cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Test wafer management for semiconductor manufacturing

Test wafers (TWs) are used for equipment qualification purposes in semiconductor manufacturing. TW management is unique because of the possibility of downgrading a TW to test lower class processes. Since the yearly TW costs add up to several million dollars for a typical semiconductor fab, effective TW management can substantially reduce costs by identifying the right quantity of TWs to purchase, to downgrade, and to hold in the inventory. While the current industry practice is to use suboptimal rules to manage TWs, this paper develops a network-based formulation named TW Inventory Network (TWIN) to eliminate this suboptimality. Several special cases are analized here, and a numerical analysis is provided to shed further operational insights on the TW problem.
Sleepy Network-Layer Authentication Service for IPSEC

Network-layer authentication security services are typically pessimistic and static. A conservative IP security gateway checks/verifies the authentication information for every packet it forwards. This implies that, even there is no bad guy in the network, the authentication check is still performed for every packet. In this paper, we examine a sleepy approach, where the gateways normally do not authenticate or verify the packets unless security attacks are detected. We propose a security protocol, SSGP (Sleepy Security Gateway Protocol), residing on top of the IPSEC (Internet Security Protocol). One important feature of SSGP is the collaboration model between network and application layer security mechanisms.
Evaluation of Clinical and Histopathologic Prognostic Factors for Survival in Canine Osteosarcoma of the Extracranial Flat and Irregular Bones

Osteosarcoma is the most common bone tumor in dogs. However, current literature focuses primarily on appendicular osteosarcoma. This study examined the prognostic value of histological and clinical factors in flat and irregular bone osteosarcomas and hypothesized that clinical factors would have a significant association with survival time while histological factors would not. All osteosarcoma biopsy samples of the vertebra, rib, sternum, scapula, or pelvis were reviewed while survival information and clinical data were obtained from medical records, veterinarians, and owners. Forty-six dogs were included in the analysis of histopathological variables and 27 dogs with complete clinical data were included in the analysis of clinical variables. In the histopathologic cox regression model, there was no significant association between any histologic feature of osteosarcoma, including grade, and survival time. In the clinical cox regression model, there was a significant association between the location of the tumor and survival time as well as between the percent elevation of alkaline phosphatase (ALP) above normal and survival time. Controlling for ALP elevation, dogs with osteosarcoma located in the scapula had a significantly greater hazard for death (2.8) compared to dogs with tumors in other locations. Controlling for tumor location, every 100% increase in ALP from normal increased the hazard for death by 1.7. For canine osteosarcomas of the flat and irregular bones, histopathological features, including grade do not appear to be rigorous predictors of survival. Clinical variables such as increased ALP levels and tumor location in the scapula were associated with decreased survival times.
Correlation of diffusion process variations with variations in electrical parameters of bipolar transistors

In this paper we consider the problem of determining the effects of a nonuniformity in diffusion processes on the resultant electrical characteristics in semiconductor devices. A bipolar, planar silicon p-n-p transistor is considered as an example. A model is presented describing the current gain in terms of measurable diffusion parameters. These parameters are 1) the four-point probe reading of the diffused base, 2) the emitter-base junction depth, and 3) the collector-base junction depth or √Dt of the base. The model is used to predict the sensitivity of current gain to each of these diffusion parameters; it is shown that the sensitivity of current gain to the junction depth can be drastically reduced by a modification in transistor structure. Design criteria for making this structural change are presented as well as the results on actual devices.
Critical Currents of ${\rm YBa}_{2}{\rm Cu}_{3}{\rm O}_{7-\delta}$ Tapes and ${\rm Bi}_{2}{\rm Sr}_{2}{\rm CaCu}_{2}{\rm O}_{\rm x}$ Wires at Different Temperatures and Magnetic Fields

Design studies for the cooling channel of a Muon Collider show the need for straight and helical solenoids generating fields well in excess of the critical fields of state-of-the-art Low Temperature Superconductors (LTS), such as Nb3Sn or NbTi. Therefore, High Temperature Superconductors (HTS) may be used for the manufacturing of all or certain sections of these magnets to generate and support the field levels required at the operating temperature of the new machine. In this work, two High Temperature Superconductors-Bi-2212 round wires and YBCO coated conductor (CC) tapes-are investigated to understand how their critical current density scales as a function of magnetic field and operating temperature.
A Systematic Review of the Empirical Literature Evaluating IRBs: What We Know and What We Still Need to Learn:

