrounds lacking cell death gene activities. Unexpectedly, we found that the CED-3 caspase, well known as the core apoptotic cell death executioner, acts in early responses to neuronal injury to promote rapid regeneration of dissociated axons. In ced-3 mutants, initial regenerative outgrowth dynamics are impaired and axon repair through reconnection of the two dissociated ends is delayed. The CED-3 activator, CED-4/Apaf-1, similarly promotes regeneration, but the upstream regulators of apoptosis CED-9/Bcl2 and BH3-domain proteins EGL-1 and CED-13 are not essential. Thus, a novel regulatory mechanism must be utilized to activate core apoptotic proteins for neuronal repair. Since calcium plays a conserved modulatory role in regeneration, we hypothesized calcium might play a critical regulatory role in the CED-3/CED-4 repair pathway. We used the calcium reporter cameleon to track in vivo calcium fluxes in the axotomized neuron. We show that when the endoplasmic reticulum calcium-storing chaperone calreticulin, CRT-1, is deleted, both calcium dynamics and initial regenerative outgrowth are impaired. Genetic data suggest that CED-3, CED-4, and CRT-1 act in the same pathway to promote early events in regeneration and that CED-3 might act downstream of CRT-1, but upstream of the conserved DLK-1 kinase implicated in regeneration across species. This study documents reconstructive roles for proteins known to orchestrate apoptotic death and links previously unconnected observations in the vertebrate literature to suggest a similar pathway may be conserved in higher organisms.
Impeding Earl Warren: California's Health Insurance Plan That Wasn't and What Might Have Been

It is widely believed that the turning point for U.S. health insurance came in 1949 when Congress failed to adopt President Harry Truman's proposal for a national system. The possibility that a system of state-level health plans might have emerged before Truman's plan has received little attention. Yet several attempts to enact such a plan were made in California by Governor Earl Warren in the mid-1940s. Had Warren succeeded, the California example might have been emulated by other states and the United States might have evolved a system similar to Canada's provin- cial programs. State-provided single-payer health insurance is not a topic most people associate with Earl Warren. He is best known as chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court and for that court's decisions related to school desegre- gation, legislative apportionment, and defendants' rights. Warren's judi- cial career has obscured memories of him as the only governor of Cali- fornia to win election to that office three times, once after winning both the Republican and Democratic primary nominations. Few recall War- ren as the politician with strong presidential ambitions who ran as the Republicans' vice presidential candidate with Thomas Dewey in 1948. Liberals who admire Warren's record tend to neglect his major role in the internment of the Japanese-origin population during World War II The author thanks staff members of the California State Archives and the Tamiment Institute library of New York University for their assistance. Helpful comments were received from Michael Dukakis, Sanford Jacoby, Arleen Leibowitz, Mark Peterson, and anonymous referees. Opinions expressed are those of the author.
A two-compartment regression model applied to compliance in a hypertension treatment program.

Abstract Various statistical procedures have been applied to the analysis of factors associated with the tendency of patients to drop out of long-term clinical trials. Thus far, however, no analytical tool has been developed specifically for the analysis of these factors. A model is described which incorporates regression analysis into a two-compartment model in order to analyze covariate effects on patient transitions between active and inactive states. An application is made to a clinical trial in the treatment of hypertension.
Effect of the Matrix on the Oxidation of Nanostructured Ge Granular Films

Nanostructured Ge granular thin films were prepared by magnetron sputtering of composite targets pressed from mixtures of Ge and ceramic powders. The ceramics used were Al2O3, MgO and SiO2. Films in the Gex(Al2O3)1−x system were composed of Ge particles 10–60 nm in size uniformly embedded in the ceramic matrix, particularly for low Ge concentration films. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) was used to characterize these films. Samples were identified according to the coordination of Ge with the oxygen as (i) Ge-Ge4, (ii) Ge-Ge3O, (iii) Ge-Ge2O2, (iv) Ge-GeO3 and (v) Ge-O4. Using the modified Sanderson model1 and its modifications2, we found Ge oxidation to be largely composition dependent. Similar results were obtained for Ge granular films in MgO and SiO2 matrices.
Dipole antennas enclosed in double negative (DNG) and single-negative (SNG) nested spheres: efficient electrically small antennas

