cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Computational Anatomy and Implicit Object Representation: A Level Set Approach

In this paper, we look at the fundamental problem of object matching in computational anatomy. We present a new framework for warping pairs of overlapping and non-overlapping shapes, open curves, and landmarks based on the level set approach. When implemented in 3-D, the same framework could be used to warp 3-D objects with minimal modification. Our approach is to use the level set functions to represent the objects to be matched. Using this representation, the problem becomes an energy minimization problem. Cost functions for warping overlapping, non-overlapping, open curves, and landmarks are proposed. Euler-Lagrange equations are applied and gradient descent is used to solve the corresponding partial differential equations. Moreover, a general framework for linking the level set approach and the infinite dimensional group actions is discussed.
Symposium Foreword to Defense of Marriage Act: Law, Policy, and the Future of Marriage

On March 30, 2012, the Fordham Law Review held a daylong conference on the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), a statute enacted in 1996 with large majorities in both the House and Senate and signed into law by President Clinton. The Symposium could not have come at a better time: there have been extraordinary changes in the political dynamics surrounding relationship rights since DOMA’s enactment in 1996, when same-sex couples could not marry in any U.S. or foreign jurisdiction.
Focus on Elementary: Deepening Historical Themes in the Elementary School: Four Developmentally Appropriate Ways to Engage Young Students in Historical Thinking and Historiography

History, according to Sam Wineburg (2001), “teaches us a way to make choices, to balance opinions, to tell stories, and to become uneasy—when necessary—about the stories we tell” (p. ix). In Histor...
The Holocene shallowing-upward parasequence of north-west Andros Island, Bahamas

Many pre-Mesozoic records of Earth history are derived from shallow water carbonates deposited on continental shelves. While these carbonates contain geochemical proxy records of climate change, it is the stratal architecture of layered carbonate units that often is used to build age models based on the idea that periodic astronomical forcing of sea-level controls the layering. Reliable age models are crucial to any interpretation of rates and durations of environmental change, but the physical processes that actually control this stratal architecture in shallow water carbonates are controversial. In particular, are upward-shallowing stacks of carbonate beds bounded by flooding surfaces (‘parasequences’) truly a record of relative sea-level change? The purpose of this study is to examine a tidal flat that is actively accumulating carbonate stratigraphy, and to determine the relative importance of tidal channel migration (poorly known, but investigated here) and Holocene sea-level rise (well-known) in controlling post-glacial parasequence architecture. This work represents a field study of peritidal carbonate accumulation at Triple Goose Creek, north-west Andros Island. By integrating surface facies maps with differential global positioning system topographic surveys, a quantitative relationship between facies and elevation is derived. Sedimentary facies are sensitive to elevation changes as small as 5 cm, and are responding to both internal (distance to nearest tidal channel) and external (sea-level rise) controls. The surface maps also are integrated with 187 sediment cores that each span the entire Holocene succession. While flooding of the Triple Goose Creek area should have occurred by ca 4500 years ago, preservation of Holocene sediment did not begin until 1200 years ago. The tidal channels are shown to be stationary, or to migrate sluggishly at up to 6 cm per year. Therefore, while the location of tidal channels is responsible for the modern mosaic of surface facies, these facies and the channels that control them have not migrated substantially during the ca 1200 years of sediment accumulation at Triple Goose Creek. Once the region was channellized, vertical and lateral shifts in facies, such as the landward retreating shoreline, expanding mangrove ponds and seaward advancing inland algal marsh, are driven by changes in relative sea-level and sediment supply, not migrating channels. While stratigraphic columns look different depending on the distance to the nearest tidal channel, the overall parasequence architecture everywhere at Triple Goose Creek records an upward-shallowing trend controlled by the infilling of accommodation space generated by post-glacial sea-level rise.
Birth by Design: Pregnancy, Maternity Care, and Midwifery in North America and Europe

Birth by Design: Pregnancy, Maternity Care, and Midwifery in North America and Europe. Raymond DeVries. Cecilia Benoit. Edwin R. Van Teijlingen. and Sirpa Wrede. eds. New York: Routledge, 2001. xviii. 301 pp.
Who gets unequal parliamentary representation? A comparison of India and Sri Lanka

In 2010, India celebrated its 60th anniversary as a democracy and Sri Lanka held its first post-civil war election. Yet, inequalities in parliamentary representation remain strong in both nations. This research note highlights current geographic, ideological, and demographic parliamentary inequalities in India and Sri Lanka. It finds major social groups especially women, those under age 40, the less educated, Indian Muslims, and those employed in the agricultural sector to be significantly under-represented. On the other hand, it finds provisional support for the hypothesis that Sri Lanka's proportional representation (PR) electoral system better facilitates equal representation than India's single member district (SMD) system.
Novel Kalman filtering method for the suppression of gyroscope noise effects in pointing and tracking systems