Institutional review boards (IRBs) are integral to the U.S. system of protection of human research participants. Evaluation of IRBs, although difficult, is essential. To date, no systematic review of IRB studies has been published. We conducted a systematic review of empirical studies of U.S. IRBs to determine what is known about the function of IRBs and to identify gaps in knowledge. A structured search in PubMed identified forty-three empirical studies evaluating U.S. IRBs. Studies were included if they reported an empirical investigation of the structure, process, outcomes, effectiveness, or variation of U.S. IRBs. The authors reviewed each study to extract information about study objectives, sample and methods, study results, and conclusions. Empirical evidence collected in forty-three published studies shows that for review of a wide range of types of research, U.S. IRBs differ in their application of the federal regulations, in the time they take to review studies, and in the decisions made. Existing studies show evidence of variation in multicenter review, inconsistent or ambiguous interpretation of the federal regulations, and inefficiencies in review. Despite recognition of a need to evaluate effectiveness of IRB review, no identified published study included an evaluation of IRB effectiveness. Multiple studies evaluating the structure, process, and outcome of IRB review in the United States have documented inconsistencies and inefficiencies. Efforts should be made to address these concerns. Additional research is needed to understand how IRBs accomplish their objectives, what issues they find important, what quality IRB review is, and how effective IRBs are at protecting human research participants.
Estimation of a coronary vessel wall deformation with high-frequency ultrasound elastography

Elastography, which is based on applying pressure and estimating the resulting deformation, involves the forward problem to obtain the strain distributions and the inverse problem to construct the elastic distributions consistent with obtained strains on observation points. The proposed research focuses on the former problem whose solution is used as an input to the latter problem. The aim of this thesis is then to provide the inverse problem community with accurate strain estimates of a coronary artery vessel wall. In doing so, a new ultrasonic image-based elastography approach is developed. Because the accuracy and quality of the estimated strain fields, first of all, depends on the resolution level of the ultrasound image and to date best resolution levels obtained in the literature are not enough to clearly see all boundaries of the artery, one of the main objectives is to acquire high-resolution coronary vessel wall ultrasound images at different pressures. For this purpose, first an experimental setup is designed to collect radio frequency (RF) signals, and then image formation algorithm is developed to obtain ultrasound images from the collected signals. To segment the noisy ultrasound images formed, a geodesic active contour based segmentation algorithm with a novel stopping function that includes local phase of the image is developed. Then, a region-based information is added to make the segmentation more robust to noise. Finally, elliptical deformable template is applied so that a priori information regarding the shape of the arteries could be taken into account, resulting in more stable and accurate results. The use of this template also implicitly provides boundary point correspondences from which high-resolution, size-independent, non-rigid and local strain fields of the coronary vessel wall are obtained.
Medical and Environmental Effects of UV Radiation

Organisms living on the earth are exposed to solar radiation, including its ultraviolet (UV) components (for general reviews, the reader is referred to Smith [1] and Young et al. [2]). UV wavelength regions present in sunlight are frequently designated as UVB (290-320 nm) and UVA (320-400 nm). In today's solar spectrum, UVA is the principal UV component, with UVB present at much lower levels. Ozone depletion will increase the levels of UVB reaching the biosphere, but the levels of UVA will not be changed significantly [3]. Because of the high efficiency of UVB in producing damage in biological organisms in the laboratory experiments, it has sometimes been assumed that UVA has little or no adverse biological effects. However, accumulating data [4, 5], including action spectra (efficiency of biological damage as a function of wavelength of radiation; see Section 5) for DNA damage in alfalfa seedlings [6], in human skin [7], and for a variety of plant damages (Caldwell, this volume) indicate that UVA can induce damage in DNA in higher organisms. Thus, understanding the differential effects of UVA and UVB wavebands is essential for estimating the biological consequences of stratospheric ozone depletion.
Electron exchange processes in olefin oxidation

Abstract A new experimental technique is described for measurement of the relative Fermi energy of various catalysts used for partial oxidation of olefins and alcohols. The technique is based on a measurement of the conductance of a semiconducting support (TiO 2 ). For a number of catalyst compositions of industrial importance (in terms of selectivity and activity) the bulk Fermi energy is found to have a common value. This recurring value is near the electrochemical potential of electrons on adsorbed oxygen. Catalyst systems studied were the bismuth/molybdenum, copper oxide, vanadium oxide and iron/molybdenum systems. An attempt is made to separate the macroscopic requirements (where the Fermi energy is considered a macroscopic parameter) from the microscopic ones (where local bonding orbitals and acid centers may be considered microscopic parameters). We conclude that for reactions for which the rate-limiting step depends on electron transfer to the catalyst that the Fermi energy should be near or just above the electron exchange level for oxygen. Also the bulk Fermi energy should be stable against small variations in reactant gas compositions. Impurity band pinning of the Fermi energy may account for the excellent stability of bismuth molybdate.
Purification of pseudopodia from polarized cells reveals redistribution and activation of Rac through assembly of a CAS/Crk scaffold

