cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The Implication of Curriculum Renewal on ELT in Indonesia

There are three criticisms toward English teaching in Indonesia based on the revised curriculum 2004 in 2006 known as KTSP. Following the evaluation of the whole educational system in Indonesia, a new curriculum, i.e. Curriculum 2013 began to be implemented in schools to replace KTSP in 2015. In this paper, I will try to review the criticisms toward the implementation of KTSP in English subject, evaluate the possible challenges of the implementation of Curriculum 2013, and propose some possible suggestions and priorities for the improvement of Curriculum 2013, e.g. in-service and pre-service teacher development program, and alternatives to replace high stakes testing policy. (106) Ada tiga kritik terhadap pengajaran bahasa Inggris di Indonesia berdasarkan kurikulum 2004 yang direvisi pada 2006, dikenal sebagai KTSP. Setelah diadakan evaluasi tentang sistem pendidikan di Indonesia secara menyeluruh, sebuah kurikulum baru, yaitu Kurikulum 2013 mulai diterapkan disekolah-sekolah untuk mengganti KTSP pada 2015. Dalam artikel ini, saya akan mencoba menelaah kritik-kritik terhadap pelaksanaan Kurikulum 2013, mengevaluasi tantangan-tantangan yang mungkin ada untuk pelaksanaannya, dan memberikan beberapa saran dan prioritas untuk perbaikan Kurikulum 2013, yaitu program pengembangan guru baik saat bertugas (in-service) maupun sebelum bertugas mengajar (pre-service), dan beberapa alternatif untuk mengganti kebijakan tes yang penuh dengan kontroversi.
The History of Africanization and the Africanization of History

The idea of Africanization is arguably one of the most important and prevalent in African historiography and African studies. I first encountered this notion some eight years ago when I started graduate school. With a background in Mexican and Latin American history, I found it necessary to immerse myself in the historiography of Africa. It was in this process that I encountered the idea of Africanization. It was not always identified in this manner, but it was clear that historians were, in one way or another, articulating a concern about how “African” was African history.The objective of this paper is to examine the history of Africanization in African historiography. It departs from two basic premises. First, the issues that come with the idea of Africanization are more pronounced in the field of African history. When compared to other fields, such as Latin American history, this indigenizing of history is not given nearly so much attention. Second, the idea that African history needs to be Africanized has been taken for granted, and has not been critically examined. Here I will contend that the historical conditions that have framed the emergence and development of African historiography have made it necessary to emphasize the issue of Africanization. I will also argue that those conditions have changed in the past fifty years, and that the questions raised in the quest to Africanize history should be redefined in view of the new challenges for African history and of historiography at large.
2,6-Dioxa-3,7-dioxotricyclo[3.3.3.01,5]undecane, a Propellanoid Dilactone Representing a New Tricyclic Ring System

The title material, tetrahydro-3a,6a-propanofuro-[3,2-b]furan-2,5-dione (C9H10O4), is a new compound representing a previously unreported ring system. Its asymmetric unit lacks an axis of symmetry because of nonplanarity in the carbon ring. Although the bulk material is racemic, only single enantiomers are incorporated into the crystal, which is unusually dense. Several intermolecular C–H⋅ ⋅ ⋅O close contacts were found.
Public Health, Embodied History, and Social Justice: Looking Forward

This essay was delivered as a commencement address at the University of California–Berkeley School of Public Health on May 17, 2015. Reflecting on events spanning from 1990 to 1999 to 2015, when I ...
Leaders Who Inspire Change

Good evening and welcome to the 74th Annual Conference and Exposition of the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA). I am proud to see the thousands of members, families, and friends who have gathered to celebrate the events that are occurring this week. Our theme this year is “It's All About Change.” Honored guests, members, friends, and families of our profession, we are here to celebrate our 74th Annual Conference in our historic nation's capital. We are also here to celebrate the first annual and historic meeting of the newly enacted Representative Body of the National Assembly. And we are here not only to celebrate the close of a decade and a century, but also to soon herald in the new millennium. As great as the accomplishments of our civilization have been in the past thousand years, none have been as great as those that have been accomplished in the past 100 years, such as the inventions of space travel, the telephone, television, the personal computer, the Internet, air-conditioning, fast food, and, of course, Pop-Tarts. Likewise, our Association, the APTA, has achieved great things in the past 78 years—licensure, independent accreditation, and direct access—and, most importantly, APTA has supported our commitment to our patients, to society, and to quality care. What is the magic of our profession? What makes our Association strong? What is the motivating factor that has enabled physical therapists and physical therapist assistants to work their magic? It's the answers to these questions that we need to examine as we go forward into the new millennium. Let me begin with a story. Back in the Middle Ages, a British knight was returning to the castle one evening after a long, hard day of battle. His armor was dented, his helmet was askew, and most of his plumes were …
CMS and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: Bound Together by the Renin Angiotensin Aldosterone System