A primary cause of degraded performance in pointing and tracking systems is the jitter in the line of sight. This jitter is caused by the residual angular motion of the stabilized platform within the system. A major contributor to this residual motion is the gyroscope noise. Thus, to reduce angular jitter, lower-noise gyroscopes are selected, generally at a premium cost. Another approach is to enhance the accuracy of the gyroscopes electronically (by suppressing measurement noise) before their outputs are fed into the stabilized platform control system. Optimal filtering techniques can be used for this purpose. The goal is to estimate the platform motion so that the calculated value is closer to the actual value than the measurement is. Enhanced performance is obtained at the expense of added complexity, but in many cases this approach may prove to be more economical than resorting to more precise and costly lower-noise gyroscopes. This paper presents a novel Kalman filtering method that provides more accurate angular motion estimates than the measured values. The effectiveness of this method is evaluated through a computer simulation case study. The simulation demonstrates that the new approach yields excellent 3-D angular velocity estimates, very small mean square estimation errors, and over a 5-to-i improvement (in the mean-square sense) over angular velocity measurements obtained from three orthogonal gyroscopes. The enhanced 3-D angular velocity estimates can be fed into the platform stabilization control system rather than feeding raw gyroscope measurements, thus significantly reducing the contribution of gyroscope noise toward the overall jitter in a stabilized platform. This would permit a relaxation on gyroscope noise specifications, which could lead to substantial savings while maintaining the same error budget.
Reliability polynomials having arbitrarily many inflection points

In this article, we show that for every n, there exists a multigraph whose reliability polynomial has at least n inflection points. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. NETWORKS, Vol. 641, 1-5 2014
Comparison of orthorhombic and alpha-two titanium aluminides as matrices for continuous SiC-reinforced composites

The attributes of an orthorhombic Ti aluminide alloy, Ti-21Al-22Nb (at. pct), and an alpha-two Ti aluminide alloy, Ti-24Al-11Nb (at. pct), for use as a matrix with continuous SiC (SCS-6) fiber reinforcement have been compared. Foil-fiber-foil processing was used to produce both unreinforced (“neat”) and unidirectional “SCS-6” reinforced panels. Microstructure of the Ti-24A1-11Nb matrix consisted of ordered Ti3Al (α 2) + disordered beta(β), while the Ti-21 Al-22Nb matrix contained three phases: α2, ordered beta (β 0), and ordered orthorhombic(O). Fiber/ matrix interface reaction zone growth kinetics at 982 °C were examined for each composite system. Although both systems exhibited similar interface reaction products(i.e., mixed Ti carbides, silicides, and Ti-Al carbides), growth kinetics in theα 2 +β matrix composite were much more rapid than in theO +β 0 +α 2 matrix composite. Additionally, interfacial reaction in theα 2 +β} composite resulted in a relatively large brittle matrix zone, depleted of beta phase, which was not present in theO +β 0+α 2 matrix composite. Mechanical property measurements included room and elevated temperature tensile, thermal stability, thermal fatigue, thermo-mechanical fatigue (TMF), and creep. The three-phase orthorhombic-based alloy outperformed the α2+β alloy in all of these mechanical behavioral areas, on both an absolute and a specific(i.e., density corrected) basis.
Dissolution and precipitation kinetics of gibbsite at 80°C and pH 3: The dependence on solution saturation state

Dissolution and precipitation rates of gibbsite were measured in dilute aqueous solutions at pH 3 and 80°C as a function of solution saturation state using stirred-flow reactors. Saturation state (QKeq = exp(ΔGRT); where Q is the activity quotient, keq, is the equilibrium activity quotient (or solubility), ΔGr is the deviation of the Gibbs free energy of the reaction (kcal mol−1) from the equilibrium value, R is the gas constant, and T is temperature in Kelvin) was determined with respect to the overall reaction Al(OH)3(cr) + 3H+ ⇔ A13+ + 3H2O. The equilibrium solubility at 80°C for this reaction was tightly constrained using the solution saturation states from the experiments with the five slowest dissolution and precipitation rates. The calculated equilibrium solubility (Keq = aAl3+AH+3) is 105.00±0.08, in excellent agreement with published values despite differences in thermodynamic models and the definition and measurement of pH. The variation in dissolution rate (mol m−2 sec−1) with ΔGr over the range −1.14 ≤ ΔGr ≤ 0 kcal mol−1 is given by Ratediss = −(4.72 ± 0.28) × 10−10[1 − exp {(−8.12 ± 1.02)g(3.01±0.05)}] where g  ¦ΔGr¦RT. The precipitation rate (mol m−2 sec−1) varies with ΔGr over the range 0 ≤ ΔGr ≤ +0.467 kcal mol−1 according to Rateppt = −(2.07 ± 0.63) × 10−10[1 −exp {g(1.20±0.31)}] or to Rateppt = (1.94 ± 1.55) × 10−10g(1.10±0.11) The variation of the dissolution rate with ΔGr can be separated into three regions. Near equilibrium (0 ≥ ΔGr > −0.200 kcal mol−1), the rates increase gradually with increasing undersaturation according to an approximately linear function of ΔGr. Over the range −0.200 >ΔGr ΔGr > −0.500 kcal mol−1 is suggestive of a surface phase change corresponding to a change in dissolution mechanism. A plausible dissolution mechanism over this range of ΔGr involves the opening of dislocation cores to form etch pits and is supported by theoretical calculations and SEM observations.
Variation of the critical behavior in metamagnets