Initiation of cell migration requires morphological polarization with formation of a dominant leading pseudopodium and rear compartment. A molecular understanding of this process has been limited, due to the inability to biochemically separate the leading pseudopodium from the rear of the cell. Here we examine the spatio-temporal localization and activation of cytoskeletal-associated signals in purified pseudopodia directed to undergo growth or retraction. Pseudopodia growth requires assembly of a p130Crk-associated substrate (CAS)/c-CrkII (Crk) scaffold, which facilitates translocation and activation of Rac1. Interestingly, Rac1 activation then serves as a positive-feedback loop to maintain CAS/Crk coupling and pseudopodia extension. Conversely, disassembly of this molecular scaffold is critical for export and down regulation of Rac1 activity and induction of pseudopodia retraction. Surprisingly, the uncoupling of Crk from CAS during pseudopodium retraction is independent of changes in focal adhesion kinase activity and CAS tyrosine phosphorylation. These findings establish CAS/Crk as an essential scaffold for Rac1-mediated pseudopodia growth and retraction, and illustrate spatio-temporal segregation of cytoskeletal signals during cell polarization.
The CH‥O H-Bond as a Determining Factor in Molecular Structure

The factors that affect the strength of CH‥O hydrogen bonds (HBs) are enumerated, along with the source of their stability, and the structural and spectroscopic features that signal their presence. Their influence upon a number of chemical and biological processes is discussed. Within the context of proteins, the CαH group of protein residues can engage in CH‥O HBs, as can the CH groups of a number of amino acid side chains including aromatic residues. CH‥O HBs have the potential to make a major contribution to protein folding, particularly in an aqueous environment. These unconventional HBs may play as important a role in the formation of protein β-sheet structures as do NH‥O HBs. The strength of CH‥O HBs is magnified several-fold by the presence of positive charge on the proton donor. The implications of these principles are discussed for a number of specific biological and chemical problems, which include the catalytic mechanisms of methyltransferases and serine proteases, and the structural properties of fluoroamides.
Fluorescence excitation spectra of all-trans-1,6-diphenylhexatriene conformers: Adiabatic conformer equilibration in the 2 1 A g state

Abstract Fluorescence spectra of all- trans -1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene were measured in n -hexadecane at 99 °C by varying λ exc in the 294–404 nm range. Resolution of this spectral matrix into s-trans,s-trans and s-cis , s-trans conformer fluorescence spectra yields the λ exc dependence of fractional contributions which are converted to conformer specific fluorescence excitation spectra. Conformer absorption spectra obtained from the fluorescence excitation spectra are remarkably similar, but differ significantly from absorption spectra derived from a spectrothermal absorption spectral matrix measured in n -alkanes under isopolarizability conditions. The results reveal substantial conformer equilibration in the excited state. Theory is consistent with adiabatic conformer equilibration in the 2 1 A g state.
Anomalous left coronary artery; adult type.

Abstract A case of anomalous left coronary artery, adult type, with patent ductus arteriosus was reported. Obliteration of the patent ductus resulted in no clinically demonstrable ill effects in this patient. Patients with anomalous left coronary artery reaching adult life are usually symptom free, but their average life span is only 35 years. Myocardial hypertrophy and abnormal electrocardiograms are usually the only clinically demonstrable evidence of heart disease in these patients. The cardiac findings in 11 reported cases of the adult type of anomalous left coronary artery were summarized.
Hyperextension injuries of the cervical spine

Eleven patients with acute cervical hyperextension injury underwent magnetic resonance examination. Magnetic resonance was particularly helpful in diagnosing both intrinsic cord contusion and extradural compression. When spinal cord compromise was present, surgery was undertaken without resort to myelography.
A Contact Spray for the Control of the Japanese Beetle (Popillia Japonica Newm.)

This paper deals with an emulsion of oleoresin of pyrethrum flowers and sodium oleate as a contact spray for the control of the Japanese beetle, Popillia Japonica . The experiments include laboratory and field tests on various types of plants for injury and toxicity tests on the beetle.
Outcome analysis of the retreated smear-positive pulmonary tuberculosis patients in Fangchenggang city

Objective To evaluate the treatment outcome of retreated smear-positive pulmonary tuberculosis patients,and to provide the reference for the control and management of retreated smear-positive pulmonary tuberculosis patients. Method Registration rate and treatment outcome of retreated smear-positive pulmonary tuberculosis patients between 2005 and 2011 were analyzed using the chi-square test. Results The registration rate was found gradually decreased from 2005(10.0 / 10 million) to 2011(4.1 / 10 million). The cure rate,treatment failure and poor response rate was 76.9%,7.5%,and 3.3%,respectively. The cure rate of various types of retreated smear-positive pulmonary tuberculosis,initial treatment failure,the rate of patient return for retreatment were lower than the other patients(P 0.05). Conclusions The strategy of TB DOTS intervention is effective..The treatment should be based on the types of the disease..MDR-management approach is more appropriate for the "return-type patients" and patients showing initial treatment failure than the national standard treatment regimen.
Analysis of epidemic situation of notifiable communicable diseases in Liping County, Guizhou province from 2007-2011