Metamaterials are engineered media whose electromagnetic responses are different from those of their constituent components. They are often generated by incorporating in a periodic manner various types of artificially fabricated, extrinsic inhomogeneities in some background substrate. The dimensions of these inhomogeneities are usually much smaller than the operating wavelength, e.g., ~lambda/10, which leads to effective media. Metamaterials that mimic known material responses or that qualitatively have new response functions that do not occur in nature have been realized. There are several classifications of metamaterials. We choose to name them based on their fundamental properties, i.e., by the signs of their permittivity and permeability. The double positive (DPS) metamaterials have both the permittivity and permeability positive, i.e., epsi > 0, mu > 0. The epsilon-negative (ENG) metamaterials have the permittivity less than zero, i.e., epsi 0. The mu-negative (MNG) metamaterials have the permeability less than zero, i.e., epsi > 0, mu < 0. The double negative (DNG) metamaterials have both the permittivity and permeability negative, i.e., epsi < 0, mu < 0. There have been a variety of antenna applications conceived and realized with these various types of metamaterials that provide significant improvements in their performance. We consider here an electrically small dipole antenna enclosed in a set of nested DPS, DNG, and ENG shells
Developing the Perfect Pitch: Creating a Positive First Impression Through Social Media

Too often we take for granted first impressions and how others perceive us, but such perceptions frequently form the basis for personal and professional success. Today, many first impressions are made online through search engine results and social networks. To ensure that students make a positive first impression, this teaching innovation outlines how to develop the “perfect pitch,” a 60-second video that highlights a student’s personal brand promise and the value a student can contribute to potential employers. This innovation teaches students an effective marketing tactic that can be applied to advance their personal brands as well as professional careers.
“I Don’t Like Being Good!” Changing Behavior With Technology-Based Self-Monitoring

Self-monitoring has a well-established literature base for improving the behavior of students with a range of ages and abilities. Whereas self-monitoring often involves technology for prompting self-monitoring procedures, to date, only a few studies have examined the use of technology for recording self-monitored behavior. To extend the literature in this area, the effects of technology-based self-monitoring were examined using an iPad application called SCORE IT in which students and teachers rate students’ behavior and view automated graphs of progress toward goals. Using a baseline and intervention (ABAB) design to measure outcomes, improvements in behavior were established for both middle school participants—one with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and another receiving noncategorical special education services for reading, math, and behavioral deficits. Findings, limitations, and recommendations for future research are discussed.
Muscarine receptor activation in the substantia gelatinosa of the spinal trigeminal nucleus of the guinea pig

1. Intracellular recordings were made from slices of guinea pig spinal trigeminal nucleus pars caudalis (SG). 2. Muscarine [0.3–30 microM; half maximally effective concentration (EC50) = 2.9 microM] hyperpolarized 61% of SG neurons. The effect was mimicked by carbachol (0.3–30 microM; EC50 = 3.9 microM) and antagonized by pirenzepine (1 microM). Thirty-four percent of the neurons were depolarized by muscarine and carbachol (1–30 microM: EC50 = 5.7 microM), and the effect was antagonized by pirenzepine (100 nM). 3. In approximately 80% of recordings, muscarine (10–30 microM) evoked repetitive spontaneous inhibitory postsynaptic potentials (IPSPs) that were sensitive to bicuculline (10 microM). 4. Muscarine (1–30 microM; EC50 = 3 microM) decreased the amplitude of the majority of evoked excitatory postsynaptic potentials (EPSPs), and the effect was mimicked by carbachol and antagonized by pirenzepine (100 nM). 5. These results indicate that there are at least three mechanisms by which muscarine inhibits SG neurons: 1) hyperpolarization through activation of non-M1 receptors; 2) activation of gamma-amino-butyric acid-containing interneurons that mediate IPSPs in a subset of neurons; and 3) a decrease in evoked EPSP amplitude. Muscarine can also activate SG neurons via interaction with an M1-type receptor.
Review of Classical Action Principles

This section grew out of lectures given by Schwinger at UCLA around 1974, which were substantially transformed into Chap. 8 of Classical Electrodynamics (Schwinger 1998). (Remarkably, considering his work on waveguide theory during World War II, now partially recorded in Ref. (Milton 2006), he never gave lectures on this subject at Harvard after 1947.)
Lessons from Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli: Some microorganisms interact with and respond to signaling pathways in host animal and plant species