The recent epidemic of obesity has led to an increasing incidence of the cardiometabolic syndrome defined by the NCEP ATP III guidelines as a cluster of abdominal obesity, low HDL, high triglycerides, HTN, and impaired fasting glucose. Obesity predisposes the body to a state of inflammation, insulin resistance, and hyperinsulinemia, and individuals with the metabolic syndrome are at increased risk for developing CAD, stroke, PVD, CKD, and T2DM. There are various mechanisms by which these complications of the metabolic syndrome occur, and activation of systemic and local renin angiotensin aldosterone system (RAAS) and resultant oxidative stress in different organ systems is probably the most important one. Finally, based on recent trials, the approach toward management of the metabolic syndrome is usually multifactorial and multiagent and studies are still being performed to assess the efficacy of newer drugs.
Understanding the clustering patterns in physician distribution through Affinity Propagation

The spatial distribution of physicians has a significant impact in public health research. It is critical to clarify whether the addresses provided by the physicians are the home addresses or the practice addresses, since the practice address is the key to understand relevant issues of maldistribution, accessibility and disparity. Through a pilot study as partial effort of the research project “Reducing Physician Distribution Uncertainty in Spatial Accessibility Research” sponsored by the National Institutes of Health (NIH award number 1R21CA182874-01), appropriate solutions were developed to differentiate the home addresses from practice addresses. This paper introduces how to understand the clustering patterns in physician distribution through Affinity Propagation, a relatively new clustering algorithm, to derive the potential extent of the practice locations for those physicians who provided home addresses. The physician data is derived from the 2014 American Medical Association (AMA) Physician Masterfile, while two counties (Fulton and DeKalb) in the metropolitan area of Atlanta, Georgia were selected as the study area. Both Euclidian distance and driving distance were applied in the AP algorithm, while gravity models based AP calculation were applied in comparison to the clustering of individual physicians. By justifying preference and similarity parameters in the AP calculation, hierarchical clustering patterns can be derived and perceived. Future research challenges in AP clustering are identified, while this pilot study can be extended with broader impact in public health research.
in Vitro-in Vivo Relationships of Several “Immediate” Release Tablets Containing a Low Permeability Drug

The objective of this work was to gain insight into the biopharmaceutical performance of four different but bioequivalent ranitidine hydrochloride tablet formulations. This analysis employed a recently described method1 to relate in vitro and in vivo data and aimed to facilitate an understanding of oral drug product performance. For each ranitidine formulation, dissolution was performed using the USP procedure. A four-way, single dose bioequivalence study (n = 14) was performed. The fraction of the total amount of dose absorbed at each plasma sample time was determined by the Wagner-Nelson method. Equation 1 (see below) was fitted to the in vitro vs. in vivo data. For all four formulations, this analysis suggests absorption was permeation-rate limited, where ranitidine exhibited a low permeation rate constant of 0.01/min.
The PHR proteins: intracellular signaling hubs in neuronal development and axon degeneration

During development, a coordinated and integrated series of events must be accomplished in order to generate functional neural circuits. Axons must navigate toward target cells, build synaptic connections, and terminate outgrowth. The PHR proteins (consisting of mammalian Phr1/MYCBP2, Drosophila Highwire and C. elegans RPM-1) function in each of these events in development. Here, we review PHR function across species, as well as the myriad of signaling pathways PHR proteins regulate. These findings collectively suggest that the PHR proteins are intracellular signaling hubs, a concept we explore in depth. Consistent with prominent developmental functions, genetic links have begun to emerge between PHR signaling networks and neurodevelopmental disorders, such as autism, schizophrenia and intellectual disability. Finally, we discuss the recent and important finding that PHR proteins regulate axon degeneration, which has further heightened interest in this fascinating group of molecules.
Meta-Analysis: Cumulating Research Findings Across Studies

This article presents a review of the book “Meta-Analysis: Cumulating Research Findings Across Studies,” by John E. Hunter, Frank L. Schmidt, and Gregg B. Jackson.
Metastable Defect Studies in Hydrogen Modulated Multilayer Amorphous Silicon

Junction capacitance methods were employed to investigate the metastable states in a-Si:H with hydrogen modulated Multilayer sample as well as companion homogeneous samples. Each layer in the multilayer sample was grown from the same gas mixture (SiH4+Ar or SiH4+H2) as that of homogeneous samples. We observed that in state A and metastable states produced by a short time light soaking the defect density of each layer in the multilayer sample track well the defect density of the corresponding homogeneous sample. This implies that “local” aspects of metastable defect creation dominate in the earlier light soaked states, and also the stable defects in state A are due to local properties of each layer as introduced during growth. However, for longer time light soaked states and succeeding partial annealed states the defect level of the multilayer sample is higher than either of homogeneous samples. However, the spatial variations of the stable defects are finally recovered when the sample is annealed at the same temperature as the initial state A.
Is there a safe coital position after a total hip arthroplasty