Objective To analyze prevalence and epidemiological characteristics of class A and B infectious diseases in Liping county, Guizhou province from 2007-2011, to provide the scientific bases for the development of control measures. Methods Used the descriptive epidemiology to analyze the annual statutory report of infectious diseases from 2007-2011 in Liping county. Results There were 7734 cases reported with class A and B infectious diseases from 2007-2011 in Liping county, annual incidence for 295.35/100 000. The five highest incidences were TB, hepatitis B, dysentery, gonorrhea, hepatitis A, accounted for 95.51%. The main careers were farmers, students and scattered children, respectively accounted for 74.50%, 8.08%, 6.22%. Onset age was young, ratio of men to women was 1.8:1. The respiratory infectious disease was main disease specie, occupied 45.1% of the total number, followed by blood-borne and sexually transmitted diseases, accounting for 39.78% of the total number. Conclusion The average annual incidence of notifiable diseases reported in Liping County has been declining, but tuberculosis, hepatitis B, dysentery, gonorrhea, hepatitis are major threats to health in the county. Future infectious disease prevention should focus on strengthening the prevention and treatment of infectious diseases of tuberculosis, hepatitis B, mainly based on further surveillance and control efforts of communicable diseases that dysentery, gonorrhea, syphilis.
Children's Pragmatic Inferences as a Route for Learning About the World

This study investigated whether children can infer category properties based on how a speaker describes an individual (e.g., saying something is a “small zib” implies that zibs are generally bigger than this one). Three- to 5-year-olds (N = 264) from a university preschool and a children's museum were tested on their ability to make this sort of contrast inference. Children made some inferences from adjective choice alone (Experiment 1); performance increased as more cues to contrast were added (Experiments 2 and 3). Control studies show that these findings are not due to the particular properties used or the structure of these tasks (Experiments 4 and 5). These findings suggest that sensitivity to speakers' production choices may help children learn about the world.
Histamine-induced Cl- secretion in human nasal epithelium: responses of apical and basolateral membranes.

The mechanism by which receptors coupled to phospholipase C (PLC) induce Cl- secretion in amiloride-pretreated cultures of human nasal epithelial (HNE) cultures was investigated. Histamine (10(-4) M, basolateral administration) stimulated a rapid increase in equivalent short-circuit current, an index of Cl- secretion, that returned to baseline within 5 min. Intracellular recordings with double-barreled Cl(-)-selective microelectrodes showed that the apical and basolateral membrane potentials rapidly hyperpolarized, the fractional resistance of the apical membrane increased, and the transepithelial resistance decreased in response to histamine. Intracellular Cl- activity remained constant. Equivalent circuit analysis revealed that the early portion ( 0.9 min) phase of Cl- secretion reflects activation of the apical membrane Cl- conductance. Histamine raised intracellular Ca2+ (Ca2+i) measured by fura-2 in HNE with a potency similar to that observed for induction of Cl- secretion. Both intracellular release and plasma membrane influx pathways were identified, typical of receptor-mediated activation of PLC. The intracellular Ca2+ chelator 1,2-bis(2-aminophenoxy)ethane-N,N,N',N'-tetraacetic acid (15 microM), coupled with reduced bathing solution Ca2+, blunted the rise in Ca2+i and the net transepithelial Cl- secretory response to histamine. We conclude that 1) histamine induced Cl- secretion in HNE by a sequential mechanism: the rapid initial component reflects activation of the basolateral K+ conductance, and the later component reflects activation of an apical Cl- conductance; and 2) the level of Ca2+i may participate in the activation of both the basolateral and apical conductances.
The amino-terminal 29- and 72-Kd fragments of fibronectin mediate selective monocyte recruitment

Proteolytic fragments of fibronectin (Fn) can possess properties not inherent to intact Fn. Previously, only mixtures of low molecular weight Fn fragments, and the 120-Kd fibroblastic cell-binding segment, but not intact Fn, were shown to be selectively chemotactic for human monocytes (MOs). In order to determine if other structural domains of Fn were responsible, we tested six Fn fragments. The amino-terminal 72-Kd fragment at 1.5 microns was about 75% as potent as zymosan-activated serum (ZAS). Its amino-terminal 29-Kd degradation product at 1.0 micron was about one third as potent as ZAS. Checkerboard analysis confirmed chemotaxis. Complexing gelatin to 72-Kd fragments reduced MO chemotaxis by 28% to 30%. Reducing disulfide bonds in 29- and 72-Kd segments had no effect. A synthetic peptide containing the thrombin cleavage site between the 29- and 50-Kd segments of the 72-Kd fragment was chemotactic. The 50-, 190/170-, 35-, and 160/150/120-Kd fragments, and intact Fn were not chemotactic for MOs. The data suggest that the 72-Kd fragment and its 29-Kd subfragment are additional Fn fragments that mediate selective MO chemotaxis. We speculate that proteinases present at inflammatory sites can liberate such fragments that selectively recruit MOs.
Risks associated with indoor infectious aerosols.