Both eukaryotic cells and microbes sense and respond to small molecules in their environments. Microbial cells communicate with one another via quorum-sensing molecules, antibiotics, and even hormones. In microbially rich soils, for example, bacteria and fungi communicate via antibiotics, while the Qse quorum-sensing system of pathogenic Escherichia coli cells responds to host hormones, including norepinephrine and epinephrine, in addition to its canonical signaling molecule, autoinducer-3 (AI-3). Many other kinds of bacteria, including staphylococci and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, respond to mammalian hormones and neurotransmitters—a phenomenon that Mark Lyte of Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center refers to as “microbial endocrinology” (Microbe, April 2009, p. 169). In effect, some microorganisms “listen” and respond to signaling pathways in host animal and plant species.
What Does Palliative Care Mean in Prenatal Diagnosis of Congenital Heart Disease

Palliative care in congenital heart disease is relatively uncommon. A condition in which discussion of palliative care may occasionally arise is in the case of prenatal diagnosis of hypoplastic left heart syndrome. Prenatal diagnosis allows families to be counseled and educated about the anomaly and provides the opportunity for a conscious, deliberate choice between the options of pregnancy termination, interventional management after birth, or nonintervention with palliative care. Multiple factors contribute to the decision making. Despite the improved outcomes, palliative care is still considered a viable option by the congenital heart care provider community. In a large series of consecutive fetuses presenting with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, approximately 11% chose termination of pregnancy and 7% chose postnatal palliative care. As outcomes steadily improve, the threshold for discontinuing the viability of palliative care as an option will be reached.
New approaches to increase intestinal length: Methods used for intestinal regeneration and bioengineering

Inadequate absorptive surface area poses a great challenge to the patients suffering a variety of intestinal diseases causing short bowel syndrome. To date, these patients are managed with total parenteral nutrition or intestinal transplantation. However, these carry significant morbidity and mortality. Currently, by emergence of tissue engineering, anticipations to utilize an alternative method to increase the intestinal absorptive surface area are increasing. In this paper, we will review the improvements made over time in attempting elongating the intestine with surgical techniques as well as using intestinal bioengineering. Performing sequential intestinal lengthening was the preliminary method applied in humans. However, these methods did not reach widespread use and has limited outcome. Subsequent experimental methods were developed utilizing scaffolds to regenerate intestinal tissue and organoids unit from the intestinal epithelium. Stem cells also have been studied and applied in all types of tissue engineering. Biomaterials were utilized as a structural support for naive cells to produce bio-engineered tissue that can achieve a near-normal anatomical structure. A promising novel approach is the elongation of the intestine with an acellular biologic scaffold to generate a neo-formed intestinal tissue that showed, for the first time, evidence of absorption in vivo. In the large intestine, studies are more focused on regeneration and engineering of sphincters and will be briefly reviewed. From the review of the existing literature, it can be concluded that significant progress has been achieved in these experimental methods but that these now need to be fully translated into a pre-clinical and clinical experimentation to become a future viable therapeutic option.
Eastern Equine Encephalitis Presenting as Focal Neuroradiographic Abnormalities: Case Report and Review

We describe a well-documented case of Eastern equine encephalitis (EEE) in a patient who presented with fever and altered mental status and who had focal cranial lesions that were evident on both computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging. Only 15 CT scans performed for patients with EEE have been described previously; findings on most were normal or revealed diffuse cerebral edema. It is not widely appreciated that EEE can manifest as discrete lesions on CT. We review the radiographic experience with EEE and interpret it in light of certain clinical and pathological features of the disease.
Optimal Parallel Controllers and Filters for a Class of Second-Order Linear Dynamic Systems

Matrix second-order damped linear dynamic systems are frequently encountered in mechanical, structural, electrical, civil, and aerospace engineering. This class of systems also comes from the distributed parameter dynamic systems (systems described by partial differential equations) when they are approximated by linear dynamic systems. In this paper, we show how to design, for this class of systems, the globally optimal linear-quadratic controller and the globally optimal Kalman filter in terms of locally optimal linear-quadratic controllers and locally optimal scalar second-order Kalman filters. This simplifies computational requirements and allows full parallelism in information processing and feedback loop implementation. Conditions are established under which the presented procedure is applicable. Examples are included to demonstrate the efficiency of the proposed technique.
Actinomycosis: Solitary Nodule