Abstract From a study of a simple mean field model for metamagnets we predict that new types of critical behavior may be observed in FeBr2 and other similar systems.
The effect of foot compliance encoded in the windlass mechanism on the energetics of human walking

The human foot, which is the part of the body that interacts with the environment during locomotion, consists of rich biomechanical design. One of the unique designs of human feet is the windlass mechanism. In a previous simulation study, we found that the windlass mechanism seems to improve the energy efficiency of walking. To better understand the origin of this efficiency, we here conduct both simulation and experimental studies exploring the influence of foot compliance, which is one of the functionalities that the windlass mechanism embeds, on the energetics of walking. The studies show that walking with compliant feet incurs more energetic costs than walking with stiff feet. The preliminary results suggest that the energy saved by introducing the windlass mechanism does not originate from the compliance it embeds. We speculate that the energy savings of the windlass mechanism are related more to its contribution to reducing the effective foot length in swing than to providing compliance in stance.
Experimental Investigation of a 2D Supercritical Circulation-Control Airfoil Using Particle Image Velocimetry

Recent efforts in extreme short takeoff and landing aircraft configurations have renewed the interest in circulation control wing design and optimization. The key to accurately designing and optimizing these configurations rests in the modeling of the complex physics of these flows. This paper will highlight the physics of the stagnation and separation regions on two typical circulation control airfoil sections.
Histone Deacetylase 3 Suppression Increases PH Domain and Leucine-rich Repeat Phosphatase (Phlpp)1 Expression in Chondrocytes to Suppress Akt Signaling and Matrix Secretion

HDACs epigenetically regulate cellular processes by modifying chromatin and influencing gene expression. We previously reported that conditional deletion of Hdac3 in osteo-chondroprogenitor cells with Osx1-Cre caused severe osteopenia due to abnormal maturation of osteoblasts. The mice were also smaller. To address the abnormal longitudinal growth in these animals, the role of Hdac3 in chondrocyte differentiation was evaluated. We found that Hdac3 is highly expressed in resting and prehypertrophic growth plate chondrocytes, as well as in articular chondrocytes. Hdac3-deficient chondrocytes entered hypertrophy sooner and were smaller than normal chondrocytes. Extracellular matrix production was suppressed as glycosaminoglycan secretion and production of aggrecan, osteopontin, and matrix extracellular phosphoglycoprotein were reduced in Hdac3-deficient chondrocytes. These phenotypes led to the hypothesis that the Akt/mTOR pathway was repressed in these Hdac3-deficient chondrocytes because Akt promotes hypertrophy and matrix production in many tissues. The phosphorylation and activation of Akt, its substrate mTOR, and the mTOR substrate, p70 S6 kinase, were indeed reduced in Hdac3-deficient primary chondrocytes as well as in chondrocytes exposed to HDAC inhibitors. Expression of constitutively active Akt restored phosphorylation of mTOR and p70 S6K and matrix gene expression levels. Reduced phosphorylation of Akt and its substrates in Hdac3-deficient or HDAC inhibitors treated chondrocytes correlated with increased expression of the phosphatase Phlpp1. Hdac3 associated with a Phlpp1 promoter region containing Smad binding elements and was released after TGFβ was added to the culture. These data demonstrate that Hdac3 controls chondrocyte hypertrophy and matrix content by repressing Phlpp1 expression and facilitating Akt activity.
Age at Marriage and the Household: A Study of Neo-Babylonian and Neo-Assyrian Forms

This inquiry focuses on one life stage in the life cycle of ancient Babylonia and Assyria of the first millennium B.C., specifically, the age at first marriage for men and women. I will suggest some implications to be drawn for the household and family patterns resulting from probable age at marriage, and identify native terminology employed in reference to the life stage common for first marriage.
Transmisión del maltrato de padres a hijos

ResumenLa hipotesis de la transmision intergeneracional del maltrato ha ocupado un lugar importante en las teorias del maltrato infantil. Las pruebas que confirman esta hipotesis, sin embargo, han sido poco solidas, ya que el porcentaje de maltrato intergeneracional ha variado mucho de unos estudios a otros. Este articulo examina la literatura actual sobre este tema, resumiendo las pruebas que confirman la hipotesis. Tambien se examinan los problemas metodologicos que han limitado el alcance de los resultados. Se examinan tambien datos obtenidos en el Proyecto de Interaccion Madre-Hijo de Minnesota, un estudio que trata de resolver muchos de los problemas metodologicos. Este proyecto obtuvo un porcentaje de transmision intergeneracional del matrato del 40%. Tambien aporto informacion sobre los factores que rompen el ciclo del maltrato, entre los que destacan la presencia de una relacion de apoyo emocional, la participacion en psicoterapia y la capacidad para elaborar e integrar las experiencias de maltrat...
Synthesis and characterization of functionalized silane-based copolymers for thermally robust polymer–silica hybrids

