cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The anesthetic management of the severely burned patient

The anesthetic management of patients with major burns must be based on pathophysiological knowledge of the disease. In the immediate post-burn period hemodynamic changes are of major importance. Because in severe cases any of the determinants of cardiac output can be implicated in these changes, precise physiological measurements are required. Arterial pressure, urinary output, central venous pressure and right heart catheterization can help in choosing the appropriate intervention. The metabolic response to the injury is initially protective, providing enough substrate, but later will lead to extreme levels of catabolism which can impair wound healing and immunological response. The anesthesiologist can decrease that response by providing calories, adequate room temperature, a reduction of the NPO period to the minimum necessary, and avoiding stress situations. Respiratory injury can either affect the upper airway or produce the picture of ARF, which may require special treatment before, during and after surgery. Several technical problems are usually present in the anesthetic management of these patients: 1) difficult airway, 2) scarce venous access, 3) no places available for monitoring, 4) drug dependency, 5) multiple anesthetics, 6) tendency to hypothermia, 7) inaccurate estimation of blood loss, 8) hyperkalemia after succinylcholine administration, and 9) systemic effect of topical medications.
Astra: Exploiting Predictability to Optimize Deep Learning

We present Astra, a compilation and execution framework that optimizes execution of a deep learning training job. Instead of treating the computation as a generic data flow graph, Astra exploits domain knowledge about deep learning to adopt a custom approach to compiler optimization. The key insight in Astra is to exploit the unique repetitiveness and predictability of a deep learning job, to perform online exploration of the optimization state space in a work-conserving manner while making progress on the training job. This dynamic state space exploration in Astra uses lightweight profiling and indexing of profile data, coupled with several techniques to prune the exploration state space. Effectively, the execution layer custom-wires the infrastructure end-to-end for each job and hardware, while keeping the compiler simple and maintainable. We have implemented Astra in two popular deep learning frameworks, PyTorch and Tensorflow. On state-of-the-art deep learning models, we show that Astra improves end-to-end performance of deep learning training by up to 3x, while approaching the performance of hand-optimized implementations such as cuDNN where available. Astra also significantly outperforms static compilation frameworks such as Tensorflow XLA both in performance and robustness.
In Quest of Meaningful Change

This final chapter begins with a brief review of the major historical developments, elaborated in previous chapters, that landed mainstream psychology in its current epistemic predicament. I then discuss a variety of matters about which maximum clarity will be essential if the obdurate resistance that has thus far prevailed within psychology’s mainstream to the needed change in its investigative methods is ever finally to be overcome. First, I note that although psycho-demographic inquiry cannot qualify as psychology, I explain both that and why this is not an argument that such inquiry is of no merit. Second, and against the notion that no viable alternatives to the currently dominant research paradigm exist, attention is directed to a promising framework called ‘observation oriented modeling.’ Third, I emphasize further that the present argument is not against the use of quantitative methods in psychology per se, but is rather against the use of aggregate statistical methods as a way of advancing knowledge of the psychological functioning of individuals. Fourth, I discuss the need to overcome enduring misconceptions in contemporary psychologists’ understanding of the concepts of ‘nomothetic’ and ‘idiographic.’ The chapter concludes with a plea for reviving a conception of psychology as both a natural science and a human science, noting that such a revival will bring with it a recognition of the need for and scientific legitimacy of both quantitative and qualitative research methods.
Unorthodox Proposals for China’s Extreme Aging Population

Toward the end of the previous century, the focus on economic growth and development has shifted from overpopulation as a burden of growth toward the issue of aging population. This is a global iss...
Amplitudes and 4D Gauss-Bonnet theory

It has recently been argued that there may be a nontrivial four-dimensional limit of the higher-dimensional Gauss-Bonnet and Lovelock interactions and that this might provide a loophole allowing for new four-dimensional gravitational theories, possibly without a standard Lagrangian. We investigate this claim by studying tree-level graviton scattering amplitudes, allowing us to draw conclusions independently of the Lagrangian. By taking four-dimensional limits of higher-dimensional scattering amplitudes of the Gauss-Bonnet theory, we find four-dimensional amplitudes that are different from general relativity; however, these amplitudes are not new since they all come from certain scalar-tensor theories. The nontrivial limit that does not lead to infinite strong coupling around flat space leads to $(\ensuremath{\partial}\ensuremath{\phi}{)}^{4}$ theory. We argue that there cannot be any six-derivative purely gravitational four-point amplitudes in any dimension other than those coming from Lovelock theory by directly constructing the on-shell amplitudes. In particular, there can be no new such amplitudes in four dimensions beyond those of general relativity. We also present some new results on the spin-averaged cross section for graviton-graviton scattering in general relativity and Gauss-Bonnet theory in arbitrary dimensions.
Depositing Aluminum onto PEKK Composites by Cold Spray