The population of patients receiving posterior total hip arthroplasty (THA) is growing among middle-aged adults. Through literature review and a survey of colleagues, it has been presented that patients and medical staff tend not to discuss the effects of sexual activity on posterior THA. So the question arises, is the supine position (missionary position) recommended over other coital positions in preventing posterior hip dislocations after a THA? The literature review included a search for full-text research studies from the peer-reviewed journals from 2002 to 2007. The studies affirm that the supine position is the safest coital position after a THA. Sexual relations are essential to the health, quality of life, and well-being of individuals. Because of the importance that sexual relations play in one's life, it is imperative that healthcare providers (nurse practitioners) educate their patients regarding sexual activity after a posterior THA.
Autophagy and p53

Macroautophagy (autophagy hereafter) captures, degrades, and recycles intracellular components to maintain metabolic homeostasis and protein and organelle quality control. Autophagy thereby promotes survival in starvation and prevents tissue degeneration. There is an important relationship between autophagy and p53. Autophagy suppresses p53 and also p53 activates autophagy. The suppression of p53 by autophagy is important for tumor promotion and likely also for preventing tissue degeneration. Alternatively, the activation of autophagy by p53 suggests that autophagy is part of the protective function of p53. Uncovering the underlying mechanisms of the autophagy-p53 reciprocal functional interaction and has important implications for human disease and treatment.
Inactivation of salmonella on tomato stem scars by edible chitosan and organic Acid coatings.

This study was conducted to investigate the efficacy of antimicrobial coatings for inactivation of Salmonella on the surface of tomato stem scars. Scars were inoculated with a four-strain cocktail of Salmonella (serovars Montevideo, Newport, Saintpaul, and Typhimurium) and coated with acid-chitosan solutions. The chitosan coating with three acids (3A plus chitosan), the chitosan coating with one acid, and the three-acid solution without chitosan reduced the populations of Salmonella by 6.0, 3.6, and 5.3 log CFU per stem scar, respectively. Addition of allyl isothiocyanate (10 μl/ml) to the 3A plus chitosan coating did not significantly increase (P > 0.05) the antimicrobial efficacy. Although the populations of Salmonella in the controls (ca. 7.5 log CFU per stem scar) did not change significantly throughout the 14-day storage period at 10°C, Salmonella cells were reduced to undetectable levels (<0.7 log CFU per stem scar) in the samples treated with 3A plus chitosan coating after two days of storage, and ...
The Built Environment Is a Microbial Wasteland.

ABSTRACT Humanity’s transition from the outdoor environment to the built environment (BE) has reduced our exposure to microbial diversity. The relative importance of factors that contribute to the composition of human-dominated BE microbial communities remains largely unknown. In their article in this issue, Chase and colleagues (J. Chase, J. Fouquier, M. Zare, D. L. Sonderegger, R. Knight, S. T. Kelley, J. Siegel, and J. G. Caporaso, mSystems 1(2):e00022-16, 2016, http://dx.doi.org/10.1128/mSystems.00022-16 ) present an office building study in which they controlled for environmental factors, geography, surface material, sampling location, and human interaction type. They found that surface location and geography were the strongest factors contributing to microbial community structure, while surface material had little effect. Even in the absence of direct human interaction, BE surfaces were composed of 25 to 30% human skin-associated taxa. The authors demonstrate how technical variation across sequencing runs is a major issue, especially in BE work, where the biomass is often low and the potential for PCR contaminants is high. Overall, the authors conclude that BE surfaces are desert-like environments where microbes passively accumulate.
The relationship of single dietary polyunsaturated fatty acids to fatty acid composition of lipids from subcellular particles of liver.

Supplements of purified fatty acid methyl or ethyl esters were fed at levels of 0.8% of dietary calories to each of seven groups of weanling rats for a period of 60 days. The esters were 9,12-octadecadienoate (18:2) ; 9,12,15-octadecatrienoate (18:3); 10,13-nonadecadienoate (19:2); 5,8,11,14-eicosatetraenoate (20:4); 5,8,11,14,17 - eicosapentaenoate (20:5); 4,7,10,13,16,19-docosahexaenoate (22:6); and 12:13-epoxyoctadeca-9-enoate (epoxyoleate). Rats fed a fat-free diet served as control animals. The effects of these dietary supplements on the fatty acid compositions of the nonphospholipids and phospholipids from liver microsomal and mitochondrial particles, and of unfractionated lipids from liver, testes, epididymal, and heart tissues were determined by gas–liquid chromatography. Epoxyoleate and 19:2, which are structurally related to linoleic acid, did not function as essential fatty acids as judged by the chemical and biological symptoms of fat deficiency. Dietary 20:5 and 22:6, both related to linolenate, were less active than linoleate in preventing the biological symptoms of fat deficiency, but more active in depressing the content of eicosatrienoate. Docosapentaenoic acid of the linoleate family was identified by reductive ozonolysis and shown to increase with an increase in dietary 18:2 or 20:4.
Optimality of Quasi-Open-Loop Policies for Discounted Semi-Markov Decision Processes