We report the preparation and characterization of a group of thermally stable silane-based copolymers prepared by radical polymerization of various phenylmaleimides with vinyl- or allyltrialkoxysilanes. These polymers exhibit thermal stability up to 400 °C or better, as determined by thermal analysis. Polymer preparation and stability (resistance to hydrolysis) were confirmed by FTIR, 1H NMR, and 13C NMR spectroscopy. Polymer molecular weights (5000 to 25000 g mol−1) and polydispersity indices (1.87–3.06) were determined by gel permeation chromatography (GPC). While controlling the functional groups on the phenylmaleimide affords the tuning of the chemical properties of the resulting polymers, the choice of the alkoxysilane leads to control over the rate and extent of reactivity of the polymers. These materials are being employed in the design of thermally robust polymer–silica materials for use in high-temperature chromatography.
ENDOSCOPIC SCREENING FOR COLORECTAL CANCER

There is strong evidence that colon screening of asymptomatic, average-risk subjects can reduce colorectal cancer mortality. Endoscopic screening with sigmoidoscopy can reduce mortality associated with left-sided cancers due to the discovery of early curable cancers and the detection removal of premalignant adenomas. Screening with colonoscopy is widely accepted for high-risk groups and would likely be effective for the screening of average-risk subjects.
Further study of prismatic glide including a determination of the speed of dislocations

Abstract Further study of prismatic glide produced by ball indentation of alpha brass crystals indicates that the speed of the associated dislocations is of the same order as the speed of sound. Auxiliary glide prisms, located inside the upward-moving halves of some of the larger primary glide prisms, appear to play an important part in relieving indentation stress.
Commentary on Ullman et al.

Ullman and colleagues should be congratulated for an energetic assault on some of the core issues in neurolinguistics. This work attempts to detect an impact of productivity differences in morphology upon fluency differences in aphasia. This basic goal is well-motivated empirically and should eventually succeed. However, I believe that the links currently being proposed between language and the brain are not well structured conceptually. If these conceptual problems can be successfully addressed, then this work could make a contribution. Without these clarifications, I believe that the current formulation represents a conceptual step backward. The idea that word formation involves both productive and non-productive processes is an old one, dating back to Panini and the Greeks. This contrast has served as a cornerstone of diachronic morphology for nearly two centuries. In developmental psycholinguistics, the decision to analyze words as based on rote or rule crops up at virtually every stage in the analysis of emerging grammars (MacWhinney, 1978). From the viewpoint of neurology and aphasiology, the contrast between fluent and non-fluent aphasia is also fundamental. The traditional interpretation of this contrast has been one that focuses on the role of anterior areas in motor processing and posterior areas in sensory processing. In the 1970s, evidence that nonfluent aphasics also had disabilities in comprehending complex syntax (Zurif, Caramazza, & Myerson, 1972) led researchers to challenge this analysis. Following Jakobson (1955), neurolinguistics began to imagine that frontal areas might control grammatical processing, whereas posterior areas control lexical insertion. The dual-route analysis of Ullman and colleagues represents an attempt to advance the Jakobsonian view
Is there an advanced aging effect on the ability to mentally represent action

Motor programming theory suggests that an integral component in an effective outcome is an adequate action (mental) representation of the movements; a representation reflected in the ability to use motor imagery. Recent reports show a decline with advanced age (>64 years) using a variety of motor simulation tasks. Here, we examined the possible effects of advanced age on motor imagery ability in the context of estimation of reachability – that is, estimating whether an object is within reach or out of grasp. Thirty young adults (mean age: 20) and 23 older adults (mean age: 77) were instructed to estimate, using motor imagery, whether randomly presented targets in peripersonal (within actual reach) and extrapersonal (beyond reach) space were within or out of reach of their dominant limb while seated. Results indicated that the younger group was significantly more accurate than the older adults, p < 0.001. Whereas both groups made more errors in extrapersonal space, the values were significantly higher for the older group; that is, they overestimated to a greater extent. In summary, these findings add to the general notion that there is a decline in the ability to mentally represent action with advanced age.
Optimal Two-Agent Coordination for Graph Traversal: When Is Formation Travel Beneficial?

The objective of this paper is to pose and solve a simple class of coordinated motion problems that capture the following question; When is formation travel optimal? This class of problems is complementary to two related classes of problems that have received significant attention: close formation travel and the generation of flocking behavior. We pose and solve this problem for the case of two agents traversing a finite, connected graph. Two examples are provided, illustrating the application of the results.
A model for iontophoresis incroporating the effect of convective solvent flow

Abstract A model for iontophoretic transport is proposed which incorporates the effects of the applied electric field and the induced convective solvent flow, with a linear term to account for the effect of solvent flow on the permeant flux. The predictions of this model are compared with those of a model without the convective solvent flow term. The new model provides a more detailed framework to decouple and understand the interactions of the applied field and the solvent flow effects. Some interesting features of this model, which are of basic as well as practical significance, are discussed.
Digital anomalies, microcephaly, and normal intelligence: New syndrome or Feingold syndrome?