High-pressure cold spray (HP-CS) was used to deposit aluminum onto polyetherketoneketone (PEKK) composite substrates. Aluminum powders were sprayed using N2 and He carrier gas and a bond layer (BL) of commercial-purity Al (CP Al). Dense 7075 and CP Al deposits were achieved via combinations of BL-N2, 7075/BL-N2, and 7075/BL-He. Cold spray using 7075 Al particles or using He carrier gas yielded thinner deposits because of self-erosion and bond layer erosion. Substrate roughening was more severe when using He gas and generated more polymer debris at the deposit–substrate interface, yielding lower adhesive strength values between the deposit and the composite substrates. Adhesive strength depended on the bonding of initial particle layers that fused with the substrate.
Idiopathic Left Subclavian Artery Dissection

We present a case of a 65-year-old male admitted for a small bowel obstruction who was incidentally found to have a left subclavian artery dissection on computed tomography angiogram (CTA) of the aorta. Non-traumatic subclavian artery dissection (SAD) is rare and only a few cases have been published in the literature. In this report, we review previously reported clinical presentations, subsequent treatments, and discuss factors that impact the choice between surgical vs conservative management.
Assessment of Emotional Outcomes of Intraoperative Death on Surgical Team Members.

This cohort study surveys surgeons, anesthesiologists, residents, nurses, and technicians at a single institution regarding their experiences of intraoperative death, particularly emotional outcomes.
Oxidation kinetics of graphite nanoparticles with copper oxide as oxygen carrier

The oxidation characteristics of graphite with copper oxide nanoparticles as oxidizer mixed in stoichiometric proportion were studied using a thermogravimetric analyzer. Progress of reactions was followed by measuring the mass loss, evolved gas analysis, and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. The samples were heated from room temperature conditions to 975 °C at four different heating rates of 5, 10, 15, and 20 °C min -1. The exhaust gas composition was quantified using a non-dispersive infrared analyzer. Experimental results indicate that the system requires a critical CO concentration buildup before the combustion process accelerates. The carbon dioxide production begins and peaks later than carbon monoxide. A total of three peaks occur in both carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide evolution. An Arrhenius dependence for the peak separation times with respect to the starting peak or trough temperature was observed. This work experimentally identifies the various regimes of oxidation chemistry for this fuel oxidizer combination over the entire combustion process via the trajectory of CO and CO2 evolution with temperature. The paths in this trajectory are then mapped onto the mass loss profiles. Modulated TGA experiments were also conducted to obtain the activation energy during the combustion process that shows overlapping mass loss regions. This activation energy is obtained over a wide range of temperatures using this model free-approach. The activation energies obtained using the modulated TGA experiments were also compared to those obtained using the Flynn–Wall–Ozawa method. This work provides new insights into the oxidation kinetics of graphitic carbon with solid copper oxide as an oxidizer.
A generalized kernel machine approach to identify higher-order composite effects in multi-view datasets, with application to adolescent brain development and osteoporosis.

Abstract In recent years, a comprehensive study of complex disease with multi-view datasets (e.g., multi-omics and imaging scans) has been a focus and forefront in biomedical research. State-of-the-art biomedical technologies are enabling us to collect multi-view biomedical datasets for the study of complex diseases. While all the views of data tend to explore complementary information of disease, analysis of multi-view data with complex interactions is challenging for a deeper and holistic understanding of biological systems. In this paper, we propose a novel generalized kernel machine approach to identify higher-order composite effects in multi-view biomedical datasets (GKMAHCE). This generalized semi-parametric (a mixed-effect linear model) approach includes the marginal and joint Hadamard product of features from different views of data. The proposed kernel machine approach considers multi-view data as predictor variables to allow a more thorough and comprehensive modeling of a complex trait. We applied GKMAHCE approach to both synthesized datasets and real multi-view datasets from adolescent brain development and osteoporosis study. Our experiments demonstrate that the proposed method can effectively identify higher-order composite effects and suggest that corresponding features (genes, region of interests, and chemical taxonomies) function in a concerted effort. We show that the proposed method is more generalizable than existing ones. To promote reproducible research, the source code of the proposed method is available at.
Metasurface optical elements for high performing augmented/mixed-reality smart glasses

We report state-of-the-art metasurface optical elements enabling our high-resolution full color prototype, via various combination of analytical and numerical simulations. Our prototype device has achieved FoV (>40°), high output efficiency (>1%), and 1080-pixel resolution.
Validation of a lateral flow immunoassay for the detection of immunoglobulin G/immunoglobulin M antibodies to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2-COVID-19 among symptomatic and asymptomatic high-risk OBGYN patients in selected hospitals in Olongapo city and Zambales – A multicenter prospective study