Infectious disease has long been associated with indoor environments. However, little note has been made of the relative risk of infectious disease compared to other indoor air pollutants. The Philadelphia outbreak of Legionnaires disease served to bring the possibility of environmental reservoirs for infectious disease to the attention of both the lay and scientific communities, and has generated renewed interest in infectious illness associated with the indoor environment. This brief review is intended as an introduction to the overall role of infectious agents in diseases associated with the indoor environment, and to stimulate discussion on the potential for environmental control of infectious disease.
The Architectural Evolution of Mogollon-Mimbres Communal Structures

The architectural evolution of communal structures in the Mimbres branch of the Mogollon, from the Early Pit House period, is discussed. The Pit House periods see a steady increase in the size and elaboration of these communal structures. At the beginning of the Classic period they disappear, and it is suggested that open plazas take the place of large communal structures. Small semi-subterranean kivas and large surface rooms, which are probably used for ceremonial purposes, also occur during Classic times. Relationships to similar events seen in other branches of the Mogollon are discussed.
Using Large-Scale Social Media Networks as a Scalable Sensing System for Modeling Real-Time Energy Utilization Patterns

The hypothesis of this paper is that topics, expressed through large-scale social media networks, approximate electricity utilization events (e.g., using high power consumption devices such as a dryer) with high accuracy. Traditionally, researchers have proposed the use of smart meters to model device-specific electricity utilization patterns. However, these techniques suffer from scalability and cost challenges. To mitigate these challenges, we propose a social media network-driven model that utilizes large-scale textual and geospatial data to approximate electricity utilization patterns, without the need for physical hardware systems (e.g., such as smart meters), hereby providing a readily scalable source of data. The methodology is validated by considering the problem of electricity use disaggregation, where energy consumption rates from a nine-month period in San Diego, coupled with 1.8 million tweets from the same location and time span, are utilized to automatically determine activities that require large or small amounts of electricity to accomplish. The system determines 200 topics on which to detect electricity-related events and finds 38 of these to be valid descriptors of energy utilization. In addition, a comparison with electricity consumption patterns published by domain experts in the energy sector shows that our methodology both reproduces the topics reported by experts, while discovering additional topics. Finally, the generalizability of our model is compared with a weather-based model, provided by the U.S. Department of Energy.
FaSST: fast, scalable and simple distributed transactions with two-sided (RDMA) datagram RPCs

FaSST is an RDMA-based system that provides distributed in-memory transactions with serializability and durability. Existing RDMA-based transaction processing systems use one-sided RDMA primitives for their ability to bypass the remote CPU. This design choice brings several drawbacks. First, the limited flexibility of one-sided RDMA reduces performance and increases software complexity when designing distributed data stores. Second, deep-rooted technical limitations of RDMA hardware limit scalability in large clusters. FaSST eschews one-sided RDMA for fast RPCs using two-sided unreliable datagrams, which we show drop packets extremely rarely on modern RDMA networks. This approach provides better performance, scalability, and simplicity, without requiring expensive reliability mechanisms in software. In comparison with published numbers, FaSST outperforms FaRM on the TATP benchmark by almost 2x while using close to half the hardware resources, and it outperforms DrTM+R on the SmallBank benchmark by around 1.7x without making data locality assumptions.
Pt Nanoparticle Collisions Detected by Electrocatalytic Amplification and Atomic Force Microscopy Imaging: Nanoparticle Collision Frequency, Adsorption, and Random Distribution at an Ultramicroelectrode Surface

We demonstrate good agreement between the theoretical and experimental collision frequency of individual Pt nanoparticles (NPs) undergoing collisions at a Au ultramicroelectrode (UME) (5 μm radius) using electrocatalytic amplification provided by 15 mM hydrazine in 5 mM phosphate buffer (PB; pH 7) over 100 to 300 s. Dynamic light scattering (DLS) measurements demonstrated that Pt NP aggregation in this solution had the least impact on NP diffusion coefficient and concentration values, which are directly proportional to collision frequency. We show that the smaller, uniform current steps are indicative of NPs of metallic radii in agreement with those determined by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), with corresponding larger NP diffusion coefficient and concentration, in agreement with DLS results. These contribute to the larger NP collision frequency observed experimentally. Using atomic force microscopy (AFM) imaging, we show good agreement between the number of NPs imaged on the UME surface and the ...
Distributed Leadership for Social Justice: Exploring how Influence and Equity are Stretched over an Urban High School:

Although leadership for social justice and distributed leadership have separately garnered a great deal of interest among educational administration scholars, no studies have explored the possible ...
Roles of APOBEC3A and APOBEC3B in Human Papillomavirus Infection and Disease Progression