Actinomycosis is generally described as draining sinuses and is seldom considered in diagnosing solitary lesions of the neck. An atypical case is described in which a solitary cervical nodule simulated a metastatic lesion. Surgical treatment followed by short-term chemotherapy achieved excellent results.
Abstract B55: Elevation of oxidative expression proteins in colorectal adenomatous polyps

The optimal management of patients with colorectal adenomatous polyps depends on the accuracy of appropriate staging strategies because patients with similar colorectal adenocarcinoma architecture display heterogeneity in the course and outcome of the disease. Chronic oxidative stress may play a critical role in the pathogenesis of colorectal cancers, given that a major promutagenic threat faced by colonic epithelial cells is that of chronic oxidative stress. Although reactive oxygen species arise in most cells as a result of normal metabolic processes, additional sources of oxidative stress in colonic cells may include enzymes such as cyclooxygenase 2 (COX-2) and ATPase 6 and 8. High levels of COX-2 and ATPase protein expression have been detected in human colorectal polyps, which are lesions that can progress to colorectal carcinomas. This study applied spectrophotometric, dinitrophenylhydrazone (DNPH) assay, two dimensional gel electrophoresis, and Western blot analyses to assess the levels of oxidatively modified carbonyl proteins in 37 pairs of normal/surrounding and colorectal adenomatous polyps and cancer tissues. Our data showed that the levels of reactive protein carbonyl groups increased as level of malignancy increased. The level of carbonyl protein was 58% and 26% less in N/S tissues as compare to tumor tissue in adenocarcinoma, and colorectal adenomatous polyps tissues respectably. The differences between the level of carbonyl potion in N/S and tumor tissues was more pronounced in African American patient than in Caucasians. Also the levels of carbonyl proteins were notably higher in tissue contained higher number of tumor cells in different tissues blocks obtained from same patient. Our results may suggest that oxidative stress is involved in oxidatively modification of carbonyl proteins, leading to increased aggressiveness of colorectal polyps. This study was supported by NIGMS grant # GM099663- awarded to Dr. Felix O. Aikhionbare Citation Format: LaShanale M. Wallace, Sharifeh Mehrabi, Shakeria Cohen, Felix O. Aikhionbare. Elevation of oxidative expression proteins in colorectal adenomatous polyps. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Seventh AACR Conference on The Science of Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; Nov 9-12, 2014; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2015;24(10 Suppl):Abstract nr B55.
Check computation about the share-bearing ratio of steel braced frames

A check method about the share-bearing ratio of moment frames-spectrum inspection check method,was proposed on the dual systems resisting lateral forces,and is compared with distributing equality check method under frequency and infrequency earthquakes,using steel braced frames as an example.The result shows that such an approach is reasonable.
Precision analysis of standoff air-to-ship missile fire control system

Missile weapon system model is build according to the fire control system of some certain combat aircraft,factors that cause target parameter calculation error and missile self-control trajectory end spread are analyzed with regard to direct attack Air-to-Ship Missile(ASM).Then build the precision analysis model of fire control system,make simulative calculation with statistics,evaluate the trajectory solve precision under various kinds of error and analyses the simulation result.Simulation result agrees with the fact and can provide design and evaluate basis for combat aircraft missile weapon system.
Comparing adults who use cannabis medically with those who use recreationally: Results from a national sample.

Abstract Objectives Cannabis has been legalized for medical use in almost half of the states in the U.S. Although laws in these states make the distinction between medical and recreational use of cannabis, the prevalence of people using medical cannabis and how distinct this group is from individuals using cannabis recreationally is unknown at a national level. Methods Data came from the 2013 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH). All adults endorsing past year cannabis use who reported living in a state that had legalized medical cannabis were divided into recreational cannabis use only and medical cannabis use. Demographic and clinical characteristics were compared across these two groups. Results 17% of adults who used cannabis in the past year used cannabis medically. There were no significant differences between those who used medically versus recreationally in race, education, past year depression and prevalence of cannabis use disorders. In adjusted analyses, those with medical cannabis use were more likely to have poorer health and lower levels of alcohol use disorders and non-cannabis drug use. A third of those who reported medical cannabis use endorsed daily cannabis use compared to 11% in those who reported recreational use exclusively. Conclusions Adults who use medical and recreational cannabis shared some characteristics, but those who used medical cannabis had higher prevalence of poor health and daily cannabis use. As more states legalize cannabis for medical use, it is important to better understand similarities and differences between people who use cannabis medically and recreationally.
Cystic disease of the kidney in the newborn infant.