BACKGROUND/INTRODUCTION: As the world face health-system shocks from COVID-19, Obstetrician-Gynecologists become perplexed by the uncertainties these bring to the vulnerable pregnant and gynecologic population. The country's capacity for diagnosis via RTPCR consists of only a tiny proportion of the population. With the intent of coming up with a less expensive fast point of care test kits, antibody-based lateral flow assays were developed. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: Determine the diagnostic accuracy of a lateral flow immunoassay for the detection IgM/IgG antibodies to SARS-CoV2 using RT-PCR as gold standard among symptomatic and asymptomatic high risk OBGYN population. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This is a multicenter cross-sectional prospective study performed on 147 asymptomatic and symptomatic high risk OBGYN patients who underwent both RTPCR and RAT. Test results were entered using a two by two table to compute for the sensitivity (Sn), specificity (Sp), positive and negative predictive value (PPV/NPV), likelihood ratios (LR) comparing RT-PCR with IgM/IgG using Medcalc statistical software. RESULTS: The RAT for IgG/IgM was not found to be sensitive in both groups. It was able to identify only one of the five patients who had COVID-19 based on RT-PCR. Moreover, the (PPV) was found to be only 20% since only one patient tested positive in the RAT for IgM/IgG that was also positive in the RT-PCR. The (LR+ and LR-) for the symptomatic group was close to 1 implying a slightly higher probability of a true positive compared to that of a false positive test and a negative test result given the absence of the disease respectively. (Sp) and (NPV) of the RAT for IgM/IgG is high for both groups. This means that RAT for IgM/IgG does well in identifying patients who truly do not have COVID-19. CONCLUSION: With a very low sensitivity of 5% in this study, RAT for COVID-19 cannot be used for screening purposes.
Global Bioethics as a Secular Source of Moral Authority for Long-Term Human Survival

Global bioethics is presented as an evolving secular morality seeking interdisciplinary discourse, and dialog with diverse cooperating religious leaders. The need is to forge a means of unifying the people of the world around a common goal: the survival of human and other species over millenia in an acceptable and healthful environment. Seven core assumptions are stated. Acceptable survival is discussed historically with reference to a few developments from 1892 to the present.
Plethysmography variability index and pre-cardiopulmonary bypass phlebotomy in children: Ideal physiology and clinical practice.

Respiratory cycle-dependent dynamic volume status indices such as stroke volume variation ( respSV), pulse pressure variation ( respPP), pulse oximetry plethysmography, and PVI perform best when tidal volume is ≥8 cc/kg and patient-ventilator interaction is extinguished [1]. In this issue of the Journal of Pediatric Intensive Care, Schloss et al. [2] employ these ventilatory parameters in their study of PVI. As interest in respiratory-cycled dynamic indices has grown, two data streams have pulled practice away from conditions that favor these measures. Robust prospective and historical data suggests that adults and children who are critically ill or undergoing major surgery benefit from
Osteoclasts; culprits in inflammatory osteolysis

Periarticular osteolysis, a crippling complication of rheumatoid arthritis, is the product of enhanced osteoclast recruitment and activation. The osteoclast, which is a member of the monocyte/macrophage family, is the exclusive bone resorptive cell, and its differentiation and activation are under the aegis of a variety of cytokines. Receptor activator of NF-κB ligand (RANKL) and macrophage colony-stimulating factor are the essential osteoclastogenic cytokines and are increased in inflammatory joint disease. Tumor necrosis factor-α, which perpetrates arthritic bone loss, exerts its osteoclastogenic effect in the context of RANKL with which it synergizes. Achieving an understanding of the mechanisms by which the three cytokines affect the osteoclast has resulted in a number of active and candidate therapeutic targets.
Inequality: Comparative Aspects

This article offers a panoramic overview of equality and inequality in human societies throughout history, from an anthropological perspective. Discussing power, status, and economy as major dimensions, it covers a wide range of societal forms, from small-scale groupings of foragers to contemporary large-scale societies, and it also discusses race and caste, colonialism, gender, and age as they have related to social inequality. Types of authority such as big men and chiefs are also noted.
Depersonalization: Standing in the Spaces Between Recognition and Interpellation

Depersonalization is the experience of profound estrangement and alienation from Self and Reality. Although highly prevalent in our postmodern world, the syndrome of depersonalization has been systematically understudied, misdiagnosed, and unsuccessfully treated. In this paper we summarize our theoretical conclusions after a decade-long empirical study of this population and discuss both etiology and recommendations for treatment. Our main objective here is to place what psychiatrically we would consider pathologies of personhood within the larger context of culture. We include a clinical vignette to demonstrate how we work with the premise that depersonalization is not only a private event. Perhaps more than other problems-in-living, it reveals the centrality of the individual's relationship to discourse, the State, and the culture in which we breathe. We discuss depersonalization and the dissociative structuring of the mind as psychological responses to particularly problematic experiences around subjec...
Thermodynamic stability of Co–Al–W L12 γ′