The apolipoprotein B messenger RNA-editing, enzyme-catalytic, polypeptide-like 3 (APOBEC3) family of cytidine deaminases plays an important role in the innate immune response to viral infections by editing viral genomes. However, the cytidine deaminase activity of APOBEC3 enzymes also induces somatic mutations in host genomes, which may drive cancer progression. Recent studies of human papillomavirus (HPV) infection and disease outcome highlight this duality. HPV infection is potently inhibited by one family member, APOBEC3A. Expression of APOBEC3A and APOBEC3B is highly elevated by the HPV oncoproteins E6 and E7 during persistent virus infection and disease progression. Furthermore, there is a high prevalence of APOBEC3A and APOBEC3B mutation signatures in HPV-associated cancers. These findings suggest that induction of an APOBEC3-mediated antiviral response during HPV infection may inadvertently contribute to cancer mutagenesis and virus evolution. Here, we discuss current understanding of APOBEC3A and APOBEC3B biology in HPV restriction, evolution, and associated cancer mutagenesis.
Synergy between Active Efflux and Outer Membrane Diffusion Defines Rules of Antibiotic Permeation into Gram-Negative Bacteria.

Gram-negative bacteria are notoriously resistant to antibiotics, but the extent of the resistance varies broadly between species. We report that in significant human pathogens Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Burkholderia spp., the differences in antibiotic resistance are largely defined by their penetration into the cell. For all tested antibiotics, the intracellular penetration was determined by a synergistic relationship between active efflux and the permeability barrier. We found that the outer membrane (OM) and efflux pumps select compounds on the basis of distinct properties and together universally protect bacteria from structurally diverse antibiotics. On the basis of their interactions with the permeability barriers, antibiotics can be divided into four clusters that occupy defined physicochemical spaces. Our results suggest that rules of intracellular penetration are intrinsic to these clusters. The identified specificities in the permeability barriers should help in the designing of successful therapeutic strategies against antibiotic-resistant pathogens.IMPORTANCE Multidrug-resistant strains of Gram-negative pathogens rapidly spread in clinics. Significant efforts worldwide are currently directed to finding the rules of permeation of antibiotics across two membrane envelopes of these bacteria. This study created the tools for analysis of and identified the major differences in antibacterial activities that distinguish the permeability barriers of P. aeruginosa, A. baumannii, Burkholderia thailandensis, and B. cepacia We conclude that synergy between active efflux and the outer membrane barrier universally protects Gram-negative bacteria from antibiotics. We also found that the diversity of antibiotics affected by active efflux and outer membrane barriers is broader than previously thought and that antibiotics cluster according to specific biological determinants such as the requirement of specific porins in the OM, targeting of the OM, or specific recognition by efflux pumps. No universal rules of antibiotic permeation into Gram-negative bacteria apparently exist. Our results suggest that antibiotic clusters are defined by specific rules of permeation and that further studies could lead to their discovery.
Use of a Multivector Mandibular Distractor for Treatment of Pediatric Proximal Interphalangeal Joint Pilon Fractures: A Case-Based Review.

Background The difficulties in surgical treatment of pilon fractures of the finger include fragment reconstitution and posthealing stiffness. In adults, external fixation with traction and early active range of motion (AROM)/passive range of motion (PROM) during healing is considered necessary for avoiding joint stiffness and attaining realignment. The authors present a unique approach to pediatric pilon fractures that uses open reduction and multivector external fixation with delayed AROM/PROM. Initial immobilization and significant traction allowed for joint realignment and prevented noncompliance with staged distraction. The authors believe this immobilization leads to a superior outcome because, unlike adults, children tend to avoid stiffness and a larger distraction force allowed for sufficient joint realignment to regain range of motion (ROM). Methods A right-handed 13-year-old boy sustained a right ring finger fracture and presented 12 days later. Radiographs revealed a comminuted Salter-Harris 4 fracture of the middle phalanx. The patient underwent open reduction and placement of multivector external fixation using a pediatric mandibular distractor/fixator. Significant traction was applied to distract the finger to length. Results Hardware was removed 6 weeks postoperatively and AROM was initiated after splinting. The patient started PROM 8 weeks postoperatively. Strengthening was initiated 2 weeks later. ROM improved and rehabilitation was continued. The patient exhibited nearly equal grip strength 12 weeks postoperatively. At 14 months follow-up, radiographs showed complete healing and joint realignment. There was no deformity or pain and finger length was restored. Conclusion Management of pediatric pilon fractures is rarely described and presents unique considerations. Early-stage traction and immobilization using a multivector mandibular fixator/distractor is suitable in a child because noncompliance is avoided and there is a decreased risk for stiffness. Combining early immobilization with subsequent-staged AROM, PROM, and strengthening resulted in no loss of ROM and maintained articular symmetry.
Comparative evaluation of mechanistic–empirical performance models as a tool for establishing pavement performance specifications†

In this study, the fatigue performance of 27 mixtures representing various as-built pavement conditions is evaluated using two advanced mechanistic–empirical (M–E) models, layered viscoelastic cont...
Individualized electric power management system using BLE tag at a shared house