Quasi-open-loop policies consist of sequences of Markovian decision rules that are insensitive to one component of the state space. Given a semi-Markov decision process SMDP, we distinguish between exogenous and endogenous state components as follows: i the decision-maker's actions do not impact the evolution of an exogenous state component, and ii between consecutive decision epochs, the exogenous and endogenous state components are conditionally independent given the decision-maker's latest action. For simplicity, we consider an SMDP with one exogenous and one endogenous state component. When transition times between epochs are conditionally independent of the exogenous state given the most recent action, and the exogenous component is a multiplicative compound Poisson process, we provide an almost-everywhere condition on the reward function sufficient for the optimality of a quasi-open-loop policy. After adjusting the discount factor to account for the statistical properties of the exogenous state process, obtaining this policy amounts to solving a reduced SMDP in which the exogenous state is static. Depending on the relationship between the structure of the exogenous state process and the shape of the reward function, we can replace the almost-everywhere condition with one that applies only in expectation. Quasi-open-loop optimality holds even if the times between decision epochs depend on the Poisson process underlying the exogenous state component, and/or the Poisson process is replaced with a generic counting process.
East Baton Rouge (LA) Parish Study on Race, Homicides, and Death-Eligible Prosecutions, 1990-2008

This study examines the racial characteristics of homicides occurring in Louisiana's East Baton Rouge (EBR) parish during the nineteen years from 1990 through 2008, and then compares them to the racial characteristics of death-eligible (first degree at some stage) murder cases prosecuted during the same period. Are these prosecutions a statistically random, race-neutral subset of the homicides that occurred? What we find is that there is a negligible (less than one-in-a-million) chance of obtaining these data if the hypothesis -- that the prosecuted cases are a racially random sample drawn from the homicide group -- were true. The report counts and calculations for this article can be found here: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2096255
Solving large-scale systems of random quadratic equations via stochastic truncated amplitude flow

This work develops a new iterative algorithm, which is called stochastic truncated amplitude flow (STAF), to recover an unknown signal × ∊ Rn from m "phaseless" quadratic equations of the form ψ 1 =|aτ i x|, 1 ≤ i ≤ m. This problem is also known as phase retrieval, which is NP-hard in general. Building on an amplitude-based nonconvex least-squares formulation, STAF proceeds in two stages: s1) Orthogonality-promoting initialization computed using a stochastic variance reduced gradient algorithm; and, s2) Refinements of the initial point through truncated stochastic gradient-type iterations. Both stages handle a single equation per iteration, therefore lending STAF well to Big Data applications. Specifically for independent Gaussian {a i }m i=1 vectors, STAF recovers exactly any x exponentially fast when there are about as many equations as unknowns. Finally, numerical tests demonstrate that STAF improves upon its competing alternatives.
Nominal and verbal semantic structure: analogies and interactions

This paper examines parallels in semantic structure between noun phrases and verbal predicates in constructions in which they are mutually constraining and contribute to the expression of lexical aspect and grammatical aspect. One of the main claims pursued here is that such interactions are semantically motivated: it is the nominal argument linked to the Incremental Theme role that interacts with the aspectual semantics of verbal predicates and sentences, at least in the most typical cases. I will show how such interactions, which appear to be procedural and directional, can be described declaratively within a constraint-based (or unification-based) framework. This area intersects with lexical semantics, morphology and it poses intriguing problems to the mapping between syntax and semantics. It also provides an excellent basis for cross-linguistic studies and for exploring how nouns and verbs relate to the ontology of individuals and eventualities. The data is mainly drawn from English and Slavic languages, which are compared to German and Finnish.
Government Funding of Arts Organizations: Impact and Implications

ABSTRACTNonprofit organizations are told to diversify their revenue sources to avoid relying on any one source as a way to manage financial risk. However, arts organizations in the United States frequently do rely on government funding as part of their revenue mix. The purpose of this research is to determine to what extent arts organizations are dependent on government grants and the implications of government funding on other revenue such as individual and foundation support. The findings suggest that arts organizations that receive state-level public funding are more successful in gaining donations from other sources (e.g., board members, foundations, corporations, special event fundraising and in-kind support), but they receive less city and county funding.
Watching Watching: A Review of the New York Times’ Digital Platform for TV Viewers:

This review critically analyzes the New York Times’ (NYT’s) digital platform for TV viewing, Watching (https://www.nytimes.com/watching), and considers how the NYT is trying to use television criticism to produce a commodity audience in the era of peak TV.
An interference avoidance waveform for the UHF downlink on the new NOAA GOES-R satellite