This article reviews the development of the normal kidney, the cystic kidney diseases, and recent experimental observations that may provide improved understanding of the clinical problem.
An Empirical Analysis of Marketing Professors’ Attitudes Toward Students Majoring in Marketing

This paper analyzes Marketing faculty members attitudes toward students majoring in Marketing. Seven different comparisons were made among professors’ groups : AACSB vs.non-AACSB, small universities vs. large universities, junior Marketing faculty vs. senior Marketing faculty, female vs. male, private schools vs. public schools, less than 10 years of experience vs. 10 or more years of experience, and non Ph.D./D.B.A.’s vs. Ph.D./D.B.A.’s. In general, it appears that Marketing faculty members are more in agreement in how they feel toward Marketing majors, than they are in disagreement.
Distributed denial of service DDoS attack detection using data mining approach in cloud-assisted wireless body area networks

Nowadays, wireless body area networks WBANs is emerging as a promising technology with a considerable potential in improving patients healthcare services. The integration of WBAN and cloud computing technology provides a platform to create a new digital paradigm with leading features called cloud-assisted WBAN. The foremost concern of cloud-assisted WBAN is the security and privacy of data either collected and stored by WBAN sensors or transmitted to cloud over an insecure network. Among these, data availability is the most nagging security issue. The major threat to data availability is distributed denial of service attack DDoS normally launched from various distributed locations. In order to assure the all time availability of patients data, we propose a distributed victim based DDoS attack detection mechanism based on very fast decision tree VFDT learning model in cloud-assisted WBAN. The evaluation and performance analysis shows that the proposed mechanism could detect DDoS attack with high accuracy, and reduced false positive and false negative ratio.
Estimation and detection of network traffic

The classification of Internet traffic is of interest in areas like differentiated services and network security. Such classification is usually done using the packet header field of 'port number'. However, recent developments in networking techniques have rendered the port numbers unreliable for this purpose. Our scheme of classification uses the distribution of packet sizes in a buffer or collected during a short time interval at a switch or router. We demonstrate that applications can be classified by these distributions and that estimation of the amount of each application is possible. We compare two methods for estimation of the traffic in various applications: MMSE estimation; POCS and neural networks. It is observed that a highly accurate detection and estimation is obtained using the artificial neural networks.
Using OpenGGCM to Compute and Separate Magnetosphere Magnetic Perturbations Measured on Board Low Earth Orbiting Satellites

We use Open Geospace General Circulation Model (OpenGGCM) simulations to predict magnetic field perturbations at Low Earth Orbiting (LEO) satellites such as Swarm, at high latitudes. The simulations allow us to separate three different major contributions to the observed perturbations, i.e., the perturbations caused by currents in the outer magnetosphere, field-aligned currents (FACs), and the currents flowing in the ionosphere. We find that at an altitude of 500 km the strongest contribution comes from FACs, followed by the perturbations caused by the ionospheric currents, while the magnetospheric currents make only a minor contribution. The high latitude perturbations do not average out over extended quiet time periods. There are significant variations in the patterns; however, on a large scale, the basic shape of the pattern remains stable. Thus, without explicitly removing the perturbations from the data, any spherical harmonics fit is expected to incur a bias. Although the predicted OpenGGCM perturbations do not compare particularly well with Swarm data, the simulations reproduce the overall pattern. However, they may still be useful to reduce the bias of the ensemble and produce better global spherical harmonic fits, by producing an ensemble whose external field contributions average out. Since this paper only scratches the surface of the role that models of the external field can play in producing unbiased internal field models, much progress is still possible, for example by improving the external model, investigating larger ensembles, and by considering data from geomagnetically disturbed times.
Grazing management effects on stream bank erosion and phosphorus delivery to a pasture stream