We present four patients-two boys and their mother and an unrelated girl-with microcephaly, normal intelligence, and digital abnormalities. The hand abnormalities are characterized by brachydactyly with radial clinodactyly of the fourth and fifth fingers, ulnar clinodactyly of the second fingers, and an increased space between the second and third fingers associated with an abnormal palmar crease that extends to the ulnar border. The foot abnormalities include short toes with syndactyly of the fourth and fifth toes. The mother has normal intelligence, and her sons and the unrelated girl have normal development. Although similar digital abnormalities, microcephaly, and normal intelligence were described by Feingold in patients with gastrointestinal atresia, we think that our patients' findings represent a different condition. The most likely mode of inheritance is autosomal dominant. The clinical recognition of this syndrome will allow for appropriate genetic counseling as well as provision of information on natural history, i.e., normal intelligence.
The OB hospitalist and the risk manager: ready for prime time.

In 1996, Wachter and Goldman described a new model of care in which hospital-based physicians provided patients' inpatient care in lieu of the patient’s primary physician.(1) They termed these physicians hospitalists. The hospitalist movement had taken hold, and by 1999, 65% of internists had hospitalists in their community and 28% reported using them for inpatient care.(2) In 2003, Louis Weinstein, in an article entitled “The Laborist: A New Focus of Practice for the Obstetrician”(3) advocated for the adoption of the hospitalist model to obstetrical care. In a 2010 study, of 28,545 members of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) contacted in a national survey, 7,044 clinicians responded, which yielded a response rate of 25%. Of the respondents, 1,020 clinicians (15% of respondents, 3.6% of the entire sample) described themselves as obstetrics/gynecology hospitalists or laborists.(4) According to the web site www.obgynhospitalist.com, there are at least 115 hospitals in the country that utilize a laborist or OB hospitalist model of care.(5).
A method for measuring hydroxylysine and glycosylated hydroxylysines in urine and protein hydrolysates

Abstract A method for measuring hydroxylysine and glycosylated hydroxylysines is described, based on the separation of the 3 compounds by ion-exchange chromatography, followed by spectrophotometric analysis of the hydroxylysine present as glucosylgalactosylhydroxylysine, galactoslhydroxylysine and free hydroxylysine. The method does not require prior preparation of the urine sample nor the use of high-resolution ion-exchange systems. The method is applicable to the determination of the glycosylated hydroxylysine and hydroxylysine content of urine or alkaline hydrolysates of proteins.
Measurement of Viscoelastic Properties of In Vivo Swine Myocardium Using Lamb Wave Dispersion Ultrasound Vibrometry (LDUV)

Viscoelastic properties of the myocardium are important for normal cardiac function and may be altered by disease. Thus, quantification of these properties may aid with evaluation of the health of the heart. Lamb wave dispersion ultrasound vibrometry (LDUV) is a shear wave-based method that uses wave velocity dispersion to measure the underlying viscoelastic material properties of soft tissue with plate-like geometries. We tested this method in eight pigs in an open-chest preparation. A mechanical actuator was used to create harmonic, propagating mechanical waves in the myocardial wall. The motion was tracked using a high frame rate acquisition sequence, typically 2500 Hz. The velocities of wave propagation were measured over the 50-400 Hz frequency range in 50 Hz increments. Data were acquired over several cardiac cycles. Dispersion curves were fit with a viscoelastic, anti-symmetric Lamb wave model to obtain estimates of the shear elasticity, μ1, and viscosity, μ2 as defined by the Kelvin-Voigt rheological model. The sensitivity of the Lamb wave model was also studied using simulated data. We demonstrated that wave velocity measurements and Lamb wave theory allow one to estimate the variation of viscoelastic moduli of the myocardial walls in vivo throughout the course of the cardiac cycle.
Elimination and metabolism of permethrin isomers in rainbow trout

Abstract Although permethrin, a synthetic pyrethroid insecticide, is highly toxic to fish, its toxicity to mammals is comparatively low. The distribution and metabolism of the cis - and trans -permethrin isomers were studied in rainbow trout to evaluate the role of these parameters in the differential toxicity of permethrin to fish and mammals. Both [ 14 C]permethrin geometrical isomers were readily taken up and eliminated by rainbow trout. Elimination half-lives for [ 14 C]permethrin residues in trout tissues, with the exception of fat, were in the magnitude of hours. High concentrations of a polar metabolite were found in bile within 4 hr of cis - and trans -permethrin exposure. Analysis by β-glucuronidase treatment, analytical thin-layer chromatography, and gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy indicated that the metabolite was the glucuronide conjugate of 4′-HO-permethrin. Urine contained a small amount of a polar metabolite that was resistant to hydrolysis by β-glucuronidase but was cleaved to some extent by aryl sulfatase. The relative absence of permethrin hydrolysis products in trout bile and the small amount of radioactivity excreted in urine suggested that the ability of rainbow trout to hydrolyze permethrin, in vivo , was minimal.
Possible bremsstrahlung recoil force on the linear dynamic polarization charge of a relativistic test particle in a nonequilibrium beam-plasma system