The Data Collection System, onboard the NOAA GOES satellites, receives environmental data from more than 25,000 meteorological platforms in the western hemisphere using a one-way UHF uplink. There is strong interest in the Data Collection System (DCS) user community to establish a two-way system to permit the remote control and reconfiguration of these platforms. The first of the next generation of NOAA GOES satellites, GOES-R, was launched on November 19, 2016. Onboard, there is a 100 kHz transponder that will permit NOAA and the DCS user community to establish a DCS two-way link with meteorological platforms. The spectrum that must be used for this downlink is at 468.8 MHz. The DCS two-way service has a secondary allocation in this frequency band. The primary user group in this band, for the United States, is the business and industrial, land-mobile, radio community. This paper proposes an interference avoidance waveform that can coexist with the primary user group. The waveform is a coherent slow-hopping PSK waveform that utilizes the narrow interstitial notches between the emission masks of the primary, adjacent 12.5 kHz land mobile radio channels. A shortened Reed Solomon (250,218) code is added to assist with overcoming interference while at the same time providing the potential to use the GPS timing reference on DCS platforms to assist with decoding. Simulation results are included that verify the proposed waveform has the desired interference avoidance capabilities.
A Model of Non-Stationary Gravity Waves in the Stratosphere and Comparison to Observations

A model of gravity wave propagation and mean flow effects is compared to observations. Despite the absence of any gravity wave source variations in this model, monthly mean distributions in the gravity wave-driven zonal force and temperature variance show very realistic seasonal, vertical, and geographical variations in the middle atmosphere. A comparison to recent Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite observations by the Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) suggests the observed patterns are not indicative of variations in gravity wave sources, but instead result from a convolution of two effects on the gravity wave spectrum: 1) Doppler-shifting by the background winds, and 2) vertical wavelength filtering by the observation technique itself. These results underscore the importance of variations in the background winds in interpreting observations of gravity waves and their effects on the middle atmosphere.
Multimedia Relay Resource Allocation for Energy Efficient Wireless Networks: High-Layer Content Prioritization With Low-Layer Diversity Cooperation

With the popularity of versatile mobile multimedia applications and the pressing need to reduce energy consumption in future wireless networks, new challenges have been posed to maintain adequate coverage, quality of service, and reliability for big-scale multimedia traffic. Specifically, in this paper we introduce a cooperative multimedia relay framework and investigate premium-regular-diversity-based multimedia resource allocation treatment approaches. We also comparatively study five generic wireless multimedia relay scenarios including direct transmission, single relay, multiple pure relays, relay cooperation with space-time coding, and relay coordination with distributed beamforming. The key contribution of the new relay resource allocation framework is that packet importance priority diversity at the application layer is jointly considered with spatial diversity and relay coordination protocols at lower layers. Premium packets and regular packets of multimedia streams are adaptively allocated to relay nodes, and transmission resources are optimally allocated with regards to energy budget. Extensive simulation results demonstrate that the proposed resource allocation paradigm using multirelay coordination has significant video quality enhancement and energy saving potentials to support future big-data wireless multimedia traffic.
Optical Spectra of Radio-Loud and Radio-Quiet Active Galactic Nuclei

Many radio galaxies have strong emission lines in their optical spectra. The fraction with such lines is much larger than in “normal” galaxies. Radio galaxies generally also have very bright nuclei; thus those with strong emission lines are similar in both respects to Seyfert galaxies. Hence radio and Seyfert galaxies are both generally considered to be similar physical objects: active galactic nuclei. Their observational properties show they are closely related to quasars (quasi-stellar radio sources) and (radio-quiet) QSOs. A short table of the space density of these objects, culled from many sources, chiefly Schmidt (1978) and Simkim, Su and Schwarz (1980) is given below. Although all the numbers are quite uncertain, there is no doubt that the radio-loud objeets are relatively rare. With less certainty, it appears that the ratio of numbers of radio galaxies to Seyfert galaxies is about the same as the ratio of numbers of quasars to QSOs.
Integrative systematics of Placida cremoniana (Trinchese, 1892) (Gastropoda, Heterobranchia, Sacoglossa) reveals multiple pseudocryptic species

Placida cremoniana (Trinchese, 1892) is a sacoglossan heterobranch sea slug of striking coloration, with a reported range that has increased dramatically in recent years. Described from the Mediterranean in 1892, nominal conspecifics were reported from Japan in 1959, and since the 1990s, additional populations have been reported from across the tropical Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian oceans, plus temperate areas of Japan, Australia, and Europe. This sequence of events is consistent with a dramatic range expansion by one species due to human-mediated introductions, or dispersal from tropical into temperate areas induced by recent climate change. Alternatively, the expanding range of this nominal species could, instead, reflect the gradual discovery of previously unsampled members of a global species complex. These hypotheses were tested using a combination of molecular data from three loci (COI, 16S, and H3), as well as radular morphology and external color patterns, from specimens sampled from most of the reported range. Molecular species delimitation recovered P. cremoniana as a complex of four genetically divergent species, further distinguished by consistent differences in head coloration and radular morphology. As the Mediterranean species retains the name P. cremoniana, the three new species are described here, including an Eastern Pacific endemic and two species that are sympatric across large areas of the Central and Western Pacific. Photographic records and literature reports suggest that additional species may occur in the Indian Ocean, tropical Australia, and Caribbean.
Bridge-to-Bridge Strategies with IABP, Impella, and TandemHeart