Nellesen, S. L., Kovar, J. L., Haan, M. M. and Russell, J. R. 2011. Grazing management effects on stream bank erosion and phosphorus delivery to a pasture stream. Can. J. Soil Sci. 91: 385-395. Pasture lands may deliver significant sediment and phosphorus (P) to surface waters. To determine the effects of beef cattle (Bos taurus) grazing practices on stream bank erosion and P losses, three treatments [rotational stocking (RS), continuous stocking with restricted stream access (CSR), and continuous stocking with unrestricted stream access (CSU)] were established in six adjacent pastures along Willow Creek in central Iowa, USA. Erosion pins were used to record bank erosion and deposition monthly from May to November of 2005-2007. Soil samples were collected by horizon to estimate P losses. Net bank erosion/deposition and pin activity, calculated as an indicator of bank stability, differed among years and measurement periods within a given year more than among grazing management treatments. Trend analysis of...
The Two Disciplines of Behavior Therapy: Research Methods and Mediating Variables

The title of this paper is an adaptation of the title of a classic paper by Lee J. Cronbach (1957). In “The Two Disciplines of Scientific Psychology” Cronbach analyzed two distinct and often antagonistic conceptual and methodological disciplines within psychology: correlational and experimental psychology. He argued for a rapproachment which would produce a stronger and more complete science by combining the advantages of both disciplines. Similarly, this paper analyzes two often antagonistic conceptual and methodological disciplines within behavior therapy: cognitive behavior therapy and the more traditional behavior therapy based on radical behaviorism. This analysis is based upon each approach’s use of research methodology and mediating variables. A literature analysis of a cognitive behavioral journal (Cognitive Therapy and Research) and a more traditional, radical behavioral journal (Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis) is presented in order to determine more fully the nature and extent of the methodological differences between the two disciplines. A major thesis of this paper is that theory and methodology are interdependent. Therefore, differences in the use of mediating variables in the conceptual frameworks of the two approaches that are possibly supported by these methodological differences are examined. Finally, a suggestion for a methodological rapproachment between the two disciplines is presented.
Investigating Potassium Channels in Budding Yeast: A Genetic Sandbox

Like all species, the model eukaryote Saccharomyces cerevisiae, or Bakers' yeast, concentrates potassium in the cytosol as an electrogenic osmolyte and enzyme cofactor. Yeast are capable of robust growth on a wide variety of potassium concentrations, ranging from 10 µM to 2.5 M, due to the presence of a high-affinity potassium uptake system and a battery of cation exchange transporters. Genetic perturbation of either of these systems retards yeast growth on low or high potassium, respectively. However, these potassium-sensitized yeast are a powerful genetic tool, which has been leveraged for diverse studies. Notably, the potassium-sensitive cells can be transformed with plasmids encoding potassium channels from bacteria, plants, or mammals, and subsequent changes in growth rate have been found to correlate with the activity of the introduced potassium channel. Discoveries arising from the use of this assay over the past three decades have increased our understanding of the structure-function relationships of various potassium channels, the mechanisms underlying the regulation of potassium channel function and trafficking, and the chemical basis of potassium channel modulation. In this article, we provide an overview of the major genetic tools used to study potassium channels in S. cerevisiae, a survey of seminal studies utilizing these tools, and a prospective for the future use of this elegant genetic approach.
Effects of birth weight and postnatal nutrition on neonatal sheep: II. Skeletal muscle growth and development.