Abstract Co-based superalloys in the Co–Al–W system exhibit coherent L1 2 Co 3 (Al,W) γ ′ precipitates in an face-centered cubic Co γ matrix, analogous to Ni 3 Al in Ni-based systems. Unlike Ni 3 Al, however, experimental observations of Co 3 (Al,W) suggest that it is not a stable phase at 1173 K. Here, we perform an extensive series of density functional theory (DFT) calculations of the γ ′ Co 3 (Al,W) phase stability, including point defect energetics and finite-temperature contributions. We first confirm and extend previous DFT calculations of the metastability of L1 2 Co 3 (Al 0.5 W 0.5 ) γ ′ at 0 K with respect to hexagonal close-packed Co, B2 CoAl and D0 19 Co 3 W using the special quasi-random structure (SQS) approach to describe the Al/W solid solution, employing several exchange/correlation functionals, structures with varying degrees of disorder, and newly developed larger SQSs. We expand the validity of this conclusion by considering the formation of antisite and vacancy point defects, predicting defect formation energies similar in magnitude to Ni 3 Al. However, in contrast to the Ni 3 Al system, we find that substituting Co on Al sites is thermodynamically favorable at 0 K, consistent with experimental observation of Co excess and Al deficiency in γ ′ with respect to the Co 3 (Al 0.5 W 0.5 ) composition. Lastly, we consider vibrational, electronic and magnetic contributions to the free energy, finding that they promote the stability of γ ′, making the phase thermodynamically competitive with the convex hull at elevated temperature. Surprisingly, this is due to the relatively small finite-temperature contributions of one of the γ ′ decomposition products, B2 CoAl, effectively destabilizing the Co, CoAl and Co 3 W three-phase mixture, thus stabilizing the γ ′ phase.
Enforcement of Personal Service Contracts in the Entertainment Industry

F THE entertainment industry can rightfully claim the parentage of any single set of legal principles, those principles are the ones that a court of equity uses today in aiding employer's demand for specific performance of contracts for personal service by public performers. Many of these principles, it is true, are found interlaced among the broad, general rules and maxims that govern all suits in equity. Among the working rules which govern the discretion of equity in each of these cases are found an insistence upon the readiness and ability of the employer to perform, the requirement that the contract be not oppressive nor unconscionable, that it was not entered into by mistake and that the employer himself comes into equity with clean hands. But the single, well-accepted principle that, under appropritate circumstances, equity will enjoin the breach of a covenant in an artiste's contract not to perform for others, can be traced back directly to the landmark case of Lumley v. Wagner,' decided 101 years ago. The seed sown by Lumley v. Wagner has blossomed forth fully in the modern day entertainment contract. This is especially so in the motion picture field where the contracts between performers and their studios contain many elaborate provisions designed to insure the employer that the employee will perform for him, and for no one else.2 Briefly summarized,
Service-Oriented Architecture and Web Services

This article describes how to implement service-oriented architecture and Web services. Service-oriented architecture promotes modularity of design and interoperability of software services interacting within a distributed system over the Internet. Web services allow clients to obtain information from, or have tasks performed by, service providers using XML data formats and standard Internet protocols. Keywords: XML data formats; internet protocols; service provider; service requester; service broker; SOAP; WSDL; UDDI; REST web services
The General Properties of the Distribution Function and Remarks on Its Weakness

It was an unexpected pleasure to hear about the conference on the quantum mechanics of phase space, and I very much appreciate the pleasure to be invited thereto. I will be able to contribute very little to it that is not contained in the Physics Report article [Phys. Rep. 106, 121 (1984)] by M.Hillery, R.F. O’Connell, M.Scully, and myself — an article to which I have actually contributed, in contrast to Dr. Scully, very little. But I will admit that the underlying reformulation of the Schrodinger equation was started by me, in 1932 (Phys. Rev. 40, p. 749). I was interested in the thermodynamic behavior of macroscopic objects which is given with high accuracy, at ordinary or high temperatures, by classical statistical mechanics. At low temperatures quantum effects can become important and this manifested itself also in the “equation of state”(temperature and density dependence of the pressure) of the He gas. It was natural, therefore, to develop a substitute for the classical expression for the density in phase space (to be described below) which forms the basis for the calculation of the thermodynamic behavior in the temperature region in which classical mechanics can be assumed to be valid, and which easily provides a good approximation in the temperature region not too far away from the validity of classical physics. This means a probability function of the position and momentum variables q and p, defined in terms of the wave function ψ or the density matrix M, a probability function which is a hermitean expression of the wave function, hence linear in the density matrix. It is not too difficult to calculate and does give accurate results for the equation of state, and I hope also for other quantities.
Effects of prenatal spaceflight on vestibular responses in neonatal rats.

Ten pregnant Norway rats (Rattus norvegicus) were flown for 11 days on board the NASA space shuttle from gestational day 9 (launch) until gestational day 20 (landing) of the rats' 22-day pregnancy. After the birth of the pups, vestibular responses were analyzed from postnatal day (P) 0 until P5. In the first test, P0 neonates were supported on a platform in a side-lying position. Skyward head movements (i.e., movements performed against the gravity vector) were more frequent than head movements toward Earth in both flight and control neonates. In the second test, the contact-righting reflex, composed of stereotyped movements that rotate the body from supine to prone on a solid surface, was analyzed in P0 neonates. The frequency and latency of contact-righting responses did not differ in flight and control neonates. In the third test, vestibular head righting, with tactile and proprioceptive cues removed, was tested in neonates on P1, P3, and P5 by using a water-immersion test. Righting responses were observed less frequently in P1 and P3 flight neonates compared with controls. However, this deficit was transient, as evidenced by complete response recovery on P5. Collectively, these findings provide evidence for a selective disruption of vestibular-mediated responses after prenatal exposure to spaceflight.
How Municipal Property Tax Responded to State Aid Cuts: The Case of Massachusetts Municipalities in the Post-2001 Fiscal Crisis