The formulation is given for the recoil force on the linear dynamic polarization current of a relativistic test particle participating in collective bremsstrahlung in a nonequilibrium beam-plasma system. Possible contributions arise from terms involving interaction of the total field of the test particle with its own induced linear dynamic polarization.© (1997) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Dual Six-Port Reflectometer Systems Using Waveguide in the Frequency Range 18-50 GHz

The development and evaluation of three dual six-port reflectometer systems, that use WR-42, WR-28 and WR-22 waveguide, is discussed; these cover the frequency range 18-50 GHz. The systems are capable of automated or semi-automated operation and will provide complex scattering parameter data for customer waveguide components, as well as effective efficiency data for power sensors. Some representative measurement data are presented that demonstrate that these systems yield results that do not differ significantly from those obtained using older measurement systems. Some discussion of measurement uncertainties is also included.
Spectrophotometric determination of bromide

A Spectrophotometric method for bromide determination has been developed. Bromide is converted to tribromide which absorbs at 267 nm. The detection limit is 0.01 μg/ml bromide. As little as 0.4 μg of bromide can be determined in an excess of chloride and sulfate with a coefficient of variation of 4%.
RNA-DNA hybrids containing damaged DNA are substrates for RNase H

Abstract During the replication of the lagging strand, RNA–DNA hybrids are formed and the RNA is subsequently degraded by the action of RNase H. Little is known about the effects of damaged DNA on lagging strand replication and subsequent RNA removal. The rates and sites of digestion by E. coli RNase H of RNA–DNA hybrids containing either a thymine glycol or urea site in the DNA strand have been examined. The cleavage patterns for duplexes containing thymine glycol or urea differ from that of a fully complementary duplex. There is one major product of the digestion of the fully complementary hybrid, but three products are formed in the reactions with the hybrids containing damaged DNAs. Cleavage is partially redirected to the position adjacent to the damaged sites. The overall rate of cleavage of these hybrids containing damaged DNA is comparable to that of the fully complementary duplex. These results indicate that the cleavage of RNA–DNA hybrids by RNase H is less selective when a damaged site is present in the DNA strand.
Thromboxane receptor blockade with BM 13,177 following toxic airway damage by smoke inhalation in sheep.

Thromboxane may play an important role in the pathogenesis of smoked mediated injury. We studied this possibility in 13 chronically instrumented sheep, which had the left lung exposed to smoke. BM 13,177, a thromboxane receptor antagonist, was given intravenously to six animals prior to smoke inhalation and during the experimental period. Seven animals received the vehicle. All animals were studied for 24 h under ventilatory support, then killed prior to harvesting lung tissue. Airway peak and plateau pressures in the vehicle-treated animals were elevated by 27% and 25% from baseline at 24 h post smoke inhalation. Concomitantly, the left pulmonary vascular resistance index rose continuously throughout the study period (baseline = 822 +/- 58; 24 h = 1819 +/- 84 dyn.s.cm-5.m2).BM 13,177 treatment completely prevented the rise in airway pressure, while the left pulmonary vascular resistance index was significantly attenuated (baseline = 726 +/- 79; 24 h = 1470 +/- 158 dyn.s.cm-5.m2) resulting in a significantly higher percentage of cardiac output being delivered to the smoked lung, compared to vehicle-treated animals. Thromboxane receptor blockade did not prevent smoke induced pulmonary edema formation. There was likewise no effect of BM 13,177 on the systemic hemodynamic changes seen following smoke inhalation. There was a decrease in cardiac index and an increase in systemic vascular resistance index in both groups. We conclude that smoke induced changes in airway and pulmonary vascular resistances may be mediated by thromboxanes. However, thromboxanes appear to play no role in the development of pulmonary edema and elevation of systemic vascular resistance following smoke inhalation injury.
Quantitative vertebral compression fracture evaluation using a height compass

Vertebral compression fractures can be caused by even minor trauma in patients with pathological conditions such as osteoporosis, varying greatly in vertebral body location and compression geometry. The location and morphology of the compression injury can guide decision making for treatment modality (vertebroplasty versus surgical fixation), and can be important for pre-surgical planning. We propose a height compass to evaluate the axial plane spatial distribution of compression injury (anterior, posterior, lateral, and central), and distinguish it from physiologic height variations of normal vertebrae. The method includes four steps: spine segmentation and partition, endplate detection, height compass computation and compression fracture evaluation. A height compass is computed for each vertebra, where the vertebral body is partitioned in the axial plane into 17 cells oriented about concentric rings. In the compass structure, a crown-like geometry is produced by three concentric rings which are divided into 8 equal length arcs by rays which are subtended by 8 common central angles. The radius of each ring increases multiplicatively, with resultant structure of a central node and two concentric surrounding bands of cells, each divided into octants. The height value for each octant is calculated and plotted against octants in neighboring vertebrae. The height compass shows intuitive display of the height distribution and can be used to easily identify the fracture regions. Our technique was evaluated on 8 thoraco-abdominal CT scans of patients with reported compression fractures and showed statistically significant differences in height value at the sites of the fractures.
The Effect Of Sampling, Optical Transfer Function Shape, And Anisotropy On Subjective Image Quality