As our awareness of long-term consequences of advanced heart failure improves, there has been an institutional push to pursue durable solutions for these failing hearts. These solutions include left ventricular assist device (LVAD) implantation as a destination therapy or as bridge to transplantation, as well as listing for orthotropic heart transplantation.
The Effects of Younger Dryas Orbital Parameterand Atmospheric pCO 2 Changes on Radiative Forcing and African Monsoonal Circulation

Abstract. Differences in the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) from the Younger Dryas (YD) to the Holocene can be explained by, but not limited to, factors relating to atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations, discharge of freshwater into the surface ocean, and changes in Earth's orbital parameters. Utilizing the Community Earth System Model (CESM1.0.5) with moderate resolution, this study evaluates how Younger Dryas seasonal and annual radiative forcing affect the climate change and variability. The Younger Dryas to Holocene changes in radiative forcing are mostly attributed to change in orbital parameters and to lesser extent to the relatively small rise in atmosphere pCO2, which is supported by a comparison of model simulations with proxy reconstructions of sea surface temperature and oceanic δ18O. These factors led to increased precipitation and reduced transport of water masses in the North Atlantic Ocean. Atmospheric pCO2 and orbital parameter changes are not substantial enough to explain the transition to the Younger Dryas northern hemispheric cooling. Younger Dryas to Holocene changes in the Monsoonal circulation over the African continent appears to be more affected by changes in orbital parameters than in atmospheric pCO2 but underestimated compared to observed reconstructions from ice and sediment cores. Thus, additional mechanisms such as fresh water hosed-cooling and/or ice sheet-albedo effect need to be considered to explain the Younger Dryas to Holocene climate change and variability.
Properties of Rat Testicular Androgen Binding Proteins

The rat testis is highly dependent on gonadotropins for its function (1). Specifically, LH has been shown to be responsible for the stimulus to produce testosterone (2, 3, 4), presumably in Leydig cells, while FSH has been implicated in the maintenance of the germinal epithelium and in the later stages of spermiogenesis (1). In addition, testosterone (or a metabolite thereof) appears to have a direct role in spermatogenesis (1).
Client-Side Detection of SQL Injection Attack

Despite the development of many server-side approaches, SQL Injection (SQLI) vulnerabilities are still widely reported. A complementary approach is to detect the attack from the client-side (browser). This paper presents a client-side approach to detect SQLI attacks. The client-side accepts shadow SQL queries from the server-side and checks any deviation between shadow queries with dynamic queries generated with user supplied inputs. We propose four conditional entropy metrics to measure the deviation between the shadow query and dynamic query. We evaluate the approach with an open source PHP application. The results indicate that our approach can detect malicious inputs early at the client-side.
Neutron Groups from K(α, n)Sc

Neutron groups resulting from the alpha-particle bombardment of separated isotopes of potassium were observed. Ground-state Q values of -3.42 plus or minus 0.06 Mev for K/sup 4//sup 1/( alpha ,n)Sc/sup 4//sup 4/ and -7.16 plus or minus 0.06 Mev for s/sup 9/( alpha ,n)Sc/sup 4//sup 2/ were obtained. A large number of excited states or groupings of states were also observed. The presence of chlorine in one of the targets permitted measurement of the Cl/sup 3// sup 7/( alpha ,n)K/sup 4//sup 0/ reaction as well. A ground-state Q value of - 3.86 plus or minus 0.06 Mev was obtained. A tentative value of -5.89 plus or minus 0.06 Mev was given for the Cl/sup 3//sup 5/ ( alpha ,n)K/sup 3//sup 8/ ground state. (auth)
The Psychology of Political Correctness in Higher Education

In this chapter, we deconstruct the psychological goals and assumptions underlying the foundational principles of the politically correct university, which emphasize diversity in race, ethnicity, gender, and sexual orientation but not sociopolitical ideas, and that require cultural sensitivity (seen in policies such as speech codes) so that minority and disadvantaged groups do not suffer offense or harm. Drawing on recent psychological research, we argue that sociopolitical diversity may be the most important form of diversity for achieving the educational benefits that diversity is supposed to produce. In addition, we challenge the assumption that certain viewpoints, research agendas, and speech should be prohibited or curtailed because they will offend and harm certain groups. We conclude by briefly exploring the consequences of PC for scholarly inquiry and academic debate.
A moment-free nonparametric quantity-of-quality approach to optimal portfolio selection: A role for endogenous shortfall and windfall boundaries?

AbstractThis article proposes a Quantity-of-Quality (QoQ) approach to optimal portfolio selection, which builds on the intuition of the widely applied h-index and e-index from the bibliometric literature. While moment-free and nonparametric, the method embraces quantity-of-high-quality returns and upside potential while simultaneously avoiding quantity-of-low-quality returns and downside risk. A non-standard measure of central tendency is also present, which functions in a way similar to a portfolio mean or median. The method delivers attractive and intuitively appealing results, and appears to be less susceptible to overfitting issues than the stylized Sharpe Ratio portfolio. The method is demonstrated with an established data set, and out-of-sample performance is gauged using training-holdout analysis in two distinct data sets. Because the proposed method uses a fundamentally different portfolio selection objective function than standard moment-based methods, the QoQ approach extracts information about ...
Couples' Sexual Communication and Dimensions of Sexual Function: A Meta-Analysis.