This empirical study examines municipal property tax responses to state aid cuts during the post-2001 fiscal crisis. Using panel econometric techniques on annual changes in property tax levy by 351 incorporated Massachusetts municipalities in the period of 2002–2006, the results suggest that municipal governments offset about 9 cents of each dollar of net state aid cut through the increase of their property tax rates. It contributes to public finance literature on the extent to which local property tax can be used to stabilize municipal revenues when the intergovernmental revenue shrinks.
Rhetorical style and the formation of character: Ciceronian ethos in Thomas Wilson's Arte of Rhetorique

(1998). Rhetorical style and the formation of character: Ciceronian ethos in Thomas Wilson's Arte of Rhetorique. Rhetoric Review: Vol. 17, No. 1, pp. 93-106.
A nonstandard proof of the Riesz representation theorem for weakly compact operators on C(Ω)

An easy way to construct the representing vector measures of weakly compact operators on C (Ω) is given by using the Loeb measure technique. This construction is not based on the Riesz representation theorem for linear functionals; thus we have a uniform way to treat the scalar and vector cases. Also the star finite representations of regular vector measures follow from the proof.
Further Evidence of an Association Between Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Cigarette Smoking: Findings from a High-Risk Sample of Siblings

The authors investigated the relationship between attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and cigarette smoking in siblings of ADHD and non-ADHD probands. They conducted a 4-year follow-up of siblings from ADHD and control-group families. In the siblings of ADHD probands, ADHD was associated with higher rates and earlier onset of cigarette smoking. There was also a significant positive association between cigarette smoking and conduct disorder, major depression, and drug abuse in the siblings, even after adjusting for confounding variables. Moreover, smoking was found to be familial among ADHD families but not control-group families. Our findings indicate that ADHD is a risk factor for early initiation of cigarette smoking in the high-risk siblings of ADHD probands.
Deconvoluting the Structural and Drug-Recognition Complexity of the G-Quadruplex-Forming Region Upstream of the bcl-2 P1 Promoter

The human bcl-2 gene contains a GC-rich region upstream of the P1 promoter that has been shown to be critically involved in the regulation of bcl-2 gene expression. We have demonstrated that the guanine-rich strand of the DNA in this region can form any one of three distinct intramolecular G-quadruplex structures. Mutation and deletion analysis permitted isolation and identification of three overlapping DNA sequences within this element that formed the three individual G-quadruplexes. Each of these was characterized using nondenaturing gel analysis, DMS footprinting, and circular dichroism. The central G-quadruplex, which is the most stable, forms a mixed parallel/antiparallel structure consisting of three tetrads connected by loops of one, seven, and three bases. Three different G-quadruplex-interactive agents were found to further stabilize these structures, with individual selectivity toward one or more of these G-quadruplexes. Collectively, these results suggest that the multiple G-quadruplexes identified in the promoter region of the bcl-2 gene are likely to play a similar role to the G-quadruplexes in the c-myc promoter in that their formation could serve to modulate gene transcription. Last, we demonstrate that the complexity of the G-quadruplexes in the bcl-2 promoter extends beyond the ability to form any one of three separate G-quadruplexes to each having the capacity to form either three or six different loop isomers. These results are discussed in relation to the biological significance of this G-quadruplex-forming element in modulation of bcl-2 gene expression and the inherent complexity of the system where different G-quadruplexes and loop isomers are possible.
The 1982 eruptions of El Chichón Volcano (Chiapas, Mexico): Character of the eruptions, ash-fall deposits, and gasphase

Abstract Three modest plinian eruptions occurred at El Chichon Volcano during March—April 1982, producing an ENE-trending lobe of ash covering 45,000 km 2 within the 1 mm isopach, and ash-flow and surge deposits in proximal areas. The total volume of juvenile magma erupted was 0.38 km 3 DRE. Ash-fall samples show polymodal grain-size distributions with median grain size decreasing away from the volcano. The ash-fall deposit is relatively fine-grained; more than 80% of the erupted material is in the sub-mm fraction. Larger ash particles were commonly armored with fines, and fines clustered together to form tightly cemented aggregates. Both processes contributed to efficient and rapid removal of fines from the eruption plume. The bulk chemical composition of ash samples can be closely modeled by fall-out fractionation of glass and minerals from the eruptive plume combined with adsorption of sulfur, sodium, and potassium. Leachate analyses of fresh ashes indicate large amounts of adsorbed sulfate and chlorine, and moderate quantities of adsorbed fluorine. During the eruption, nearly all sulfur that was not present as microphenocrystic anhydrite was released as vapor; at least 35% of the chlorine was degassed, and only 10% of the fluorine. Vapor transport of metals was limited in the eruption plume. Nearly 30% of the vaporous sulfur in the plume was adsorbed onto ash particles, probably after oxidation to sulfate, and thereby carried to the ground. The rest of the vaporous sulfur was injected into the stratosphere, presumably as SO 2 . The exceptionally high sulfur content of the El Chichon magma, estimated at about 2.6 wt.% SO 3 , resulted in a large stratospheric cloud of sulfuric acid aerosols which may have an impact on the earth's climate.
The effect of surface roughness on the extinction spectra and electromagnetic fields around gold nanoparticles