Research has been conducted in Perkin-Elmer's laboratories over a several-year period in an attempt to assess existing summary measures of image quality and to evolve new measures. A properly validated image quality measure would allow prediction of quality from an information content view-point that may be used in the synthesis, design, or evaluation of electro-optical sampled image systems. To further this goal, a set of psychovisual ranking experiments are presented and described in this paper. These experiments are intended to determine the influence of the sampling process, optical transfer function (OTF) shape, and OTF anisotropy on subjective image quality of sampled image systems. A description is given of the methods of experimentation employed, the procedure for providing a series of sensitometrically calibrated standards and test images for rank-ordering experiments, and the results of the tests that were performed. In addition, this paper summarizes an analysis of experimenter rankings to determine the degree of agreement (coefficient of concordance) among observers.
Discrimination of behavioral state in the cat utilizing long-term EEG frequency analysis.

Abstract A hybrid system is described which makes feasible a continuous, long-term analysis of the EEG. A broad-band frequency analyzer is interfaced with a digital voltmeter which in turn drives a typewriter and card-punch machine. Data are thus generated in a form directly compatible with the input devices of a large, electronic computer used to extract relevant information by multivariate statistical analysis. Spontaneous variations in the frequency spectrum of the EEG, as the result of changes in behavioral state, may be adequately represented as points on a two-dimensional surface. The location of a point corresponding to the spectrum during a given 1 min epoch allows an objective discrimination to be made between the states of slow sleep, fast sleep and alert. Minutes which are transitional between these three well-defined states can also be represented. This classification is in excellent agreement with independent behavioral assessment, is stable over long periods of time (1–2 months) and is consistent from cat to cat. The reliability and stability of this technique should provide a means of quantitative assessment of drug effects on the EEG over long periods of time.
SU‐D‐116‐06: Improved Visualization with High Resolution Breast CT Images

Purpose: To investigate the visualization that could be improved with high resolution breast CT (BCT) images acquired with a high resolution BCT scanner. Methods: A high resolution BCT scanner employing a CMOS flat panel detector (2923, Dexela Limited, London, UK) with a pixel size of 0.075 mm and 0.5 mm thick CsI scintillator was used to image mastectomy specimens with IRB approval. The flat panel digital detector was operated with non‐binning mode for image acquisition to acquire high resolution projection views. 300 projection views were acquired over 360° for each scan. The radiation dose per scan was comparable to that of a two‐view mammography (about 4 mGy). The high resolution projection views were reconstructed with Feldkamp‐Davis‐Kress (FDK) filtered backprojection algorithm and a ramp filter for image reconstruction to generate high resolution BCT image sets with voxel size of 0.06 mm. Following, the projection views were processed with 2×2 and 4×4 binning to simulate low resolution projection views and then reconstructed to obtain two BCT image sets with voxel sizes of 0.12 and 0.24 mm, respectively. The BCT image sets with all different voxel sizes were displayed on a LCD monitor and then visually compared the findings based on mammograms and the diagnostic reports. Results: Based on visual comparison, significantly improved visualization for small structures (either calcifications or irregular masses) in the 0.06 mm‐voxel BCT images was observed compared to the 0.12 or 0.24 mm‐voxel BCT images. Conclusion: We have successfully demonstrated improved visualization for small structures with the use of the high resolution BCT images, which may have a potential for better detection sensitivity and characterization accuracy, leading to reduced recall rate in screening and reduced biopsy rate in diagnosis of breast cancers. This work was supported in part by grants CA139830, CA138502 and CA124585 from the NIH‐NCI.
Construction of three-dimensional images of flow structure via particle tracking techniques

Construction of three-dimensional images of flow structure, based on the quantitative velocity field, is assessed for cases where experimental data are obtained using particle tracking technique. The experimental data are in the form of contiguous planes of particle images. These contiguous data planes are assumed to correspond to successive spatial realizations in steady flow, or to phase-referenced realizations in an unsteady flow. Given the particle images on contiguous planes, the in-plane velocity fields are determined. Then, the out-of-plane velocity field is obtained using a spectral interpolation method. Application of this method allows, in principle, construction of the three-dimensional vorticity field and the streamline patterns. A critical assessment is made of the uncertainties arising from the in-plane interpolation of the velocity field obtained from particle tracking and the evaluation of the out-of-plane velocity component. The consequences of such uncertainties on the reconstructed vorticity distributions and streamline patterns are addressed for two basic types of vortex flows: a columnar vortex, for which the streamlines are not closed and are spatially periodic in the streamwise direction; and for a spherical (Hill's) vortex exhibiting closed streamline patterns, and no spatial periodicity.
A comparative model of firm size and the global operational dynamics of U.S. firms in Europe

Abstract This study focuses on the global operations of U.S. firms that have shifted from direct exporting to the location of facilities in Europe. All U.S. firms with physical facilities in Europe were surveyed. We develop a general model that integrates firms’ experience in global operations with their operations strategy, their global supply chain structure, and their ability to coordinate global operations through information technology. From the model emerge hypotheses that are tested using the structural equation modeling approach, taking into account differences in challenges across small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and large to very large firms. Our testing and comparisons give insight into the dynamics of the globalization process and provide direction for future research.
SAR imaging via modern 2D spectral estimation methods