Research and clinical data have shown that couples with sexual problems report a lack of sexual communication. However, no published meta-analyses have evaluated the relationship between sexual com...
Microclimate effects of wind farms on local crop yields

Abstract This paper considers a novel spillover effect of wind farms - microclimate impacts on neighboring crop yields. Using US county-level crop and wind capacity data, I examine the effects of wind energy development on crop yields, controlling for time-invariant county characteristics and state-level annual shocks. I find robust evidence that counties with increased wind power development have also experienced increased corn and other crop yields, such that an additional 100 MW of wind capacity increases county yields by roughly 1%. At recent prices, this implies a more than $5 dollar per megawatt-hour local benefit, corresponding to several hundred million dollars in annual benefits.
On the Existence of Completely Saturated Packings and Completely Reduced Coverings

We prove the following conjecture of G. Fejes Toth, G. Kuperberg, and W.Kuperberg: every body K in either n-dimensional Euclidean or n-dimensional hyperbolic space admits a completely saturated packing and a completely reduced covering. Also we prove the following counterintuitive result: for every ∈>0, there is a body K in hyperbolic n-space which admits a completely saturated packing with density less than ∈ but which also admits a tiling.
Association Between the Size and 3D CT-Based Radiomic Features of Breast Cancer Hepatic Metastasis.

Purpose To evaluate the effect of the anatomic size on 3D radiomic imaging features of the breast cancer hepatic metastases. Materials and Methods CT scans of 81 liver metastases from 54 patients with breast cancer were evaluated. Ten most common 3D radiomic features from the histogram and gray level co-occurrence matrix (GLCM) categories were calculated for the hepatic metastases (HM) and compared to normal liver (NL). The effect of size was evaluated by using linear mixed-effects regression models. The effect of size on different radiomic features was analyzed for both liver lesions and background liver. Results Three-dimensional radiomic features from GLCM demonstrate an important size dependence. The texture-feature size dependence was found to be different among feature categories and between the HM and NL, thus demonstrating a discriminatory power for the tissue type. Significant difference in the slope was found for GLCM homogeneity (NL slope = 0.004, slope difference 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.06–0.1, p Conclusion Radiomic features of breast cancer hepatic metastasis exhibited significant correlation with tumor size. This finding demonstrates the complex behavior of imaging features and the need to include feature-specific properties into radiomic models.
Latino Males in Higher Education, Experiences Affecting Retention

As the Latino population continues to grow in the United States, it is important for Latino youth, and specifically, Latino males, to obtain a college degree. As other demographic groups graduate f...
Standardized Uptake Value for 18F-Fluorodeoxyglucose Is a Marker of Inflammatory State and Immune Infiltrate in Cervical Cancer

Purpose: Chemoradiotherapy for locally advanced cervical cancer fails in over a third of patients. Biomarkers with therapeutic implications are therefore needed. We investigated the relationship between an established prognostic marker, maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax) on 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography, and the inflammatory and immune state of cervical cancers. Experimental Design: An SUVmax most prognostic for freedom from progression (FFP) was identified and compared with known prognostic clinical variables in a cohort of 318 patients treated with definitive radiation with prospectively collected clinical data. Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) and CIBERSORT of whole-transcriptome data from 68 patients were used to identify biological pathways and immune cell subpopulations associated with high SUVmax. IHC using a tissue microarray (TMA, N = 82) was used to validate the CIBERSORT findings. The impact of macrophages on cervical cancer glucose metabolism was investigated in coculture experiments. Results: SUVmax Conclusions: SUVmax is a prognostic marker in cervical cancer that is associated with activation of inflammatory pathways and tumor infiltration of myeloid-derived immune cells, particularly macrophages. Macrophages contribute to changes in cervical cancer glucose metabolism.
Synthetic Ligand Selection Affects Stoichiometry, Carrier Dynamics, and Trapping in CuInSe2 Nanocrystals.

CuInSe2 nanocrystals exhibit tunable near-infrared bandgaps that bolster utility in photovoltaic applications as well as offer potential as substitutes for more toxic Cd- and Pb-based semiconductor...
Therapeutic Advancements in the Endovascular Management of Acute Ischemic Stroke

Abstract Stroke is the major cause of disability and the second leading cause of death worldwide. Acute ischemic stroke is responsible for ∼85% of all strokes, with 24% to 46% attributable to large...
A Comprehensive Approach to Power Plant Toxic Release Inventories