Electromagnetic enhancement arising from plasmon resonance excitation plays a major role in surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS), and as a result nanoparticle morphology can significantly affect SERS intensities. In this paper we have calculated these enhancements as well as extinction spectra using the discrete dipole approximation for a system consisting of a dimer of gold disks that is made using on-wire lithography. Including surface roughness in the calculations leads to SERS enhancements for the disks whose dependence on disk spacing and thickness is in agreement with experimental measurements, with a maximum enhancement when the thickness of the disk and the disk-disk gap are 100 nm and 32 nm, respectively. These results are in better agreement with experiments than earlier estimates based on flat surfaces.
Recovery of vision in fish after optic nerve crush: A behavioral and electrophysiological study

Recovery of the visual field was studied during regeneration of the retinotectal projection in bluegill sunfish (Lepomis macrochirus) using a behavioral perimetry technique. Fish were trained to orient ballistically to brief light flashes along the horizontal meridian. After crushing the right optic nerve intraorbitally, orienting to stimuli in the right visual field in different fish reappeared between 32 and 56 days postcrush. On average, recovery of the field center (30 to 150°) occurred in 3 days, the most temporal 30° requiring a further 7 days. Orientation accuracy, measured by the mean absolute error angle, returned to normal 10 to 15 days from the start of recovery. Perimetry was terminated at different times to 152 days postcrush, and the retinotectal projection was mapped electrophysiologically using an automated procedure to characterize multiunit receptive fields (MURFs). At early stages of visual recovery, MURFs associated with strong multiunit discharges were found in the same field regions responsive in behavioral perimetry. The 10- to 15-day recovery of normal orienting accuracy was associated with an increase in the amplitude of multiunit activity, attaining a plateau of 75% of normal. There was also evidence of a long-term decline in MURF area. Early maps showed a roughly normal visutopic order, although abnormalities in MURF size and shape persisted to as much as 152 days postcrush.
Merit of ground-state electronegativities; a reply to "Comments on 'Introduction to the chemistry of fractionally charged atoms: Electronegativity' "

The arguments presented in the Comment by Liebman and Huheey are shown to be incorrect. The operational equivalence of Mulliken ground-state electronegativities and Pauling electronegativities is demonstrated for neutral atoms. It is shown that ground-state electronegativities and valence-state electronegativities for both neutral atoms and ions are also operationally equivalent. A single electronegativity scale based on Mulliken ground-state electronegativities may therefore be used for neutral atoms, ions, and fractionally charged atoms, as originally implied in the paper by Lackner and Zweig.
Ab initio calculation of the K-shell excitation and ionization energies of CH4, NH3, H2O, and HF

Abstract Energies required to promote a K-shell electron to a Rydberg orbital or to the ionization threshold for CH 4 , NH 3 , H 2 O, and HF are calculated directly using ab initio molecular orbital theory. The results are in agreement with experimental values obtained from spectra in the soft X-ray region. The dependence of the inner-electron ionization energies upon completeness and size of the basis set is investigated.
Bilayer Lift-Off Process for Aluminum Metallization

Recently published reports in the literature for bilayer lift-off processes have described recipes for the patterning of metals that have recommended metal-ion-free developers, which do etch aluminum. We report the first measurement of the dissolution rate of a commercial lift-off resist (LOR) in a sodium-based buffered commercial developer that does not etch aluminum. We describe a reliable lift-off recipe that is safe for multiple process steps in patterning thin (<100 nm) and thick aluminum devices with micron-feature sizes. Our patterning recipe consists of an acid cleaning of the substrate, the bilayer (positive photoresist/LOR) deposition and development, the sputtering of the aluminum film along with a palladium capping layer and finally, the lift-off of the metal film by immersion in the LOR solvent. The insertion into the recipe of postexposure and sequential develop-bake-develop process steps are necessary for an acceptable undercut. Our recipe also eliminates any need for accompanying sonication during lift-off that could lead to delamination of the metal pattern from the substrate. Fine patterns were achieved for both 100-nm-thick granular aluminum/palladium bilayer bolometers and 500-nm-thick aluminum gratings with 6-μm lines and 4-μm spaces.
Bringing Human Trafficking into Executive Suites and Academia: Challenges and Opportunities

Despite major, politically successful global campaigns against human trafficking (or forced labor, as the practice is generally labeled in Europe) and despite its links to business and to global su...
Feline Dental Resorptive Lesions. Prevalence Patterns

In this article, the results of two surveys of teeth of living cats (from the Netherlands and the United States) are presented. Resorptive lesions were present in 62% of the Dutch cats and 67% of the United States cats. Summaries of data from other reports are compared.
Vehicle detection and orientation estimation using the radon transform

Determining the location and orientation of vehicles in satellite and airborne imagery is a challenging task given the density of cars and other vehicles and complexity of the environment in urban scenes almost anywhere in the world. We have developed a robust and accurate method for detecting vehicles using a template-based directional chamfer matching, combined with vehicle orientation estimation based on a refined segmentation, followed by a Radon transform based profile variance peak analysis approach. The same algorithm was applied to both high resolution satellite imagery and wide area aerial imagery and initial results show robustness to illumination changes and geometric appearance distortions. Nearly 80% of the orientation angle estimates for 1585 vehicles across both satellite and aerial imagery were accurate to within 15◦ of the ground truth. In the case of satellite imagery alone, nearly 90% of the objects have an estimated error within ±1.0° of the ground truth.
Paradoxical urinary phenytoin metabolite (S)/(R) ratios in CYP2C19*1/*2 patients.