This paper discusses the use of modern 2D spectral estimation algorithms for SAR imaging. We provide a synopsis of the algorithms available, and discuss their relative merits for SAR imaging. Three related algorithms, minimum variance method, reduced-rank minimum variance method, and adaptive sidelobe reduction, offer particular promise for SAR imaging. We review these methods in detail, and develop interferometric variants for use with displaced aperture interferometric SAR systems. Examples illustrate that MVM and ASR both offer significant advantages over Fourier methods for estimating both scattering intensity and interferometric height using data collected of the area around the University of Michigan stadium by ERIM's interferometric X- band DCS SAR.© (1994) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Age-related Changes in the Color-match—Area Effect

Color matches were measured as a function of field diameter (1, 2, 4 and 8 deg) for 53 normal observers aged 13-80 yr. The difference between match midpoints for the 1 deg diameter and the other diameters decreased throughout adulthood, indicating an age-related change in optical density of cone outer segments in the central 1 deg. For all ages, there were large interobserver differences in the magnitude of the difference scores. These results provide an explanation for contradictions in the literature on the effects of age on cone optical density and on the magnitude of the color-match-area effect.
Ease of capture in Japanese quail of two lines divergently selected for adrenocortical response to immobilization.

Abstract Divergent lines of Japanese quail have been genetically selected over several generations for a reduced (low stress, LS) or an exaggerated (high stress, HS) plasma corticosterone response to brief mechanical restraint. Female quail were housed in one mixed-line group (18LS + 18 HS) in one of the top-tier compartments of a brooder. At 32 d of age, the quail were removed individually by the experimenter, their identity and position in the order of capture were noted, and then they were placed in a separate compartment. Following brief respites, this procedure was repeated on 16 occasions. No differences were found between HS and LS quail in their ease of capture and no linear trends were apparent upon repeated testing of either strain. These findings have positive connotations for management and welfare because, although selection for a reduced adrenocortical stress response to restraint has apparently been accompanied by reduced fearfulness, it has not resulted in a potential and undesirable increase in the difficulty of capture and handling. Further, the significant tendencies found within and across lines for individual birds to be caught at similar stages of each trial has important implications for behavioral studies that involve putatively random sampling of a population.
Orlicz projection bodies

Abstract Minkowski's projection bodies have evolved into L p projection bodies and their asymmetric analogs. These all turn out to be part of a far larger class of Orlicz projection bodies. The analog of the classical Petty projection inequality is established for the new Orlicz projection bodies.
Evolution in Techniques for Endsocopic Brow Lift with Deep Temporal Fixation Only and Lower Blepharoplasty-Transconjunctival Fat Repositioning

As we become more confident with our surgical skills following our fellowship training, some of our approaches and techniques will be modified or changed. My primary evolutionary change involves procedures of the upper third of the face, primarily the brow lift and treatment of lower eyelid fat techniques. Traditional methods of forehead and brow rejuvenation, such as coronal, pretrichal, and direct brow lifts, have provided facial plastic surgeons with effective brow elevation for many years. In the past decade, the endoscopic brow lift has rapidly become accepted as part of the surgical armamentarium and is frequently the technique of choice. In general, the temporal dissection, temporal fixation, forehead subperiosteal or subgaleal dissection with release, and treatment to the brow depressor musculature have been standardized. Methods of bony fixation remain a controversial topic as there are numerous methods. We advocate deep temporal fixation only without bone fixation to achieve effective, long-term brow elevation. Traditionally, lower eyelid herniated fat is removed, which may cause a sunken or hollow lid appearance, especially in patients with a tear trough deformity (nasojugal groove). Lower eyelid transconjunctival fat repositioning, defined as the subperiosteal repositioning of the medial and central lower eyelid herniated orbital fat into the nasojugal fold, may prevent the surgical, hollow lower eyelid appearance while treating the herniated fat. Fat repositioning may be combined with an endoscopic subperiosteal midface-lift, transcutaneous skin pinch, and transconjunctival orbicularis oculi excision. This technique offers a powerful tool in the surgical armamentarium of the facial plastic surgeon.
Management of optimum water quality in a stream

Abstract An optimal waste discharge policy along a stream is investigated based on a program of minimizing the total cost benefit function on a regional basis. The system consists of a stream along which are located several inputs of waste and intakes of water. The cost benefit function comprises of the sum of the cost of waste treatment and the cost of water treatment minus the benefits derived from maintaining a certain water quality in the stream. The biochemical oxygen demand and the dissolved oxygen are considered to be the primary indicators of water quality. A steady state dispersion model is employed to predict the BOD and DO concentrations along the stream. In order to optimize the system or minimize the cost benefit function within certain constraints on water quality, a search scheme is proposed. The feasibility of obtaining a solution by a sequential minimization technique, employing a discrete search, is studied for cases with two and three decision variables. The analysis procedure can be used to examine existing water quality programs and to study the influence of alternate policies and constraints.