In recent years, there has been a growing interest in home energy management systems (HEMSs), which monitor and control use of power at home. The Japanese government aims to have the system adopted by all households by 2030. The system is connected to home appliances via a network, monitors the state of power consumption, and controls power consumption remotely or automatically. However, it cannot manage how much power each user has consumed. This paper proposes a system that can manage power consumption of individual users at a shared house. Specifically, each resident carries a BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) tag all the time. Using this tag, the system identifies the person who has used home appliances per outlet, and thereby manages the power consumed by each individual. To conduct experiments, we have created a personal outlet by associating a commercially available outlet with a smartphone. We have conducted experiments for a shared house with three residents, and evaluated the system's utility and level of accuracy in identifying individual users.
Mesozoic and Cenozoic Sedimentation in the Pacific Ocean Basin

The Pacific Ocean is the largest and oldest of the ocean basins. It represents approximately half of the world’s oceanic regions and more than one-third of the total surface area of the earth. It is also the most truly “oceanic” of the oceans in that the deep trenches that surround it effectively isolate the basin from external terrigenous sediment input, except in the northeast where the trench has been filled to overflowing with sediments eroded from Alaska and the Canadian Rocky Mountains. As a result, the nature and distribution of the sediments in the Pacific Basin are largely functions of processes occurring within the basin and are relatively independent of the geology and geologic history of the surrounding regions, which are the subjects of separate chapters in this volume. McCoy (Chapter 1) has discussed the distribution of surficial sediments in the Pacific. This chapter addresses briefly the sedimentary record.
Development, Testing, and Applications of Nonpoint Source Models for Evaluation of Pesticides Risk to the Environment

Abstract Nonpoint source loading models are currently being used in analyzing the risks posed to the environment and man from the agricultural use of pesticides. Pesticide pollution problems arise from widespread, diffuse chemical usage and are influenced by the management of soil and water in agricultural systems. Both surface water environments and groundwater systems can be impacted by pesticide use and nonpoint source models must accommodate these potential risks. Five operational pesticide runoff models have been evaluated and their similarities and differences discussed. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's pesticide leaching model, PRZM, is described and methodologies for model application in risk assessments are discussed.
Signal Processing in Manufacturing Monitoring

This chapter outlines three generic types of signatures encountered in monitoring of manufacturing process and equipment, i. e. periodic type including modulation, transient type, and dynamics changing type, and then summarizes signal processing algorithms and their suitability for various types of signatures under four categories, i. e. time domain, frequency domain, time-frequency distribution and model based methods. Additionally, decision-making strategies are discussed
Pressure Ulcers and Wound Bed Preparation

Ultimately, the approach to nonhealing pressure ulcers will require a greater understanding of the clinical factors involved and the pathogenic factors leading to impaired healing. Wound bed preparation, with the TIME concept representing a crystallized form of the approach, offers hope that the endogenous process of wound healing can be accelerated. Moreover, attention to wound bed preparation can lead to greater effectiveness of advanced therapeutic products, including growth factors, gene therapy, bioengineered skin products, and stem cells.
Variable independence and resolution paths for quantified boolean formulas

Variable independence in quantified boolean formulas (QBFs) informally means that the quantifier structure of the formula can be rearranged so that two variables reverse their outer-inner relationship without changing the value of the QBF. Samer and Szeider introduced the standard dependency scheme and the triangle dependency scheme to safely over-approximate the set of variable pairs for which an outer-inner reversal might be unsound (JAR 2009). This paper introduces resolution paths and defines the resolution-path dependency relation. The resolution-path relation is shown to be the root (smallest) of a lattice of dependency relations that includes quadrangle dependencies, triangle dependencies, strict standard dependencies, and standard dependencies. Soundness is proved for resolution-path dependencies, thus proving soundness for all the descendants in the lattice. It is shown that the biconnected components (BCCs) and block trees of a certain clause-literal graph provide the key to computing dependency pairs efficiently for quadrangle dependencies. Preliminary empirical results on the 568 QBFEVAL-10 benchmarks show that in the outermost two quantifier blocks quadrangle dependency relations are smaller than standard dependency relations by widely varying factors.
Propagation of Heptacodium jasminoides Airy-Shaw by softwood and semi-hardwood cuttings.

Abstract Softwood and semi-hardwood two node cuttings of Heptacodium jasminoides from basal and middle stem sections rooted better than terminal sections. Basal and middle softwood cuttings exhibit...
On the Interaction between Superabsorbent Hydrogels and Blended Mixtures with Supplementary Cementitious Materials

This article studies the interactions between hydrogels with two distinct chemical compositions and hydrating blended mixtures containing supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs), including Class F fly ash, slag, and silica fume. The effect of SCMs on the absorption behavior and chemical characteristics of hydrogels was investigated. The desorption of hydrogels in hydrating blended pastes was examined at various times using scanning electron microscopy. A reduction in the absorption of hydrogels was observed in the blended slurry with fly ash compared to other slurries. Hydrogels showed faster desorption in the paste with silica fume and delayed desorption in the paste with fly ash. This was attributed to faster densification of the microstructure and development of the capillary suction in the paste with silica fume and delayed densification in the paste with fly ash at early ages.
Overwintering adaptations and extreme freeze tolerance in a subarctic population of the wood frog, Rana sylvatica