Abstract Phenytoin (PHT) is primarily metabolized to 5-(4′-hydroxyphenyl)-5-phenylhydantoin ( p -HPPH), accounting for 67–88% of an administered dose in humans. p - HPPH is formed by the cytochrome (CYP) 450 enzymes CYP2C9 and CYP2C19, then glucuronidated and excreted into the urine. CYP2C9 catalyses the prochiral formation of ( R ) and ( S )- p -HPPH, and is approximately 40 times more stereoselective towards the formation of the ( S ) isomer whereas CYP2C19 is not stereoselective. Because of differential stereoselectivity, polymorphisms in the genes can alter the ( S )/( R )- p -HPPH ratios. Genotyping for CYP2C9 and CYP2C19 was accomplished by a Taqman based assay. Twelve and twenty-four hour urine samples were collected from 45 epilepsy patients taking PHT under steady-state conditions and ( S )/( R ) ratios of p -HPPH were determined by chiral HPLC separation. The mean urinary ( S )/( R ) ratio in the 12–24h urine collection in subjects homozygous for CYP2C9*1/*1 , CYP2C19*1/*1 was 24.2±3.1( n =21), whereas ratios in CYP2C9*1 / *2 and CYP2C9*1 / *3 subjects, were 11.1±3.3( n =7) and 2.7±0.6( n =2), respectively. One CYP2C9*2/*3 patient had a ratio of 2.1. Unexpectedly, CYP2C9*1 / *1 , CYP2C19*1 / *2 subjects had a mean ( S )/( R ) ratio as low as 12.9±1.7( n =12). Our results are generally consistent with single dose PHT studies. However, the ( S )/( R )- p -HPPH ratios for the CYP2C9*1 / *1 , CYP2C19*1 / *2 subjects, expected to be in the range of 30–40, were only 12.9, suggesting some undetected linkage disequilibrium between CYP2C9 and CYP2C19 genes that could affect PHT elimination. Furthermore, our study suggests that measurement of urine ratios cannot be used as a marker for genotype determination.
Relationship between colorectal cancer screening adherence and knowledge among vulnerable rural residents of Appalachian Kentucky.

Background Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the leading causes of cancer related deaths among residents of rural Appalachia. Rates of guideline-consistent CRC screening in Appalachian Kentucky are suboptimal.
Image-guided respiratory-gated lung stereotactic body radiotherapy: which target definition is optimal?

In stereotactic body radiotherapy(SBRT), the respiratory tumor motion makes target definition very important to achieve optimal clinical results for treatment of early stage lungcancer. In this article, the authors quantitatively evaluated the influence of different target definition strategies on image-guided respiratory-gated SBRT for lungcancer. Twelve lungcancer patients with 4D CT estimated target motion of > 1 cm were selected for this retrospective study. An experienced physician contoured gross target volumes (GTVs) at each 4D CT phase for all patients. Three types of internal target volumes (ITVs) were generated based on the contoured GTVs:(1) ITV BH : GTV contoured on deep expiration breath-hold (BH) CT with an isotropic internal margin (IM) of 5 mm ; (2) ITV 50 : GTV contoured at the end-expiration (50%) phase with an isotropic IM of 5 mm ; (3) ITV GW : Composite volume of all GTVs within the gating window, defined as several phases around phase 50% with residual target motion of 5 mm . Planning target volumes (PTVs) were generated by adding 3 mm isotropic setup error margin to ITVs. Three treatment plans, namely, Plan BH , Plan 50 , and Plan GW , were created based on the three PTVs. Identical beam settings and planning constraints were used for all three plans for each patient. The prescription dose was 60 Gy in three fractions. The potential toxicities to the critical organs were quantified by mean lungdose (MLD), lung volume receiving > 20 Gy (V20), mean heartdose(MHD), and spinal cord dose (SCD). It is shown that the tumor volume and dose coverage are comparable for Plan BH and Plan 50 . On average, PTV GW are 38% less than PTV 50 . Although for most patients PTV 50 encompasses the entire PTV GW , up to 5.48 cm 3 (6%) of PTV GW is outside PTV 50 . Compared to Plan 50 , prescribed percentage is about 2% higher for Plan GW , and the average dose decreases in critical organs are 0.78 Gy for MLD, 1.02% for V20, 0.61 Gy for MHD and 0.59 Gy for maximum SCD. For the cases receiving high lung and heartdose with Plan 50 , the dose reduction is 1.0 Gy for MLD and 1.14 Gy for MHD with Plan GW . Our preliminary results show that a patient-specific ITV, defined as the composite volume of all GTVs within the gating window, may be used to define PTV in image-guided respiratory-gated SBRT. This approach potentially reduces the irradiated volume of normal tissue further without sacrificing target dose coverage and thus may minimize the risk of treatment-related toxicities.
Hybrid method involving atmospheric plasma treatment and inkjet deposition for the development of conductive patterns on flexible polymers