This study investigated effects of birth weight and postnatal nutrition on growth and development of skeletal muscles in neonatal lambs. Low (L; mean +/- SD 2.289 +/- .341 kg, n = 28) and high (H; 4.840 +/- .446 kg, n = 20) birth weight male Suffolk x (Finnsheep x Dorset) lambs were individually reared on a liquid diet to grow rapidly (ad libitum fed, ADG 337 g, n = 20) or slowly (ADG 150 g, n = 20) from birth to live weights (LW) up to approximately 20 kg. At birth, weight of semitendinosus (ST) muscle in L lambs was 43% that in H lambs; aggregate weights of ST and seven other dissected muscles were similarly reduced. In ST muscle of L lambs, mass of DNA, RNA, and protein were also significantly reduced to levels 67, 60, and 34%, respectively, of those in H lambs. However, myofiber numbers of ST, tibialis caudalis, or soleus muscles did not differ between the L and H birth weight lambs and did not change during postnatal growth. During postnatal rearing, daily accretion rate of dissected muscle was lower in L than in H lambs. Accretion of muscle per kilogram of gain in empty body weight (EBW) was reduced in the slowly grown L lambs compared with their H counterparts, although the difference was less pronounced between the rapidly grown L and H lambs. Throughout the postnatal growth period, ST muscle of L lambs contained less DNA with a higher protein:DNA ratio at any given muscle weight than that of H lambs. Slowly grown lambs had heavier muscles at any given EBW than rapidly grown lambs. Content of DNA and protein:DNA ratio in ST muscle were unaffected by postnatal nutrition, but RNA content and RNA:DNA were greater and protein:RNA was lower at any given muscle weight in rapidly grown lambs. Results suggest that myofiber number in fetal sheep muscles is established before the presumed, negative effects of inadequate fetal nutrient supply on skeletal muscle growth and development become apparent. However, proliferation of myonuclei may be influenced by fetal nutrition in late pregnancy. Reduced myonuclei number in severely growth-retarded newborn lambs may limit the capacity for postnatal growth of skeletal muscles.
THE NORADRENERGIC INNERVATION OF CEREBELLAR PURKINJE CELLS: LOCALIZATION, FUNCTION, SYNAPTOGENESIS, AND AXONAL SPROUTING OF LOCUS COERULEUS

The norepinephrine-containing afferents to the cerebellum arise from subpopulations within the locus coeruleus cell group A6 and from cell group A4. The axons project to the cerebellum by means of separated fascicles within the superior cerebellar peduncle. After partial lesions of the superior peduncle, intact NE cerebellar afferent fibers are triggered into axon collateral proliferation which results in cytological and physiological evidence of a hyperinnervation of cerebellar Purkinje cells by locus coeruleus NE fibers within 25–35 days. In contrast to other regions of the brain employed to study NE axon collateral proliferation and reinnervation, the changes observed in cerebellum regress towards normal within 60–90 days and are not induced by extensive destruction of nonadrenergic inputs. In ontogenetic studies locus coeruleus neurons begin to differentiate on gestational days 10 and 11, but synapses to these neurons are extremely sparse until after birth. The detailed foundation of knowledge regarding the histology, pharmacology, and physiology of this pathway makes it a valuable test system for the analysis of the dynamics of central axon growth regulation.
Copper-Dependent α-Amidation in the Synthesis of Neuroendocrine Peptide Hormones

The absolute requirement for copper by many enzymes and biological processes has been well established. The low activity in vitro of many copper-requiring enzymes has been shown to be responsible for symptoms associated with copper deficiency. Among these are altered mental status due to changes in norepinephrine levels (dopamine β-hydroxylase)1, loss of hair pigmentation (tyrosinase)2, and reduced bone and artery competence (lysyl oxidase)3. In addition, the symptoms of copper deficiency include other manifestations of neurological dysfunction.4
Compilation complexity of common voting rules

In computational social choice, one important problem is to take the votes of a subelectorate (subset of the voters), and summarize them using a small number of bits. This needs to be done in such a way that, if all that we know is the summary, as well as the votes of voters outside the subelectorate, we can conclude which of the m alternatives wins. This corresponds to the notion of compilation complexity, the minimum number of bits required to summarize the votes for a particular rule, which was introduced by Chevaleyre et al. [IJCAI-09]. We study three different types of compilation complexity. The first, studied by Chevaleyre et al., depends on the size of the subelectorate but not on the size of the complement (the voters outside the subelectorate). The second depends on the size of the complement but not on the size of the subelectorate. The third depends on both. We first investigate the relations among the three types of compilation complexity. Then, we give upper and lower bounds on all three types of compilation complexity for the most prominent voting rules. We show that for l-approval (when l ≤ m/2), Borda, and Bucklin, the bounds for all three types are asymptotically tight, up to a multiplicative constant; for l-approval (when l > m/2), plurality with runoff, all Condorcet consistent rules that are based on unweighted majority graphs (including Copeland and voting trees), and all Condorcet consistent rules that are based on the order of pairwise elections (including ranked pairs and maximin), the bounds for all three types are asymptotically tight up to a multiplicative constant when the sizes of the subelectorate and its complement are both larger than m1+∊ for some ∊ > 0.