The terrestrially hibernating wood frog (Rana sylvatica) is well-known for its iconic freeze tolerance, an overwintering adaptation that has received considerable investigation over the past 35 years. Virtually, all of this research has concerned frogs indigenous to the temperate regions of its broad range within North America. However, recent investigations have shown that frogs of subarctic populations are extremely cold hardy, being capable of surviving freezing for longer periods and at much lower temperatures as compared to conspecifics from temperate regions. Their exceptional freeze tolerance is partly supported by an enhanced cryoprotectant system that uses very high levels of urea and glucose to limit ice formation, regulate metabolism, and protect macromolecules and cellular structures from freezing/thawing stresses. In the weeks before they begin hibernating, northern frogs undertake radical physiological transitions, such as depletion of fat stores and catabolism of muscle protein, that prime the cryoprotectant system by accruing urea and stockpiling glycogen from which glucose is mobilized during freezing. Concentrations of cryoprotectants ultimately achieved in Alaskan frogs when freezing occurs vary among tissues but generally are higher than those of frogs inhabiting milder climates. This review summarizes the molecular, biochemical, and physiological adaptations permitting this northern phenotype to survive the long and harsh winters of the region.
Comprehensive bibliography

Stimulated by recent high-profile incidents, concerns about business ethics have increased over the last decade. In response, research has focused on developing theoretical and empirical frameworks to understand ethical decision making. So far, empirical studies have used traditional quantitative tools, such as regression or multiple discriminant analysis (MDA), in ethics research. More advanced tools are needed. In this exploratory research, a new approach to classifying, categorizing and analyzing ethical decision situations is presented. A comparative performance analysis of artificial neural networks, MDA and chance showed that artificial neural networks predict better in both training and testing phases. While some limitations of this approach were noted, in the field of business ethics, such networks are promising as an alternative to traditional analytic tools like MDA.
HATS: A Hierarchical Sequence-Attention Framework for Inductive Set-of-Sets Embeddings

In many complex domains, the input data are often not suited for the typical vector representations used in deep learning models. For example, in relational learning and computer vision tasks, the data are often better represented as sets (e.g., the neighborhood of a node, a cloud of points). In these cases, a key challenge is to learn an embedding function that is invariant to permutations of the input. While there has been some recent work on principled methods for learning permutation-invariant representations of sets, these approaches are limited in their applicability to set-of-sets (SoS) tasks, such as subgraph prediction and scene classification. In this work, we develop a deep neural network framework to learn inductive SoS embeddings that are invariant to SoS permutations. Specifically, we propose HATS, a hierarchical sequence model with attention mechanisms for inductive set-of-sets embeddings. We develop stochastic optimization and inference methods for learning HATS, and our experiments demonstrate that HATS achieves superior performance across a wide range of set-of-sets tasks.
Adaptive Partitioning for Template Functions on Persistence Diagrams

As the field of Topological Data Analysis continues to show success in theory and in applications, there has been increasing interest in using tools from this field with methods for machine learning. Using persistent homology, specifically persistence diagrams, as inputs to machine learning techniques requires some mathematical creativity. The space of persistence diagrams does not have the desirable properties for machine learning, thus methods such as kernel methods and vectorization methods have been developed. One such featurization of persistence diagrams by Perea, Munch and Khasawneh uses continuous, compactly supported functions, referred to as "template functions," which results in a stable vector representation of the persistence diagram. In this paper, we provide a method of adaptively partitioning persistence diagrams to improve these featurizations based on localized information in the diagrams. Additionally, we provide a framework to adaptively select parameters required for the template functions in order to best utilize the partitioning method. We present results for application to example data sets comparing classification results between template function featurizations with and without partitioning, in addition to other methods from the literature.
Cook ‘em Like Gumbo

Gumbo (the official state dish of Louisiana) is known for assimilating many culinary traditions throughout its rich history. The highly revered dish continues to be influenced by multicultural traditions and is enjoyed by a diverse group of people. Customer-facing Help and How-to document system at Oregon Health & Science University shares many features as gumbo: articles are authored by experts from various missions, they share similar and consistent content structures, and are served to diverse customer bases.Although the Help and How-to document repository has been in existence for just over five years, we learned from many challenges and successes when developing the system. We have learned where and how customers interact with information, what types of articles are in high demand, and how documents complement our communication campaigns. We have adopted better inclusion practices with the words and graphics we use, and raised awareness for accessibility concerns. We also expanded our group of core editors during this time.Yet there are more changes on the horizon. With the organization's imminent ITIL adoption, the role of support articles and technology challenges will continue to evolve—just like gumbo.