Abstract In this study, the flexible polymer substrate polyethylene naphthalate (PEN) was modified under two different plasma chemistries, namely helium–oxygen (He–O 2 ) and helium–water vapor (He–H 2 O) plasmas at atmospheric pressure and room temperature. Surface changes related to wettability, chemical functionalization, surface energy, and morphology after plasma treatment were investigated using water contact angle (WCA) goniometry, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Each plasma resulted in a more hydrophilic PEN surface, with WCA decreasing by 68% and 85% for He–O 2 and He–H 2 O plasma treated PEN, respectively, after only 1.0 s of exposure. An aging study of plasma treated PEN shows an increase in WCA that is still 30° lower than that of the as-received PEN after 1 month. XPS and AFM results show that improved wettability of the plasma modified PEN is due to the oxidation of the surface and not due to the increased surface roughness. To promote a roll-to-roll process of atmospheric plasma treatment and inkjet deposition, printing was performed using the conductive polymer poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) on the as-received and plasma treated PEN surfaces where the shape and morphology of the lines were studied. Each plasma treated PEN surface exhibited well-defined, uniform inkjet-printed lines due to the improved wettability and increased surface energy. After scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis of the PEDOT:PSS dispersion of a single drop on each substrate, the He–H 2 O plasma treated surface led to less agglomeration of PEDOT:PSS and a more homogeneous drop deposit.
Esthesioneuroblastoma : long term outcome and patterns of failure : the University of Virginia experience

Background. Esthesioneuroblastoma is a rare tumor arising from olfactory epithelium. This retrospective review analyzed the patterns of failure and long term outcome of patients with esthesioneuroblastoma evaluated at a single institution. Methods. Forty patients with esthesioneuroblastoma were evaluated at the University of Virginia, with a median follow-up of 130 months. In most cases, treatment consisted of combined-modality therapy, including radiotherapy and surgery for Stages A and B disease and the addition of chemotherapy for Stage C disease. Fifteen patients received chemotherapy that included cyclophos-phamide plus vincristine. Thirty-eight patients received radiotherapy, with a median dose of 50 Gy. Initial surgery for 23 patients included craniofacial resection, whereas the remainder had less extensive surgery (3 had no initial surgery). Five patients were salvaged with high dose chemotherapy and autologous bone marrow transplantation (CTX/BMT). Results. Actuarial survivals at 5, 10, and 15 years are 78%, 71%, and 65% respectively. Fifty-five percent of patients failed therapy, and 68% of the failures were locore-gional. Thirty-nine percent of recurrences occurred later than 5 years from diagnosis. Three of the five patients were successfully salvaged with CTX/BMT compared with four of seventeen patients who underwent conventional salvage therapy. Conclusions. Esthesioneuroblastoma is associated with long term survival and late recurrences. Multimodality therapy should be used initially. Durable remissions of failures can be achieved with CTX/BMT.
INTERPOLATING STATISTICS AND q-DEFORMED OSCILLATOR ALGEBRAS

The idea that a system obeying interpolating statistics can be described by a deformed oscillator algebra, or quantum groups, has been an outstanding issue. We are able to demonstrate that a q-deformed oscillator algebra can be used to describe the statistics of particles which provide a continuous interpolation between Bose and Fermi statistics. We show that the generalized intermediate statistics splits into Boson-like and Fermion-like regimes, each described by a unique oscillator algebra. The thermostatistics of Boson-like particles is described by employing q-calculus based on the Jackson derivative while the Fermion-like particles are described by ordinary derivatives of thermodynamics. Thermodynamic functions for systems of both types are determined and examined.
Isopycnic orbital transformations and localization of natural orbitals

Properties of linear orbital transformations that leave the first-order density matrix invariant are investigated. These isopycnic orbital transformations make possible to localize not only the Hartree-Fock spin-orbitals, but the natural spin-orbitals, as well. A new localization procedure, based on atomic overlap matrices, is proposed to facilitate interpretation of the localized natural spin-orbitals (LNOS). Changes in LNOS upon breaking of a single bond in the H2 and HF molecules are examined. The LNOS are also computed for the CO and LiF molecules and compared with the localized molecular orbitals.
Analysis of on-chip interconnection network interface reliability in multicore systems

In Networks-on-Chip (NoC), with ever-increasing complexity and technology scaling, transient single-event upsets (SEUs) have become a key design challenge. In this work, we extend the concept of architectural vulnerability factor (AVF) from the microprocessor domain and propose a network vulnerability factor (NVF) to characterize the susceptibility of NoC components such as the Network Interface (NI) to transient faults. Our studies reveal that different NI buffers behave quite differently on transient faults and each buffer can have different levels of inherent fault-tolerant capability. Our analysis also considers the impact of thermal hotspot mitigation techniques such as frequency throttling on the NVF estimation.