ABSTRACT Beginning in 1998, coal-fired and oil-fired power plants will be required to estimate and report their annual mass emissions to the national Toxic Release Inventory (TRI). The TRI is a publicly reported inventory of emissions to air, water and land of approximately 600 chemicals designated as “toxic” by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). This paper reviews the current status of TRI reporting requirements for electric utilities. The recently enhanced version of the EPRI PISCES Model is used to estimate the magnitude of reportable TRI emissions, and their uncertainties, for a variety of typical power plant designs, operating conditions, and fuel choices. The ability of environmental control technologies and plant operating practices to reduce emissions of TRI chemicals also is explored using the PISCES Model. INTRODUCTION In May 1997, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) promulgated its final rulemaking requiring oil- and coal-burning electric power plants to report chemical releases under the national Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) [1]. Affected facilities must report TRI emissions on an annual basis, beginning with 1998 emissions. EPA expects nearly 1,000 facilities, representing a third of the U.S. electric power sector to be affected. This paper briefly reviews the TRI requirements for electric power plants. Then, several case studies are presented to illustrate the types and magnitudes of chemical releases subject to TRI reporting. These case studies employ the TRI-enhanced PISCES Model developed for the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI).
Musicality experiments in lead and follow dance

Partner dancing requires realtime coordination between a human leader and follower, and so exemplifies other decentralized systems: supervisory control, coordination of agent teams. The paper reports an experiment in which the shared musical environment is manipulated to display one song to the leader and a different song to the follower. Results indicate that, indeed, musical cues indicate the appropriateness or inappropriateness of specific moves at specific points, but that the physical communication between the leader and the follower is robust to differences in song structure.
Verification-Based Approach for Automated Text and Feature Extraction from Raster-Scanned Maps

Existing systems for converting maps to an object-oriented form suitable for a geographic information system (GIS) are only partially automated. Most published approaches for automated interpretation of raster-scanned maps assume that the map is composed of various graphic entities, and that the vast majority of pixel positions on the map each belong to only one type of graphic entity and can therefore be geometrically segmented. However, complex color topographic maps contain several layers of information that overlap substantially (often within a single color plane), making it impossible to geometrically segment the map data into distinct regions containing a single class of graphic object. Here we describe a verification-based approach that uses various knowledge bases to detect, extract, and attribute map features without requiring the presegmentation of graphical entities. This approach builds on SRI International's (SRI's) verification-based computer vision and character recognition methodologies. The approach can also be applied to other types of documents containing a mix of text and graphics, such as engineering drawings, electrical schematics, and technical illustrations.
Does race really matter? Career goals, perceptions of criminal justice practitioners and competence among criminal justice undergraduates

This study examines whether race or ethnicity affects student decision-making pertaining to career goals and choices. The career goals and choices of undergraduates in criminal justice (CJ) were surveyed in early spring of 2006. The research also investigates students’ perceptions of their own perceived competence as future CJ practitioners. Data were collected from CJ undergraduates from an urban university in the upper Midwestern part of the U.S. The results indicate that racial or ethnic minority students have significantly different career goals and choices than those of non-minority students. Some future research implications and policy implications are discussed.
The Roles of Stability and Level of Self-Esteem in Psychological Functioning

During the past 30 years, a considerable amount of research has been conducted to examine the role of self-esteem in individuals’ thoughts, feelings, and actions. For the most part, this research has been directed toward the examination of level of self-esteem as the critical aspect of self-esteem. Some researchers, however, have begun to focus on such other aspects as certainty and stability of self-esteem (e.g., Baumgardner, 1990; Harris & Snyder, 1985; Maracek & Mettee, 1972; Rosenberg, 1986; Savin-Williams & Demo, 1983). In this chapter, I summarize the recent efforts of myself and colleagues to understand the role of stability of self- esteem (in combination with its level) in psychological functioning. I will begin by describing briefly the nature of stability of self-esteem and its assessment. Then I present a theoretical framework for understanding the joint influences of stability and level of self-esteem on people’s reactions to evaluative events. Following this, research that bears on this framework will be described. As will be shown, important individual differences would have been obscured if both stability and level of self-esteem had not been taken into consideration. I conclude by focusing on some issues of validity related to the assessment and conceptualization of stability of self-esteem.
Comparison of different activators and diazotization procedures in the assay of bilirubin-UDP-glucuronyl transferase activity in rat liver

The activity of bilirubin-UDP-glucuronyl transferase (UDPGT) in rat liver microsomes was assayed in standardized incubation mixtures employing two different procedures to quantitate formation of conjugated bilirubin: solvent extraction and diazotization with sulfanilic acid, or selective coupling with diazotized ethyl anthranilate at pH 2.7. Both of these procedures yielded equivalent UDPGT activities with several different microsomal preparations, averaging, respectively, 385 and 372 microU protein with untreated microsomes, 646 and 608 microU protein following activation with UDP-N-acetylglucosamine (3.07 mmol/l), and 1370 and 1478 microU protein after treatment with digitonin (0.65%). In rats pretreated with phenobarbital (75 mg/kg per 6 days), a 70-90% increase in UDPGT activity was observed with either diazotization procedure, irrespective of whether 'native', UDP-N-acetylglucosamine-or digitonin-activated enzyme was employed. These studies indicate that, when other conditions are standardized, equivalent information about UDPGT can be obtained with either of two widely employed diazotization reactions and a variety of enzyme activation procedures.